486 posts
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Post by WireHangers on May 19, 2023 10:40:51 GMT
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Post by BurlyBeaR on May 19, 2023 10:42:58 GMT
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Post by anthony40 on May 19, 2023 10:47:57 GMT
I was about to start a thread on this, so thank you WireHangers.
Chances are that I won't see this unless it transfers.
I've only seen parts of the film, many years ago.
What I'm hoping is that this is both fabulous and sensational.
Although personally not a fan of drag- don't hate on me- but show me something that hasn't already been done in either Kinky Boots or Priscilla, Queen of the Desert.
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Post by benny20 on May 19, 2023 11:27:02 GMT
Never heard of the film but sounds like Priscilla.....is it???
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Post by Someone in a tree on May 19, 2023 11:56:38 GMT
Never heard of the film but sounds like Priscilla.....is it??? I remember when it was released critics accused Hollywood of cashing in on the success of Priscilla |
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Post by anthony40 on May 19, 2023 12:14:19 GMT
(If I'm correct- and going from memory) because of the unprecedented and unexpected hit that Priscilla was, Hollywood felt like this one had slipped through their fingers and this was the result.
Just like Priscilla, you have three straight actors playing drag queens who go on a journey, finding themselves out of their depth in terms of their surroundings who ultimately, learn a lot about themselves and each other.
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Post by Deleted on May 19, 2023 12:16:14 GMT
I have booked and cannot wait. TWF will always be compared to Priscilla, interestingly enough though, they were both in production at the exact same time, it is just that Priscilla got the release out sooner. But TWF has just as much heart, if not perhaps even a bit more, than Priscilla. When I saw this rumored recently I was expecting them to be going with a big showstopper musical, so surprised that this is premiering at Hope Mill, but I am very much looking forward to it!
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Post by Deleted on May 19, 2023 15:34:39 GMT
I have booked and cannot wait. TWF will always be compared to Priscilla, interestingly enough though, they were both in production at the exact same time, it is just that Priscilla got the release out sooner. But TWF has just as much heart, if not perhaps even a bit more, than Priscilla. When I saw this rumored recently I was expecting them to be going with a big showstopper musical, so surprised that this is premiering at Hope Mill, but I am very much looking forward to it! Priscilla was produced first. Priscilla was released in May 1994, TWF didn't start filming until the 2nd half of 1994 |
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Post by intoanewlife on May 19, 2023 16:12:06 GMT
Priscilla was pitched to most of the major financiers in Cannes years before (1991) it was finally financed in 1993.
So the idea and script were out there to be pilfered from and bastardized long before it came to fruition.
Too Wong Foo can not even be compared to it on any level, they are 2 completely different beasts.
Though I think TWF would be a little easier to swallow on stage than it was on film which was terrible.
'To Wong Foo Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar, really brought drag to a mainstream audience in a massive way and as a queer piece of movie history, was truly ground-breaking.'
Who is this person even kidding LOLOLOL
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Post by kyvai on May 19, 2023 20:30:34 GMT
Oh I love To Wong Foo!!! It’s a comfort film for me. I rented it on VHS from Blockbuster for a sleepover when I was about 15 and never returned the video :-)
I’m not sure how comfortably all of it sits with how attitudes around gender have shifted over the last 30 years, I wonder how they will update things….this is a memorable quote
“When a straight man puts on a dress and gets his sexual kicks, he is a transvestite. When a man is a woman trapped in a man's body and has a little operation, he is a Transsexual. When a gay man has WAY too much fashion sense for one gender he is a drag queen. And when a tired little Latin boy puts on a dress, he is simply a boy in a dress!“
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Post by mrbarnaby on May 20, 2023 9:47:25 GMT
I love that film, but I don’t hold out much hope for this as the theatre don’t have any money to stage it properly. Or the right space. Apart from that it’s all ideal!
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Post by richey on Aug 26, 2023 17:32:28 GMT
Hope Mill were in the Manchester Pride Parade today. They handed out leaflets which included a 25% discount for this and Lizzie if booked by end of August. Will share the code if allowed?
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Aug 26, 2023 17:54:55 GMT
Hope Mill were in the Manchester Pride Parade today. They handed out leaflets which included a 25% discount for this and Lizzie if booked by end of August. Will share the code if allowed? Sure, go ahead. Did you get wet? |
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Post by richey on Aug 26, 2023 22:14:37 GMT
Hope Mill were in the Manchester Pride Parade today. They handed out leaflets which included a 25% discount for this and Lizzie if booked by end of August. Will share the code if allowed? Sure, go ahead. Did you get wet? Only slightly moist... The code is MCRPRIDE (lot of thought went into that! Lol) for bookings before 31st August |
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Post by showtoones on Sept 1, 2023 20:00:55 GMT
I know this is a small theatre but will they be able to do the show justice? And is this being looked at as pre-West End/ Will this be a West End caliber cast?
Considering going by train to Manchester for the day but thats about 2.5 hours each way so want to see if it is worth it?
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Post by david on Sept 2, 2023 9:58:09 GMT
I know this is a small theatre but will they be able to do the show justice? And is this being looked at as pre-West End/ Will this be a West End caliber cast? Considering going by train to Manchester for the day but thats about 2.5 hours each way so want to see if it is worth it? I’m there for the 1st preview. I’ll post my thoughts on it. |
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Post by theatremiss on Sept 2, 2023 11:09:36 GMT
Any casting rumours yet?
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Post by showtoones on Sept 2, 2023 20:45:11 GMT
I vote for Matt Henry as Noxema Jackson
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Post by gmoneyoutlaw on Sept 2, 2023 22:03:46 GMT
I vote for Matt Henry as Noxema Jackson He’d be great and boost potential for a West End transfer. |
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Post by FrontroverPaul on Sept 3, 2023 22:21:00 GMT
I've visited Hope Mill travelling from Kent to Manchester by National Express. Can do it as a midweek (very long day) return with my Senior Coachcard for £15 or weekend for £28.
The front row of the stalls for To Wong Foo... is being sold as VIP seats with a cocktail and programme for over £50. That wasn't the case on my previous visits and it isn't for the current Lizzie musical.
Will leave it for now and hope this follows Lizzie and has a run at Southwark Playhouse if not the West End
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Post by stokerob on Sept 4, 2023 19:31:44 GMT
Have to say, have played the US cast album several times now and I am really enjoying it so looking forward to the UK premiere at Hope Mill. Only watched the movie for the first time last week, thought it dragged (see what I did there) for the first half but then found its feet. Priscilla did the fish out of water story in a classier way I feel, but Wong Foo is not an awful movie by any means.
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Post by westendfan1 on Sept 4, 2023 22:58:41 GMT
Cast announcement for this tomorrow
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Post by hulmeman on Sept 5, 2023 11:23:09 GMT
Peter Caulfield (Tammy Faye) will play Vida Boheme, with Gregory Haney (TINA – The Tina Turner Musical) as Noxeema Jackson and Pablo Gómez Jones (In Dreams) as Chichi Rodríguez.
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Post by hulmeman on Sept 5, 2023 14:01:43 GMT
Peter Caulfield (Tammy Faye) will play Vida Boheme, with Gregory Haney (TINA – The Tina Turner Musical) as Noxeema Jackson and Pablo Gómez Jones (In Dreams) as Chichi Rodríguez. Joining them are Carolyn Maitland (Next To Normal) as Carol Ann, Duncan Burt (Friendsical) as Sheriff Dollard, Alexander Kranz (professional debut) as Bobby Ray , Arthur Boan (Oklahoma!) as Tommy Paul, Ayesha Maynard (Hairspray) as Beulah June, Emily Ooi (Miss Saigon) as Bobby Lee, Jermaine Woods (Sister Act) as Willie Joe/John Jacob, Lee Harris (Les Misérables) as Ed Earl/Crazy Elijah, Natalie Day (The Mystery of Edwin Drood) as Mary Lou, Scott Hunter (The Play That Goes Wrong) as Billy Budd, Susie Fenwick (Beautifu) as Clara Pearl, Samantha Bingley (Beauty and the Beast) as Rose of Sharon and Theo Maddix (Cabaret) as Rachel Tensions/Jimmy Jack. Also in the cast are Jamil Abbasi (The Great British Bake-Off Musical) and Megan Davies-Truin (Jerry Springer the Opera) |
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Post by david on Oct 21, 2023 17:33:31 GMT
I’m here tonight for the first preview.
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Post by theatrelegofan87 on Oct 21, 2023 22:18:37 GMT
Please post a full review
How was it!
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Post by david on Oct 21, 2023 23:36:43 GMT
A few thoughts from tonight’s first preview viewing. Despite the late start (8pm) we had a run time of around 2.5hrs tonight with an interval. As a first preview I haven’t got any complaints about the pacing with the show. It zipped along very nicely and we didn’t have any stops during the show.
Cast wise, I really enjoyed watching them. Peter Caulfield as Vida and Gregory Haney as Noxeema were the standouts for me. Brilliant comic delivery from them both. Christine Maitland as Carol Anne gets a great solo number in Act 2. Vocally, again no issues from any of the cast and good sound mixing for a first run.
The score is a nice mix of upbeat tempo, ballads and country. The music is delivered by a band of 3 (keyboard, bass guitar and drums). Although not very big, I didn’t feel this was an issue tonight.
As for the set, there really isn’t that much to be honest. A few bits and pieces like chairs and tables and the car that is just a basic frame with a few neon lights ( no wheels, 4 cast members are dressed in black). There is a lot of use of projections and video to help set different scenes.
For the costumes, particularly Vida, Noxeema and Chi Chi were ok, but nothing I would rave about. I was after a bit more glitz and glamour, but apart from one scene at the start with a lot of drag queens, I just felt it didn’t materialise.
I think ultimately whilst a fun show, I just didn’t get that wow factor tonight to make me want to book for a revisit.
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Post by mattnyc on Oct 22, 2023 9:57:44 GMT
That’s a shame to hear. There should at least be a contrast in the “fabulousness” of the girls compared to the drabness of the town they’re in and the costumes are a huge part of that.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Oct 22, 2023 10:30:46 GMT
I think if the Hope Mill can’t find an adequate balance between set and costumes (both being sub par isn’t acceptable certainly for the ticket price of around £40) then they have made the right decision to stop staging musicals.
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Post by david on Oct 22, 2023 10:52:34 GMT
I think if the Hope Mill can’t find an adequate balance between set and costumes (both being sub par isn’t acceptable certainly for the ticket price of around £40) then they have made the right decision to stop staging musicals. this is definitely how I felt last night. Great cast and sound but the staging let it down for me. I paid £18 for a back row seat near the sound desk. If I paid the front row prices I certainly wouldn’t have been happy. |
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