Heathers: The Musical - U.K. Tour (Again!)

[Adalea]

Jenna is amazing. I was actually really looking forward to seeing her in other roles. Good for the show to have her back.

I'm really happy for Daisy. She was supposed to make her west end debut with Cinderella before that got cancelled in such a bad way. Glad she finally gets that West End job and I'm sure more will follow.

[capybara]

Happy to see Jenna and Daisy returning to this show.

Also, I did predict Sedona Sky would go on to play Duke in the College Productions thread, so very excited to see how that pans out.

Likewise Esme, who I very much enjoyed on the I Have a Dream reality series.

[Dr Tom]

Lots of names I recognise and like there, with a good mix of newcomers and people who know the show inside out. Perfect Kurt and Ram too. You've got Iván Fernández González, who covered those roles before, and Jason Battersby, who really commands the stage even in the background. Looking forward to this even more now!

[darreno]

I was excitedly waiting for the cast announcement and I'm very happy with it. Particularly to see May Tether and Lewis Asquith back again. Feels like a link to TOP 'home' of the show. Really hoping that May is cover Veronica, as I've never seen her do that.

[andrew]

A show that won't cast POC as any of the Heathers apart from Duke but will cast twinks as...jocks? Make it make sense.

[danb]

Because no other shows have casting breakdowns?

[creakingstool]

Will additional dates for this tour still be announced does anyone know? Wondering about a Manchester date.

[Dr Tom]

I guess I should use the tour thread, although the tour is also what was on at @sohoplace.

Nipped to Windsor tonight to see the show in the first tour venue. I doubt I’ll see this again now until Richmond unless work travel sends me in the right direction.

Windsor has been largely sold out all week, lots of people travelling from London. I managed to grab a seat that became available on the end of the front row. It may even be the same place I sat last tour. Perfect view. They chose a very keen Steve in front row centre.

This is one of those venues where the seats are numbered in the reverse direction to normal and there’s a rather hidden entrance to the front few rows. No one checked my ticket, but being sold out, it would be hard to sneak in and find an empty seat.

The show started about 20 minutes late due to technical difficulties (presumably lighting as they kept testing this). I got to Windsor in good time and was reminded how bizarre it is that they like to close all the shops by 5:30pm on a Friday.

Sound quality very good. The band are in the pit, so nice to see them. This gives a different feel to the sound to the venues where everyone is backstage. I think they’ve reduced the band size slightly from the last tour, but they do have a lot more spare capacity for actors. Only Bradley was missing.

Keenan very much in form in cute JD mode. I heard several people near me praising him.

The two dads swapped their usual roles for Dead Gay Son.

The stage size here and having everyone end on works nicely as a comparison to the more unusual @sohoplace layout.

I don’t know if anyone else has attended this week, but do report back. I’ll be interested to know how the rest of the tour goes as well and what kind of reception this gets outside the London area.

[creakingstool]

Sounds great. My daughter and niece are desperate to see the tour but no Manchester dates have been announced and I'm starting to think they won't be now.

Will have to try and get to Blackpool perhaps or somewhere else not too far. Last tour seemed to sell well in Manchester so I'm suprised it's not coming here.

[backtothetheatre]

Jul 27, 2024 7:28:18 GMT creakingstool said:

Sounds great. My daughter and niece are desperate to see the tour but no Manchester dates have been announced and I'm starting to think they won't be now.

Will have to try and get to Blackpool perhaps or somewhere else not too far. Last tour seemed to sell well in Manchester so I'm suprised it's not coming here.

Heathers has been to Manchester twice before. This tour is only small and mainly going to places the show hasn’t been yet. There’s no more dates to be announced.

[tcb]

I saw it opening night on Wednesday, there was a slight issue with the lights at the beginning of act 2.

It’s hard for me to ever be objective about this show. I’ve seen every cast so far, I was quite surprised it is touring again so quickly but this cast are great.

[marob]

creakingstool It’s on at Storyhouse in Chester in September, possibly a bit nearer than Blackpool.

[marob]

Surprised no one else has commented in two months. I saw this yesterday at Storyhouse in Chester, having seen it previously at the Haymarket and then on the front row at Theatr Clwyd last year.

Was in two minds about going, but want to support a local theatre, especially as they don’t put much on in the way of drama. Loads of comedians and ‘An Audience with…’ type shows coming up, but apart from Sleeping Beauty at Christmas there’s nothing until Dear Evan Hansen in March.

Only actually booked it on the day. I’d say the theatre was slightly under half full, possibly a consequence of having two mid-week matinees. Surprised the theatre hasn’t promoted it a bit more heavily though. Esme Bowdler was on the Mamma Mia thing and is from Chester, should have got her to at least do an Instagram takeover or something.

Much younger crowd than your typical provincial mid-week matinee, including a group of school kids. A few years ago I saw girls wandering around Birmingham dressed like the Heathers, back when it was first starting to tour, so wasn’t surprised to see a few cosplaying, but there must have been quite a few other fans in given the reaction to certain moments like the Heathers’ first appearance and the chainsaw line.

I did enjoy it, clearly not as much as them, but also not as much as the other times I’ve seen it. Could be because I was mid-stalls, as I always prefer to sit as near the front as I can and never feel involved the same way if I’m not. I just felt like some of the humour didn’t land in quite the same way, which just makes it more apparent how much of it is just straight up kids bullying each other.

I did warm to it as it went on though, and however i felt about the show I can’t fault the cast. I liked Esme, was nice to see her after the Mamma Mia series, and was nice to see Daisy Twells perform since I only know her from the Cinderella cast change fiasco. Sedona Sky was great. I really liked Keelan McAuley’s performance as JD, his humour feels a little more off-beat when compared to the bigger performances around him (not a bad thing), and he’s got a nice voice, at times a bit more rock than typical MT performer. (Also rather easy on the eye.)

Most were on their feet at the end, I ended up joining them, as I did enjoy it but I’m not sure I’ll be in a rush to see it again, even if it does come nearby again.

[darreno]

I was back again on Friday matinee at Sheffield for my 37th trip to Westerberg. The show is still in fantastic shape, with this cast being very strong throughout.

Got to see Kelly Sweeney on as Martha, which I had been hoping for, and she was worth the wait. However, my quest to catch May Tether cover Veronica goes on! Would love to tick that box and see her take on the character.

Having seen a lot of JDs, I think Keelan might be my favourite. VERY strong actor. The part is an interesting one to cast, can easily hide a weaker voice with good acting, or weaker acting with a strong voice. Keelan plays it the exact way I like to imagine it, he's fantastic.

Can never be sure when it comes to touring productions, but there were a lot of attendees dressed up, most who had seen the show before based on reactions and timing at least. Very cool to see it well attended and super enthusiastic people enjoying the show. The Heathers juggernaut rolls on!

[ladidah]

Wow, 37 times!

[BurlyBeaR]

One of our old mods saw Wicked 133 times. Then suddenly lost interest in it and as far as I know never went again.

[blamerobots]

Oct 8, 2024 14:41:56 GMT BurlyBeaR said:

One of our old mods saw Wicked 133 times. Then suddenly lost interest in it and as far as I know never went again.

[lizbiz]

Tomorrows matinee on seat filler for £6.50 💀

[darreno]

Oct 8, 2024 14:21:37 GMT ladidah said:

Wow, 37 times!

I think to normal people I'm extreme, but to musical theatre people, I'm a lightweight! Some amazing stories around from the 100+ crowd. Especially for the 'big' shows like Les Mis etc. My budget restricts me but I'm approaching 40 for Heathers and also for Rent.

A running joke among my friends is that I've spent more going to Rent than paying my rent. My landlord might agree!

[darreno]

Oct 8, 2024 14:41:56 GMT BurlyBeaR said:

One of our old mods saw Wicked 133 times. Then suddenly lost interest in it and as far as I know never went again.

Wow! Would be interested to know why. I know we all have phases of interest but that would be an interesting insight into obsession/love etc.

[Dr Tom]

Oct 8, 2024 14:21:37 GMT ladidah said:

Wow, 37 times!

Funnily enough, just checked the number of times I’ve seen Heathers and there’s also a 3 and a 7 in the number. But not necessarily in the same order.

More seriously, there are plenty of fans in the triple digits.

And I’ve still never watched the filmed version of the musical. I started it on an Emirates plane until it said “edited for content”. Much as I was curious to see if anything was left, I set it aside.

[unseaworthy]

Genuine question for the people who watch the same show dozens of times... Why? Do you also watch other shows? What is it that makes you spend so much money on things you have watched so many before? Honestly not a criticism, I just want to understand the motivation.

[ThereWillBeSun]

Oct 8, 2024 23:00:35 GMT unseaworthy said:

Genuine question for the people who watch the same show dozens of times... Why? Do you also watch other shows? What is it that makes you spend so much money on things you have watched so many before? Honestly not a criticism, I just want to understand the motivation.

I guess it’s a a genuine love and passion? Why not? If it makes you happy and you can afford it. Do what you want. No judgement here.

[aingidh]

Oct 8, 2024 23:00:35 GMT unseaworthy said:

Genuine question for the people who watch the same show dozens of times... Why? Do you also watch other shows? What is it that makes you spend so much money on things you have watched so many before? Honestly not a criticism, I just want to understand the motivation.

For me it's a comfort thing. Like, I've been through We Will Rock You and Wicked obsessions, both of which I'm now well into double digits on. I know what I'm gonna get with it, a lot of the time the casting comes into this as well, like if it's a specific cast that I enjoy watching.

And yeah, I do see other shows. Lots of them. But it's nice to have a show that I can call "home" in a way.

[darreno]

Oct 8, 2024 23:00:35 GMT unseaworthy said:

Genuine question for the people who watch the same show dozens of times... Why? Do you also watch other shows? What is it that makes you spend so much money on things you have watched so many before? Honestly not a criticism, I just want to understand the motivation.

If I love something, I just can't get enough of it! Particularly like to see new cast members and how they change little pieces to suit their own range/abilities. Or seeing how a joke or number will 'hit' or 'miss' depending on the audience on any given day.
Yeah, I go to loads of other shows too. Four this weekend, none of which are Heathers or Rent. 😂