716 posts
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Post by theatre-turtle on Oct 12, 2016 18:57:25 GMT
Here tonight thanks to boybooshka 😀
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Post by Mr Wallacio on Oct 12, 2016 21:04:18 GMT
Day seats £15 at all performances, they tweeted. Ah, but a £5 reduction on the 'see nothing' front row, or something with a bit more of a view. I will hopefully pop by when I'm in London with a free slot before it closes and catch the show. |
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Post by Deleted on Oct 12, 2016 21:17:14 GMT
Day seats £15 at all performances, they tweeted. Having sat in the second row, I was pleased it was only 9 minutes or my neck would of given out. If they are sellingthe front row as dayseats, honestly brace yourself for the front row ahesd of entering the theatre, it is really damn high, mainly because of the addition of more staging to accomodate the use of the revolve built inti the stage. You can see very clearly the usual black staging with the new part of the new part of the stage built on top on white and how much of a difference it makes. |
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716 posts
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Post by theatre-turtle on Oct 12, 2016 21:30:40 GMT
I thought it was just OK. The score did nothing for me, and the songs just blended into one generic mid-tempo rock song. The set was a little too minimalist I think and there were several parts (e.g. where Victoria HB was meant to be the child etc. ) totally took me out of the action. I don't think the book effectively fleshed out the characters in order for us to sympathise with them. The ending 'twist' was not shocking at all - you could tell from the lack of audience reaction.
The cast was the highlight, and it reminded me how great Kerry's voice is. VHB was also excellent - I think she was the strongest in her role. Ramin in leather trousers was rather nice too, and the view I had was VERY good. I didn't feel any chemistry between the leads at all though, and the 'sex' scenes were tragically lacking in passion. He's a bit shorter than I remember him to be.
There were parts where I couldn't help but think, wouldn't it be nice if Kerry suddenly burst into Defying Gravity or I Dreamed a Dream instead of this dreary 3 chord rock song.
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716 posts
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Post by theatre-turtle on Oct 12, 2016 21:48:34 GMT
Come to think of it, an easy way they could improve the show would be to introduce 'Defying Gravity' and 'I Dreamed a Dream' and cut out most of the rest of the 'songs'.
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4,970 posts
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Post by Phantom of London on Oct 13, 2016 13:10:37 GMT
I saw this yesterday evening, the theatre was half empty, I had a £25 seat behind a pillar in the stalls, the view from there is very good, however front of house staff upgraded me ***sigh***.
Victoria Hamilton Barritt was amazing in this.
Because of the subdued lighting, I had difficulties in telling Ramin Karimloo and Norman Bowman apart, but did manage eventually, they look alike.
This is a show you will either love or hate, I was ambivalent towards it.
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4,369 posts
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Post by Michael on Oct 13, 2016 13:16:15 GMT
This is a show you will either love or hate, I was ambivalent towards it. So actually, you either love it, hate it, or be ambivalent about it? |
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Post by welsh_tenor on Oct 13, 2016 14:17:21 GMT
Seeing this Saturday - looking forward to loving it, hating it or being ambivalent to it!
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Post by welsh_tenor on Oct 16, 2016 17:42:34 GMT
Went into this with an open mind as I really knew nothing about it and I loved it. .
Quirky and edgy, not the usual thing I would go to see but being a populist and with Ms Ellis in a lead role I booked tickets.
The music is great and whilst I can't sing you any of the songs now, I loved how each of the leads had a slightly different theme. The themes all linked together and it was cleverly done.
I enjoyed all the performances especially Victoria H/B as the narrator, a slight raspiness/rock chick sound to her voice really suited the role. My only criticism was actually Kerry Ellis, where through no fault of her own I kept seeing "Kerry Ellis" and not the character she was playing. Don't get me wrong, I don't know her and I've only ever seen her in Wicked, but I struggled to connect with the naughty side and kept thinking she was a bit too "nice" for the role. I would go back and see Natalie McQueen if I lived closer as I think Natalie will portray the rock chick/naughtiness side of Sara better than Kerry. The male leads were so contrasting in their roles and really played the bad boy versus family man well - Ramin has a great set of pecks btw!
But me and the other half enjoyed it and it's worth seeing if you can - it's only 90 minutes after all.
The theatre itself though... what a hovel!
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1,081 posts
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Post by andrew on Oct 16, 2016 23:26:35 GMT
The theatre itself though... what a hovel! Is it the underwhelming cafe-cum-foyer, the thumping from the adjoining bar, the tiny disgusting toilets, the dank decoration of the auditorium or the seats not replaced since the 40s you're referring to? Where's Delfont Mackintosh when you need them? |
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225 posts
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Post by madsonmelo on Oct 17, 2016 2:48:39 GMT
I'm still torn in what seat to buy, I really wanna see it because of Ramin, but it doesn't seems worth to pay £50 to see him this close lol god help me
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Post by Deleted on Oct 17, 2016 5:34:39 GMT
I'm still torn in what seat to buy, I really wanna see it because of Ramin, but it doesn't seems worth to pay £50 to see him this close lol god help me Based on people's comments about the theatre, it seems like you could actually buy a seat. |
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Post by chrismis on Oct 17, 2016 10:55:24 GMT
I'm still torn in what seat to buy, I really wanna see it because of Ramin, but it doesn't seems worth to pay £50 to see him this close lol god help me I sat in Slips seat L8,having chosen to move from the front row. Had an great view. So glad I moved as a lot of action takes place on the floor! Seats L9 or L10 or the equivalent on the opposite side would be even better as the lighting bar was slightly in the way. They are directly above the 3rd or 4th row in the stalls and you only miss a tiny corner of the stage. I paid £25. Hope this helps. |
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Post by QueerTheatre on Oct 17, 2016 11:53:30 GMT
I went to the friday matinee and was torn. The performers were all great (if a little too 'MT' for my taste) and i've loved the score for years, but the production is just do boring. It feels like an a level piece or something with the awful projections and repetitive, stale staging.
The thing about the original productiont hat brought it to life was the energy, the excitement and the danger.... but the only thing i was in danger of doing was nodding off!
A waste of a great score and cast.
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4,361 posts
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Post by shady23 on Oct 17, 2016 12:13:07 GMT
I would have to say I agree with you.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 17, 2016 14:09:14 GMT
I enjoyed all the performances especially Victoria H/B as the narrator, a slight raspiness/rock chick sound to her voice really suited the role. My only criticism was actually Kerry Ellis, where through no fault of her own I kept seeing "Kerry Ellis" and not the character she was playing. Don't get me wrong, I don't know her and I've only ever seen her in Wicked, but I struggled to connect with the naughty side and kept thinking she was a bit too "nice" for the role. I would go back and see Natalie McQueen if I lived closer as I think Natalie will portray the rock chick/naughtiness side of Sara better than Kerry. The male leads were so contrasting in their roles and really played the bad boy versus family man well - Ramin has a great set of pecks btw! Kerry Ellis in this was about as naughty as a miniature dachshund chewing on a slipper. |
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219 posts
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Post by PalelyLaura on Oct 18, 2016 8:54:41 GMT
Saw this last night as part of that cheap lastminute.com deal. I was in the back row of the stalls, but the theatre is so small I had a great view, all I missed was the top of some of the projections, which I don't have a problem with at all (how creepy were they? Why did they think it was a good idea to project a massive child's head onto the back of the stage?).
I sort-of-enjoyed this. I liked the music but it could have been better - I liked the rock style but the songs weren't different enough from one another. I loved Ramin, obviously, and I was impressed with Kerry Ellis too (this is the first thing I've ever seen her in). Victoria Hamilton-Barritt was amazing, but I wasn't that impressed with Norman Bowman. I didn't think his voice was very good, though his acting was fine.
I agree that the characters weren't really fleshed out enough for us to care about them. In particular I didn't see what was so "bad" about Tom that he was labelled the "bad boy". I mean, yes he broke Sara's heart, but does that make him "bad"? Really?
I also spent a lot of time wondering what Sara was supposed to do for a living. Okay, she was a housewife and mother with Michael, but what did she do when she was with Tom the first time around? How did she pay her rent? Having a job or a subject of study might have made her a more rounded character...
I didn't think there was much chemistry between the leads, but I put that down to the heavily choreographed movement. I liked the ending, but I thought it ended way too abruptly.
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Post by welsh_tenor on Oct 18, 2016 10:19:09 GMT
Did anyone else have zero applause the whole way through the show too?!
When I saw it Saturday night the only applause came at the curtain call along with a lot of standing ovations!
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Post by Deleted on Oct 18, 2016 15:12:25 GMT
Did anyone else have zero applause the whole way through the show too?! When I saw it Saturday night the only applause came at the curtain call along with a lot of standing ovations! At the opening night, there was no applause unti, the end which was a full house standing ovation and loud cheers. There was gasps and the odd sniffle during the show though from audience membeŕs though. But I personally thought it worked tonot have applause during the show, as the songs all flow into one another anyway.  |
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Post by Deleted on Oct 18, 2016 18:03:45 GMT
We had a bit of a clap after the first song ended but when the audience realised that the cast moved straight into the next song with nary a breath, that soon put pay to the applause involvement until the end. There were whoops and cheers and standing ovations for a bit as far as I could tell from Ramin's dressing room. Then he came in and started shouting and calling the police so I couldn't hear a thing after that.
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225 posts
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Post by madsonmelo on Oct 19, 2016 4:32:59 GMT
Does anyone knows if Ramin is doing the matinees?
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Post by Deleted on Oct 19, 2016 6:06:46 GMT
Does anyone knows if Ramin is doing the matinees? I believe Ramin does all performances unless he's ill |
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21 posts
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Post by sushisamba on Oct 20, 2016 10:47:14 GMT
Undecided about this one. My tickets were comp'd and I had a great seat but frankly found it all a bit pointless. There were some nice moments in the score (although a lot of it is does all sounds the same) and the performances were good and committed, but there's no real substance to it ultimately. The actors deserve better material!
Arts theatre needs a complete overhaul too.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 20, 2016 12:08:54 GMT
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225 posts
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Post by madsonmelo on Oct 20, 2016 13:50:06 GMT
There's a sale on amazon, I just bought a ticket for 40% less than the original price.
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