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Post by crabtree on Dec 31, 2017 14:06:02 GMT
Now I'm one most happy sitting through endless hours of obscure Greek drama, turgid european angst or all manner of experimental modern drama, but the moment that gave me the biggest buzz this year was the waves of dancers coming over the top of the staircase at the end of 42nd Street. who would have thought....and what a joyous, generous company they seem.
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Post by danb on Dec 31, 2017 14:22:04 GMT
Bat Out of Hell for me.
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Post by Being Alive on Dec 31, 2017 14:46:06 GMT
My highlight of the year was Angels in America
BUT my three musical highlights were Follies, Hamilton, and 42nd Street (similairly for that moment when the staircase appears!)
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Post by Deleted on Dec 31, 2017 14:47:19 GMT
Bat out of Hell and Miss Saigon tour for me. With Rent and Sunset Boulevard not far behind.
And Starlight Express at The Other Palace was also wonderful.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 31, 2017 14:48:17 GMT
Romantics Anonymous - every last beautiful, funny, moving minute of it!
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Post by alece10 on Dec 31, 2017 14:50:19 GMT
Has to be the staircase for me 2. One of the best theatre moments ever.
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Post by dazzerlump on Dec 31, 2017 14:54:48 GMT
Well Its Follies closely followed by Everybody's talking about Jamie at The Crucible (I've not yet seen the transfer) and I was so pleased The Life finally made its way over
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Post by viserys on Dec 31, 2017 15:08:02 GMT
I don't know which show I'd nominate as a highlight on the whole... for example "Bat out of Hell" had lots of silly moments, not to mention the naff plot, but the finale of the first act (the actual song "Bat out of Hell") blew everything else I've seen this year clean out of the water. I want to see the show again for that alone.
Similarly "The Girls" started slowly and had some meh moments, but the finale (the actual fotoshoot) was so wonderful with an incredible atmosphere in the theatre, which is another memory I'll treasure.
Other highlights were finally seeing "Rent" again which felt like checking in on old friends and a wonderful summer evening at the Open Air Theatre with "On the town". I'd also nominate "Angels in America" as a fantastic experience even though I've only seen the NT Live broadcast.
Honorable mentions go to "Romantics Anonymous" and "Adrian Mole" as two thoroughly loveable fresh new shows. Still haven't seen Jamie, which I'm already looking forward to in January.
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Post by crabtree on Dec 31, 2017 15:15:26 GMT
and segueing into plays briefly, the final 'dead' act of Our Town at the Royal Exchange was pretty stunning, and I was pleased as I have not enjoyed that theatre recently.
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Post by tonyloco on Dec 31, 2017 16:18:46 GMT
My three highlights were 42nd Street, right from the opening bars of the overture with Jae Alexander rising up out of the pit to take a twinkling bow and of course the staircase at the end; On the Town with Bernstein's superb score magnificently performed in great style by a very talented cast and wonderful orchestra and – surprise, surprise, – Bat Out of Hell which despite its flaws like naff choreography and a rather silly plot, engaged me totally and reminded me that musical theatre is a very broad church. Oh, and I have to give a bonus vote to John Wilson's Oklahoma! at the proms for a glorious performance of what is arguably the most significant work in the whole history of musical theatre.
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Post by zak97 on Dec 31, 2017 16:37:09 GMT
Has to be The Girls for me. A simple, but heart wrenching story. Proved that you don’t need a celebrity in the cast to make a show good - theatre talent is sufficient. Provided a chance to see many credible performers who’d I’d heard a lot about all on one stage, and introduced me to many new actors and actresses to look out for in the future.
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Post by Tibidabo on Dec 31, 2017 16:44:21 GMT
Mine has to be HiddlesHamlet. I feel lucky and honoured to have seen it. Thanks again Marwood . (Escaping from the Victoria Palace theatre after 10,800 seconds of imprisonment the other day comes a close second.)  |
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Post by robertb213 on Dec 31, 2017 17:30:28 GMT
Dreamgirls, Young Frankenstein, Everybody's Talking About Jamie and Rachel Tucker at Zedel were my highlights 😁
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Post by wickedgrin on Dec 31, 2017 17:48:55 GMT
Highlights 2017 for me
42nd St. Drury Lane
On The Town. Regents Park
Follies. NT
Angels in America. NT
King Lear. Chichester
Yank. Charing Cross Theatre
Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf. Harold Pinter
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Post by ptwest on Dec 31, 2017 18:47:54 GMT
Highlights are:
42nd Street - 2 visits, both of them completely joyous. The staircase moment and the finale are worth the trip alone.
Everybody’s Talking About Jamie at the Crucible.
Young Frankenstein at Newcastle - wonderfully silly.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 31, 2017 18:52:47 GMT
For me some of the highlights were 42nd street but I also really loved Romantcs Anonymous and Fiddler on the Roof in Chichester which I hope both transfer and get wider audience that thy deserve.
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Post by Marwood on Dec 31, 2017 19:21:15 GMT
Mine has to be HiddlesHamlet. I feel lucky and honoured to have seen it. Thanks again Marwood . (Escaping from the Victoria Palace theatre after 10,800 seconds of imprisonment the other day comes a close second.) Aw shucks Tibidabo , you're welcome (you helped me out, I had visions of being lumbered with a ticket that everyone else I know wouldn't want to go and see, or wouldn't pay that sort of money to go and see it: my first NY resolution of 2018: not to be so eager to buy tickets for other people that ask me to get them a ticket, then after I have forked out close to £200, say 'Oh, by the way, someone else has got me a ticket, I don't want it', leaving me with something that is not THAT easy to shift along). Shame you didn't enjoy the most over-hyped production of all time, I (sort of) enjoyed it, but have no intention of seeing it again. My top 10 is elsewhere, but my highlight is easily The Ferryman (not sure I'd want to see it again without Paddy Considine, unless they have some amazing casting somewhere along the line in the future) |
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Post by welsh_tenor on Dec 31, 2017 19:22:55 GMT
Miss Saigon tour for me, blown away this week by the cast! Wow!
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Post by danb on Dec 31, 2017 19:25:22 GMT
I don't know which show I'd nominate as a highlight on the whole... for example "Bat out of Hell" had lots of silly moments, not to mention the naff plot, but the finale of the first act (the actual song "Bat out of Hell") blew everything else I've seen this year clean out of the water. I want to see the show again for that alone. Similarly "The Girls" started slowly and had some meh moments, but the finale (the actual fotoshoot) was so wonderful with an incredible atmosphere in the theatre, which is another memory I'll treasure. Other highlights were finally seeing "Rent" again which felt like checking in on old friends and a wonderful summer evening at the Open Air Theatre with "On the town". I'd also nominate "Angels in America" as a fantastic experience even though I've only seen the NT Live broadcast. Honorable mentions go to "Romantics Anonymous" and "Adrian Mole" as two thoroughly loveable fresh new shows. Still haven't seen Jamie, which I'm already looking forward to in January. This is exactly it Viserys! I’m not even sure that I can be bothered sitting through ‘Bat’ a third time but I could happily make a fantastic hour long entertainment out of my favourite bits. It could be like the Lion King thing at Disneyland Paris! 😀 That one song (BOOH) was enough to fool myself into thinking that the whole show was brilliant, that Andrew Polec was the future of musical theatre and that I must make Danielle Steers my bride! If only the cast recording just had a bit more oomph I would probably be more excited by its return. |
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Post by kathryn on Dec 31, 2017 19:48:33 GMT
Mine has to be HiddlesHamlet. I feel lucky and honoured to have seen it. Thanks again Marwood . (Escaping from the Victoria Palace theatre after 10,800 seconds of imprisonment the other day comes a close second.) Aw shucks Tibidabo , you're welcome (you helped me out, I had visions of being lumbered with a ticket that everyone else I know wouldn't want to go and see, or wouldn't pay that sort of money to go and see it: my first NY resolution of 2018: not to be so eager to buy tickets for other people that ask me to get them a ticket, then after I have forked out close to £200, say 'Oh, by the way, someone else has got me a ticket, I don't want it', leaving me with something that is not THAT easy to shift along). Shame you didn't enjoy the most over-hyped production of all time, I (sort of) enjoyed it, but have no intention of seeing it again. My top 10 is elsewhere, but my highlight is easily The Ferryman (not sure I'd want to see it again without Paddy Considine, unless they have some amazing casting somewhere along the line in the future) I really would have gone twice, you know, if no-one else had claimed it! You were never going to be out-of-pocket, and I was immensely grateful for the offer. |
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Post by Deleted on Dec 31, 2017 20:16:29 GMT
Highlight for me was Sunset Blvd in Manchester. So good I returned the next day to see it again. Made all the more momentous because I was unable to get to the ENO version due to illness.
Hamilton a close second only because I was expecting not to like it at all.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 31, 2017 20:46:13 GMT
I mean it seems almost redundant for me to reply but... This year I got Rent in January and spent a summer with Angels. That production of Rent was as viserys says, like getting an old friend back and I'm so happy I got to see it a couple more times on tour. Rent has long been 'my heart' and I feel like it somehow came full circle with Bruce's production. Meanwhile if Rent was like an old friend Angels was like...well that thing crashing through the ceiling. I've written far too many words already about it...but production wise, it really was an event. And it really did also find it's way into the heart and not let go. So I was distracted for much of the year. However in under the wire were Follies and Jamie who both also grabbed hold of me like little else this year, and are indeed something special. Honorable mention to 'The Busy World is Hushed' for being just one of those plays that you see at just the right moment to hang around in your head for a good while after. Dishonourable mention to 'Tiger Bay' for worst repetitive use of a musical's title 2017. |
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Post by cheesy116 on Dec 31, 2017 20:46:37 GMT
My highlights would have to be 42nd Street and the Miss Saigon UK Tour, every bit as good as the revival in London last year.
Honourable mentions include The Steamie -an old favourite piece of theatre in Scotland loved by most- and I thoroughly enjoyed getting to see some of my old favourites another few times such as Kinky Boots and Les Mis, having not seen the former for 6 years.
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Post by Dawnstar on Dec 31, 2017 20:47:00 GMT
In terms of musicals only, having already posted the rest on the general thread, my favourite this year was Murder For Two (The Other Palace), followed by She Loves Me (Menier) & Annie Get Your Gun (Crucible). I guess the best of the West End musicals I saw was The Girls.
I don't feel I had a great year for musicals. I haven't seen any that I came out of thinking "I absolutely must see that again ASAP". Most of them were more "Okay to have seen that once but no need to revisit". In fact the only musical I've seen more than once this year is 42nd Street & with that the 2nd time was for understudy viewing & the 3rd time because I had a slot to fill & couldn't get a last minute ticket for anything else I wanted to see more.
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Post by CG on the loose on Dec 31, 2017 21:58:25 GMT
Lots to love this year, but the two stand outs have been 42nd Street and Romantics Anonymous. The two couldn't be more different in style and scale but both were utterly joyful.
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