Miss Saigon - Sheffield Crucible

Had a trip down from Newcastle to see this yesterday. As a LONG-time fan of Miss Saigon (having seen the original Drury Lane production umpteen times, subsequent UK tours, and Stuttgart and Prince Edward productions) I was very intrigued to see what they had done with this new version.

The set was fairly simple, with just the big back wall opening up to form entry/exit points, a set of steps which were moved around the stage into various positions, a revolve set into the stage floor, and minimal props (a podium, chairs, TV). The cast hardly left the stage area at all, mostly sitting around the edges and getting up when they were performing. All in all the simple staging helped to focus down on the characters themselves, rather than having the 'wow factor' and distraction of the original moving trucks.

The orchestra sounded fantastic, though at times a little bit too loud and drowned out some of the performers.

As other posters have said, it did feel like a very sanitised production, and lacked some of the grit of the original. In Dreamland the girls mostly stood around the edges of the stage while the GIs hung around a central table where they were drinking/gambling - there was very little interaction at all. Quite a lot of lyric changes too - whores replaced with girls, and the guys referring to themselves rather than the girls (e.g. "We won't get up off the floor" instead of "You won't get up off the floor". "Half-breeds" in Bui-Doi was replaced with "little kids" and "boat people" with "refugees".

There were no bar girls/boys in What a Waste, only a few acting as waitresses when we moved into the bar itself.

However, there were some really lovely new moments, like the Engineer joining in with Kim in Movie In My Mind, showing that she's doing what she's doing to reach an end too.

Bui-Doi's staging (with John first in a group therapy session, then on the streets flyering and finally in the conference) was incredibly moving as it really brought home the human impact on what they'd all gone through, rather than just being a plea for money. I confess to copious tears at that point!

There's a really nice section at the beginning of Morning of the Dragon where we see Thuy in training as a soldier, and his rise up to the higher rank later on. However, his death is really strange - there's a gunshot, but then he stands with his arms in the air as the chorus go into This Is The Hour, then turns and walks across the stage with the other soldiers. I heard someone in the bar during the interval say that until Kim burst into Dreamland with "Engineer, Thuy is dead" she hadn't realised what had happened.

The Fall of Saigon is staged really well, with the revolve moving the GIs and locals around, and the final moment as Kim reaches for Chris as he's pulled up to the helicopter is heartbreaking.

I Still Believe was rather strange with Chris wandering around a supermarket with Ellen trailing behind him singing, but there was a moment where Chris thinks he's seen Kim, and and one when someone startles him by dropping their basket on the floor (triggering "it's all over, I'm here, there is nothing to fear") which worked well.

The ending left me totally flat though - it's the first time I've ever seen Miss Saigon and not sobbed buckets. Having Kim stand up after her shooting and observe from the side of the stage (much like Fantine watching Cosette at the end of Les Mis) while Chris bent over an empty section of stage just lost all the sadness, especially when she asks him to hold her one last time then dies in his arms.

The cast were superb though, with some of the best performances I've seen over the years. The venue works really well with the thrust stage providing great views from all seats.

Overall I left act 1 feeling that I wanted to come and see it again, but at the end felt as though the final scene negated all I'd seen before, and wouldn't rush back in a hurry. I've given it 4 stars on the strength of the performances and overall staging, but it lacked the 5* punch of other productions.

If you know the show well, there’s plenty to enjoy here. If you don’t, I expect you won’t follow what’s going on.

For a production with a shoestring budget, they do well. The main set is a ladder, which can be moved around. The cast is rather small for Miss Saigon, which is a challenge when so many roles really have to restricted by ethnicity, and which leads to some interesting lighting choices and unusual interpretative dance choices to disguise things. Some decisions just don’t work, but some do.

With that said, the main vocals are excellent. Just a bit of muffling in the group numbers.

We had Tam appear at the start tonight, but the rest of the first half was done without Tam on stage. I’d assumed it was an odd artistic choice, but it turned out that Tam had become unavailable, so for the second half Tam was played by one of the directors.

I was sat in a cheap extreme end seat (late booking) and a few rows back. The view was absolutely fine, apart from I couldn’t read the screens. I don’t think I missed much. The show was practically sold out.

I would avoid the front row as there are extra seats in front where the cast sit for a lot of the show when not performing. You’re on the same level, so the view must be restricted.

My gut feeling here is 3 stars. It is still a preview. Some of the heart has been stripped from the show. But it is a cast who could easily give 5 star performances if given a set and better staging. I did warm to this much more in the second half than in the first half. No desire to go back though.

cezbear if you’d like to PM me with a reduced price I can update your notice. 

It was an Asian lady, I would say in her 20s, slightly shorter than the main cast. She did very well in the circumstances. No line changes that I could pick up on.

They just sang to an empty space.

The director did make a short statement at the start of the second half to ask us to suspend our disbelief!

I’m going to guess they’ll have three Tams (and that it would have been the first appearance for this child) but they may well only have one in the building at a time.

Some official production pics. It looks very pretty but also confirms what previous posts have said about it being sanitised.
Really not sure about the outfits that they've given to Joanna. Maybe they work better in the context of the show but she looks very glamourous.

http://instagram.com/p/CuojLFfO2Nz

We must have been close - I was also able to g through the red door! It would have been good to say hello! But given that I’m also called Paul and am also tall it could have been confusing!!

I hope people going to the Crucible for the first time are enjoying it. Even if the brutalist exterior isn’t to people’s taste, the lovely foyer and beautiful auditorium with its starry night ceiling must surely appeal ❤️

Yes yes yes yes yes! Such a fantastic space, both FoH and in the auditorium. Our view from P33 was incredible, and the staff were really friendly too.

See Dr Tom ’s comment above. Looks like he was much further to the side than you. I think D17 will be a fantastic view. 

I'm in for this Sat Mat as well. I'm debating booking more tickets as I do love the score. Its interesting to see everyone's reviews and ratings on this.