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Post by inthenose on Mar 12, 2022 19:11:57 GMT
Thoroughly enjoyed it, the atmosphere and build up going in add a lot and the venue remodelling works a treat. Couldn't see Sally's entrance or the band from row H in the stalls cos of the overhang. Nice view of Damian Lewis though which they didn't advertise. Show and cast were great, well worth all the waiting and anticipation. Redmayne definitely worth all the plaudits and Emily Benjamin went all in on her numbers  Damien Lewis would be wonderful casting. I'm not suggesting anything, but in terms of calibre of replacements this is the kind of thing I expected. Glad you enjoyed it!! |
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Post by inthenose on Mar 12, 2022 19:13:01 GMT
It takes me back to my ushering days at Drury Lane when Martine McCutcheon hardly ever showed up for My Fair Lady, resulting in lots of upset patrons 🙋♂️ I remember a very uncomfortable coach journey from Weston to London for us to see MM when it was still at the NT. I told myself all the way there not to get too excited but still the disappointment of the elusive Martine was devastating…until Alex Jay hit the stage, then I forgot all about her. I really don’t get the fuss about MFL. It just isn’t my bag at all. By all accounts Martine was terrific, but sadly very few got to see her. Sorry you didn't enjoy it Dan, especially as it is one of my favourite productions. |
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Post by floorshow on Mar 12, 2022 19:29:12 GMT
Damien Lewis would be wonderful casting. I'm not suggesting anything, but in terms of calibre of replacements this is the kind of thing I expected. Glad you enjoyed it!! Pretty sure he was only there as a punter. Wouldn't have to colour his hair though! Also, he popped out to Costa for his interval drink which is how we noticed him 😄 |
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Mar 12, 2022 20:16:26 GMT
Jessie off again tonight then? What’s the German for “Quelle surprise”?
It’s a shame Emily Benjamin wasn’t given the role in the cast change. Sounds like she deserves it and would be great.
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Post by inthenose on Mar 12, 2022 22:39:06 GMT
Damien Lewis would be wonderful casting. I'm not suggesting anything, but in terms of calibre of replacements this is the kind of thing I expected. Glad you enjoyed it!! Pretty sure he was only there as a punter. Wouldn't have to colour his hair though! Also, he popped out to Costa for his interval drink which is how we noticed him 😄 What's wrong with a ginger Emcee? Plus a half dozen wigs. Now THAT might be worth the ongoing re-mortgage prices... |
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Post by A.Ham on Mar 12, 2022 22:52:44 GMT
Jessie off again tonight then? What’s the German for “Quelle surprise”? It’s a shame Emily Benjamin wasn’t given the role in the cast change. Sounds like she deserves it and would be great. What is going on? Does someone need to send out a search party?! The last time I checked on ATG the whole of her final week is sold out - would be nice if she put in an appearance at least once… (if she’s genuinely ill then clearly I’m going to hell for this post!) |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 12, 2022 22:52:59 GMT
Jessie off again tonight then? What’s the German for “Quelle surprise”? It’s a shame Emily Benjamin wasn’t given the role in the cast change. Sounds like she deserves it and would be great. Mid-week and this afternoon too. 🙄 |
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Mar 12, 2022 23:28:08 GMT
Can’t see JB getting any more high profile musical runs going forward. Whatever the reason is, this puts her reliability severely under question. Maybe this is why she’s been concentrating on the straight acting for the last decade?
If she wins the Olivier over Sutton Foster who was fabulous and also put in the hard yards x 10 with chocolate on, it will be a travesty.
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ppp
Auditioning
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Post by ppp on Mar 12, 2022 23:47:55 GMT
She has the Baftas Sunday. If she shows up there then, she’s not sick…
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Post by minniecatmonster on Mar 12, 2022 23:54:14 GMT
Can’t see JB getting any more high profile musical runs going forward. Whatever the reason is, this puts her reliability severely under question. Maybe this is why she’s been concentrating on the straight acting for the last decade? If she wins the Olivier over Sutton Foster who was fabulous and also put in the hard yards x 10 with chocolate on, it will be a travesty. I was going to make the point that this is the risk you run by “Star Casting” people who haven’t put their musical theatre reps in, and don’t have the physical/vocal conditioning. I think there is some truth to that, but from what I can tell Jessie has more and more recent musical theatre experience than Redmayne and I don’t think he’s missed a show |
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Post by Kubrick on Mar 13, 2022 0:14:45 GMT
Buckley missed the matinee, but not the evening performance.
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Post by theatrefan77 on Mar 13, 2022 1:48:16 GMT
🙋♂️ I remember a very uncomfortable coach journey from Weston to London for us to see MM when it was still at the NT. I told myself all the way there not to get too excited but still the disappointment of the elusive Martine was devastating…until Alex Jay hit the stage, then I forgot all about her. I really don’t get the fuss about MFL. It just isn’t my bag at all. By all accounts Martine was terrific, but sadly very few got to see her. Sorry you didn't enjoy it Dan, especially as it is one of my favourite productions. I didn't think she was that great. She was certainly very good as cockney Eliza, but I thought her posh Eliza lacked something. There were of course lots of adoring Eastenders fans who raved about her performance, but I didn't feel the same way. I mean she was good and probably would have got better if she had performed regularly and had the time to develop some chemistry with Jonathan Pryce. At the time I was new to the UK and unfamiliar with McCutcheon's work in Eastenders. i was really surprised with all fuss caused by her constance absences. I remember a family who came from Ireland to see her and were incredibly disappointed. The daughter burst into tears. The box office offered them a refund or tickets exchanged for another date with no guarantees that she would perform. They decided to watch the show that day anyway, but I felt really sorry for them. Hope they enjoyed it even without McCutcheon. |
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Post by teamyali on Mar 13, 2022 3:37:24 GMT
If the Oliviers had a Best Casting in a Musical category, do you think this will win over Anything Goes or Spring Awakening or Back to the Future? How do star castings and stunt castings type work when this category will happen? (I hope it will happen not only because the BAFTAs have such, but because casting directors deserve much credit too)
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Post by inthenose on Mar 13, 2022 7:55:04 GMT
Hand on heart, I really genuinely think Sutton Foster was incredible. Not knocking this or any other show or performance, but it feels so clear cut if you're basing it on quality of performance.
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Post by inthenose on Mar 13, 2022 8:01:03 GMT
By all accounts Martine was terrific, but sadly very few got to see her. Sorry you didn't enjoy it Dan, especially as it is one of my favourite productions. I didn't think she was that great. She was certainly very good as cockney Eliza, but I thought her posh Eliza lacked something. There were of course lots of adoring Eastenders fans who raved about her performance, but I didn't feel the same way. I mean she was good and probably would have got better if she had performed regularly and had the time to develop some chemistry with Jonathan Pryce. At the time I was new to the UK and unfamiliar with McCutcheon's work in Eastenders. i was really surprised with all fuss caused by her constance absences. I remember a family who came from Ireland to see her and were incredibly disappointed. The daughter burst into tears. The box office offered them a refund or tickets exchanged for another date with no guarantees that she would perform. They decided to watch the show that day anyway, but I felt really sorry for them. Hope they enjoyed it even without McCutcheon. Thank you for your comment! Quite a few pages back (sometime last year) I linked to a really interesting blog piece about Martine McCutcheon's absences. It was written by either an LX or noise boy who opened the show with her (sorry, I can't remember which!), and it gave a very interesting insight into what was happening. I am happy you got to see her though! My (then West End actor) friend raved, but so few got to see her it's brilliant to hear a new perspective. Thanks again! |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 13, 2022 8:15:53 GMT
She has the Baftas Sunday. If she shows up there then, she’s not sick… Oh don't be ridiculous. Not all illnesses are physical. Given she seems to be doing about half the shows each week shows it seems likely she has some sort of vocal issue that is having to be managed. The number of people on this forum who seem determined to be rude and make assumptions rather than show any kind of understanding is really sad. The snide remarks over the last couple of days are a step too far. |
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Post by theatremiss on Mar 13, 2022 11:53:20 GMT
By all accounts Martine was terrific, but sadly very few got to see her. Sorry you didn't enjoy it Dan, especially as it is one of my favourite productions. I didn't think she was that great. She was certainly very good as cockney Eliza, but I thought her posh Eliza lacked something. There were of course lots of adoring Eastenders fans who raved about her performance, but I didn't feel the same way. I mean she was good and probably would have got better if she had performed regularly and had the time to develop some chemistry with Jonathan Pryce. At the time I was new to the UK and unfamiliar with McCutcheon's work in Eastenders. i was really surprised with all fuss caused by her constance absences. I remember a family who came from Ireland to see her and were incredibly disappointed. The daughter burst into tears. The box office offered them a refund or tickets exchanged for another date with no guarantees that she would perform. They decided to watch the show that day anyway, but I felt really sorry for them. Hope they enjoyed it even without McCutcheon. I saw MFL with MM as Eliza, y husband was disappointed that she was off, I wasn’t bothered either way. I don’t recall who her understudy was but I can’t recall her being bad. The one thing that does stick in my mind is a chap sat behind me collapsing with a heart attack. Not the first time this has happened behind me at a show. |
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Post by theatrefan77 on Mar 13, 2022 12:13:21 GMT
I didn't think she was that great. She was certainly very good as cockney Eliza, but I thought her posh Eliza lacked something. There were of course lots of adoring Eastenders fans who raved about her performance, but I didn't feel the same way. I mean she was good and probably would have got better if she had performed regularly and had the time to develop some chemistry with Jonathan Pryce. At the time I was new to the UK and unfamiliar with McCutcheon's work in Eastenders. i was really surprised with all fuss caused by her constance absences. I remember a family who came from Ireland to see her and were incredibly disappointed. The daughter burst into tears. The box office offered them a refund or tickets exchanged for another date with no guarantees that she would perform. They decided to watch the show that day anyway, but I felt really sorry for them. Hope they enjoyed it even without McCutcheon. Thank you for your comment! Quite a few pages back (sometime last year) I linked to a really interesting blog piece about Martine McCutcheon's absences. It was written by either an LX or noise boy who opened the show with her (sorry, I can't remember which!), and it gave a very interesting insight into what was happening. I am happy you got to see her though! My (then West End actor) friend raved, but so few got to see her it's brilliant to hear a new perspective. Thanks again! Thank you! I found the link in the MFL thread. Interesting reading. Obviously backstage people saw things differently. Front of house staff had to deal with disappointed patrons. Some even brought newspapers showing McCutcheon out partying and drinking Rioja on days when she was supposed to perform. If she got bad press, she really only had herself to blame. If she really was so sick, she should have stayed home. Ultimately she paid the price as her career went downhill. |
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Mar 13, 2022 12:34:53 GMT
Hand on heart, I really genuinely think Sutton Foster was incredible. Not knocking this or any other show or performance, but it feels so clear cut if you're basing it on quality of performance. And she never missed a show unless I’m mistaken. It does beg the question at what point does someone who isn’t able to perform in all the shows in the run “disqualify“ themselves from an award. It might be a great performance but if you can’t sustain that performance should you get a gong for it? Martine did less than half of the MFL shows and still got the award but there has to be a limit surely. |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 13, 2022 13:35:40 GMT
She has the Baftas Sunday. If she shows up there then, she’s not sick… Oh don't be ridiculous. Not all illnesses are physical. Given she seems to be doing about half the shows each week shows it seems likely she has some sort of vocal issue that is having to be managed. The number of people on this forum who seem determined to be rude and make assumptions rather than show any kind of understanding is really sad. The snide remarks over the last couple of days are a step too far. Discussing her poor attendance and wanting to know what’s going on at the most expensive show in town isn’t “rude”, it’s called being a consumer. What’s “ridiculous” is your constant need to belittle everyone because they’re annoyed by her remarkably poor attendance. You don’t care - good for you. But others do. |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 13, 2022 13:48:10 GMT
Oh don't be ridiculous. Not all illnesses are physical. Given she seems to be doing about half the shows each week shows it seems likely she has some sort of vocal issue that is having to be managed. The number of people on this forum who seem determined to be rude and make assumptions rather than show any kind of understanding is really sad. The snide remarks over the last couple of days are a step too far. Discussing her poor attendance and wanting to know what’s going on at the most expensive show in town isn’t “rude”, it’s called being a consumer. What’s “ridiculous” is your constant need to belittle everyone because they’re annoyed by her remarkably poor attendance. You don’t care - good for you. But others do. I do care, just about performers' welfare, not whether or not someone gets to see them in a show or not. If that makes me ridiculous then I will wear ghat label with pride. I've been the disappointed party many times, and I've never said anyone shouldn't be annoyed, but have some perspective - she's never had any rumours about her reliability before and if all was well no doubt she'd be on stage every performance. She isn't, so something is clearly amiss. She's entitled both to take care of herself and to have privacy about it. No-one else is entitled to anything, and all the sarcastic comments are entirely unnecessary. If you were in her position (or Carrie Hope Fletcher's, or Martine McCutcheon's, or any number of other performers who have had issues) I'm sure you wouldn't appreciate it. Doesn't do any harm to try to step into the performer's shoes and see it from their point of view sometimes. At the end of the day anyone's health (and any aspect of it) is more important than any job. |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 13, 2022 15:09:37 GMT
When folks continually and consistently miss work, there are consequences. It happens in the real corporate world, and it should happen in the theatre world. It's not just about disappointing audiences, it's about professionalism. At what point does a professional say "I am not able to fulfill my duties and am doing a disservice to customers"? Because that point should've come by now. People who pay hundreds deserve a little acknowledgment. No one's asking for her blood type or other intimate details. But a simple acknowledgment from producers isn't out of the realm of realistic expectations for ticket-buyers.
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Post by frankubelik on Mar 13, 2022 15:20:31 GMT
One is sympathetic to ALL performers who have lives and outside influences preventing them to perform BUT......this is an increasingly acceptable modern phenomenon which generally would not have happened years ago. Sadly it reflects badly on that performer suggesting they "can't be bothered" which might (or might not) be the case. I don't think Ethel Merman missed any performance apart from SOMETHING FOR THE BOYS when she had laryngitis.
Poor lead casting choices must be galling for those who DO show up eight times per week.
Need to re-iterate the sheer greed of producers with these ticket prices, particularly with the replacement cast. But if punters are prepared to pay...........
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Post by inthenose on Mar 13, 2022 17:15:09 GMT
but if punters are prepared to pay........... Let's revisit this in a year. |
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Post by properjob on Mar 13, 2022 17:18:37 GMT
When folks continually and consistently miss work, there are consequences. It happens in the real corporate world, and it should happen in the theatre world. It's not just about disappointing audiences, it's about professionalism. At what point does a professional say "I am not able to fulfill my duties and am doing a disservice to customers"? Because that point should've come by now. People who pay hundreds deserve a little acknowledgment. No one's asking for her blood type or other intimate details. But a simple acknowledgment from producers isn't out of the realm of realistic expectations for ticket-buyers. Performers have to make that judgement all the time. They have to decide if they are not well enough that the audience would get a better show if the understudy goes on instead. That doesn't necessarily mean they aren't well enough to do something less strenuous than a full show (or two full shows on a day) like appear in public or sing one song for a charity gig where they can choose the song and key. It might also be influenced on whether there is an understudy available if others are also away. This is the real world and these are real people and they get sick or twist an ankle or maybe need compassionate leave. The difference is that in the theatre world it seems they also get attacks from anonymous people on the Internet some of which thanks to social media gets sent direct to them. |
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