REVIEW: The Bodyguard at Newcastle Theatre Royal

The Bodyguard

Newcastle Theatre Royal

Until Saturday 1 August 2026

Theatre Royal pubicity
Photo: Stephen Oliver

The Bodyguard has arrived in Newcastle this week, and it brings with it exactly what you'd hope for from a night built around the Whitney Houston songbook: big vocals, big lighting and a crowd who came ready to be won over.

Mireia Mambo as Rachel Marron 
Photo: Paul Coltas

Written by Alexander Dinelaris and based on the 1992 film of the same name, the show is built around Whitney Houston's recorded hits, with Greatest Love of All, I Wanna Dance With Somebody and, of course, I Will Always Love You all present and correct. This touring production stars Adam Garcia as bodyguard Frank Farmer, Matt Milburn as publicist Sy Spector, and, at our performance, Mireia Mambo stepping up from the ensemble to play superstar Rachel Marron.

Adam Garcia as Frank Farmer
Photo: Paul Coltas

The story is familiar territory for anyone who lived through the original film: former secret service agent Frank Farmer is hired to protect Rachel Marron from an unknown stalker, and neither of them is used to not getting their own way. That friction, between Frank's need to control every exit and entrance and Rachel's need to actually have a life and a career in front of the public, is where the show gets its early tension from. How do you protect someone whose job is to be seen?

Sasha Monique as Nicky Marron. 
Photo: Paul Coltas

Where the 1992 film belongs firmly to the pre-internet age, this stage version has been quietly updated to acknowledge social media and the way fame works now, which stops it feeling like a museum piece even as it leans hard into 90s nostalgia. And it is worth pausing on that: it's genuinely startling to realise it's 34 years since the film came out. The plot itself is not going to surprise anyone who got through a reasonable number of 90s thrillers - it's fairly predictable stuff - but the quality of the singing and dancing does a lot of heavy lifting, and lifts the show well above the material on the page.

Mireia Mambo as Rachel Marron 
Photo: Paul Coltas

As a jukebox musical built around a fictional pop star, the show has licence to include Whitney Houston numbers that don't strictly serve the plot but are performed simply as Rachel Marron's own concert numbers, and it uses that licence freely. It works, mostly because the concert sequences are staged as proper arena-style spectacle: flames, lighting rigs and sharp, confident choreography from the off. The dance company is smaller than you might expect, but that turns out to be a strength rather than a limitation - less is more when it comes to filling a stage, and it's a lesson some amateur productions could usefully take on board. A neat trick with a front curtain doubling as a screen keeps the energy going during set changes too, adding to the X-Factor-style showbiz gloss the production is clearly going for.

Photo: Paul Coltas

On the performances, Mireia Mambo more than justified her step up from the ensemble to play Rachel Marron on the night we attended. She has a genuinely impressive voice and real star quality, and made a strong case for herself with the show-stopping cover of Dolly Parton's I Will Always Love You - another reminder that understudies and alternates on this circuit are often performing at the very top of their game. Sasha Monique gave excellent support as sister Nicki, singing with real soul and passion. Phoenix Beharry, appearing as Fletcher at our performance, looks very much like a star in the making. And James-Lee Harris, playing the Stalker without a single line, brought a real sense of menace and gravity to every appearance - the production's jump scare moment landed exactly as intended, judging by the audience's reaction.

Matt Milburn as Sy Spector.
Photo: Paul Coltas

The pace throughout is well judged, with the direction knowing when to push forward and when to ease off. At just over two hours including the interval, the running time feels about right for the material.

Photo: Paul Coltas

Special mention too for the live orchestra, under Musical Director Charlie Ingles, who gave the whole evening real energy and drive. And full marks to Monday night's Newcastle crowd, who resisted the temptation to sing along - a small mercy, given that the show itself pokes gentle fun at exactly that impulse in its karaoke bar scene. There's a reason people pay to hear the professionals rather than their neighbour giving it their all after a few drinks.

Photo: Paul Coltas

The whole company reunited for a final encore of I Wanna Dance With Somebody, sending the audience out on a high and offering a timely reminder of just how strong Whitney Houston's back catalogue really is.

Review: Stephen Oliver

Photos: Paul Coltas

Tickets:

https://www.theatreroyal.co.uk/whats-on/the-bodyguard-2/