Wild Rose A New Musical Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh 14th March 2025 Review
Wild Rose A New Musical has its World Premiere run of shows at the Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh from 6th March to 19th April, and if tonight’s performance is an indicator of things to come, this show deserves to be one not to miss.
Wild Rose is the stage musical adaptation of the 2018 hit film of the same name, and both the screenplay and the stage production have been written by Nicole Taylor who always, we are told in the show programme, saw this story as one to be told in film and on stage.
I have to admit here that I have not yet seen the film, and I deliberately avoided watching any scenes from it online so this review could be based solely on how Wild Rose stands as a stage production.
This is a story all about never letting your dreams be lost no matter how impossible obtaining them may seem sometimes, and this story of a Country & Western music obsessed fan and singer from Glasgow who wants to be a Nashville star is one of those moments where everything just seems to fall into place.
That passion and drive to never let go, to somehow keep going forward, applies not only to Rose-Lynn the lead character of this story, but also to writer Nicole Taylor and Dawn Sievewright who in Rose-Lynn seems to have found the perfect role to be cast in. I have no doubt that in the years ahead Rose-Lynn will be a role that many people will want to portray as there is just so much honesty and depth to her. Anyone coming to this role after Dawn Sievewright will have a hard act to follow though, as she has really defined her Rose-Lynn and stamped her authority all over this part with her consistently impressive vocals and believable emotions.
This show also gives space to Blythe Duff to give a fine and emotionally powerful performance as Rose-Lynn’s mother, Marion. Also tonight in the roles of Rose-Lynn’s two children, Lyle and Wynonna, Alfie Campbell and Lily Ferguson were both impressive with their performances. Janet Kumah as Rose’s unlikely champion Susannah is also an interesting character, but we sadly get to hear far too little of Janet’s vocals.
We are told more than once that the real power of Country music is that somewhere there is a song out there that covers every possible human emotion, and this is possibly why this is such a strong show. It is simply so well written and the main characters so well defined that we are taken on a very mixed emotional journey here, and often when you expect one conclusion to happen, something else transpires to change the story.
Country music is of course a big part of this show and all too often trying to use existing songs in a show simply does not work. This show is one of the rare exceptions, and part of the reason for these songs working so well is the context in which they are used.
One look at the large creative team involved in this production is enough to make it clear that everyone involved here is simply amongst the best at what they do. A big part of the success of this show must however go to its visual impact and here Chloe Lamford (set designer) and Katrina Lindsay (costume designer) have created the perfect world for Rose-Lynn’s story to be told in.
Any show about Country and Western music would be nothing without a live band, and for this show the line-up of musical talent is an impressive one with this band never missing a beat all night.
Wild Rose is also, after eight years, David Greig’s final show as Artistic Director at the Lyceum Theatre, so it is good to see that he is having such an obviously huge hit as this one to say goodbye with.
Review by Tom King © 2025
www.artsreviewsedinburgh.com
Wild Rose is the stage musical adaptation of the 2018 hit film of the same name, and both the screenplay and the stage production have been written by Nicole Taylor who always, we are told in the show programme, saw this story as one to be told in film and on stage.
I have to admit here that I have not yet seen the film, and I deliberately avoided watching any scenes from it online so this review could be based solely on how Wild Rose stands as a stage production.
This is a story all about never letting your dreams be lost no matter how impossible obtaining them may seem sometimes, and this story of a Country & Western music obsessed fan and singer from Glasgow who wants to be a Nashville star is one of those moments where everything just seems to fall into place.
That passion and drive to never let go, to somehow keep going forward, applies not only to Rose-Lynn the lead character of this story, but also to writer Nicole Taylor and Dawn Sievewright who in Rose-Lynn seems to have found the perfect role to be cast in. I have no doubt that in the years ahead Rose-Lynn will be a role that many people will want to portray as there is just so much honesty and depth to her. Anyone coming to this role after Dawn Sievewright will have a hard act to follow though, as she has really defined her Rose-Lynn and stamped her authority all over this part with her consistently impressive vocals and believable emotions.
This show also gives space to Blythe Duff to give a fine and emotionally powerful performance as Rose-Lynn’s mother, Marion. Also tonight in the roles of Rose-Lynn’s two children, Lyle and Wynonna, Alfie Campbell and Lily Ferguson were both impressive with their performances. Janet Kumah as Rose’s unlikely champion Susannah is also an interesting character, but we sadly get to hear far too little of Janet’s vocals.
We are told more than once that the real power of Country music is that somewhere there is a song out there that covers every possible human emotion, and this is possibly why this is such a strong show. It is simply so well written and the main characters so well defined that we are taken on a very mixed emotional journey here, and often when you expect one conclusion to happen, something else transpires to change the story.
Country music is of course a big part of this show and all too often trying to use existing songs in a show simply does not work. This show is one of the rare exceptions, and part of the reason for these songs working so well is the context in which they are used.
One look at the large creative team involved in this production is enough to make it clear that everyone involved here is simply amongst the best at what they do. A big part of the success of this show must however go to its visual impact and here Chloe Lamford (set designer) and Katrina Lindsay (costume designer) have created the perfect world for Rose-Lynn’s story to be told in.
Any show about Country and Western music would be nothing without a live band, and for this show the line-up of musical talent is an impressive one with this band never missing a beat all night.
Wild Rose is also, after eight years, David Greig’s final show as Artistic Director at the Lyceum Theatre, so it is good to see that he is having such an obviously huge hit as this one to say goodbye with.
Review by Tom King © 2025
www.artsreviewsedinburgh.com