Divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived. We’ve all heard this nursery rhyme growing up and knew of Henry VIII’s six wives and their tragic fates. But… who were they really? Sure, we know what they did and how they died but wasn’t it all in relation to just one guy? Aren’t you curious what it was like from their perspective?
Well, I certainly was when I first heard about this musical. I’m always a sucker for a modern retelling but I was in no way prepared for what SIX the Musical was presenting. For context, I’ve seen snippets of SIX the Musical before through the numerous clips floating about TikTok so I am fairly familiar with the entire soundtrack.
While I had my favourites and skips, it’s a whole other story seeing it three rows away from the stage. But is it as good as the 3 million plus likes and 32 million views on TikTok say? Well, let’s break this musical apart and see just how well it rewrote her-story!
Divorced, Beheaded, LIVE
As the curtains raised and the beat dropped, chills ran down my spine in anticipation. The opening number Ex-Wives includes an earworm of a chorus so grand and electrifying, that it honestly made me hold my breath. As each queen strutted towards the audience, I was awed by the charisma and defiance the queens possessed.
Sick of only being known for their association in history with the king, these six queens have fought their way out of his shadow to tell their point-of-view. Beyond that, they compete and see who should lead their sextet by exposing all the things that have happened throughout their lives.
Starting off with a bang, Ex-Wives perfectly sets up the story’s premise, allowing the musical to dive deep into each queen’s reimagined narratives. With a mini preview into each queen, the song perfectly captures the personalities of each queen through the music, changing accordingly as each queen sings her parts. While I will talk more about each queen in their solo, Ex-Wives serves as a stellar opener, with each actress’s high energy and amazing chemistry on stage.
Let’s pause and take a look at the costume designs. All the queens are dressed in rhinestone-studded pieces of their own colours as well as sparkly heeled boots – a far cry from their traditional royal wear. With dramatic sleeves and shoulders, spiked-out hair accessories and fishnets, these costumes are the epitome of edge and cheekiness. Despite the unified theme of each costume, every queen has a unique twist for each of their costumes!
Dressed in a beautiful gold, we start with the first queen: Billie Kerr’s Catherine of Aragon. To me, the gold exemplifies her majesty as the first queen of the six, further supported by the diamond detailing on the bodice of her top. Her solo, No Way shows how tolerant and loyal she was despite all the things she experienced; reaching her breaking point only when her husband wanted her out of the palace and to annul their marriage.
Admittedly, this song was a bit one-note for me. While it did present the humiliation Catherine of Aragon experienced as well as her thoughts and feelings behind it, I cannot describe her character succinctly through this song. In fact, the only thing I got was that she was just sick and tired of her husband and was no longer content to keep mum. The only part that stood out to me was the bridge, where she pleads sincerely for a reason why, only to receive silence. This sudden showing of another side gave more depth to the character, however, I do think there is more that can be done.
Despite the song being pretty mid, the performance did manage to save it. Upbeat and sassy, Billie Kerr as well as the other actresses made the song seem fresh with each course, dancing to the pop number. My favourite part was definitely when Billie Kerr declared her determination to stay queen for the rest of her life for you could hear the fire and strength in her voice as she fought the unfairness bestowed upon her.
Next up is Yna Tresvalles’ Anne Boleyn, arguably the most famous of the Tudor Queens in this time period. Kickstarting her solo, she’s in a cute bright green two-piece set and her iconic ‘B’ choker, while her two space buns and short flared skirt further play into her cheekiness. Overlapping with Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn was pursued by Henry, playing hard-to-get in the face of his advances.
One of the tracks in this musical that I have on loop, the pop-punk Don’t Lose Ur Head switches up the mood from the previous song. A rather different depiction of Anne Boleyn, the musical depicts her as a lively and unhinged character – something that is presented very explicitly during this number. Embodying to a tee the Avril Lavigne-ness of this character, Yna Tresvalles’ performance as Anne Boleyn was one of the best I’ve ever seen.
Don’t Lose Ur Head is also an absolute bop! Shameless and playful, the solo presents the idea of not taking everything so seriously through the tinkling notes in the chorus as well as the lyrics. The repetition of “(Uh oh) Here we go” ingeniously summarises the happenings of Anne Boleyn’s life to a coincidence, a huge contrast to the ambitious, cunning version often displayed in history. This characterisation of Anne Boleyn by far is one of my favourite aspects of the musical as sometimes, it’s really just girls being girls.
Our third queen is Liberty Stotter’s Jane Seymour, clad in a simple silverish-white dress. Several things set her apart from the rest of the group: her outfit and the fact that she is the only one who explicitly says she loves Henry. The only one in a dress, she is comparatively less edgy than the others. The dress’s colours are also not as striking compared to the neon pink or deep blue of Katherine Howard and Catherine Parr, respectively.
This detail can be attributed to her characterisation for she is more demure and gentle, a complete 180 to the spirited Anne Boleyn and defiant Catherine of Aragon. Her solo, Heart of Stone, presents a heartrending narrative of her life and how fiercely she loved a man like Henry, turning a previously laidback atmosphere and supercharging it with emotion.
Admittedly, when I first watched the clip of Jane Seymour’s solo performance online, I didn’t get it. Why and how would anyone love someone else so fully when the other person’s feelings are conditional? It wasn’t a stand-out stage for me when I first saw it online.
However, watching Liberty Stotter perform it live? Whew… I cried. Even if I didn’t understand the reasoning, the pure emotion emanating from Liberty Stotter’s vocals was so raw that, even sitting in the audience, you know that she loves Henry and her son so much that not even her death will change that. It was something that transcended usual performances, permeating into the air around it.
The lyrics are also brilliantly written, perhaps some of my favourites in this soundtrack. The phrase ‘heart of stone’ is defined as a cruel or stern nature. However, this solo gives stone a whole new meaning – unwavering constance. Her love like stone is unchangingly persevering and even “When the fire’s burnt, When the wind has blown, When the water’s dried, You’ll still find stone”.
Some might find her pitiful and naive for loving a man so unconditionally even when he does not feel the same, but I think it takes incredible strength and faith to love someone so certainly even when you know that their feelings might change any time.
Before our fourth queen is presented, we change our location settings to Germany. In the hilarious EDM dance number influenced by German techno, Haus of Holbein transports audiences to a world of glow-in-the-dark sunglasses and neon ruff collars – in short, it’s as crackhead as it sounds.
The sudden change was a tad jarring, since one moment I was tearing up for a heartfelt ballad and the next I was losing it over the six actresses with glow-in-the-dark accessories. However, the extremely high-energy performance and pure unhingedness required for this number are insane, so major kudos to the cast for that! And honestly, this song is quite high up on my list for a simple reason – it’s so funny. Prick up your ears as well, readers, for you might hear a very familiar line that has been floating around TikTok.
Despite its high comical value, this song is not just for comic relief. Skillfully packaged, Haus of Holbein shows off an extremely satirical display of women’s beauty standards as well as takes a swing at modern dating culture through its Tinder-esque set-up. Never would have thought that a criticism of societal beauty standards would leave me in stitches but here we are!
Before the next solo, Hannah Victoria’s Anna of Cleves “laments” dramatically at her fate – with the whole sad piano music schtick in the background. You don’t understand how hard I was trying to keep it together and not dissolve into a pile of laughter. Then the beat drops and the hook begins, full of sass – oof, you know you’re in for a treat.
With elements of hip-hop, Get Down is the song you need to play when you’re feeling insecure and discouraged. Dripping with confidence and surety, the red spotlight as well as Anna’s outfit further enhances the power of this song; fully encompassing the word “dominant”, especially the empty chorus of just catchy tunes and dance beats. If you need a visual, I imagine this song as essentially a giant flip-off to all the people who ever made you feel bad about yourself.
Rather than being downtrodden and dejected at the king’s rejection, Get Down has Anna of Cleves relishing her new-found wealth and freedom instead. Hannah Victoria’s presentation of Anna of Cleves is breathtaking and self-assured, especially in the era when so many things were taboo. Backing up this characterisation is her outfit: a structured, fully closed top with shorts – the least feminine costume of the six (to me).
Our fifth and second-last queen brings us back to England. Lizzie Emery’s Katherine Howard is the youngest of the six queens – a mildly concerning fact considering that this story is told linearly. Her solo All You Wanna Do is the most heartbreaking of the performances, despite its catchy and upbeat music. To me, Katherine Howard had it the worst out of the six queens in her entire life, not just in her relationship with Henry VIII. Heads up, there are some potentially triggering topics that are alluded to in this song, so consider this as your trigger warning.
The longest track of the musical, All U Wanna Do provides an extremely visceral development of Katherine’s Howard character through her different relationships. From hopeful to defeated, Lizzie Emery’s carefree and sensual performance becomes jerky and dull while her tone and pitch change radically and deliberately throughout the four courses of the song – most evident in the lyric “We have a connection” and the different variants of it.
There was a moment of realisation from Katherine Howard that had my heart breaking with her. By the last chorus, any playfulness from before has been completely bleached from Lizzie Emery’s voice, instead turning into something fearful and guttural. This sequence is so profound due to the lead-up and development that came before it. To be able to effectively present that violent progression, Lizzie Emery’s performance had me wanting to give a standing ovation at the end of the song.
Wrapping up the solos is Eloise Lord’s Catherine Parr, the final wife and the only one to survive. My favourite outfit of the night, she is clad in a cool blue fit with an interesting waist detail and long pants with cut-outs at the sides. I Don’t Need Your Love depicts Catherine writing a farewell letter to her lover as she is forced to end it with him and be with the king, despite having no feelings for him.
This song serves as a climax of sorts for the six queens, as Catherine Parr refuses to partake in a competition that would only solidify what history already says they are. However, after all the songs before it, it fell a bit short. While I was wowed by Eloise Lord’s vocals as she pushed back against telling her story with Henry VIII, the continued performance of its remix felt too tame. The chorus lyrics were too repetitive but lacked the same effect as Get Down, which also repeated its main lyrics. While I understood the effect and strength this solo was going for, it just didn’t invoke the same emotions and empowerment the other songs did.
Thankfully, that is not the end. Prep yourself as the queens go all out in reimagining their lives, truly rewriting them however they like in SIX. From Tudor Queens to pop princesses, these six powerful women reclaim their crowns and glory, separate from the man that history will forever tie them to.
From title to lyrics, SIX parallels the opening number but with all the profound realisations the characters lacked from the start. Unlike the grand, all-out effect of the opener, the finale is bittersweet but also celebratory. Great as a closer, SIX wraps up the musical succinctly calling back to different moments of the musical.
Final Thoughts
As I’ve said before, SIX the Musical is without a doubt one of my favourite musicals. The soundtrack is to die for and the characters are dynamic and charismatic. The only beef I have with it is the lack of a plot. After learning and understanding each of the characters, the play ends, leaving me yearning for more of these six queens beyond their stories. Additionally, while I love the songs, it definitely felt more like a concert than a musical due to the lack of a tangible storyline.
SIX the Musical
I can yap as much as I want about this musical but it’s the kind of performance that you have to see in real life. Words and videos simply don’t cut it. Being able to sit in the theatre and see all of it play out right in front of you, being treated to the insane vocals and surrounded by the audio and music… oooh, absolute chills.
SIX the Musical is an absolute ten out of ten for me. If you’re suffering from that post-concert depression and are as obsessed as I am, then you’ll be glad to know that you can keep this soundtrack on repeat with their Spotify! There’s even a live version of the musical’s opening night with the original Broadway cast so be sure to check it out.
But of course, nothing beats hearing it all live! However, these queens are only here for a short period of time. UOB cardholders, you’re in luck as you get 10% off your tickets. Don’t hesitate to grab your tickets now from Klook, Marina Bay Sands Ticketing or SISTIC!
🗓️ Date: Now until 1 December 2024
📍Location: Sands Theatre, 2 Bayfront Ave, B1-69/70 The Shoppes, Marina Bay Sands, Singapore 018971
⏰Time:
- Tuesdays to Fridays: 8pm
- Saturdays: 2 pm and 8pm
- Sundays: 1pm and 6.30pm
💲Price: S$68 – S$208
Visuals courtesy of Base Entertainment Asia
