Poole and Parkstone Productions 
Lighthouse, Poole
Michelle Barter 
20 May 2026
We Will Rock You originally opened at The Dominion Theatre in 2002 and has indeed been rocking theatres ever since. The original tune being a hit from 1977, written by Brian May, and features the iconic three beat procession that you absolutely have to join in with if you hear it. The musical, however, isn’t a Queen biopic with Freddie’s story being told across their success, but rather a futuristic and dystopian version of Earth called iPlanet run by Globalsoft (where do they get these names from?). Live music is banned, favouring computer generated music from the internet instead, GaGa kids are jacked into their screens and spoon fed whatever is being beamed at them from Globalsoft; so far so scarily true! A bunch of renegade Bohemians dream of the pure tones from the pick of a plectrum, to bring music back to life and their only clue to the great rock musicians of the lost history is posters and a vi-deo that they can’t figure out how to break open.
I’d seen this show at the West End and had loved it, so I was excited to review this wonderful rock musical again and, wow, what a night! The audience was at capacity as far as I could see on opening night and the familiar silhouette of Freddie punching the air on a gauze welcomed us. The musical wastes no time in getting to the numbers and you are launched into the band’s wailing guitars and the thump of drums with the feel of a rock concert about to kick off. The stage is simply set with platforms on wheels (a set designer after my own heart) and the glitz of rock concert type lighting.
The vocal talent that plays throughout this musical comes from a cast of eight principles and a large chorus; I counted the full cast names in the program and got to 48 but the stage never feels over crowded. Adam Davis (Galileo) and Chloe Payne (Scaramouche) play the outcasts from the Globalsoft school running away from a regime that wants to homogenise everyone and everything. They are harmoniously paired as well as giving great acting performances and I love Scaramouche’s girl power comedy timing. They are running away from the Killer Queen, Libby Russell, who takes on this punchy girl boss part with gusto; Libby holds the part and a whip with great ease.
Killer Queen’s right hand man, Khashoggi, played by Jamie Thomson stalks the stage giving off Matrix vibes whilst belting out the tunes. The pair of runaways meet Buddy, played by Ian Metcalfe, who came into his own in the second act and his character’s song was fantastic and he made us laugh too. The Bohemian pair of Brit (I won’t spoil the full name) played by Lewis Baines and Oz (Michelle Wright) made a wonderful and colourful couple. Catherine Attridge played the strict teacher that conforms to Globalsoft completely.
I honestly spent half the night with goosebumps from the amazing vocal talent coupled with the live rock band that lurks in the orchestra pit; you can’t see them but, boy, do they make you hear them! The chorus worked incredibly hard with providing all the extra ambience, the voices, the dance and a million costume changes. It was also lovely to see a bit of Fosse being popped in; there should always be chairs and suspenders! The audience were on their feet giving a standing ovation at the end, greatly deserved all round, and we were encouraged to join in with various vocal call backs and of course those three beats of ‘We will, we will rock you’. This is a show you don’t want to miss.
Come on … join the rebels and be a Bohemian and you will indeed be rocked!
