Review: Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at Opera House is ‘an unforgettable night of musical magic’

The Manchester Opera House has had a technicolour transformation this week as as Joseph and his 11 brothers take to the stage in the star-studded Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber classic, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.

As the Overture opens the show, lights dim and the narrator introduces the family-favourite son Joseph, played by Adam Filipe, to the audience and you’re immediately immersed in a vibrant retelling of the classic Bible story.

Originally written by Webber and Rice when they were still in their teens, the magical story of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat has been gracing stage and screen for decades.

The 2025 tour with Adam Filipe delivers the same vibrant energy that both Jason Donovan in the 1991 stage show and the 1999 musical film starring Donny Osmond in the same role brought to audiences worldwide almost 30 years ago.

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at Opera House

The show stars the 2009 X Factor winner Joe McElderry as the King of Rock and Roll inspired Pharaoh, Drama Desk Award nominee and YouTube sensation Christina Bianco as the Narrator and West End star Adam Filipe as the famous Joseph.

The cast also includes around half a dozen young actors on stage each night and almost 30 in the cast overall playing a range of characters in the show. The mixture of adult and child actors on stage is a great nod to the show not taking itself too seriously, having a young person on stage in a full beard or dressed as a butler brought humour into some of the less vibrant scenes, and the actors played their roles brilliantly, keeping up with their grown up counterparts in dance scenes effortlessly.

Christina Bianco as Narrator

Throughout the show the Narrator, played by Christina, not only tells the story and helps the audience follow along on Joseph’s journey across Egypt, but she seamlessly slots into each scene. From first being seen introducing the children to the story, to being spun across the stage by the Pharaoh during a dance number, it’s hard to take your eyes off her.

She expertly carries the show from scene to scene with several quick-changes, a singing role in almost every number, and she even plays multiple side characters throughout.

Christina is an absolute powerhouse to watch perform, she has incredible voice control and you can certainly see how she has amassed so many followers online and on stage with the way she plays this role.

Beautiful costumes

As you would expect with a show about a Technicolor Dreamcoat, the costumes in this show are a beautiful blend of colours and styles.

The vibrant outfits lean into the Middle Eastern and classic ancient Egyptian period, with lots of flowing fabrics and luxury gold elements throughout. The costume department really went all out to ensure performers were decked out head to toe, the ensemble even has leather tap shoe sandals!

As one of the big stars in the show, I was hoping to hear more of Joe McElderry’s incredible singing voice throughout, the Pharaoh is only in a handful of scenes, but he takes centre stage and Joe embodied the celebrity bravado of the selfish leader role fabulously.

His scenes with Adam as Joseph are engaging and entertaining in equal measure, the two male leads bounce off each other and Adam’s character progression in these scenes is great to see.

The 2025 tour showcases all of the popular Rice and Webber songs from the original, like Any Dream Will Do, Joseph’s Coat and I can almost guarantee the Joseph Megamix that closes the show will have you humming the tunes all the way home.

Tickets for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at Opera House

So what are you waiting for? Go, Go, Go get your tickets for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat now, it’s on at the Opera House Manchester until the 9th of March.

You can get tickets here