193 posts
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Post by demelza on Jun 2, 2024 23:00:44 GMT
This was indeed pretty glorious - Nigel Lilley’s band sounded amazing and the cast were all on top form. The cast were mostly off book and it was great to have the music really at the centre - no one was trying to over complicate the concert with interpretive dance or anything like that. Also, Why is Charlotte Wakefield not a bigger name in the industry?? Her voice seems to get better with age. Jamie Muscato was a very good Melchior and slid himself into the cast very well. There was a pretty wonderful show stopping moment in act 2 after Totally ****** where many people were on their feet. I must say the one who really took my breath away though was Jack Wolfe - the material sits so well in his voice and you can tell how much he loves the show. He made Moritz his own and I had chills during Don’t Do Sadness - he looked like a superstar. I was very fortunate to be one of a few who got a programme - £15 but for a one night only I didn’t mind too much. They sold out very quickly in the interval but saw a line of people buying after the show so don’t know how many more were available after… Will echo previous comment that it would be great to have the Almeida version available for streaming - missed it due to illness and would love to see that production too I didn't know they were selling some after! Damn, I hope they make them available to purchase online |
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Post by sophie92 on Jun 2, 2024 23:14:13 GMT
Actually quite upsetting to hear if they were indeed selling more afterwards, having spent the interval running around every level of the theatre to try and get one. I wonder if they were people claiming pre-orders, or if they were selling pre-orders that hadn’t been claimed (if the missing delivery arrived, it’s a shame they didn’t try and get that message out to the audience). I can only hope they sell any remaining online - really devastating to miss out on a programme, having been at the very first Lyric Hammersmith preview performance, among others, and it being the production that got me in to theatre-going. Kicking myself for not pre-ordering but honestly I don’t remember even seeing the option.
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193 posts
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Post by demelza on Jun 2, 2024 23:17:46 GMT
Actually quite upsetting to hear if they were indeed selling more afterwards, having spent the interval running around every level of the theatre to try and get one. I wonder if they were people claiming pre-orders, or if they were selling pre-orders that hadn’t been claimed (if the missing delivery arrived, it’s a shame they didn’t try and get that message out to the audience). I can only hope they sell any remaining online - really devastating to miss out on a programme, having been at the very first Lyric Hammersmith preview performance, among others, and it being the production that got me in to theatre-going. Kicking myself for not pre-ordering but honestly I don’t remember even seeing the option. I'm glad I'm not the only one who didn't remember seeing a preorder option for the programme when I booked! |
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Post by Afriley on Jun 3, 2024 3:36:52 GMT
This was very special - the atmosphere was electric.
The cast clearly have a lot of fondness for each other, and that was palpable. Muscato was tearing up and Evelyn made sure he was ok repeatedly (during the speeches).
The sound was almost perfect and the vocals and harmonies stunning.
Jack Wolfe was lovely to watch, very fragile and gentle as Moritz. Muscato was at times beautifully unhinged in the way he can be, raw low notes and all. The final scenes were heartbreaking.
A wonderfully special evening.
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Post by shownut on Jun 3, 2024 6:23:34 GMT
It was an absolutely thrilling evening and whetted my appetite for the the Royal Academy production next weekend.
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Post by strawberrypie on Jun 3, 2024 8:23:50 GMT
I've just about emotionally recovered from last night - what a special concert this was. It really should set the bar for all of these "one night only concerts/tributes/anniversary performances". The joy and love among the cast was obvious and they were supported by great music and lighting design. And some really wonderful staging and direction choices (glimpses of the original choreography, all the cast sharing the adult man/woman lines), having Moritz sit at the front of the stage during "Left Behind"...gorgeous).
The whole cast was amazing and in great form (geez, I would pay good money to see Jack Wolfe in a full production of this, his Moritz was absolutely heartbreaking) - I so wish they'd recorded this, I'd watch it again and again.
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Post by curiouskc on Jun 4, 2024 11:16:02 GMT
Appreciating all the love Jack Wolfe is getting. Can't wait to see him again in Next to Normal this summer and will be excited for whatever show he does next. I imagine he won't be short of offers.
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Post by sophie92 on Jun 4, 2024 12:05:47 GMT
It’s going to take me some time to process Sunday night. As previously mentioned, I was at the first preview at Lyric Hammersmith back in January 2009, and saw the show multiple times at both the Lyric and the Novello (including the final matinee, I can’t remember why we didn’t book the last show). That production is still so precious to me - it was the show that really started my theatregoing, and there was just something so special about watching a group of performers around the same age as me having the absolute time of their lives on stage. I’ve followed their careers since, and always try and see their shows where possible.
To have the majority of that original cast reunited was just so special. It made for a very emotional, truly magical evening of theatre. I started crying the second Charlotte Wakefield started singing Mama Who Bore Me, and the tears were on and off throughout. The energy of the cast during, and of the audience after, Totally F***ed was like being transported back to 2009. Hayley Gallivan and Lucy May Barker’s performance of The Dark I Know Well was just as powerful and moving as it was before. Jos Slovick’s solo as Georg in Touch Me was still a highlight.
As the only complete newbie to the cast, Jack Wolfe did an incredible job as Moritz. His portrayal was just absolutely brilliant - they absolutely nailed the casting there. Like others, I would love to see him play the role in a full production.
It was a lovely way to pay tribute to Imogen, and there were some gorgeous words from swing Mona Goodwin afterwards, sharing her own experience.
I’m so thankful to Evie Hoskins and Jack Maple for pulling the concert together, and very grateful to have been there to witness the magic once more.
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Post by fiyero on Jun 4, 2024 13:28:29 GMT
If anyone can take a photo of the page showing who is playing who and share it that would be great as I am rubbish at recognising people Is anyone able to help with this? or is there a full list anywhere (the cast board just listed everyone, not who was who) |
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Post by Steve on Jun 4, 2024 15:17:13 GMT
If anyone can take a photo of the page showing who is playing who and share it that would be great as I am rubbish at recognising people Is anyone able to help with this? or is there a full list anywhere (the cast board just listed everyone, not who was who) I didn't manage to get a programme but I can tell you the ones I recognised:- Jamie Muscato was Melchior Jack Wolfe was Moritz Charlotte Wakefield was Wendla Evelyn Hoskins was Thea/Melchior's Mum Lucy May Barker was Ilse Hayley Gallivan was Martha Richard Southgate was Hanschen Harry McEntire was Ernst Jos Slovick was Georg Edward Judge was Otto Natasha Barnes was Anna It might help, to put names to faces, to watch the Curtain Call video by the Curtain Call YouTube account (lol):- |
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Post by Steve on Jun 5, 2024 0:11:52 GMT
So many incredible stories were blended together on Sunday night, in such symbiotic ways, I was stunned pretty much the entire night:- There was the reunion of so many performers, and band members, to relive something so precious, after 15 years, with obvious signs of the wear and tear of aging, yet no trace of it in their performances, which were as exquisitely beautiful as ever; There was the swing who became a star, in Jamie Muscato, so laconic, masculine, and rebellious as Melchior. The edgy, unhinged looseness of his rebel with a cause, Jason Dean from Heathers, was infused into a Melchior that screamed "YEEEEESSSS!" with more thrilling gleeful abandon at the climax of "Totally F-cked" than we energised audience members could have hoped for; There was the 13 year old 2009 audience member, Jack Wolfe, who was inspired by that show, and after meeting and working with 2009's original Moritz, Iwan Rheon, got to play the part himself for one day, so sensitively, impulsively and boyishly, an absolute triumph. Like Miranda in "The Tempest," Wolfe's purity, expressiveness, and excitability made this Moritz one for whom every plot revelation was a "brave new world;" There was the sheer, endearing chemistry of opposites in having a Melchior so rebelliously knowingly cool ("Oh THAT kind of dream") and a Moritz so gentle, soft, sincere and sensitive ("I'm TREMBLING!), which felt funny and heartwarming in equal measure; There was the actress who became a producer, in Evelyn Hoskins, who conceived this astonishing reunion concert and made it such a success; There were the creators of the show, who initially refused the rights (lol), were talked round by Hoskins (lol), and who were in the audience to share this perfect evening; And there was the line producer of the Hammersmith production, Imogen Perrin, RIP, in whose honour this evening was held, who not only gave birth to this production but also, through her brave testimony helped save the life of Mona Goodwin, who spoke in her memory. The show itself, despite its railing against religious ignorance, is spiritual in its essence, with all its pagan purple summers and blue winds and martyrs (Wendla and Moritz) who suffer to redeem survivors (Melchior etc). When you add all the above (additionally redemptive rites of passage) stories into the mix, and throw in such pristine pure voices as those of Charlotte Wakefield and Jos Slovick, and such a generally pin drop silent respectful audience, the sense of occasion and beauty just became overwhelming. The absence of 3 stars of the original production ironically enhanced the night by relieving the event of a sense of stifling nostalgia, as old stories making way for new stories is very much what "Spring Awakening" is all about anyway. Having such a boyish, alive, sensitive Moritz, as Jack Wolfe, and such a wild and wise Melchior, filled the evening with a pervasive and refreshing sense of renewal. I also particularly loved how the relationship of Richard Southgate's sly witty super-sarcastic laid-back Hanschen and Harry McEntire's super-soft squidgy Ernst mirrored almost exactly the contrast of extremes between Jamie Muscato and Jack Wolfe. And their "Word of your Body (reprise)" struck me as the most caressingly exquisitely sensitive song of the evening. And how perfect was the staging of "Left Behind" to see Jack Wolfe, like his lurking ghost of a Gabe in "Next to Normal," lingering silently at the feet of the singers. All in all, this show was unmissable for me to the tune of 5 stars.  |
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Post by danb on Jun 5, 2024 5:59:42 GMT
Yep…what Steve said.
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Post by Afriley on Jun 5, 2024 6:39:57 GMT
Couldn’t have said it more perfectly! I’ve only just about gotten over the emotions… Also kudos to the respectful and well-organised stage door; full of love and gratitude. The cast literally didn’t want to leave and go to their party and were buzzing with adrenaline. I won’t forget this evening. |
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Post by Sean on Jun 5, 2024 14:33:00 GMT
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Post by sophie92 on Jun 5, 2024 17:11:29 GMT
Feeling the need to post again, because I did not mention Jamie Muscato in my previous post - very out of character for me! That is because I still simply don’t have the words. My heart was/is so happy that I finally got to see him play Melchior. It really was a dream come true, and Jamie’s performance was every bit as incredible as I had imagined it would be.
Steve’s post is an excellent recount of what really was a wonderful night.
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