Review: Marisha Wallace (Adelphi Theatre)

Review by Daz Gale

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Since travelling to London for what was supposed to be a temporary stint as emergency cover in Dreamgirls, Marisha Wallace has become West End royalty, stepping in to the shoes of some of the most iconic roles in musical theatre and putting her own distinct stamp on each one. With her star increasingly on the rise following her appearance on Celebrity Big Brother last year, it felt fitting that she returned to her former West End home of the Adelphi theatre for her biggest headline concert to date. Let me tell you, if you think you’d seen Marisha at her best before this concert, she had several tricks up her sleeve to show there really is no limit when it comes to her God-given talents.

Introducing the concert, Marisha explained this was going to be a story of hard work, determination, bad marriages, frauds and the royal family which set the precedent for an artful lesson in storytelling as she recounted her story and how she has gone on to become such an established name in the West End, skilfully tying her own journey into songs from across her career, with songs taking on whole new meanings when put in the context of her own story.

The majority of the second act was made up of songs she has performed in shows in the West End with Guys & Dolls, Dreamgirls and her current role in Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club all present and correct. The first act saw Marisha explore a bit more with numbers from Gypsy and The Color Purple alongside her beautiful rendition of ‘Tomorrow’ from Annie, which proved an early standout and set the bar incredibly high right at the beginning,

It takes a special kind of powerhouse performer to get an entire West End audience on their feet on just the third song but that is exactly what happened when Marisha delivered her first of two diva medleys of the evening, paying tribute to the late Whitney Houston with renditions of four of her upbeat numbers. The audience needed to get used to being on their feet though as the standing ovations kept coming after outstanding performances of classics including ‘I Know Where I’ve Been’ and ‘Cabaret’. One song proved so outstanding; it achieved the rarest of standing ovations – one that took place before she had even finished the song.

There are no prizes for guessing what song achieved that mid-song standing O. Dreamgirls as a show changed her life, and her performance of ‘And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going’ seems to have become her signature number. With a song as big and iconic as that and one that is now so associated with Marisha, you would be forgiven for thinking she might save that for the encore. It is a testament to her talent then that, instead, this legendary number closed the first Act, fittingly in the same spot it is in the musical. Any fear that she may not be able to match this phenomenal performance after the interval were quickly dashed in a second act that started on the highest of highs and never saw the quality dip, even for the briefest of seconds.

With Act Two kicking off with two more Dreamgirls numbers, a very special arrangement of ‘Listen’ proved another standout with Marisha delivering the first verse of Beyoncé’s version before having an Effie-off with the fantastic Sharlene Hector for the duet version now seen in the stage musical. What is better than one powerhouse performer blowing the roof off the Adelphi Theatre? Two, of course. The pair delivered a slice of musical theatre heaven in a rousing highlight of the evening.

Speaking of slices – Sharlene wasn’t the only guest joining Marisha at this performance. No stranger to the Adelphi after serving pies there in the cast of Waitress, Marisha was joined by her former co-stars Lucie Jones and Laura Baldwin to reprise their roles for two numbers. The excitement during their first attempt at ‘Opening Up’ led to them doing it again, before ‘A Soft Place To Land’ showed audiences just why so many loved that little pie show and why it is so deeply dished… I mean missed. Though she commented there was not a dry eye in the house during that moment, the emotion continued throughout, particularly after her heartfelt and moving tribute to another of her Waitress co-stars, the incomparable Gavin Creel. The way Marisha spoke about him and other aspects of her life at this concert, it is impossible to not feel every word, so that when she sings “you’re gonna love me”, you really are.

If there is one thing you associate with Marisha Wallace, it’s her out-of-this-world vocal ability, and she was on another level entirely at this concert. Hitting notes that I didn’t think were humanly possible and holding them for a crazy amount of time. Time and time again she proved what a phenomenon she is, taking the audience at the Adelphi to church with a mix of gospel, musical theatre and pop songs and threatening to take the roof off the building. Her talent doesn’t just extend to her voice, however, as her personality also shone through as she shared the highs and lows from her life and career that led to her being where she is today. Her storytelling ability extended to the musical numbers with a flawless ability to tap into the structure of the song to deliver the story with a hint of comedy, sass and/or emotion, depending on what it asks for.

Marisha has become one of the biggest and best talents we have in the West End and this concert was a perfect example of why that is. I have rarely seen a performance as consistent as accomplished as this one.  As individual numbers and as an overarching show, it was as incredible as any concert could get. With such care to the setlist and how each song fits into the story, Marisha has created a show that extends far beyond your usual throwaway concert and instead stands on its own two feet as an absolute masterclass performance. It’s a shame this concert was for one night only, though I have heard a rumour that perhaps there may be another chance to relive this performance in the near future.

One of my favourite nights in the theatre I have had in a long time and a perfect celebration of one of the very best there is. As Marisha paid tribute to some of the legends that have come before her, at this concert she proved she is up there with them. She has had a magnificent career so far and the future looks even brighter for her – now a British citizen (or, as she describes herself, “Brit…ish”) I look forward to her lighting up the West End for many years to come.

Setlist:

Some people (from Gypsy)

Mysterious Ways (from The Color Purple)

Whitney Houston Medley (I’m Every Woman/How Will I Know/I Wanna Dance With Somebody/So Emotional)

Tomorrow (from Annie)

Shine

I Cain’t Say No (from Oklahoma!)

My Man (from Funny Girl)

Miles & Miles (from Jingle Jangle)

And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going (from Dreamgirls)

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Dreamgirls (from Dreamgirls)

Listen (from Dreamgirls) (Duet with Sharlene Hector)

I Didn’t Plan it (from Waitress)

Opening Up (from Waitress) (with Lucie Jones and Laura Baldwin)

A Soft Place To Land  (from Waitress) (with Lucie Jones and Laura Baldwin)

Adelaide’s Lament (from Guys & Dolls)

Maybe This Time (from Cabaret)

Take Back Your Mink (from Guys & Dolls)

Etta James Medley (Something’s Got A Hold On Me/All I Could Do Was Cry/At Last/I Just Want To Make Love To You)

I Know Where I’ve Been (from Hairspray)

Cabaret (from Cabaret)

Proud Mary

Marisha Wallace played the Adelphi Theatre on 11th March 2025. You can catch her in Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club until 24th May with tickets available here