Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical (London) London Reviews and Tickets

74%

(18 Reviews)

Positive

67%

Mixed

22%

Negative

11%

Members say

Great singing, Entertaining, Overrated, Disappointing, Absorbing

About the Show

A new musical celebrates the life of Jamaican artist Bob Marley and his platinum-selling music.

Arinzé Kene (Misty, One Night in Miami) plays Bob Marley in this hit-packed new West End musical. A tale which charts the singer-songwriter's journey from rural Jamaica to achieve international acclaim. The show includes many of Bob Marley's top songs such as 'Could You Be Loved', 'No Woman No Cry' and 'Redemption Song'.

Member Reviews (18)

Disappointing, Cliched, Overrated, Confusing, Great singing

See it if You’re a HUGE Bob Marley fan and are content with a superficial understanding of why he was such a national icon and international star.

Don't see it if You are unlikely to understand the strong Jamaican accents. I understood less than half the dialogue.

Overrated, Disappointing

See it if you adore Bob Marley's music

Don't see it if you are expecting a set, directing, a script or anything resembling a story being told,

Enchanting, Dizzying, Riveting, Great singing, Absorbing

See it if you'd like to see the most talented performers on stage right now namely Arinzé Kene (Bob Marley) and Gabrielle Brooks (Rita Marley).

Don't see it if You care a lot about a tight plot/storyline.

Ambitious, Refreshing, Entertaining, Delightful

See it if You like high energy performances

Don't see it if You don't like musicals

Great acting, Great singing, Funny, Absorbing

See it if You want a heart warming, empowering story.

Don't see it if You’re expecting a concert … this is not that. This is a west end musical.

100

Great staging, Great singing, Profound, Must see, Relevant

See it if You LOVE Marley’s music, rebellious cheeky characters and flawless acting, staging and above all singing! Relevant topics and a great story.

Don't see it if You struggle to feel immersed in shows with metamorphic set pieces pieces or are expecting a concert-style show.

Great singing, Confusing

See it if Seen lots of this type of biopic musical, wasn’t keen on this one ,although the music was great

Don't see it if They didn’t explain the Jamaican history until right at the end, the accents were strong ,a bit confusing

Confusing, Fluffy, Overrated, Great singing, Entertaining

See it if You love Bob Marley. It's a great tribute concert if nothing else, sadly not much story to it.

Don't see it if You're after an actual play with a story. This is just about the music.

Critic Reviews (8)

‘Get Up, Stand Up!’ has wonderful tunes, a phenomenal star turn, and a weak story. For now, the first two points largely cancel out the third. But there is an awful lot resting on Arinzé Kene’s prodigious shoulders, and he’s not going to stay with the show forever.
Read more

In the end, it’s the women who help to lift the show. Gabrielle Brooks gives us a stoic Rita who refuses to be shoved into the background, while Shanay Holmes impresses in the skeletal role of the singer’s beauty queen lover, Cindy Breakspeare.
Read more

...no amount of advance prep can equal the modern-day force of nature that is Arinzé Kene. Not so much playing Bob as summoning his very being, this protean talent looks to be every bit as invaluable to the launch of this show as Adrienne Warren was to Tina.
Read more

The magnetic Kene sings divinely, honouring Marley’s utterly distinctive sound. But, since we rarely get inside his head, those great songs don’t have much dramatic heft.
Read more

Arinzé Kene ... gives a towering performance in the central role. Clint Dyer’s production sometimes struggles when it tries too hard to be a musical; it’s at its best when it lets the music speak for itself. The whole thing sounds fantastic ... it all brims with a sort of unbridled charm that makes you believe, just for a moment, that everything really is going to be all right.
Read more

The book [is] minimal in its effects, with too-brief scenes incorporating Marley’s politics, consciousness-raising and Rastafarianism. We gain little sense of individual character. But there is a powerful sense of spirit here and it is a tribute so infectious that it defies an audience not to sing or sway along.
Read more

Lee Hall’s book does away with clunky exposition, taking us on a feverish journey through Marley’s musical awakening and rise to stardom. Admittedly this sometimes leaves the story feeling a bit vague, but we’re having too much fun to care.
Read more

Having sat politely until the denouement on Redemption Song, the audience spontaneously jumped to its feet to dance in the aisles. A rousing, absorbing two hours-plus of joyful theatre that reanimates Marley’s genius.
Read more