A gospel-choir musical starring Dolly Parton and Queen Latifah is pretty much review-proof: you’re either first in line or running a mile in the opposite direction, and little is likely to entice you over to the other side. For first-in-liners, however, there’s plenty to love about Todd Graff’s mostly sweet-natured rehash of ‘Sister Act 2’ by way of ‘Glee’: genuinely inspired song-and-dance numbers, a surprisingly mean streak of gallows humour and a prize catfight in which the star divas wind up pummelling each other with bread rolls.
Then there’s Dolly herself, looking for all the world like whipped cream squeezed from an aerosol can. As a wealthy small-town widow battling with a working-class mum (Latifah, game as ever) to reinvigorate their fusty church choir, she’s irrepressible, whether chirping Christianised Chris Brown lyrics, waltzing with Kris Kristofferson’s ghost or dispensing Southern-fried wisdom like, ‘Tryin’ to fool me is like tryin’ to sneak sunrise past a rooster.’ Her face isn’t as mobile as it was, but she’s still a comic dynamo, equal parts joy and noise.