Named one of The Stage’s Rising Stars for 2024, Rob Madge is no stranger to the spotlight. They found early success as a child actor in productions such as Oliver, Mary Poppins, Matilda and who could forget their star turn as Gavroche in the 25th Anniversary concert production of Les Misérables?!
As an adult, Rob captivated the internet during the COVID-19 lockdowns by sharing videos of their 12-year-old self, putting on living room shows for their parents.
Rob’s one-person show, My Son’s A Queer (But What Can You Do?), based on their childhood and those cherished family videos, had sell-out runs at the Turbine Theatre, Edinburgh Festival, Garrick Theatre and The Ambassadors Theatre in the West End. The show earned them WhatsOnStage, Attitude and Stage Debut Awards, along with an Olivier nomination for Best Entertainment or Comedy Play. My Son’s A Queer was due to transfer to Broadway, before being heartbreakingly postponed earlier in the year.
Now Rob’s back with a new show, Rob Madge’s Regards to Broadway. Playing just one matinee and evening performance at the Garrick Theatre, this new production navigates Rob’s loss over their Broadway transfer, returning to their family home in the Midlands and experiencing the greatest humbling of their life. “They’ve come home at last” – Nicole Scherzinger, 2023.
Regards To Broadway began with a voice over, “welcome to my therapy session” which set the tone for the evening’s entertainment perfectly. Utilising set pieces from My Son’s A Queer and accompanied by the incomparable Pippa Cleary, Rob talked us through the early Fringe days of their one-person show, meetings with Broadway, the postponement of the transfer and their subsequent emotional journey all delivered with their dazzling wit, self-referential humor and personality.
Spattered with parodies of Sunset songs (Scherzinger is the moment), a full parody of Breathe from In The Heights and snippets of the new Broadway-bound song from My Son’s A Queer, Rob draws from experiences of seeing the new Sunset, pop culture moments of the last six months and a plethora of industry insight and analysis, delivering an incredibly heartfelt performance.
Almost a call to arms for performers, this new show was as much a healing process for Rob as it was for all of us. Much like My Son’s A Queer, which resonated deeply with our inner queer child, Regards to Broadway speaks to us as performers and to the industry itself. It candidly acknowledges that our industry can be both extraordinary and utterly shite, sometimes populated by amazing people and other times with absolute knob ends… and how can we not all collectively laugh at that industry which takes so much and gives so little.
Filled to the brim with stagey people and numerous West End Wendy’s, the Garrick Theatre was buzzing. Whether the audience had seen Rob in shows, happened upon their online videos, seen My Son’s A Queer or knew Rob personally, the Garrick Theatre radiated with love. As the show began and Rob graced the stage, the audience erupted with pure joy. It was our way of saying, we love you. This enthusiasm continued throughout the performance as the audience understood every joke, every industry slight and every pop culture reference. In every sense of the word, Regards to Broadway was an absolute triumph and although this new show only played for two performances, audiences still have the opportunity to see Rob perform their one-person show My Son’s A Queer (But What Can You Do?) all over the country as they head out on tour later this year.
Reviewed by Stuart James
