We attended the debut production of the wonderful Under The Mersey Moon country musical at The Floral Pavilion during Valentine’s Weekend and to say it shone bright is an understatement. All three shows during the weekend sold out and there are big plans for the production going forward.
Written by local musicians Jimmy Rae and Pete Davies, Under The Mersey Moon includes 13 original songs, performed by a 10-strong cast of local acting talent with a live six piece band. It tells the story of a struggling country musician from Liverpool who is inspired by his ailing grandfather to embark on a make-or-break trip to Nashville in the hope of being discovered.
Sam Heller played an absolute blinder as Danny Rogers, a young Scouser down on his luck yet determined to follow his dream of becoming a star. With the audience rooting for him, he took us on an awe inspiring journey — peppered with humour and emphatic musical performances throughout.
Supported by an extremely talented cast of Sam Alton, Christopher Lee Power, Adam Johnson, Catherine Howard, Lesley Longley, Sarah Lou Fletcher, Jodie White and Chris Barron, the production was full of twists and turns as young Danny strived to find stardom and love against the odds.
Then there was the absolute joy of local legend Billy Butler, who played Danny’s grandfather — an endearing character who Danny loved and aspired to be. And of course, wherever there’s Billy there’s his hilarious partner in crime, Lesley Butler — who had the audience in stitches as Danny’s foul-mouthed mother. Finally, the icing on the cake was a cameo performance from the mighty Al Peters.
The two songwriters behind the musical, Jimmy Rae and Pete Davies, were part of the band and are both well known to local roots and acoustic music fans through their respective duos, Tennessee Waltz and The Good Intentions. Pete is also known to followers of Granada TV’s landmark ‘Up’ documentary series, which has followed his life, along with that of 13 other children born the same year, since 1964.
A fantastic production that truly had everything from start to finish — emotion, drama, humour, great music and twists — a captivating storyline that had the audience completely engaged throughout. Keep your eyes peeled, as there’s likely to be more from Under The Mersey Moon after selling out three shows at The Floral Pavilion for its debut.
Under The Mersey Moon / The Floral Pavilion, New Brighton, Wirral / Fri 14th & Sat 15th Feb 2025
For more info visit the Under The Mersey Moon WEBSITE
