Manor Operatic Society’s We Will Rock You – 13 May 2026, Sheffield City Hall
Manor Operatic Society are celebrating their 40th anniversary with possibly their best musical yet, not just possibly the most epic amateur musical possibly the most epic musical overall to be performed in Sheffield this year, doing exactly what it promises in the title, rocking each and every member of the audience in this musical celebrating the music of Queen and the late Freddie Mercury in epic style.
From the opening number of “Radio Gaga” I could tell I was going to be in for a great night, and it was clear that the full cast and ensemble were enjoying it as much as we were. The epic size of the ensemble performed with crisp fun choreography and clear vocals, and this continued through the whole show right the way through to the “do you want us to do it” “Bohemian Rhapsody” finale. Director and choreographer Linda Kelly provided fun choreography throughout capturing the spirt of each section of the ensemble from the crisp electronic vibe of the Gaga Kids to the rock loving Bohemians and the cabaret style of the Fat Bottomed Girls. Linda and her co-director Richard Bradford did a superb job of getting the best out of the entire cast and the Sheffield City Hall stage to bring Ben Elton’s musical masterpiece to life. Of course, it wouldn’t be a Queen jukebox musical without the music and musical director Andrew Collis’s vocal arrangements and full band paid full respect to the source material and made me feel like I was not just at a musical but often a full-blown rock gig.
The musical’s two leads Dylan Lambert as Galileo Figaro (aka Gaz) and Emily Huddleston as Scaramouche would not be out of place in the West End production of the show, both possessing excellent stage presence, chemistry and acting and vocal abilities. Noone is ever going to match Freddie Mercury, but Dylan could definitely give Adam Lambert a run for his money from the moment he started singing his opening number of “I Want To Break Free”. Dylan also made his character’s random lyrics appearing in his mind seem entirely natural. Emily’s portray felt relatable and captured the youth and skepticism of her character and her performance of “Somebody To Love” was superb. Both were talented vocalists separately but combined their vocal talent reached a new level from turning “Who Wants To Live Forever” into a romantic, heartfelt ballad to “Hammer To Fall” working almost as a competitive cleverly arranged vocal battle between the two of them. With Dylan it all led up to the anthem that Is “We Are The Champions” and he did Queen fans everywhere proud.
I must mention Chris Hanlon as Khashoggi, who would not have been out of place as the baddie in any late 1970s / early 1980s sci-fi movie, and Emily McGeoch as Killer Queen played with Disney villainess attitude and persona. Performed with great stage confidence throughout both were at their vocal best in act two, Chris with “Seven Seas Of Rhye”, which was also superbly directed as The Bohemians dramatically received treatment in the Laser Cells during the number and for Emily her rendition of “Another One Bites The Dust”, which she truly made her own.
From the Bohemians, who the make-up and costumes most have had a ball with as they celebrated all aspects and styles of rock, I must mention Gary Rossiter as Buddy, who made me think of John Thompson if he was playing the role and performing and lovingly thoughtful and moving rendition of “These Are The Days Of Our Lives” that gave me goosebumps; and Katie Ann Dolling who had the look of Christina Aguilera during her “Dirty” era with London attitude and rebellion thrown in and in her moving soulful rendition of “No One But You (Only the Good Die Young)” also gave me goosebumps.
Behind the scenes I must also praise those involved with costumes, all fantastic and capturing the vibe of each individual and tribe of characters; those involved with the props, lighting and projection, capturing the rock gig atmosphere, both the futuristic and bleak conformist reality and Heartbreak Hotel and Laser Cells sets.
This musical should not be missed by those looking for near- West End quality musical theatre in Sheffield and fans of Queen and rock music in general, who nearly a quarter of a century on from when the musical first opened still believe that music rules over the globalisation and the internet, a message that with the world of AI is even more important to spread now than ever before.
