Sunset Boulevard – Savoy Theatre 2023/24

Have I said I had a bad view? Does Nicole get better the further away you are from her?

With Nicole? 

Having seen it 5 times in various seats, she excels wherever you choose to sit.

So she’s really doing Viola in Chicago?

You have a different definition of “excels” to me.

so if Sunset is transferring to Broadway, she wont do it?

What’s the best and most reliable way to get decently priced tickets for this? We managed to get £20 tickets for just a few days before closing but the rave reviews have made us think we’ll want to see it more than once.

£30 lottery, relying on dynamic pricing, other means? How can we see it without paying fortunes but still getting good seats? Should have booked more than one occasion with the £20 seats *sigh*

I saw it tonight and now feels that same … x

I was there tonight too, and I absolutely loved it. It's a stunning looking production, dark and gritty. The Savoy auditorium is in semi-darkness as you struggle to find your seat which sets the mood.

Nicole S brought the house down and got a standing ovation mid song, and her campy, vampy, humorous performance was catnip to many of the gents in the audience, one of whom I saw actually bowing down to her after 'With One Look'! The drama! But she absolutely nailed the vulnerability of Norma. That voice!

Agree with others that Tom Francis has a great stage presence and will be a massive star after this. The coup de theatre at the start of Act 2 is breathtakingly executed and technically perfect.

Some things didn't quite work for me, the Cyrano like ensemble didn't match the mood of the piece totally successfully but they are all blazing with talent.

All in all, it is exhilarating and wonderfully theatrical, with a fitting incorporation of film. The music sounds immense with this orchestra and as others have said the sound and lighting design is really something else.

And I loved the title and end credits sequences. Would be amazed if this wasn't Broadway bound at some point.

Also, I agree with drowseychap about the damn mobile phone going off at a key moment. Jeez! At least they managed to turn it off relatively quickly. There was also some sort of minor kerfuffle in the mid stalls towards the start of Act 2 but thankfully things settled quickly.

Also there yesterday evening and all I can say is wow. As others have said you do need to leave your memory of previous productions behind but there is so much to love about this. The cast absolutely knock it out of the park. I cannot get over the power or Nicole’s voice.

I’m a big fan of analysing a production’s set but the lack of here really doesn’t matter as everything going on on stage makes up for it. Few additional thoughts:

- Joe’s drive to Norma’s house at the start absolutely took my breath away. The way it was staged, getting the full force of the orchestra, the use of the screen - it’s like watching a Tarantino film realised on stage.
- I was sitting at the end of row b in the dress circle and was slightly concerned at the start about the sound mix in that area as I was missing lyrics, but either I got used to it or it improved as it became less of a problem throughout.
- Plenty have said about how the orchestra is strong and it’s so true. When it takes off and plays those big sweeping moments it’s insane. But I was also bowled over by the power of the ensemble. There are quite a few moments where they’re all facing the audience singing in unison and it’s something else.
- In terms of Nicole’s performance I can’t help but think that if she wasn’t who she was we’d all be universally praising her. No it’s not subtle but she’s well and truly embodying the version of Norma she is playing. The mannerisms, thirst for attention are giving me Britney Spears’s Instagram which on paper sounds dreadful but in reality works so well.
- It’s incredible how something so cinematic in its topic and that takes such a cinematic method of staging felt so incredibly theatrical. It was honestly one of the best evenings I’ve had in a theatre in a long time.

That was filmed on a public street so I’m ok with it. The producers can’t expect people not to see that. The clip I’ve removed was from inside the auditorium. 

All the enthusiastic posts on here are making me want to book again for this too! Ade, your post in particular really summed up why my reaction to it was so ‘wow’.

I’m already booked for the closing night, but not sure I can wait until Jan to go again. Just a case of fitting it in as I’m nowhere near London and my work/life schedule doesn’t permit many impromptu trips sadly.

So excited to see the press reviews next week and find out what they make of it - will they be as superlative as most members here or will there be naysayers who ‘just don’t get it’?!