Scott Purvis-Armour reviews ‘a fun fumble through the back catalogue of one of Britain’s most successful pop groups’.
With Jersey Boys filling theatres all Four Seasons of the year and Elvis leaving audiences All Shook Up every land it graces, the jukebox musical has spun a dime on every conceivable band and act, even if it is totally Madness.
With fourteen consecutive top-five UK singles and fifteen million albums sold worldwide, it is surprising that Steps are only now stepping into musical theatre as they approach their thirtieth anniversary. Here & Now, a campy quick-wash from Hollyoaks writer Shaun Kitchener, is a fun fumble through the back catalogue of one of Britain’s most successful pop groups, which entertains in bright lights more than bright sparks.
Set in a bargain discount shop and following the lives and loves of a group of cashiers, this B&Mamma Mia follows the life of Kaz, a woman who dreams of adopting as she approaches her fiftieth birthday; instead, she finds herself as one for sorrow when her husband leaves her unexpectedly. She brushes off the personal tragedy with the help of her friends, challenging each of them to open their hearts to a “Summer of Love” and setting off a chain reaction of a plot more twisty than the “5, 6, 7, 8” choreography.
Here & Now touches on some surprisingly heavy-duty themes amongst the heavy-duty bleach but, ultimately, all too often feels like a bingo advert - its understanding of adoption and the Australian immigration procedures are juvenile as Steps’ target audience, and a blackmail plotline sees a character bafflingly get off Lisa Scott Free.
Still, it does achieve some localised moments of brilliance. In one genuinely affecting moment, Kaz reimagines “Heartbeat” as a love letter to a lost baby; in another, a drag queen emerges from a freezer and blasts a Diana Ross hit in an extravaganza of queer joy. With the world darkening around us, there is something to be said in a story of a heart, not the story of a mind - lost in the bubblegum prettiness of Tom Rogers’ design, audiences stomp along to Matt Cole’s choreography with all the fun of a Smash Hits Poll Winners Party.
Rebecca Lock is vocally strong as Kaz, embodying the sound of Faye Tozer and Claire Richards without becoming a karaoke act. Unfortunately, her talents vastly outshine most of the other soloists - most of their songs feel like they are out of everyone’s key, a staff party where everyone is forced to sing a randomly selected song from a single karaoke cassette.
But this is Mamma Mia, not ‘David Mame’t Mia - by the time the mega mega-mix finale gets counted in, the audience are bouncing along with silent seat choreography. Thrown back to those golden Sunday afternoons awaiting another Steps appearance on Top of the Pops, the woes of the adult world are the last thing on their minds.
Here & Now was reviewed at Glasgow’s King’s Theatre. It continues its tour of the UK until May 16, 2026 with Scottish dates at His Majesty’s Theatre in Aberdeen (October 21-26, 2025) and Edinburgh Playhouse (February 24-March 1, 2026). For further details, go to the production’s website.
Photo by Pamela Raith.
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