Love Never Dies Melbourne .

[rosscoe(au)]

Posted: 5/4/11 at 3:09am

Writing this on my iPhone, so sorry in advance for any mistakes.

Was at a very dull and lifeless preview performance of Mary Poppins in Sydney on Tuesday night. The show has it's Sydney opening on Thursday and the production crew where still trying to fix show stoppages and sound issues.

I was speaking with a member of the production team, who works on both productions

Love Never Dies :

Has a brand new book

Story

Ending

Music

The Melbourne production is the do and die for this show

[chewy5000]

Posted: 5/4/11 at 3:24am

I have tickets for July 3rd. Still, "brand new book" could just mean a couple of minor changes. And if "Beneath a moonless sky" is still in, the story will still be horrible.

[rosscoe(au)]

Posted: 5/4/11 at 3:52am

From what I understand, at least 80% of the show is different to what is seen on the West End.

The advance in Melbourne is sizable, the season is running at about 90% sold.

[brettystar]

Posted: 5/4/11 at 4:01am

Bugger rosscoe - seems like you caught the show on an off night.
The second preview performance I saw was fantastic, it was as exciting for me as the first time I saw in Melbourne and an improvement energy level wise on the last time I saw it mid Novemeber. I have spoken to lots of people who have seen it and they have all been raving about it.
What kind of stoppages have been happening? None of my theatre friends have had stoppages the shows they have been to. I am off to the final preview tonight so I will be keen to see if the levels have dropped since two weeks ago.
Re Love Never Dies- wow 80% is a massive difference - I hope this is true as it sure does need it from all I have heard and seen of the London production. I am suprised that this hasn't been more widely hyped if true given the bad press surrounding the show around the world.
I look forward to seeing it Melbourne end of the month at any rate.

[rosscoe(au)]

Posted: 5/4/11 at 4:42am

I had a really bad seat upstairs, view was fine. Sound was horrible, no idea what was being said or sung. Stoppage came just before "step in time". And sadly for the show one of the most magical parts of the evening happened not on stage, but in the audience during that stoppage.

A man stood up and said this is my friend Hannah, tonite is her birthday and the audience raised the roof with an amazing version of happy birthday. That was the only time the show came alive!

As I said it was a lifeless and dull, no wit , no spark, no magic and that's what the story should have.

As for "Love Paint Never Dries Dies". By years end a full live recording should be done as well, think Mary Poppins.

[brettystar]

Posted: 5/4/11 at 5:09am

Fair enough, I always prefer stalls over Dress as I love to see the actors' faces. The Princess front row of mezz is great but aside from that I prefer stalls.
Sound issues are frustrating as all get up.
Sounds like a fun moment and yes sad it wasn't part of the show.
I know it's selling well but once reviews hit I still think LND will close by year's end -BUT hopefully I am wrong and they've managed to fix it.
I like the costumes they showed.

[brettystar]

Posted: 5/4/11 at 5:09am

Fair enough, I always prefer stalls over Dress as I love to see the actors' faces. The Princess front row of mezz is great but aside from that I prefer stalls.
Sound issues are frustrating as all get up.
Sounds like a fun moment and yes sad it wasn't part of the show.
I know it's selling well but once reviews hit I still think LND will close by year's end -BUT hopefully I am wrong and they've managed to fix it.
I like the costumes they showed.

[chewy5000]

Posted: 5/4/11 at 7:29am

It's only a limited run I assume. And I doubt that reviews will make a difference, considering they will all be glowing regardless.

[rosscoe(au)]

Posted: 5/4/11 at 7:45am

Chewy, Love has been booked in for at least a year and a half in Melbourne. With a year already booked into the Capital in Sydney, November 2012

[Justin D]

Posted: 5/4/11 at 8:55am

Saw an interview today on youtube with Gangle, saw that the park is still named Phantasma. I would have thought that would be the first thing to go. But I guess if they are going with the updated storyline about Christine coming to sing for Hammerstein and not at some park called Phantasma by some unknown shadowy figure it may still work. I just think the name is lame.

[alterego]

Posted: 5/4/11 at 9:28am

Is there still talk of a return to Melbourne of POPPINS? Brettystar POPPINS was at Her Majesty's not the Princess.

[rosscoe(au)]

Posted: 5/4/11 at 10:48am

I wish I saw Poppins in Melbourne, Her Maj is the best venue in the country for any show.

[brettystar]

Posted: 5/4/11 at 5:59pm

Yep alterego I was making a general comment on DC -I saw Hairspray at the Princess front mezz.
I think it's wishful thinking for RUG to think LND will run a year at the cavernous Regent lol

Updated On: 5/4/11 at 05:59 PM

[alterego]

Posted: 5/4/11 at 8:47pm

I couldn't agree more rosscoe(au). The best.

[pennydreadful]

Posted: 5/4/11 at 9:29pm

When this premieres, can someone please post and tell us what's changed?

Posted: 5/4/11 at 10:06pm

I seriously doubt you'll have a prob with that happening

[Justin D]

Posted: 5/5/11 at 6:24pm

I am more than disappointed that they are actually sticking with that new logo with the ridiculous looking mask.

but from the load in footage, I totally love what I am seeing set wise

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJp-lQWg6YQ&feature=feedu

[pdjennings]

Posted: 5/6/11 at 8:40am

I certainly hope that "new ending" doesn't mean they've changed the you-know-what-huge-event that happens in the current ending. That would totally ruin the tragic point of the story... :/

[ajh]

Posted: 5/6/11 at 12:19pm

Either way, this set for the Aussie LND looks way more spectacular and imaginative than the original London one!

[leefowler]

Posted: 5/6/11 at 12:36pm

I have a problem believing that 80% of the show is different...Certainly, I doubt that the score is very different from the version at the West End.

One of the hardest things about working on a show over a long period of time is that the creative team imagines that little tweaks are in fact massive rewrites.

As long as this show has the same basic plot, characters, and songs as the West End version, then the end result won't be dramatically different from what's being performed every night in London.

[JRybka]

Posted: 5/6/11 at 1:24pm

I still think they need to wipe any and all Phantom out of it. And make it just another dark style love story. It would work so much better. IMHO.

[Justin D]

Posted: 5/17/11 at 11:12am

http://www.youtube.com/user/LoveNeverDiesAU

new video out.

So far I am really liking it, it seems darker and cluttered and just how I imagines it should have looked first time around. They also seem to be paying some homage to the use of the whole maze of mirrors in the original novel.

It seems overall to have that nice dark gothic, slightly creepy feel that it needed.