IN DEATH as in life, George Best remains a huge draw. Dancing Shoes – the George Best Storyopened last night at the Grand Canal Theatre after a hugely successful run in Belfast.
Nearly 40,000 people saw the show over its two runs at the Belfast Grand Opera House.
The musical attracted a new audience, mostly men, who would not normally go the theatre.
The work is written jointly by Marie Jones, the author of the successful play Stones in their Pockets, and Martin Lynch.
Music is provided by Glasgow's JJ Gilmour ( The Silencers) and Belfast's Pat Gribben ( The Adventures).
The musical dramatises Best’s extraordinary talent, his rise from the back streets to world fame at Manchester United and ultimately to tragedy as he failed to overcome an alcohol addiction that eventually killed him.
It does not shy away from confronting the downsides of Best’s life, especially when his wife, Angie Best, left him at the same time that his mother died.
There is also a scene, based on reality, when another Northern Irish hellraiser and sporting genius, Alex Higgins, went to see Best as he was dying in hospital. They then break into a song called We had a ball.
The musical, which runs until Saturday, is directed by Peter Sheridan who had his own, ultimately successful battle with alcoholism. Sheridan said the nature of addiction was one of the reasons that he decided to do the musical and he understood why people felt angry at Best for resuming drinking after he had been given a liver transplant.
“He broke people’s hearts about it. When you think about his looks, charisma and talent and then you think, why did he do it? It goes to show you the power of addiction. That was part of the fascination and revulsion at George.”
The musical goes on to Manchester after its run at the Grand Canal Theatre.
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