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Post by BurlyBeaR on Jul 8, 2024 18:54:43 GMT
How did you all find eachother in the front row on opening night? Did you have that sixth sense “that looks like one of our lot” feeling? Personally, I just kept my eyes peeled for the tell-tale pampas grass buttonholes. Actually, I was *that* person who arrived with two minutes to go, a hot sweaty mess, needing to get to his seat right in the middle. Fortunately frontroverpaul was sat next to me and did a delightful job of introductions and making me feel at ease (I'm pretty shy usually) and a few quick "hi's" and chats ascertained that much of the front row was from Theatreboard! I have to say, for me, it was delightful to put faces to 'names' and I would feel more confident attending future gatherings. That’s really nice to hear. |
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Post by nash16 on Jul 8, 2024 20:09:22 GMT
For those that have been what is the running time Quoted as 2hrs 20mins INCLUDING interval in my pre-show email on Saturday, but yes, came in at around 2hrs 40mins. So they've got some tightening to do. |
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Post by nash16 on Jul 8, 2024 20:36:01 GMT
How did you all find eachother in the front row on opening night? Did you have that sixth sense “that looks like one of our lot” feeling? Frontroverpaul was on it as soon as I'd sat down with his sixth sense! Great to meet him and CeeBee, and offer them some Maltesers at the interval #GoBoard |
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Post by ceebee on Jul 8, 2024 21:37:18 GMT
I’m at intermission right now and I just feel slightly let down to be honest. Imelda does make a great Dolly though, I had no doubts about that. I hope the second half improved for you and that you were able to enjoy it! |
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Post by ceebee on Jul 8, 2024 21:38:14 GMT
How did you all find eachother in the front row on opening night? Did you have that sixth sense “that looks like one of our lot” feeling? Frontroverpaul was on it as soon as I'd sat down with his sixth sense! Great to meet him and CeeBee, and offer them some Maltesers at the interval #GoBoard I've never seen a box of maltesers that size before. I clearly need to get out more. It was very generous of you to offer them around! |
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Post by theatre22 on Jul 8, 2024 21:42:48 GMT
For those that have been what is the running time Quoted as 2hrs 20mins INCLUDING interval in my pre-show email on Saturday, but yes, came in at around 2hrs 40mins. So they've got some tightening to do. It finished at 2205 this evening. |
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Post by david on Jul 8, 2024 21:48:09 GMT
Front row ticket sorted for a Saturday night trip in August. Gone with A20 and for £20 to sit front row at the Palladium is a real no brainer. Thanks for the heads up about the tickets and thoughts about the viewing experience from these seats.
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Post by amyja89 on Jul 8, 2024 22:42:19 GMT
Any reservations for a 5' 3''er in Row C? Those £65 seats might tempt me for August, especially if the TodayTix rush proves difficult.
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Post by ceebee on Jul 9, 2024 2:51:56 GMT
Any reservations for a 5' 3''er in Row C? Those £65 seats might tempt me for August, especially if the TodayTix rush proves difficult. I think you should be fine in row C. |
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Post by midge on Jul 9, 2024 10:49:34 GMT
Act two was much better but overall my opinion of this production hasn’t changed much. Maybe the Broadway revival has spoiled me too much but the Broadway script was much better and had better gags. Also why on earth were the restaurant booths so small? It’s probably because they leave them on for the Hello Dolly number, so they’d probably block even more members of the audience’s view if any bigger. But I agree, the poor foursome look very squashed. |
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Post by amyja89 on Jul 9, 2024 11:23:26 GMT
Bit the bullet and went for a couple in Row C in August. The TodayTix rush this morning was offering Grand Circle, so if that's the case going forwards I'd rather pay the extra £20 each knowing the that the stage isn't too much of an issue from C!
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Post by Being Alive on Jul 9, 2024 17:22:17 GMT
I'm SO excited to see this tonight.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Jul 9, 2024 17:31:43 GMT
I wonder if there’s a plan to tour this, maybe without the elaborate train set piece like they did with The King and I. I just had a look at wiki and it’s never toured the U.K? Is there enough name recognition of the show to sell this to a certain demographic, especially with a popular lead? *cough Jane McDonald cough*
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Post by nash16 on Jul 9, 2024 17:38:45 GMT
I'm SO excited to see this tonight. Front row, Mr B? |
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Post by ceebee on Jul 9, 2024 17:47:02 GMT
I'm SO excited to see this tonight. Hope you enjoy it - do let us know! |
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Post by panda on Jul 9, 2024 17:54:25 GMT
I wonder if there’s a plan to tour this, maybe without the elaborate train set piece like they did with The King and I. I just had a look at wiki and it’s never toured the U.K? Is there enough name recognition of the show to sell this to a certain demographic, especially with a popular lead? *cough Jane McDonald cough* It toured the UK in the late 1980’s with Dora Bryan as Dolly and Kathryn Evans as Irene. I remember seeing it at the Opera House in Manchester. |
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Post by sf on Jul 9, 2024 17:59:14 GMT
I wonder if there’s a plan to tour this, maybe without the elaborate train set piece like they did with The King and I. I just had a look at wiki and it’s never toured the U.K? Is there enough name recognition of the show to sell this to a certain demographic, especially with a popular lead? *cough Jane McDonald cough* It toured the UK with Anita Dobson as Dolly around 2008 (I saw it at the Lowry). She was great. The production was not. And Darren Day was a particularly awful Cornelius. |
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Post by tmesis on Jul 9, 2024 18:11:43 GMT
I loved Janie Dee as Dolly at The Curve in 2012.
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Post by bimse on Jul 9, 2024 19:02:34 GMT
I wonder if there’s a plan to tour this, maybe without the elaborate train set piece like they did with The King and I. I just had a look at wiki and it’s never toured the U.K? Is there enough name recognition of the show to sell this to a certain demographic, especially with a popular lead? *cough Jane McDonald cough* It toured the UK in the late 1980’s with Dora Bryan as Dolly and Kathryn Evans as Irene. I remember seeing it at the Opera House in Manchester. Dora Bryan was a big success in Hello Dolly, many years prior to the 1980s production. She played Dolly in the original UK production at Drury Lane, then toured to a few UK cities with it. As posted elsewhere Anita Dobson and Darren Day did a more recent UK tour, and before that Danny La Rue played Dolly in Birmingham and the Prince of Wales Theatre, with Lionel Jeffries. |
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Post by theatrefan62 on Jul 9, 2024 19:36:36 GMT
There was also the Open Air production at Regents Park with Samantha Spiro in 2009
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Post by mrbarnaby on Jul 9, 2024 20:02:42 GMT
There was also the Open Air production at Regents Park with Samantha Spiro in 2009 That also had my ideal for Irene Molloy- Josefina Gabrielle. She was marvellous. |
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Post by alece10 on Jul 9, 2024 20:13:48 GMT
It was my first time seeing Hello Dolly on Saturday and I've no idea why I hadn't seen a production before (probably not living in London at the time), but I would have loved to have seen Danny La Rue as Dolly.
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Post by Being Alive on Jul 9, 2024 23:36:02 GMT
I have so many thoughts on this, which I'll try to get down.
This is almost an entirely different musical to the Broadway revival with Midler et al, and that's actually in its favour, because you can't better that production in my eyes.
Staunton's Dolly is not mugging for laughs (although most of the gags land!) and as a result she's hugely moving. That's the thing about this production that got me - how emotional I was.
Staunton's going for the heart strings as a woman coming back to life, and she pulls at them with ease.
The only real let down is the title number, but I went in expecting something quite different to what I got. It's not a showstopper in the sense it was on Broadway as Bette/Bernadette played it to the back of the house with humour and pizazz as a big number - Imelda isn't doing that, the whole point of the number is very different.
Casting is pretty excellent across the board.
Jenna is a lovely Irene, and whilst the soprano isn't all that strong, she's perfectly lovely to watch.
Harry Hepple is just a delight, and is a great duo with Tyrone.
Andy Nyman makes Penny in my Pocket work which is a relief, and I thought Emily Lane was sweet (though I really wish Clare Hales has come back as was planned - she'd have been so wonderful)
Was surprised by how much of a dance show this has turned into and it mostly worked for me - they just need to be tighter in the big numbers, but we're in previews they've got time.
Set is properly impressive for such a short run - you can only assume a simplified version of it is getting ready to hit the road with a name.
Really liked the video screen tbh - it enables that vast stage to be filled.
Just Leave Everything To Me works really well for Staunton (better choice actually that I Put My Hand In for her I think), and Love Look Through My Window is entirely unnecessary but very moving.
It's a solid 4 stars for now, with some little tweaks here and there it can be a 5.
This is a very different take on Hello Dolly, but that's no bad thing.
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