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it was a Perfectly Marvelous show, with a not so marvelous Emcee...

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#1

it was a Perfectly Marvelous show, with a not so marvelous Emcee...

So i finally got to the theatre this month, after much hard work and late nights. Cabaret at The Bromley Churchill. It was the last night and it's now off to Cardiff (to be seen by Luke-H) :)

I'll start with the performances...
Samatha Barks, well, shoot me down, this girl can now officially act! i wasn't looking foward to her performance after her turn on I'd Do Anything (the two facial expression Nancy). She's really developed and played Sally Bowles very well, the right ammount of naiveity and her Cabaret blew me away, it wasn't just a big song number, she acted it, she was in pain, very surprised!
Wayne Sleep on the otherhand was atrocious. He looked nervous all the time, and was constantly looking to the conductor in the pit for his cues (despite there being monitors..). I didn't even see the Emcee up there, i saw a big mess. "If You Could See Her" was appalling. He broke character and i sat there cringing as he danced. All this meant that when it came to the finale and he decided to act a little, i wasn't the slightest bit interested, and couldn't care less about him or the Emcee (something thats never happened).
The rest of the cast were all superb. Jenny Logan as Fraulein Schneider was incredible, what a voice, and her acting was top notch. But despite everything the stars of this show were the ensemble. They were all triple threats and all so brave. They were constantly naked and getting quite sexul with everyone, and none of them looked uncomfortable, and made it all believable. i found myself having more of an emotional link with them than any of the leads, so when the finale came around and they all came on with the KABARET letters and then pushed into the gas chamber, i was so involved and upset by what i was seeing. Kudos to all of them!!

The choreography was brilliant. All of the ensemble numbers were innovative and really well danced. I really liked how the set and props were used (the beds in Don't Tell Mama and the staircase in Mein Herr). Mein Herr and The Money Song were two standout numbers for the ensemble. I also really liked the set, it was exactly what Cabaret should be, was used well and i really liked the ladders, but felt they could've been used more.

Overall i really enjoyed the tour. The quality was there and it didn't look cheap at all, i just wish Wayne Sleep would stop! He wasn't sexy or creepy enough and he couldn't act or sing all that well, and he didn't even really dance..! I enjoyed it a lot more than i thought i would. Got any questions about it..just ask, i'll try my best to answer :)

Updated On: 4/26/09 at 06:23 AM

#3

re: it was a Perfectally Marvelous show, with a not so marvelous Emcee...

Yes, I agree, Mama. The Mendes production at Studio 54 was so stunning and this pales by comparison. As for Wayne Sleep - I saw him as Emcee in the West End about 20 years ago and he was none too hot then. I doubt he will have improved with age.
THEATRE 2020: CURTAINS**** LET'S HEAR IT FOR THE GIRLS***** WICKED***** KEITH RAMSAY TAKING NOTES WITH EDWARD SECKERSON***** KAYLEIGH MCKNIGHT CONCERT***** RAGS***** ON MCQUILLAN'S HILL** DEAR EVAN HANSEN***** THE JURY***
#5

re: it was a Perfectally Marvelous show, with a not so marvelous Emcee...

I felt that this whole recent production was cheap - so perhaps he fits in quite well.
THEATRE 2020: CURTAINS**** LET'S HEAR IT FOR THE GIRLS***** WICKED***** KEITH RAMSAY TAKING NOTES WITH EDWARD SECKERSON***** KAYLEIGH MCKNIGHT CONCERT***** RAGS***** ON MCQUILLAN'S HILL** DEAR EVAN HANSEN***** THE JURY***
#6

re: it was a Perfectally Marvelous show, with a not so marvelous Emcee...

I was there also legallysam - front row, stalls.

I would say the show was far from dire. Wayne Sleep aside, I thought this production was miles better than the West End version I saw in Jan 2007 when Anna Maxwell Martin was so miscast as Sally Bowles she made the character seem so inconsequential she hardly registered (the story seemed to be all about Frau Schneider). Samantha Barks, however, was a perfect fit in the role. Biggest changes from the WE production were the staging and the set both of which were a vast improvement, made much more sense and let the action flow much smoother. Now, I like a bit of nudity on stage anytime but the way it was handled in this touring production was more subtle, tasteful and appropriate - presumably it was thought that the simple townsfolk of the provinces couldn't cope with dangly bits, well, it paid off for my money.

I've now seen three of the wannabe Nancies, Jodie, Jessie and Samantha and can report that they have all been perfectly cast in their respective roles in "Oliver!", "A Little Night Music" and "Cabaret" - it shows that those TV casting shows do work sometimes.

Updated On: 4/26/09 at 06:42 AM

#10

re: it was a Perfectally Marvelous show, with a not so marvelous Emcee...

Hilda Baker? Now you are showing your age! lol
THEATRE 2020: CURTAINS**** LET'S HEAR IT FOR THE GIRLS***** WICKED***** KEITH RAMSAY TAKING NOTES WITH EDWARD SECKERSON***** KAYLEIGH MCKNIGHT CONCERT***** RAGS***** ON MCQUILLAN'S HILL** DEAR EVAN HANSEN***** THE JURY***
#12

re: it was a Perfectally Marvelous show, with a not so marvelous Emcee...

You've probably baffled almost everyone else on the board. You and I are probably the only ones on here old enough to have heard of her!
THEATRE 2020: CURTAINS**** LET'S HEAR IT FOR THE GIRLS***** WICKED***** KEITH RAMSAY TAKING NOTES WITH EDWARD SECKERSON***** KAYLEIGH MCKNIGHT CONCERT***** RAGS***** ON MCQUILLAN'S HILL** DEAR EVAN HANSEN***** THE JURY***
#14

re: it was a Perfectally Marvelous show, with a not so marvelous Emcee...

No,sadly I'm old enough -I also qualify!

I never saw Hylda Baker on stage but I did see the stage show about her life, written and performed by Jean Fergusson at the Vaudeville Theatre in 1988 (after the show I met and chatted with Victoria Wood who was in the row in front of me).
#15

re: it was a Perfectally Marvelous show, with a not so marvelous Emcee...

I think it's improved miles since the West End.
So much more 'Classic Cabaret' now, talking mainly about sets and normal staging instead of that odd abstract style in the Lyric, which I liked but felt that it sucked some emotion out. I love Sam Barks as Sally, and she was my least favourite in I'd Do Anything, and I'm a stubborn person when it comes to opinions onperformers, therefore she is officially amazing! Also - YAY I got mentioned :P

THEATRE 2016: Grey Gardens; SwkPlayhouse, Cats; London Palladium, Into the Woods; Royal Exchange, Show Boat; Sheffield Crucible, Les Liaisons Dangereuses, Prsicilla Queen of the Desert; UK Tour, Narrative; RWCMD, Mojo; RWCMD, The Barber of Seville; WNO, Rabbit Hole; Hampstead, The Marriage of Figaro; WNO, Figaro Gets a Divorce; WNO, Tom: The Musical; UK Tour Upcoming: Anything Can Happen; RWCMD, Cysgy'n Brys'ur, Long Day's Journey Into Night; Bristol Old Vic, Only the Brave, The Caretaker; The Old Vic, People Places and Things, Blue/Orange; Young Vic, Bernadette Peters, Carole King, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child Parts I & II
#17

re: it was a Perfectally Marvelous show, with a not so marvelous Emcee...

John i was second row stalls...! dead centre!

where were you? there was a guy in a suit in front of me, he had an earing in his left ear, wasn't you was it? it's be a strange coincidence!

it deffinitely wasn't diar...they just need to get rid of wayne sleep...the cabaret boys are indeed beautiful!! re: it was a Perfectally Marvelous show, with a not so marvelous Emcee...
#24

re: it was a Perfectally Marvelous show, with a not so marvelous Emcee...

Say "hello" next time!

Centre of the front row -I think I must have booked our tickets the day they went on sale to get such great seats.

I just booked myself a front row seat for dinnerladies on the Weds evening in June at the Churchill, Bromley - my diary is so full it's just about the only date of the entire tour I can do.
#25

re: it was a Perfectally Marvelous show, with a not so marvelous Emcee...

if i had known it was you, i would've done!! what a coincidence eh!? i love the seating at the Churchill, the stalls are really slopped so you can see right over hotjohn (re: it was a Perfectally Marvelous show, with a not so marvelous Emcee...) and the seats are really big, with quite a bit of leg room, v.good theatre.

dinnerladies doesn't appeal, its good to watch if there's nothing else on, but i couldn't watch 2hours of it live! enjoy yourself though!

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