An American In Paris

Apologies! Realise I may have been misconstrued. I wish it every success, but it's a really difficult time for musicals right now and a show of that size in a venue of that size is going to have to do amazing business to keep afloat.

I can't wait to see it! 

For what it's worth, I haven't seen this yet and I don't know what the leads are like but Ashley Day is brilliant, I saw him when I saw The Book of Mormon and if I hadn't known he was the understudy I never would have guessed, he was great. I then saw him in Oklahoma, he was just as good. I will probably try and book this to see the leads but if I end up getting Ashley Day instead I won't be disappointed.

I was at press night tonight and it certainly is right at the top of the sophisticated end of the spectrum as far as West End shows go - very classy, gorgeous set and wonderful ballet sequences. The two leads hold the entire show together and they are breathtakingly good both solo and as a pair.  Zoe Rainey was good too.

But despite that, I'm still a bit on the fence about the show as a whole - I liked it, in fact I think I could say I liked it a lot, but I didn't love it. Conceptually it's fabulous, but I think there are little bits that let the show down - the non-ballet dance sequences are not as tight as they should be (particularly the main cast in this regard aside from Robert and Leanne), some of the diction and phrase timing is poor and a lot of the accents are dreadful (lots of chatter around me about that during the interval). Add to that a woefully off-balance sound mix for the orchestra (note to the sound director, Gershwin is not just about the brass section, we do need to actually hear the strings as well (including people sitting in the circle!), especially in whatever that opening melody was that tonight sounded as if half the orchestra had forgotten to start playing and started out of time) and a really thin sound in parts due to the lack of a proper string section, and for me it had too many minor niggles for me to really love it.

Maybe once the show has bedded in a bit more it will be better - and maybe it was just press night nerves for some people, but overall I thought that in the ensemble the ballet dancers were strong and the theatre performers not so much.  I might give it another chance if I can get a cheap ticket a few months down the line, but otherwise if it weren't for the stunning performances from Robert and Leanne I'm afraid I wouldn't be rushing back.

Maybe all the reviews on here for previews over-hyped it a bit for me and led me to believe it was more perfect than it is, but I couldn't help feeling a bit disappointed this evening.  It will no doubt get raves, but for me it's not quite there yet.

Well, raves.

Very well said

Its a tricky one. I don't pay a great deal of attention to press reviews because so many productions get 4 or 5 stars and to my mind, the public aren't daft and must know that not every production is worth that.
I pay much more attention to the views expressed on this forum because I think you get to know peoples likes and dislikes over time and find the views expressed here to be much more honest.
I will go to see this as soon as possible because it appeals to me as a production and based on views expressed here. If it got 2 star reviews in the press that wouldn't change my wanting to see it.

Daily Mail also goes with 5 Stars.

As posterj said earlier (and I agree 100%), it's largely wonderful but owes an enormous amount to the two leads, and to Zoe Rainey, an alumna of the recent Kenneth Branagh season who is the pick of a surprisingly dodgy supporting cast. David Seadon-Young has one of those fake Noo Yawk accents you could drive a truck through, and Jane Asher more or less gives up on her Gallic sounds midway through and just sounds like, well, Jane Asher. Nor does Haydn Oakley begin to have the vocal command and heft of Max von Essen, who originated the part on Broadway. That said, the designs are so ceaselessly gorgeous that I would be happy to go back and just feast on the visuals - Bob Crowley outdoing even himself.

A solid 4 stars but not (in my view) 5.

I hear it's been selling steadily, and these reviews can only help.

Sounded great to me too but I was up close to the pit.

I agree with the orchestra issue, I was front circle and it sounded tinny and quiet. I put it down to less speakers towards the circle to save money?