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Post by Dr Tom on Mar 17, 2024 0:27:17 GMT
Also noticed lots of filming at Italia Conti’s Legally Blonde this morning every time Emmet was on stage. Come on, you’ve got to tell your mum not to whip her phone out every time you enter the stage… I was at Conti where a woman filmed the whole show, with her phone part-shielded by her programme. No one said anything, but she was on the front row, so the whole cast must have been able to see. It can be tricky in that type of environment.
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Post by Dr Tom on Mar 16, 2024 22:53:33 GMT
I did get to sit in the row behind Lulu at The Little Big Things a few weeks ago. She either attracted very little attention (or it was a polite and respectful audience).
The second time I saw The Little Big Things, there was a female singer (I'd say in her 20s) getting attention from her fans (and being very pleasant with them). Unfortunately, although she looked familiar, I didn't manage to work out who she was. But it seemed like a show people were trying to get tickets for in the closing fortnight (I got excellent Stalls rush tickets both times).
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Post by Dr Tom on Mar 16, 2024 22:34:23 GMT
I completely agree that all venues should have cast boards visible, ideally more than one. Some venues have them on screens, but they are in such awkward places that you feel like you're blocking other people coming in while you wait for them to rotate.
Even then, there have been plenty of cases where the cast board is wrong, or they've left up posters of cast change details from previous shows.
Some venues don't have cast boards at all, or only announce changes to main roles. The smaller roles, ensemble and swings don't seem to matter.
I've been sat in audiences during the interval with people behind me discussing the programme and saying things like "are you sure that's him?", knowing full well that someone else is on in the role (but I would never turn around and say that).
Now, of course last minute changes and role swaps during the show are inevitable, but I do feel that these should be announced (out of respect for both the audience and the performers. I was at Frozen recently when Ben Irish took over as Hans during the show and that was announced (but they didn't ever announce who had taken over Ben's role as Pabbie).
Ultimately, I feel for anyone who is misidentified, but the theatre has to take a huge amount of responsibility here. There are a lot of theatre goers who just want to say thank you to the people who they think they saw on social media, and not everyone has access to sources like TheatreBoard.
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Post by Dr Tom on Mar 16, 2024 22:30:26 GMT
I've seen many 'sprayers' in my time and I think the most respectful thing in this situation is to ignore and remain immersed in the performance. I know it isn't deliberate and I would ignore it, but I can understand why people react so much now in the post Covid world. There again, I still try and leave space before the person in front of me when I'm queueing in the supermarket.
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Post by Dr Tom on Mar 16, 2024 18:24:07 GMT
Ivano was on this afternoon. In fact, I think it's the first time I've seen all of the current cast on without any covers. If he's recovering from an injury, it doesn't show in his performance.
I'd still change some of the audience. Making a crisp sandwich on stage should not be a signal to open your bag of crisps! Jamie's revelation to his mum in Act 2 shouldn't lead to a big chorus of laughs in the rear Stalls. Not should anyone set a phone alarm to go off during He's My Boy (not the only phone incident). I was sat with the Giovanna Fletcher fan club (Giovanna has grown on me) and they were keen to exchange notes during the show. Still, I wouldn't change the cast!
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Post by Dr Tom on Mar 15, 2024 16:25:09 GMT
With moving flats (don't get me started on the ethical practices of letting agents) and work travel, I'm rather behind with reviews, but somehow I did manage to check out some College Productions.
She Loves Me - Mountview
I got to see both casts in the Backstage Theatre. To me, this is the best Mountview production of the year. I'd heard it wasn't very traditional, but for Mountview standards, this was quite traditional. They are still doing the practice I don't like of blocking off most of the good seats for the favoured few, so although there are only three rows of seats, you feel like you're pushed out of the way as a paying customer. On the plus side, I did manage to avoid the pre-show interaction, but the Mountview cast mainly chose to interact with other students. This is always a charming musical, performed and sung very well, and sounding excellent in the small space of the Backstage Theatre.
Merrily We Roll Along (RCSSD)
I saw the first performance of this, from the front row. Nice venue and easy to travel to. I've seen a few students productions of Merrily. It's a tough show to sing. I thought the cast did well, but there's a mix of experience levels. Great set design for a student show. One oddity is they had a caption screen, but it was obscured behind the set for a lot of the show. This did, unfortunately, make it obvious when the cast were improvising a few of the lines. One thing I liked is they brought on the second year students as ensemble for a few songs, giving them the chance to get some stage experience. Not Mountview standards, but I'd happily go to RCSSD performances again.
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Post by Dr Tom on Mar 15, 2024 16:12:55 GMT
I know that some theatres will offer a discounted upgrade on the day, but I don't have a list of which ones. That would be useful information.
I wouldn't do this regularly, but when there's obviously a big block of seats free at the same level, I would consider moving. You often get a feel for certain theatres. Moving a few seats along the row to be more central/avoid a head in front etc I'd consider acceptable (although I wouldn't do this to then block the view of someone behind) - you can then easily move back if someone does appear. The only time I've ever really had a problem is when a theatre upgraded a load of people around 15 minutes into a show and moved them all forward. I was one of several people who had moved across, but others had also moved and so blocked the area in between my original and claimed seat. I did go back to my original seat but had to go the long way around. I'm not sure the poor usher ever understood what was happening, or if the people they were moving all ended up with seats in the new area or not.
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Post by Dr Tom on Mar 15, 2024 0:48:39 GMT
Was at RCSSD this eve for Merrily We Roll Along The woman beside me fell asleep on her husbands shoulder during act 1. They left at the interval Seriously, why bother going to a show? The poor cast, we were 2nd row Funnily enough, I saw this on the Monday, and someone further along the front row also fell asleep. He also left at the interval. Someone else near me said “I didn’t know it was a Sondheim”. He, at least, stayed for the show, but I could have done without the rustling and chair movements (as, I suspect, could have the cast). I did pay for my ticket, but the theatre was not all that full, and there may be a link there.
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Post by Dr Tom on Mar 14, 2024 21:08:43 GMT
Imperial College Musical Theatre Society is presenting Big Fish on 21 and 22 March. Tickets are very cheap (£8 for non-students). I’m putting this in Amateur as it’s not part of a College course. www.imperialcollegeunion.org/shop/student-groups/112I have no idea what the quality will be like, but a very cheap night out for South Kensington!
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Post by Dr Tom on Mar 14, 2024 21:05:45 GMT
Have they pulled the remaining Sunday shows?
Finton is tonight, excellent as usual. The row behind me has two different sets of annoying people who can’t stop talking.
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Post by Dr Tom on Mar 14, 2024 21:03:43 GMT
Discounting on TodayTix. I’m still holding out until nearer the time.
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Post by Dr Tom on Mar 5, 2024 12:13:14 GMT
I have one ticket available for the first preview tomorrow. Free to a good home. Unfortunately, I have a work commitment. Details are on the Noticeboard. Thanks to everyone who messaged me. My PMs have never been so busy. The ticket is now claimed (mods - please delete the ad).
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Post by Dr Tom on Mar 3, 2024 17:48:04 GMT
Well, they had added some posters regarding Georgina being on ready for people exiting, so that’s something.
Otherwise, I did get hit in the head on the way in with enough force to send my classes flying forward two rows, so that may explain any errors on my part. The joking remark from the man who hit me, that he was trying to remove a tight jumper, wasn’t really appreciated. No harm done, but it just shows how oblivious some people can be.
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Post by Dr Tom on Mar 3, 2024 15:35:19 GMT
Georgina Hagen is on as Margaret this afternoon. She’s always excellent, perfect singer and such an emotional performance.
No signs about this and no announcement, so I can tell how easy it is to get confused. I’ve seen Georgina enough times in Heathers that I’m certain it is her (and I’m on the third row, so the view is clear). I do hope to see her Ray and Miss Hedge at some point.
A bigger mystery is who is on as Tray Sophisticay. I may be wrong as there’s a lot of make up involved, but it just doesn’t look like David McNair to me. Corrections are welcome. Everyone is very good, as always.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 20, 2024 12:30:30 GMT
I was glad they've worked in some opportunities to stand up and stretch. This a long 2 hour play without an interval (although adding one would not make sense).
I got a Rush ticket yesterday for Dress Circle Row C, which is a perfect view for this (even though I hated the Dress Circle for Jersey Boys). It would have been a premium ticket otherwise. The stage is extended from Jersey Boys, so you're close to the action. I'm not sure how they've done this without losing a few rows of seating, so perhaps the other Stalls seats have reduced legroom?
My feeling here is there's an interesting premise, several levels, a very good final few minutes, lots to analyse. Lots of people near me clearly had no clue what to expect, or thought they were going to see a comedy. A tight 90 minute version would suit me better. Glad I've seen this, but would no doubt have appreciated this more at a matinee rather than after a busy day at work.
I think it's worth seeing at Rush pricing. No desire here to see this again.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 19, 2024 15:09:51 GMT
What did you think of Giovanna? She always looks to be having a lot of fun.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 19, 2024 15:04:00 GMT
I saw this with Rush last week. No luck at being offered Stalls tickets any of the times I've tried, but I settled for mid Dress Circle, which is a clear view, and apart from the person repeating jokes for her husband, had reasonable sound quality.
Some plays fail to grab my attention. For this one, no such problems, which is good going for a 3 hour run time. Yes, it is a bit predictable, but it's also keenly written. Not one I'd feel the need to return to see a second time, but well worth seeing. 4 stars from me.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 19, 2024 14:59:17 GMT
I saw this with a rush ticket for the Thursday matinee. An excellent view, although I'd have preferred to have sat a few rows closer.
I don't know the film at all, but I found this enjoyable. Some obvious plot holes and nothing hugely original, but it has a top rate cast way beyond the Charing Cross norms. Having not really checked the cast before, a nice surprise was spotting Josh Butler in the cast, who was always adorable at Mountview, and somehow has made himself even more adorable here. ArtsEd is also represented in the recent graduates nicely too with the always excellent Aharon Rayner.
This does take a bit of time to get going. If, like me, you don't like surprise gunshots, thankfully they're recordings (and largely limited to the opening sequence), after which the show goes in a different direction. I doubt this will have much of a life beyond Charing Cross, but I'll certainly see this again before it closes.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 19, 2024 14:52:13 GMT
I did end up at both matinees over the weekend and Finton was on as Jamie for both shows. There were signs up on Saturday. On Sunday, they only announced this verbally at the start, so this may have been a late switch. In any case, Finton is a fantastic Jamie, and no one seeing him should be disappointed.
Saturday, I got a fifth row aisle seat from TKTS, with the show only marred a bit by some loud women at the back of the Stalls. Sunday, I got third row through Rush (not the first ticket release), which is a perfect view. Another bonus is that Joe Wolstenholme was on and it seems like years since I've seen him.
There are some oddities, like lines that change every show, and the cut back on party poppers (or, at least, Shobna failing to pop hers in the last three shows I've seen). John Partridge I thought was excellent, a slightly different Hugo portrayal to the previous week.
This is my favourite show in London right now.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 16, 2024 12:57:53 GMT
I got the email, and somehow got a position near the front of the queue, so was admitted within the first minute. There wasn't much left and some dates had no availability. I did manage to snag a Stalls seat near the front for Wednesday's matinee, so that will be a nice change from seeing this from the Dress Circle.
After buying, you are still able to go back and buy again. I didn't buy again, but I did check was available. If anything, there were more seats showing at 12:30 or so than there were at 12:00.
Top 500, you should definitely be able to get singles (but not necessarily ones in positions you want). Pairs are possible but less likely.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 12, 2024 20:11:58 GMT
I saw the matinee with a Rush ticket yesterday (central Stalls, would have liked to have been further forward, but the view is fine). The set is a little small for the Peacock Theatre stage.
As others have noted, Ivano is back. His ankle is heavily taped up, but I didn't spot any obvious problems. He plays possibly the campest Jamie of all time, but was very good.
I spent a bit of time trying to work out where Giovanna Fletcher's accent was from. They often stunt cast Miss Hedge, but I'm not sure this role quite suited Giovanna.
John Partridge played Hugo/Loco very differently to the norm. A very passive and hesitant Hugo, but that did make his transformation into Loco stand out. Interestingly enough perhaps, most of the dialogue changes from Oxford have been reverted to an earlier version, particularly for Loco's scenes. After previously commenting about Jamie's lack of a mobile phone, he did hold one throughout the drag show scene too. It's just a pity no one would let him have him have his dad's mobile number.
Shobna Gulati is always excellent and it's a shame she's leaving. But I see they've now announced that Sejal Keshwala is returning for the rest of the tour, and she's faultless as well.
The real star continues to be Rebecca McKinnis, and I'm glad to see she's staying for the rest of the tour. I do hope to see Georgina Hagen at some point as well. All enjoy this fantastic show while it's back in London.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 11, 2024 17:32:14 GMT
Carrie Hope Fletcher and Joel Montague were at the Jamie matinee today. Both being totally charming with the queue of people wanting to say hello and get selfies.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 10, 2024 0:53:06 GMT
Financially as a reputable London actor, you can get paid well, but for a relatively short period of time. Your job is to build up a long-term career, and also to save money during the time that you're being paid well to offset everything else.
I have huge respect for actors, but I could also translate their struggles to my own life and career very easily.
As a fresh graduate, the salary is good. 20 years on as an ensemble member, with a mortgage and a family to support, maybe less so.
Comparing London salaries with New York salaries is a false economy. I love New York and I'd live there for a year or two, but everything is hideously expensive. For all the complaints, London is a bargain in comparison.
Choosing to act for a living is not the easiest life. But the people who do must know they are already at the top of their class. A lot of graduates will never even get that opportunity. Everyone should be thankful - and also have a backup plan.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 9, 2024 23:33:16 GMT
Yes there is, through the link in the plays website that was linked at the beginning of this thread: they sent me an email earlier saying the resale goes live next Tuesday (the 13th) from 8 a.m until noon: I’ve seen how many people liked this when Tom Holland shares he was doing it on his Instagram the other day so they won’t have problems selling tickets for this, I want to see who is playing Juliet first though. They don't need to announce who is playing Juliet before Tuesday though. It will still largely sell out. It could be Lola* from Big Brother and it would still sell the same. * Apologies if there really was a Lola from Big Brother.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 9, 2024 21:36:18 GMT
Rent - ArtsEd
A five star student production that could easily grace a professional stage.
In a moment of either madness or expectation (or not being sure what dates I could make), I booked to see both casts twice. I say both casts, although only four roles are double cast, but these people do play things quite differently. Both groups are very good. I feel La Vie had a slight edge as to how they gelled as a group, but there were individual performances in Boheme that I loved (especially Taylor Morris).
What ArtsEd always do very well is they find ways to make sure that every ensemble member has their moment and is featured. One downside is you get some numbers that are very busy, but you can focus out the interpretative dance going on in the background. I remember Rent doing rather well in the Other Palace a few years ago and this version could fit right in, just slimming down the ensemble (and set).
I did mentally slot a lot of the cast into other shows, even the ensemble members (especially where I'd seen them in other roles). The next tour of Heathers is covered. I do have Hayes Nolan as a perfect Beleaguered Geek (and cover JD). Jesse Chidera must never leave the gym (as so often happens in ArtsEd productions, they do manage to find a way to show his body off). I've mentally cast him as Jack in Newsies. Nkara Stephenson really stood out to me with presence in the ensemble as well.
In the lead roles, the characters are written in such a way that anything other than an excellent performance would be a let-down. Sedona Sky was the total standout as Mimi. Olivia Bella commanded the stage as Joanne as well, not overshadowed by the actors playing Maureen as can happen. Max Mulrenan must be destined for a role in Hamilton, a very believable Collins, beautiful voice, and outside this production I know he can rap too. Hayden Cable as the other Collins, totally charming, sings well, I see him with the potential to be a good comedy actor, or a possible Jamie, anything where he doesn't have to bow in time. His Gordon did tear me up.
This was 2 hours 50 minutes on Tuesday, by the matinee today it was down to 2 hours 35 minutes. The matinee today was the perfect performance. The crowd was respectful but not too loud. They'd cut down the pre-show. The microphones held up. I didn't hear anyone laughing at inappropriate moments (this isn't The Book of Mormon where having AIDS is a punchline).
They added an extra dimension to Mark, which everyone handled well, but without being able to change the book, this had to be acted out in the background. Taylor Morris as Mark, really likeable, didn't overact. Reece McGowan, memorable, very active eyes, a Mark that demanded more attention. The Rogers, Tom Major and Ben Fenwick, well that has to be a dream part for any trainee musical theatre actor. Tom Francis in the Hope Mill version really showed off the vocals for Roger, then went on to great heights, but otherwise this version was superior to Hope Mill. That is not forgetting the other leads. I could write something nice about everyone.
I almost wish I could go tomorrow. This sold out within minutes, unsurprisingly. If ArtsEd set up a commercial arm to run professional shows, they most definitively have the talent and expertise. Well done to everyone involved. You may not get a better student production this year.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 7, 2024 21:03:09 GMT
I’m thinking London rather than a tour, but it’s not clear from the teaser.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 6, 2024 13:57:46 GMT
I did wonder about illness at first, although I picked up on someone else in the cast. Perhaps there is a bug going around? Dionne Ward-Anderson was on as Nabulungi too (doing really well), which was odd as Beatrice Penny-Toure only started in the role a couple of weeks ago.
However, that wouldn't really explain why they stopped at that point, and they should have enough people available to complete the show. Maybe we'll be able to work out more if everything goes ahead without a hitch tonight.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 6, 2024 13:40:45 GMT
Pippin - Mountview
This is an abstract production even by Pippin standards, but enjoyable, held in the Mountview Backstage Theatre.
I saw the Saturday matinee (note 14:15 advertised start, although this started late - I think it was the first performance). Unusually, almost all the seats were marked as reserved, so there were only 10 or so seats left. There are only three rows (seating on three sides of the performance area), so even in the back row, the view was fine.
This is performed with a non-male cast (all students using she/her or she/they pronouns), with a minimal set. The pronouns used to describe characters change regularly during the show, but that all adds to the mystique of Pippin. There are plenty of line changes and apparent ad-libs, I certainly don't remember this much swearing in previous productions of Pippin. The sound and vocals are very good. Thankfully I know Pippin well, but it was obvious at the end that there people who had no idea what they'd just witnessed.
The singalong section is present, but the angle makes it very difficult to read the words, so do learn these in advance if you want to take part.
Definitely worth seeing in this intimate setting if seats are available. Everyone does a great job with the material. Running time is about two hours, including the interval.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 6, 2024 11:52:45 GMT
I was also there and really it was quite shambolic to wait until after the official end time of the show to announce the cancellation. They did do a roaring bar trade, so that should offset some of the money lost through the refunds.
Plenty of people had already left before the official cancellation.
It is a difficult situation and really it was the lack of information and the false announcement of 20 more minutes that didn't help. I know these things happen. Everyone I saw was being polite to the ushers thankfully, who have a difficult job, but much as I may be tempted to say "I don't get paid enough to deal with that", there are better forms of wording to use with frustrated customers.
Up to the show stop, it was an excellent high energy show, with the cast having a lot of fun. Still, I can get back another time easily enough.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 3, 2024 10:50:22 GMT
It's good. It's a fairly traditional jukebox musical which has a better selection of songs than most to work with (the 60, 70s, and 80s are all represented). They are integrated into the plot well and performed well.
The first half is stronger than the second. It runs very long (2 hours 45 minutes), and I presume they're still making a lot of changes as there were a few line slips.
The book itself is weak, as is the framing device, preaching to the converted, lots of characters introduced but it's not clear why they're there (and their subplots just fizzle out). The cast are uniformly excellent, particularly when performing the songs from the era. The Queen set is sensibly sprinkled throughout. There isn't much of a set. For most of the show, the cast sit on chairs at the back, coming forward as needed, and there are projections. The highlight is easily Mrs Thatcher, the Hamilton parody scenes, and it's almost as if someone is using this show to rehabilitate her in the public eye. There are times when talking about the horrors of the era that Miss Saigon style visuals may be needed, as opposed to just talking around the edges (and swearing).
I'm pleased to report the audience was well behaved. Very little singing along. They even largely refrained from responding from the attempts of those on stage to get hand waving and clapping going. I could tell that some were waiting for a mega-mix at the end, but that didn't come (just as well, as the show is too long already).
In many ways, this reminds me of the Old Vic and Sylvia, in that there's a lot of potential here, but it feels like there was some workshopping missed along the way.
Despite my misgivings, I'd happily see this again based on the strength of the music. I had a bad pillar restricted view seat (good legroom though), booked solely to use up a credit voucher. I'd like to see this from nearer the front. This could easily transfer as it will sell based on the strength of the music and subject matter. I do feel there's a gem of a show hidden away here, just waiting for someone to set it free.
I've gone with 3 stars in the poll. I imagine it will be 3.5 stars within days, and could hit 4 stars.
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