After the world-wide success of the hit musical Mamma Mia! it was a given that producer Judy Graymer would take on another juke-box musical. She teamed up with Geri Halliwell and Simon Fuller to develop a new musical using the songs of the Spice Girls entitled Viva Forever. The show has been approached in a similar way to that of Mamma Mia. The production opened in the West End on the 11th December 2012 at the Piccadilly Theatre to mainly negative reviews. Just over a month after it opened I went along to see it, I wasn’t expecting anything. In fact I was ready to hate the production. But I told myself I wouldn’t go in with any expectations or go in wanting to dislike the show and I actually had a great time! The show follows Viva on her journey to stardom through an X-Factor style reality TV show. She originally auditions with her 3 best friends as a girl group but she is singled out and decides to follow her dream on her own. Within the show you also see Viva’s mother coming to terms with what her daughter wants in life. If you break down the story it is basically Mamma Mia but more topical. What you see on stage in Viva Forever is going to be something that a modern audience is going to recognise, they use the reality TV show really well in this show.
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