Blood Brothers UK Tour

Well that depends on whether it's English teachers or drama teachers. English is all about the text, sure, but I bet drama teachers love a long-term consistent production that they can use to emphasise non-textual elements of a production without having to come up with the classroom work on the fly every year.

Do you want to phone the RSC and tell them to stop mounting new productions, or shall I?

To put this into context, the coat Mrs J wears is the same coat Stephanie Lawrence wore in 1990.

That's 28 years of Kenwright not paying for a new costume for the leading lady.

When Marti Pellow played the Narrator, he bought his own shirts, because he hated the ones provided.

The last time I saw Blood Brothers the overture was a just a wall of sound and vibration. Some new orchestrations could indeed be wonderful.

First of all, don't feed the trolls.

The picture on the wall of the house in Act II is of Sean Jones' eldest daughter. Does it really matter whose or which baby is on there, and how old she is now? Does it impact the show at all? No. In some shows his youngest daughter comes out with Donna Marie at the start of Act II (Our Donna Marie already has three, she's a bit like me that way) in her own contemporary clothes - a nice little touch, which doesn't affect the show either, whatever she's wearing or however old she is. But it's a little 'Aaaw'-moment when it happens.

Why would the set need changing? I don't get that. Blood Brothers has been performed with the set stripped to the bare minimum in small theatres, and the story is just as powerful, and received just as well.

As for the music - I like it as it is.

What would the point be of moving the setting? It's drawing full houses and standing ovations anyway.

As for the clothes - why would they need to be updated? They do the job, as long as they don't fall apart.

I will concur that looking only at the new pictures, and not knowing what it is about, I'd guess it's a story about a woman torn between two lovers. But when you're at the show you get taken in by the story and the acting.

Going to Shrewsbury October 10th to catch the matinee and Linzi. Can't wait.

Well, someone is feeling paranoid. It wasn't.

I went to see Blood Brothers last night at the Swansea Grand Theatre.

Linzi Hateley was indisposed, therefore Sarah Jane Buckley played Mrs Johnstone (she is normally Mrs Lyons) and Amy-Jane Ollies was Mrs Lyons (normally Donna Marie/Miss Jones). Which left Alison Crawford pull double duties as Donna Marie/Miss Jones as well as her own, wherever possible.

They were both brilliant in their different roles!

I looked at it with previous comments on this thread in mind, so the first thought was 'How will Mrs Lyons look when she is naturally half the age of her son?'. And it was fine. I still get swept up in the show and just follow the story.

I think I also saw some different lighting, clothes and thought I heard some different arrangements in some bits, but I could be totally wrong. I have problems with my memory, and I was in a different spot than usual.

I still loved it, and am looking forward to hopefully catching Linzi next month in Stoke.

It’s at the Lowry in April. Which means it will have done Manchester, St Helens, Salford, Preston, Wallasey, Liverpool and Blackpool by the end of the tour. That’s the North West pretty much covered in blood.

A couple of friends haven’t seen it and want to go. I’ll do it, just for Linzi but last time I said never again. That dreary music, geriatric Mrs J and middle aged men playing children is a right turn off. But seeing as I’ve inly ever seen a Nolan I will give it a chance.

Not been the same since Keith Burns left. The definitive Narrator

I'm a Warwick Evans fan myself.