starlight express

[adamized88]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 12:44am

anybody know why andrew lloyd webber redid the original 1984 version of this show to create the new starlight express that is currently playing in london and just finished touring the us?

Updated On: 8/14/04 at 12:44 AM

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 1:06am

cuz' he felt like it... why does andrew lloyd webber do anything? to make money...

[venticelli]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 1:23am

I'm curious too based on what I know of the original production. anyone have some good info to share?

[bronxboundexpress]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 1:43am

The London production had been running for so long that I guess he just decided to give it a makeover and add some new songs to make it more 90s instead of 80s. He changed the melody of the title song(there are actually 3 different composed versions of the title song even though the chorus is always the same) and added 3-4 songs and cut 3-4. This is the best show in the world by the way. I said it would run for 20 years and it did. Updated On: 8/14/04 at 01:43 AM

[NuggetMonkeys]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 3:52am

worst show ever, simply.

[Broadway Matt]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 4:22am

last time i saw it was in london, on the 4th of july 2001. it seemed really stale and half-assed, even before the electricity ironically went out on the very last note of "AC/DC". they had to stop the show for a good half hour. but I absolutely loved the show when it was in Las Vegas and always enjoy the New Starlight Express CD. the only song I really miss from the original is There's Me.

[musicaltheatreman]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 5:50am

wich cd is the best one to buy???? i have seen the new U.S. tour and i like the new songs but i am not sure which cd has them on it???

[Broadway Matt]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 5:59am

If you want something close to the recent productions, then get the one entitled "The New Starlight Express". The other one you might find in stores is a sampler of various songs, many of which are no longer in the show. The original London cast is 2 CD's and, as far as I know, out of print.

[son_of_a_gunn_25]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 6:09am

I think Starlight Express would be much more entertaining on a raked stage.

Updated On: 8/14/04 at 06:09 AM

[Broadway Matt]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 6:14am

haha excellent! how about a raked, revolving stage flooded with water like the Grand Canal scene in Nine.

[Stexer1974]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 6:38am

The U.K. Tour has not started yet. It is suppose to kick off the first part of November. The cast will be starting skate school within the next two weeks before they even start to rehearse the show itself.

The New Starlight Express album (the newest soundtrack available '93) does not have the two "newest" songs from the Tour. Bascially they are old songs but have been rewrote. "The Rap" has been updated to hip hop instead of rap and "Lotta Locomotion" is now named "Whole Lotta Locomotion" which has more of a Brittany Spears sound to it. The show itself was changed several times during the year and a half it toured. Just for example during the first two venues "Only He" was in the show but then ALW decided he wanted "Next Time You Fall in Love" put in and "Only He" taken out.

Rumor has it that the U.K. Tour is going to be a bit different than the U.S. Tour. One cant help but wonder what changes will be made before the tour actually starts and then during the course of the tour. To find out more info about StEx when it was at the Apollo Vic in London and also in Bochum where it is still playing everyday visit http://www.beeptwo.com/pearls/mainframe.html and for info on the recent U.S. Tour visit
http://www.starlightexpress.us/ both sites will try to cover the U.K. Tour as it progresses.

The 3D effects help to lessen the fact that the races are not done live as they were in past productions although I would have liked to have experienced that part of the show. Updated On: 8/14/04 at 06:38 AM

[bronxboundexpress]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 12:50pm

Broadway Matt, have you heard the pop single of THERES ME from the 1987 studio recording. It sounds really 80s and its awsome.

[BWayBoy88]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 1:07pm

I dont really know this show. Can someone tell me what it is about?

[bronxboundexpress]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 2:26pm

There's not much to the story. It's kind of like CATS. The setting is a little boy's train set and they're having a race to find out which is the fastest train: steam, deisel, or electricity. There's a little underdog-gets-girl love story in there too but basically it's a huge show where the actors are on roller skates playing the trains and sake around the enitre thetare. It's a big fun spectacle and has a bunch of pop/rock songs by Andrew Lloyd Webber. It's the biggest show that's ever been done as far as budget and size and is only worth seeing as a resident production whichc is why it's so rarely produced. The Londond production ran for about 20 years and is the second longest running show in West End history.

[Broadway Matt]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 2:38pm

I love the recording of "There's Me" on the 1987 CD! I forget who sings it but it's probably the only track I listen to off that particular album. It used to get stuck in my head for weeks at a time.

[bronxboundexpress]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 4:18pm

I love evry version of the songs on that cd. It doesn't sound like show music there. It's like an 80s album that anyone could enjoy regardless of their interest in theatre. I think that's what they were trying to do. El DeBrage's version of the title song is my favorite. He sounds like Michael Jackson almost!

[AnothaPartofMe]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 9:35pm

I saw it in Vegas... on rollerblades. Totally cool.

[marlomanners]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 10:08pm

I saw it in Atlanta last year. What a joke. I was glad we got half-price tickets. At intermission I heard someone say "You mean we have to sit through another hour of this?"

[MyNameInLights]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 10:11pm

But I love this show!!

[rockfenris2005]

Posted: 8/14/04 at 11:35pm

Just thinking about this musical makes me want to vomit

[bronxboundexpress]

Posted: 8/15/04 at 2:04am

marlomanners, you have not seen the real show so don't complain about what you havn't seen. There are two shows in the world where national tours can't even be considered the real thing. I'm talking about STARLIGHT EXPRESS and CATS. Updated On: 8/15/04 at 02:04 AM

[brdwaybabe052]

Posted: 8/15/04 at 2:19am

I saw StEx in Vegas and it was awesome.
Props to Bronx for defending this show.

[Broadway Matt]

Posted: 8/15/04 at 2:32am

does anyone know what the lip-sync situation in vegas was? i was too far from the stage to tell but i've heard from a lot of people that almost all of the vegas show was lip-synced to pre-recorded music due to the extra fancy skating. while a few I've talked to say they faked it more than in other productions but it still was mostly live. anyone have any info?

Posted: 8/15/04 at 2:38am

BroadwayMatt - I saw the Vegas production a couple of times. Most of the singing when they were skating was recorded because they skated all around the audience and couldn't get adequate mic coverage. When the performers were stationary (like the FABULOUS gospel number toward the end,) it was done live. I loved it as a Vegas show, but could never really imagine it in a legitimate theatre setting.

[Stexer1974]

Posted: 8/15/04 at 8:45am

As you can tell StEx is my all time favorite musical. Yes, its not deep on plot but if you just watch the show for what it is you can enjoy it. Dont go in trying to pick it apart. I saw the tour recently in the U.S. 3 times and enjoyed it each time. The touring version brings the show to people just like me that would have never had the chance to see it. Yes, its not as good as the productions on Broadway, or in Vegas, or at the Apollo Vic in London but its better than nothing for those of us that were not old enough to see it on Broadway or in Vegas and could not afford to see it in London or Bochum.

The recent tour was sung live. The cast now have head mics so the problem of mobility is not an issue as it was say 10 years ago. I am friends with several of the recent U.S.touring cast including the actor who had the principal role of Rusty on the U.S. Tour. He would tell me how out of breath he would be after singing "Crazy" and that it was the most difficult part of the show for him because of all the skating techniques required of him while singing the song. You could also hear some of the others a bit winded while singing also...but thats to be expected after skating, singing, and dancing at the same time for 90 minutes. I know I sure couldnt do it. The actors and actresses that take on StEx have more gumption than I ever will.