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Post by Deleted on Nov 24, 2016 20:57:28 GMT
I agree with this so much. Alexandra sells really well - she has been selling Sister Act INCREDIBLY well!! She also gives 110% to each performance, I know that for sure. I never said Alexandra should go into Les Mis full time I just said I thought she sang that song well, the part is too small for her anyway. Do remember that was recorders before she had done any live theatre. The parts she has played so far are very suited to her. She would be very good in the Memphis tour or as Deena in Dreamgirls when Amber leaves. P.S To the people who said star casting takes away ArtsEds students, star casting for certain shows can be done SO well and it sells the show well too. I personally am 100% for celeb casting IF it is done right . Also, how do you know for sure gives 100% at every single performance haha?  And the role isn't too small for her. It is one of the biggest roles in Les Mis and possibly one of the most sought after in London in terms of being well-known. Grizabella is a 20 minute role and Beverley and Nicole have both played it to great reviews, with Nicole walking away with an Olivier nomination for it! ..... It's not awkward because I'm not that stupid and I know Amber plays Effie. I wasn't talking about Alexandra joining Dreamgirls as the "name" in the show as Deena when Amber leaves at the end of her contact....  |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 24, 2016 21:08:50 GMT
... the awkward moment when you don't know whether to break it to George that Amber doesn't play Deena. Also, how do you know for sure gives 100% at every single performance haha? And the role isn't too small for her. It is one of the biggest roles in Les Mis and possibly one of the most sought after in London in terms of being well-known. Grizabella is a 20 minute role and Beverley and Nicole have both played it to great reviews, with Nicole walking away with an Olivier nomination for it! ..... It's not awkward because I'm not that stupid and I know Amber plays Effie. I wasn't talking about Alexandra joining Dreamgirls as the "name" in the show as Deena when Amber leaves at the end of her contact.... Don't you worry love.  |
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Post by indis on Nov 29, 2016 18:28:27 GMT
Is it true that there are only 14 musicians in the orchestra in London or are there still 28?
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Post by theatremadness on Nov 29, 2016 18:31:34 GMT
Is it true that there are only 14 musicians in the orchestra in London or are there still 28? I don't think it's been 28 for a veeeeeeeeery long time! Even with the amount they have, I wish they would whack the volume up a bit. Every time I go I'm always quite underwhelmed by the volume and impact! |
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Post by critchyboy on Dec 1, 2016 0:16:07 GMT
Went to the matinee on a half price(ish) ticket in the Dress Circle. Really didn't enjoy it - normally do - but found the cast a lityle on the weak side. Sadly.
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Post by Kim_Bahorel on Dec 11, 2016 17:41:53 GMT
Seen the new Jean Valjean twice (Simon Gleeson) it was err... different. He can sing but he doesn't always song bits that should or normally sung. He's rather an aggressive JVJ through out. His chemistry with Jemery Secomb is fantasic. Hes a lovely guy to meet though. But I'm not liking the performace in general. I still prefer him over Peter Lockyer. As I didn't like Peters voice.
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Post by Paul on Dec 12, 2016 22:42:14 GMT
Sorry if this has been discussed recently but I'm going to ask anyway. When do Eva and Rachelle (if they haven't already) leave the show?
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Post by theatremadness on Dec 12, 2016 22:52:24 GMT
Sorry if this has been discussed recently but I'm going to ask anyway. When do Eva and Rachelle (if they haven't already) leave the show? They're gone! Lucy O'Byrne and Hollie O'Donoghue took over on December 5th  |
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Post by Paul on Dec 13, 2016 12:56:31 GMT
Thanks for the reply. I'm planning my next trip to London and would have gone back to see this if Eva and Rachelle were still in it.
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Post by SamB (was badoerfan) on Jan 19, 2017 10:53:11 GMT
Saw Les Mis again last night - actually my first time at Queens and with the smaller orchestra, it's been a while. Thoroughly enjoyed it, even from the very back row of the Upper Circle. Must go back more often!
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Post by longinthetooth on Jan 25, 2017 21:52:46 GMT
Caught up with this today. Les Mis is one of my all time favourites (I dread to think how many times I have seen it) and I was keen to see the new cast, knowing nothing about them. During Peter Lockyer's tenure (I'm afraid I'd had enough of him) I wanted to see Adam Bayjou - but, however hard I tried, I couldn't get my matinee visits to coincide with him playing JVJ. However, today, when I was all set to watch Simon Gleeson, who should be on but Adam Bayjou! Marius and Cosette were also played by understudies - I was underwhelmed by both performances.
I'm usually a serial blubber and have been known to be a total wreck by the end, but not this time. While not leaving me totally stone cold, I'm afraid the magic has gone for me. It was good, yes, but not a single person stood out for me. Not keen on the new Thenardier or Eponine. Fantine, Enjolras and Javert were good in parts but not all, likewise AB's JVJ. It won't be my last visit, I'm sure, that music will keep drawing me back, but I may leave it for a while now.
However, the audience seemed to love it, as there was a virtually full standing ovation at the end. |
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Post by AliceFearnFan2212 on Jan 25, 2017 23:56:36 GMT
Is it bad that I haven't seen Les Mis yet aha
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Post by talkstageytome on Jan 26, 2017 0:05:50 GMT
There's no rush, it's not going anywhere anytime soon.
With all of the fringe/off west end stuff that comes and goes every month, I find that I rarely see the long runners. Would like to see Les Mis again eventually (I've only seen it once, in 2014 I think) but it's one that's unlikely to go anywhere anytime soon.
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Post by Kim_Bahorel on Feb 2, 2017 18:27:02 GMT
Yesterday was my 30th time going to see Adam Bayjou as Valjean.
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Post by scarlett3 on Feb 11, 2017 23:05:31 GMT
Does anyone know when cast change is this year? I'm guessing 10th or 17th June but I'm worried I'll book the wrong day or leave it too late for a good seat.
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Post by sophie92 on Feb 12, 2017 9:31:57 GMT
Does anyone know when cast change is this year? I'm guessing 10th or 17th June but I'm worried I'll book the wrong day or leave it too late for a good seat. The 10th is on a couple of cast members' Spotlight CV |
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Post by tsxmitw on Feb 12, 2017 11:35:11 GMT
How are the new cast getting on?
Saw Hollie O'Donoghue in the summer last year... can't say I was impressed. She's very...... understudy.
But then we haven't had a good Eponine since Nancy Sullivan, in my opinion, partly due to the strict direction the character seems to have been given in recent years.
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Post by daniel on Feb 12, 2017 13:02:51 GMT
How are the new cast getting on? Saw Hollie O'Donoghue in the summer last year... can't say I was impressed. She's very...... understudy. But then we haven't had a good Eponine since Nancy Sullivan, in my opinion, partly due to the strict direction the character seems to have been given in recent years. I saw Hollie O'Donoghue when she was understudy and really was not impressed at all. Saw her again when she was lead and whilst there was some improvement, she was nowhere near her predecessors. |
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Post by tsxmitw on Feb 12, 2017 13:09:26 GMT
How are the new cast getting on? Saw Hollie O'Donoghue in the summer last year... can't say I was impressed. She's very...... understudy. But then we haven't had a good Eponine since Nancy Sullivan, in my opinion, partly due to the strict direction the character seems to have been given in recent years. I saw Hollie O'Donoghue when she was understudy and really was not impressed at all. Saw her again when she was lead and whilst there was some improvement, she was nowhere near her predecessors. Thought as much. Although she seems like a sweet girl, it's a big role... |
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Post by Kim_Bahorel on Feb 12, 2017 18:07:16 GMT
Does anyone know when cast change is this year? I'm guessing 10th or 17th June but I'm worried I'll book the wrong day or leave it too late for a good seat. One of the cast told someone I know from the Les Mis fandom that its the 10th. However I booked for both the 10th & 17th. But Im betting on it being 10th only because it makes its a full year contact for most of the cast. |
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Post by scarlett3 on Feb 12, 2017 19:27:12 GMT
Thank you sophie92 and carrieharayel, I'm going to book for the 10th and hope for the best!
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Post by Deleted on Feb 13, 2017 7:10:12 GMT
I just found this and I absolutely love it. Can't stop watching!
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Post by Deleted on Mar 14, 2017 19:21:58 GMT
Understudy central tonight, understudies on for Valjean, Eponine, Thénardier, Bamatabois and The Factory Foreman.
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Post by chrismis on Mar 14, 2017 22:25:34 GMT
Understudy central tonight, understudies on for Valjean, Eponine, Thénardier, Bamatabois and The Factory Foreman. It's a lucky audience that sees Adam Bayjou as Valjean. Saw him last week and he was incredible! I'd say he's more of an alternate JVJ as he plays the role every Wednesday matinee and celebrated his 200th performance in 21 months with the show last week.
Not sure who's on for the other roles but the whole cast are very strong so I'm sure they'll be great!
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Post by daniel on Mar 15, 2017 0:33:11 GMT
I was there tonight, covers on for Valjean, Eponine and the Thenardiers...just thought I'd share my views. The show itself is as good as ever, I've been plenty of times and it's my favourite, so I'll focus this on the cast. Adam Bayjou - Valjean (u/s)...he's just phenomenally good. Have seen him now four times (I think) since catching one of his first shows and he's just gone from strength to strength. I do still think he looks a bit young to get the role full time, but in terms of his performance, he's consistently good enough to be the lead, in my opinion. I thoroughly enjoyed his portrayal and found him the strongest of all the Valjeans I've seen (Ramin Karimloo, Chris Holland, Daniel Koek, Peter Lockyer and Simon Glesson) Hadyn Tee - Javert...sorry, not impressed. I know he played the role on Broadway and he got a great reaction at Curtain Call so maybe it's just me, but I thought he just didn't click. He had a sort of twang at the end of every sentence (could be an accent thing that's no fault of his own) and his really heavy inhalation of breath mid-phrase started to grate. I realise that sounds like the most ridiculous petty thing to pull up, but I never notice it with other actors and maybe it's just Tee's style, but it was seriously big obvious breaths in and I found it a tad distracting. It may just be that, for me, the Javerts that I've seen (Hadley Fraser, Tam Mutu, Jeremy Secomb...also Adam Pearce but I discount him from this point I'm making) have all been ridiculously strong, Jeremy in particular, I just felt that Hadyn didn't have the presence or power of previous Javerts. I didn't feel in the slightest bit intimidated...christ, Jeremy Secomb had me near enough sh*tting my pants! Lucy O'Byrne - Fantine...really impressed with her tonight. Saw her back in December just after she started and she was good, but only good. Now she's really settled in, vocally she sounds much stronger and she's really refined her acting. A very strong performance tonight, really pleased for her. Adam Pearce - Thenardier (u/s)...I don't know where to start, I thought his performance this evening was cringeworthy. Thenardier can be a funny character when played by an actor who is naturally funny, equally he can be sinister and dark. However, when an actor tries to hard to be funny, as was the case tonight, it just ends up being a bit of a damp squib. Random ad-libbing that contributed nothing (for example in the wedding scene, when he's recounting the night in the sewers...."had this corpse, on his back, hanging there like a fu- bloody great sack") and lots of little bits like that throughout the show that, for me, added absolutely nothing. Maybe I'm just fussy in what I want the character to be, but I'm still after 10 visits yet to see an actor really nail a Thenardier in the way that I envisage the part. Cameron Blakely I think came closest, but it's been a few years since he left the show so my memory is hazy. Tamsin Dowsett - Mme Thenardier (u/s)...she was, fine. Rushed delivery on some of her lines so they missed some of the impact...again, I've been spoilt on recent visits with Katy Secombe and Wendy Ferguson, who both for me set the bar rather high. Lauren Soley - Eponine (u/s)...special mention for her, absolutely brilliant!! I've been wary of Eponine understudies after seeing Hollie O'Donoghue and being less than impressed to say the least, but Lauren was absolutely brilliant tonight. Really lovely voice and I liked her acting choices. I feel like I'm rambling on now...the rest of the cast were all fine - it's certainly a really strong ensemble, some of the songs when they're all singing together are just stunning. That final part of One Day More and the Epilogue just get me every time. Tonight wasn't helped by the fact that I had a terrible seat with legroom worse than that of a Ryanair flight...maybe I was distracted and couldn't get into the performances as much as I usually do, but I'm looking forward to going back in June and hopefully seeing Jeremy again, with the lead Thenardiers 5* for the show as always...various degrees between 2* and 5* for tonight's leads. Full house on three levels. |
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