Starlight Express - Troubadour

According to a Facebook ad I saw earlier, they’ve sold over 100,000 tickets so far. Pretty impressive.

Lots of interesting points above :-)

In terms of it being a new production (new direction, choreography, design etc etc) am pretty sure most people on here know that's the case! I think people are mainly wondering how different the book and score are going to be. Which we don't know!

Having said that whilst people on here know it's a new production, the wider public (and the endless Facebook comments) may well not! And certainly most of the wider theatre going public wouldn't even know how much it's changed over the years (slightly the tours, but mainly Bochum) so may well be in for a bit of a shock!

What I do think is a good thing however, is I get the hunch they are aiming for a new audience. I said upstream somewhere that whilst much as the nostalgia element is there for lots of us on here, all the revivals that come back more or less unchanged simply don't get a new audience. And no matter how many many people would love to see something close to the original again - that audience quickly fades. Cats, Miss Saigon, Evita, they all started strong but did not become long runners again. And that's because the next generation(s) didn't particularly take to them.

If Starlight were to get it totally right, it would be a version that all the fans of the original like enough, but something that their kids (and grandkids) adore. Who knows if they'll succeed in this - but I am all for them trying.

You can count me as someone who didn't like the majority of the Bochum 30th changes. Ditto my mates. Ditto the fan circles I mix in. But the hard truth of the matter (as someone who goes two to four times per year) is that the show was struggling before the changes. And it's had a massive resurgence since. So whatever I may think is irrelevant - it'a found a new audience. Would I take a few changes and a version I love 10% less if it keeps the show going and open? Hell yeah!

(Might add how "bad" the changes are is I feel massively overstated by devotees of the original. The piece is absolutely still Starlight Express, the new orchestrations are fantastic and the sound and lighting are next level. I like the change to Momma and the blending of female and male voice in I Am The Starlight I adore. Everyone has different things they don't like. To me it's really only some of the visuals. I find the costumes plainer and uglier and I really don't like the projections. Not because the projections are bad but because they painted the set black to take them and I really miss the gorgeous industrial 80's metallic set being prominent)

Anyway, am rambling a bit. But what am kinda saying is that if has to sacrifice a bit of what the old audience want to find a new one, I'd be ok with that.

And however they do it, I predict - call me Mystic Meg - on here that a few people will go to first few shows, announce it's a MESS and "doesn't know what it wants to be" and issue 1 star. Someone will announce it's "gone woke" then struggle to explain what that means. Then a few people will say it's the best thing on the planet and give it 5 stars. Then as time goes on, the 1 stars will be eclipsed by a growing body of 3, 4 and 5 stars. Hardly anyone will give it 2 stars! (I must be old - seen this so many times ;-))

My personal predictable complaint will be how long it takes to get a cast recording and a souvenir brochure lol. If indeed they do either at all. (Though the way things are going who knows if they'll release a cast recording before Sunset Boulevard manage to).

More tickets released across all (or lots at least) performances including £29.50 at the sides. I've gone for one in the front of the rear block, near £77 seats so hopefully not too bad (I didn't want to sit right at the back when this went on sale!)

Could totally get a gnarly voiced rock goddess as Greaseball. Fingers crossed for the one I’d love! Thinking about the venue as it was used for Newsies I can see bikes being an effective way of creating movement and filling the space.

Interesting... I understood changing Poppa to Momma (and prefer the character Momma, myself), and some of the engines and components, but Greaseball is meant to be an arrogant misogynist, can't imagine the role being played as female. Is there any updates or rumours in terms of casting?

A female Electra would have made more sense.

Agree. I think a lot of the characters can be gender fluid (CB, Electra, all the Rockies, engines etc), but I think Greaseball is really one that should be played as male. But we'll see, I'm very excited, whatever they do.

2.5hrs Inc interval. Good luck and may the odds be ever in your favour.

Oh dear, I’ve just checked and it seems I’ve also booked for the weekend of the Taylor Swift concerts in June. I was planning to drive, but I’ll either have look at public transport or make a weekend of it and book a hotel in London. What a pain! It looks like the Swifties will be taking over the Boxpark too so there will be no avoiding them!!
Back to Starlight, any whispers on when might hear news on casting? The 40th anniversary of the London show is coming up in a few weeks… perhaps we’ll hear something then.

According to TodayTix, runtime for this will be 2 hours including an interval. Seems very short!

The workshop was about 1:40