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Post by robertb213 on Nov 18, 2021 13:42:41 GMT
Seeing this tonight. Loving the selectable £25 dayseats on the website!!
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2,416 posts
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Post by robertb213 on Nov 19, 2021 22:54:27 GMT
For me this was a case of a superbly talented cast elevating an average bio-musical. There's barely a story here ('they changed line-ups a lot' is pretty much the gist), I'm not sure it warranted a musical. Luckily the cast are so bloody good that it's still an enjoyable night out. All four male principals are brilliant (particularly lovely to hear Matt Henry back in a musical again), and Beverley Knight is just a powerhouse vocalist who has always given 110% every time I've seen her. She's also become a surprisingly good actress and has great timing with her line delivery.
The audience lapped it up (and sang along, so be warned), and it is brilliantly performed, but for me it lacked the narrative drive of Tina, Jersey Boys or even Beautiful.
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524 posts
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Post by callum on Nov 20, 2021 0:21:32 GMT
Three stars from me… cleverly staged and brilliantly performed but can’t overcome an extremely thin story and trite dialogue. The plot is described rather than acted (‘they’re suing you for the name of The Drifters, Faye!’, ‘you’re leaving me to go to England, Momma?’) and songs completely crowbarred in to the story even for a jukebox musical
Beverley was superb but really only gets two big solo numbers (I could be wrong)?
It will have a long life touring
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2,416 posts
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Post by robertb213 on Nov 20, 2021 1:05:46 GMT
Three stars from me… cleverly staged and brilliantly performed but can’t overcome an extremely thin story and trite dialogue. The plot is described rather than acted (‘they’re suing you for the name of The Drifters, Faye!’, ‘you’re leaving me to go to England, Momma?’) and songs completely crowbarred in to the story even for a jukebox musical Beverley was superb but really only gets two big solo numbers (I could be wrong)? It will have a long life touring Agreed on all of that. And yeah I know the focus should be on The Drifters, but when you've got Beverley Knight, you use her!! From memory she had two average solos in Act 1 before the belting Stand By Me, and then another better in Act 2 (Harlem Child?) which brought the house down. But she still could've been given more. I also thought Adam J Bernard's 'There Goes My Baby' was SUBLIME. |
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Post by saul on Nov 23, 2021 17:45:51 GMT
I'm not familiar with The Drifters, so this wasn't a show that I had any particularly strong interest in seeing, but when the final show of my six-day, nine-show binge fell through, I snagged a ticket for this, and I'm so glad that I did. Is this a GREAT jukebox show? Probably not really. The story is a bit all over the place. Because the group itself switched performers so regularly, the focus being on the manager made a lot of sense, but it made for a strange experience to essentially be watching a show where a somewhat ruthless manager is the hero. I'm sure the real Faye Treadwell was well ahead of her time and deserves heaps of praise for pulling off everything that she did, but...I don't know. It seemed like there was maybe a little more room to explore her as a more fully realized character whose actions were both good AND bad.
But! All of that aside, this is an astonishing production. The four men are extraordinary. Slipping in and out of several roles each, and rarely off stage for long, this mini-ensemble has to be one of the hardest working groups on stage. And the talent levels of each are staggering. I couldn't separate them out for individual praise--they were simply flawless. I also wasn't familiar with Beverley Knight before the show, and what a revelation. With a twang right out of the American South, she called to mind a bit of Dolly Parton in that level of incredible sweetness layered over a sneaky sharpness and fierce intelligence. And then. When she opened her mouth to sing her first song about 20 minutes into the show, my whole heart melted. Her voice is extraordinary, gliding through these songs seemingly with ease but displaying incredible technique and precision. And FEELING. Of course other commenters here think she could have more songs. With a voice like that, give her the whole catalogue and let her work her way through! I hope there is a cast recording simply because I feel like I NEED another chance to listen to her sublime take on "Stand by Me" which closes out the first act.
This isn't a perfect show, but it is just about perfectly performed, and it's staged with efficiency, speed, and clarity that makes it all seem effortless when it certainly can't be that!
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Post by anthem on Nov 26, 2021 10:17:37 GMT
Press night last night. The reviews have been disappointing and maybe unfair?
Edit: Daily Mail and Whats On Stage liked it!
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Post by hairspray57 on Nov 26, 2021 12:39:07 GMT
I’m not sure if this a type of show that sells based on critics reviews but rather word of mouth.
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5,795 posts
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Post by mrbarnaby on Nov 26, 2021 16:43:40 GMT
It’s not very good so I think the critics have been very fair. The cast and design- set, lights, costume and video are all excellent but the script is a mess.
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Post by partytentdown on Nov 29, 2021 17:56:18 GMT
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Post by partytentdown on Dec 1, 2021 12:43:02 GMT
I quite enjoyed this, as posters have mentioned, the story is a bit thin and mainly about the ever-changing lineups (I read on Wikipedia that there have been over 60 Drifters!) and, though I don't dispute she was a woman ahead of her time, I wonder if all the character depictions are a bit one sided considering the show was developed with Faye Treadway's family. But I would challenge you too find five more powerful singers in the West End!
One thing I wondered, why did they not include 'On Broadway' (despite lots of obvious shoe-horn moments where they would literally say the words 'on Broadway') or 'Up on the Roof', which are two of my favourite Drifters songs and I would imagine two of the most well known. Rights issues perhaps?
I also agree it would be nice to have maybe one more song from Ms Knight and maybe a more substantial finale.
Covid wise, everyone in the queue was asked to put on their mask (most seemed to have removed them by the time they sat down, though) but we were not asked to show our covid pass, which was disappointing considering everything in the news.
Incidentally there was some kind of ruckus somewhere behind me, with some raised voices and shushing...
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Post by david on Dec 1, 2021 23:19:07 GMT
Having been at tonight’s performance, I certainly got my money’s worth from my £20 stalls seat (P7) with a great view and the Circle overhang not causing any issues. Despite the wafer thin book, it was great to finally get to see Bev Knight. Bev was off when I watched Memphis and I didn’t get to see her in The Bodyguard. It may if taken a while to see her on stage but it was that definitely worth the wait. A stunning singer and alongside the 4 insanely talented guys as the different Drifters and other characters (the Act 2 UK tour scenes were a particular highlight with the Bruce Forsyth impression spot on) they really do lift the show backed by a stunning set, lighting, sound and costume design over the 2.5 hrs.
As jukebox musicals go, thankfully tonight’s audience weren’t too bad with only a bit of singing during Act 2. I do hope we get an OCR at some point as that cast singing those fantastic songs needs to be heard by others in the future.
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1,578 posts
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Post by anita on Dec 2, 2021 16:08:13 GMT
Booked myself a ticket for next week. Thank you partyentdown. |
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Post by anita on Dec 2, 2021 16:30:08 GMT
Booked myself a ticket for next week. Thank you partyentdown. Just discovered it will be a special bus service to get home. Rather wish I hadn't booked it now. |
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Post by TallPaul on Dec 2, 2021 17:27:42 GMT
Not a common or garden bus service, anita, but a special bus service. That's because you're such a special person. 🙂 |
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Post by anita on Dec 2, 2021 17:33:52 GMT
Not a common or garden bus service, anita , but a special bus service. That's because you're such a special person. 🙂 Thanks TallPaul. It means I'm unlikely to be home before 1am. [Husband will be p****d off.] |
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Post by showgirl on Dec 8, 2021 17:24:47 GMT
Loved today's matinee from a brilliant, bargain day seat - & an amazingly swift & simple online booking process, unlike the trauma of TodayTix.
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1,578 posts
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Post by anita on Dec 9, 2021 10:07:44 GMT
Not a common or garden bus service, anita , but a special bus service. That's because you're such a special person. 🙂 I was lucky TallPaul. I caught the last train that was running before they put the buses on. Home by 11.30. |
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5,138 posts
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Post by TallPaul on Dec 9, 2021 10:32:35 GMT
A right result, anita! Him indoors will have to find something else to be unhappy about. 😉 Did you enjoy it? |
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Post by anita on Dec 9, 2021 10:35:25 GMT
A right result, anita ! Him indoors will have to find something else to be unhappy about. 😉 Did you enjoy it? He's grumpy about everything. Yes it was great. I thoroughly recommend it. |
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Post by Mark on Dec 9, 2021 23:06:11 GMT
Extension to July! And a cast recording on the way
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1,578 posts
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Post by anita on Dec 10, 2021 13:09:43 GMT
I'll buy that.
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2,742 posts
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Post by n1david on Dec 10, 2021 14:45:15 GMT
Trouble in t'stalls:
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2,416 posts
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Post by robertb213 on Dec 10, 2021 15:18:59 GMT
Go Bev! Love her. How bad was the behaviour that it caused a show stop?! This is where we need spies 🤣
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882 posts
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Post by longinthetooth on Dec 10, 2021 15:32:37 GMT
Ah, you've copied it, thank you! Being technically challenged, I laboriously typed this out in the Bad Behaviour thread! |
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Post by forevercolours on Dec 10, 2021 15:41:50 GMT
Beware, long post ahead, but this is what I saw on a FB group (this is copied directly from there, not my own experience so I can’t elaborate further) about the incident that Beverley is referring to:
Firstly a very drunk couple in the row in front of me (middle of dress circle) who came in extremely drunk and announced to the people next to them they had been to the pub. From the start of the show they didn’t stop talking loudly or taking photos. After about half an hour I leaned forward and politely asked them to keep quiet or could they go outside to talk. They both shouted verbal abuse at me saying they could do or say what they liked and continued to talk. At the interval they obviously had been to the bar and came back with what looked like vodka and coke spilling it as they sat down. They continued to take no interest in the show.
Then about 15 minutes into the second half, people in the back row started getting up and making a noise. I thought they were leaving but suddenly there was shouting and then it escalated into a full scale brawl on the stairs - one man punched another and then either some joined in or others tried to stop. Poor ushers - one girl and one young man had to intervene and eventually the show had to be stopped. Unbelievable behaviour! Sort of thing you may have seen in a pub but certainly not in a theatre! These were not young men either - in their 60s or 70s.
The show was stopped for about 10 minutes and the offending people thrown out. Whilst this was going on the drunk man in front of me started shouting verbal abuse at me again. It was actually quite frightening and shook me up. Luckily my husband was with me and others around him calmed him down. Then when the show restarted they both got up and left making another disturbance as they pushed past people to get out. They obviously had no interest in the show! What is going on in our theatres today? The usher said it was happening frequently. How sad! 😔
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