Tina - The Tina Turner Musical - Orpheum Theatre

If you like Tina Turner in any way, go see this show. That is pretty much my review.

The show opens with Tina about to go on stage in Rio. We are backstage with her, we see her be nervous, we see her sit down for a quick meditation. As she does that, people from her past, and different faith backgrounds, enter and vocalize along with her Buddhist chanting. This transforms into a very young Anna-Mae Bullock sitting in church while her father preaches. The congregation starts to sing, and her voice rings out over all of them, powerful, and incredible from a person at that age. Despite the scolding looks from her mother, Anna-Mae can't help but continue. This is the start of how we see Anna-Mae become Tina Turner. 

If you have seen the 1993 film "What's Love Got to Do with It," then you have an idea of the story you are about to see on stage. It has some very cruel parts to it both in action (physical abuse, violence) and in words (the N-word is spoken a number of times). You know how Anna-Mae met Ike Turner, and eventually became the icon that is Tina Turner - fighting to be her own person. Seeing this play out on stage, using the music of Tina Turner to help tell the story is an really great work of theatre. Directed and choreographed by the same team who did Mamma Mia!, (Phyllida Lloyd, and Anthony Van Laast) you can see that they have learned a lot since Mamma Mia! The lyrics to the songs fit much better into the story that is being told. Nothing seemed pushed and that is thanks to Katori Hall, Frank Ketelaar, and Kees Prins who wrote the book of the musical. It is also a tribute to the lyrics that Tina Turner wrote, or sang and how personal they are to who she is - at least in the public, musical eye.

The production was top-notch. Costumes, set pieces, projections, make-up - all worked incredibly well together to tell this story, and to show us the characters that we know (to some extent). When we see Tina Turner in a short gold dress with beads, we know she is about to sing Proud Mary. When we see the Private Dancer wig being pulled out of a box and placed on her head - we are taken immediately into a very specific time and place of our own memories, but also a place of recognition. And speaking of recognition - this cast was incredible. For various reasons I had to attend late in the week. I was nervous because the day before I saw the show, both the matinee and evening show were cancelled due to illness in the cast. The matinee on the day after I saw it was also cancelled. After seeing the show, it was clear that this show takes a LOT out of the lead performer both emotionally, and especially vocally. I saw Karen Burthwright play Tina and she was amazing. There were moments when it sounded like her voice was strained, however after the curtain call - she still had a great voice to sing two more numbers. The show was fantastic, the cast was incredible, and it plays through March 12. Go see it!

Photos: Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade, 2022