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Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2018 8:36:31 GMT
Just another random thought - I felt the CRH version was massively underrated. I normally hate actor-muso, but this one just clicked for me - loved it. Fab cast too. Shona White, Daniel Koek and that guy who plays the guitar who we sent to Eurovision as Freddie (James Fox???), he was great anyway.
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Chess
Feb 17, 2018 8:57:39 GMT
danb likes this
Post by BurlyBeaR on Feb 17, 2018 8:57:39 GMT
I guess the next question is whether the orchestra is going to be on stage or in the pit. Like, yeah...can you imagine the furore when like, everyone was expecting it to be on the stage like Sunset, but like, it turns out to be in the pit. People will have booked on that basis only for something else to be the case. It’ll make the papers and WOS and everything! Sorry, just woke up😶 And I’ll be fooomin’ 😡 |
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Chess
Feb 17, 2018 9:12:42 GMT
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Post by danb on Feb 17, 2018 9:12:42 GMT
Just another random thought - I felt the CRH version was massively underrated. I normally hate actor-muso, but this one just clicked for me - loved it. Fab cast too. Shona White, Daniel Koek and that guy who plays the guitar who we sent to Eurovision as Freddie (James Fox???), he was great anyway. Loved most of the cast and what it looked like, hated the weedy sound and constant dicking around with instruments. As someone just said; it’s a pop score, so why are we trying to recreate it with a couple of violas and Margarets old cello? |
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Chess
Feb 17, 2018 9:14:59 GMT
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Post by shady23 on Feb 17, 2018 9:14:59 GMT
Was not a fan of that tour and the people I brought were not impressed either. I will go to the London one myself!
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Chess
Feb 17, 2018 9:51:08 GMT
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Post by alece10 on Feb 17, 2018 9:51:08 GMT
I sat in balcony for Sweeney Todd. They built the stage over the orchestra pit and the musical was mainly played to the front of the stage. Couldn't see anything. Theatre apologised and said they only knew this was going to happen when they constructed stage and set.
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Chess
Feb 17, 2018 10:24:31 GMT
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Post by loureviews on Feb 17, 2018 10:24:31 GMT
I sat in balcony for Sweeney Todd. They built the stage over the orchestra pit and the musical was mainly played to the front of the stage. Couldn't see anything. Theatre apologised and said they only knew this was going to happen when they constructed stage and set. I hope you got your money back. |
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Post by richey on Feb 17, 2018 11:39:50 GMT
I guess the next question is whether the orchestra is going to be on stage or in the pit. Surely it'll have to be in the pit to make room on the stage for the giant tilting chess board |
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Post by alece10 on Feb 17, 2018 12:51:33 GMT
I sat in balcony for Sweeney Todd. They built the stage over the orchestra pit and the musical was mainly played to the front of the stage. Couldn't see anything. Theatre apologised and said they only knew this was going to happen when they constructed stage and set. I hope you got your money back. They were fantastic to be honest. I wrote in and didn't even ask for refund. Just pointed out that they should have sold seats as restricTed view. The wrote back to explain what happened and gave me 2 top price stalls for Carmen which was amazing. Result was ever since I've always booked stalls at the venue. So it was win, win for both of us |
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Post by danb on Feb 17, 2018 12:58:38 GMT
What ways are there around there being no giant tilting illuminated chess board? Maybe each seat gets either a white square or black square to hold up at key times and turn the whole auditorium into a giant chess board? Maybe not?
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Chess
Feb 17, 2018 13:19:21 GMT
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Post by elmolover79 on Feb 17, 2018 13:19:21 GMT
Just bagged a ticket for this one..slightly young for the first time around..when your mum tells you ooer we did that one years ago..me michael ball fan i will add. Looking forward to seeing this one...do people get up and dance around in this one ..bit of cheese never hurt anyone!
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Post by danb on Feb 17, 2018 13:31:55 GMT
Just bagged a ticket for this one..slightly young for the first time around..when your mum tells you ooer we did that one years ago..me michael ball fan i will add. Looking forward to seeing this one...do people get up and dance around in this one ..bit of cheese never hurt anyone! Dear God, no. No they don’t. They sit nicely in their seat and enjoy the fantastic music, applauding where appropriate. You may stand at the end if you must. It is not Boyzone... 😂🎶 |
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Feb 17, 2018 15:13:42 GMT
Just bagged a ticket for this one..slightly young for the first time around..when your mum tells you ooer we did that one years ago..me michael ball fan i will add. Looking forward to seeing this one...do people get up and dance around in this one ..bit of cheese never hurt anyone! It’s a about a love triangle set against the background of a chess tournament and the cold war. It’s not a barrel of laughs 🙂 |
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Chess
Feb 17, 2018 16:22:27 GMT
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Post by chess on Feb 17, 2018 16:22:27 GMT
Just bagged a ticket for this one..slightly young for the first time around..when your mum tells you ooer we did that one years ago..me michael ball fan i will add. Looking forward to seeing this one...do people get up and dance around in this one ..bit of cheese never hurt anyone! It’s a about a love triangle set against the background of a chess tournament and the cold war. It’s not a barrel of laughs 🙂 If they would use the washington script, there will be a lot of laughs, because that script is rather funny (in a good way). |
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Post by ali973 on Feb 17, 2018 19:08:05 GMT
I was listening to the concept album today, and I wish to echo these wise words that ring so true on this awful casting.
"We wish, no must, make our disgust at this abuse perfectly clear."
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Post by Dannyboi on Feb 18, 2018 12:19:16 GMT
Do they still expect to get rid of all those still unsold premium stall seats at 175 quid a pop with THIS casting? As much as I like Michael Ball and his casting has made me have a look for tickets again,surely absolutely stellar casting for the female roles could only justify those prices. Burke and Janson are not stellar in any way.Maybe they will come down in price now?
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Post by danb on Feb 18, 2018 15:56:10 GMT
Do they still expect to get rid of all those still unsold premium stall seats at 175 quid a pop with THIS casting? As much as I like Michael Ball and his casting has made me have a look for tickets again,surely absolutely stellar casting for the female roles could only justify those prices. Burke and Janson are not stellar in any way.Maybe they will come down in price now? I suspect it’ll be a similar deal to the £200 BOOH tickets on ’tkts’ last year. They’ll end up being flogged off cheap on the day. |
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Chess
Feb 18, 2018 16:06:25 GMT
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Post by Brian on Feb 18, 2018 16:06:25 GMT
Do they still expect to get rid of all those still unsold premium stall seats at 175 quid a pop with THIS casting? As much as I like Michael Ball and his casting has made me have a look for tickets again,surely absolutely stellar casting for the female roles could only justify those prices. Burke and Janson are not stellar in any way.Maybe they will come down in price now? It’s all entirely subjective. Some people will buy tickets to see Michael, others will buy to see Alexandra, others will buy to see Cassidy. Others will buy simply because they love the musical, regardless of the cast. What is your definition of ‘stellar?’- the question is whether the producers believe A&C have the chops to pull off the role and be commercially appealing. Like them or not, both Alexandra and Cassidy have shifted a fair few tickets in their respective roles in other shows. There will never be a casting choice who is universally appealing. I’m assuming the cost of these tickets must have a lot to do with the overall production- i.e the staging and orchestra, rather than the ‘stars’ alone. |
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Post by Dannyboi on Feb 18, 2018 16:47:04 GMT
What is your definition of ‘stellar?’ I was just assuming at those prices either Broadway,West End or Hollywood Legend. You know,someone to really push those ticket sales. It is only a five week run after all. But as things stand,many remain unsold. I know all three of these names have their fans but you can see them in any west end/touring production. lets hope you are right and the money is going into other areas. I still think there is no need to charge 175 though,no matter who's in it or how big the orchestra is. |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2018 17:48:06 GMT
^ I wasn't aware they were charging £175 to be honest. I’ve had a quick look on the ENO website and even for weekend performances the top price looks to be £150. (When I’ve been on there has been the odd queue to purchase tickets for some dates although when I’ve seen the plans there do seem to be huge numbers of unsold seats and this is now after the announcement on Friday.) That said, I agree with what you have said about the casting. Part of the problem is that because it’s for a five week limited season it’s seen as an Event, with big names to top the bill, and the longer we’ve had to wait the higher expectations have risen. (Some of these names seem a bit ridiculous to me- Lady Gaga???- but what do I know?) Now the announcement has flopped out, with little fanfare, it seems a complete anticlimax. As you say, names we really could see anytime, anywhere...
With regard to the staging, we’re still in the dark about whether it’ll be fully or semi-staged: it simply states “Landmark musical in first major West End revival in over 30 years,” making no mention of staging. To me a “major West End revival” suggests a full blown version. Many Chess fans will remember the RAH concert which actually turned out to be semi-staged in the end. Does RAH not constitute the West End? I don’t know. Again, because information is scant, we’re left to speculate and draw our own conclusions. Realistically I can’t see we’ll get more than a fairly simply staged production with the orchestra at the back rather like Sunset. And once again, I reckon we’re going to be a bit disappointed when we find out what we’re actually getting for our money.
All in all the ENO must be fully aware how shabbily they’re handling this, how badly it’s coming across to theatre-goers and how poorly it’s selling.
That said, I really can’t wait. Hate the game; love the musical!
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Post by sf on Feb 18, 2018 17:51:44 GMT
Like them or not, both Alexandra and Cassidy have shifted a fair few tickets in their respective roles in other shows. There will never be a casting choice who is universally appealing. I’m assuming the cost of these tickets must have a lot to do with the overall production- i.e the staging and orchestra, rather than the ‘stars’ alone. Unfortunately, with these particular productions it seems shifting that many tickets over a five-week run demands a Big Star - Glenn Close in Sunset Boulevard is the one that came closest (sorry) to selling out, and there was a huge rush at the box office the day tickets went on sale. I'm sure Cassidy Janson has her fans, but she's nowhere near that league. As for the cost of these tickets - yes, the orchestra will be relatively expensive, and I'm sure there'll be some kind of set, but the point of these productions is basically to make Linnit/Grade and the ENO a ton of money very quickly (the ENO has not been in particularly good financial health recently), which means they'll need to sell a lot of very expensive tickets, which means they'll have been trying to sign at least one really big star (I mean, bigger than Michael Ball, who has some box office pull but also isn't in the same league as Glenn Close or Emma Thompson). For this kind of event to pay off, it really needs the kind of casting that turns it into a must-see THEATRICAL! EVENT! OF! THE! YEAR!. You aren't going to get that kind of public response with the replacement co-lead singer in Mike and the Mechanics and somebody who used to be in Wicked. |
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Post by djp on Feb 19, 2018 3:39:43 GMT
Like them or not, both Alexandra and Cassidy have shifted a fair few tickets in their respective roles in other shows. There will never be a casting choice who is universally appealing. I’m assuming the cost of these tickets must have a lot to do with the overall production- i.e the staging and orchestra, rather than the ‘stars’ alone. Unfortunately, with these particular productions it seems shifting that many tickets over a five-week run demands a Big Star - Glenn Close in Sunset Boulevard is the one that came closest (sorry) to selling out, and there was a huge rush at the box office the day tickets went on sale. I'm sure Cassidy Janson has her fans, but she's nowhere near that league. As for the cost of these tickets - yes, the orchestra will be relatively expensive, and I'm sure there'll be some kind of set, but the point of these productions is basically to make Linnit/Grade and the ENO a ton of money very quickly (the ENO has not been in particularly good financial health recently), which means they'll need to sell a lot of very expensive tickets, which means they'll have been trying to sign at least one really big star (I mean, bigger than Michael Ball, who has some box office pull but also isn't in the same league as Glenn Close or Emma Thompson). For this kind of event to pay off, it really needs the kind of casting that turns it into a must-see THEATRICAL! EVENT! OF! THE! YEAR!. You aren't going to get that kind of public response with the replacement co-lead singer in Mike and the Mechanics and somebody who used to be in Wicked. True. But the sheer greed motive is now pushing up tickets into the100-175 pounds bracket elsewhere too. While Central London is attracting people with plenty of money, and tourists with, brexit inflated, spending power, we are going to see normal humans facing mega prices all over the place - from Hamilton to Chicago.. One reaon this may have so many empty premium seats, while the nearby, just expensive, seats are taken, is that its not got a Glenn Close to appeal to the international audience, or justify the price for whats essentially a standard cast, sans sets, and with more musicians. |
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Chess
Feb 19, 2018 9:15:11 GMT
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Post by musicalmarge on Feb 19, 2018 9:15:11 GMT
Unfortunately, with these particular productions it seems shifting that many tickets over a five-week run demands a Big Star - Glenn Close in Sunset Boulevard is the one that came closest (sorry) to selling out, and there was a huge rush at the box office the day tickets went on sale. I'm sure Cassidy Janson has her fans, but she's nowhere near that league. As for the cost of these tickets - yes, the orchestra will be relatively expensive, and I'm sure there'll be some kind of set, but the point of these productions is basically to make Linnit/Grade and the ENO a ton of money very quickly (the ENO has not been in particularly good financial health recently), which means they'll need to sell a lot of very expensive tickets, which means they'll have been trying to sign at least one really big star (I mean, bigger than Michael Ball, who has some box office pull but also isn't in the same league as Glenn Close or Emma Thompson). For this kind of event to pay off, it really needs the kind of casting that turns it into a must-see THEATRICAL! EVENT! OF! THE! YEAR!. You aren't going to get that kind of public response with the replacement co-lead singer in Mike and the Mechanics and somebody who used to be in Wicked. True. But the sheer greed motive is now pushing up tickets into the100-175 pounds bracket elsewhere too. While Central London is attracting people with plenty of money, and tourists with, brexit inflated, spending power, we are going to see normal humans facing mega prices all over the place - from Hamilton to Chicago.. One reaon this may have so many empty premium seats, while the nearby, just expensive, seats are taken, is that its not got a Glenn Close to appeal to the international audience, or justify the price for whats essentially a standard cast, sans sets, and with more musicians. I don’t have a problem with expensive tickets. I go the theatre once or twice a week and rarely pay more than 25 pounds. We all know how to get cheaper tickets. Most don’t plus it’s still much much cheaper than seeing a Broadway show. |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 19, 2018 9:39:49 GMT
Admittedly I'm not a regular attendee but it's hardly news that ENO charge high prices is it? Their prices have always been (for the top ones, they've also always had a few bargains) at the top end of the scale. Running that building and the losses they make on a lot of the productions keeps them 'up there' I'd imagine.
My current dilemma is that I can't afford a trip to London. And yet I am a sucker for both Chess and the Balls.
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Chess
Feb 19, 2018 10:57:51 GMT
Post by floorshow on Feb 19, 2018 10:57:51 GMT
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Chess
Feb 19, 2018 16:51:00 GMT
Post by loureviews on Feb 19, 2018 16:51:00 GMT
Am I the only one really excited about old Murray being in this?  |
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