41 posts
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Post by louonthegogo on Mar 24, 2022 22:42:45 GMT
Saw this last night in Dublin, with maybe 1/5th of the tickets sold (and that might be being a bit generous). All upper levels closed and my €15 seats became €48 seats (not a bad trade-off). Jay was sitting about two rows behind me from the interval onwards so he's still keeping a close eye on the show. The cast were all great with the mentions above by other commentators being very much warranted. It's probably the closest they'll ever get to feeling like famous boyband members. Puppy In Love in particular got a very *strong* reaction from the women in the crowd. As above though, a very well behaved audience everything taken into consideration. I don't know how much longer this will continue to run though if sales on the other legs are as bad as Dublin's, then again The Osmonds weren't massive in Ireland, so it could just be the wrong crowd to sell it to idk. I also agree that the show takes a lot of inspiration from Jersey Boys (haven't seen The Drifters Girl yet) but not in a way that negatively affects it, I just found it amusing. Also I'm wondering if the mega mix at the end has been chopped? It was only about 7 minutes last night (it seemed) and consisted of Love Me For A Reason, Crazy Horses and some other song I forget. Overall 7.8/10 - would recommend to pretty much anyone looking for an easy-to-digest musical especially if you get a big seat upgrade
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Post by daber on Mar 28, 2022 15:57:57 GMT
I have noticed that this is no longer being sold in Peterborough for mid April. Does anyone know of likely reasons.
Was hoping to go but no reason given on New Theatre, Peterborough, website
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Mar 28, 2022 16:52:49 GMT
It’s a way off yet but Manchester has sold very little so far.
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Post by newda on Mar 28, 2022 17:02:37 GMT
I was tempted to see it this week in Blackpool, but given that each performance has only sold a handful of seats in the vast Opera House I won't bother given the lack of atmosphere.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Mar 28, 2022 17:31:09 GMT
It’s a shame if it gets pulled. Yes it’s a long time since we had Osmond-mania but they were huge and given the fans are now only in their 50’s or 60’s you’d think it had a reasonable chance of pulling in an audience.
I wonder if there is/was a plan to take this to the US?
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Post by sph on Mar 29, 2022 0:42:27 GMT
Does it seem like a lot of tours are struggling to sell these days? Is it a pandemic repercussion thing or is it just certain shows that aren't finding an audience?
I always thought that tours sell best when it's a well-known brand that everyone around the country knows, like a well established musical, or a Disney production etc, but then I would have easily thought the Osmonds would have fit that criteria too...
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Post by showgirl on Mar 29, 2022 3:48:11 GMT
Strange and a shame as it's worth seeing and was well-attended at the Woking matinee I saw. Also it was clear that a lot of the audience members were original fans, whereas I wasn't, though I was very familiar with the group's work. I wonder now whether it was better marketed there, or whether that particular venue has more of a regular audience who will book for most things, but looking at bookings for other touring shows there, that theory isn't borne out and indeed I too have hesitated to book for poorly-sold shows both due to likely lack of atmosphere and the risk that the performance will be cancelled. So maybe it's the show itself, as sph suggests? Certainly Waitress at the same venue was even busier when I saw that a few weeks earlier.
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Post by mkb on Mar 29, 2022 5:57:23 GMT
Does it seem like a lot of tours are struggling to sell these days? Is it a pandemic repercussion thing or is it just certain shows that aren't finding an audience? It's simply that many people no longer have the money for discretionary spending. Those fuel bills and mortgages won't pay themselves.
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Post by anita on Apr 29, 2022 9:01:24 GMT
Saw this yesterday. What a great show.- And I must admit to never being an Osmonds fan. Terrific cast. Wasn't their dad a b*****d!
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Post by Mark on Apr 30, 2022 16:42:14 GMT
Caught the matinee in Bromley today - relatively busy in the stalls just a few rows empty.
It’s good, but I agree with an earlier comment that it could easily lose 15 minutes and become much tighter. Lots of middle aged women in clearly having a ball though!
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Post by londonmzfitz on May 5, 2022 21:55:24 GMT
I am probably the person this show is aimed at, Donny Osmond / The Osmonds were my teen crushes. I was that 13 year old fan in 1972, I've read Donny's books, Marie's books, Merrill's book and Jay's book,detailing the rise, fall and rise again of The Osmonds, this show held no surprises for me. Jay's book has a lot of "I remember" which is the pivot of this show, and the show - for me - is OK, the songs are performed well, the actors, especially the youngsters, are good. Costumes are firmly 70's nightmares. I did find it a bit disjointed though - not light enough for a jukebox musical, no hero v bad guy in the story for a strong bit of musical theatre. That said, the friends I was with at the matinee in Northampton enjoyed it a lot.
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Post by panda on Aug 5, 2022 21:52:01 GMT
Just received a £10 ticket offer for this at the Palace Theatre, Manchester next week. I figure it must be worth that!!
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Aug 9, 2022 22:15:11 GMT
I knew what sort of a night it was going to be when I slid into my single aisle seat and the lady in the next seat to me said “Oright our kid, we thought you weren’t comin’ for a minute y’oright?” I had to double take because I thought she must know me but no, she was just one of those friendly, open people who was a bit excited about the night to come. It was 10 minutes late starting so we had a few words and she offered me a Opal Fruit (no, she didn’t call them Starburst). The first ovation came during that ten minute delay as a ripple of excitement went around the theatre, quickly turning into shouts and squeals. People were out of their seats applauding and waving, pointing cameras at a box where Jay Osmond had appeared.
That set the tone. There is obviously a very strong connection between The Osmonds, their music and their core fan base of sixty-ish year old women and it was very plain to see tonight. The Palace was full, albeit they’ve been discounting it to death, mainly women, I don’t think I saw another man on my row or the one in front.
It zips along nicely, the youngsters playing the group as kids are cute, the father stern but it’s tough love, mother portrayed as a wimp who doesn’t get much to say. When they brought a very small boy on as our first experience of Donny the impact was akin to what I imagine happens when the real Dalmation puppy comes on at the OAT. He sang a very sassy version of You Are My Sunshine on the Bing Crosby Show and killed it so well done young man.
Act one closer is Let Me In and Our Kid immediately went into some sort of sobbing seizure. Literally full on crying all the way through. It continued into the interval and she caught me glancing at her concerned so explained through the sobs that it was “her song” as a 13 year old and told me a bit about why. Trying to lighten the mood I quipped “I’m worried about what happens when Puppy Love comes on” and she cackled and told me not to worry. Throughout this exchange she actually had her hand on my thigh which was somewhat disconcerting but she did realise what she was doing and apologised for being “ familiar”. I said it was fine (but filed a complaint with FOH after the show 🙂).
Act 2, several standing ovations. Puppy Love was pretty incredible. Our kid roared her eyes out at Puppy Love despite earlier assurances. A group in the side stalls waved silk “WE ❤️ LOVE THE OSMONDS” scarves above their Donny baker boy caps until a cease and desist by FOH. Donny milked this to the max, I swear you’d think we were watching the real band back in 1974.
When Jay came on for the finale it really popped off (sis).
Massive fun ⭐️⭐️⭐️ for the show but ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ for Our Kid and her sisters. I’m not going to put this in the bad behaviour thread because it wasn’t bad behaviour. It was a group of people making a connection with each other and their memories and nobody should be allowed to take that away from them.
ETA came down at 10.25 including 10 min delayed start.
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Post by anniel on Aug 9, 2022 23:20:30 GMT
Was also there tonight in Manchester and was very pleasantly surprised by the whole evening. I am a bit too young to be an original Osmond Fan but I enjoyed the story and the songs and the awful 70s polyester. Generally good performances although the band was quite loud.
Fortunately I wasn’t molested by a neighbour in the stalls, but I thought the audience behaviour was great - people were up for a party and there was some singing along with the more popular songs, but there was no talking or noise during the quieter bits and very few people going to the loo during the show. I didn’t see the harm in the scarf waving or standing up to dance during some of the numbers. I, however, kept my seat. But there was something lovely about the fans just being so joyful in their nostalgia.
I’ve been thinking a lot about the economics of such heavy discounting - a big chunk of seats are £10. Is it better to have a full theatre of discounts than a half empty one at full price?
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Post by stuart on Aug 10, 2022 6:23:28 GMT
I’ve been thinking a lot about the economics of such heavy discounting - a big chunk of seats are £10. Is it better to have a full theatre of discounts than a half empty one at full price? The theatres often have a say in a certain percentage of seats being allowed to be discounted/comped. I guess in their view it’s better to have those seats filled with possible bar takings than them lying empty?
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Post by ptwest on Aug 10, 2022 7:41:33 GMT
I would also imagine that by getting a couple of fuller houses early on it gives the chance for word of mouth to generate bookings for later in the week.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Aug 10, 2022 9:04:15 GMT
For anyone whose seen this on previous tour stops, is superfan Wendy played as a character from whatever city you’re in? Also is Jay turning up for every performance?
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Post by Dr Tom on Aug 10, 2022 11:17:39 GMT
For anyone whose seen this on previous tour stops, is superfan Wendy played as a character from whatever city you’re in? Also is Jay turning up for every performance? I'm sure she was from Manchester when I saw it. I think Jay is more likely there at the start of the week (perhaps for press night).
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Post by djdan14 on Aug 10, 2022 12:14:14 GMT
For anyone whose seen this on previous tour stops, is superfan Wendy played as a character from whatever city you’re in? Also is Jay turning up for every performance? She was from Manchester in Wolverhampton early in the tour
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Post by lou105 on Aug 10, 2022 13:43:09 GMT
For anyone whose seen this on previous tour stops, is superfan Wendy played as a character from whatever city you’re in? Also is Jay turning up for every performance? "Wendy from Manchester" appeared in York. I was told Jay had been watching most performances but he didn't go on stage when I was there. I agree with much of Burly Bear's view .It was just so intriguing seeing people screaming at Donny, knowing it wasn't Donny. Very much the willing suspension of disbelief. We had a hysterical crier near us too, especially when Puppy love reached the Help me section. But hey, clearly a lot of enjoyment was had!
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Aug 10, 2022 15:18:15 GMT
What a lost opportunity to not have a local Wendy!
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Post by grannyjx6 on Aug 14, 2022 22:44:00 GMT
I really enjoyed the matinee on Thursday, loved all ‘The Osmonds’, but the youngsters were really cute weren’t they? When ‘little Jimmy’ came on to sing ‘Long Haired Lover From Liverpool’, his mic wasn’t working, but he continued to sing and the orchestra instantly played quieter until another mic was brought in for him. He got (and deserved) a massive cheer at the end of course. It is a bit long and the 20 year old girl next to me (who knew all the words, but thankfully didn’t sing TOO loudly, just some rather exaggerated armography as CRH would say), actually left five minutes before the end, presumably to get a train. It was packed, presumably because of the £10 offer. I got my ticket months ago, so didn’t get that, but it was only £22.50 seniors rate, so still not expensive.
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Post by undeuxtrois on Aug 20, 2022 22:23:19 GMT
Does anyone have a full list of the songs in this?
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Post by Dr Tom on Aug 23, 2022 21:41:11 GMT
Still an excellent show. Such a shame about the audience.
Jay nearly took a fall during Crazy Horses. Since half the audience were filming him, I’m sure it will be on YouTube soon (glad he got caught).
This really deserves a central London venue once the tour is over.
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Post by TallPaul on Sept 7, 2022 12:37:51 GMT
Come on then, our david, we're all waiting. Did you have your thigh gently stroked, and what time did the Liverpool Empire finally throw you out? "Sir, Sir, the performance ended 1 hour 15 minutes ago. We think it's time you stopped dancing and went home."
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Post by undeuxtrois on Sept 7, 2022 13:01:40 GMT
Absolutely loved this last night! Just fun and feel-good, loved every minute (Let Me In was just gorgeous). The little lads were adorable too.
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Post by david on Sept 7, 2022 18:14:06 GMT
It was a great show last night at the Empire theatre. A brilliant cast performing those classic Osmond songs with plenty of energy and slick choreography. The kids playing the young Osmonds were just fantastic alongside the older cast. It's a shame that there didn't appear to be any notice about which of the kid's groups were on last night.
For the adult cast, I couldn't really fault them for their performance. They all seemed to be having a great time on stage last night, having a lively and enthusiastic audience certainly helped to have a great night out with plenty of sing-along moments particularly during Act 2. Thankfully the audience didn't take over and ruin the songs.
I'm not a massive Osmond's fan by any means and the Osmond era was just coming to its end when I was born, so I only going into the show knowing a few of their hits and a little of their back story. Thankfully the book by Jay Osmond was certainly easy to follow. I have to say, their dad certainly seemed really tough on them growing up and shaping their careers. The "Wendy from Manchester" plotline I thought was a nice touch and the ending got a nice cheer from the audience.
Despite a basic staging for the show (very much in the same mould as Jersey Boys), some great lighting and costumes brought a lot of colour to the stage and the band sounded great as well and not overpowering either the kids or adults.
I am not really one for mid-show SO, but last night was one of the rare exceptions. The Act 1 closer was a particular standout as well as "Puppy Love"
By the end with everyone along with myself on their feet singing along to "Love Me For A Reason" and "Crazy Horses", this was a certainly worth a watch and I would definitely recommend getting a ticket this show if it comes to a theatre near you in the future.
Rating - 4 Stars.
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Post by ladidah on Oct 17, 2022 8:39:40 GMT
Saw this on Saturday with my Mum - massive Osmonds fan.
Wow, what a great show - the quality of the singing and choreography was a real highlight.
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Post by mkb on Oct 26, 2022 11:51:10 GMT
In the 70s, my sister took Jackie magazine, replete with posters of The Osmonds and David Cassidy. I used to nick it for pictures of The Sweet and Slade which adorned my bedroom wall. I loved Jackie's point-scoring, self-assessment quizzes. So in homage to those:
Q1) The Osmonds – A New Musical … (A) is a fascinating warts-and-all insight into the back-story of the Osmonds family as told through the eyes of Jay Osmond; (B) has no story of significance to tell, so concentrates instead on celebrating the music with a tribute act show; (C) spins out a threadbare but saccharin-heavy, rise-and-fall narrative over two-and-three-quarter hours interspersed with the hits or bits from them.
Q2) The script and book … (A) convey gritty realism; (B) are of no importance – this is about the music; (C) give the fictional writers of Acorn Antiques a run for their money.
Q3) The staging and choreography … (A) are as stunning as in Thriller Live; (B) are not the point – The Osmonds didn’t dance much; (C) are caught between imitation of the staid original concert performances and half-hearted musical theatre augmentation.
Q4) The set design … (A) brilliantly evokes a trip down memory lane with slick changes between scenes; (B) Why do we need a set? (C) is pared back to the cheapest most basic design that the touring budget will allow.
Q5) The sound design … (A) blows the audience away with its impact and clarity; (B) blows the roof off and makes your ears bleed; (C) is seriously underpowered, and cast members sometimes find themselves talking with microphones off or at a volume lower than others.
Q6) The lighting design … (A) dazzles the audience with invention and creativity; (B) is state-of-the-art and makes Abba Voyage seem old-hat; (C) What lighting design? Do you mean the focal characters walking through unlit shaded areas of the stage, or follow-spots missing their mark or being off when they are supposed to be on?
Q7) The show as a whole … (A) is a superb piece of drama; (B) is an exhilarating, kaleidoscopic trip; (C) is overlong, quite boring in Act 2 in fact – appropriate given that it deals with the period when The Osmonds had largely been forgotten in the UK – and there is far more drama off-stage than on.
Q8) The well-attended Tuesday night performance at the Alex in Birmingham … (A) held the audience rapt throughout; (B) was so exciting that several ambulances had to be called to deal with fainting elderly fans; (C) was too much for two ladies who the show had to be stopped for, revealing that the Alex has no equipment (wheelchair, stretcher) for extracting collapsed patrons from their seats other than to bundle them into a regular portable chair and get two burly blokes to carry it out.
Mostly As – You saw a great musical. I wish I had. Mostly Bs – Wow! What a crowd-pleaser for the fanbase. In someone’s imagination maybe. Mostly Cs – Were you there too?
Two stars.
Act 1: 19:31-20:13, 20:23-20:50 (including stop for audience medical issue) Act 2: 21:12-21:49, 22:03-22:41 (including stop for second unrelated audience medical issue)
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Post by FrontroverPaul on Oct 27, 2022 1:19:19 GMT
I definitely consider I saw a great show on each of my three visits to The Osmonds Musical (Oxford, Bromley and Wimbledon) and am looking forward to my fourth at Dartford and if the tour continues into 2023 a fifth.
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