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Post by Deleted on Aug 11, 2018 11:52:43 GMT
It looks like this has extended by another week as well as having a slight price hike for top price tickets (only £1 or £2 but still). Slightly annoyed by the extension as I have pestered my boyfriend for MONTHS to book for the last performance on the 15th as its my Birthday, but good for the production that its extended though. Clearly the reviews are doing them some good! You don't want to go to a last performance at this theatre anyway, you need a couple of weeks leeway in case you get rained off and need to reschedule.  |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 11, 2018 13:33:36 GMT
It looks like this has extended by another week as well as having a slight price hike for top price tickets (only £1 or £2 but still). Slightly annoyed by the extension as I have pestered my boyfriend for MONTHS to book for the last performance on the 15th as its my Birthday, but good for the production that its extended though. Clearly the reviews are doing them some good! You don't want to go to a last performance at this theatre anyway, you need a couple of weeks leeway in case you get rained off and need to reschedule. That is true i like you way of thinking! |
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Post by waybeyondblue on Aug 12, 2018 7:34:08 GMT
Quite enjoyed this yesterday afternoon. Charges along and most of the lyric humour lands. The chorus were great.
Things I would change -
Audrey II - I like the animatronic plant version. I’d also like a singer who sounded more like Levi Stubbs.
Mushnik - get an actor who can sing & act, this one wasn’t even in the ITV class of cod yiddish
Orin - really busted. No presence and pretty much everything delivered in the same flat version
Set - waste of space around the central shop theme and I’ve still no idea why pushing shopping trollies around filled with rubbish sacks and model skyscrapers is anything but the work of a deranged mind.
i’m still In two minds about Jemima - at times you felt she was holding back and there wasn’t the belting I was excepting. This isn’t helped by Seymour camping it up when a nerd is required. I suspect they’d end up somewhere that’s pink.
It’s worth a watch but I feel indulges the “need to be different” itch without understanding that you still need a cohesive show. It wasn’t broken and it certainly doesn’t need fixing.
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Post by JJShaw on Aug 13, 2018 22:23:01 GMT
thankfully it didn't rain today so we get to see the whole show, yay!
I enjoyed it, for the most part. mainly because its one of my favourite shows, I think its really well written, tight, and a good lesson in how to use your time most effectively for a show.
I liked the new physical design and idea of greyscale and adding colour throughout. Some bits and bobs were eh? but I liked the idea and most of the execution. I didn't mind the skyscrapers in the trolleys and thought it was a good way to keep the stage moving and interesting with the lack of different locations and space limitations. at first I was confused why it was a drive in sign framing the stage but they're very American skyline-ey and also as a small homage that it was a b-movie first?
it was overly choreographed and some of the direction was odd which I thought was a shame, almost as if they didn't trust the material. I liked the cast and only felt that they suffered a little from the direction and not their limitations (minus Audrey and Mushnicks weaker vocals). Vicky Vox was wonderful and i thought it was really good interpretation breaking out of the classic mould.
I thought the addition of Mean Green Mother as an encore was really good and certainly made everyone leave on an energised high!
Overall a good production trying to do lots of new things and break out of the classic traditional way of the show, some worked some didn't. Id give it 3.5*
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Post by JJShaw on Aug 14, 2018 8:31:27 GMT
thankfully it didn't rain today so we get to see the whole show, yay! I enjoyed it, for the most part. mainly because its one of my favourite shows, I think its really well written, tight, and a good lesson in how to use your time most effectively for a show. I liked the new physical design and idea of greyscale and adding colour throughout. Some bits and bobs were eh? but I liked the idea and most of the execution. I didn't mind the skyscrapers in the trolleys and thought it was a good way to keep the stage moving and interesting with the lack of different locations and space limitations. at first I was confused why it was a drive in sign framing the stage but they're very American skyline-ey and also as a small homage that it was a b-movie first? it was overly choreographed and some of the direction was odd which I thought was a shame, almost as if they didn't trust the material. I liked the cast and only felt that they suffered a little from the direction and not their limitations (minus Audrey and Mushnicks weaker vocals). Vicky Vox was wonderful and i thought it was really good interpretation breaking out of the classic mould. I thought the addition of Mean Green Mother as an encore was really good and certainly made everyone leave on an energised high! Overall a good production trying to do lots of new things and break out of the classic traditional way of the show, some worked some didn't. Id give it 3.5* also sorry forgot to add the band sounded incredible!!! and the sound design was so good, very unexpected for an outdoor venue but they really were wonderful! |
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Post by bramble on Aug 14, 2018 11:23:34 GMT
What a disappointment. After On The Town was really looking forward to this.Found it overblown and underacted.Poorly directed.Very difficult to hear the lyrics at times.Band overpowering. Energetic cast.Strange set of shopping trolleys with skyscrapers being pushed around endlessly even during Somewhere thats Green.Really couldn't hear Audrey 2.Didnt make sense to have it played in drag and largely inaudible.I thought it was over choreographed. Not for me but I must admit (apart from the couple next to me who didn't come back for act Two)a lot of the audience were enjoying themselves.When it ended in a shower of latex balls the thought did cross my mind that it was just a load of balls.
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Post by distantcousin on Aug 14, 2018 16:43:59 GMT
So, to get this clarified. Are they using a puppet in the production for Audrey II or is the actor playing it in human form?
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Post by waybeyondblue on Aug 14, 2018 16:54:57 GMT
So, to get this clarified. Are they using a puppet in the production for Audrey II or is the actor playing it in human form? Yes and yes - at different points. I trust you are now clarified or at least well rendered. |
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Post by distantcousin on Aug 14, 2018 18:13:10 GMT
So, to get this clarified. Are they using a puppet in the production for Audrey II or is the actor playing it in human form? Yes and yes - at different points. I trust you are now clarified or at least well rendered. What a relief! Thank you! I'll be interested to see how and if that is gonna work... (for me, at least) |
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Post by Marcus on Aug 15, 2018 7:56:08 GMT
I saw this last night and loved it.
It’s a ridiculous and camp musical - that’s how it should be. I thought the vocals were great, Jemima’s not as strong but worked for the character. Vicky Vox as the plant I adored, it adds such a new dimension to the role and makes it more interesting to watch.
The shopping trolley skyscrapers weren’t amazing but I didn’t hate them.
Matt Willis was serviceable, his vocals were fine for the role and his Act II roles were funny.
Some of the vocals were slightly drowned out but it didn’t spoil my enjoyment. Thought everyone onstage was giving so much energy and joy to the piece.
Always love the Regents Open Air, creative and imaginative!b
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Post by terrylondon79 on Aug 17, 2018 18:39:17 GMT
I rink it's the first time i seen then sell the grass verges in years! People sat on both sides of the stage tonight...
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Post by stageyninja83 on Aug 17, 2018 18:51:36 GMT
I rink it's the first time i seen then sell the grass verges in years! People sat on both sides of the stage tonight... They definitely sold them for JCS last year as there were 3 nuns sat there the night I went. I remember because I thought it was an odd show for nuns to want to see! |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 17, 2018 20:03:22 GMT
I haven’t really liked a musical here
Since the days of Hello Dolly
And Crazy For You
They were amazing
This is awful
Truly truly dreadful
I am talking
Below nursery school level
I don’t like the atmosphere of the Open Air
Or the people who attend
There are huge queues
And I don’t understand the concept
To pay £65 to sit outside
On hard garden seating
With concrete flooring
I didn’t even make it to the interval
People who attend seem to have
Rock bottom standards
And treat it like an amazing event of sophistication
Just because it’s outside
For me the whole experience stinks of the crappy
I tell you what
Glyndebourne
It ain’t
Again £50-£65
Pay £75 and see Tina
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Post by Stephen on Aug 17, 2018 20:43:36 GMT
Well no, it isn't like Glyndebourne, because this isn't an opera venue...?
Below nursery level? The lack of intelligent thought here is a little bit annoying!
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Post by steve10086 on Aug 17, 2018 21:48:49 GMT
I haven’t really liked a musical here Since the days of Hello Dolly And Crazy For You They were amazing This is awful Truly truly dreadful I am talking Below nursery school level I don’t like the atmosphere of the Open Air Or the people who attend There are huge queues And I don’t understand the concept To pay £65 to sit outside On hard garden seating With concrete flooring I didn’t even make it to the interval People who attend seem to have Rock bottom standards And treat it like an amazing event of sophistication Just because it’s outside For me the whole experience stinks of the crappy I tell you what Glyndebourne It ain’t Again £50-£65 Pay £75 and see Tina Woohoo! Parsnip hates it! I’m gonna love it  |
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Post by singularsensation10 on Aug 18, 2018 8:49:41 GMT
I haven’t really liked a musical here Since the days of Hello Dolly And Crazy For You They were amazing This is awful Truly truly dreadful I am talking Below nursery school level I don’t like the atmosphere of the Open Air Or the people who attend There are huge queues And I don’t understand the concept To pay £65 to sit outside On hard garden seating With concrete flooring I didn’t even make it to the interval People who attend seem to have Rock bottom standards And treat it like an amazing event of sophistication Just because it’s outside For me the whole experience stinks of the crappy I tell you what Glyndebourne It ain’t Again £50-£65 Pay £75 and see Tina I think some context wouldn’t go a miss here. Hello Dolly and Crazy For You are completely different shows to Little Shop. Little Shop is not at all serious - un-subtle, over the top, loud and crass in its nature. I love the show, and loved this production - did I think it was perfect? No - the sound design (even though someone above said it was good?) was terrible, ‘let’s run everything through one speaker and turn it up really loud’ does not constitute as good sound design. I thought the set was a little flimsy and it wasn’t overly well acted on the whole. BUT as far as a night out at the theatre goes, it was fun and the audience loved it (even the lady two rows ahead doing her knitting). The cast had heaps of energy and the three street urchin girls were stand out. The production overcomes the challenges of an open air theatre really well. Don’t go expecting Glyndebourne and you won’t be disappointed. |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 18, 2018 16:38:36 GMT
I haven’t really liked a musical here Since the days of Hello Dolly And Crazy For You They were amazing This is awful Truly truly dreadful I am talking Below nursery school level I don’t like the atmosphere of the Open Air Or the people who attend There are huge queues And I don’t understand the concept To pay £65 to sit outside On hard garden seating With concrete flooring I didn’t even make it to the interval People who attend seem to have Rock bottom standards And treat it like an amazing event of sophistication Just because it’s outside For me the whole experience stinks of the crappy I tell you what Glyndebourne It ain’t Again £50-£65 Pay £75 and see Tina I think some context wouldn’t go a miss here. Hello Dolly and Crazy For You are completely different shows to Little Shop. Little Shop is not at all serious - un-subtle, over the top, loud and crass in its nature. I love the show, and loved this production - did I think it was perfect? No - the sound design (even though someone above said it was good?) was terrible, ‘let’s run everything through one speaker and turn it up really loud’ does not constitute as good sound design. I thought the set was a little flimsy and it wasn’t overly well acted on the whole. BUT as far as a night out at the theatre goes, it was fun and the audience loved it (even the lady two rows ahead doing her knitting). The cast had heaps of energy and the three street urchin girls were stand out. The production overcomes the challenges of an open air theatre really well. Don’t go expecting Glyndebourne and you won’t be disappointed. I am glad you had fun But what you are really saying Is lower your standards And you will enjoy it Despite negative comments About the acting Sound and set It’s still “fun” A bit like saying I went for a meal And the starter main course and dessert were not very nice But the meal was good Again I suppose it depends how low people are willing to drop their standards in order to have “fun” |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 18, 2018 16:45:11 GMT
Also
What do comments like
“Heaps of energy”
Actually mean??
A group of toddlers running about
Also have “heaps of energy”
I do think the acceptance of things
Which are “mediocre”
And then pretending they were good
Is a scourge of modern society
And applies to food clothing jobs housing etc etc
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Post by singularsensation10 on Aug 18, 2018 17:36:39 GMT
I am glad you had fun But what you are really saying Is lower your standards And you will enjoy it Despite negative comments About the acting Sound and set It’s still “fun” A bit like saying I went for a meal And the starter main course and dessert were not very nice But the meal was good Again I suppose it depends how low people are willing to drop their standards in order to have “fun” I meant more along the lines of: if you’re used to driving a Rolls Royce, don’t be surprised if a Fiesta isn’t quite the same plush experience. This show is far from mediocre... |
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Post by squidward on Aug 18, 2018 18:16:30 GMT
I had very low expectations of this production.
I didn’t much like Matt Willis when I saw him in Wicked, thought Forbes Masson was a very strange piece of casting for Mushnik and didn’t warm to the notion of the plant being played by a drag queen ( I also found the advertising artwork really offputting).
I have to say, I was very pleasantly surprised to find all my reservations were unfounded ( except maybe the advertising artwork, wonder why it didn’t feature Vicky Vox?).
I absolutely loved this production. I saw the very first one in London with Ellen Greene and Barry James and several other versions since ( including the Menier one which I hated so much that I left at the interval), but this one was a fresh and really inventive reimagining of the original.
The design concept was great and I’m surprised to hear people complaining about the sound,because it was faultless on the night I saw it.
My opinion of Matt Willis was overturned. I thought he did a great job of Orin and various other characters in Act 2. The guy has funny bones, who knew? And he was in fine voice.
The three urchins were outstanding, Marc Antolin was adorable and Forbes Masson made a good enough fist of Mushnik. I liked Jemima Rooper’s performance ( she did a really touching rendition of ‘Somewhere That’s Green’). It’s hard to rid oneself of Ellen Greene’s definitive performance on stage and screen, but it was good to see that Jemima Rooper wasn’t just doing an impression of her, which I think many subsequent Audreys have done.
I thought the way Maria Ahberg had integrated Vicky Vox into the part of Audrey 2 was excellent. The combination of that powerhouse performance with the set design for the character worked like a charm and never got overly camp or off message.
Obviously this version didn’t work for everyone, but I thought it was really innovative and absolutely delightful. A perfect production for the Open Air setting ( particularly during Act 2 as it got dark) with a joyous finale that was a perfect
uplifting antidote to the rather dark space the real world seems to be inhabiting right now. Highly recommended- 10/10 from me.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 18, 2018 20:51:36 GMT
I am glad you had fun But what you are really saying Is lower your standards And you will enjoy it Despite negative comments About the acting Sound and set It’s still “fun” A bit like saying I went for a meal And the starter main course and dessert were not very nice But the meal was good Again I suppose it depends how low people are willing to drop their standards in order to have “fun” I meant more along the lines of: if you’re used to driving a Rolls Royce, don’t be surprised if a Fiesta isn’t quite the same plush experience. This show is far from mediocre... What is “Fiesta” ? |
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Post by waybeyondblue on Aug 19, 2018 7:44:59 GMT
I meant more along the lines of: if you’re used to driving a Rolls Royce, don’t be surprised if a Fiesta isn’t quite the same plush experience. This show is far from mediocre... What is “Fiesta” ? It’s the vehicle your batman uses to meet and bonk your partner in whilst you are busy attending the first half of every new show. Wipe clean seats if you get the right model. |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 19, 2018 11:07:57 GMT
It’s the vehicle your batman uses to meet and bonk your partner in whilst you are busy attending the first half of every new show. Wipe clean seats if you get the right model. Now one couldn't possibly be expected to know how the common people get from a to be could one? I mean one is barely over the fact that they're allowed to attend the theatre (rather than racing whippets or whatever it is the common man does...) |
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Post by distantcousin on Aug 22, 2018 7:23:17 GMT
In a nutshell. Loved the piece, hated the production design.
I've only ever seen small scale amateur production of it before (think Village Hall level) and I enjoyed that just as much as last night's which I thought looked cheap for a London/Regent's Park show.
3.5 out of 5.
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Post by distantcousin on Aug 22, 2018 7:27:01 GMT
Saw it last night and overall I enjoyed it. The vocals were very strong and the music sounded great. The cast were in general great with the guy playing the dentist being the weakest link imho. His number was so boring and terribly choreographed that it was almost embarrassing. They should really rethink that number before opening night. Fortunately the rest of the musical numbers were generally very good. The set looked ok to start with, although it was pretty much a copy of the one they used for Ragtime a few years ago. Unfortunately once the action started and the homeless people start moving around the supermarket carts containing big skyscrapers, one couldn't help but wondering 'what are they thinking?'. It looked really awful. The whole set became the Open Air Ragtime meets the recent National's Macbeth, very weird. And the strange lightning design didn't help either. The costumes looked in general very amateurish, really badly designed with very few exceptions, only the outfits for Audrey and the three narrator girls looked fine. And finally Audrey II. The plant's design is awful, the first time you see it, it looks like a badly designed children's toy. The drag queen was good, but if you are not familiar with the story, like some children in the area where I was, you might find confusing why a draft queen comes out of the plant and sings. It's not made clear to start with that she's actually the plant. Having said that she was quite funny, looked and sounded la bit like Divine which in my book is a good thing. It was enjoyable overall but it could have been so much better in the right hands.
I agree, Vicky Vox needed to have more plant aspects to her costume. It was too much of an abstract interpretation (Audrey II suddenly in human form) that didn't match the production as a whole.
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