Julian Ovenden sings FINDING NEVERLAND Mar 9
2015, 03:47:29 PM
I saw this in Leicester when it premiered with Ovenden and this score - and my major problem with the show was that the music was forgetable. I've gone back to my theatre book with my review (for my own benefit) from the time and this my first paragraph:
"This needs work. The staging is great, nice projections, a couple of big set pieces (that don't get used enough) and the cast give it their all. Julian Ovenden's beautiful voice is wasted on the forgetable songs. None of them stuck
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Miss Saigon 25th Anniversary Performance and Gala Aug 26
2014, 04:04:40 PM
I tried on the website for an hour - with various of the problems (no link to the tickets, no date to select, timing out etc) then did 15 minutes on hold before I decided that I was only 30 minutes away from the theatre and headed down - I got there just under the priority booking wire at about 11.55 and got two upper circle seats - initially was offered A14&A15 - but in the time it took the man to tell me that, they were gone - so we're in D. Feeling very, very lucky although I found the proce
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From Here to Eternity Broadway 2015 Mar 26
2014, 09:04:17 PM
I'll admit to being perplexed by the reviews that this got - I saw it with a friend a few weeks back and was totally bored by it. The book needed a lot of work, the characters were unsympathetic (and the night we went 3 of the main actors were out), the music was forgetable and we were unsurprised that it had failed to find an audience. I was so disappointed, because it was a proper new show not a jukebox thing. I'd be interested to see how they change it for Broadway (I've no clue if I saw t
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I'm giving away a Fosse Biography-Merry Christmas! Dec 24
2013, 02:44:46 AM
It's so hard to pick out a favourite theatre memory, but I guess one that stands out in my mind is my first trip to see a West End musical (I'm in the UK, and I understand if this excludes me - but I'm sharing anyway!) - when I went to see Cats at the New London when I was around 9 years old. I don't think I shut my mouth from beginning to end and spent the next 6 months pretending to be either The Rum Tum Tugger or Mr Mistofelees (My sister and I alternated roles!) and dancing around the sitting room to the highlights CD. I've certainly seen "better" shows since, but as an introduction to musical theatre for a child, it was perfect.
(My first West End play was Alan Bennett's Wind in the Willows at the National, and that too was perfect for a child - I was transfixed by the characters, revolving lifting set and the jokes and the costumes - just amazing - clip here (although I saw a slightly different cast to the original I think) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVcH9-_6pXw I just wish there were more clips of it because many of the finer details have faded in my mind 20 years later!)
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Broadway Grosses: Week Ending 9/29/13 Sep 30
2013, 08:28:36 PM
Re Spiderman - I live in London and I had a email blast from one of the theatre groups here offering me discount on Spiderman tickets - I'm not sure I've ever had that happen before...
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Rylance's 12th Night and Richard III to play Broadway... Jun 27
2013, 03:13:18 AM
So thrilled so many of the London cast are getting the chance to take it to Broadway - Chahidi was brilliant 11 years ago and last summer and Colin Hurley and Peter Hamilton Dyer were also in that original production too.
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Patti and Seth: Sounds absolutely magical! Jun 23
2013, 08:28:20 PM
Awwwww - no! I so would've stayed for the evening show if it wasn't for the damn nightshift!
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Patti and Seth: Sounds absolutely magical! Jun 23
2013, 06:44:04 PM
She was talking about playing card games backstage during the dance breaks after an interviewer pointed out that she'd been choreographed out of her own dance breaks...
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Patti and Seth: Sounds absolutely magical! Jun 23
2013, 06:32:17 PM
I nearly cried when they did Anything goes - I've watched the video of her on the Tony's more times than I like to admit - and had steeled myself for it not being amongst the set as she hadn't done it in the previous shows - and then she dropped it in for the first time this afternoon - "it is the 2nd to last show" she said - and then had Seth help her with the lyrics - she stopped a couple of times during it because she didn't hear what he said, but it was *stunning*
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Patti LuPone Sings SUNSET BOULEVARD Jun 23
2013, 06:30:48 PM
She did seem very emotional singing it this afternoon - there's definitely a lot of baggage attached to it for her still.
It was amazing though.
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Patti and Seth: Sounds absolutely magical! Jun 23
2013, 06:24:37 PM
I went to this afternoon's show (which nearly overran into the time allocated for tonight) and it was utterly fabulous.
Set list was:
Everything's coming up roses
Nothin' up from the RObber Bridgegroom
Being Alive
I cain't say no (!) (extract) - Oklahoma!
I dreamed a dream
Anything goes
My Way
Rainbow High (or Evita at anyrate)
As Long As He Needs me
Encore:
The start of Evita with the Magaldi
Buenos Aires
Second Encore:
With
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Patti and Seth: Sounds absolutely magical! Jun 21
2013, 04:09:25 PM
I'm going on Sunday afternoon - I'm so excited! (It's the high point of a weekend consisting of nothing else but nightshifts...)
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BROADWAY SECRETS: Wherein we confess our controversial opinions Jun 20
2013, 12:32:10 PM
I didn't like Jerusalem. Rylance gave a great performance, but I could've done without the last act (my parents left at the second interval).
Viva Forever was the best night at a musical I've had in a while. For all the wrong reasons. Never before have I been to a show where the audience didn't realise the show was over until the chorus boys jogged on for their bow. The climactic final moment fell flat because there were so many plot points left undone.
Related: Viva Foreve
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Rylance's 12th Night and Richard III to play Broadway... Jun 7
2013, 04:40:05 AM
I'm so jealous. Twelfth Night was the best show that I saw last year - possibly even better than when I first saw it ten years earlier.
I really hope that Paul Chahidi gets to go over too. I mean the whole cast was great, but if you can't have them all, he is key - he's amazing. So was Roger Lloyd Pack. And I hope that the guys who were there in the original show get to go over.
I could've watched it over and over and over - but only managed to get tickets to see it once -
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1996 King & I Recording - can someone clarify? May 21
2013, 05:13:00 PM
I love a good overture - in a show you don't know it flags up the tunes that you're going to come out humming and gets you thinking about what they might be used for. In a show you know it reminds you of the old friends you're about to re-encounter.
I know it's in the wrong ratio, but I was in the hall for this performance of the Gypsy Overture by John Wilson Orchestra:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ww7kJiy2UqA
At that point, I'd never seen Gypsy and didn't get what all of you who love it over here were so mad about (sorry) but after hearing the overture at the Proms, when Curve in Leicester revived it last year with Caroline O'Connor I got myself down there PDQ (and was promptly disappointed that it didn't sound as good as the John Wilson version - which it obviously wouldn't because JW is doing it with all the bells and whistles of a full orhcestra with the extras and in this case reproducing the orchestra sound from the film).
Anyhow, my point is, how can you watch something like that and not get love an overture?
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Gypsy--Caroline O'Connor Mar 21
2013, 09:30:18 AM
I saw her in Gypsy at Curve in Leicester last year - and she was a total force of nature in the part. I'd never seen Gypsy before, but thought it was brilliant.
Promo clip from that show here - featuring Caroline in action: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJhxQu9pVMI
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Kristin Chenoweth - concert set list? Feb 18
2013, 04:08:51 PM
I'll let you know how accurate you are JoeKv99...
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Kristin Chenoweth - concert set list? Feb 18
2013, 03:41:00 PM
:) Loving your work JoeKv99...
I know what her website says she'll be doing, but I've been had before with singers (and bands) saying similar things and discovering that I know next to nothing of what they're doing because their definition of a mix of stuff turns out to be all the stuff from the last album (usually one that no one liked much) and only one of the classics!
I didn't want to get my hopes up and then be disappointed by a string of songs I've never heard before...
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Kristin Chenoweth - concert set list? Feb 18
2013, 12:58:32 PM
Well I wouldn't say no to some of those, but I hope there's some other stuff as well!
Thanks again OKBroadwayFan!
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Kristin Chenoweth - concert set list? Feb 16
2013, 11:12:11 PM
Thanks OKBroadwayFan - any information is great. I could cope with the sound of that - although I'm not sure how much of the UK audience is going to know contemporary Christian Music! What Would Dolly Do is on her latest album (which I really need to get hold of a copy of!) so I guess more of the audience will be familiar with that.
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