2,676 posts
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Post by viserys on Jun 23, 2017 4:56:20 GMT
Genuine question, how does this show keep selling out such huge theatres? I'm a Meat Loaf fan through and through, I've seen him live several times (and was almost always the youngest there by about 30 years) but I didn't think he'd got the fanbase to sell 16,000+ tickets a week. I'm very happy to be proved wrong though, Dominion / Palladium transfer would be amazing. I'd say it's not only hardcare Meat Loaf fans who are interested in this but rock fans in general. There is no proper rock musical in London at the moment. The jukebox musicals presently in town are all pop/disco sounds - Mamma mia, Motown, Beautiful, Thriller - and while they are probably mildly entertaining in itself (I've only seen Mamma mia of those) it's just not the same as proper loud noisy guitar-wailing drum-crashing rock. Heck, I tend to trend jukebox musicals with disdain and I'm not a huge Meat Loaf fan, but I was on the first plane to Manchester when this was announced, simply because I had a sense that Steinman's songs would be magic on stage. I guess there are tons of people around London and tourists studying the theatre listings who feel similar. It makes sense that they consider taking it to Germany where Steinman's mediocre Dance of the Vampires has an obsessive fan following (it's been around for something like 20 years now), but I shudder at the very thought of all these great rock songs being translated into German. |
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Post by showbizkid on Jun 23, 2017 5:16:07 GMT
It's technically not a West End theatre. Its an Opera House. Oh wow - genuinely didn't know that! Nice little factoid there. Of course it's a West End theatre!! It's just that ENO have been there for the past 4 decades. It's had various musicals perform there. It's theatre on the same street as others in the West End. In awards it wouldn't be classed as fringe now! |
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631 posts
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Post by ncbears on Jun 24, 2017 23:14:22 GMT
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Post by danb on Jun 25, 2017 6:20:26 GMT
Did Andrew have to do the evening show last night aswell or did someone else do it? He really needs to be careful with that voice.
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Post by alison on Jun 25, 2017 10:09:55 GMT
Andrew did the evening show last night, Ben did the matinee. I think Andrew's been a bit under the weather this week - he wasn't on at all on Thursday. Here's hoping he gets a good couple of days rest (he's not doing WEL today, and Ben's scheduled to play Strat tomorrow).
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Post by Snciole on Jun 25, 2017 22:41:53 GMT
Genuine question, how does this show keep selling out such huge theatres? I'm a Meat Loaf fan through and through, I've seen him live several times (and was almost always the youngest there by about 30 years) but I didn't think he'd got the fanbase to sell 16,000+ tickets a week. I'm very happy to be proved wrong though, Dominion / Palladium transfer would be amazing. It is a fair point and the TL;DR answer is I don't know However I will speculate that a lot of older fans are not the usual West End audiences but one of the many millions who bought the album and may see this as the closest they will get to seeing Meatloaf live (he is still alive but his voice isn't what it was), just as The Bodyguard was as much about seeing Beverley Knight/whatever actress doing Whitney, another huge seller. My boyfriend was desperate to see it and if I hadn't been fortunate to get a pair of free tickets then he would have paid. Add into the mix that these older fans have disposable income plus they may take along their children, who will tell friends. I also think it has enough there to attract your typical West End fan (Young gay men) because it is a big campy extravaganza. It isn't a perfect show by any means; the dialogue is terrible, the choreography even worse but it has some cracking tunes. |
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Post by jocie89 on Jun 26, 2017 5:20:28 GMT
After WEL I can't decide if this is something I'll love or hate!
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3,057 posts
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Post by ali973 on Jun 27, 2017 21:08:57 GMT
I'm not sure if this was covered in earlier posts as I don't follow this thread very closely- but it's going to Toronto in October.
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449 posts
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Post by SageStageMgr on Jun 28, 2017 13:52:06 GMT
may see this as the closest they will get to seeing Meatloaf live (he is still alive but his voice isn't what it was) I don't want to go too O/T and derail the discussion, but you're so right. I like Meatlof and "Bat Out of Hell" is one of my favourite albums. But I had the misfortune of seeing the Last at the Bat tour a few years ago and it was really embarrassing. The guy could barely stand up. |
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Post by steve10086 on Jun 28, 2017 18:12:01 GMT
^Older stars can go through "dips" I think. I remember seeing Debbie Harry live in the early 90s, and she both sounded and looked awful. These days, she's a 100% better. So maybe hope for Meatloaf yet. No, seriously, he's not well and his voice is shot. Ain't gonna happen. |
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449 posts
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Post by SageStageMgr on Jun 28, 2017 18:13:17 GMT
^Older stars can go through "dips" I think. I remember seeing Debbie Harry live in the early 90s, and she both sounded and looked awful. These days, she's a 100% better. So maybe hope for Meatloaf yet. Old Loaf had certainly gone through his dips - ketchup, BBQ - with a family sized box of chicken nuggets or two, by the looks of it. |
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449 posts
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Post by SageStageMgr on Jun 28, 2017 18:18:56 GMT
He's had a double hip replacement I believe and when I saw him, spent the entire thing leaning on a table set up at the back of the stage, panting and sweating. But his singing was really embarrassing:
The ten longest minutes of my life...
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449 posts
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Post by SageStageMgr on Jun 28, 2017 18:37:03 GMT
The notes are there, but not necessarily in the right order for sure. Oh dear. I couldn't even make it to the end of that clip. Poor bloke. I do suggest his (confessed) over-indulgence of various "substances" in his younger days perhaps has played a part in his current condition... and all that running around, throwing himself on the ground and putting on a show every night can't have been good on those limbs... |
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Post by firefingers on Jun 28, 2017 18:50:27 GMT
He looked a broken man at the launch event they did for Bat, hobbled on to stage and just about managed to give a little speech.
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Post by indis on Jun 29, 2017 3:40:30 GMT
saw it on saturday and it as AMAZING!!! and also a bit funny because some of the songs are also in "Dance of the Vampires" but with different lyrics , so i had a kind of deja vu moment sometimes  |
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Post by Stasia on Jun 29, 2017 10:40:33 GMT
saw it on saturday and it as AMAZING!!! and also a bit funny because some of the songs are also in "Dance of the Vampires" but with different lyrics , so i had a kind of deja vu moment sometimes Just one song actually. And a couple of "changing the set" tunes. |
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1,481 posts
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Post by steve10086 on Jun 29, 2017 13:53:33 GMT
saw it on saturday and it as AMAZING!!! and also a bit funny because some of the songs are also in "Dance of the Vampires" but with different lyrics , so i had a kind of deja vu moment sometimes Just one song actually. And a couple of "changing the set" tunes. Which ones are you thinking of? "Objects..." is the obvious one, and "Who Needs The Young" is from the Vampires crypt scene. "God Has Left The Building" from the start of the Broadway production of Vampires also appears at the start of BOOH. What am I missing? |
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642 posts
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Post by Stasia on Jun 29, 2017 16:19:22 GMT
Objects - the only "proper" song both musicals got.
Then the crypt motif and smth in the beginning, they had a scene change using the melody that goes with the scene changes in Tanz der Vampire. Unfortunately I know nothing about Broadway version, I only saw it in Moscow, StPetersburg and Berlin.
So I guess you named them all! It's just I know only Russian snd partly German titles.
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716 posts
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Post by indis on Jun 29, 2017 17:02:35 GMT
will there be a CD of this cast?
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Post by alison on Jun 29, 2017 19:24:51 GMT
They've definitely recorded it, we've seen the studio photos. It was during the Manchester run though, so they seem to be tweaking things based on the changes in London (not much musically, actually - Out Of the Frying Pan is easily the biggest change, although I suppose they might not have recorded Making Love Out of Nothing At All since it was cut early in Manchester then put back in for London).
The latest rumour I've heard is mid-July for release.
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Post by Phantom of London on Jun 29, 2017 21:43:34 GMT
Just came out.
When the West End finally seems to be expunging jukebox musicals, we get another bleeding one, but when they are very good, why not? I could be the terminal brig who declared he had an awful time, but those 2,500 fans that were on their feet at the end didn't think so and neither did I, I thought it was all very good and loud, my only reservation is that the programme cost came in at £10, but still has some nice photos and I got my ticket at a very reasonable price, so cannot grumble.
This deserves to come back to London and needs to play a big stage, maybe one for the iconic London Palladium or Drury Lane next year? I see this having a long life, if not only touring by which I mean here, U.S. And Germany. I agree with Snciole who refers to this that it will appeal to a certain demographic, who happen to be cash rich.
If the show was mouth watering, the programme cost was eye watering, however like a bat out of hell I will be back when it returns.
4 Stars
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Post by Seriously on Jun 30, 2017 3:29:22 GMT
Well I was shocked they didn't dig up Freddie Mercury's corpse for We Will Mock You.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 3, 2017 8:19:48 GMT
Does anyone have a list of songs in the order they appeared in the show? I know there's a list in alphabetical order somewhere back in the thread, but I'm making a playlist and don't trust my memory to get the order right.
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19,659 posts
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Jul 3, 2017 9:05:10 GMT
If anyone saw the Manchester run AND the Coliseum are there any differences to the set? For example does that escalator move at the Coliseum?
Also are the issues with sight-lines the same or have these been alleviated as a result of the change of venue?
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Post by danb on Jul 3, 2017 9:35:14 GMT
If anyone saw the Manchester run AND the Coliseum are there any differences to the set? For example does that escalator move at the Coliseum? Also are the issues with sight-lines the same or have these been alleviated as a result of the change of venue? Nope, the escalator doesn't move. What part of dystopian don't you get Burly? Society has collapsed and needed re-building; they're hardly gonna start with the escalator to 'the deep end' are they 😏 Main sight line issue seems to be the front of the stage from the balcony and back of the u/c. It all seems a lot grander and airier in the Coliseum and is a real wow when you enter the auditorium. You notice the camera woman a lot less aswell. I need to go again on a Ben Purkiss day so that I've seen all three Strats; Mon pm and Sat mat yeah? |
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