KEY POINTS:
Brian May rises out of the stage in a puff of smoke as Bohemian Rhapsody blasts from the speakers. The Queen guitarist's feet are planted wide as he wields his axe in that trademark vertical pose, like King Arthur brandishing Excalibur. Then there's that famous mop of hair
- it's so big and just as distinctive as those legendary guitar licks.
The capacity crowd are on their feet. Some are clapping and whooping, others throw the heavy metal salutes and fists in the air. You don't get a chance to see Brian May play guitar very often, let alone see him play Rhapsody, Queen's classic 1975 hit.
For those unfamiliar with May's credentials, he's regarded as one of rock's best and most influential axemen. Even the real Queen probably thinks so - it was May who played God Save the Queen on the roof of Buckingham Palace for her Golden Jubilee concert in 2002.
Tonight, May, and Queen drummer, Roger Taylor, are making a special appearance during the finale of the Queen musical, We Will Rock You, at the Dominion Theatre on Tottenham Court Rd in London's West End. This doesn't happen every night - it's the musical's fifth birthday which makes it the longest running show at the theatre. As well as the grand rock fandango of Rhapsody, they end with Show Must Go On.
New Zealand audiences have the chance to see the show when it starts next weekend in a production featuring Rockstar INXS finalist Mig Ayesa as Galileo ("He'll save every one of us") and New Zealander Annie Crummer as the Killer Queen.
In a plush room beside the Dominion Theatre auditorium, before the evening's birthday gig, the guitar hero is more subdued. May comes across as a polite and softly spoken English gentleman, even if it's tempting to reach out and touch his curly rock'n'roll mane.
Of course, all things Queen now operate in the long shadow of the band's flamboyant frontman Freddie Mercury, who died of Aids in 1991. And not long into the interview he makes his presence felt. May pricks up his ears as music rumbles through the walls from the auditorium.
"It's Freddie singing It's A Beautiful Day," he says happily. "Freddie is right here with us and he's so much a part of what we still do. There are times when I get sad about Freddie, and it will always be that way. It's like if you lose a parent, or a close family member. You're always going to feel it underneath. But I feel a great joy in what we were able to do together and still, in a sense, share."
What would the over-the-top singer make of this Queen show - a musical that's set in the future, where live music is banned, and the kids are dead set on rebellion?
"I know Freddie would have loved it," says Taylor.
Mercury dabbled in musicals in the mid 80s with his involvement in a show called Time, starring Cliff Richard, which had a two-year run at this same theatre.
Taylor recounts a story about how Mercury turned up one night to see the show - he was "totally arseholed" - and insisted on selling icecreams in the foyer.
"Well, he sold icecreams until there was a riot as he was slowly recognised," laughs Taylor. "And I can't repeat his language but he thought it was hilarious and he told me he loved being the icecream girl," he hoots.
"But yes, he would've loved Rock You. He was a theatrical man."
Taylor and May, themselves, were wary of putting together a musical. Taylor especially loathes the genre, confessing he walked out of The Sound of Music as a kid because it made him sick.
"Having said that, we find ourselves with a musical," he chuckles.
May admits he was reluctant to call it a musical and even toyed with the term "rock theatrical".
"If you call yourself musical theatre you're going to lump yourself in with a few things I don't like very much, but also a few things I hugely respect, like West Side Story. I've always loved that.
"But in a strange way I've come full circle and come to realise that we are the young kids coming into an old established art form and I've become more aware that there are so many people in this business who you can respect and learn from that I think Rock You has just moved an inch or two towards being proper theatre and I'm proud of that."
To get away from the stigma attached to musicals, the two insisted on breaking a few rules. The first was simple: have a proper - very rock'n'roll - PA system.
"Most theatrical events range in the inaudible," frowns Taylor. "When I went to see Mamma Mia I thought they were playing it through a megaphone. So we spent a lot of money on getting a great PA system in here so that you can have it loud, but it's not unpleasant. It's just full, big and high-quality."
With the help of We Will Rock You writer and director, Ben Elton, they made sure the songs merged seamlessly with the script, unlike many musicals where characters break spontaneously into song.
"We had a personal scale of 'ouch' when it came to that," says Taylor, "so it moves very naturally and the songs are integral and it's not just a story with a bunch of songs stuck in it."
Throughout the 90s May and Taylor had been working on the idea of a Queen musical but it wasn't until the pair met actor and director Robert De Niro at the Venice Film Festival in 1996 that the idea came to fruition.
"He just had a feeling it would work," says May, who reckons De Niro isn't even a dedicated Queen fan.
"It's largely thanks to him that we got ourselves into gear, really. We said, 'Yeah, we've been thinking about it.' And he said, 'No, no. Don't think about it. Just do it and I will match you dollar for dollar for any development costs you have.' And he stuck with it."
There was still the small matter of what the musical would be about because May, Taylor, and Queen bassist John Deacon didn't like the idea of telling the history of Queen or the Freddie Mercury story.
"We didn't feel comfortable with it," says May. "It was Ben who went away and had this brilliant idea of putting a story in the future as opposed to the past." (See story page 3)
And it's been a raging success in London, and around the world. Over the past five years the catch phrase for the show at the Dominion Theatre has been "a standing ovation every night". After more than 2000 performances, that sounded a little far-fetched to me until I found myself standing up, raising my fist in the air, and chanting, "You got mud on yo face/You big disgrace/Kickin' your can all over the place ... We will, we will rock you."
It should be noted that this little outburst happened even before May and Taylor made their special guest appearance which resulted in another out-of-seat experience.
The overall feel of the show is Matrix-meets-West Side Story. The story of King Arthur is an obvious inspiration for Elton too, only it's a guitar set in stone rather than a sword.
While some of the gags are a little weak and parts of the dialogue cliched, the music and performances by leads Galileo, Scaramouche and the Killer Queen, plus their supporting cast, can't be faulted.
The best giggles are when Queen, who are referred to later in the show as "visionary prophets", have a laugh at themselves, like when May is renowned for his three-and-a-half day guitar solo.
And there's the line: "No one but the hairy man shall play the mighty one's guitar."
In a more poignant moment, Pop, the narrator, alludes to Mercury: "The first of them died young. He was too young, too beautiful for this world."
While the show is set in the future, May says it's also very much about what's happening now.
"It's about how music gets homogenised and how the world gets homogenised and individuality becomes swamped. It's not so much about an Orwellian future, where people are held down by force, people are held down by mediocrity."
We Will Rock You is also about the power of music and the important part it plays in people's lives.
"It's the score to your life, isn't it?" says Taylor. "And," continues May, "music to me is a great saviour of life. I've seen it rescue so many people in bad situations and so many people write to me to say Queen music has been a pivot for them at a certain point in their life.
"That makes me feel very proud. Even for myself music has pulled me out of some black places. I think music is a wonderful thing in life and it's just something that happens.
"If we make music, create art, and we dance and we sing, I think we're making the most of our lives."
In 2005 Taylor and May reunited Queen with former Free and Bad Company singer Paul Rodgers taking up vocal duties. And there's a new album in the making.
The pair didn't think they would ever record any new Queen songs, but, says Taylor simply, the time seemed right. "It's going fantastically and we're taking it very slow. But," he adds, "Paul is not trying to take the place of Freddie."
"Even when we went on tour with Paul," says May, "it was very much understood that Freddie was still a part of the band and we had a whole section where Freddie was heard and interacted with Paul.
"That was great fun to do. So in a very joyful way Freddie will always be a part of what we do, especially in terms of this musical."
LOWDOWN
Who: Queen guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor, and writer/director Ben Elton
What: We Will Rock You, the Queen musical
Starring: Annie Crummer as Killer Queen and Miguel Ayesa as Galileo
Where & when: Civic Theatre, from October 26; tickets on sale Monday
