Saturday 13th January 2018, I’m at the Millenium Centre here in Cardiff Bay, more musicals to feast on today with two performances of ‘The Band’, with music and songs from Take That. Today is yet another milestone for me, the Matinee will be my 350th performance of a show at the Centre (426 in all theatres, with 152 single shows). The theatre has been a godsend for me over the last five years, helping me wind down after a hectic week in work, also keeping me sane to go with it.

This is yet another musical I have not seen before, so looking forward to watching something new. Until recently I’ve never much liked the music of Take That, but as I’ve got older I’ve realised just how good they actually are. Their recent albums have made a difference, and forced me to change my attitude, with songs like ‘The Flood’ starting things off. Also watching them live (on tv) at Hyde Park in the summer helped change my mind.

Anyway on with the show, and I have to say it’s surprisingly good. The dance routines the boys attempt are spot on and I’m very impressed with the level of singing throughout the show, from all the cast. There are quite a few funny moments during the first act, although there is one sad scene, which brings us down to earth slightly, for a few minutes. The same can be said for Act two as well, a good many scenes mixed with joy and sadness. I must also mention the storyline, which I thought to be really strong, and gave the show a lot of impetus, I even shed a few tears in some of the more sadder scenes, and mixed in with the songs being sung in the background, justified the crying.

I’ve had a fabulous day watching a new musical (twice) and thoroughly enjoying both performances. There seems to be so many brilliant shows I still have yet to see and I bet they will all be superb.