42nd Street - A New Production - London & Tour

[westended]

May 26, 2023 10:26:33 GMT robertb213 said:

May 26, 2023 10:07:42 GMT westended said:

Does anyone have a list of the orchestra in this production?

I do - 4 reeds, 3 trumpets, 2 trombones, 1 French horn, 1 double bass, and drums.

Relatively close to the original orchestration then! (bar one or two players)

[drowseychap]

I saw this Monday at the curve … came to the west end version pretty late but then LOVED it went 4 times it was top class spectacular…. Now I knew this wouldn’t be as spectacular of course but disappointment would be an understatement up to £60 each I only paid £15-20 each time in London ……
I’m confused 🫤 by the comments on the staircase , there was no staircase finale ?? Biggest disappointment of the night I kept thinking right ok surely they must come back on … yesssss surely …. But nope no toe tapping line of dancers it was all just dancing across the stage 😳😳😳😳 the finale was a damp squib
I thought the lead billy was very talented but looked a little old for the role , Ruthie was ok but yep played it like Norma Desmond character …. And les Dennis ?? Why ? He didn’t look well but bumbled through even shuffle off to buffalo a favourite in London was just wasted here .

For me even though I’d seen it 4 times and 2 extra in the cinema there seemed to be bits missing in this production. Parts of the story were not very clear

I did like the overall design and look of the show didn’t look cheap costumes pretty good too …….. except for the dressing room which looked naff. Them blinking 2 sets of steps were swung round that stage more times than in SpongeBob the musical !!!!

Then when . The opportunity came to use them for the finale you know the iconic walk down we wait all night for …. they put them away

2 stars ⭐️ only sadly I’d really hoped for more

[aliwag]

Went to see this on Saturday at Curve & really enjoyed it. Yes, there were a few naff bits, but the dancing was excellent. I sat upstairs & so wonder if that view helped as I know theatre have been some comments the stage looks a bit empty. Sound, lighting & costumes were fab (apart from the ladies being dressed to look like men in drag in the last number for some reason) & the band were brilliant.

[Dr Tom]

Wow, incredible! Having seen the Theatre Royal Drury Lane production a large number of times, then seen some less impressive productions since, I was worried this wouldn't match expectations. But this is really excellent and I got chills from the first note.

I was a bit worried about Nicole-Lily Baisden being in the lead role. Anything Goes wasn't an excellent match for her style, but she can really dance, and it showed here.

My other concern was which version of the show they'd use. It's a different book to the Theatre Royal Drury Lane production, and they haven't kept Boulevard, so I was waiting and hoping that one of my favourite songs, Plenty of Money, would still be there. Thankfully it was.

There isn't a great deal of flexibility to innovate 42nd Street. I'm assuming that the dance routines are largely contractual, although a production like this does have to operate on a lower budget than the previous production. In many ways, this suits the Pretty Lady sequences, which rely a lot on curtains, backdrops and hand moved set pieces. It also means that the Curve wasn't able to change this beyond recognition, so we still have the nice gentle musical we all love, with a very limited plot, but excellent dancing and singing.

I don't really understand the staircase comments. The staircase is used during great effect during the 42nd Street number. Unlike Drury Lane, it remains on the stage. It isn't used for the final We're In The Money reprise, as everyone dances around it, but otherwise the dance sequence is largely as the previous production, just working around the large obstacle on the stage.

I saw the previous production from the front Stalls all but one time, when I ended up in the Circle (and vowed never again). For today's matinee, I could only get Rush in the Circle. I don't usually like being so far back, but the view is clear, sound is excellent (when not disturbed by people talking over the orchestra), and it does help that this is a much smaller show (a much smaller female ensemble, although a slightly larger male ensemble).

It's always a joy to see Alyn Hawke in a lead role, although being a Jordan Crouch fan, it would be great to see his cover of Andy Lee. The cast is generally very strong, but I did miss having Chris Howell as Bert Barry.

My regret is this has sold really well and deserves a London run (or a return at the end of the tour). I'd like to see this from the front, but ticket prices are most definitely not cheap. It's also in town at the same time as the other big dance musical (Newsies) where I've been spending a fair amount of time. So I don't know how easy it will be for me to get back. Catching this on tour looks like a much more realistic option.

[42ndBlvd]

Jun 10, 2023 21:25:58 GMT Dr Tom said:

Wow, incredible! Having seen the Theatre Royal Drury Lane production a large number of times, then seen some less impressive productions since, I was worried this wouldn't match expectations. But this is really excellent and I got chills from the first note.

I was a bit worried about Nicole-Lily Baisden being in the lead role. Anything Goes wasn't an excellent match for her style, but she can really dance, and it showed here.

My other concern was which version of the show they'd use. It's a different book to the Theatre Royal Drury Lane production, and they haven't kept Boulevard, so I was waiting and hoping that one of my favourite songs, Plenty of Money, would still be there. Thankfully it was.

There isn't a great deal of flexibility to innovate 42nd Street. I'm assuming that the dance routines are largely contractual, although a production like this does have to operate on a lower budget than the previous production. In many ways, this suits the Pretty Lady sequences, which rely a lot on curtains, backdrops and hand moved set pieces. It also means that the Curve wasn't able to change this beyond recognition, so we still have the nice gentle musical we all love, with a very limited plot, but excellent dancing and singing.

I don't really understand the staircase comments. The staircase is used during great effect during the 42nd Street number. Unlike Drury Lane, it remains on the stage. It isn't used for the final We're In The Money reprise, as everyone dances around it, but otherwise the dance sequence is largely as the previous production, just working around the large obstacle on the stage.

I saw the previous production from the front Stalls all but one time, when I ended up in the Circle (and vowed never again). For today's matinee, I could only get Rush in the Circle. I don't usually like being so far back, but the view is clear, sound is excellent (when not disturbed by people talking over the orchestra), and it does help that this is a much smaller show (a much smaller female ensemble, although a slightly larger male ensemble).

It's always a joy to see Alyn Hawke in a lead role, although being a Jordan Crouch fan, it would be great to see his cover of Andy Lee. The cast is generally very strong, but I did miss having Chris Howell as Bert Barry.

My regret is this has sold really well and deserves a London run (or a return at the end of the tour). I'd like to see this from the front, but ticket prices are most definitely not cheap. It's also in town at the same time as the other big dance musical (Newsies) where I've been spending a fair amount of time. So I don't know how easy it will be for me to get back. Catching this on tour looks like a much more realistic option.

Feel the same way, I thought they made excellent use of their set and did the best they could. I quite liked the new bits they added to the first half of the title song where Billy and Peggy are dancing in what I assume to be a bar? The only criticism I have is that the second half of We’re In The Money is very poorly staged and felt every repetitive.

[justfran]

A decent 4 star review from The Guardian:

www.theguardian.com/stage/2023/jun/15/42nd-street-review-sadlers-wells-london-ruthie-henshall

[justafan]

I saw the matinee today … and LOVED it … it’s not on the scale or as lavish as the Drury Lane production - but you can’t fault the cast/musicians performances and the dancing is second to none.

It was wonderful to see ‘Julian Marsh’ dance both during the show and at the curtain call 😍

[capybara]

My only previous experience of 42nd Street was a BROS amateur production at Richmond back in 2016. My memories were fairly vague but fond, so I was intrigued to see this latest version of the show.

And frankly, I was blown away. The choreo was mesmerising and the orchestra sounded fantastic. This show really does have some great tunes and comedy moments, to say it’s based on a film released 90 odd years ago!

The title number was as epic as I’d hoped. Ruthie was perfect as Dorothy Brock and I was so pleased to see Nicole Lily-Baisden getting more to do than she had in the equally opulent Anything Goes last year. But in general, so much talent up in that stage as shown in the many big dance numbers.

A first visit to Sadler’s Wells for me and I’d be happy to go again. A fine, modern theatre.

I really enjoyed this more than I’d expected. It’s a very high four stars from me. The only thing lacking from 42nd Street is a meaningful plot but that doesn’t matter when what’s on display is so captivating.

[Dr Tom]

After saying I wasn't sure if I would get back or not, I ended up at 42nd Street twice last week. It really is a special show.

I got Rush tickets in the Stalls both times. A hint, as with many shows the first tickets you're offered aren't always the best. But it also depends how flexible you are with dates and if you're willing to miss out on Rush if you turn tickets down.

I struck gold with the Saturday matinee, as Jordan Crouch was on as Andy Lee (he's also captured on the West End Live video in one of the better performances of the weekend). This is the first time I've seen Jordan in a lead role since he left Mountview and I've never understand why he's not a leading man, as he has so many of the qualities expected, being tall, handsome, and an excellent singer and dancer. I did end up at the front, where everything is so immersive, and being surrounded by respectful audience members puts the show on another level.

From the better viewpoint I had, I got to take in more of the ensemble as well. A sound out as well to George Beet, from the Theatre Royal Drury Lane cast, who I'm always pleased to see do well as we grew up in the same part of the country. I was also very impressed by Connor Hughes, who I feel I've had contact with somewhere recently, but I can't quite place where (that's setting aside several shows I've seen that are on his CV). They were short of people for the Saturday matinee and down to six ensemble instead of eight for songs like Shuffle and Plenty of Money, but that didn't hurt things at all.

I suspect I will try again once more next week (especially as Newsies is closed for the week), but I doubt there's anything that will improve on my theatre experience last Saturday. Probably my best afternoon in a theatre of the year so far.

[solangelafitte]

Fully agreed on Jordan Crouch. And equally baffled he hasn't had the opportunity to be a lead in anything yet. He has such a lovely presence. Always found myself watching him whenever he was on stage in Anything Goes and My Fair Lady.

I'll be honest, I hadn't planned to see this because I thought it wouldn't live up to the Drury Lane production but my friend had a spare rush ticket going so I went along. Loved it. Can't say enough good things about it. The set, while small, was very well done and effective. The lighting and sound were great. What an excellent cast. And Les Dennis was there too.

To add to what Dr Tom said about rush tickets - When my friend tried at 10 AM she was originally offered row D of the dress circle. She tried again around 10 minutes later and got centre stalls. We ended up in either J or K. Can't remember which. But a perfect view.

[Mark]

This was wonderful. I got rush in the second row and it was a great view. It’s certainly not as elaborate as what was at drury lane but then nothing will be.
The cast are great, the dancing is top notch and the songs/vocals excellent. A very strong production all around I’d say!

[showgirl]

Also hadn't planned to see this and hadn't been particularly struck by the version I'd previously seen in the West End (the first time I'd ever had an opportunity as for a well-known musical, this hadn't seemed to come round often) but was encouraged by the reviews. However, the prices for Sadlers Wells, plus fees on top - always a bugbear when you're booking a single, cheap, ticket - made it unaffordable so I've booked for one of the subesequent tour dates. The cast will have changed slightly but for £25 I could book what I know to be an excellent stalls seat at Woking, including insurance which now covers rail strikes - the first time I've ever added insurance to any booking but as he rail dispute hasn't yet been resolved, paying a little more seemed worth it rather than risking losing the ticket cost.

[mrbarnaby]

Jun 21, 2023 11:21:00 GMT solangelafitte said:

Fully agreed on Jordan Crouch. And equally baffled he hasn't had the opportunity to be a lead in anything yet. He has such a lovely presence. Always found myself watching him whenever he was on stage in Anything Goes and My Fair Lady.

I'll be honest, I hadn't planned to see this because I thought it wouldn't live up to the Drury Lane production but my friend had a spare rush ticket going so I went along. Loved it. Can't say enough good things about it. The set, while small, was very well done and effective. The lighting and sound were great. What an excellent cast. And Les Dennis was there too.

To add to what Dr Tom said about rush tickets - When my friend tried at 10 AM she was originally offered row D of the dress circle. She tried again around 10 minutes later and got centre stalls. We ended up in either J or K. Can't remember which. But a perfect view.

Jordan Crouch? The one who was also in Anything Goes? His face looks absolutely blank all the time. He might need to learn to act before getting a lead in a musical.

[solangelafitte]

Happily the blank face wasn't my experience, particularly in MFL and 42nd Street, but can understand why you wouldn't be fussed about him if it was yours!


I noticed when looking at tour tickets that Michael Praed isn't listed as Julian Marsh for the final month. Has there been any mention of who that will be? Or do people expect/assume someone from within the company will play the role for the last few stops?

[Dr Tom]

Jun 25, 2023 18:33:09 GMT solangelafitte said:

I noticed when looking at tour tickets that Michael Praed isn't listed as Julian Marsh for the final month. Has there been any mention of who that will be? Or do people expect/assume someone from within the company will play the role for the last few stops?

Despite the dates advertised on the website, it looks as though the tour is continuing. I've spotted it's playing at the Birmingham Hippodrome next year (29 April to 4 May - tickets already on sale). No cast announced.

[solangelafitte]

Jun 25, 2023 20:36:22 GMT Dr Tom said:

Jun 25, 2023 18:33:09 GMT solangelafitte said:

I noticed when looking at tour tickets that Michael Praed isn't listed as Julian Marsh for the final month. Has there been any mention of who that will be? Or do people expect/assume someone from within the company will play the role for the last few stops?

Despite the dates advertised on the website, it looks as though the tour is continuing. I've spotted it's playing at the Birmingham Hippodrome next year (29 April to 4 May - tickets already on sale). No cast announced.

Ooh, that's good to know. Thank you! Might hold off booking another city for the time being then.

[BVM]

Selling ticket for approx 50% off for the Saturday night in Cardiff - see Noticeboard entry and PM me if interested :-)

[shady23]

I saw this ay the weekend, first trip to Sadlers Wells. I am another huge fan of the last production and I loved this! I thought Ruthie Henshall was fantastic and Nicole-Lily Baisden an absolute star.

The staging great. Of course it is the touring version so how could it match the heights of Drury Lane, but they really put on a fantastic spectacle. I very much enjoyed it. Still a really beautiful show.

[dazzlair]

Saw this last night and had a ball. Sure, it's not as grand as the Drury Lane version and it suffers a little from not having that breathtakingly large cast but it's still a joyous and joyful show.

The only bits I missed were the Busby-Berkeleyness of Keep Young and Beautiful and the stupefying encore from the Drury Lane production. Other than that, I thought it was beautifully sung and danced. Nicole-Lilly was cute as a button and I'm so happy she's thrown off the shackles of drip Hope Harcourt (surely one of the most thankless roles around). Strong of voice, her energy never flagged. Star.

Big shout outs to Sam Lips as Billy (boundless energy and what a great singing voice) and Ruthie Henshall who chewed up all the scenery and spat it out. Nothing wrong with her vocals and if up to it, I think she would be the most phenomenal Norma Desmond. Or failing that, the Dowager Countess of Grantham if Downton! The Musical is ever written.

Two weak links for me: Michael Praed and Les Denis. The former seemed ill at ease and fumbled with a few lines. Hard to believe this was the Alex I saw in Aspects of Love all those years ago. In the scene where Peggy bursts into the dressing room to warn Pat about the goons, something seemed to have gone wrong. Maybe a line was forgotten but there was this awkward air between Peggy, Dorothy and Pat before Ruthie rescued the situation. Les Dennis seemed to have wandered in from another show and was just lacking in any sort of charisma or personality.

Other than that I truly enjoyed all the hard work everyone visibly put in.

[Someone in a tree]

les Denis aside this production is fantastic.

loved Nicola-Lilly Baisden and Ruthie and Josephina.

Sure, it's not as big as the previous two Dury Lane productions, and it never claimed to be. Here, I think Rob Jones designs for Pretty Lady are much more stylish, especially in Dames, which was very Magic Flute like. Fab. I love a painted backdrop.

The comedy really landed, the band sounded great and I want the energy of the cast.

If it was on for longer in London then I'd definitely see it again.

[Being Alive]

I went in with pretty low expectations for this actually, knowing some of the cast are a bit ropey and it couldn't possibly match the thrilling heights of Drury Lane but I had a great time!

Sure Ruthie can't really sing anymore, but she's a star and played Brock really well. Adam Garcia was good (and thank god they let him dance in the finale). Really enjoyed Josefina and that she was allowed to tap, and even though Les Dennis is pretty terrible, I was weirdly charmed by him.
I thought Nicole was dreadful in an otherwise perfect Anything Goes in 2021, yet here she really surprised me. She's a super tapper (not Clare Halse level by any stretch but who is) and held her own in those big numbers. She's very much to me an understudy who could play a lead a bit, and not a leading lady, but that's what Peggy is so she worked well for it I thought.

Mostly I was just really impressed with the production! For what is essentially a regional tour, I thought they'd done a pretty fabulous job. Set is really good and clever (I normally hate video projections but I thought they worked well), lovely costumes (obsessed with Henshall's hat) and a great sounding orchestra.
The choreography is so obviously Bill Deamer and I really loved how much you could tell it was his - such a brilliant job of taking inspiration from fantastic routines and making them something new.
Was sad Boulevard of Broken Dreams was removed from the recent London run, but I guess Henshall probably couldn't sing it so they were like...let's cut it.

Strong 4 stars for me, this is a really high quality production for a tour which I thought would be super cheap but definitely isn't.

[42ndBlvd]

I really can't get over how small the cast is. Even the previous tours in 2007 and 2012 which were done on the cheap had a much bigger cast.

[mrbarnaby]

Jul 1, 2023 18:20:20 GMT 42ndBlvd said:

I really can't get over how small the cast is. Even the previous tours in 2007 and 2012 which were done on the cheap had a much bigger cast.

Are you sure?

[42ndBlvd]

Jul 1, 2023 18:24:45 GMT mrbarnaby said:

Jul 1, 2023 18:20:20 GMT 42ndBlvd said:

I really can't get over how small the cast is. Even the previous tours in 2007 and 2012 which were done on the cheap had a much bigger cast.

Are you sure?

Those uk tours reused sets and costumes from the early 2000s Mark Bramble productions (Broadway, Stuttgart, US/Asia tours) which at that point were years old and the backdrops were starting to fade. 

[Steve]

Jul 1, 2023 18:20:20 GMT 42ndBlvd said:

I really can't get over how small the cast is. Even the previous tours in 2007 and 2012 which were done on the cheap had a much bigger cast.

There's 13 pairs of tapping feet at the beginning.

It's pretty amazing how good this is for so few pairs. Only that first number really suffers for it (although the individual performers have so much gusto and charisma) cos the rest of the numbers are so well choreographed and the backdrop, costumes and props are all so colourful! The ensemble is on fire!

Incidentally, this isn't the least tapping feet I've seen in the opening number: the one at Upstairs at the Gatehouse had 9 pairs of tapping feet, I recall, lol.

Ruthie Henshall's Kathleen Turner deep hoarse singing Dorothy Brock may not amount to what she once could do (which of us is what we used to be lol?) but she really is the most charismatic and compelling performer in the production (or maybe joint equal with Sam Lips's Billy Lawlor)! She's really good.