RIOTOUS, raucous and laugh out loud funny. Not normally words associated with nuns, but then these are no ordinary nuns.
The divine musical comedy Sister Act has made its long-awaited return to the Mayflower stage after being rescheduled twice due to Covid.
It was well worth the wait. I enjoyed it every bit as much as the day I first fell in love with the smash hit movie starring Whoopi Goldberg.
READ MORE: Daily Echo review of Annie starring Craig Revel Horwood
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Nightclub singer Deloris Van Cartier (the larger than life disco diva Sandra Marvin) witnesses a murder and needs protection. She's placed in the only place no one would ever think to look - a convent.
Encouraged to help the truly awful choir, she helps the sisters find their true voices while unleashing hers in the process.
Of course, nuns on the run, glitzy and glamorous soul sisters, an audience with The Pope and TV appearances are not the best way to remain under the radar and the story reaches a critical crescendo.
Birds of a Feather star Lesley Joseph brings the laughs as the Mother Superior who initially deeply disapproves of her charge and ends up falling under her spell. Her constant conversations with God are a scream, particularly when he answers back. There is a touch of the Dorien Green's about her when she starts swigging from a hip flask.
West End favourite Lizzie Bea is delightful as young Sister Mary Robert, putting in a powerhouse performance as she sings about the pleasures denied to her, such as surfing, kissing and skinny-dipping.
There are many delightful scenes, most notably all the nuns gathering around the bed of Deloris for a pep talk ahead of the pontiff's visit and the slapstick routine which ends in the nuns seeing off the gun-toting villains who have broken into the convent with murder on their minds.
I would have loved to have seen more from the shy yet eventually fearsome police officer with a crush Eddie Souther (Clive Rowe). His performance sparkled almost as much as the brightly-coloured spangly smocks the cast donned for the finale.
This heavenly night out, which received a lengthy standing ovation, is the answer to all your prayers.
Sister Act runs until Saturday. Tickets from mayflower.org.uk
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