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Post by David J on Jun 21, 2021 16:19:43 GMT
Finally ticked off St Martins as well. Don't know when I'll go to the Lyric and Fortune. I like to get moderately scared watching horror movies at home but not at the cinema, let alone the thought of seeing Woman in Black.
Maybe I could see Six again at the Lyric or Austentatious. But I am choosier these days about what I want to trapse up to London to see.
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Post by David J on Jun 16, 2021 16:06:30 GMT
If I recall the gavorche giving Javert the finger was in the tour. I can't remember if it was in the Sondheim production but it wouldn't surprise me.
Is this is what Les Mis has come to? Picking the low hanging fruit? Then I'm certainly not in a hurry to go see it again.
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Post by David J on Jun 13, 2021 17:19:09 GMT
I suspect all of the posters defending Sutton are white? Step out of your privilege for a moment and you might see what the problem is. And thank you sir for assuming what I am and telling me what I should or shouldn’t think Just like people are jumping to conclusions and telling Sutton what she should and shouldn’t sing based on what she did 10 years ago. Except they are taking the next step and demanding her to be cancelled I agree the lack of reflection is troubling You’ve just exemplified this culture that has been bred over the years. All this white privilege labelling and demanding we rethink our attitudes (‘or else’ in some cases), is very tiring when all we’re doing is having a conversation about the issue at hand Would you be surprised that there might be minorities who have concerns about this whole situation as well? Should they check their white privilege? This isn’t going to solve the problem of racism any sooner. It’s making things worse and dividing people further and further
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Post by David J on Jun 8, 2021 23:42:05 GMT
I just had a trawl through Twitter. We are talking about a few dozen, mostly white, people who seem to have taken offence to Sutton's rendition of this song. That's it. Talk about a storm in a teacup. Next. That's all it takes these days, and they've been tagging the Barbican and the Anything Goes production in their tweets. The question now is will the producers have the spine to ignore this small group of people. There's been multiple businesses recently who have the notion that this small, vocal, progressive twitterati will buy their products if they pander to them or concede to their demands. When in reality these trigger happy people have no interest. It's their agenda that matters and once they've got rid of the filth they move on. I hope Sutton stays. It seems logical not to cast a replacement and soon after fire her. Then again we are living in strange times at the moment
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Post by David J on Jun 8, 2021 9:38:00 GMT
This is the way of cancel culture and victimisation that we've allowed to manifest over the years.
The road to hell is paved with good intentions. What started as the guilty people like Harvey Weinstein being rightfully prosecuted upon evidence, has led to a vocal minority of people on social media like Twitter hounding out people for things they said a decade ago.
It's all very well calling for us to fight against every -ism in the dictionary but its got to the point where people see nothing but bad around them and will scour every word people have posted on the internet to find a target to rut out. Demand they be banned from social media, be fired from their job, hound down their family members and so on.
And believe me I've watched many people talk about cases like this on YouTube. Even those that demand cancellation are getting cancelled. When you have no real targets left you attack your own comrades. Collectivism at its finest
I fear what's going to happen to Sutton now. By apologising she's now empowered the mob to go after her even more. Find other cases where she's done something 'awful'.
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Post by David J on Jun 6, 2021 12:59:04 GMT
Bradley is the best Enjorlas I’ve seen live on stage. Very charismatic and revolutionary leader material
Saw his Javert first on the last night of the original. Definitely too young but he didn’t let that get in his way.
He seemed to play a bold and confident Javert. During that “can this be true...” segement I wondered whether he knew who he was talking to valjean and was toying him to confess
Kudos to him I thought
Second time was when the ‘new’ production opened and it was impossible to ignore his youth because he resorted to shouting the lyrics to compensate.
Admittedly looking back at the last night he was shouting then, but now he went overboard shouting every few words in Javert s suicide
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Post by David J on May 21, 2021 1:17:39 GMT
I saw the 2012 tour with Connie Fisher, Michael Xavir and Nic Greenshields.
A pretty underrated musical this. Has the right combination of your typical American light-comedy musical with heart. And a surprisingly diverse ensemble of interesting characters, and the musical somehow finds time with every one of them.
Some good numbers including Ohio and Pass the Football.
And the end of the first act comes out of nowhere with one of the most bonkers moments I've seen in a story.
Only thing that lets it down is that having focused on so many characters the musical rushes to an underwhelming ending.
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Cats
May 17, 2021 8:48:48 GMT
Post by David J on May 17, 2021 8:48:48 GMT
You see those sets in their pre-show position. During the overture it is dark but you can see movement and at 0:42 there is the silhouette of a moving seat
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Post by David J on May 16, 2021 23:06:31 GMT
Finally get to see, if briefly, those revolving seats and set at work
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Post by David J on May 6, 2021 14:16:04 GMT
She could always install a stair lift
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Post by David J on May 4, 2021 22:23:43 GMT
I remember the 2012 season where in comedy of errors nobody noticed how antipholus was growing older and younger again and again
And in twelfth night Olivia didn’t mind how cesario suddenly shot up an inch.
Then again Gregory Doran didn’t bother to make the twins look remotely the same in his production
But that’s suspension of disbelief for you
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Post by David J on May 4, 2021 22:06:12 GMT
Looking at the chandelier in planning application how to you expect it to collapse on the stage with that sticky out bit on the bottom? Would it get pressed inside the base and extend back out when the chandelier rises?
And lines can get changed.
In the Laurence Connor version instead of saying “A chandelier in pieces” they only said “a chandelier”. And instead of “so that we can get a glimpse of how it may look when reassembled” they said “so that we get a glimpse at how magnificent it once was”
The chandelier was lowered during that speech mid way above the audience. And when it was revealed it went back up.
That’s how cynical me expects it to happen now. I once didn’t expect the imposing barricades in Les mis to be replaced with the titchy touring ones. I’d love to be proven wrong this time round
Out of interest, why was the original chandelier rectangular in shape instead of round like a normal chandelier? Was it so more of it could be seen by the audience? Or it could easily collapse on one side on the stage? Or it would be easily controlled with the wires from the proscenium?
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Post by David J on May 4, 2021 14:53:57 GMT
Jon Robyns against Earl Carpenter in the Confrontation? That would be perfect.
If I knew when Earl was on in Bradley's place I'd book in an instant.
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Post by David J on Apr 24, 2021 23:04:15 GMT
Finding moments that truly came out of nowhere and surprised me.
Perhaps the biggest was the moment Bert walked up the proscenium in Mary Poppins.
There was also the end of the first act of Wonderful Town where characters suddenly wanted to do the conga and next thing the whole of Greenwich Village, New York got the craze and the cast was dancing out the auditorium.
Then there was Five Guys Named Moe when they got the audience to join in.
The end of the first act of City of Angels with the leading men confronting each other and literally pushing the borders of reality and fiction
Or Groundhog Day when there was a dance routine and a guy in a groundhog costume was trundled on playing a drum kit
Or Simon Cowell turning out to be an alien and the spaceship appearing in I Can't Sing.
Or the remix in Legally Blonde.
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Post by David J on Apr 23, 2021 14:11:09 GMT
Warning - the bath studio advised not sitting in the front row when I saw it. And I can testify to that Rain poncho or riding helmet needed? Riding helmet
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Post by David J on Apr 23, 2021 11:32:24 GMT
Coming to Southampton’s Mayflower Studios (formerly Nuffield Southampton Theatres City). I’ve booked a socially distanced pair in the front row. Ages since I’ve seen a nice challenging play. Warning - the bath studio advised not sitting in the front row when I saw it. And I can testify to that
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Post by David J on Apr 14, 2021 14:46:15 GMT
Perhaps in 20 years time they'll have affordable technology to do a holographic wizard's head. That may look more impressive than the metal animatronic
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Post by David J on Apr 14, 2021 14:10:26 GMT
I'm telling you Wicked fans, when the brand new 'original' tour goes out you should start to worry
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Post by David J on Apr 14, 2021 13:59:41 GMT
Now where was all this passionate discussion when the closure of the original Les Mis was announced.
But seriously Phantom always kept its large orchestra since it opened and casted age appropriate people for the roles who could give solid performances. As much as I love Les Mis I admire how every Phantom performance felt fresh that way
It had a better right to the original claim than the Les Mis that ended in 2019.
All I'm saying is I'm going to sit back here with my popcorn and wait for Wicked to be downgraded in two decades time
Just putting it out there. Different producers, but as some of us have said here times will change and business is business.
Need to cut corners. Maybe remove the dragon that is only used for less than a minute in total and Elphaba will be lifted up with wires.
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Post by David J on Apr 12, 2021 20:27:42 GMT
OH YES. I saw the photo on Facebook and it was cropped. Didn't see those 2 other chandeliers. I thought you were saving money Cameron?
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Post by David J on Apr 12, 2021 18:54:33 GMT
New chandelier is up. At least the frame of it unless Cameron is resorting to plastic
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Post by David J on Mar 22, 2021 22:00:54 GMT
I began to be picky before the pandemic
After a decade of seeing endless theatre, going to London to see two shows on a saturday and perhaps an evening during the week and popping off to the nearby regional theatres I'm at the point where it feels unappetising.
Partly because the young person discounts have dried up. But also after seeing so many productions even the good ones feel the same. I'd happily give four stars to a play but inevitably I'll forget it until I look it up and think to myself 'oh yeah, I enjoyed that'. Anything below that I'd rather avoid. Mind you I'd rather see something bad rather than seeing a three star average production because its at least memorable.
It's going to take something with either some outstanding acting, direction and design to make the travel and money worth it. Course I'd like to see a revival of a Shakespeare, Ibsen or a play/musical I like. Otherwise...
Times have changed as well. Going to Stratford-upon-Avon was a reoccurring holiday to see all the RSC productions but nowadays their output is bland and not worth it. Elsewhere, I went to see the original Les Miserables nearly every year, partly to see the current cast but just for the experience of seeing that turntable and hulking barricades.
The last performance of the original felt like a closing of a chapter for me.
Lockdown has also given me the opportunity to do other activities like a long walk on a saturday.
Was the last decade worth it. Hell yeah.
Am I going to miss those days of endless theatre. Yes. Am I going to miss some hidden gems. Sadly yes which pains me. But I can't face the possibility of seeing a half a dozen productions to find that. Which is why I have this forum to help me.
But you know what I want to see when theatre opens? Come From Away and Anything Goes. Something that will cheer me up immensely. And I look forward to another Christmas Carol at the Old Vic.
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Post by David J on Mar 13, 2021 9:57:52 GMT
www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1409084/Curfew-for-men-Will-UK-have-6pm-curfew-for-men-women-safety-evgSorry lads. All those tickets you've gone and bought now the shows have announced they're opening again? Looks like you'll have to exchange to a matinee or cancel them. And say goodbye to that evening pint or meal you've been looking forward to these past few months. What happened to Sarah Everard is horrible so we must put women first. Even though this won't stop the actual psychopaths from going out in the evening. As if lockdown wasn't bad enough.
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Post by David J on Feb 23, 2021 11:02:17 GMT
King Lear is a challenging role to me because he is not easy to empathise with. And yes the way he is treated after being locked out in the storm is not good, but before that I can't help but agree with the daughters. He gives up his kingdom for an unknown reason (which is why I would like to see a production that begins with his wife's funeral) and yet assumes he still has power and can do whatever he wants afterwards. That and disowning his daughter because she's honest and feels actions speak louder than words.
But that is why I have seen countless King Lears because I like to see what the actor can do with the role. Derek Jacobi is the only one I cried for at the end. One of the best performances I've ever seen. Frank Langella's Lear was also sympathetic at times.
Leontes is also a challenging role to get right. Sure his jealousy manifests from his own mind with no real proof, but the actor has to convince us that he would go so far as defy the gods in condemning his wife. Greg Hicks' intense performance set the standard for me, Orlando James gave a really convincing performance and somehow made me feel a small amount of pity for him.
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Post by David J on Feb 13, 2021 16:00:43 GMT
I have less emotional attachment to Phantom than Les Miserables so I'm not frustrated by the original designs being replaced by a lesser version. More concerned by the reduced orchestra than the looks.
I'd sooner have those hulking big barricades replacing the titchy ones in the Sondheim Theatre. The original chandelier looks underwhelming after you watch videos of the Las Vegas chandelier in action, dropping like it should down over the audience's heads. Not that we'll ever have that in Her Majesty's
The only thing I would object to is the phantom appearing in the box with his magic wand to shoot sparks at the chandelier like in the 2012 tour. Would he still be appearing above the proscenium or is that gone as well?
But frankly 75% of the original look will remain in comparison to what Les Mis looks like now. Will miss the phantom appearing in the angel and hope the candelabras will still rise through the stage.
You know what actually stood out to me about the musical when I first saw it. It wasn't the chandelier or the the proscenium as fantastic as they were. It was the simplicity of a lot of the scenes like the dressing room or the manager's office against that black box design. Made the musical look very atmospheric, making me wonder whether the phantom is standing in the shadows
I like productions that are non literal that way. Which is why I would always prefer the original Les Mis. Minimalistic sets where the cast is left to fill in the scenes and your imagination fly.
Of course you need set pieces like the barricades that are integral to the plot, and I am at least glad there will still be a chandelier.
I'm sure a lot of us wanted was exact replicas of the original Les Mis and Phantom sets that would last for another few decades, but all Cameron had in mind was profit.
What I would argue is that whilst the music will come back the original run ended last year. Same for Les Mis. Yes, you could count the number of performances but after closing for more than a year and being replaced with a production that's not 100% what the creatives conceived back in 1986, should it claim its 35th centenary in September (if that happens)?
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