Aspects of Love - Hope Mill MCR / Southwark Playhouse

I see that both performances on Saturday are now sold out, with only of handful of tickets at the extreme ends left for Thursday and Friday.

It needs more instruments - a couple of pianos is not enough. Staging was OK, but see this for the two female leads. They are what makes it worth a visit (not the blokes though!)

The least said, the better. He was... bizarre!

I'm sorry to say this but I hated it. I never thought that ALW could write such a monotonous and repetitive score... the performances were mediocre in my opinion, apart from one that was really hilarious - even though that wasn't the intention. It's one of the few times that I really wanted my money back.

Ahhh I can’t wait!!! I’m not too familiar with the show (despite having seen it on tour - David Essex was in it and had an absolutely hilarious fake heart attack bit). Is Pradon doing the same bit?

Why do I suspect this is going to be really special?

Very much enjoyed this again last night in what we will be my final visit (unless this tours).

The theatre was practically sold out. Just a few side seats left.

I sat central side stalls, which turned out to be a better view than the table seat I was at before, as a lot of action happens towards the back of the stage.

There were some gigglers near me, which was slightly off-putting, but some of the material is quite difficult and can be a shock if you don't know what to expect. I heard one of them say "I was trying really hard not to laugh, but it was difficult, especially when (the actress) was looking right at me."

I'd forgotten there was a gunshot, which was something of a surprise (I'm sure last time I went, the gun was pointed but didn't go off).

Hope the board members going to the closing performances enjoy it. I'm sure there'll be an electric atmosphere.

A few tickets available tomorrow now available on the Southwark Playhouse website

If you’re in come up and say hi - we don’t bite!

I enjoyed the performances and staging of this, as I did at the more high-powered Menier production a few years ago. What did disappoint me much more this time was the piece itself.

The decision to have a mainly two piano accompaniment did it no favours at all and highlighted its musical weaknesses. The sound of the two pianos was truly enervating. It sounded like a two piano arrangement of a Rachmaninov piano concerto (but without the melodic distinction) and the overall effect, paradoxically, both simultaneously inflated and diminished it.

Lloyd Webber's desire, as in many of his musicals, to have it almost entirely through-composed meant there were large chunks of uninspired quasi-recitative. Some of the lyrics in these sections are quite witty but they land with a thud, and all of their effectiveness is removed, because of his banal music. The few melodies he did come up with are endlessly restated in different guises like rudimentary leitmotifs but without any dramatic effect. Dreariest of all is the repetition of that 3 chord wonder 'Love changes Everything' - this has got to be his worst ever tune with its predictable melody, trite harmonies and four square phrasing but damn it, he won't leave it alone.

I kept thinking what would Sondheim have made of the story and wouldn't it have been great if it were treated with some of the bitter-sweet irony of 'A Little Night Music.'

Ah, were you the rather handsome man in the grey hoodie?

I was wearing a grey hoodie but I don’t match that description! 😂