THE show did indeed go on… but when ‘GaGa – A Tribute to Queen’ took to the Palace Theatre stage without a Freddie Mercury there were grumblings among the audience.
Such was the disappointment that numerous complaints came in to Rubicon Leisure which runs the venue.
And it wasn’t just Freddie’s no-show, complaints were levelled at the poor sound quality and terrible vocals too.
So much so that Redditch resident Ruth Sullivan, her husband and their two friends left the half way through to avoid an ‘agonising second act’, despite paying out £19 each for tickets.
“We were able to get a refund but we were in shock that there was no Freddie,” said Ruth.
“You don’t go to a Queen tribute act without expecting to see the lead singer – that’s why you go.
“There were only three members and you could just about make out what songs they were playing but it was all very flat.
“We spoke to the Palace after and they told us that they don’t always vet bands before they perform, which also shocked us.”
Theatre manager Tim Mackrill said he wasn’t sure why there was no Freddie and he is yet to get a response from the band’s production team.
Dave Wheeler of Rubicon Leisure admitted that the number of complaints was out of the ordinary.
He said: “The production company chose to use their own sound system rather than ours which is a choice we give all of our guests.
“We decided to re-book the band for a third time after receiving really positive feedback from their first two concerts.
“However in light of these complaints we will not be re-booking them again for next year.”
