2,452 posts
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Post by theatremadness on Jan 28, 2017 9:43:19 GMT
Forgot there was another programme to do with musicals on at 2330. Will watch it on catch-up. Don't think it was anything as in-depth as this though. Oh I really wouldn't bother with that if you haven't already! I caught the last half hour - it was basically archive live performances one after the other with just on-screen writing informing you of the (very tenuous) link the song had to a musical. For example: Muse doing Feeling Good, Jay Z doing Hard Knock Life, Erasure doing Take A Chance On Me (ABBA....not Little Women) and Gwen Stefani doing If I Was A Rich Girl.
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18,800 posts
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Jan 28, 2017 9:48:27 GMT
BOM might not have featured but they didn't half push it in the product placement. In virtually every one of the many shots of the west end their marquee was shown.
Third episode was better but I still got bored with him plonking away on the piano and 'explaining' things to us. Also describing the lyrics of Touch-a-touch me as "pure filth"? I don't think so. It was all very old fogey-ish and smug.
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3,758 posts
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Post by anthony40 on Jan 28, 2017 10:20:40 GMT
Anthony Rapp said something and i had to go back and replay it, as i thought he made a mistake. I never knew Jonathan Larson was hetrosexual!!! Yep. He was. In fact the storyline in Rent where Maureen left Mark for Joanne is something that actually happened to him. So in real life, he was Mark and is (then) actual girlfriend left him for another woman.
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2,563 posts
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Post by viserys on Jan 28, 2017 15:56:29 GMT
Really enjoyed it but needed more; the Ave Q section would have led perfectly into a bit about Mormon, and then Hamilton. Thought Matilda, Once and Chicago were notable "modern" omissions. And Jukebox should have been touched on, especially Mamma Mia. I felt pretty much the same. Actually they could have moved from the 80s blockbusters to Disney and jukebox musicals, then spent a fourth episode with more in-depth exploration of modern pop culture shows like Rent, Avenue Q, Mormon and finally Hamilton. When he commented on "Touch-a-touch-me" as pure filth perhaps he was referring to the time when the RHS came out first and people were still more used to sugary musical theatre classics. These days of course there's nothing people haven't heard on the radio/TV a million times before.
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4,038 posts
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Post by kathryn on Jan 28, 2017 21:00:02 GMT
Yes, it needed another episode to bring it up to date. I can understand why musically the jukebox musicals aren't that interesting, but as a format they are significant in the modern development of musical theatre.
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716 posts
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Post by theatre-turtle on Jan 29, 2017 1:19:52 GMT
I loved the whole series. I almost shed a tear during the Show Boat performance as well. What a wonderful score.
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Post by profquatermass on Jan 29, 2017 14:58:43 GMT
It wasn't called the Story of Musicals. It was the Sound of Musicals. If it had been a straightfoward history then jukebox musicals would have had their place. But it was about songs written for musicals so I don't see what Mamma Mia would have added to the themes of the show
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426 posts
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Post by alison on Jan 29, 2017 15:31:55 GMT
It wasn't called the Story of Musicals. It was the Sound of Musicals. If it had been a straightfoward history then jukebox musicals would have had their place. But it was about songs written for musicals so I don't see what Mamma Mia would have added to the themes of the show I don't know, it would have been interesting to have a segment on taking a song that's been written as a standalone pop song and making it "fit" into a musical story. Obviously some shows make more changes than others, and a lot of the songs are just performed as is, but there are some examples out there of clever reworkings. One of my favourites is the use of Cum On Feel the Noize in Rock of Ages - with a few minor lyric changes it becomes a full out musical number that furthers the story. Equally there are examples of songs that have been reworked musically for a more musical theatre feel. A random observation ... for most of the song performances, they've clearly got in people who have played those roles recently. So how did we end up with Siobhan Dillon doing Evita (not that I'm complaining, I like her very much)?
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5,274 posts
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Post by mrbarnaby on Jan 29, 2017 16:31:54 GMT
Jeez her rendition was bad. She's never had the greatest voice but I couldn't deal with that performance. Enjoyed second part as much as the first. Thought Ms R's "Clowns" appropriately dishevelled, myself.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 29, 2017 16:34:05 GMT
Really enjoyed the series but like others I think it could have benefitted from a fourth installment. I personally liked his disection of songs and certainly remember people's reaction to Touch-atouch-atouchme and the whole risquéness of the Rocky Horror lyrics. Of course nowadays with graphic lyrics from Book of Mormon and the like nobody would even flinch at such naivety. Times is 'ard.
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343 posts
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Post by johartuk on Jan 29, 2017 16:40:40 GMT
Just caught up with it. I agree that it could have done with a fourth ep. A good watch, though.
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Post by crabtree on Jan 29, 2017 16:48:20 GMT
yep, I enjoyed this, but of course it could have been a longer series, a decade an episode perhaps. I enjoyed some of the students singing, but I hate to admit I cringed all the way through Ms Ruffelle's Send in the Clowns. Oh ghastly!
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4,158 posts
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Post by HereForTheatre on Jan 29, 2017 16:53:50 GMT
Yes i can't think why there wasn't a fourth episode. Not necessarily about jukebox musicals because that doesn't fir the programme but there seems something a bit wrong if one the newest musicals they got to was Avenue Q. They didn't even really get to Wicked, other than a few mentions through the show.
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Post by Deleted on Jan 29, 2017 17:07:22 GMT
Why would they mention Wicked in any great detail. It's hardly a ground breaking show.
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716 posts
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Post by theatre-turtle on Jan 29, 2017 17:18:29 GMT
They also failed to mention Bend It Like Beckham. Swings and roundabouts..
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3,758 posts
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Post by anthony40 on Jan 29, 2017 17:20:00 GMT
Why would they mention Wicked in any great detail. It's hardly a ground breaking show. Yes, but it's successful and (if you pardon the pun) popular
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Post by Deleted on Jan 29, 2017 17:31:19 GMT
There's no doubt it both those things, but so are many other shows.
This series focused on shows that in some way changed the sound or look of musical theatre in some way and Wicked did neither of those.
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Post by crabtree on Jan 29, 2017 19:12:45 GMT
And only the most fleeting mention of Kander and Ebb, whose songs are pretty darn brilliant.
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Post by profquatermass on Jan 29, 2017 19:58:29 GMT
Yes i can't think why there wasn't a fourth episode. Not necessarily about jukebox musicals because that doesn't fir the programme but there seems something a bit wrong if one the newest musicals they got to was Avenue Q. They didn't even really get to Wicked, other than a few mentions through the show. The BBC's documentary unit in Bristol is subject to major cuts. We were lucky to get three episodes. It was on a pretty tight budget
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5,274 posts
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Post by mrbarnaby on Jan 29, 2017 21:10:36 GMT
Why would they mention Beckham? By that token they didn't mention Moby Dick, Which Witch and Daddy Cool either!! They also failed to mention Bend It Like Beckham. Swings and roundabouts..
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5,274 posts
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Post by mrbarnaby on Jan 29, 2017 21:11:45 GMT
Whilst enjoyable, I thought this didn't bring anything new to light at all. And the only new thing was a handful of cheesy musical performances.
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