Mandela Trilogy, Mayflower Theatre

IT takes an epic musical to tell the life story of one of the world's most iconic figures. And Mandela Trilogy packs a powerful punch from beginning to end.

The tale of the revolutionary South African figure has been told many times, but never quite like this.

There are an incredible 60 members of Cape Town Opera and Cape Town Philharmonic on a packed stage and in an extended pit, dwarfing the numbers for even the large-scale musicals or major operas we are used to seeing on the Mayflower stage. Their impressive voices fill the huge auditorium without a microphone in sight.

It's a compelling piece of storytelling which sees three Mandelas in different stages of his fascinating life. The pick was older Nelson Aubrey Lodewyk who was channelling Morgan Freeman in Invictus, only with a voice so powerful it silenced the audience.

The production gets under way towards the end of his 27 year stint in prison before stepping back in time to Mandela's early tribal life on the banks of the Mbashe River and explores the jazz and party-fuelled times in Johannesberg's Sophiatown during the rise of the ANC. We return to understand more about his incarceration on Robben Island and eventual freedom.

The contemporary opera doesn't shy away from dissecting the man's character. As well as celebrating the life of an inspiring figure, we see a womaniser who is filled with self-doubt at his failings as a father and as a son. It also explores the downfall of his second marriage to Winnie over their differences of opinion on the use of violence in their struggle.

With two separate composers on board, the three acts felt a little disjointed at times. But they did prove a glorious showcase for everything from authentic South African folk to modern Western opera and from Broadway to jazz and everything in between. We were spoilt for styles.

LORELEI REDDIN

Mandela Trilogy runs until Saturday.

Tickets: 023 8071 1811 or mayflower.org.uk