Kicking off her national UK tour, Faye Tozer – known to most as one fifth of 90s pop group Steps – will be performing in Lincoln this Saturday, April 24th, in the musical review show “In the Spotlight: Songs from the Musicals”.
Tozer spoke optimistically to The Linc about “In the Spotlight” and revealed what makes the show so different: “This is a spotlight musical review show so it’s a mix of different types of songs from different musicals. We tried not to go through the traditional approach.
“We want this to be a young, fresh, and stylish approach to a musical review show in the way it looks, the way it sounds, the energy on stage, and also the theme running through the show.
“This has got a really nice young twist; we’re trying to approach a young audience as well as those who go to the theatre regularly.”
Alongside Tozer, the show will feature five vocalists, six dancers, and a live band. Tozer said that the cast work really well together and are ready to put on a great performance: “There are some wonderful solos, some lovely duets, and there are some great company numbers.
“We set one of the numbers yesterday where we take music from ‘Witches of Eastwick’ and it’s a really nice trio for the girls – it’s kind of rare to get strong female harmonies in shows these days.
Keen to express that this isn’t a solo show, Tozer constantly makes reference to the big company numbers: “It’s really exciting to be part of a traditional show instead of being the pop star on the end. It feels like a team effort, and I do group numbers as well as bits and pieces on my own. It’s got a really nice feeling to it – it’s going to be fantastic.”
She experienced major success with Steps, but that didn’t guarantee her an easy ride: “I’ve been doing [musical theatre] for about seven years now and after Steps I started right down at the bottom and worked my way up. I worked for my reputation in musical theatre.
“Those who don’t know I’ve been in theatre might be a little bit dubious, but the wonderful thing is that as soon as they see you on stage performing those songs, wailing your little heart out, and doing your thing, you change people’s lives and I’m really proud of what I’ve succeeded in so far,” Tozer says.
“It’s going to be wonderful because people get to see me performing lots of different styles from being that teeny bopper on tele skipping around in yellow. I’ve got something to shout about and with a wonderful cast, it makes this a fabulous production to be in.”
“In the Spotlight” is produced by nineteen-year old Ollie Rendall from Lincoln, who explains that it wasn’t easy to get given the chance to produce a show of this scale, especially being so young: “I spoke to some theatre managers at some massive theatres and it’s quite scary because you think ‘I’m nineteen and if you know that maybe it will put you off from taking the show’,” Rendall says.
“I suppose it’s the same dealing with agents as well. You don’t want people to think you’re nineteen and incapable of doing it, obviously I’ve got a lot less experience than some of the producers, but I’ve still got a huge passion for it.”
Tozer has high hopes for the audience’s post-show reaction: “I think it’s going to take the audience on a real whirlwind of a journey and hopefully they’ll come out feeling completely elated, buzzing, and talking about it. That’s what we’re hoping to achieve.”
“In the Spotlight: Songs from the Musicals” will be performing at the Drill Hall this Saturday, April 24th, for two shows at 2:30pm and 7:30pm. Tickets are priced £14 and £12 for concessions. To purchase tickets and for more information, visit the Drill Halls’ website or call 01522 873894.