Telling Her-Story (Six – Boleyn Tour Review)

This show was definitely the show I was most excited to see this season! Six was the final show I saw in NYC before the pandemic shut everything down. I saw it on a Sunday, and by Thursday everything was closed. You can read my review of the Broadway production with the original cast here.

If you’re not familiar with the plot of Six, it’s a recap of the six ex-wives of Henry VIII and their experiences. The six queens decide to have a competition of who had it the worst with Henry and hold a concert to tell their stories. Each queen performs a song that tells her story: her troubles, her joys, and particularly her relationship with the king. This musical is arguably one of the most popular musicals right now with a huge fan base around the world. It’ has grown so popular that there are even productions aboard two Norwegian Cruise Line ships. There are currently two different casts touring the United States right now – the Aragon Tour and the Boleyn Tour. You can check which cast is coming to your city on the show’s website.

Similar to the Broadway production, the lighting and costume designs in the touring production were incredible! As far as the technical aspects of the show, it is still very colorful and bright, which helps create a fun concert vibe. The set is minimalistic with only one piece that moves in the entire show.

The biggest win of this show were our seats. We were able to change our seats at the Winspear Opera House for this season, which was a game-changer. Our new seats are on the third level of the opera house instead of the top (in the nosebleeds). Not only were we closer to the stage, but I was also able to gauge audience reactions better from our new vantage point. With a show like Six, I never know how different types of audiences will react to it. In New York, it’s easier for the audience to be more enthusiastic because they’ve picked their show. On the other hand, theatre-goers seeing touring productions, especially season ticket holders, are seeing shows that have been preselected for them. I was not disappointed by the audience with this show! By the end of the show, every audience member was cheering and clapping along. I even saw a few older women really getting into MegaSix at the end. Pro tip: make sure you stay through the end of the curtain call to see an encore/mashup of all their songs that’s even more fun!

Every time you see the show, especially with different ensembles, there are different queens that stick out to you. In the original cast it was Anne Boleyn and Katherine Howard that stood out to me, but every queen left a tremendous impression on me. However, for this production it was Catherine of Aragon and Jane Seymour that resonated with me the most. Still, all of them were wonderful and I’m going to give a quick summary of how I felt each actress portrayed their queen.

Gerianne Pérez as Catherine of Aragon was vivacious. The actress that performed as Catherine of Aragon has a tough role because she is the first soloist of the night and determines the energy after the opening number. Her solo was a perfect mix of sass and riffs. She had the audience hooked and clapping along to her song. Zan Berube as Anne Boleyn brought a more lighthearted, almost hyper, energy to Anne throughout the entire show. Amina Faye as Jane Seymour had me in my feelings with her rendition of “Heart of Stone”. She put so many light riffs throughout the song that kept the notes soaring and blew me away with her talent. There are two parts of the song that I always look for to see how each actress sings it and Amina killed both parts – her voice sent chills down my arms!

Terica Marie as Anna of Cleves was the complete package as an entertainer! I will never get over the shock of the costume change that happens during her number. Similar to Brittany Mack, whom I saw on Broadway, Terica is on the shorter side. I feel like her short stature really helps her bring a mix of cute and innocent to her performance, but with a huge splash of sass! Aline Mayagoitia as Katherine Howard takes us on the difficult journey of her life and really exposes how Katherine Howard was treated by every man in her life at such a young age. She also does a great job of bringing an air of confidence to her performance while simultaneously masking her character’s pain. Sydney Parra as Catherine Parr does a fabulous job of leading the other queens away from the victim mentality towards feeling empowered to their stories without Henry at the center.

If you get a chance to see Six, whether it’s one of the two US touring productions or on Broadway, jump on the chance! This show is somewhat similar to Hamilton in regards to learning history, but with a much shorter performance time. Good things come in small packages, right? I’m hoping that I get a chance to squeeze in a matinee performance of Six while my mom and I are in New York City in May, but regardless, I definitely plan to see this show again when it comes to Fort Worth in late November of 2023.