Marilyn: Forever Blonde! – Live Show Review

Winter Garden Theatre, Toronto

By Natalie Paterson

I had the pleasure of seeing the opening night performance of Marilyn: Forever Blonde, and let me tell you, it was absolutely a pleasure. The one-woman show has been running for 7 years with the same beautiful actress portraying Marilyn every step of the way. The show was written by Greg Thompson, and stars his wife, Sunny Thompson as Marilyn Monroe.

Marilyn: Forever Blonde takes place in a photographer’s studio, where Monroe shares her longing to be respected for her talent as an actress, rather than for the attention her assets have garnered. Interwoven with quotes from her life are 17 songs, including “I Wanna Be Loved by You” and the iconic “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend,” all sung a’capella with the exception of Diamonds.

The mood was set from the time the audience was being seated with the sultry crooning of Frank Sinatra, and the intimate atmosphere of the Winter Garden Theatre really helped to make the audience feel like we were in that studio with the photographer and Monroe. It was an interesting look into the life of Marilyn that I had never gotten to experience before, but thoroughly enjoyed watching. With the exception of some technical kinks, the show was wonderful, and I’d highly recommend seeing this while it’s here in Toronto.

The show runs two hours in length, and is playing in Toronto from now until Sunday, February 15, with a double billing on Valentine’s Day! Make sure to see this one if you can!