Take That for an opening night! (From Daily Echo)

Take That for an opening night!

10:54am Wednesday 27th January 2010 in

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IT is undoubtedly a cynical way of cashing in on the multi-billion pound phenomenon that is the world’s most successful boy band.

But when they do Take That this well, who cares.

There was not a single bum on a single seat as a packed opening night crowd sang, danced, screamed, clapped and cheered an amazing medley finale including A Million Love Songs and Pray.

Every moment of the nearly three-hour musical catered perfectly for its target audience, from the opening scene of a marriage proposal to the sounds of Could it be Magic.

Which 30-something girl, reminiscing about her lost teenage years the first time Take That were cool, would not want to see TV beefcake Philip Olivier half-naked, remember the actions to Relight My Fire or see a happy ending?

But there was a much wider audience for a show that had mass-appeal because of its comedy moments, especially the hysterical scene where geeky Adrian Banks (Tom Bradley) tries to brave the stage in just his pants.

The undoubted star of this show, which charts the journey of a Take That tribute band, was our very own Gary Barlow (Mark Willshire).

Some of the duets with his love interest Chloe Turner (Aimie Atkinson) were spine-tingling.

There were some first night nerves with one trip during the spectacular shower/dance scene, involving a 24ft-high curtain of rain, and a slight problem with sound early on.

But that did not detract from what was a truly phenomenal feel-good production.

It could have only been bettered if Mr Barlow himself were in town.