Biographical musicals are never an easy task to create. Sure, the songs are in place and the general outline of a script is there, but how do you fit one man's life story into two hours and still ensure it is entertaining and vibrant?

The life of Australian rocker Johnny O'Keefe was a roller-coaster ride to say the least. More than anything, it was his belief in himself and Australian music that saw him become a rock 'n' roll superstar, although he never reached his dream of making it big overseas. Outside of his music he had ongoing drug battles and had a turbulent time with the women in his life, including his first wife Marianne who eventually left the wild rocker in 1966 after 12 years of marriage. Even in a written review, it is difficult to describe the impact O'Keefe had, hence it is easy to understand why Shout! - The Legend Of The Wild One gets a little off course in terms of script.

Written by John-Michael Howson, David Mitchell and Melvyn Morrow, the musical mainly focuses on O'Keefe's happy times, and while it does explore dark moments the idea here is to create a fun experience for an audience based upon the rocker's music, moreso than his life story. After all, O'Keefe leaves behind a musical legacy, and hence it makes sense to focus on that part of his life.

It is a shame, however, that the script doesn't find the right balance when it does move towards the darker periods. There is too much time spent on O'Keefe's period in a psychiatric hospital and not enough spent on the poignant and life-changing car accident in 1960 that almost cost him his life. There is very little focus on the fact that the accident saw musician Johnny Greenan injured and his wife suffer a miscarriage, nor is there really ever a mention that there were serious long-term impacts from the accident for O'Keefe himself. O'Keefe's drug habit is regularly talked about but never seriously enough, and his death in 1978 is not explored in any great detail. As a result, the audience walks away humming the tunes, but without any real appreciation of O'Keefe's true life story.

As O'Keefe, Tim Campbell holds his own early on but as the show gets into full flight some of the bigger songs are beyond him, and the infamous 'straight jacket' scene suffers from some extremely cardboard acting. As his long-suffering wife Marianne, Alexis Fishman delivers a solid performance (particularly in the faster, up-beat numbers), though her standout song - 'Crazy' - doesn't have the impact it did in the original production and one feels she could have benefited from some better staging and perhaps a sharper arrangement.

Glenn Shorrock rises above some of the script's most corny lines to deliver a pleasing performance as O'Keefe's father, while Colleen Hewett is the show's shining light as his mother Thelma, delivering a touching and spot-on performance that proves she has become an iconic brand in musical theatre in this country.

Musically the show is tight and punchy throughout and Ross Coleman's choreography is good without being dazzling, the best scene of the piece being O'Keefe's first meeting with The Delltones in the back of his father's furniture warehouse, highlighted by the hit song 'Get A Job'. It is sensationally staged, as is the 'Chapel Of Love' scene, while the megamix towards the end is an obvious audience highlight and gives the show a true rock 'n' roll feel, certainly proving that with a better script and improved casting, this show could well be a dynamite hit.

Shout! - The Legend Of The Wild One is far from a lost cause but loses any ounce of respect when Mark Holden, playing O'Keefe's manager Lee Gordon, is forced to use his "touchdown!" line from Australian Idol. But perhaps the crowning glory of tacky is the reference to Andrew O'Keefe having an obsession with briefcases. Popcorn theatre indeed.

Note: AussieTheatre.com's 'official' review of Shout! remains that written on the show's premiere evening in Melbourne.