EDINBURGH 2011: BWW Reviews: SHOWSTOPPER! THE IMPROVISED MUSICAL, The Gilded Balloon, Aug 13 2011

Showstopper returns for another season at the Fringe, and this time they have a simple mission: create a hit musical for Cameron Mackintosh with the help of suggestions from the audience. Suggestions can be the most bizarre ideas imaginable, and frequently are.

The team behind the show have years of experience in creating a new musical every night, using the various ideas selected to somehow bring together a relatively coherent musical with a range of songs performed in the style of the genres chosen. It doesn't sound like it would work as well as it does, but the shows are deservedly sold out most nights, due to the skill shown by the cast of seven in distilling the most characteristic aspects of musicals into entertaining nuggets of comedy, and sensing the most effective places within the story to use them.

The cast and band of three undoubtedly know what they're doing, and the result is a sharp, funny new show each night.