HairyDads&Co: Beefy Irish: Andy Lee

Irish Beef Andy Lee is actually Lee Andrews. It can get confusing if a site miss 

lables a guy.

The Wiz is Wondrous

Well I got a chance to chat with friend of The Matinee Tony and Grammy Award winner Alex Lacamoire when I went to see The Wiz which is playing at New York City Center as part of their summer Encore series. Alex as the musical director, along with Thomas Kail, director, and Andy Blankenbuehler, choreographer, has brought something very special to the New York stage. These three worked together in the same capacities on In the Heights which won the Tony for Best Musical in 2008. I call them the holy trinity. It seems everything they touch is golden. (Alex also worked with Andy on the dance arrangements for 9 to 5 which is currently on Broadway.)

The Wiz performers are electric. There's not a slacker on the stage. Not that there weren't standouts. Grammy winning singer Ashanti makes her NY stage debut as Dorothy. She plays the part with childish innocence. I thought she played it graciously low key, leaving the big performances for those playing stronger characters. Her voice is angelic, a joy to the ears. The big performances are by LaChanze who plays Aunt Em and Glinda the Good Witch, Dawnn Lewis as Addaperle the Good Witch of the North and Tichina Arnold as Evillene The Wicked Witch of the West. All give incredible performances and own the stage. And the gorgeous Orlando Jones as the Wizard is a neon green bundle of energy. The Scarecrow (Christian Dante White), Tinman (Joshua Henry) and Lion (James Monroe Iglehart) are all well-cast. One other performance that stood out for me was Juson Williams as the Gatekeeper. He steals the scene as he pompously hands out the green glasses to Dorothy, the Scarecrow, Tinman and Lion as they enter the Emerald City. It's a small part but very memorable. He also plays one of the adorable Munchkins who wear inverted laundry baskets covered with the laundry that has blown in from the tornado. The laundry baskets conceal stools that enable these average-size actors to move freely on stage and appear munchkin-size. They also wear fright wigs adorned with clothespins. And the yellow brick road is depicted by the dancers wearing yellow high tops. All very clever. The choreography is spectacular. Andy Blankenbuehler is the new Fosse. His work has such a modern signature look to it. I would say he's probably my favorite living Broadway choreographer. The tornado ballet is absolutely amazing with the dancers embodying the storm. And not only is he good at creating the moves, he's great at casting his dancers who are the cream of the crop, including one of the finalists from last year's tv show "So You Think You Can Dance" the fabulous Will (William B. Wingfield). The score is wonderful including "Ease on Down the Road", "Everybody Rejoice" and "Home". And our Alex conducts on an elevated platform and is on stage throughout the show. I've said it before, I'll say it again, he is one of the nicest show biz people I've ever met. One of the nicest people I've ever met, period. I can only wish for him an incredible career.

It's a shame that this is a limited engagement since it's one of the best musicals I've seen in recent months. It's definitely Broadway-worthy and hopefully we will be seeing it there. I would love to take my daughter to see it. I did take my 11 year old friend, Evan, and he loved it. (There are pictures of Evan with Alex, Ashanti and Juson on The Matinee Gallery, page 16.) So if you're planning a trip to NY between now and July 5th, run and get your tickets before it whizzes on down the road.

Haunted at the Royal Exchange

This is a brand new play. We went in to this one with an air of excitement as quite by chance we bumped in to friend of the show, Sue Jenkins, who told up she had heard it was excellent. It would appear her sources were spot on. The stage was constructed out of a perspex allowing some interesting projections and uplighting. The theatre is set in the round at the Royal Exchange which must have set someo challenges as there is i full size door in the plot. They got around this by. . Yes you guessed it. . . Making it out of perspex. The outer ring of the stage revolved and proved very effective as a platform for introducing the characters to the right stage position. There are quite a few extra bits hidden but i will let you spot them yourself when you see it. The play itself has a great mix of comedy and serious moments. Brenda Blethyn is superb in her role as an ex housewife thats finds herself having to be the main bread winner. The story twists and turns right up to the last minute leaving you with the feeling that you understood it but dont ask me to explain it. All the cast were superb. This one is a must see.

Songs of sister act is nuntastic

Rowetta starred in this concert style musical. The london community gospel choir were outstanding. The whole show has had a revamp with more audience participation, including a rather funny segment where three nuns get up and sing from the audience. Ok maybe i should explain that you are encouraged to come dressed as nuns. Rowetta is a very generous performer. Costantly bigging up the whole cast but she does stand out with a superb voice that sent shivers down my spine. A word of warning. If you go expecting to be sitting down for most of the show you will be in for a shock. The audience was up on their feet before the first number was up. And the interval was a chance to sit down and rest. Madame Aries seemed to enjoy herself and i dont know who sang more. Her or the people on stage. Strongly recomended

High school musical at the lowry

It was cheesey kitch and a bit silly. But they do all of the above very well. The sound was a bit off but the audience of mainly youngsters loved it. Actually it was very entertaining. High energy wins over high art when disney comes to town. Go and see it and try not to smile.

Updating the Matinee technology

As part of our ongoing comittment to being the best and the first to bring you reviews, from monday we will be testing a remote solution to these blogs. Please bear with up as we implement this tech

West Side Story 2009

It's been 52 years since the then 40ish year old Arthur Laurents wrote the book for West Side Story. This time the 91 year old has also directed it. I've seen the movie countless times, know the entire score backwards and forwards so there's a special place in my heart for this play which takes place in the gang-ridden streets of New York City in the 1950's depicting the turf wars between the Anglo Jets and the Puerto Rican Sharks and the impact it has on the Anglo Tony and the Puerto Rican Maria who are torn between ethnic loyalty and intense love for each other.

I'll cut to the chase. Is it good? Yes. Does it live up to the original? Not exactly. I'll start with what I loved about it. The original Jerome Robbins choreography was lovingly recreated by Joey McNeeley, himself a Robbins protege, and is as breath-taking as ever. The dancers are superb. I loved Karen Olivo as Anita. She's one of those electrifying presences like Idina Menzell or Kristin Chenoweth, people who you would go to see in anything. The Leonard Bernstein/Stephen Sondheim score is one of the best ever written. The sets of the mean streets of NY are fabulous. Where I feel it falls short is the casting for the most part. I'm not going to point fingers, but aside from Karen Olivo and a couple of the Puerto Rican girls, the singing and speaking voices were not strong or dynamic enough. The original Broadway cast album is so imprinted in my mind that I couldn't help but compare the voices with those of the original cast. And the songs and dialogue in Spanish are a mistake in my opinion. While the use of Spanish is an earnest attempt at making it more authentic, the audience, especially those not familiar with the story, lose a lot. My husband said he wished the pajama party scene in Maria's bedroom had been in English. He said he thought it was probably very funny but most of the audience didn't know what was going on. Two of the songs were done in Spanish as well. "I Feel Pretty" and "A Boy Like That". "A Boy Like That" was sung by Anita to Maria chiding her about the love for this man who just killed her brother. Those were important lyrics to the story.

Should you see it? Absolutely, it's classic Broadway. There's more good about it than bad. Jerry, Jade and I all enjoyed it very much, even with the flaws. But after you see West Side Story, go see "In the Heights" which is a more relevant look into the lives of Latino immigrants in the New York City of today. Sure, there still are the occasional turf wars but New Yorkers are so used to new and different ethnicities moving in and most of us have embraced the differences. To me, it's one of the things that makes New York City so wonderful, the diversity.

Sherie Renee Scott is Ravishing in Everyday Rapture

I sure hope Sherie Renee Scott doesn't have any plans after May 31st when the limited run of Everyday Rapture at off-Broadway's Second Stages ends because this phenomenal play, in my opinion, is Broadway-bound. How do I describe it? It's a musical but not a musical. It's a play with music. That's probably the best description but not like any play with music I've ever seen. It's a one-woman show with a cast of four. Sherie Renee Scott wrote this semi-autobiographical piece with Dick Scanlon, who previously wrote the book and lyrics to Thoroughly Modern Millie. Miss Scott plays herself with Lindsay Mendez and Betsy Wolf playing her backup singers/quasi-spiritual leaders, The Mennonettes, and Eamon Foley playing broadwayislove09@earthlink.net, a 15 year old obsessed with musical theatre who posts a video of himself on youtube lip-synching to Sherie Renee Scott singing "My Strongest Suit" from Aida in which she starred as Princess Amneris. But it's mostly Miss Scott taking the audience anecdotally through her life from her rural Kansas childhood to her adult life in Manhattan through soliloquy and parodies of familiar songs from Judy Garland's "Dear Mr. Gable" to George Harrison's "Give Me Love". And she does it brilliantly. How much of it is true and how much is artistic license, one doesn't know for sure but who cares. This is great theatre. She tells of her childhood growing up half-Mennonite (the lower half) with some of her fondest memories watching Judy Garland movies with her full-Mennonite cousin Jerome who was later shunned by this branch of the Christian church historically known as a peace church given their commitment to nonviolence and pacifism. Then to her 27 year Rumspringer (the time in which Mennonite young adults are permitted to "experience the real world" before deciding to join the church) in Manhattan where she discovers what it really means to live.

I didn't realize until I was riding home on the train and reading the playbill that the play was directed by Michael Mayer who directed another favorite of mine, Spring Awakening. Ironically throughout the show there were things that reminded me of Spring Awakening. The simplicity of the sets for one and the efficiently beautiful orchestrations presented with only a guitar, a bass, a violin and drums.

There's only one problem for Sherie Renee Scott, if Everyday Rapture does make the jump to Broadway she'll have to commit to it for the long run because no one could play her like her. And Eamon Foley as the youtube boy on the internet would be hard to replace as well. The faces alone that he made were so funny I had to look away so I wouldn't embarrass myself laughing hysterically. We saw him in 13, The Musical and he was a standout in that show too. We had met him and I had taken a picture of him with Jade which we brought with us to have him sign which he did graciously. He's absolutely adorable and I'm sure has a bright future ahead of him. There's a new picture of Jade with him sporting a new haircut. Check it out on page 14 of The Matinee gallery at http://www.matineeshow.co.uk/.

Off-Broadway'

40 Years and still going strong

After a long wait, I finally got to see my premier musical theatre idol after Tommy Steele last night at the Lowry, on what is cited to be her last UK tour. Britain’s first lady of the stage: Miss Elaine Paige. -Who has shared her initials with 2 fantastic ladies, whom she was going to portray tonight. Anyone tell me their names for some Brownie points?

The show opened to an orchestral medley of her most famous songs ‘Memory’ ‘Don’t Cry For Me Argentina’ and ‘With One Look’ before the petite Miss Paige ran onto the stage to sing her opening number full of energy ‘Life Goes On.’ The money note at the end she hit effortlessly, as she did with every number in the show. A bland opening costume –black velvet ‘skinny’ pants, a purple ‘quilt’ type jacket and a new hair do to suit!

This sliced nicely into ‘Tomorrow’ from Annie, and Paige’s version of it was practically the same as on her 1980’s ‘Stages’ album. After this, she introduced herself to the audience and said that she was ‘celebrating 40 years on the West-End stage, and this was the first time she has played the Lowry’s stage.’

She then went into quite a boring version of ‘Easy to be Hard’ from Hair, which she told us was the first song she sang on the West-End stage. This went nicely into ‘Broadway Baby’ from Follies, which was interspersed with anecdotes and stories from her life on the stage, backed up by a nice lighting trick which projected a Broadway-themed effect on the walls of the theatre. A very funny tale was of her starring in a show about premature ejaculation. “It was all over in the first scene!”

Next was a song especially written for this show by the 2 new lyricists of the Mary Poppins’ additional material, called ‘Small Packages,’ –which was Paige detailing how she has lost many roles on stage due to her height. The riot of a song detailing her wishes to be higher ended with Paige stood on top of a step ladder belting out the last notes. I think it a travesty that this song is not on her new live album, which will be detailed later in the review, and I sincerely hope it will be released elsewhere. She then danced with these step ladders for a little bit of the tune to ‘Shall We Dance’ from the King and I, before singing 'Hello Young Lovers' -again, not on the album.

After ‘I Don’t Know How To Love Him’ –again, reminiscent of her ‘Stages’ album, we had a nice little story about meeting Dustin Hoffman and how he influenced her to continue a career in the theatre, which went into his and Bette Midler’s ‘Shoot the Breeze’ –which IS included on the album. Next we had Lennon & McCartney’s ‘Yesterday,’ which was Paige’s audition song for Evita.

She explained to us that she was offered a role in Les Miserables, but couldn’t take it due to Chess. Tonight was her chance, and she sang a fantastically powerful version of ‘I Dreamed A Dream,’ before walking offstage. A Spanish Guitar medley of Evita tracks followed, before Paige came back on with a full-length red sequinned robe for a powerful version of ‘Don’t Cry For Me Argentina.’ Whoever says that her voice has ‘deepened’ or her songs have to be re-pitched are wrong. There was nothing different than this rendition than in the Original London Cast recording of Evita. Even her terrible diction of the line ‘I never invited them in’ was the same. A 5 minute ovation closed the first act.

‘As If We Never Said Goodbye’ from Sunset opened the second act, dressed and performed as the one and only Norma Desmond –wearing her original cloak from Broadway, turban and sunglasses and a long sparkly black dress. It was fantastic to see how she actually performed that certain song, with the hand actions of disillusioned woman. Fantastic. She removed her garb after this behind the Piano, did her hair and donned an apron to sing ‘By the Sea’ from Sweeney Todd –a song she’s never sung in concert before, or recorded up until this album.

‘I Get A Kick Out Of You’ followed, with a memory about meeting the Queen Mother and getting cramp during a courtesy at a performance of ‘Anything Goes.’ After this, she left the stage again to a scorching orchestral working of the Overture from Chess, incorporating ‘One Night In Bangkok.’ –It’s a shame that isn’t on the Live CD too, as it was truly fantastic. Paige returned to the stage in a shorter black velvety dress and sang ‘Someone Else’s Story’ from Chess –available on her album ‘Essential Musicals.’ This led, of course, into ‘I Know Him So Well’ without too much of a mention of Barbara Dickson, sat on a chair by the piano, singing solo –as unlike on the new Live CD.

Following this, she went to the back of the piano and changed her shoes to flats, put on a brown wig and red lipstick and hobbled to the front of the stage. Edith Piaf. She once again took on the character, and shouted at the orchestra leader, Chris Egan, a la Piaf, and sang my favourite from her Piaf album, the quirky ‘La Goulante Du Pauvre Jean,’ into ‘Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien’ and finally a massive applause followed the passionate ‘Hymne a l’Amour’ which she immersed herself in.

She sang ‘Cry Me A River’ –not the version you’re all thinking of, but one from her earlier albums, and left the stage. A standing ovation followed, before she returned to the stage in a long black velvet coat with diamante cuffs and down the front –glittering, to a fantastic version of her immortal ‘Memory,’ before leaving the stage, only to return to another ovation to close the show with a powerful ‘With One Look.’

Easily, Paige is the best ‘star’ I’ve seen on stage –her charisma for a 61 year old is fantastic. Her ‘Does my bum look big in this?’ comment drew wolf-whistles from the audience, and her continuous jokes kept the crowd please, breaking up nicely anecdotes and music. For a height of under 5 feet tall, her stage presence is much bigger.

Chris Egan provided arrangements and Piano playing for the fantastic band that accompanied Ms Paige, and the lighting was absolutely fantastic –often corresponding to the colour of dress she was wearing, and a net of fairy light-types hung on the back curtain, often changed colour in synch with the spots. In the interval, when queuing for my ice-cream, a ‘roadie’ went to the lighting desk and I heard quite loudly ‘Ms Paige is very pleased with the lighting.’ No wonder! It was great!

As said about this new ‘Live CD.’ A fantastic release of some new recordings, and a wonderful recording of the concert. The problem is that I feel it could have been made a double CD, and incorporated all the songs and chats, as opposed to cutting 5 of them out –one of them, the quirkiest in the show. It is also dubbed ‘her first live CD’ and she mentions this frequently in the programme and stated that it “now feels right to release a live recording.” The fact is, she released a live recording of her 1991 tour….Sorry EP, you’re wrong there m’love!

Now all I have to do is to wait and see whether the proposed Live DVD for release on the 9th of March comes into fruition or not, and if it does, has these missing tracks on!

Seb Lassandro

40 Years and still going strong

After a long wait, I finally got to see my premier musical theatre idol after Tommy Steele last night at the Lowry, on what is cited to be her last UK tour. Britain’s first lady of the stage: Miss Elaine Paige. -Who has shared her initials with 2 fantastic ladies, whom she was going to portray tonight. Anyone tell me their names for some Brownie points?

The show opened to an orchestral medley of her most famous songs ‘Memory’ ‘Don’t Cry For Me Argentina’ and ‘With One Look’ before the petite Miss Paige ran onto the stage to sing her opening number full of energy ‘Life Goes On.’ The money note at the end she hit effortlessly, as she did with every number in the show. A bland opening costume –black velvet ‘skinny’ pants, a purple ‘quilt’ type jacket and a new hair do to suit!

This sliced nicely into ‘Tomorrow’ from Annie, and Paige’s version of it was practically the same as on her 1980’s ‘Stages’ album. After this, she introduced herself to the audience and said that she was ‘celebrating 40 years on the West-End stage, and this was the first time she has played the Lowry’s stage.’

She then went into quite a boring version of ‘Easy to be Hard’ from Hair, which she told us was the first song she sang on the West-End stage. This went nicely into ‘Broadway Baby’ from Follies, which was interspersed with anecdotes and stories from her life on the stage, backed up by a nice lighting trick which projected a Broadway-themed effect on the walls of the theatre. A very funny tale was of her starring in a show about premature ejaculation. “It was all over in the first scene!”

Next was a song especially written for this show by the 2 new lyricists of the Mary Poppins’ additional material, called ‘Small Packages,’ –which was Paige detailing how she has lost many roles on stage due to her height. The riot of a song detailing her wishes to be higher ended with Paige stood on top of a step ladder belting out the last notes. I think it a travesty that this song is not on her new live album, which will be detailed later in the review, and I sincerely hope it will be released elsewhere. She then danced with these step ladders for a little bit of the tune to ‘Shall We Dance’ from the King and I.

After ‘I Don’t Know How To Love Him’ –again, reminiscent of her ‘Stages’ album, we had a nice little story about meeting Dustin Hoffman and how he influenced her to continue a career in the theatre, which went into his and Bette Midler’s ‘Shoot the Breeze’ –which IS included on the album. Next we had Lennon & McCartney’s ‘Yesterday,’ which was Paige’s audition song for Evita.

She explained to us that she was offered a role in Les Miserables, but couldn’t take it due to Chess. Tonight was her chance, and she sang a fantastically powerful version of ‘I Dreamed A Dream,’ before walking offstage. A Spanish Guitar medley of Evita tracks followed, before Paige came back on with a full-length red sequinned robe for a powerful version of ‘Don’t Cry For Me Argentina.’ Whoever says that her voice has ‘deepened’ or her songs have to be re-pitched are wrong. There was nothing different than this rendition than in the Original London Cast recording of Evita. Even her terrible diction of the line ‘I never invited them in’ was the same. A 5 minute ovation closed the first act.

‘As If We Never Said Goodbye’ from Sunset opened the second act, dressed and performed as the one and only Norma Desmond –wearing her original cloak from Broadway, turban and sunglasses and a long sparkly black dress. It was fantastic to see how she actually performed that certain song, with the hand actions of disillusioned woman. Fantastic. She removed her garb after this behind the Piano, did her hair and donned an apron to sing ‘By the Sea’ from Sweeney Todd –a song she’s never sung in concert before, or recorded up until this album.

‘I Get A Kick Out Of You’ followed, with a memory about meeting the Queen Mother and getting cramp during a courtesy at a performance of ‘Anything Goes.’ After this, she left the stage again to a scorching orchestral working of the Overture from Chess, incorporating ‘One Night In Bangkok.’ –It’s a shame that isn’t on the Live CD too, as it was truly fantastic. Paige returned to the stage in a shorter black velvety dress and sang ‘Someone Else’s Story’ from Chess –available on her album ‘Essential Musicals.’ This led, of course, into ‘I Know Him So Well’ without too much of a mention of Barbara Dickson, sat on a chair by the piano, singing solo –as unlike on the new Live CD.

Following this, she went to the back of the piano and changed her shoes to flats, put on a brown wig and red lipstick and hobbled to the front of the stage. Edith Piaf. She once again took on the character, and shouted at the orchestra leader, Chris Egan, a la Piaf, and sang my favourite from her Piaf album, the quirky ‘La Goulante Du Pauvre Jean,’ into ‘Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien’ and finally a massive applause followed the passionate ‘Hymne a l’Amour’ which she immersed herself in.

She sang ‘Cry Me A River’ –not the version you’re all thinking of, but one from her earlier albums, and left the stage. A standing ovation followed, before she returned to the stage in a long black velvet coat with diamante cuffs and down the front –glittering, to a fantastic version of her immortal ‘Memory,’ before leaving the stage, only to return to another ovation to close the show with a powerful ‘With One Look.’

Easily, Paige is the best ‘star’ I’ve seen on stage –her charisma for a 61 year old is fantastic. Her ‘Does my bum look big in this?’ comment drew wolf-whistles from the audience, and her continuous jokes kept the crowd please, breaking up nicely anecdotes and music. For a height of under 5 feet tall, her stage presence is much bigger.

Chris Egan provided arrangements and Piano playing for the fantastic band that accompanied Ms Paige, and the lighting was absolutely fantastic –often corresponding to the colour of dress she was wearing, and a net of fairy light-types hung on the back curtain, often changed colour in synch with the spots. In the interval, when queuing for my ice-cream, a ‘roadie’ went to the lighting desk and I heard quite loudly ‘Ms Paige is very pleased with the lighting.’ No wonder! It was great!

As said about this new ‘Live CD.’ A fantastic release of some new recordings, and a wonderful recording of the concert. The problem is that I feel it could have been made a double CD, and incorporated all the songs and chats, as opposed to cutting 5 of them out –one of them, the quirkiest in the show. It is also dubbed ‘her first live CD’ and she mentions this frequently in the programme and stated that it “now feels right to release a live recording.” The fact is, she released a live recording of her 1991 tour….Sorry EP, you’re wrong there m’love!

South Pacific Captures the Essence of Rodgers and Hammerstein

Every year I get theatre tickets for the family for Jerry's birthday and somehow whatever show I get is fabulous. This year was no exception. I was able to get house seats for Rodgers and Hammerstein's South Pacific which won the Tony for Best Revival of a Musical as well as six others. South Pacific is housed in the Vivian Beaumont Theatre at Lincoln Center which is not actually in the theatre district near Times Square but is considered a Broadway-class theatre and shows that play here are eligible for the Tony Awards. The Beaumont differs from traditional Broadway theaters because it's designed as an amphitheatre with a thrust stage which is an open stage that extends into the audience on three sides and is connected to the backstage area by its upstage. The actors can enter from behind the stage, right or left stage or off each side of the front of the stage into passages that go below a tier of seats known as vomitory entrances. There's not a bad seat in the house. Did I mention we had house seats, sniff. Actually the seating area is not that large, only 1,080 seats which is considered only medium-sized for musicals, but the stage is huge. This is the first Broadway revival of South Pacific since it originally played on Broadway from March 1949 to January 1954 and they could not have picked a more perfect venue. This is the most lavish, beautifully staged production I've ever seen thanks in great part to the theatre itself. Because of the configuration of the stage and the fact that it is a raked stage, meaning the rear of the stage or upstage is at a higher elevation than the front of the stage or downstage. (This is turning into Musical Theatre 101.) Because of the raked stage they were able to create a beach in the background where the cast could run off over the dunes or set up umbrellas and sunbathe or come in off boats. You truly get the feeling you're on a beach. It's brilliant.

Anyway, the gorgeous overture begins and the front of the stage moves back to reveal the orchestra beneath the stage. Then the stage returns towards the audience and there we are in the beautiful open-air home of plantation owner Emile de Becque with two adorable children singing Dites-Moi. They're scooted off by a servant as Emile de Becque and army nurse Nellie Forbush enter. The perfection of the show was not diminished by the fact that Paul Szot who usually plays Emile de Becque (he won the Tony for Best Actor in a Musical Revival) was on leave fulfilling some previous operatic commitments. David Pittsinger's rich baritone voice is a joy to behold and he played the part with the necessary elegance, while Broadway favorite Kelli O'hara, plays the army nurse from Little Rock, Arkansas with the contrasting personality of a hick from a small town in the deep South of the US. Two people from different parts of the world and different walks of life who have recently met and are fast falling in love. By the end of the first scene we have already heard "Cockeyed Optimist", "Wonder How it Feels" (twin soliloquys), "Some Enchanted Evening" and a reprise of "Dites-Moi" by the children. So the tone is set, we're off to a good start. It's spectacular.

South Pacific, with book written by Oscar Hammerstein and Josh Logan (which is based on James Michener's "Tales of the South Pacific") tells the intertwining stories of two couples falling in love in the Pacific during WWII with underlying themes of racial and cultural tolerance. There's also the love story of young Lt. Cable and the Pacific Island beauty, Lyat.

Ben Brantley, chief critic of the New York Times wrote "I know we’re not supposed to expect perfection in this imperfect world, but I'm darned if I can find one serious flaw in this production." And I felt the same way. This revival triumphs with director Bartlett Sher at the helm. The careful attention to detail made everything so perfect, the music, the casting, the acting, the ambiance, the authenticity of the sets and costumes all added up to a breath-taking theatre experience.

Critics said similar things about the original Broadway production. It is considered by many to be the greatest musical of all.

But, although both the original production and this revival are considered near perfection, the 1958 film adaptation fell short. It had many flaws and was considered to be very one-dimensional.

The original Broadway production of South Pacific was nominated for ten Tony Awards and won all of them, including Best Musical, Best Score and Best Libretto. It was the only musical production ever to win all four Tony Awards for acting. This production was nominated for eleven Tony's and took home 7 and it's worthy of every award it's been given.

"Billy Elliot" Dances into the Hearts of Broadway Fans

It's one of the hottest Broadway tickets, sold out for months. But one day I get an email inviting me to a special performance of the show for loyal theatre-goers. So, of course, I get on it right away and manage to get three tickets in the nosebleed section of the 1,435 seat Imperial Theatre. The best I can do. In a theatre as large as the Imperial, the air in that section is pretty thin, but hey do I want to see Billy now or wait months for a new block of tickets since it's pretty much sold out until next summer. It's such a plum acquisition that I even allow Jade to miss half a day of school.

For the few people who don't know, Billy Eliot is based on the much loved 2000 film. The music is by Sir Elton John with book and lyrics by Lee Hall who also wrote the film's screenplay. Set in a mining community in northern England in the 1980's during the miner's strike, a very depressing time for Britain's mining industry, it is the intertwining stories of the miners' plight which affects virtually everyone in the community and Billy's personal journey. It's also a story of brotherhood and community spirit, ignorance and acceptance.

The opening is very dramatic with news footage on the history of the mines, a precursory message of what is soon to come, the mining strike. The sets are very dark, depicting the depression of the time, but there is comedy relief and magnificent dream sequences that keep it from being too somber.

The show is very memorable although, I hate to say this, with the exception of the two songs I've heard on The Matinee "Express Yourself" and "Electricity", the Elton John score did not make me want to pay $30 on the spot for the soundtrack. And I'm a big Elton John fan with Aida being one of my favorite scores, as well as Lion King and much of his rock music, especially "Tiny Dancer", "Blessed" and "Sacrifice". I will buy it and probably grow to like it, but I did not leave the theatre singing. But all and all, a wonderful show that I think, even in today's economic climate, will have staying power. Our little friend, Heather Burns, who was a guest on The Matinee this past summer, was adorable as one of the little ballet girls who reminded me of baby chicks. Unfortunately, Trent Kowalik, who was also a guest on The Matinee and who had played Billy on the West End, was not the Billy of the Day. Fortunately, though, Kiril Kulish was, and he was marvelous. I also have to mention Frank Dolce who plays Billy's friend, Michael, who loves to dress in his mother's clothes. He was a scene stealer in the "Express Yourself" number and whenever else he was on stage. And British actress Carole Shelley as the grandmother was hilarious.

The musical opened on the West End in 2005 and won four out of the nine Oliviers it was nominated for including Best New Musical. I'm sure it will be nominated for many Tony Awards and from the buzz I've been hearing, has a good chance of winning Best Musical with the only possible competitors being Shrek which I have yet to see and, although it is closing in two weeks, 13 The Musical which Jade and I loved so much we saw it twice.

I must mention that if you can't manage a ticket to see Billy Elliot either on the West End or Broadway, you're sure to enjoy the movie which remains one of my all time favorites.

Happy New Year to all my Tameside friends.

Magic

If you wish to be mesmerised then take a trip to The Palace Theatre to see Mary Poppins.
From the first strains of the overture to the final curtain call I sat wide eyed and open mouthed. The sets were out of this world, and the cast lead by Lisa O'Hare as Mary Poppins. A faultless performance delivered with a sparkle in her eye and a spring in her step. Daniel Crossley is excellent as Bert, and Charlie Callaghan as Michael was extremely good. The Effects are outstanding with the closing sequence truly wonderful.
This show has to be up there amongst the top shows of the year.So if you haven't already booked your ticket get to it. The show runs till March but there are only a few tickets available between now and mid Jan. That's how popular it is.

The Wizard of Oz - The Lowry - Pele Productions

The Wizard of Oz is at the Lowry this Christmas. Lorna Luft (Judy Garlands Daughter) stars as the wicked witch. And she is perfect in the role. She is just the right level of evilness and even the most hardened theatre goer will find themselves sinking in to the seat. Friend of the show Joe Standerline is perfect as the Tin Man and the special effects are stunning. Regular listeners and readers will know I love anything that has Flying, Trapdoors and Special effects in it. And I was not disappointed. The Jitter-Bug scene (originally cut from the film) is superb and you will be humming it all the way home if your anything like me. Katie Schofield plays Dorothy, She was discovered in a search for Dorothy style competition and for a first professional appearance played it very well. Her acting was excellent. All in all, a good family show that kids and adults, even if they won't admit it, Will enjoy. Get your boo's and Hisses ready for the wicked witch and head down to the Lowry this Christmas.

Joseph --- The Return

Yes Joseph and his Amazing Coloured Coat returned to The Palace just 7 months after its initial triumph, Craig Chambers is still leading the cast, and a damn fine job he is doing too. Concidering the Show has now been on the road for the best part of a year the energy and pure joy is still there. Most of the original Tour Company too are here, with only a couple of main changes. To my delight the Narrator has reverted to the more traditional female performer,Tara Bethan is wonderful in the role with a great voice, mind you being Welsh helps,and pretty to boot. Anthony Hansen moves up the cast to take over as Pharoh with Robert Gwyn makng his Touring debut as baby brother Benjamin.
I found this second visit every bit as enjoyable as the first, this time perhaps having a slightly Camp edge to it, A great show, and for the sheer fun of it, still Sir Andrew & Tim at their best.
Its on till Saturday So grab a ticket while you can ,if you can, sit back and enjoy. It's worth it.

"In the Heights" at the Top of My List

It's been a while since I've blogged and I'm way behind in reporting on Broadway shows I've seen but it's because I've been seeing so many that I don't have time to blog. I have to say that everything I've seen, I've liked. And one I really liked is "In the Heights" which Jade and I saw a couple of weeks ago. This is the wonderful musical that won it's creator, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Tony Awards for Best Original Score and Best Musical. And he stars in it too. Jade and I met him at the Drama Bookshop a couple of months ago interviewing Charles Strouse, the composer of Annie and Bye Bye Birdie. Lin-Manuel was really enthusiastic and so sweet and genuine. As Jade and I neared our seats we saw an open stage with a magnificent setting of an uptown Latino neighborhood in New York City at night (check out the photo I took of the set on the Matinee Gallery). Little store fronts and apartment buildings and in the background the imposing George Washington Bridge. I thought to myself, this is going to be great. And it was. The sun rises and the street comes alive. Enter Usnavi played by Lin-Manuel and there he is with that same enthusiasm and high energy. It's so cute the way he jubilantly bops across the stage rapping about his neighborhood in the shadow of the George Washington Bridge called Washington Heights. While telling the personal stories of several characters and the obstacles they meet as immigrants trying to find the American dream, the backbone of the story is the camaraderie of the neighborhood and how they help each other forge through those obstacles to realize that they really have found their "home" and are an integral part of New York's vibrant tapestry. It's got it's soulful, sentimental scenes but for the most part, it's energetic and upbeat. The dancing is so much fun to watch thanks to the talents of the ensemble cast and the wonderful choreography of Andy Blankenbuehler which won him a Tony this year. And the awesome score with it's clever lyrics and extraordinary orchestrations runs the gamut of musical genres from hip hop/rap to different rhythms of Latin music to traditional Broadway sounds so there's something for everyone to relate to. The wonderful thing about this show, although it takes place on a Latino street, is that it could be the story of any ethnic group living in New York or any city. I think that's the reason that it's doing so well while other shows are closing one after the other. It's very genuine and relatable. And not only did it win for Best Musical, Best Score and Best Choreography, it won the Tony Award for Best Orchestrations thanks to the talents of the brilliant Alex Lacamoire and Bill Sherman.

A little sidebar. I saw Alex Lacamoire on the panel discussing Carol de Giere's wonderful book "Defying Gravity: The Creative Career of Stephen Schwartz from Godspell to Wicked". Unfortunately he left before I could speak to him. I emailed Carol de Giere who had agreed to be a guest on The Matinee and she offered to give Alex my email address. Within a day he emailed back and asked how he could help. Of course, I emailed him back and as a postscript, I mentioned I was going to see "In the Heights" that coming weekend. I knew he was the music director but did not know he was the conductor (to be honest, I'm not so sure what the difference is). He emailed back inviting us to stop at the stage door to say hello. Jade and I had left for the city already because we were going to meet Bernadette Peters in the afternoon so I didn't see the email. After a fun but tiring day, we got to the Richard Rodgers Theatre for the evening performance. After the fabulous show, Lin-Manuel introduced the conductor and up popped Alex with his signature dark curls bouncing playfully. I told Jade it was Alex and she asked if we could go to the stage door to see if we could meet him. Of course I wanted to as well. I asked someone if Alex was backstage and the next thing I know, he peeked out the door. I told him who I was and he invited us in. He was very, very amicable and gracious. And that smile and those curls, adorable! (There's a picture of Jade and Alex in The Matinee Gallery as well). He agreed to do the show and will be on with us next week. He was supposed to be on this past week but he got stuck at an early meeting. He was so apologetic. I told him not to worry about it (we can all appreciate how busy he must be), and we made another appointment for the show. So listen in this coming Sunday, 11/19/08 to hear James, special guest host the X-Factor's Scott Bruton and me chat to Alex.

Never has there been a tale of more woe, than this of Juliet and her Romeo...

This was the first production by The Royal Shakespeare Company which I had seen, and I know that they are the Shakespeare ‘experts,’ but I didn’t know what to expect as there have been that many interpretations of Romeo and Juliet in its 511 year history. What did we get? A very “The Godfather” inspired performance.

The stage opened to all the cast on stage wearing typical 1930’s Italian costumes –peasants, widows, noblemen and typical workers of the time. There was also a traditional Italian Tarantella band on stage that provided eerie music at heightened points of tension throughout the play, ranging from a re-working of ‘The Godfather Waltz’ to a typical Tarantella dance.

The chorus’ opening speech setting the tale of the ‘star crossed lovers’ was well done in the way that the ‘voice’ stepped out from the crowd to make their speech. The setting throughout was quite plain, but also very clever. There were only black panels on stage and black chairs, but the lighting (of only blues, reds and whites,) changed at the protagonists’ click of fingers. (The set did change however for the final scene in the Capulet’s vault, as Mafioso type characters (who I realised eventually represented ghosts,) revolved the panels to form a tomb.)

Not using microphones, the cast did a very good job of projecting over the hoards of rowdy school kids in the auditorium, who found that laughing at important moments and wolf whistling at kisses quite hilarious. The cast themselves were quite diverse too. To say it was set in 1930’s Verona, there were many different voices of Scotch, Welsh, English and one Juliet’s mother could easily have passed at the part of Eva Peron.

Speaking of Evita, Juliet’s shadow cast on the back wall of the stage when stood on her bed (doubling as her balcony,) was very Peron-esque from the Balcony of the Casa Rosada. –Just a nice little point there!

Some of the choreographed fight sequencing was almost certainly West End Story inspired, primarily due to the fact that flick-knives were used. A nice effect was the use of a ‘Flash, Bang, Wallop!’ type camera effect, which blinded at least the first 10 rows of the audience.

Personally, for me, the best part of the show was the Tarantella band. Being half Italian, this music I was quite familiar with on recordings and such, but to actually hear one live, adding to the tension of one of Shakespeare’s finest plays was fantastic. They added a haunting undertone to the play, stepping out ‘from the blackness’ with their music commenting on the action.

In comparison to the production of Othello last month, there were many. RSC obviously do Shakespeare ‘the best,’ there is no comparison. Their performance was practically faultless, and they all kept their characters –something which those in Othello did not do. It was also evident that the cast knew their characters well as they all added their own little quirks to them.

A very good performance indeed!
S.L.

Broadway's Spring Awakening is Being Put to Bed

Spring Awakening's last Broadway performance will be on January 18, 2009. Why? Is it a victim of our economic times? Sadly, I think it is. It won the 2007 Tony for Best Musical plus 7 other Tony's. A blockbuster, a juggernaut. Well, it should be. In my opinion it's the best thing on Broadway. In fact, it's one of the best shows I've ever seen with a brilliant score by Duncan Sheik and lyrics and book by Steven Sater based on the first play of German playwright Frank Wedekind. Written and staged in 1891, it was banned as scandalous. It's an adult musical about children. Children left in the dark about their changing bodies and raging hormones. It's about ignorance and denial and their often dire ramifications. The staging is ingenious, taking teens coming of age in 1891 Germany, wearing clothing of the times, settings of the times, but modernizing it with bursts of lights and rock music as these frustrated children on the brink of adulthood express their teenage angst. It's emotionally charged with the joys and sorrows of sexual discovery and the consequence of ignorance thanks to unapproachable parents, teachers and clergy. The opening song sets the tone with the beautiful 15 year old Wendla singing "Mama who bore me, Mama who gave me, No way to handle things, Who made me so sad". Wendla who is so full of life and curious and asks questions that need to be answered but are glossed over by her puritanical mother. When it is later found she is pregnant, she has no idea how it happened.
This is musical theatre for theatre lovers who don't love musicals. The story is sensitive, profound, breathtakingly emotional and, in my opinion, a must-see.

The good news is, although it will soon close on Broadway, it will continue to touch audiences across the United States with it's American tour, and around the world with productions soon to open in London, Vienna, Toronto, Helsinki and Seoul. And I read in Playbill News that a film version is likely.

Spring Awakening is set to begin performances at the Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith on January 23, 2009 with an official run from February 3rd to February 28th.

Slava's Snow Show - I wouldn't like to be a cleaner

Ok how do you describe Slava's Snow Show... Beats me, its a special effects extravaganzer mixed with a clown show, Now as bizarre as that might sound it really captures your attention all the way through, there are lots of laughs and some great visuals. However as much you sit there thinking. This can't work, it does. The big finale special effect is STUNNING, the power from the wind machines can be felt right at the back of the auditorium and the amount of "Snow" that covers you is just phenomenal. And then to top that the auditoriom is filled with giant inflatable balls that the audience thrill in batting around. I have really done a bad job explaining this show but I defy anyone to explain it.. It's just superb. GO AND SEE IT. It's a once in a lifetime experience.