Relentlessly loud, unsubtle and lacking any pretence to charm or wit, Tony! The Tony Blair Rock Opera by Harry Hill and Steve Brown rattles through Blair’s greatest life hits, from birth to eventual death, interspersed by his political rise and prosecution of four wars. It’s an in-your-face puerile comedy at times hilarious but also cringeworthy. Blair is presented as weak, ineffectual and easily manipulated by those around him, particularly his wife, Cherie, Comms Director Peter Mandelson, and President Bush. A parade of political figures from Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden to John Prescott, Gordon Brown, Neil Kinnock and David Blunkett (with toy guide dog) populate the political landscape of Blair’s career.
The saving grace of the production is the cast. Full of energy and thoroughly committed to their roles, they manage to embody the person they are playing through a few deft characteristics. Jack Whittle does a particularly good job as Blair, his vacuous perma-grin, vocal patterns and mannerisms an excellent representation of the man. He even looks a lot like Blair. Phil Sealey’s Gordon Brown is big and overblown, imitating the man’s facial tics and Scottish brogue. Tori Burgess is great as Cherie Blair, the brash Scouser determined to win her man then push him into power. Princess Diana makes an appearance, played with suitably coy expression and sexuality by Emma Jay Thomas. Most of the cast switch characters, one minute Dick Cheney, the next Alastair Campbell – the level of talent is enviable. The cast’s singing and the three-piece band (led by MD Oli Jackson) are also terrific, although the songs are instantly forgettable with some dubious rhymes.
All the players are presented as broad caricatures in identical Blair-style suits with red ties. Maybe that’s meant to show that they are all in lockstep policy-wise or clones of each other, it wasn’t clear. The bad wigs and facial hair on characters like Osama bin Laden look like they were grabbed from the dressing-up box at the last minute. And the sound levels – the sound is turned up to 11 throughout. It’s painfully loud at times. Yes, it’s billed as a “rock opera”, alluding to Blair’s time as a member of the rock band, Ugly Rumours, but this is the delightfully intimate Leicester Square Theatre not Wembley Stadium.
There are a couple of moments that cut through the cringe and hint at what this show could have been if the crassness had been dialled back even a little. Blair’s presentation to Parliament of the (subsequently proved to be false) case for the existence of Weapons of Mass Destruction as the basis to launch a war on Iraq, and Robin Cook’s resignation, are on point. And the final song brings in elements of satire and wit missing from the rest of the show. As Blair says in the finale, people voted for him even after the war in Iraq. He and those around him ushered in a new era of PR spin and populism leading to where we are now. That insight makes the rest of the piece feel like a missed opportunity.
Tony! is playing at the Leicester Square Theatre until 21st May, then touring until 14th October 2023. Tickets are on sale at: https://tonyblairrockopera.co.uk/
Reviewer: Carole Gordon
Reviewed: 25th April 2023
North West End UK Rating: ★★★