Rod Stewart jumps on the West End bandwagon

Ever since the lamé-suited Abba devotees in their platform heels tottered into the Prince Edward theatre for the opening night of Mama Mia three years ago, the rumblings of discontent could be heard among West End's guardians of good taste.

Reviewers, directors and playwrights have since vented their spleen on the steady procession of stage productions "paying tribute'' to acts ranging from Queen to Culture Club and the Pet Shop Boys.

This week the cognoscenti will be holding their heads in their hands as details emerge of future productions reviving the sounds – and most likely boosting the coffers of – such musical dinosaurs as Rod Stewart and Fleetwood Mac.

Matthew Vaughan, producer of the film Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, is planning to dramatise the making of the 1977 Fleetwood Mac album Rumours, which has sold 30 million copies.

The rock musical formula will be rolled out again soon for Tonight's the Night, featuring the hits of Rod Stewart with a script by Ben Elton, undeterred by his critical mauling for writing the words to the stage phenomenon based on Queen's music, We Will Rock You.

Next month the genre, which has covered pop stars from the 1950s to the 1980s, is to branch out into the reggae- and ska-influenced sounds of Madness with the opening at the Cambridge Theatre of Our House, set in contemporary Camden, north London.

The producers of such shows deny they or the artists they feature are jumping on a lucrative bandwagon with little creative merit. But the profits to be had are tempting. We Will Rock You has been seen by 500,000 fans and tickets for the best seats at the Dominion theatre will rise soon to £55 – a West End record. Sales of Queen's records have soared on the back of the stage success and far more fans have seen the imitators than ever witnessed the real thing on stage during a single tour.

Acts are picked for their appeal to "Dadrockers" who want to hear the favourite sounds of their youth. Phil McIntyre, the producer responsible for We Will Rock You and the Rod Stewart production, said that since the West End hosted Tommy and Buddy, featuring the music of the Who and Buddy Holly respectively, there had been an explosion in chart acts making it to the stage.

He said: "Since the singer-songwriters of the 1960s there has been little appetite for writing specifically for the stage – hence the tributes. Why would you bother when there are so many other lucrative outlets such as radio and TV? I can hardly imagine Dido writing for the stage.''

Peter Hepple, consultant editor of The Stage, said the phenomenon was a rare example of the West End echoing a provincial trend. He said: "These are little more than tribute bands that have been touring the provinces in abundance since the Bootleg Beatles. The West End requires more pomp so they wrap it up in a show with scenery, dancers and a storyline.''

Mr Hepple believes the genre may be about to extend to the teen market, following the example of Popstars, a stage show on Saturday mornings and school holidays featuring Kylie Minogue and Britney Spears lookalikes. "They have become such a hit the producers have had to recruit three Britneys," Mr Hepple said.