Violet – Charing Cross Theatre

£35.50 tickets reduced to £20 for performances up to and including 26th January on Theatre Tickets Direct.

Yeah, I did. I'm glad it was more about character than plot, 'cos there were times when I couldn't understand a word being sung and if I'd had to follow all kinds of plot twists, I'd've been stumped.

I found it hard to hear young Violet particularly at the beginning.

went to see it this afternoon and i guess there was either a last-minute flurry of ticket purchasing or it got papered this morning because it was rather full (and when i booked my ticket last night there were plenty of seats, rows, available)

although we were a rather muted audience i was glad that the show had a good number of people, id say about 75% full? if anyone wants seating tips dont sit on the side with row A, as more faces and action was directed at us than it was to the row A side.

I really enjoyed the show, well acted, the band sounded amazing, staged nicely. it felt like a southwark playhouse show, so if you like what they normally programme then i think youd enjoy this. I never knew that the Charing Cross theatre was so versatile with their space, i think it was perfect for this show and after the dip post Thom Sutherland productions i really think this venue could start to rival SP, menier, union etc as being a really good high profile venue. The woman playing Violet was amazing and i think only left stage once, huge props to her.

I really enjoyed this tonight - Kaisa is outstanding and Charing Cross works very well in this configuration. Plus I love a bit of revolve action. The score is I think my favourite of those I’ve heard from Tesori - a half-way point between the sung-through Caroline, Or Change with its elusive melodies and the more traditional book musical style of Fun Home. The blend of musical styles in Violet is very enjoyable and Tesori manages to maintain her unique styling of phrases without sacrificing melodic satisfaction. The direction could’ve been a bit more refined, and I wasn’t quite satisfied by the ending, but overall I’d say Charing Cross have managed to fire out another little gem of a show.

Well. For those who love a revolve (and really, who doesn't?) you will be in heaven. It goes spinning around more times than Kylie for the duration of the show, giving everyone the chance to have a gander at the results of Matthew Harvey's many hours in the gym. Which was very nice of them.

Other than that, I thought the show was cute with some nice country-tinged numbers and a thrilling bit of gospel towards the end. I had to stop myself from standing up and shouting out 'Hallelujah! Praise Jesus!' at the end but I didn't. I'd have had to put my glass down. No sound issues from what I could tell when I saw it. They must have sorted it out knowing that I was in. Some great singers in the cast and Kaisa Hummingbird Bakery was smashing even though they made her look like Ute Lemper after a decade in the workhouse; she was barely off the stage and coping manfully with a dreadful wig and a tatty house dress but singing like a dream. I think they spent all the budget on Matthew Harvey's gym membership though as they couldn't stretch to a bit of makeup to represent the scar they all kept banging on about. I thought the band sounded rather groovy too.

There's a lot of moving of chairs and suitcases around on the revolve it almost reminded me of a musical version of 'The Lehman Trilogy'. Half the running time though thank heavens.

When did the restaurant close at this theatre?

I saw the Mountview production of this a few years back and loved it. Tonight I saw this production, and found it something of a let down.

It was less affecting and more affected than the Mountview version; a lot of story and character arcs and beats either seemed muddled or didn't come across at all - my companion enjoyed it less than me, largely because some aspects had passed her by, that I had only picked up on by virtue of having seen them conveyed more effectively in the previous production.

At times it seemed too many people were singing different things at the same time, and it sounded a bit of an incomprehensible mess - I don't recall this being a problem with the Mountview production, so it must be to do with the vocal direction or sound mixing.

Except when that was an issue, though, the singing was great. I love the music and I really enjoyed the performances of the songs, but the direction felt rather flat and I really didn't feel engaged with Violet as a character, as I did with the Mountview production.

The revolve was over-used as a substitute for choreographing for the traverse, and I wasn't sure what location the set was supposed to represent, or why a fixed set was used for a show that isn't set in a fixed location.

Perhaps I'd have enjoyed it more if I hadn't previously seen a superior production, but as I mentioned, that wasn't the case with my friend, and I actually think my memory of the story helped. I do like the show, but I honestly think this production does it a disservice.

Cast members are legally required to get 2 weeks notice for an early closing or closing night in general. So they would be told and we would find out the same day or in the couple of days following. As soon as possible if it is 2 weeks on.

I saw this yesterday afternoon. I thought Kaisa was better in this than in FH but i thought FH was better than this.

I enjoyed it but i have to say that for a a show of only 1.40 it did feel long. Some parts dragged and it often felt a bit samey.

A lovely charming story told wonderfully. Kaisa is a revelation. Recommended.

I saw the matinee yesterday. I really enjoyed it! I thought the set design looked great, and the seating design worked for me. I was sat in the middle of the second row and it was a great view.

The show itself, I found the cast uniformly great. Especially the three leads Kaisa, Jay and Matthew, who all lead the cast fantastically and gave great performances. I'd also give a special mention to Simbi Akande who plays Lula, the Gospel Singer, she was fabulous!

It's a shame it isn't selling all that well. Yesterday there was only 20 seats sold in the morning, however by the time the show came around it was about three quarters full so clearly there was some comping going about. I hope sales pick up. I guess it's not a known show at all and in an out of the way theatre. Here's hoping it continues its run as the cast truly deserve a great run.