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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 19, 2024 15:09:51 GMT
What did you think of Giovanna? She always looks to be having a lot of fun.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 19, 2024 15:04:00 GMT
I saw this with Rush last week. No luck at being offered Stalls tickets any of the times I've tried, but I settled for mid Dress Circle, which is a clear view, and apart from the person repeating jokes for her husband, had reasonable sound quality.
Some plays fail to grab my attention. For this one, no such problems, which is good going for a 3 hour run time. Yes, it is a bit predictable, but it's also keenly written. Not one I'd feel the need to return to see a second time, but well worth seeing. 4 stars from me.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 19, 2024 14:59:17 GMT
I saw this with a rush ticket for the Thursday matinee. An excellent view, although I'd have preferred to have sat a few rows closer.
I don't know the film at all, but I found this enjoyable. Some obvious plot holes and nothing hugely original, but it has a top rate cast way beyond the Charing Cross norms. Having not really checked the cast before, a nice surprise was spotting Josh Butler in the cast, who was always adorable at Mountview, and somehow has made himself even more adorable here. ArtsEd is also represented in the recent graduates nicely too with the always excellent Aharon Rayner.
This does take a bit of time to get going. If, like me, you don't like surprise gunshots, thankfully they're recordings (and largely limited to the opening sequence), after which the show goes in a different direction. I doubt this will have much of a life beyond Charing Cross, but I'll certainly see this again before it closes.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 19, 2024 14:52:13 GMT
I did end up at both matinees over the weekend and Finton was on as Jamie for both shows. There were signs up on Saturday. On Sunday, they only announced this verbally at the start, so this may have been a late switch. In any case, Finton is a fantastic Jamie, and no one seeing him should be disappointed.
Saturday, I got a fifth row aisle seat from TKTS, with the show only marred a bit by some loud women at the back of the Stalls. Sunday, I got third row through Rush (not the first ticket release), which is a perfect view. Another bonus is that Joe Wolstenholme was on and it seems like years since I've seen him.
There are some oddities, like lines that change every show, and the cut back on party poppers (or, at least, Shobna failing to pop hers in the last three shows I've seen). John Partridge I thought was excellent, a slightly different Hugo portrayal to the previous week.
This is my favourite show in London right now.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 16, 2024 12:57:53 GMT
I got the email, and somehow got a position near the front of the queue, so was admitted within the first minute. There wasn't much left and some dates had no availability. I did manage to snag a Stalls seat near the front for Wednesday's matinee, so that will be a nice change from seeing this from the Dress Circle.
After buying, you are still able to go back and buy again. I didn't buy again, but I did check was available. If anything, there were more seats showing at 12:30 or so than there were at 12:00.
Top 500, you should definitely be able to get singles (but not necessarily ones in positions you want). Pairs are possible but less likely.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 12, 2024 20:11:58 GMT
I saw the matinee with a Rush ticket yesterday (central Stalls, would have liked to have been further forward, but the view is fine). The set is a little small for the Peacock Theatre stage.
As others have noted, Ivano is back. His ankle is heavily taped up, but I didn't spot any obvious problems. He plays possibly the campest Jamie of all time, but was very good.
I spent a bit of time trying to work out where Giovanna Fletcher's accent was from. They often stunt cast Miss Hedge, but I'm not sure this role quite suited Giovanna.
John Partridge played Hugo/Loco very differently to the norm. A very passive and hesitant Hugo, but that did make his transformation into Loco stand out. Interestingly enough perhaps, most of the dialogue changes from Oxford have been reverted to an earlier version, particularly for Loco's scenes. After previously commenting about Jamie's lack of a mobile phone, he did hold one throughout the drag show scene too. It's just a pity no one would let him have him have his dad's mobile number.
Shobna Gulati is always excellent and it's a shame she's leaving. But I see they've now announced that Sejal Keshwala is returning for the rest of the tour, and she's faultless as well.
The real star continues to be Rebecca McKinnis, and I'm glad to see she's staying for the rest of the tour. I do hope to see Georgina Hagen at some point as well. All enjoy this fantastic show while it's back in London.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 11, 2024 17:32:14 GMT
Carrie Hope Fletcher and Joel Montague were at the Jamie matinee today. Both being totally charming with the queue of people wanting to say hello and get selfies.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 10, 2024 0:53:06 GMT
Financially as a reputable London actor, you can get paid well, but for a relatively short period of time. Your job is to build up a long-term career, and also to save money during the time that you're being paid well to offset everything else.
I have huge respect for actors, but I could also translate their struggles to my own life and career very easily.
As a fresh graduate, the salary is good. 20 years on as an ensemble member, with a mortgage and a family to support, maybe less so.
Comparing London salaries with New York salaries is a false economy. I love New York and I'd live there for a year or two, but everything is hideously expensive. For all the complaints, London is a bargain in comparison.
Choosing to act for a living is not the easiest life. But the people who do must know they are already at the top of their class. A lot of graduates will never even get that opportunity. Everyone should be thankful - and also have a backup plan.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 9, 2024 23:33:16 GMT
Yes there is, through the link in the plays website that was linked at the beginning of this thread: they sent me an email earlier saying the resale goes live next Tuesday (the 13th) from 8 a.m until noon: I’ve seen how many people liked this when Tom Holland shares he was doing it on his Instagram the other day so they won’t have problems selling tickets for this, I want to see who is playing Juliet first though. They don't need to announce who is playing Juliet before Tuesday though. It will still largely sell out. It could be Lola* from Big Brother and it would still sell the same. * Apologies if there really was a Lola from Big Brother.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 9, 2024 21:36:18 GMT
Rent - ArtsEd
A five star student production that could easily grace a professional stage.
In a moment of either madness or expectation (or not being sure what dates I could make), I booked to see both casts twice. I say both casts, although only four roles are double cast, but these people do play things quite differently. Both groups are very good. I feel La Vie had a slight edge as to how they gelled as a group, but there were individual performances in Boheme that I loved (especially Taylor Morris).
What ArtsEd always do very well is they find ways to make sure that every ensemble member has their moment and is featured. One downside is you get some numbers that are very busy, but you can focus out the interpretative dance going on in the background. I remember Rent doing rather well in the Other Palace a few years ago and this version could fit right in, just slimming down the ensemble (and set).
I did mentally slot a lot of the cast into other shows, even the ensemble members (especially where I'd seen them in other roles). The next tour of Heathers is covered. I do have Hayes Nolan as a perfect Beleaguered Geek (and cover JD). Jesse Chidera must never leave the gym (as so often happens in ArtsEd productions, they do manage to find a way to show his body off). I've mentally cast him as Jack in Newsies. Nkara Stephenson really stood out to me with presence in the ensemble as well.
In the lead roles, the characters are written in such a way that anything other than an excellent performance would be a let-down. Sedona Sky was the total standout as Mimi. Olivia Bella commanded the stage as Joanne as well, not overshadowed by the actors playing Maureen as can happen. Max Mulrenan must be destined for a role in Hamilton, a very believable Collins, beautiful voice, and outside this production I know he can rap too. Hayden Cable as the other Collins, totally charming, sings well, I see him with the potential to be a good comedy actor, or a possible Jamie, anything where he doesn't have to bow in time. His Gordon did tear me up.
This was 2 hours 50 minutes on Tuesday, by the matinee today it was down to 2 hours 35 minutes. The matinee today was the perfect performance. The crowd was respectful but not too loud. They'd cut down the pre-show. The microphones held up. I didn't hear anyone laughing at inappropriate moments (this isn't The Book of Mormon where having AIDS is a punchline).
They added an extra dimension to Mark, which everyone handled well, but without being able to change the book, this had to be acted out in the background. Taylor Morris as Mark, really likeable, didn't overact. Reece McGowan, memorable, very active eyes, a Mark that demanded more attention. The Rogers, Tom Major and Ben Fenwick, well that has to be a dream part for any trainee musical theatre actor. Tom Francis in the Hope Mill version really showed off the vocals for Roger, then went on to great heights, but otherwise this version was superior to Hope Mill. That is not forgetting the other leads. I could write something nice about everyone.
I almost wish I could go tomorrow. This sold out within minutes, unsurprisingly. If ArtsEd set up a commercial arm to run professional shows, they most definitively have the talent and expertise. Well done to everyone involved. You may not get a better student production this year.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 7, 2024 21:03:09 GMT
I’m thinking London rather than a tour, but it’s not clear from the teaser.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 6, 2024 13:57:46 GMT
I did wonder about illness at first, although I picked up on someone else in the cast. Perhaps there is a bug going around? Dionne Ward-Anderson was on as Nabulungi too (doing really well), which was odd as Beatrice Penny-Toure only started in the role a couple of weeks ago.
However, that wouldn't really explain why they stopped at that point, and they should have enough people available to complete the show. Maybe we'll be able to work out more if everything goes ahead without a hitch tonight.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 6, 2024 13:40:45 GMT
Pippin - Mountview
This is an abstract production even by Pippin standards, but enjoyable, held in the Mountview Backstage Theatre.
I saw the Saturday matinee (note 14:15 advertised start, although this started late - I think it was the first performance). Unusually, almost all the seats were marked as reserved, so there were only 10 or so seats left. There are only three rows (seating on three sides of the performance area), so even in the back row, the view was fine.
This is performed with a non-male cast (all students using she/her or she/they pronouns), with a minimal set. The pronouns used to describe characters change regularly during the show, but that all adds to the mystique of Pippin. There are plenty of line changes and apparent ad-libs, I certainly don't remember this much swearing in previous productions of Pippin. The sound and vocals are very good. Thankfully I know Pippin well, but it was obvious at the end that there people who had no idea what they'd just witnessed.
The singalong section is present, but the angle makes it very difficult to read the words, so do learn these in advance if you want to take part.
Definitely worth seeing in this intimate setting if seats are available. Everyone does a great job with the material. Running time is about two hours, including the interval.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 6, 2024 11:52:45 GMT
I was also there and really it was quite shambolic to wait until after the official end time of the show to announce the cancellation. They did do a roaring bar trade, so that should offset some of the money lost through the refunds.
Plenty of people had already left before the official cancellation.
It is a difficult situation and really it was the lack of information and the false announcement of 20 more minutes that didn't help. I know these things happen. Everyone I saw was being polite to the ushers thankfully, who have a difficult job, but much as I may be tempted to say "I don't get paid enough to deal with that", there are better forms of wording to use with frustrated customers.
Up to the show stop, it was an excellent high energy show, with the cast having a lot of fun. Still, I can get back another time easily enough.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 3, 2024 10:50:22 GMT
It's good. It's a fairly traditional jukebox musical which has a better selection of songs than most to work with (the 60, 70s, and 80s are all represented). They are integrated into the plot well and performed well.
The first half is stronger than the second. It runs very long (2 hours 45 minutes), and I presume they're still making a lot of changes as there were a few line slips.
The book itself is weak, as is the framing device, preaching to the converted, lots of characters introduced but it's not clear why they're there (and their subplots just fizzle out). The cast are uniformly excellent, particularly when performing the songs from the era. The Queen set is sensibly sprinkled throughout. There isn't much of a set. For most of the show, the cast sit on chairs at the back, coming forward as needed, and there are projections. The highlight is easily Mrs Thatcher, the Hamilton parody scenes, and it's almost as if someone is using this show to rehabilitate her in the public eye. There are times when talking about the horrors of the era that Miss Saigon style visuals may be needed, as opposed to just talking around the edges (and swearing).
I'm pleased to report the audience was well behaved. Very little singing along. They even largely refrained from responding from the attempts of those on stage to get hand waving and clapping going. I could tell that some were waiting for a mega-mix at the end, but that didn't come (just as well, as the show is too long already).
In many ways, this reminds me of the Old Vic and Sylvia, in that there's a lot of potential here, but it feels like there was some workshopping missed along the way.
Despite my misgivings, I'd happily see this again based on the strength of the music. I had a bad pillar restricted view seat (good legroom though), booked solely to use up a credit voucher. I'd like to see this from nearer the front. This could easily transfer as it will sell based on the strength of the music and subject matter. I do feel there's a gem of a show hidden away here, just waiting for someone to set it free.
I've gone with 3 stars in the poll. I imagine it will be 3.5 stars within days, and could hit 4 stars.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 2, 2024 14:54:08 GMT
Aston Merrygold is back as the Tin Man for a few venues. Those being Bristol, Manchester, Birmingham and Cardiff. Marley is taking on the lead role in Grease (well done, Marley).
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 2, 2024 10:12:04 GMT
Attending tonight. Reading all the comments, I'm not sure if I should be excited or terrified!
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 1, 2024 11:27:33 GMT
I was also there last night, which was some type of press or media night. Rush gave me second row Stalls (although at the extreme side), so I couldn't turn that down. You do lose the edge of the stage, but otherwise the view is clear.
I completely failed at the celebrity spotting, but I also didn't wander around. I was told that David Seaman was in attendance.
This is a much more engaging show from the front. The sound quality was also better. From the front, I could tell this was much more the tour production than the Palladium version, with two of the children played by adults. They do seem to play all of this with very broad mannerisms, but perhaps that's due to the size of the venue.
Cezarah Bonner as Lady Thiang is definitely the highlight.
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Post by Dr Tom on Jan 30, 2024 10:35:43 GMT
From what I've seen online Ivano hasn't been on as Jamie for weeks. I hope he's okay I hope so too. Ivano did do the Big Night of Musicals show, so he's around. But a shame for him if he missed the delights of digs in Wolverhampton.
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Post by Dr Tom on Jan 29, 2024 22:56:44 GMT
They basically want people with a big TikTok following who will continually promote the show. There are plenty of established musical theatre actors with followings, so there's no reason why they will have to go with unknown people.
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Post by Dr Tom on Jan 28, 2024 22:27:52 GMT
I did get to see the Gin Martini Company as well Max James Hodge was totally charming as Man in Chair. I can't pick one cast out as being better than the other, that just isn't fair. As with so many shows, I enjoyed this more on the second viewing. It helps to know the music and what to expect.
Otherwise, not much to add to my previous comments, other than I feel that almost everyone in this class is ready for a place in a West End ensemble. Unfortunately, there's no enough work about for all of them. The show I was at, incidentally, had several of last year's graduates in the audience. I don't think anyone has picked up on Joe Simmons yet, so I'll just note him as my pick to watch out for in the future. I'm sure an agent has already signed him up.
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Post by Dr Tom on Jan 28, 2024 9:41:46 GMT
Where did the choreo for The One come from? It wasn’t anything like I remember from seeing ACL at The Curve. A one-off for this performance, I imagine, so they had something that looked good on TV. I doubt many of those dancers will be on the tour.
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Post by Dr Tom on Jan 28, 2024 0:36:58 GMT
That was quite enjoyable. They did a great job with the sound, regardless of whether it was live or not.
It's always odd when they're reworked songs for the show from how they're currently performed. The reworked Jamie with the line changes, cuts, and new dance routine, just looked bizarre. Then there are the random casts pulled together. Much as I love seeing Mukeni, Mark and Jordan back on stage together, I just can't imagine them all in featured roles in A Chorus Line. Nice to see (most of) the London Grease cast back together, although I'd be surprised if that's the tour cast.
I did feel for the poor usher who had barely recovered for finding out he wasn't winning a holiday but his name would be on a chair so he'd never get a peaceful shift at work again, before he then had to deal with being surprised by Craig Revel Horwood as well.
Don't think I'd ever want to see the Night of Musicals in person (imagine being at the back in such a big arena), but as a TV programme it comes across well.
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Post by Dr Tom on Jan 25, 2024 16:22:47 GMT
To do The Secret Garden and not do the Lucy Simon version is a big disappointment. I guess we wont get that version anytime soon now. Agreed, but I think this is a play rather than a musical (unless I’m reading everything wrong)?
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Post by Dr Tom on Jan 24, 2024 19:39:06 GMT
This certainly isn't the hot seller it once was. Outside of Friday and Saturday, there are a lot of deals if you're willing to hold out for the dynamic pricing to bring the costs down.
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Post by Dr Tom on Jan 24, 2024 13:40:30 GMT
The Drowsy Chaperone - Arts Ed
I was also there for the performance yesterday. You can't fault this. Excellent performances all around, great singing, big dance numbers.
They had the stage set to open up its full depth, which really worked for the bigger production numbers.
Alex Gavin is on the stage almost the entire show and really holds everything together. Harrison Langham stood out to me too with his excellent tap dancing. He would make a perfect Mormon.
Now, I'd never seen the show before. Having seen it, I can tell why it was not a hit when first staged in London. The audience at Arts Ed is always going to be more forgiving, especially with all the musical theatre references. I also notice the show has changed a bit from the description on Wikipedia, but perhaps it's one of those shows with multiple versions floating around.
What Arts Ed always do well is they structure their shows so that everyone gets their featured moments. Even the ensemble get the chance to dance at the front of the stage. There are a couple of people who they've put in very similar roles across the two productions I've seen them in, which I don't think best suit their style, but I do appreciate how difficult it is to find the right production that has a perfect role for everyone.
This could easily transfer to a fringe theatre (although some roles would be better cast with someone older). It won't, purely because you can't have this level of production and this size of cast, and run this in a profitable way. I'm also not sure that this show will draw in an audience. So this production of the Drowsy Chaperone is as good a production as I'd expect to see in the UK anytime soon.
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Post by Dr Tom on Jan 21, 2024 11:40:59 GMT
I think it’s the ship from the first tour (pre-Covid), but not the Palladium one, but please no one take that as fact. I was a long way back, but the ship was much more impressive from there than the second tour version.
The large statues etc are back too (not cardboard). It isn’t the full Palladium version though, which you see with things like Shall We Dance, where there just isn’t as much space on the stage.
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Post by Dr Tom on Jan 20, 2024 20:57:15 GMT
I managed to get a rush ticket to the sold out matinee today. Stalls Row Y, which is a lot further back than I'd usually like, but the view was clear enough (and I know this production well anyway). The seats are very badly offset in that row, being lined up with the row in front, so I could tell that was causing other people problems.
Good news for everyone. They've restored most of the missing set, so this is much more like the Palladium production than the tour. I think there's a bigger ensemble again too, and not as many adults pretending to be children, although I was far enough back that I couldn't tell for sure.
The orchestra sounded wonderful. The vocals sound levels were too quiet in comparison, especially for Dean John-Wilson. I was impressed by how clear everyone's diction was. My first time seeing Helen George, and she is good, but there have been some very strong leads in this production, so comparisons are difficult.
Started slightly late as there were massive queues to get in. Finished about 5:30pm. I'll certainly be back while the full production is in London.
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Post by Dr Tom on Jan 20, 2024 16:09:33 GMT
This all varies completely depending on the show and the day. I always assumed it was the box office who added more seats (if it made sense that day).
10.30am is a good time for a second check for some shows, but it varies a lot. The times though can be quite random looking (i.e. sold out at 10.16, but more at 10.17).
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Post by Dr Tom on Jan 18, 2024 20:29:17 GMT
I saw this earlier in the week, Rush ticket right at 10am and was in Row F of the Dress Circle. I have tried before and not been successful, so this does seem to be selling well. A very clear view and everything was audible. I do prefer nearer the front, but this is fine.
I thought this was an excellent play. We did have a show stop about half an hour in, which delayed things, and there were definitely people eyeing the exit (and checking watches) near the end. Not much to add to the previous reviews, but I can certainly see this making a return in the future.
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