Chess

i think this will be marmite...

I saw it last night..my very first Chess production as well...so was very excited that it was going to be this production.

And unfortunately it wasn't my cup of tea..i was sat in the dress circle and the applause and reactions around me were quite muted

Alexandra Burke, i love her but she seemed to struggle with the low range and i was gutted as i know she can really kill the songs. The production seemed a bit confused on a whole but the whole cast really gives it all they would.

The 'one night in bangkok' scene was a replica of miss saigon but seemed like it was only done with 50% of the effort / quality as saigon.

Highlight was 'I know him so well' which in hindsight stuck out from the production as it didn't seem to fit in but also generated the longest applause of the night

Unfortunately wouldn't go back again but still a very slick production especially with the visuals

“This production’s politics have accidentally stayed in the 80s. The cast is generally impressively diverse, but one scene in Thailand has the ensemble dressed and made up as Thai people, and two men as ladyboys”.

”Elsewhere, there’s iffy gender politics and dubious racial depictions: I could just about smirk at the kitschy othering of Russia and Eastern Europe, but the orientalist cliches in the yellowfacey Bangkok sequence are pretty gross and almost totally unnecessary”.

IT’S MARIAGATE ALL OVER AGAIN! Aaarrrrghhhh!!

4.5 stars from the Reviews Hub.

www.thereviewshub.com/chess-london-coliseum-london/

The reviews on the negative side I would say....
5* Daily Express
4* Mark Shenton (who likes everything) for London Theatre
4* WOS (who we don't mention).
3* Mail
3* Broadway World
2* The Stage
2* The Times
2* Time Out
2* Evening Standard
2* The Indy Arts

No reviews (as yet) from the Guardian or Telegraph.

Reviews Hub gave it a cheery 4.5* and The Arts desk gave it 3 *

I am suggesting

I couldn’t hear most of it

And this is unacceptable

Many people seem to be disregarding

The fact they couldn’t hear the lyrics

And this seems like a rather generous concession to be making

Oh my god. What a small world. Yes he also mentioned Sweeney Todd and Joseph. I must of misheard him saying stage manager. I also told him I had been to Uzbekistan in the early 80s which surprised him. Is his first name Alexis or something like that?

Thanks for that. I want to go again but can't really afford buying stalls seats again for 2nd viewing. Seems that if you wait until later in the day then better seats get released. Great if you live in London and are flexible.

At the matinee interval now. Loving it so far. Yes there are sound issues but these are in the large ensemble numbers and I've always found it was the same in the other productions I've seen (and all are in the first 45 mins... just saying, Parsley) I think it's more to do with the style of writing not the production itself.
More thoughts afterwards

People are right to point out bad sound design. If you can't hear the lyrics what's the point?

The only time the lyrics are muffled are during the large group numbers, such as Merano, The Soviet Machine and those songs are just scene setting. They do nothing to advance the plot or character so you really don't miss much. All the important bits are perfectly clear.

I don't mind the reviews. it means I can get cheap rush tickets more easily!