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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Jan 7, 2017 0:06:47 GMT
I struggle to see why this is successful as anything other than people expecting a Whitney tribute night - the book is dreadful, the set looks cheap and the abrupt ending just doesn't work except as a lead in to a song. Reading this, I tried to remember what happened at the ending... but I realised I could barely remember anything about the plot, and nothing about the ending. Which to be honest, really says something about the book of this musical.
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Jan 4, 2017 22:00:52 GMT
Wicked is also in great shape at the moment - it received the shake up it needed so I love going back to see this more regularly than I did in 2015. What have they done to shake it up?
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Jan 4, 2017 12:31:28 GMT
After consideration, I've ranked all the musicals I saw in 2016. I was hoping to see something else in December to bring it to a nice round 20, but 19 will have to do. Easily my biggest theatre-going year.
1. Sunset Boulevard (superb - I've never seen the show, never heard it in full before and didn't even really know the plot, so not only was I stunned by Glenn Close's performance, I thoroughly enjoyed the intrigue, twists and turns of what is surely one of ALW's best pieces.) 2. In the Heights (saw it three times in 2016, loved it every time.) 3. Miss Saigon (based solely on my viewing in 2016, when I deliberately went to see Sooha Kim's scheduled performance. From my previous viewing in late 2015 with Eva Noblezada, it would be higher.)
4. Children of Eden (probably my favourite musical, but the Union Theatre's production was lacking in some areas (underpowered vocals from some of the cast and too minimalist a design) - still a good enough musical to rank this high.) 5. The Toxic Avenger (my biggest surprise of 2016, just a thoroughly enjoyable evening.) 6. Titanic 7. School of Rock 8. Funny Girl 9. Wicked (I've seen it three times, so it's hard to compare to all these first-times surrounding it, but I think this is about right. For me it's now a solid, enjoyable night out, but it doesn't thrill me anymore.) 10. The Go-Between
11. Side Show 12. Grey Gardens 13. Mrs Henderson Presents (one stunner of a song surrounded by lots of mediocre-ness.) 14. The Bodyguard 15. Aladdin (disappointing - was one of my most highly anticipated shows of 2016.) 16. Guys and Dolls 17. wonder.land 18. Sunny Afternoon (probably a good show if you're the target audience. I'm really not.)
19. Murder Ballad (the only thing I regret seeing. Unlikeable, pointless and just dull.)
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Dec 30, 2016 18:33:17 GMT
I'd like to hear what she actually, you know, sounds like, before proclaiming it as amazing casting.
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Dec 28, 2016 14:51:57 GMT
I would certainly be up for it.
As this kind of thing is often quite hard to organise, I suggest that a couple of people just decide on a date/time/place they want to meet, and tell everyone else what they're doing, and people can come along if they can.
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Dec 25, 2016 22:16:21 GMT
I'd asked for the Gypsy DVD (the Imelda Staunton one), and I am giving the Miss Saigon blu-ray to my parents tomorrow.
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Dec 23, 2016 23:35:31 GMT
I hope the new version of the app doesn't add loads of needless extras that make it bloated and slow to load on older phones. Too many apps do this - I like the fact that TodayTix app is relatively simple. For example, that map feature sounds like the kind of idea that looks cute and clever, but has limited use.
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Dec 23, 2016 9:34:16 GMT
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Dec 22, 2016 22:58:35 GMT
O Come All Ye Divas tomorrow night.
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Dec 20, 2016 19:44:13 GMT
It says new, but hasn't this been on before? This is exactly what I thought, but the previous BBC4 doc from 2012 was called The Story of Musicals. There was also a Channel 4 series from 2013 called The Sound of Musicals, which was also the name of a BBC concert-style show with live performances from 2006. Now we have this 'Sound of Musicals' coming next year. You'd have thought that maybe the powers that be could think up some more original names!!! Either way, I'm pretty excited about this, thanks for bringing it up HG. Ah yes, presumably just conflating all of these! And yep, sounds pretty great, the kind of thing BBC Four should do well.
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Dec 20, 2016 18:51:11 GMT
It says new, but hasn't this been on before?
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Dec 19, 2016 12:54:53 GMT
All in London for me:
Harold Pinter Theatre (lovely small theatre) Southwark Theatre (three times!) Trafalgar Studios (ridiculous layout and tiny toilets) Coliseum (loved it, even being right at the top, dramatic auditorium and lovely big staircases and foyers) Noel Coward Theatre Union Theatre (in both its incarnations) Apollo Theatre Dominion Theatre (huge!) Charing Cross Theatre (boiling for Titanic, and not even one of the hottest days) Arts Theatre (ugh) New London (great space, would definitely go back!)
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Dec 19, 2016 12:49:41 GMT
Show Boat, Jesus Christ Superstar (though hoping to make up for that next year) and Groundhog Day.
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Dec 6, 2016 10:55:16 GMT
The thing that really bugs me with GILT is that you can only see the seating plan of the theatre before you choose which price level you want. Then when it tells you the seats it's offering you, you can't access the seating plan anymore. Am I missing something?
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Dec 4, 2016 12:28:33 GMT
Apologies if this question has been asked before, but which seats in this theatre would you all recommend for In the Heights? I've been keen to finally see it as a big LMM/Hamilton fan but haven't been to this theatre before. Either platform, they're equally good. As central as possible, a couple of rows back. To be honest the views are still good even from the back, but the rake isn't great so you may struggle to see over heads depending on how tall you are. Yep, either platform, as central as possible (we sat in 25 and 26 last time, and that was basically in the middle). We were Row F, which was good, though I would probably have gone a row or two further forward given the choice.
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Dec 1, 2016 21:33:15 GMT
Happy Birthday to TM! An absolutely invaluable resource, I never book a seat at a theatre without poring over the site and opinions in minute detail, and the dayseat info, the 'current special offers'... if anything, getting to know the Theatremonkey site in the past couple of years has re-ignited my love of theatre, so thank you, and happy birthday!
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Nov 30, 2016 12:57:52 GMT
Just booked now, the same cheap seat in the balcony I saw Sunset from, as I know the restricted view is pretty much fine there. I went for the day Katherine Jenkins isn't on.
Didn't get held in a queue at all, for what it's worth, and there are plenty of tickets available at all price levels.
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Nov 28, 2016 18:52:56 GMT
It was a good 10 minutes late when I saw it last week, but I think at least part of that was due to them getting people to go in and sit down!
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Nov 23, 2016 21:48:45 GMT
Is it back to being properly staged now? I'd quite like to see it before it closes, but not fussed about seeing a concert version.
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Nov 23, 2016 14:13:15 GMT
Third time seeing this last night, loved it once again.
One thing I noticed, compared to the previous visits, was how much of a difference it makes having a full cast (the only understudy on was Rafaella Covino as Nina, as Gabriela Garcia is on holiday). On my last visit it was in the middle of their worst cast/understudy issues, so seeing it tonight was a revelation. It meant that the dancing was so much more impressive, and busy scenes like the Club and the Blackout make so much more sense (last time I went, Usnavi had to dance with Daniela). It also gives the smaller main roles much more room to breathe; last night was the first time I've really appreciated the character of Sonny, and that's partly because he was excellently played, but also because the actor isn't running around covering ensemble tracks - it makes him a real character, rather than just 'another person in the barrio, who also happens to be Usnavi's cousin'.
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Nov 22, 2016 13:47:55 GMT
David was on last night, but Rosanna was on at Ms Mullins (and was excellent, I have to say).
I went into this not really knowing what to expect, not having seen the film, and not particularly expecting to enjoy it. I was wrong - I really liked it. The kids are excellent, and the scenes in the schoolroom sparkle, with amazing chemistry between the kids and David. Lots of fun moments, plenty of real laughs, and genuinely sympathetic child actors.
It does however fall flat in any scenes that don't involve the kids, particularly the first 15 minutes or so. I'd had enough of Patty and Ned very quickly, and I didn't find myself sympathising with Dewey much either - indeed, I'd say he's only interesting in the scenes where he bounces off the kids.
Having seen two rock musicals in the past couple of weeks, School of Rock gets it right in all the ways that Murder Ballad gets it wrong - a real sense of fun, variety in the performances and, most importantly of all, memorable songs! It's not a 5* musical for me, it certainly has flaws, but overall I thoroughly enjoyed it.
(As an aside, is this selling badly? I'd say the auditorium was about two-thirds full last night - the front of the circle had swathes of empty seats, and the rear stalls was almost completely unoccupied. I also had two empty seats next to me in Row E of the front centre stalls, and an empty seat in front. In contrast, the cheap seats at the sides (which are a total steal in this theatre) were totally full.)
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Nov 22, 2016 13:29:20 GMT
At School of Rock last night I was in front of a group of four older people, two couples.
Man to the others: "Have you seen the film?" Other man: "No..." First man: "Well, it's about a guy who becomes a teacher and forms a rock band with the kids, and then they... and then later on it turns out that..."
At this point I had literally put my hands over my ears and was singing lalalala - I haven't seen the film, and I don't want the plot ruined by someone who has! At the interval, he started up again, telling his companions what was going to happen in the second half (or at least what happens in the second half of the film). I very nearly spoke to him and asked him to stop, but was feeling under the weather and couldn't face the confrontation, so just walked and stood in another part of the auditorium till the end of the interval.
Why do people do this??
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Nov 21, 2016 13:43:03 GMT
Has there been any talk of staging this show in Spanish somewhere? I would love a Spanish recording. On YouTube there are some videos of productions in (if memory serves) Peru and Argentina, in Spanish.
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Nov 18, 2016 21:55:07 GMT
Saw it this afternoon, sadly only just under half full. Opinion on my site now, but basically the duo sing the heck out of it - and the production set lets them down. Did the screens keep colliding with each other when anyone else saw it? Oh, and my Sam B crush is now total, LOL. I know what I'll be asking Santa for this Christmas (some hope!). I felt really flattered for a moment... :-D
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Nov 13, 2016 12:47:29 GMT
Thanks guys, that's really helpful
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Nov 12, 2016 22:37:03 GMT
Ah, yes, I'd misunderstood theatremonkey's post. I thought he was saying the site had a 'map' of which dates were cheaper than others, which I was looking for in vain on the site. Found the cheaper 'economy' dates now.
And on that topic - what would regular Book of Mormon visitors recommend? Centre stalls Row P, vs side stalls further forward, vs centre first few rows of the Circle?
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Nov 12, 2016 20:19:38 GMT
Where would I find that? Can't see it on the site...
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Nov 11, 2016 22:29:19 GMT
Pleased to hear - missed out on tickets this year, so can actually get to see it this time!
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Nov 7, 2016 18:13:22 GMT
Murder Ballad on Friday night
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Nov 1, 2016 21:10:53 GMT
Dammit, too slow
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