A swish of the hips and a swagger of arrogance and the audience were transported back to the 1960s and to the The Kinks at the height of their fame.
The rock band formed by brothers Ray and Dave Davies were one of the most influential British groups going, with their best tunes, “You Really Got Me” and “Lola” among a string of unbroken hits between 1964 and 1970.
A stage production of the band’s life is on a revival tour of the UK and the Edinburgh Playhouse is its latest stop.
Sunny Afternoon was first shown in 2014, and the story of the popular band saw a West End run, before being delayed due to the Covid pandemic.
Six years later and the musical is bigger and brighter but full of the same enthusiasm and energy which had a packed audience joining in the fun.
Telling the story of working class lads from Muswell Hill in London caught up in all the excesses of the 60s, it is set against a background of social and political change. The Kinks were never as famous as The Beatles or The Who but played a big part in musical change.
The main man Ray Davies was credited at the time for his classy and stylish lyrics and his raw singing as well as some timeless classic guitar playing.
In the musical, his role is played by Danny Horn, who is impressive, clearly investing much energy and vibe.
Oliver Hoare as Ray’s brother Dave is equally as good and the duo bounce off each other as they try to negotiate their way from their normal life to super fame and all the ups and downs on the way.
The story takes the boys and their sidekicks, Pete Quaife (Harry Curley) and Mick Avory (Zakarie Stokes) to America, where they find the music world is more interested in how much it can take from the boys financially than their tunes and inevitably bitterness creeps in.
A lovely acapella rendition of “Thank You For The Days” was magical and there was some cheeky booing from the Scottish crowd to Sunny Afternoon set against the England football team winning the 1966 World Cup.
A special shout out for Lisa Wright as Ray’s formidable wife Rasa, played with aplomb and with a lovely singing voice.
The cast is also made up of Gwen (Victoria Anderson), Eddie Kassner (Ben Caplan), Gregory Piven (James Chisholm), Mr Davies (Phil Corbitt), Larry Page (Alasdair Craig), Mrs Davies (Deryn Edwards), Joyce (Jada Langley), Robert Wace (Joseph Richardson), Peggy (Emily Whitby-Samways) and Grenville Collins (Tam Williams).
Directed by Edward Hall and with a wonderful musical accompaniment led by Michael Cullen, the show is full of fabulous songs, real energy and rebellion that audiences just wow over.
Sunny Afternoon runs at the Edinburgh Playhouse until 9th May, Inverness from 12th to 16th May, Liverpool from 19th to 23rd May and rounds off the tour in Cardiff from 26th to 30th May 2026.
For ticket availability, please visit: www.atgtickets.com and www.musicalsontour.co.uk.
Author Bio:
Rebecca Hay is an experienced travel writer and member of The British Guild of Travel Writers. Follow her adventures with her family on Twitter and Instagram @emojiadventurer and on Facebook via EmojiAdventurers2.
Photographs by Manuel Harlan
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