This isn’t just about a theatre show, there is so much more to the story – it’s about people, families, greed and money and sometimes touches on the darker side of life and includes strands of jealousy and sabotage, gangsters and secrets – and this is all off stage. There is plenty of drama the entire way through, with even some of the supporting characters having their time under the spotlight.

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The Empire by Michael Ball is a charming, captivating, majestic, electrifying, exciting and dazzling masterpiece. I know I used a lot of adjectives here but this wonderful piece of work deserves all the praises in the whole wide world. And then there's Joseph P. Allerdyce. He is he owner of many other entertainment venues in the region and has a plan to let The Empire fail under its new management so the new owners become desperate to sell and he can add the building to his list of conquests. There is a fairly large cast of characters, which meant that the story and the world of The Empire felt very lavish, like those rare occasions where a theatre production has a company of more than 25 people on stage and a full orchestra in the pit. While some characters were more front and centre than others, each one was unique and well-developed – and they all had a part to play in saving The Empire. Take, for example, actor-manager Ivor French and doorman Danny Moon. They're a seemingly unlikely pairing, and yet they were the heroes of an intriguing sub-plot towards the end. A banner day for musical theatre fans, as National Treasure and star performer Michael Ball throws his creative energies into his debut novel. He’s obviously listened to the first rule of novel writing by writing what he knows and bringing us The Empire, an historical novel set in the golden age of music hall and musical theatre.

Toys

An absolutely brilliant debut novel, just show Michale Ball has another string in his bow that of author, is there anything he can’t turn his hand to? Thank you for bringing the theatre to us readers. Superb. This is a story of a fight for survival in what was a competitive market at this time (a different fight to nowadays). Being set in the twenties there are aspects of class conflict, as well as business conflict. There are a whole cast of different characters from within the theatre and in the wider area. This is an enjoyable tale with enough twists to keep things moving along nicely. There is even a hint at the end that there might be a sequel. For his literary debut, Ball has immersed himself in the world of perhaps the greatest author of novels such as The Good Companions set in and around the theatre, J B Priestley.

The Empire by Michael Ball | Waterstones

A warmly told tale of theatre life, from the owners, behind the scenes crews, the stars of the stage and all the way to the delicious bad guy determined to bring down the curtain for good.BUT! Just when things are on the up, interference from within threatens everything – perhaps even the theatre itself… While the criminal elements held no surprises it was still enjoyable to see the threads all unraveling. The added touch of romance was delightfully charming and definitely added to the story.