DIRECT from London’s West End comes a stage musical packed with blistering soul classics.

The Commitments, adapted by writer Roddy Doyle from his hit novel and movie, will be at Bradford Alhambra from May 8 to 13.

The Commitments features more than 20 classic soul songs, including Night Train, Try A Little Tenderness, River Deep Mountain High, In The Midnight Hour, Papa Was A Rolling Stone and Mustang Sally.

The Commitments tells the story of Jimmy Rabbitte, a young working class music fan, who shapes an unlikely bunch of amateur musicians into an amazing live act, the finest soul band Dublin has ever produced.

The show follows the journey of two members of a frustrated synthesiser band – the opening scene has them playing, but ignored, in a shop window - who turn to Jimmy, the local music expert, for help.

Placing a classified advert in a music paper, Jimmy auditions a number of wannabes before finalising the new line-up, whom he names The Commitments.

The humour kicks in as the band get to know each other and their instruments, and proceed through early rehearsals for their first gig. Just as they improve and begin to get a name for themselves, they combust.

The backing singers are all getting off with the middle-aged horn playing legend, the singer has entered Eurovision, the drummer has walked out mid-gig and the saxophone player has dangerous leanings towards a jazz career.

Coronation Street legend Kevin Kennedy appears as bandleader Jimmy’s Da, and he’s joined on the UK tour by many of the cast from the record-breaking show’s two-year run at London’s Palace Theatre.

It is now more than thirty years since the world’s hardest-working soul band The Commitments first burst from the pages of Doyle’s best-selling novel.

Visit bradford-theatres.co.uk or call 01274 432000 to book tickets or for more details.