Mirvish and Executive Producer, Director, and Choreographer Steve Bolton’s Canadian production of We Will Rock You will surely attract young people to the theatre, and I commend them both wholeheartedly. There were many young attendees on opening night, which is fantastic. Some were even dressed in 80s style—love that.
Set far into a dystopian future ruled by capitalism, Global Soft Company controls the world with the Killer Queen (a dynamite Maggie Lacasse) as CEO. There’s no rock music on Radio Ga Ga because Global Soft fears it might inspire rebellion. It’s a dull, uninspired world where the thoughts and preferences of music are regulated by a single corporation under the guise of Patrick Olafson’s terrorizing Khashoggi.
Enter central character Galileo Figaro (impressive vocal work by Callum Lurie), who keeps hearing old rock music in his head. The audience also meets Scaramouche (solid vocal work by Paige Foskett), a gothic punk girl who, it’s safe to say, falls in love with Galileo. The two escape to live with the Bohemians, who discover Galileo knows the sacred texts of classic rock songs. They believe he’s here to save the world when the location of an electric guitar is found.
There are some incredible vocalists and solo, duet, and full company numbers of Queen’s music that effortlessly fill the CAA’s Ed Mirvish Theatre: “These Are the Days of Our Lives,” “The Show Must Go On,” ‘Under Pressure,” ‘I Want It All’ and the title song are just a few prime examples.
However, while the vocal work sounds terrific, Ben Elton’s silly, insipid book does not speak to me at all. It’s not enough to sustain interest in a theatre production. It might be for a concert where audiences are there for the music, but herein lies the challenge.
Is We Will Rock You a concert? A jukebox-musical?
That distinction is not made clear.
This opening night performance keeps wavering between the two, and it wears thin after a while. It appears We Will Rock You’s music is first and story second. It should be the other way around. The story must always come first.
Bolton adapts Ben Elton’s book for a 2025 audience. There is a TikTok reference at the top of the show, but it still doesn’t spark enough interest or engagement. I noticed others around me losing focus, with many getting up during Acts 1 and 2 to visit the bathroom or grab a drink. Did they already know the story and feel they wouldn’t miss anything? Or did they believe that because they knew the plot, they could get up and disturb audience members sitting behind? Which they did.
In his programme note, Bolton encourages the audience to “Let’s Rock,” acknowledging that performers and creatives have poured their hearts into every note, moment, and movement on stage. I believe him.
I really wanted to rock through both acts.
But I grew tired of it. I was waiting for the performance to end.
There were a couple of moments in Act 2 when I thought it was when the auditorium lights had gone completely black. A few audience members even left then.
This is not to say the entire production is not worth commenting on, as there are some positives in the show’s staging and presentation.
Overall, Studios XF-40 pays close attention to lighting and video design to create striking visuals through various projections, especially in depicting a dystopian, unfeeling environment. There are some shadowy spots on stage when I couldn’t see some of the ensemble. Jean-Marc Saumier’s scenic design successfully fills the stage. A few set changes feel a bit too long, and sitting in the dark can cause restlessness.
Vanessa Borris’s costumes are vividly loud and colourful. Thomas-Allard Rousseau’s makeup and Louis Bond’s hair and wigs capture the boldness and bigness of the 80s perfectly. Domenico Pandolfo pays careful attention to Queen’s musical arrangements of songs. For the most part, I could hear the lyrics clearly; however, at times, the music overpowered the vocals. But it hardly matters, as most audiences already know the lyrics.
The ensemble is quite good when they sing together. Without spoiling the plot, several character names make me laugh out loud when their connection becomes apparent.
Unfortunately, the production as a whole didn’t speak to me at all. I really wanted it to do so. But it didn’t.
There have been other jukebox musicals staged by Mirvish where the storyline follow-through remains clear. Three come to mind: Jersey Boys, Beautiful: The Carole King Story, and MJ: The Musical.
That doesn’t occur with We Will Rock You. It’s a concert first with theatrics following.
Again, it must be the other way around. I’d like the story first, please.
It’s wonderful to see young people in attendance at the opening night, though. The challenge now is to motivate them to want to see other shows on Toronto stages.
Let’s keep working on that, shall we?
Running time: approximately two hours and 40 minutes with one intermission.
MIRVISH PRODUCTIONS presents
WE WILL ROCK YOU
Music and Lyrics by Queen
Story and Script by Ben Elton with adaptation by Steve Bolton
Executive Producer, Director and Choreographer: Steve Bolton
Scenic Designer: Jean-Marc Saumier
Costume Designer: Vanessa Borris
Lighting and Video Designers: Studios XF-40 (David ee, Yohan Gingras, Christian Noel)
Props Designer: Felix Plante
Music Director: Jason Jestadt
Musical Arrangements: Domenico ‘Domeno’ Pandolfo
Hair and Wigs: Louis Bond
Make Up Designer: Thomas-Allard Rousseau
Performers: Callum Lurie, Paige Foskett, Laurence Champagne, Patrick Olafson, Peter Deiwick, Maggie Lacasse, Caleb Ajao, Stephanie Paquet, Alexandre Iannuzzi, Mathieu-Philippe Perras, Emily Masurkevitch, Elizabeth Lauzon, Sayer Roberts, Chloe McNeil, Seth Zosky, Eric Dahlinger, Sophie McLeod, Alexandra Grant
