On the 9th of March, 2024, I attended a performance of Six: The Musical.
It’s a perfect mix of 21st century pop and years worth of rich Tudor history compiled into a short but sweet eighty minutes. The musical focuses on Henry the Eighth’s six wives, and retells their stories in a way that hasn’t been done before.
Writers Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss have taken well-known historical facts and turned them into an award-winning show, with a running length of an hour and twenty minutes.
The musical follows a competition between the queens, as they fight for leadership of the band they are all in. They decide that the one who experienced the most abuse from Henry VII deserves to become the lead singer. The resolution is a heartwarming show of reclamation of individuality.
The audience feels engaged and involved in the production as the the cast are constantly breaking the fourth wall, speaking to and making jokes with the audience. The show mixes dark humour (plenty of beheading jokes!) with genuine themes of individuality.
Each Queen’s look and song are inspired by both modern artists and Tuder music and fashion:
- Catherine of Aragon: Beyonce
- Anne Boleyn: Avril Lavigne and Lily Allen
- Jane Seymour: Adele
- Anne of Cleves: Nicki Minaj
- Katherine Howard: Ariana Grande and Britney Spears
- Catherine Parr: Alicia Keys
Due to the popularity of this show, it is often running. I definitely recommend seeing it if it’s being shown at a theatre near you! Especially if you are a fan of history and catchy songs!