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Post by corneliusdolly on Nov 25, 2022 22:40:41 GMT
I'm loving the production shots! It has a very Dickensian meets the 21st century look to it. The Oompa Loompas appear to be robots?
Would anyone who's seen it care to disclose how they pull off some of the classic moments from the story (Violet into a blueberry, Augustus up the pipe, etc.)?
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Post by anxiousoctopus on Nov 25, 2022 22:45:03 GMT
On a lighter, less culture-war-y note: the photo of Wonka with ginger hair is giving me Alasdair Beckett-King vibes 😂
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Post by og on Nov 26, 2022 8:47:40 GMT
I'm loving the production shots! It has a very Dickensian meets the 21st century look to it. The Oompa Loompas appear to be robots? Would anyone who's seen it care to disclose how they pull off some of the classic moments from the story (Violet into a blueberry, Augustus up the pipe, etc.)? Its mostly visual staging. Violet {Spoiler - click to view}Inflates like London, probably fans in her backpack again. Shes' taken off stage, There's some fun as she's rolled back onstage, its quite obviously not her but a yoga ball type thing, deliberately silly to make light of it for the kids. She 'explodes' off stage' but we see the resulting fallout.
Augustus {Spoiler - click to view}
After 'falling in' to the river, a big suction pipe comes down to the river. Use of lighting, timing and song means the next time we see Augustus he's wheeled onstage inside a section of the pipe. |
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Post by Dawnstar on Nov 26, 2022 13:24:36 GMT
Violet {Spoiler - click to view}Inflates like London, probably fans in her backpack again. Shes' taken off stage, There's some fun as she's rolled back onstage, its quite obviously not her but a yoga ball type thing, deliberately silly to make light of it for the kids. She 'explodes' off stage' but we see the resulting fallout. Does that mean Violet is killed in the musical? I found it bad enough what happens in the book but that sounds horrific. |
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Nov 27, 2022 1:46:38 GMT
Based on the production pics I think I’ll give this a miss when it reaches Manchester. Seen the film, liked it just fine but not obsessed. Never saw the show in London so not invested and those designs don’t entice me in the slightest.
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Post by alece10 on Nov 27, 2022 21:56:23 GMT
Do they have the infamous dodgy lift?
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Post by og on Nov 28, 2022 10:13:06 GMT
Do they have the infamous dodgy lift? Nope, thats be condemned to the west-end junkyard for parts. This one works really well, possibly sourced from Agrabah. |
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Post by 141920grm on Nov 28, 2022 21:37:49 GMT
Does anyone have the full track list of songs for this production? Interested to see how much of a mix it is of the West End/Broadway versions!
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Post by og on Nov 29, 2022 8:44:41 GMT
Does anyone have the full track list of songs for this production? Interested to see how much of a mix it is of the West End/Broadway versions! They weren't yet selling a programme or showing a list of numbers in the venue, I assume with it in previews alot is subject to change. From what I can remember... {Spoiler}{Spoiler - click to view}Overture /
Almost Nearly Perfect /
... /
The Amazing Fantastical History of Willy Wonka (rewritten) /
Charlie, You and I (short) into A Letter from Charlie Bucket /
More of Him to Live /
When Veruca Says /
Queen of Pop /
Candy Man /
Teevee Time /
Doncha Pinch me Charlie /
New song into It Must be Believed mashup thing /
-interval- /
Strike That, Reverse it /
Pure Imagination /
(Simply Second Nature?) /
The Oompa Loompa Song /
Auf Weidersehen Augustus /
Don't Want What you got Now (title tbc) /
Veruca's Nutcracker Sweet /
Vidiots /
Letter from Charlie (Reprise) /
Candy Man (Reprise) into The View from Here There were a few other reprises and bits along the way. So a fair 50/50 of UK/US really. But I suspect some of that may change. |
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Post by ceebee on Nov 29, 2022 16:03:21 GMT
This show has had great reviews so far.
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Post by FrontroverPaul on Dec 2, 2022 14:52:23 GMT
Whilst there’s time til act2 curtain up. Girl playing Charlie tonight. All references to Charlie are as “he/him” so it’s a girl playing a boy, not a change of characters sex. If you were annoyed that a girl would be playing Charlie, wait til you find out she’s wearing a rainbow cardigan! 🤣 She’s doing a great job! Day trip to Leeds yesterday with my thanks to National Express and LNER for getting me there and back from Kent on time and in comfort for under £30. The 1.30 matinee was booked over 80% by primary school parties which I'm always please to see at a theatre. Created a great atmosphere and super-loud cheers. Perfect front row view, no look up, loads of legroom and VERY close to the action ! Charlie was played by a girl and referred to throughout as she/her. The excellent young actress , Kayleen Nguema, referred to herself as Queen Charlie at one point. Perhaps as there are two boys and two girls sharing the role there were mistakes on November 21 ? The second half, with a rather sinister and scary Willie Wonka and some impressive special effects, veers from hilarious to quite shocking and elicited both laughs and gasps from the young audience I don't remember the detail of the previous production to be able to identify changes but what I saw yesterday was everything I hoped for and more. Already booked to see it twice more on the tour next year. |
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Post by og on Dec 2, 2022 15:12:22 GMT
Whilst there’s time til act2 curtain up. Girl playing Charlie tonight. All references to Charlie are as “he/him” so it’s a girl playing a boy, not a change of characters sex. If you were annoyed that a girl would be playing Charlie, wait til you find out she’s wearing a rainbow cardigan! 🤣 She’s doing a great job! Day trip to Leeds yesterday with my thanks to National Express and LNER for getting me there and back from Kent on time and in comfort for under £30. The 1.30 matinee was booked over 80% by primary school parties which I'm always please to see at a theatre. Created a great atmosphere and super-loud cheers. Perfect front row view, no look up, loads of legroom and VERY close to the action ! Charlie was played by a girl and referred to throughout as she/her. The excellent young actress , Kayleen Nguema, referred to herself as Queen Charlie at one point. Perhaps as there are two boys and two girls sharing the role there were mistakes on November 21 ? The second half, with a rather sinister and scary Willie Wonka and some impressive special effects, veers from hilarious to quite shocking and elicited both laughs and gasps from the young audience I don't remember the detail of the previous production to be able to identify changes but what I saw yesterday was everything I hoped for and more. Already booked to see it twice more on the tour next year. Could well be the case, I did wonder the same given it was the first public performance. Though it was consistent throughout the performance so possibly a revision. Glad to hear you enjoyed it so much! That transition into the Chocolate room is quite something, right?! |
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Post by ceebee on Dec 3, 2022 23:41:20 GMT
Oh wow! What a show! This brought back so many happy memories from London. After a slow start, it found its pace and the second half just flies. This show makes Frozen look pretty basic by comparison. Gareth Snook is am excellent Wonka - all the performances in fact were great. This is a magical show with lots of wonderful surprises and a very dark edge - Snook doesn't hide the fact that Wonka isn't particularly likeable. This show is going to be very successful when it tours.
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Post by bimse on Dec 15, 2022 7:48:55 GMT
I’ve never seen this musical before, never read the book or seen the films, so had nothing to compare with, but I thoroughly enjoyed this production. It’s very spectacular, lovely stage sets in the first act, and surprisingly clever use of video technology (even on the floor) for many of the Chocolate Factory scenes in act two. Im not sure I’d want to see an entire show with video sets, it would never be the same as theatrical stage sets (for want if a better term) but it suited this show very well. I particularly liked how Augustus Gloop fell into the chocolate river , before being sucked up the pipe . The glass elevator could have been flown in on a darkened stage , so we couldn’t see the wires (as mentioned in a previous post), it looked good flying about. Great performances all round , especially Gareth Snook, the Charlie I saw was a little “shouty” but competent. I’m not sure why Mrs Bucket was signing as well as singing beautifully, throughout her performance, and Charlie signing back ?
I hope this show does good business on its lengthy tour, it deserves to do so. The ticket prices on tour are considerably higher than in Leeds , as has been noted previously on this thread .
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Post by theatrefan62 on Dec 15, 2022 8:16:55 GMT
For those who have seen it, do you think the set/staging will work in the larger venues its visiting on tour? Or will it look more lost/less spectacular?
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Post by ceebee on Dec 15, 2022 9:36:52 GMT
For those who have seen it, do you think the set/staging will work in the larger venues its visiting on tour? Or will it look more lost/less spectacular? I think it will work fine - they might extend the video wall to fill wider spaces or add panels. |
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Post by og on Dec 15, 2022 13:49:50 GMT
I’ve never seen this musical before, never read the book or seen the films, so had nothing to compare with, but I thoroughly enjoyed this production. It’s very spectacular, lovely stage sets in the first act, and surprisingly clever use of video technology (even on the floor) for many of the Chocolate Factory scenes in act two. Im not sure I’d want to see an entire show with video sets, it would never be the same as theatrical stage sets (for want if a better term) but it suited this show very well. I particularly liked how Augustus Gloop fell into the chocolate river , before being sucked up the pipe . The glass elevator could have been flown in on a darkened stage , so we couldn’t see the wires (as mentioned in a previous post), it looked good flying about. Great performances all round , especially Gareth Snook, the Charlie I saw was a little “shouty” but competent. I’m not sure why Mrs Bucket was signing as well as singing beautifully, throughout her performance, and Charlie signing back ? I hope this show does good business on its lengthy tour, it deserves to do so. The ticket prices on tour are considerably higher than in Leeds , as has been noted previously on this thread . I believe it's because the Actress, Leonie Spilsbury, is actually deaf. It's also a nice way of making a bit more of the dialogue more openly accessibly. It's not a deep set, do wonder about how it will feel on a stage like Liverpool Empire or Manchester's Palace. |
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Post by bimse on Dec 15, 2022 22:14:31 GMT
I’ve never seen this musical before, never read the book or seen the films, so had nothing to compare with, but I thoroughly enjoyed this production. It’s very spectacular, lovely stage sets in the first act, and surprisingly clever use of video technology (even on the floor) for many of the Chocolate Factory scenes in act two. Im not sure I’d want to see an entire show with video sets, it would never be the same as theatrical stage sets (for want if a better term) but it suited this show very well. I particularly liked how Augustus Gloop fell into the chocolate river , before being sucked up the pipe . The glass elevator could have been flown in on a darkened stage , so we couldn’t see the wires (as mentioned in a previous post), it looked good flying about. Great performances all round , especially Gareth Snook, the Charlie I saw was a little “shouty” but competent. I’m not sure why Mrs Bucket was signing as well as singing beautifully, throughout her performance, and Charlie signing back ? I hope this show does good business on its lengthy tour, it deserves to do so. The ticket prices on tour are considerably higher than in Leeds , as has been noted previously on this thread . I believe it's because the Actress, Leonie Spilsbury, is actually deaf. It's also a nice way of making a bit more of the dialogue more openly accessibly. It's not a deep set, do wonder about how it will feel on a stage like Liverpool Empire or Manchester's Palace. Thanks og Leonie Spilsbury gives a delightful performance, lovely singer , very well cast . The set will look fine on a bigger stage, I’m sure, it’s a very detailed, full and spectacular set . I thoroughly enjoyed it . |
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Post by Someone in a tree on Dec 22, 2022 9:14:51 GMT
Dull first half and then thankfully it greatly improves. leslie Bricusse is such a good songwriter and embarrassingly outshines Shaiman & Whittman.
Poor sound design and the set relied way too much on projections - what happened to pure imagination?
Gareth Snook was excellent but our Charlie was very screechy.
As a person who signs, I will always welcome this inclusion. However it was impossible to follow as she kept moving about the stage plus she wasnt on stage for most of it ... so what was the point ?
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Post by theatregod on Dec 22, 2022 17:55:10 GMT
Is there a band ?
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Post by Someone in a tree on Dec 22, 2022 18:10:55 GMT
10 playerebtly. apparently. Although the sound wasn't good |
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Post by crabtree on Jan 29, 2023 19:01:18 GMT
Well I loved the crazy, bonkers hard working show last night - and for all the bells and whistles the most impressive effect was the disappearing sausages. How can a regional theatre put on such a spectacle. Great, moralistic, classy stuff.
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Post by matty on Jun 21, 2023 21:42:56 GMT
Saw the opening night in Wimbledon tonight.
The first half is so dull! I mean, who knew it was possible to make Wonka mania boring!! I got used to Charlie being a girl, but I can't really see why it needed to be changed. Wonka was definitely having some difficulty hitting some of the notes in "Must be believed to be seen" (and throughout Act 2).
Act 2 picked up a bit but it all felt very rushed. It also looked so cheap. The chocolate room is an abomination - was there really no budget for some set pieces?
And then the oompa loompas...whoever decided to base the design on the cybermen needs to reconsider their life choices. They're from Loompaland, not some futuristic space station. It also didn't help that one of them was super tall.
The songs in Act 2 are definitely better than Act 1, but I do miss Juicy.
It got quite a good response from the audience though, so maybe it was just me that wasn't overly blown away.
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Post by Mark on Jun 22, 2023 16:20:56 GMT
Saw the matinee today. Lots of school groups in and reaction was generally good.
That said, I found it not to be great, but watchable. The score has some highs, but generally a lot of filler and forgettable numbers. I think the original London production was better.
Having a girl play Charlie actually worked, although her accent was very thick Scottish and difficult to tune into at first. Could certainly hit the notes though.
For a touring production the set is actually pretty good, a lot more elaborate than some other tours out and about at the moment.
But yeah, it’s not one I’d be recommending.
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Post by stevej678 on Jun 22, 2023 16:36:36 GMT
Plenty of availability for Manchester in July. Hopefully some decent offers will be forthcoming!
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