For the first time ever, all of Dolly Parton’s biggest hits can be experienced together in a joyous new musical comedy.

Here You Come Again breaks the 'jukebox musical' mould, by including the original artist as a character in the piece. In fact, this new musical tells the story of a diehard fan whose fantasy version of international icon Dolly Parton gets him through trying times. With her wit, humour and charm, Dolly teaches him a whole lot about life, love and how to pull yourself up by your bootstraps.

After several successful runs across the United States, Here You Come Again has arrived in the UK, adapted by Jonathan Harvey (Gimme, Gimme, Gimme and Coronation Street) for a British audience.

Billed as a 'musical that is sure to make you smile', it also wins the award for understatement of the year - because this is 120 minutes of unbridled guilty pleasure. There doesn't seem to be a Dolly song which doesn't evoke positivity nor a mannerism which doesn't make you love her a little bit more and that comes across in droves throughout the piece.

The production is essentially a two-hander, supported by musicians and vocalists, but at no point does the story feel thin on the ground. 

Taking on the mantle of arguably the most famous Country music star of all time is Tricia Paoluccio - and trust me when I say, Paoluccio is Dolly. She's got the icon down to a tee, from her look to her infamous singing voice, close your eyes and you're transported straight to Tennessee.

Aidan Cutler stood in as Kevin and was just perfection. His comic timing was superb and his ability to hold the audience in the pam of his hand was second to none. There’s something magical about camp and Northern, the mixture of which in this character had tears of laughter rolling down the audience’s faces.

What also stands out is the themes of hope and positivity that radiates through the story. Granted the plot is fairly simple, but Here You Come Again's ability to disseminate a message of resilience without becoming patronising or cheesy was notable. They just seemed to deliver it in the right way - accompanied, of course, by a soundtrack featuring some of the best known songs of all time.

In fact the only reason I’ve attached four stars to this show is because I want it to develop. I don’t want this to be an ‘it can do no more’ moment because this could (and should) be a West End smash.

There's something really special about this production - it's comparatively simple set and 'show written during a pandemic' construct could easily lend themselves to a sub-standard piece of theatre. However that couldn't be further from the truth in this instance; Here You Come Again is a beautifully thought out, cleverly constructed gem of a show that should be on everyone's to-do list.

Here You Come Again runs at The Alexandra until Saturday 14th September. For more information, or to get your tickets, visit atgtickets.com/birmingham.