I’m Every Woman – The Chaka Khan Musical

Outstanding voices shine.

Every aspect of this show felt as though it had been rushed through development. There are plenty of good ingredients here, but very little time is given to any of them before the production moves on to the next event.

While I’m Every Woman is a biographical musical, there’s surprisingly little actual story. Instead, we’re taken on a whirlwind tour through Chaka Khan’s life, meeting famous faces as we jump from childhood to adulthood in huge leaps. With minimal dialogue, decades passing in moments and actors playing multiple roles, it often became difficult to keep track of who was supposed to be who.

If I were being particularly fussy, I’d even question whether this is truly a musical in the traditional sense. My understanding has always been that the songs should help drive the narrative forward. Here they mostly serve as performances between scenes. At the same time, if you’re a huge Chaka Khan fan, you don’t quite get the concert experience either, leaving the production feeling stuck somewhere.
The biggest issue is that every time we reach what should be a major turning point, the show immediately moves on. We briefly touch upon abusive record label, domestic abuse and drug addiction, but none of these subjects are explored in any meaningful depth. They become little more than passing comments before we’re whisked away to the next chapter. One exception is an unexpected contemporary dance sequence set to Through the Fire. While it’s always nice to see some variety in staging, this moment felt completely disconnected from everything around it. Rather than adding emotional weight, it simply felt bizarre and out of place.

There are also moments where historical accuracy appears to be changed for dramatic effect. The show suggests Prince wrote I Feel For You specifically for Chaka Khan. While Prince was obviously instrumental in the song’s success, he had actually released it as a solo five years earlier, and there’s a widely accepted story that it was first offered to Patrice Rushen before eventually reaching Chaka. It’s a small detail, but one that stood out.

Prince himself, played by Miles Anthony Daley, unexpectedly became one of the funniest characters in the show. I’m still undecided whether that was the intention. Was he directed as an exaggerated caricature of Prince, or do modern audiences simply find that flamboyant style amusing? Either way, he generated plenty of laughs.
It also became unintentionally funny that every time a celebrity character appeared, the dialogue insisted on announcing their full name. Rather than naturally introducing “Whitney” or “Luther”, we repeatedly heard “Whitney Houston” and “Luther Vandross”, as though the audience needed reminding who these hugely recognisable figures were.

The production itself has some attractive ideas. Sara Perks’ set design uses large moving panels that create a flexible playing space, while the fairground scene is particularly effective, with an elevated cart providing one of the evening’s more memorable visual moments.
The projections, however, never seem to settle on one visual style. Sometimes they’re realistic, sometimes oversized, and at other times entirely symbolic. It gives the impression that several different design concepts are competing with one another rather than working together.

The finale suffers from an even bigger technical issue. During the closing number, projections are thrown across both the set and a gauze positioned in front of the stage. Unfortunately, this combination makes the projected images appear blurred and distorted, almost like watching a television through polarised glasses. Whether it’s the gauze itself, the projection angle or a refresh rate issue, something isn’t quite working because it becomes a distraction during what should be the show’s biggest moment.

Narratively, I never really understood what Chaka Khan was striving for. She gets married, performs with a band, is signed, wins awards and becomes successful, but we rarely understand her motivations or the obstacles she has to overcome. Without that sense of struggle or ambition, it’s difficult to emotionally invest in her journey.

Ironically, some of the strongest material comes much earlier in the story. The conflict between religion, family expectations and community life is genuinely interesting. Her involvement with the Black Panther Party, and the tension between faith and activism, feels like the beginning of a far richer musical than the one we ultimately get. Personally, I think a stronger show would have focused almost entirely on that first section of her life rather than trying to cover her entire career in a single evening.

Despite Alexandra Burke receiving top billing as Chaka Khan, her considerable talents feel surprisingly underused. She delivers the songs with the power you’d expect, but the script rarely gives her the opportunity to build a fully rounded character. Instead, the evening’s standout musical performances come from Chrissie Bhima as Marie Stevens and Sophie Earl as Joni Mitchell. Both produce some of the show’s most memorable vocal moments, while Bhima also lands many of the comedy beats, particularly as the story moves into Chaka’s struggles with drugs. I also found myself wanting much more from Ashley Stroud as Taka Boom and Maryla Abraham as Sandra Stevens, Chaka’s mother. Both women have brief moments that hint at exceptional performances waiting to happen, but, like Burke herself, they’re never given enough material to truly shine.

It’s frustrating because there is clearly talent both on stage and behind it. Nia T. Hill’s book, Racky Plews’ direction and Ebony Clarke’s choreography all show flashes of promise, while Aron Sood leads a consistently strong band throughout. However, none of them can overcome a script that attempts to cover far too much of Chaka Khan’s extraordinary life in far too little time.

Ultimately, I’m Every Woman feels less like watching a story unfold and more like reading a list of highlights. For a performer whose life was filled with fascinating relationships, personal struggles and extraordinary achievements, the musical never quite digs beneath the surface.

**