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Post by Mark on Aug 29, 2024 10:54:26 GMT
Ended up booking row P stalls for tomorrow night instead of the front row.
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Post by greatauntedna on Aug 29, 2024 12:04:30 GMT
They're going to cut 15 minutes out of it and it'll be amazing and run for two and a half years! it needs a lot more work than that! I don’t know, I think it’s deliberately shapeless and baggy! I was sat in the centre of the second row and it was terrific! |
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Post by greatauntedna on Aug 29, 2024 12:07:20 GMT
it needs a lot more work than that! Fascinated - why two and a half years?🤔 It’s not going to be the next Six but it has legs. |
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Post by fiyerorocher on Aug 29, 2024 13:05:46 GMT
it needs a lot more work than that! I don’t know, I think it’s deliberately shapeless and baggy! I was sat in the centre of the second row and it was terrific! It's lazy. Six fans might let them get away with that, but I doubt reviewers and anyone coming to it who isn't already a fan will be impressed. The pacing is off, half the jokes don't seem to land, and they simultaneously insult the audience and half the West End. Too much of it feels like a mistake. There are a couple of moments that work really well, but I think that's largely down to the actors. If this lasts long enough to see a cast change, it risks being unbearable if they lose Jo and Noah. |
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Post by sophie92 on Aug 31, 2024 17:14:30 GMT
I’ve gone 3 stars - it’s not anything groundbreaking but I definitely enjoyed it more than other posters have, and more than I expected to from what I’d read in the lead up (I hadn’t listened to or watched any performances or anything that had been released for promo). I thought Jo, Leesa and Noah gave great performances - Jo especially is absolutely fantastic.
The ensemble playing furniture etc was the one thing I really didn’t like - just too cringey and amateur for me.
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Post by oxfordsimon on Aug 31, 2024 18:01:52 GMT
I wonder whether this might, in fact, be a chamber pieces with a cast of 4 or 5 (or indeed 6...) that has been overextended for whatever reason.
Maybe they should just stick to writing shows for Six performers!
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Post by colelarson on Aug 31, 2024 20:01:49 GMT
Well......that was different. I think it would have worked better somewhere like Southwark Playhouse or a smaller venue like other posters have said.
It feels like a lot of work is still needed and cuts need to be made. I didn't really feel for the characters I just thought "Why Are They So Whiny!" Maybe it's aimed at younger people than me!
The first part was okay,apart from the weird bee song then the 2nd act dragged! Lots of talent on stage but I feel they are wasted in this show.
Six I have seen many times WAISS....once was enough.
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1,475 posts
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Post by Steve on Aug 31, 2024 22:32:20 GMT
Saw this tonight completely cold (I haven't even read most of this thread) and LOVED alot of it (the songs, the comedy, the performances) but felt the story a little undeveloped and the framing device misjudged. I rate it 3 and a half stars, and voted 3 stars in the poll. Some spoilers follow. . . The songs are SO catchy and so fun. I was bopping along without any prior exposure to any of them. I saw some audience members singing the songs as I left, so they are already catching on. I know that by the third listen to these songs, I'd probably be singing them too lol. Further, the main characters are SO endearing, and the cast who embody them are part and parcel of that. You could put Jo Foster's mischievous performative Oliver and Leesa Tulley's sweet silly Nancy into any buddy comedy storyline and you'd love them together. They would run riot in a sequel to Kathy and Stella, as rival crime podcasters, for example. Unfortunately, the story told here is never sure of whether it wants to be a story (when the fluctuating friendship dynamic between the principals is foregrounded, it's gripping) or simply an anthology of generic love problems. But the worst flaw of the piece is the framing device, which has the two as writers creating a West End musical. Just imagine any buddy comedy duo you love: Romy and Michelle, Bill and Ted, Laurel and Hardy, etc, etc, and now imagine I tell you that the framing device is that Romy and Michelle, etc, are actually millionaire writers with a Hollywood contract to write and star in their own show. . . suddenly, you are torn: do I hate and resent their mega-success or do I love and empathise with all their comic human foibles? Are these foibles even believable in the context of mega-success? Do I buy these klutzy loveable personas knowing these characters actually have a contract to fill the Garrick? For me, this framing device is an alienating own goal. That said, the Oliver and Nancy elements of the framing device are persistently funny and do work. Luckily, the two leads are so silly and so funny and so loveable together that I soon forgot the framing device and I resented it's return at the end lol. The depth to the piece comes from the outsider they/them queer status of Jo Foster's Oliver, which crept up on me in the second half and had me welling up. So, for the three quarters of the running time that I was thoroughly entertained, I'd give this 3 and a half stars, held back by the framing device and the refusal to commit wholeheartedly to a full storyline for these ultra-endearing characters.  PS: The show ended at 10:15pm tonight. |
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Post by max on Aug 31, 2024 23:44:33 GMT
Steve said: "But the worst flaw of the piece is the framing device, which has the two as writers creating a West End musical. Just imagine any buddy comedy duo you love: Romy and Michelle, Bill and Ted, Laurel and Hardy, etc, etc, and now imagine I tell you that the framing device is that Romy and Michelle, etc, are actually millionaire writers with a Hollywood contract to write and star in their own show. . . suddenly, you are torn: do I hate and resent their mega-success or do I love and empathise with all their comic human foibles?" This reminds me of why I couldn't stand the film 'La La Land' - at the end of which we're supposed to sympathise with two successful people who missed the chance to be 'differently successful' together. I mean, where was their reward for saving the purity of Jazz from...the only significant Black character in the film? 😉 Life just isn't fair. For WAISS, in this current phase of musicals, where being in the club/gang is a big part of the audience experience , I guess many will just think of Toby & Lucy as their home team. 'Your success is my success'. Others may struggle to warm to the framing device.
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Post by paddy72 on Sept 1, 2024 18:50:15 GMT
Saw this today and loved it. It’s tuneful, witty, engaging, touching and a proper first class original musical comedy. It’s fresh and vibrant. If you are expecting another Six then you will be mistaken. It’s youthful and original but more old school in so much as it has a well acted book with memorable songs that advance the story and at least two/three numbers that ‘stop the show’ in a wonderful way. It will of course be easy to pick it all apart for being narcissistic, out of touch, gen z shallow (which they are certainly not nor is this show) and in need of a trim. And some will find the set role playing by the supporting cast as misguided. But it’s the brightest new musical I’ve see. Certainly the best by comparison to Broadway or in the current West End. Not least as it’s funny and not earnest.
The audience was also interesting. The majority, when I went, were women in parties and older that you’ll find at Six. Arriving they were raucous and, I feared, were expecting something more like Six or a jukebox musical. However because right from the get go you are hearing new songs (great orchestra) and a plot being set up in a very entertaining way it is clear that you are being asked to invest your time and concentration and that nothing coming is going to be so predictable. Besides which, with such a winning young cast - all truly talented performers at the top of their game - the audience never stood a chance but to be swept along by it all.
I hope it enjoys a long and successful run and is seen by more and more audiences. I think it will be remembered as a show that secures the reputation of the writers beyond being one hit wonders. My only negative is that it deserves to be in a better theatre than the poor old Garrick. A lick of paint can’t cover up how unsuitable this building is for theatre in this day and age. The precipitous balcony looms above dark and closed off and the rumbling of Northern line trains passing below every few minutes remains ever present.
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Post by aloysius on Sept 1, 2024 23:01:54 GMT
Saw this at workshop stage in Sadler's Wells and again last night and... I'm conflicted.
In some key respects it's worse now than before. The new emo-tinged Ross and Rachel song is bad and what's more disappointing, it replaced one of the best numbers in the original version. I can't believe they would have got bad feedback about that at workshop stage, it was very well received the night I was there. There's a new early scene with a theatre agent that I'll confidently predict doesn't last til opening night. The biggest disappointment - and sorry in advance if this is harsh - but Leesa Tully did not impress me as much as the original Nancy, Christina Bennington. She seemed too straight laced, too forced, nowhere near the same chemistry with Jo Foster.
Ok, enough boomer negativity.
Jo Foster is FABULOUS. So much charisma, charm, vulnerability, comic timing, emotional range, confidence. Can see them getting to Layton Williams levels of fame in the near future. Speaking of whom, fellow Jamie alumni Noah Thomas is really strong though sadly underused. I found myself leaning forward during his moments, he's so slick and engaging. Moss & Marlow really should've written more for him.
It's overlong, sure. Messy, chaotic, infuriating... But I got the impression that's very deliberate. I've seen Gen Z do their thing on the socials - everything caked in irony, deliberately provocative and insouciant. That's how this musical comes across - daring anyone older than 27 to splutter and grump about it breaking all the rules. Sometimes you just have to say, f*** it, I'll play by your rules. I did... And so I loved it.
Having said that, why oh why haven't they cut that damn bee song?!
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Post by spaceman on Sept 2, 2024 8:59:01 GMT
Saw this last week as a 30 year old I agree with the poster above in that this has been written for gen z by millenials. It is perfectly in tune with gen z, I can see that but I really appreciated it too. My parents, in their 60s also did. We’re not the typical audience for this & snippets of the humour were perhaps lost on them but for the most part we all laughed and cried at all the right places. I think despite not being the target audience we could all relate to the surprising depth of this show, the themes of grief, identity and most resoundingly friendship are universal.
I personally love the bee song?! To me the bee represents all the topics they’re afraid of talking about which lends them nicely into act 2 where they start to finally unpick them together having conquered the bee. But maybe that’s just me…
The cast of this show are young, vibrant and exceptional. Jo and Leesa were funny, charming and poignant. It is a mammoth of a show for them both and they are handling it expertly. The ensemble were full out, funny and incredibly talented, there isn't one weak link. There are also some great musical theatre numbers in this show, Discoball was a real highlight!
The script does need tightening up & I would agree Ross & Rachel needs shorting significantly. Otherwise I’m excited to see this again after opening night, I enjoyed the silly of this show paired with the incredible amount of depth.
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Post by erik24601 on Sept 2, 2024 13:46:13 GMT
Just spotted this on the Nimax website:
Content Warning
Please note this production contains strobe, haze and a full blackout
Well a blackout is a new one for me!
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7,050 posts
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Post by Jon on Sept 2, 2024 14:05:04 GMT
I do have my doubts this will be a long runner, Six grew organically through Edinburgh and running one night a week at the Arts before a full run in 2019 whereas WAISS had one workshop and is now in the West End and the response so far seemed mixed.
It's not to say Marlow and Moss don't have talent because they clearly do but I do wonder if having the same producers involved may not have been a good thing for them for their next show. Creatives often suffer creatively when there is no one who can nix ideas and suggest new ones to improve a show.
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Post by kit66 on Sept 2, 2024 14:08:36 GMT
Just spotted this on the Nimax website: Content Warning Please note this production contains strobe, haze and a full blackout Well a blackout is a new one for me! Oh god! Not a blackout! 😱 |
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Post by max on Sept 2, 2024 17:11:50 GMT
Just spotted this on the Nimax website: Content Warning Please note this production contains strobe, haze and a full blackout Well a blackout is a new one for me! Oh god! Not a blackout! 😱 ....and it was SO sudden! Is this a thing now in musicals? - it'll be my third, after 'Oklahoma!' and 'Sunset Boulevard'. Perhaps it's parody? |
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Post by danb on Sept 2, 2024 17:26:25 GMT
Does this blackout lead into any strobed heart eating?
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Post by aloysius on Sept 2, 2024 18:36:21 GMT
I don't actually remember any strobe, haze or blackout... And I don't think I fell asleep in the middle. Maybe they've already scaled back their ambitions.
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Post by sophie92 on Sept 2, 2024 19:07:08 GMT
I don't actually remember any strobe, haze or blackout... And I don't think I fell asleep in the middle. Maybe they've already scaled back their ambitions. Yeah, I was going to say that I don’t remember a blackout from Saturday afternoon, couldn’t say for certain on the strobe or haze |
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Post by max on Sept 2, 2024 19:37:30 GMT
I don't know what this 'Bee song' is about, but if you can't stop til you get enough of bees check out The Other Palace in October!
24 October – Just Be(e)
Book, Music, Lyrics: Carlo Bosticco, Music, Arrangements: Matt Randall
"Life is hard in an industrial Hive!
Rebellious young bee Melissa can’t stand slaving away daily to make honey for the ‘Gods’."
It's part of 'Musical Bites' - lunchtime readings of new musicals.
All very zeitgeisty.
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Post by esteveyb on Sept 2, 2024 23:52:39 GMT
When is official opening night for this?
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Post by bellatheatre on Sept 3, 2024 9:46:48 GMT
This could have been a one act play
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Post by aneild on Sept 4, 2024 16:05:06 GMT
I hugely enjoyed this and found it to be anything but lazy. It has a hilarious script, a lot of heart, and a half dozen songs that I came out humming, along with some smart staging and excellent, varied choreography. 'Disco Ball' is an incredible number. It could definitely do with a trim, the Ross and Rachel song was far too long in particular, and the ending needs a tweak. The cast is fabulous; I hope this makes Jo Foster a star. I gave it four stars, but I hope it'll tighten to a five by opening; with edits, it definitely could; they've got all the material already.
If they can get people in the door, this should have broad appeal, but as many on this board seem to be demonstrating, the marketing hits a vertical narrower than the show itself. The audience was way older than I would have expected the night I was there, though, so who knows?! It's an original musical comedy that's actually funny and tuneful... I'll be back.
P.S. I also didn't notice a blackout, and the bee song is the weirdest, most delightful number.
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1,561 posts
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Post by showtoones on Sept 4, 2024 16:23:18 GMT
What day(s)do the alternates do?
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Post by jarnew on Sept 6, 2024 8:34:19 GMT
It took a bit to get going, but once it did I really didn't want it to end anymore last night. It's so much fun, the songs are all really good and the whole cast is oh so likable and talented as well.
Nice to see a new, original, traditional-style musical that isn't trying to reinvent the genre on the West End. It's good in what it does.
I will say, it is missing *something* near the end, there's like 3 ballads in a row concluding the show and none really wraps it up in a really satisfying way. I wish we got a bit more of a big finale somehow, as they call it a big fancy musical themselves right? Seems weird to try and end it small and intimate then, I don't think it fits that well.
That said, give me a cast recording please!
P.S. Guys, that Bee Song slaps, it's such a funny but also genuinely big showstopper of a first act finale lol. I wonder why everyone here hates it so much? 😭
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