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Post by quine on Jul 12, 2017 9:07:35 GMT
Mr Foxa and I were at tonight's preview. It's an odd beast. An amazing cast - with names you know: Ron Cook, Shirley Henderson, Ciaran Hinds, Jim Norton, Stanley Townsend and some superb actors/musicians who you may not know. It is set in Bob Dylan's home town, Duluth, Minnesota, in a just-surviving boarding house struggling through the Depression in 1934. The family that runs it, Nick (Hinds), his adoptive daughter (Sheila Atim), his hard-drinking, dreamy son (an excellent Sam Reid - had a touch of the James Norton about him) and his wife who is suffering from dementia (Shirley Henderson - who sang impressively but had an irritating 'look at me' drama school Ophelia quality)and their boarders, most of whom are fugitives from one thing or another, gather for a Thanksgiving meal...The singing, the onstage musicians and some of the scenes were great, but McPherson is trying to tell so many different stories, while shoehorning in the Dylan songs, it didn't always work in the way that I suspect he hoped it would. In particular there was a scene between two characters in whom we had invested almost nothing previously who did not seem to have earned their long 9.30 p.m. scene, whereas Ron Cook had very, very little to do.. However, for me - when it did work, it was spine-tingling. However, Mr Foxa was considerably less impressed in a 'what was that all about?' way. 4* from me. You have summed up my feelings exactly. For a moment I thought it was James Norton. A great night at the theatre but I do love a play with songs so I may be biased. |
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Post by lynette on Jul 12, 2017 16:37:36 GMT
Songs? My cup runneth over. And at the tube by 10.15? Marvellous. Seeing Sat.
ps Parsely, you booked this?
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Post by liverpool54321 on Jul 12, 2017 22:35:30 GMT
Saw tonight's preview and thought it was wonderful. Helps if you like Bob Dylan but the arrangements are so good I guess this doesn't matter. For me Shirley Henderson was outstanding - had goosebumps when she sang Like A Rolling Stone, and as for her dance moves - boy can she move those hips!
I can see why people found the story lines hard to keep track of, but having been forewarned by this forum I made sure I stayed alert and managed to follow every detail. I was on the tube by 10.10 so it's definitely running just under 2hrs 30m at the moment.
Will go again towards end of the run.
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Post by showgirl on Jul 13, 2017 3:52:19 GMT
The West End Whingers have awarded this 4 on their blog (they have a wine glass, not star system); I particularly liked the comment about enjoying Dylan's songs without his irritating voice! Seeing it Saturday so hope I can stay awake as 2 h 30 is still a bit long for me in the evening slot.
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Post by barelyathletic on Jul 13, 2017 9:37:37 GMT
Wow! I loved this. So beautiful. The performances are terrific, the writing subtle and truthful and the music, well, it just blew me away. Channelling Steinbeck and Carson McCullers,Conor McPherson has written a play that captures perfectly the mood of the times, both past and present, with characters that you really care about. And Bob Dylan's songs add another deep and hauntingly beautiful layer. Would go again in a flash. A truely original work of art and an absolute triumph.
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Post by lynette on Jul 13, 2017 21:00:37 GMT
O yummy
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Post by Ruby Sue on Jul 14, 2017 8:27:01 GMT
I echo those on here that loved it, even from our terrible restricted view dress circle seats! Beautifully sung arrangements of Dylan songs & when Shirley Hendersen sung Forever Young I was just gone!!  |
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Post by liverpool54321 on Jul 14, 2017 18:54:07 GMT
There are 20 songs used in the show according to the programme. At what point does it become a musical?
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Post by foxa on Jul 14, 2017 19:03:45 GMT
There are 20 songs used in the show according to the programme. At what point does it become a musical? That's a good question. The music isn't used in a way to explicitly further the story - sometimes a lyric will resonate with a situation, sometimes not. McPherson has created an atmosphere of a room/pub/village hall in which there are musicians and a story is being enacted, but sometimes the relationship between the two is loose. It's more like part concert/part play. |
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Post by fossil on Jul 14, 2017 22:56:15 GMT
For me the music was not used intelligently. It is a play. Then they drag some mike stands on (even though everyone is already wearing a microphone) and perform a song as in a concert. Mike stands back to the side and it becomes a play again. I like a play with music to be directed so that the music occurs naturally with the flow of the piece as a whole so this did not work for me. However most of the audience seemed to love the show so I guess my view is a minority one. I did notice about half a dozen people in the rows near me left at the interval.
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Post by Marwood on Jul 15, 2017 14:36:55 GMT
Sorry, I have to say I wasn't that impressed with this - the songs were all extremely well performed (and I'm saying this as someone who is not that much of a Dylan fan, but thankfully no one tried to do an impersonation of him when they were singing the songs) but they didn't seem to fit in with the storyline - it was a waste of an extremely talented cast as far as I'm concerned, but I'm guessing that this is a test run for Broadway which will probably lap this up regardless of who is in it.
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Post by lynette on Jul 15, 2017 22:25:32 GMT
Where have you been all my life, Sheila Atim?
Sorry, guys above me in the thread, I loved this. The songs add a layer and DO connect with the script. CMcP has the knack of creating characters you can believe in and feel for, he avoids the trite solutions, just on this side of sentimental and his themes of guilt, loss, yearning etc all come through here. Brilliant cast. Jim Norton makes it look easy but the depth in that speech he makes is amazing. And Shirley Henderson, wowsers.
Standing ovation from more or less the whole house. Including me.
Let the discussion continue.
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Post by showgirl on Jul 15, 2017 22:47:19 GMT
Foxa is right about this being a strange beast but how compelling: despite its length I sat there hooked and could have listened to twice as many songs. The music was tremendous and the songs themselves were a revelation to me, performed by people who could genuinely sing and with decent orchestration - I'd almost go back just for that aspect, though the acting was great, too, Shirley Henderson aside. (She always seems to me to play Shirley Henderson and to look the same regardless of the role, but yes, her twerking was something to behold.)
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Post by Deleted on Jul 15, 2017 23:00:49 GMT
Foxa is right about this being a strange beast but how compelling: despite its length I sat there hooked and could have listened to twice as many songs. The music was tremendous and the songs themselves were a revelation to me, performed by people who could genuinely sing and with decent orchestration - I'd almost go back just for that aspect, though the acting was great, too, Shirley Henderson aside. (She always seems to me to play Shirley Henderson and to look the same regardless of the role, but yes, her twerking was something to behold.) Shirley Henderson hasn't changed in thirty years (see below from 1987). Really looking forward to this in a few weeks. |
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Post by lynette on Jul 15, 2017 23:27:07 GMT
A maz img
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Post by showgirl on Jul 16, 2017 5:12:15 GMT
I would LOVE a recording of the music as performed by the cast - and I've never had any interest in that sort of thing before, play-with-songs or musical - that's my endorsement of the musical content.
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Post by Polly1 on Jul 17, 2017 10:19:19 GMT
Where have you been all my life, Sheila Atim? Sorry, guys above me in the thread, I loved this. The songs add a layer and DO connect with the script. CMcP has the knack of creating characters you can believe in and feel for, he avoids the trite solutions, just on this side of sentimental and his themes of guilt, loss, yearning etc all come through here. Brilliant cast. Jim Norton makes it look easy but the depth in that speech he makes is amazing. And Shirley Henderson, wowsers. Standing ovation from more or less the whole house. Including me. Let the discussion continue. I saw this last Thursday and have been pondering what to post but Lynette has summed up my feelings almost exactly. I booked for the cast and writer, recognised very very few of the songs (Like a Rolling Stone, the snippet of the Adele one), but the performances were amazing. The singing style seemed very 'straight' and non-Americanised, which made the vocals so affecting. Considering the script must have been condensed to allow for the songs, McPherson does brilliantly to flesh out the many characters and plot strands, helped by superb acting from the whole cast. I thought the ending was particularly wonderful - I cried and I ovated, two things I very rarely do. I can see this being a big hit with the critics and transferring. But I would like to have heard Ciaran Hinds sing! |
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Post by noboiscout on Jul 17, 2017 16:27:18 GMT
Wow! I loved this. So beautiful. The performances are terrific, the writing subtle and truthful and the music, well, it just blew me away. Channelling Steinbeck and Carson McCullers,Conor McPherson has written a play that captures perfectly the mood of the times, both past and present, with characters that you really care about. And Bob Dylan's songs add another deep and hauntingly beautiful layer. Would go again in a flash. A truely original work of art and an absolute triumph.
Happy to agree. So good to see something which was original - and yes it is a strange beast, but compelling stage work. I can see why some of the boarders on here may not like it, as it does fall between different blocks - not a musical, and not just a play. The songs don't tell the story, but definitely fit into the story. Possibly a bit like Lazarus, but the blend of music and play is better executed here.
Of course it helps having a great cast - familiar (Irish) faces from other McPherson plays - plus others you may not have seen before, but all great in their respective roles.
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Post by jadnoop on Jul 17, 2017 18:52:11 GMT
Really happy that the feedback is so positive for this so far.
I booked this on a whim back in December when it was first announced. I normally try to be a little careful before booking tickets, and I'm not a particularly big fan of Dylan's music so not quite sure what compelled me to book. I think I just saw the writer of the film 'I Went Down', and snapped up tickets in the haze of finishing a paper.
I was steeling myself for a bit of a dud, but am really looking forward to it now.
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Post by nash16 on Jul 18, 2017 21:59:20 GMT
Well this is just outstanding. And how is it Previews? It's so ready. Went tonight with two others who felt the same. Like stepping back in time and getting to hear the most beautiful music and watch the most effortless acting. The whole ensemble excel, with Sheila Atim, Shirley Henderson, Arinze Kene, and Jack Shalloo all standouts. The orchestrator deserves an Olivier for what he has done with Dylan's music. Likewise McPherson for his beautiful tale which, mercifully, creates a story wonderfully original, rather than the biopic road. I think it's going to be a massive hit, and definitely has a future life, if not in the West End, then on Broadway. The vibe is very Once. Which Enda Walsh did the stage story script for I think. These Irish writers...Amazing. Definitely returning later in the run. Wow.
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Post by blobble84 on Jul 19, 2017 7:58:30 GMT
What a beautiful piece of theatre. The songs feel perfectly woven into the show, and Sheila Atim has a real spine tingling voice.
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Post by terrylondon79 on Jul 19, 2017 19:50:07 GMT
At the interval of this now... good show but disturbed by the audience laughing at the depictions of mental illness. Why does this seem to happen so much at he theatre nowadays....? Is it because people always seem to assume no mayyrr what they are watching its a comedy, and laugh to make it look like they 'get it'
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Post by nash16 on Jul 20, 2017 6:45:41 GMT
At the interval of this now... good show but disturbed by the audience laughing at the depictions of mental illness. Why does this seem to happen so much at he theatre nowadays....? Is it because people always seem to assume no matter what they are watching its a comedy, and laugh to make it look like they 'get it' I wouldn't be too disturbed by it. The laughter you are talking about comes when a dementia sufferer voices her thoughts on a person with learning difficulties's very first line in the play, announcing him as such to us, and in turn voiceing thoughts we MIGHT have in our heads at that moment. Confusion + a well worded line = laughter. This show is highlighting mental illness in a quite beautiful way in my opinion, and is one of the many strands it addresses. |
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Post by Phantom of London on Jul 22, 2017 17:33:18 GMT
On my way to the show now, from Leicester and I normally avoid reading reviews before hand, but read these ones as was looking for the running time and have to say it wetted my appetite.
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Post by argon on Jul 23, 2017 8:33:53 GMT
Some truly outstanding vocal performances but the book just didn't come close in fact it felt like you were watching two productions a tribute concert to Bob Dylan and a play by Conor McPherson, I preferred the former.
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