Post by horton on Mar 17, 2016 8:38:02 GMT
Popped this in the wrong thread...
Caught up with the tour at Plymouth last night. It was quite a long train journey to get there but the good news is: It's in pretty good shape!
The show is still probably the best British musical of all time- sure Phantom is lush and Les Mis is epic- but Billy Elliot is intensely moving and profound in its portrayal of 1980s politics and the decline of a community and industry. Plus it's bloody entertaining!
This tour is a little scaled down- a slightly smaller cast and Billy's bedroom rolls in from the wings rather than coming through the floor, but there's plenty of money on stage!
The cast work hard- Annette McLaughlin is more Haydn Gwynne than Ruthie Henshall whilst Martin Walsh is a very solid, sincere Dad with a great voice. Daniel Page- from the original London cast- most convincingly captures the spirit of that show as the hilarious Mr Braithwaite- and he's a big lad to be dancing as he does! But what he demonstrates is the difference between being in at the beginning like he was, and coming in new and "re-activating" roles other people made. Like musical theatre Chinese whispers, there's a lot of times when it feels like cast members are walking in other people's footsteps- Grandma is the most noticeable example: the problem is, if you haven't got a genuine really old biddy, it's just not as impressive when she bursts into wild dancing. (Same problem as Mrs Henderson- when a middle-aged woman overcomes the ravages of old age, it's just not as impressive as when a real "old girl" shows she's still "got it"- like the irreplaceable Ann Emery, or old legends like Dora Bryan). The principals are like facsimiles of memories long gone. (It's not as bad as the Wicked tour where it looks like every step, look and syllable is choreographed and performed robotically).
Sadly, the Billy I saw wasn't quite up to the quality of any of the boys I ever saw in London- I know the show only opened recently but he didn't convince as being "exceptional" as the story demands.
Other plus points include fantastic sound and a really first-rate chorus of young girls of all shapes and sizes. Overall, though, it's just a little disappointing that it doesn't quite hit the heights of the West End production- especially since the tickets are West End prices!
Caught up with the tour at Plymouth last night. It was quite a long train journey to get there but the good news is: It's in pretty good shape!
The show is still probably the best British musical of all time- sure Phantom is lush and Les Mis is epic- but Billy Elliot is intensely moving and profound in its portrayal of 1980s politics and the decline of a community and industry. Plus it's bloody entertaining!
This tour is a little scaled down- a slightly smaller cast and Billy's bedroom rolls in from the wings rather than coming through the floor, but there's plenty of money on stage!
The cast work hard- Annette McLaughlin is more Haydn Gwynne than Ruthie Henshall whilst Martin Walsh is a very solid, sincere Dad with a great voice. Daniel Page- from the original London cast- most convincingly captures the spirit of that show as the hilarious Mr Braithwaite- and he's a big lad to be dancing as he does! But what he demonstrates is the difference between being in at the beginning like he was, and coming in new and "re-activating" roles other people made. Like musical theatre Chinese whispers, there's a lot of times when it feels like cast members are walking in other people's footsteps- Grandma is the most noticeable example: the problem is, if you haven't got a genuine really old biddy, it's just not as impressive when she bursts into wild dancing. (Same problem as Mrs Henderson- when a middle-aged woman overcomes the ravages of old age, it's just not as impressive as when a real "old girl" shows she's still "got it"- like the irreplaceable Ann Emery, or old legends like Dora Bryan). The principals are like facsimiles of memories long gone. (It's not as bad as the Wicked tour where it looks like every step, look and syllable is choreographed and performed robotically).
Sadly, the Billy I saw wasn't quite up to the quality of any of the boys I ever saw in London- I know the show only opened recently but he didn't convince as being "exceptional" as the story demands.
Other plus points include fantastic sound and a really first-rate chorus of young girls of all shapes and sizes. Overall, though, it's just a little disappointing that it doesn't quite hit the heights of the West End production- especially since the tickets are West End prices!
