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Post by kathryn on Jul 15, 2018 9:20:42 GMT
TodayTix gave me s30 stalls as rush for yesterday's matinee - brilliant seat for the price! Nice and central, decent rake, not too far back. The only slight problem is it’s directly under the aircon vents and so very cold - I was ok as I took a pashmina in with me. If you get it, take a jumper.
I enjoyed the show but it slightly baffles me that people rave about it so much, I must admit. I think these old Broadway beasts are just not my thing, even when delightfully performed and designed.
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Post by Mr Snow on Jul 15, 2018 10:17:12 GMT
Saw it this afternoon. I STILL maintain that it is the greatest musical written so far. And this is an outstanding production - the standing ovation was spontaneous and unanimous, the audience staying in place until the playout music ended. Today I find it very hard to take issue with what you say. It exceeded my expectations, which were based on the previous production at same venue. In comparison that was a period piece, with a 'star' name draw. Give me a bit more time and I'll argue a bit, as usual
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Jul 15, 2018 19:02:35 GMT
Row F indeed has more legroom (most in the stalls, except B which is similar) than G. It looks to me like adding and removing rows for TV means they are being put back slightly less accurately than usual. A7, for example is an inch out of line with the rest of the row. I bloody KNEW I wasn’t imagining it. Mr average height in front of me, and his programme-wagging partner were virtually reclining while in the row behind I was being kneecapped 🤬 Went to see the Hallé at the Bridgewater Hall last night for one of their summer concerts, Magic of the Musicals. We got the overture from The King And I as the opener to the first half and then Shona Lindsay made a very good fist of Hello Young Lovers. Very topical.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 17, 2018 12:55:22 GMT
Very British question, but is this persistent heatwave an issue in the theatre or is it still artic conditions in the stalls?
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Post by Bickers on Jul 17, 2018 13:12:08 GMT
I'm a very warm person and I attended on the 6th July. There was definitely air cooling going on in the stalls but I was nowhere near freezing, I was slightly on the warmer side of pleasant. My wife, who is more of a cold blooded sort, was happy to have a light cardi on.
Jacqui Sanchez was on for Lady Thiang that night - and although I was sad not to see Naoko after the amazing reviews I've seen for her on here, I thought Jacqui was great in the role. Kelli was, obviously, wonderful. I hope this isn't the only time I get to see her perform. So many outstanding moments in the show, it is hard to narrow down any specific parts. What a joy to finally see such a classic show!
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Post by ali973 on Jul 18, 2018 4:55:07 GMT
An white nanny teaches a brown king how to rule his kingdom. Having said that, I was crying from beginning until end at this imperialist propaganda. The minute Tuptim started My Lord and Master, my memories of listening to the Hollywood Bowl cast recording flooded in, and so did the tears. Forget it by Hello, Young Lovers.
I thought it was marvelous, and hated myself for it LOL
Happy to put myself through it again if tickets were cheaper, and especially if I can see Annalene Beechey's Anna.
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Post by alece10 on Jul 18, 2018 5:56:07 GMT
Very British question, but is this persistent heatwave an issue in the theatre or is it still artic conditions in the stalls? A friend of mine sat in the upper circle on Saturday afternoon and said it was boiling up there. Guess hot.air rises.
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Post by ali973 on Jul 18, 2018 6:04:33 GMT
There is a cooling issue. I had back sweat throughout the entire show last night, and no one was even sitting next to me. It was a bit muggy in there.
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Post by Mr Snow on Jul 18, 2018 7:13:36 GMT
An white nanny teaches a brown king how to rule his kingdom. Having said that, I was crying from beginning until end at this imperialist propaganda. The minute Tuptim started My Lord and Master, my memories of listening to the Hollywood Bowl cast recording flooded in, and so did the tears. Forget it by Hello, Young Lovers. I thought it was marvelous, and hated myself for it LOL Happy to put myself through it again if tickets were cheaper, and especially if I can see Annalene Beechey's Anna. I think we see what we want to see. Last week at the Palladium we saw the (based on a) true story of single mother who believed in education and took this to a an extremely patriarchal world. At least you only hated yourself, that’s a good start.
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Post by viserys on Jul 18, 2018 9:22:43 GMT
I find it surprising that The King & I is getting this stick while the much younger (when people should have known better) Miss Saigon is still getting away scot-free with its incredibly racist and sexist stuff.
At least Anna is a strong female who stands up for herself. And while she greatly exaggerated the importance of her position at court in her memories, she DID go to Bangkok on request of King Mongkut who wanted to learn more about western culture - which was pretty enlightened in those days when Japan still shut itself off from the world and Britain went to war with China to force access to Chinese ports because they wanted to keep the foreigners out. Not least thanks to Anna's influence Mongkut's successor King Chulalongkorn managed to keep Siam from being colonialized and he travelled widely (if anyone has ever been to the North Cape at the northen tip of Norway - there's a Thai Temple he left behind after visiting in 1907).
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Post by ali973 on Jul 18, 2018 22:11:41 GMT
An white nanny teaches a brown king how to rule his kingdom. Having said that, I was crying from beginning until end at this imperialist propaganda. The minute Tuptim started My Lord and Master, my memories of listening to the Hollywood Bowl cast recording flooded in, and so did the tears. Forget it by Hello, Young Lovers. I thought it was marvelous, and hated myself for it LOL Happy to put myself through it again if tickets were cheaper, and especially if I can see Annalene Beechey's Anna. I think we see what we want to see. Last week at the Palladium we saw the (based on a) true story of single mother who believed in education and took this to a an extremely patriarchal world. At least you only hated yourself, that’s a good start. That is true - and if you chose just to see things at face value, that's your choice.
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Post by last5jamie on Jul 19, 2018 15:57:35 GMT
Hello, I am a newbie here, managed to read the whole thread but I have a question, not sure if anyone can answer BUT are there any scheduled days when Kelli is NOT performing? I cannot imagine her doing 37 shows a month.
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Post by poster J on Jul 19, 2018 16:47:25 GMT
Hello, I am a newbie here, managed to read the whole thread but I have a question, not sure if anyone can answer BUT are there any scheduled days when Kelli is NOT performing? I cannot imagine her doing 37 shows a month. 8 shows a week is standard, no reason why she wouldn't be doing them all. I think she has holiday at the end of August but can't remember the date I'm afraid! Otherwise barring illness she is scheduled to be on.
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Post by justafan on Jul 19, 2018 17:50:15 GMT
My friend and I loved it but were disappointed with the staging. With it being based in s presidential palace we expected more glitz. Didn’t detract from the brilliance of the cast though
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Post by Dawnstar on Jul 19, 2018 19:12:07 GMT
8 shows a week is standard, no reason why she wouldn't be doing them all. I think she has holiday at the end of August but can't remember the date I'm afraid! Otherwise barring illness she is scheduled to be on. If you remember the date, or anyone else knows it, then I'd love to know as I'm very interested in seeing Annalene Beechey.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Jul 19, 2018 19:17:05 GMT
My friend and I loved it but were disappointed with the staging. With it being based in s presidential palace we expected more glitz. Didn’t detract from the brilliance of the cast though Really surprised at this, I know I’m from the darkest recesses of the north west where we think a bit of tinsel on a pigeon hutch is glam but what are people expecting? And given that this design was a hit on Broadway why isn’t it good enough for the WE?
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Post by Deleted on Jul 19, 2018 19:30:35 GMT
It's a controversial design, though. In 2015 when the production premiered, there were a number of articles where Bartlett Sher was interviewed with the designers Catherine Zuber and Michael Yeargan and they all agreed to go for a more subdued design for this revival as opposed to the uber-glitzed up designs in the last revival in the 90s, and also the film... It's definitely more spare than previous versions or at least what most people think of when they think of The King and I...
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Post by last5jamie on Jul 20, 2018 7:56:17 GMT
Thanks for the info. I will keep an eye on their web and twitter but I have not found any mention of holidays yet. I am coming in September so I hope I get lucky.
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Post by Dr Tom on Jul 20, 2018 8:34:46 GMT
I don't think there are any scheduled cast holidays, particularly as it's such a short and limited run.
The only gaps will be where a cast member has a pre-existing arrangement or if they've agreed the covers get a show to say they've "been on" in the role for their CV. And, of course, any covers for illness and unscheduled absences.
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Post by princeton on Jul 20, 2018 8:43:53 GMT
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Post by last5jamie on Jul 20, 2018 8:59:42 GMT
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Post by theatreian on Jul 22, 2018 21:18:35 GMT
Thanks to dynamic pricing just got a ticket for the matinee on September 12th, the only chance I had to see it while on a couple of days in London. Got a side stalls seat for £37.50. Can't wait. Seeing Bat out of Hell and Sylvia at the Old Vic too.
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Post by dizzieblonde on Jul 22, 2018 21:38:55 GMT
I'm just wondering if this still holds true? Kelli was nominated for a Best Actress Emmy, in the short form category. That's a category awarded at the Creative Emmy ceremony, a week before the Primetime Emmy's. Has there been an word if she plans to attend the ceremony in Los Angeles the weekend of 8/9th Sept, missing a few performances around that date, or if it's just too many shows to miss (and just too far to travel), during this short run?
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Post by Deleted on Jul 23, 2018 5:29:56 GMT
I'm just wondering if this still holds true? Kelli was nominated for a Best Actress Emmy, in the short form category. That's a category awarded at the Creative Emmy ceremony, a week before the Primetime Emmy's. Has there been an word if she plans to attend the ceremony in Los Angeles the weekend of 8/9th Sept, missing a few performances around that date, or if it's just too many shows to miss (and just too far to travel), during this short run? I don't think Kelli was expecting to get nominated for an Emmy in the first place, so an absence in this instance probably hasn't been planned.
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Post by westendcub on Jul 23, 2018 21:42:52 GMT
I went tonight via TodayTix rush (I got front row A18 stalls) and it was great (only had to look up for the opening scene on the boat) & Kelli was often placed on my side of the stage so was great to be so close!!
It’s been many years since I’ve seen the film but all came back to me!
It’s a lovely piece of musical theatre with a lush score and beautiful costumes.
Glad I’ve finally seen this!!
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Post by Deleted on Jul 25, 2018 10:22:33 GMT
To echo Monkey "an outstanding production" and if not the best musical of all time it is certainly up there with others from the glory days. Bartlett Sher's direction was exquisite as usual and the chemistry between O'Hara and Watanabe couldn't have been better.Was only in London for a day so I'm really glad I invested my time in this.
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Post by musicalmarge on Jul 25, 2018 15:37:07 GMT
Saw this last night - Kelli is OUSTANDING. 10/10
Broadway finest at its best. Chic, smart, beautiful and a voice of an angel.
You ALL need to see this. What a gorgeous show. Wow.....
Shame the set is nothing special apart from the boat.
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Post by steve10086 on Jul 25, 2018 22:33:31 GMT
Anyone else notice a similarity between a section of ‘A Puzzlement’ in TKAI and ‘The Seduction’ in The Woman in White?!
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Post by BGLowe on Jul 26, 2018 23:32:04 GMT
God. I absolutely adored this. Every second. It is divine. Kelli is divine. I am inclined to think Ken is divine. I love me some Rodger & Hammerstein and this absolutely fit the bill. I would beg, steal and borrow a ticket - it is that good.
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Post by Mr Snow on Jul 27, 2018 7:32:28 GMT
God. I absolutely adored this. Every second. It is divine. Kelli is divine. I am inclined to think Ken is divine. I love me some Rodger & Hammerstein and this absolutely fit the bill. I would beg, steal and borrow a ticket - it is that good. Might see you in clink then. If it comes to it, I'm prepared to murder for another ticket. I'll listen out for you, Whistling a happy tune....
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