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Post by sph on Jul 31, 2024 11:10:58 GMT
Gosh! What a reactionary bunch of posts. Why shouldn’t a musical, like a play, be reinterpreted for each new production? Interpolating songs, revisiting the book and having a fresh approach to costume is common practice with classic musicals and a good thing too. It’s what keeps classic shows alive and is a testament to how strong the material is that it can be interpreted in a variety of different ways. The original Hello Dolly was created 60 years ago. Most people are not interested in seeing a museum rehash of that production, made at a different time, in a different country and most importantly for a leading actress vastly different from its new star. This show has been made for an audience in London in 2024 to fit the particular talents of one of our great actresses. Fitting Imelda Staunton into a 60 year old show created for Carol Channing would be ridiculous. They are completely different types of performers. This production should be judged on its own terms, not endlessly compared to something created in a completely different time and by vastly different artists. I hope that in another 60 years time, a fresh group of artists will give us a new perspective. That’s the only way that classics, whether plays or musicals, stay alive. My point was never meant to be that classics shouldn't be reinvented - they often are, very successfully. I felt the recent revival of The King and I was a great and modern interpretation of a musical that can be somewhat problematic given some of its subject matter. My point was that perhaps Imelda's entrance for the title number could have just been a bit... grander? Regardless of how, where, or when you're doing it - it does feel like it should be one of the "big moments" of the show. The iconic red dress has become the image associated with this, yes, but it would work with any colour if it had just been given a bit more "wow" factor. Again, it's just an observation. I really enjoyed the show, and how it had been directed as a more layered and nuanced take on a classic show for a modern audience. But also, the show was actually not created for Carol Channing. It was written for Ethel Merman, who turned it down. As did Mary Martin. Both later went on to play it. It isn't really Channing's show in many ways because it has now been played by so many actresses over the years. It is something of a staple or regional and summer stock theatre in the US. As such I would not compare Staunton to Channing, and have said that I think she acted the hell out of a character which isn't really her natural casting. |
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Post by danb on Jul 31, 2024 16:48:08 GMT
Huh?
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Post by theatreian on Jul 31, 2024 21:55:36 GMT
On a lighter note our Jane Mcdonald was in tonight with her friend Sue.
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Post by danb on Aug 1, 2024 5:48:42 GMT
On a lighter note our Jane Mcdonald was in tonight with her friend Sue. Oh, I hope the bar team coped! Love them two x Imagine if JM was watching with a view to touring it???!!! |
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Post by theatreian on Aug 1, 2024 9:33:34 GMT
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Post by ladidah on Aug 1, 2024 9:56:36 GMT
If Dr Ranj can be offered roles...
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Post by theatreian on Aug 1, 2024 10:04:22 GMT
If Dr Ranj can be offered roles... Jane has performed in 2 musicals that I know of as well as Panto, Romeo and Juliet and Cats in Blackpool. |
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Post by Being Alive on Aug 1, 2024 10:13:40 GMT
If Dr Ranj can be offered roles... Jane McDonald would be a phenomenal Dolly and I'll hear no other opinions 😂 |
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Post by BVM on Aug 1, 2024 10:16:46 GMT
You can add me to the list of people that had no idea what the show was famous for and didn’t know (or care) what colour the dress was! Thought was fine!
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Post by ladidah on Aug 1, 2024 10:21:17 GMT
If Dr Ranj can be offered roles... Jane McDonald would be a phenomenal Dolly and I'll hear no other opinions 😂 Eh up Dolly? |
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Post by Rory on Aug 1, 2024 10:46:01 GMT
Sorry for asking this but is it a high stage? I can see an available seat in Row C of the stalls which doesn't cost a fortune but would I actually see anything?
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Post by danb on Aug 1, 2024 11:05:52 GMT
I think you’d be just fine.
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Post by sph on Aug 1, 2024 11:14:49 GMT
Sorry for asking this but is it a high stage? I can see an available seat in Row C of the stalls which doesn't cost a fortune but would I actually see anything? It's a bit high, but you won't miss much. really, apart from the actual floor of the stage. |
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Post by Rory on Aug 1, 2024 11:20:49 GMT
Really appreciate your responses on this. Thanks.
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Post by sph on Aug 1, 2024 11:21:58 GMT
If Dr Ranj can be offered roles... Jane McDonald would be a phenomenal Dolly and I'll hear no other opinions 😂 It's interesting because I think she'd actually be brilliant in her own way! I can only imagine her playing it as a northerner, which seems unconventional, but then I looked up some videos of Dora Bryan playing the role and she played it British, so... |
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Post by Someone in a tree on Aug 1, 2024 11:29:45 GMT
Sorry for asking this but is it a high stage? I can see an available seat in Row C of the stalls which doesn't cost a fortune but would I actually see anything? I had a central aisle seat on row c and the view was great. To view the dancing i would prefer to be further back (however, condsidering the production and choreography im glad i did not pay more for this. The press love it, so what do i know?) |
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Post by Being Alive on Aug 1, 2024 11:54:33 GMT
Jane McDonald would be a phenomenal Dolly and I'll hear no other opinions 😂 Eh up Dolly? Exactly - it'd be MEGA! |
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Post by SilverFox on Aug 1, 2024 13:45:03 GMT
If Dr Ranj can be offered roles... Jane McDonald would be a phenomenal Dolly and I'll hear no other opinions 😂 I look forward to (out of town try-out at the Wakefield Theatre Royal on Drury Lane) :-
Ribbons down t' back, It tekks a lass, It nobbut tekks a minit and the big clog dance number - Put yer Sunday clobber on
How could it fail ........  |
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Post by capybara on Aug 1, 2024 14:12:28 GMT
Third and (probably) final visit for me last night. This time from the middle of the dress circle, which really was the perfect spec for this show.
I loved seeing the show close up but every number packed more punch with a full view of the choreography and set around it.
It doesn’t quite have the magic of, say, Crazy For You but it is a wonderful show, with a lush score and Imelda really is brilliant in this role. Her comic timing is so underrated.
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Post by londonmzfitz on Aug 1, 2024 16:47:32 GMT
Second visit yesterday at the matinee. Oh man, that queue to get in. Queues. Crazy.
Front stalls A11 at £20, bargain. Loved it all over again and I'm still a 5* girl. Still loving that train!
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Post by greenandbrownandblue on Aug 1, 2024 18:06:34 GMT
Saw this again last night, this time from the front row. Loved it all over again, and it was a joy to see (and hear!) it so close up, though I agree that from the dress circle is where this show looks its best. The set felt much more sparse from Row A stalls. However I could really appreciate the performances yesterday, especially Harry Hepple who is just superb in this. And I found Imelda Staunton's Dolly really quite moving - her opening to Before The Parade was stunning.
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Post by ceebee on Aug 1, 2024 21:04:54 GMT
Second visit yesterday at the matinee. Oh man, that queue to get in. Queues. Crazy. Front stalls A11 at £20, bargain. Loved it all over again and I'm still a 5* girl. Still loving that train! That train is fabulous. |
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Post by dontdreamit on Aug 1, 2024 21:22:26 GMT
Not much add, but I saw this tonight and loved it. Thank you to whoever first spotted and posted about the £20 seats, absolute bargain!
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Post by marob on Aug 1, 2024 22:58:23 GMT
Not much add, but I saw this tonight and loved it. Thank you to whoever first spotted and posted about the £20 seats, absolute bargain! I was also on the front row tonight, so I’ll second that. Wasn’t sure about it to start with, but it won me over by the hat shop scene. Nice to see such a large ensemble, as well as what has to be the biggest band in the West End. A lot of fun, but with a surprising amount of emotion wrung out of something that on paper must be rather slight. Great night out, made all the better for only being twenty quid! |
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Post by jr on Aug 2, 2024 6:09:23 GMT
I really liked this, as he did with Follies, Dominic Cooke dug into the characters motivations and emotions and it makes it a musical play, and not just a musical (jukebox, lazy adaptations) . I had only seen the film so not sure how the original theatre production is. The first number here is a great character presentation, but if I understood well, it is taken from the film. I am not so sure of the inclusion of A penny in my pocket and the song Dolly sings while getting ready for the restaurant, I don’t think they add much or are great songs. Unlike other members and some reviewers, I did not think the choreography was great, all that jumping with the trays was a bit boring. But these are minor issues, it is a great show. I had seen Imelda Staunton before and she played all a bit one note (angry), here she is charming, moving and really funny. I was on the second row and could see her facial expressions, what an incredible actress she is. I read the original play after the show, The matchmaker by Thornton Wilder. I really like Thornton Wilder and it is a shame his plays are not produced much nowadays. He was also a great novelist. I’ve seen a Young Vic production of The skin of our teeth that was very good (https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2004/mar/06/theatre) and in the US Our town is done all the time (check the PBS DVD with Paul Newman), other than that I don’t think he is very well known. The book of the musical is heavily based on the play. Most of the best lines are there (money as manure), same as the structure, except from the restaurant scene onwards where the musical takes a new direction. Still, I think it is a great book: the usual cut, merge, expand of adaptations is very well done. For instance, ribbons on my back is just a sentence that Irene says and what a great character song they make out of it. Since it is quite unlikely that we will be able to see The matchmaker on stage, it is worthy to see the film with the great Shirley Booth. It is a bit stale as theatre adaptations can be at times, but worth a watch. www.imdb.com/title/tt0051913/ |
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