TOMORROW MAY BE MY LAST - REVIEW - OLD RED LION THEATRE

Set at Woodstock ‘69, evident from the peace symbols which adorn the walls, the brightly coloured bunting, mandalas, and the offer of LSD upon entry. We meet Janis Joplin (Collette Cooper) backstage as the crowd waits for her to perform, chanting her name.

Between the outstanding performances of songs from Joplin’s back catalogue, We watch as Joplin muses on her past, dwelling on events and letting her inner critical voice take over from time to time. Cooper is astounding, flexing her talents throughout, she embodies Joplin as she performs, showcasing her famous raspy voice and electric stage presence. Cooper has the audience in the palm of her hand throughout the show, she’s able to make them sing, dance, and get up onstage with her. I have never witnessed someone take charge of an audience in this manner before, and I was mesmerised by her performance.

If I had any gripes it would be that occasionally the monologue sections felt slightly too long, but I did enjoy how these were delivered – it felt as though we were simply listening to her as if in conversation, she drew us in and kept us there, utterly engaged and focused on her every word.

The musical numbers are where this show succeeds and to watch TSP, the live band, and Cooper perform was an absolute pleasure. Apart from some better transitions and pacing, to ensure the monologue moments aren’t such a stark contrast in pace to the energetic performance segments, I can’t fault Cooper’s writing or the performances. In particular, Cooper, her performance perfectly captures the show-woman that was Janis Joplin. I’m struggling to find the words to describe just how good Cooper is – but put it this way, she has a little Piece Of My Heart now, baby!

Read all of Amy’s review here

{🎟 AD – PR invite – Tickets were gifted in exchange for an honest review}

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