538 posts
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Post by WireHangers on Jul 3, 2017 14:32:17 GMT
So performances have started in Leicester. Has anyone seen the show yet? I'd love to hear a report on how it's going.
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19,661 posts
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Jul 3, 2017 16:53:16 GMT
Merged
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Post by Deleted on Jul 3, 2017 17:01:07 GMT
So performances have started in Leicester. Has anyone seen the show yet? I'd love to hear a report on how it's going. As would I! Going on 22nd, can't wait! |
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19,661 posts
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Jul 3, 2017 17:02:53 GMT
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1,929 posts
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Post by LaLuPone on Jul 3, 2017 17:10:01 GMT
I haven't been personally but I'll post the thoughts of people on a facebook musicals discussion group who went to the first preview in case anyone is interested.
"I was there. Thought Gigi was the stand-out of the main cast. Liked Chris/John/Kim. Less keen on Ellen/Thuy/Engineer. Good ensemble. However, please note that that is personal preference not based on any ability or inability to sing the role."
"Ryan was much better cast as John than Hugh Maynard (for my taste that is). Kim's diction was fairly good - certainly better than Ellen and Thuy's! The interaction between Chris/Kim was also more convincing than I've thought previously. Overall though I thought it was quite emotionless, but I still enjoyed it enormously - some stand out moments (The Heat is On, Movie in My Mind, Bui Doi"
"Engineer took a while to get going but was actually quite good. Much different to Jon Jon but this is his first professional show. Ryan waa great as John. Ashley was a very emotional Chris but I thought he was great. Thuy was good when he finds kim in the bar but he could of been angry when he finds out she has a son. Really didn't like Zoe as Ellen"
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Post by Deleted on Jul 3, 2017 17:30:12 GMT
I haven't been personally but I'll post the thoughts of people on a facebook musicals discussion group who went to the first preview in case anyone is interested. "I was there. Thought Gigi was the stand-out of the main cast. Liked Chris/John/Kim. Less keen on Ellen/Thuy/Engineer. Good ensemble. However, please note that that is personal preference not based on any ability or inability to sing the role." "Ryan was much better cast as John than Hugh Maynard (for my taste that is). Kim's diction was fairly good - certainly better than Ellen and Thuy's! The interaction between Chris/Kim was also more convincing than I've thought previously. Overall though I thought it was quite emotionless, but I still enjoyed it enormously - some stand out moments (The Heat is On, Movie in My Mind, Bui Doi" "Engineer took a while to get going but was actually quite good. Much different to Jon Jon but this is his first professional show. Ryan waa great as John. Ashley was a very emotional Chris but I thought he was great. Thuy was good when he finds kim in the bar but he could of been angry when he finds out she has a son. Really didn't like Zoe as Ellen" Early days yet. Do think its a shame that the UK didn't get a tour of the West End cast before they (the principals at least) were shipped off to Broadway. Jon Jon's Engineer on this latest edition of Saigon was brilliant and Red Concepcion has some big boots to fill. |
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19,661 posts
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Jul 3, 2017 17:34:40 GMT
Interested to hear about staging/effects/helicopters.... anyone?
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449 posts
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Post by SageStageMgr on Jul 3, 2017 17:37:41 GMT
I haven't been personally but I'll post the thoughts of people on a facebook musicals discussion group who went to the first preview in case anyone is interested. "I was there. Thought Gigi was the stand-out of the main cast. Liked Chris/John/Kim. Less keen on Ellen/Thuy/Engineer. Good ensemble. However, please note that that is personal preference not based on any ability or inability to sing the role." "Ryan was much better cast as John than Hugh Maynard (for my taste that is). Kim's diction was fairly good - certainly better than Ellen and Thuy's! The interaction between Chris/Kim was also more convincing than I've thought previously. Overall though I thought it was quite emotionless, but I still enjoyed it enormously - some stand out moments (The Heat is On, Movie in My Mind, Bui Doi" "Engineer took a while to get going but was actually quite good. Much different to Jon Jon but this is his first professional show. Ryan waa great as John. Ashley was a very emotional Chris but I thought he was great. Thuy was good when he finds kim in the bar but he could of been angry when he finds out she has a son. Really didn't like Zoe as Ellen" Early days yet. Do think its a shame that the UK didn't get a tour of the West End cast before they (the principals at least) were shipped off to Broadway. Jon Jon's Engineer on this latest edition of Saigon was brilliant and Red Concepcion has some big boots to fill. I'm personally really pleased the West End cast didn't tour. Jon Jon was in the prior tour before the West End, and his performance didn't vary much anyway. I'm tired of seeing the same people over and over in each production, personally. I loved Tanya Manalang as Kim and really missed her performance when seeing the others. But I wouldn't want to watch her again; out with the old and in with the new... |
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449 posts
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Post by SageStageMgr on Jul 4, 2017 5:58:24 GMT
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Post by Dave25 on Jul 4, 2017 10:21:34 GMT
"I loved Tanya Manalang as Kim and really missed her performance when seeing the others"
I think Tanya was the best acted Kim I have seen in any production of Miss Saigon. Her acting nuances were incredible. Very realistic and filmic.
She woud be perfect for a Hollywood film version.
Tanya Manalang and Jeremy Jordan would make the perfect Kim and Chris on screen if you ask me.
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Post by SageStageMgr on Jul 4, 2017 10:27:10 GMT
"I loved Tanya Manalang as Kim and really missed her performance when seeing the others" I think Tanya was the best acted Kim I have seen in any production of Miss Saigon. Her acting nuances were incredible. Very realistic and filmic. She woud be perfect for a Hollywood film version. Tanya Manalang and Jeremy Jordan would make the perfect Kim and Chris on screen if you ask me. I don't really do being a "fan" but Tanya really was something else. JJ is extremely good too. We share a similar taste my friend. RE: Manalang, she is an extremely talented performer and I can't believe the voice that comes out of the 3'5" of her  |
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Post by Pennywise57 on Jul 4, 2017 13:44:41 GMT
Has anyone heard whether or not the tour uses a helicopter? I hope they do but I think it's unlikely as I imagine something like that would be difficult to transport between venues.
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700 posts
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Post by cheesy116 on Jul 4, 2017 14:37:35 GMT
Has anyone heard whether or not the tour uses a helicopter? I hope they do but I think it's unlikely as I imagine something like that would be difficult to transport between venues. There's a physical helicopter like the one from the west end, my friend saw the first preview  |
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57 posts
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Post by Pennywise57 on Jul 4, 2017 14:58:02 GMT
Has anyone heard whether or not the tour uses a helicopter? I hope they do but I think it's unlikely as I imagine something like that would be difficult to transport between venues. There's a physical helicopter like the one from the west end, my friend saw the first preview Thank you. That's brilliant, so pleased. Its such an amazing spectacle. |
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Post by d'James on Jul 4, 2017 15:08:27 GMT
There's a physical helicopter like the one from the west end, my friend saw the first preview Thank you. That's brilliant, so pleased. Its such an amazing spectacle. I was hoping they'd use one like they did in Forbidden Broadway a few years ago! |
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19,661 posts
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Jul 4, 2017 16:58:35 GMT
Is it the west end set? Scaled down?
Details details!
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449 posts
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Post by SageStageMgr on Jul 4, 2017 17:09:16 GMT
Well I haven't seen it yet, buuuut...
The first U.K. Tour was basically the entire West End production - sets, band, full cast and the works on the road at only the biggest venues (to accommodate the physical helicopter, lifts and all the bits). This made money but cost a LOT to operate. It finished having done well but limited to only playing the largest venues and having profit margin trimmed thanks to aforementioned running costs.
The second tour (directed by Laurence Connor) was basically a much, much cheaper to run production with no physical helicopter. It used a projection effect instead (the remnants of said effect were seen in the West End later), alongside the physical set piece. Without a physical helicopter, the second set could play practically any medium-to-small receiving house in the country, hence it ended up playing places like, erm, Woking.
The West End production was basically this exact production, a couple of extra musicians, a couple of extra cast and a physical helicopter set piece.
The new tour is the West End production, using mostly the same sets and including the helicopter (which is designed to be portable now and will fit in mid-sized venues as it is built in pieces and deconstructed between venues), minus those few cast members and musicians that got added for town.
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243 posts
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Post by musicallady on Jul 4, 2017 18:22:38 GMT
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1,013 posts
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Post by talkstageytome on Jul 4, 2017 18:51:20 GMT
I loved this post. Do you have a twitter account for your blog so we can read more (when you post more)? Literally can't wait for the tour. Even listening to clips for this ^^ pretty atrocious album made me a bit emotional!  |
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700 posts
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Post by cheesy116 on Jul 4, 2017 19:42:33 GMT
Is it the west end set? Scaled down? Details details! It's essentially the west end set with not as much space in the middle, so the side bits of set with the stairs going up to the platforms are closer together. |
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449 posts
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Post by SageStageMgr on Jul 5, 2017 7:58:18 GMT
I loved this post. Do you have a twitter account for your blog so we can read more (when you post more)? Literally can't wait for the tour. Even listening to clips for this ^^ pretty atrocious album made me a bit emotional! Thanks for the feedback, yep I'll sort that out today! the next review is up now x |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 5, 2017 9:15:12 GMT
Well I haven't seen it yet, buuuut... The first U.K. Tour was basically the entire West End production - sets, band, full cast and the works on the road at only the biggest venues (to accommodate the physical helicopter, lifts and all the bits). This made money but cost a LOT to operate. It finished having done well but limited to only playing the largest venues and having profit margin trimmed thanks to aforementioned running costs. The second tour (directed by Laurence Connor) was basically a much, much cheaper to run production with no physical helicopter. It used a projection effect instead (the remnants of said effect were seen in the West End later), alongside the physical set piece. Without a physical helicopter, the second set could play practically any medium-to-small receiving house in the country, hence it ended up playing places like, erm, Woking.
The West End production was basically this exact production, a couple of extra musicians, a couple of extra cast and a physical helicopter set piece. The new tour is the West End production, using mostly the same sets and including the helicopter (which is designed to be portable now and will fit in mid-sized venues as it is built in pieces and deconstructed between venues), minus those few cast members and musicians that got added for town. Can you corroborate this with rough dates/years as I have a different version of events in my head thats confusing me. Im sure the 2nd West End production (revival) 2014 onwards was a brand new set etc. The set for the version I saw in Manchester circa2000 consisted of a 3-sided box of blinds that were automated to create entrances/walls etc. completely different to the latest west end production, like so:  |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 5, 2017 9:19:35 GMT
For the absolute geeks (like me). Heres the Helicopter shell and automation pieces in tech for the London Revival production.
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449 posts
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Post by SageStageMgr on Jul 5, 2017 9:29:08 GMT
Well I haven't seen it yet, buuuut... The first U.K. Tour was basically the entire West End production - sets, band, full cast and the works on the road at only the biggest venues (to accommodate the physical helicopter, lifts and all the bits). This made money but cost a LOT to operate. It finished having done well but limited to only playing the largest venues and having profit margin trimmed thanks to aforementioned running costs. The second tour (directed by Laurence Connor) was basically a much, much cheaper to run production with no physical helicopter. It used a projection effect instead (the remnants of said effect were seen in the West End later), alongside the physical set piece. Without a physical helicopter, the second set could play practically any medium-to-small receiving house in the country, hence it ended up playing places like, erm, Woking.
The West End production was basically this exact production, a couple of extra musicians, a couple of extra cast and a physical helicopter set piece. The new tour is the West End production, using mostly the same sets and including the helicopter (which is designed to be portable now and will fit in mid-sized venues as it is built in pieces and deconstructed between venues), minus those few cast members and musicians that got added for town. Can you corroborate this with rough dates/years as I have a different version of events in my head thats confusing me. Im sure the 2nd West End production (revival) 2014 onwards was a brand new set etc. The set for the version I saw in Manchester circa2000 consisted of a 3-sided box of blinds that were automated to create entrances/walls etc. completely different to the latest west end production, like so: That is the original (first U.K. tour) with the actual helicopter and using adapted sets from the original West End production. |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 5, 2017 10:53:03 GMT
Can you corroborate this with rough dates/years as I have a different version of events in my head thats confusing me. Im sure the 2nd West End production (revival) 2014 onwards was a brand new set etc. The set for the version I saw in Manchester circa2000 consisted of a 3-sided box of blinds that were automated to create entrances/walls etc. completely different to the latest west end production, like so: That is the original (first U.K. tour) with the actual helicopter and using adapted sets from the original West End production. Cool. Im just a bit confused where you said 'the west end production was basically this exact production'. |
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