343 posts
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Post by Figaro on Sept 24, 2019 21:27:09 GMT
Does anyone know the running time?
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Post by FrontroverPaul on Sept 24, 2019 22:17:32 GMT
My reminder email for Ipswich tomorrow states Act One 1 hour 20 minutes, 20 minute interval, Act Two 1 hour 10 minutes.
So just shy of 3 hours overall.
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Post by FrontroverPaul on Sept 25, 2019 12:23:52 GMT
I've got as far as Colchester and train is delayed indefinitely here due to overhead line damage from a tree ahead. Very unlikely I'll get there by 2.30. Can't even turn round and go home as another show booked for tonight. Always a possibility with public transport but gutted it's happening today with a front row seat booked 😢
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343 posts
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Post by Figaro on Sept 25, 2019 17:47:53 GMT
Saw the afternoon show.
The theatre had signs up saying it finished at 5, but it was closer to 5.15.
The character of Pop has been totally eliminated. Not sure how long it has been like that as I didn’t see it in London in the last year or two.
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Post by xanady on Sept 25, 2019 18:16:56 GMT
Did you make it,paul26?...I was willing you to get there on time.
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14 posts
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Post by onair on Sept 25, 2019 18:28:06 GMT
Saw the afternoon show. The theatre had signs up saying it finished at 5, but it was closer to 5.15. The character of Pop has been totally eliminated. Not sure how long it has been like that as I didn’t see it in London in the last year or two. How was the set / staging etc is it as bad as the video review mentioned ? |
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343 posts
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Post by Figaro on Sept 25, 2019 21:15:19 GMT
It’s all video screens, very minimal actual set or props.
It’s not the bad, everyone was loving it, it’s already on sale for a second stint at Ipswich, but it can’t be compared to the original.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 25, 2019 21:19:10 GMT
lThe character of Pop has been totally eliminated. How do they deal with that element of the "plot" then? Has Days of Our Lives been cut? |
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343 posts
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Post by Figaro on Sept 25, 2019 22:06:13 GMT
No it’s still there, it’s sung by a different character. I don’t want to give too much away, but the part of Buddy and Pop have been combined.
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Post by FrontroverPaul on Sept 26, 2019 0:52:37 GMT
Did you make it,paul26?...I was willing you to get there on time. Yes I did. Train arrived at Ipswich almost an hour late at 2pm. No taxis, walked the mile to the theatre in 15 minutes and had picked up my ticket and sat down by 2.25. All too stressful but so happy and relieved I made it Act 1 was 1 hour 15 minutes, interval almost 25 minutes, Act 2 was 1 hour. Started a few minutes late and finished as Figaro says just before 5.15. I enjoyed it as much as I did the original production. I thought the staging was as good as can be expected for a touring production, visiting venues far smaller than the Dominion. Some changes to the script, mainly updated pop culture references, but broadly as I recall it. The video screens and projections are very effective and there's adequate props. Strong cast, especially, I thought, Killer Queen and Galileo. All the hits are there of course. Audience loved it. It will fill venues and could tour almost indefinitely. Regional theatre needs crowd-pleasing wide appeal shows like We Will Rock You at a time when a lot of musicals seem to be under-performing. I predict it will rival The Boys for commercial success and a West End run will eventually follow. |
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Post by Deleted on Oct 7, 2019 20:54:11 GMT
Does anyone know what audiences can be like for this? I’m going on Saturday night but I’m a bit worried that etiquette will be poor, e.g. folk singing along. I particularly want to see Elena belt out her song, and I’ll be so disappointed if the audience choose to sing over her.
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3,307 posts
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Post by david on Oct 7, 2019 21:00:47 GMT
Does anyone know what audiences can be like for this? I’m going on Saturday night but I’m a bit worried that etiquette will be poor, e.g. folk singing along. I particularly want to see Elena belt out her song, and I’ll be so disappointed if the audience choose to sing over her. From my own experience of watching WWRY over the years,the audiences generally weren’t too bad (compared to Mamma Mia! anyway!). Mainly sang along with Bo Rap if anything. |
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8 posts
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Post by fionamac on Oct 8, 2019 18:59:31 GMT
Does anyone know what audiences can be like for this? I’m going on Saturday night but I’m a bit worried that etiquette will be poor, e.g. folk singing along. I particularly want to see Elena belt out her song, and I’ll be so disappointed if the audience choose to sing over her. I was there last night. There was a small group in the stalls that tried but didn't continue when others didn't join in. Audience clapping participation encouraged from stage during some songs and bo rap singing at the end. You should hear Elena no bother - she can belt out a song |
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61 posts
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Post by TheatreTwittic on Oct 8, 2019 20:09:45 GMT
Saw the afternoon show. The theatre had signs up saying it finished at 5, but it was closer to 5.15. The character of Pop has been totally eliminated. Not sure how long it has been like that as I didn’t see it in London in the last year or two. How was the set / staging etc is it as bad as the video review mentioned ? I do enjoy listening to these reviews. For all the wrong reasons |
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Post by Deleted on Oct 13, 2019 2:12:14 GMT
Amazing show tonight (or last night) While the show isn’t the biggest visual spectacle, they sure have cast well. Ian was outstanding as Galileo - if you closed your eyes he genuinely did sound like Freddie. Elena was amazing as expected as Scara. Similar portrayal to her Eponine - sulky and angry. Somebody to Love brought the house down. Jenny really surprised me as KQ. I just hadn’t expected her to have such a big voice but she nailed those songs. Amy Di Bartolomeo was also a standout as Oz, and the ensemble were on point, I guess as it’s so early into the tour.
Minimal complaints about the audience. The only songs where I hesrd any singing were Don’t Stop Me Now and obviously the finale.
Overheard an amusing conversation in the row behind me regarding ATG’s ice cream prices and suppliers. “9 f*cking quid and it isnae even Haggen Dasz”. It sounded even funnier in a thick Edinburgh accent.
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Post by justfran on Oct 17, 2019 19:10:45 GMT
I saw the show this week in Newcastle and sad to say I was really disappointed. Couldn't help comparing it to previous tours and the West End version, which were all far superior. The set was mainly all done on the LED screens (not great) and the few other bits of set seemed to shake, things didn't always fit together properly when constantly being moved around/brought on and off. Elena as Scaramouche and Amy as Oz were by far the best performers, great singers. Not much chemistry between Gallileo and Scaramouche. Often it sounded like the band were drowning out the singing (particularly Killer Queen). A couple of people in our row left about 20 minutes after it started. A few dozen stood up at the end but no full standing ovation which I've usually seen at this show. Hopefully it may improve as the tour progresses.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 21, 2019 20:13:05 GMT
Announced for Wimbledon in July if there are any people in London wanting to go.
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2,679 posts
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Post by viserys on Oct 28, 2019 22:46:11 GMT
Well, I've just come out of the show here in Dublin and I loved it. Must say, it's been so long that I saw the original version that I've forgotten most about it, so can't really compare. And people who know me know that I've been trying to adopt WWRY as a substitute drug for Bat out of Hell and THAT sure as hell doesn't work. None of the songs are anywhere near the amazing spectacle of that one, but on the other hand, did it help Bat to shift tickets? Not really.
So... I didn't mind the LED screens, in fact I thought they worked very well both for the futuristic setting of the show and for the music video aesthetic of the QUEEN hits, especially in A Kind of Magic and One Vision. And while there were no carpenters at work here with hammer and saw, amazing video artwork like this doesn't come cheap either, so to me the et didn't feel cheap at all. The few proper props/set bits that were in use WERE rather wonky and wobbly though.
The cast was uniformly amazing, not a weak link there with big voices all around and Ian McIntosh and Elena Skye a very loveable leading duo. The atmosphere in the sold out Bord Gais Energy Theatre (what a lovely theatre, too!) was terrific with everyone clapping and waving along to We Will Rock You and We Are The Champions.
Call me a sad old bag, but I much prefer this kind of show with terrific rock songs, that leaves you walking out of the theatre with a big fat smile to all these new bland forgettable pop scores and plots firmly aimed at teenagers. I won't be able to catch this tour again in the near future, but personally I really think it's worth going if you like good rock music.
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217 posts
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Post by zsazsa on Nov 2, 2019 19:49:15 GMT
Saw the tour this afternoon and was a bit disappointed to be honest.
The book has never been cutting edge and the revisions go someway to making it relevant for today’s audiences (the idea that we all live our lives online) but this could go even further.
The leads sang well but I found the acting (with exception of Buddy) somewhat stilted.
The choreography was not on a par with Arlene Phillip’s original.
I looked forward to the projections but ended up making the show look cheap. The live video feeds are poor quality. The motorbike is embarrassing and is pushed off by stage crew in full view of audience.
Also, One Vision at the start of Act 2 is no longer sung by the Gaga kids. I have no idea what the ensemble we supposed to be.
The killer queen scenes lack the flamboyance of previous production.
I wish the re-imagined version had re-designed the marketing as I had expected to see the version that had previously toured.
Won’t be revisiting this version in a hurry.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 2, 2019 20:15:19 GMT
pushed off by stage crew in full view of audience. Thought this was just a mishap that happened at the performance I saw! |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 3, 2019 19:38:22 GMT
Saw the tour this afternoon and was a bit disappointed to be honest. The book has never been cutting edge and the revisions go someway to making it relevant for today’s audiences (the idea that we all live our lives online) but this could go even further. The leads sang well but I found the acting (with exception of Buddy) somewhat stilted. The choreography was not on a par with Arlene Phillip’s original. I looked forward to the projections but ended up making the show look cheap. The live video feeds are poor quality. The motorbike is embarrassing and is pushed off by stage crew in full view of audience. Also, One Vision at the start of Act 2 is no longer sung by the Gaga kids. I have no idea what the ensemble we supposed to be. The killer queen scenes lack the flamboyance of previous production. I wish the re-imagined version had re-designed the marketing as I had expected to see the version that had previously toured. Won’t be revisiting this version in a hurry. Oh dear, this doesn't sound great. This is being produced by the same company as OFAH (Phil McIntyre) and if that is anything to go by, I shall not be seeing this anytime soon. I agree using the same marketing is deceiving. |
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5,149 posts
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Post by Being Alive on Nov 3, 2019 19:41:25 GMT
I suspected with Phil McIntyre being attached to this that it was going to be pretty poor.
We weren't ever going to get the spectacle of the Dominion production but I'd hoped for better than this...!
I'll probably still go on a cheap seat, as the show has personal value (was the final show I did at school so I have a soft spot for it!)
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172 posts
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Post by Sean on Nov 3, 2019 20:53:36 GMT
I saw this last night. I have always liked We Will Rock You, it is a bit of a guilty pleasure so I was always going to go see it. Hearing those songs live is always such a treat but that really is where the treats stop with this production.
Physical set is non existent. There is a number of LED screens and some very small set pieces which are really flimsy.
The visuals used were nothing special in my opinion and lighting ques were missed.
This is also is the poorest cast production of WWRY in my opinion. Ian McIntosh, Adam Strong, Amy Di Bartolomeo & Ensemble member Emily Olive Boyd really stood out but after that quality was poor. Elena Skye has an amazing voice but she fails massively in delivering the comedy one liners and the laughs are just not there. The less said about David Michael Johnson the better. Jenny O’Leary feels really miscast here. She doesnt have the dominance Killer Queen requires and her walking back and forth during every one of her numbers got quite boring.
The choreography on this production is woefully poor, cringy in places. You really are left longing for the Arlene Phillips choreography.
It was a sell out in Dublin and sure it will be in most cities but this is a really poor production. Great to hear the songs live and the band are super but that's it.
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Post by floorshow on Nov 11, 2019 13:42:54 GMT
Caught this last weekend. Lots of corpsing as it went on, couldn't say if it was scripted or not but the audience were eating it up and it looked like genuine fun on stage. It did take a while to take off but the songs just make it indestructible.
The digital set worked despite the rickety steps that clearly had a stage hand holding them in place. A bit of clumsy banging during one scene transition but the motorcycle exit was deftly handled by Buddy Holly with a wink.
Hated it in the Dominion but on tour it's the perfect combination of cheese and ham.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 17, 2019 12:14:37 GMT
Is it just me or did "Who Wants to Live Forever?" and the "Flash" and "Seven Seas of Rhye" section used to be the other way around? I remember when One Vision ended I thought they had cut WWTLF as I clearly remember it coming first in the previous version.
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