Karate Kid the Musical is a musical version of the famous 1980s film, Karate Kid. It’s a great musical, that fans of the film will definitely enjoy. Here’s my Karate Kid the Musical theatre review.
Overview and plot synopsis of Karate Kid the Musical
Karate Kid the Musical follows the story of Daniel LaRusso, as he moves to California and sets out a new life for himself there. My Karate Kid the Musical theatre review will first give a brief overview of the plot, and then talk about what I liked and didn’t like about the musical. Any fans of the film will be familiar with the plot of Karate Kid, and the musical follows roughly the same story.
Daniel LaRusso moves from New Jersey to California with his mother and has difficulty settling into his new environment. He becomes a target for a group of students from the Cobra Kai dojo, led by Johnny Lawrence, after a conflict at a beach party. Daniel was talking to Ali Mills, a pretty student who is Johnny’s ex girlfriend. Johnny doesn’t like the relationship that is starting to develop between Daniel and Ali, and targets Daniel.
Daniel’s attempts to avoid confrontation are unsuccessful, and the harassment escalates. He meets Mr. Miyagi, a maintenance worker who observes the situation and intervenes when the bullying becomes physically dangerous.
Mr. Miyagi approaches the Cobra Kai sensei, John Kreese, to stop the conflict, but Kreese insists that disputes should be settled through fighting. Miyagi agrees that Daniel will compete in the upcoming karate tournament, which will halt further harassment until then. Miyagi begins Daniel’s training, teaching him karate. Miyagi’s initial lessons confuse Daniel as they’re focused on using repetitive household tasks that build foundational skills. Daniel gradually understands the purpose of the exercises and develops the techniques needed for the tournament.
At the tournament, Daniel advances through the rounds despite pressure from Cobra Kai students instructed to injure him. After being hurt in a semi-final match, he receives assistance from Miyagi and chooses to continue. In the final fight against Johnny, Daniel uses the crane technique to score the winning point. His victory ends the conflict, and solidifies his new relationship with Ali. Johnny acknowledges the result, concluding Daniel’s progression from outsider to competent karate competitor.
What I liked about Karate Kid the Musical
Comparing Karate Kid the Musical to the film
I really enjoyed Karate Kid the Musical. I’d seen the film before, but only once. So I was coming into the show with a vague knowledge of the story and the film. But it was clear that many of the audience were die-hard fans of the film. But I think the musical worked really well, both for people like myself who weren’t super familiar with the film, and also for serious film fans. There was plenty in Karate Kid the Musical to please both sets of people.
I went with a friend who was a serious film fan, and he said the musical definitely did the film justice. I went as a fan of musicals in general (with my favourite musicals generally being ones that are romantic, emotional, moving, and visually stunning), and I really enjoyed the show as well – it ticked all those boxes for me.
The songs and karate-style dance routines
I really enjoyed the songs in Karate Kid the Musical. The songs really hit the spot for a musical. There were quite a few emotional songs – from Daniel as he tries to fit in, and from his mother as she tries to navigate parenting a 17 year old who keeps getting into fights.
And there were some amazing dances as well, along with the songs. Some of my favourites were the karate-style dances from the Cobra Kai group, and also from Myagi’s students. The musical did a great job of combing powerful musical theatre style songs with powerful karate-style dances, with some impressive dance moves. There were quite a lot of cast, which made some of the dances really spectacular.
Characters
Karate Kid the Musical did a great job of making Daniel a really likeable character. I actually thought the musical portrayed Daniel’s character a lot better than the film. In the film, I almost struggled to like Daniel at times. It felt like he was deliberately antagonising Johnny, and causing trouble. There were times in the film where I almost felt like I was on Johnny’s side and felt sorry for Johnny.
But in the musical, I was 100% on Daniel’s side. The musical portrayed Daniel as a kind, sweet, slightly awkward, geeky teenager. The actor was great – you could definitely believe he was an awkward teenager, often a bit slouched and rolling on the balls of his feet awkwardly when talking to Ali. He was really sweet. And his relationship with Miyagi was lovely as well – a real father-son relationship developed between them. The character portrayals meant I was completely on Daniel’s side, and saw Johnny purely as a bully. So in the karate tournament, when Daniel wins the final against Johnny, it felt like a really emotional moment. I was 100% on Daniel’s side, so it was really emotional when Daniel succeeded.
There was a line at the end, when Daniel says to Miyagi ‘we did it’, and Miyagi replies ‘no Daniel son, you did it’. I found that so emotional. I love shows that show a character working towards something and achieving it, and I found this ending really emotional in a good way. It got even better when Johnny went to congratulate Daniel as well and accept his victory. By making Daniel a loveable, awkward, geeky teenager (a lot more than in the film), the audience could get 100% on his side against Johnny and feel really emotional when he wins.
Mr Miyagi was a great character as well. Some of his lines were so funny. And he was so kind as well. I loved the humour that he brought to the role. And I loved the father-son relationship that developed between him and Daniel. Again, it made the ending so lovely – a happy-tears, warm-feeling-inside ending, which I love.
What I wasn’t so sure about
I really enjoyed Karate Kid the Musical. I struggle to think of anything that I didn’t like about it.
If I really had to find something to criticise, I guess maybe the karate fight scenes could have been slightly more impressive, just by using sounds for the contacts. I’ve seen other shows that have stage combat, where there are contact noises for the hits and kicks. So although you know that it’s just stage combat so they’re not actually kicking/punching each other, the actors make the ‘slap’ noise as the kick hits. This show didn’t have that. But it’s a minor thing. I still really enjoyed the fight scenes and stage combat, and the karate-style dances. With the large cast, it was still really impressive visually.
Would I recommend Karate Kid the Musical
My Karate Kid the Musical theatre review is really positive, so I would definitely recommend going to see this show. I really enjoyed it. If you’re a fan of the film, then you’ll like it. And if you’re just a general musical theatre fan, you’ll still really like it. The show really hits the mark for both groups of people. There are great songs, really good dance routines, good stage combat, and characters that you become really fond of and really get behind. I love a musical where dreams come true at the end, and this one hit that.
Hope you enjoyed my Karate Kid the Musical theatre review! Check out my other theatre reviews for more shows in the West End, across the UK and the world.
