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The Musicals/Stage Productions Topic!!!

Thameslink Rail said:
Do you people go to the West End to watch musicals or is there a theatre near you that the tour companies go to?
I always go to the West End because no tour companies go to Luton because we are so close to London (this is actually quite annoying because train tickets to London from the commuter belt are very expensive)
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I went to London to see Hamilton, realised I could be waiting years for it to come up north. Wasn't too expensive, they had matinées on Thursdays. So just went forward a few months and got myself a ticket for £75 and train tickets for about £40 (could've got cheaper ones but wanted to have a bit more time in London). Visited the London Eye, and Sealife centre beforehand as well (good old MAP).

Book of Mormon I saw in Manchester, ticket was about £13 (train ticket actually cost more). And Les Mis in Liverpool, again a pretty cheap ticket.

I'm lucky being in Liverpool we've got a number of theatres putting on productions (the Everyman and Playhouse probably my favourites) and Manchester 30 minutes down the road with a major theatre outside Oxford Road station.
 
When I lived in Cornwall, it was surprising how many productions came on tour to Truro or Plymouth. I ended up seeing a few on school trips, though with some (the Shakespeare ones, mainly), I found them difficult to follow due to the archaic language. :p Blood Brothers toured to Cornwall in 2011, and I went to see it with some friends from school. Loved it. We'd studied it for GCSE English Literature, and I'd thoroughly enjoyed it, so thought it'd be a good chance to try and see it.

I've not seen much in my local area for a while, but that's mainly because I find not much comes to Stoke, and anything that does is always when I'm busy. Last show I saw there was Curious Incident in February 2015. I wanted to see Book of Mormon in Manchester, but never got around to it. I tend to see more shows in the West End than anything, making them part of a longer trip down south. So far in the West End, I've seen Les Misérables (October 2015), Curious Incident (November 2016 and May 2017), Book of Mormon (November 2017), School of Rock (May 2018), and Dear Evan Hansen (January 2020). West End tickets always cost a lot, but I still think it's worth it. I was originally going to be seeing Hamilton in January 2020, but they were swapped to DEH instead. I have zero complaints about that. As much as I want to see Hamilton at some point, DEH was absolutely superb in every single way.

One issue with seeing shows in Manchester is that the last train from Piccadilly to Congleton is 21:46 (ish), so I'd either have to drive or stay overnight, neither of which are ideal. I've driven from Manchester Arena back home after an event there, and I was pretty knackered. I know it's only an hour or so between the two, but it's not a route I'm overly familiar with.

One thing I think is so important about theatre in general is that its purpose is multi-faceted. There's entertainment and escapism. There's a chance to learn about different cultures, experiences and perspectives. It can challenge you to think differently. It can make you connect with characters and scenarios in ways you never thought possible. This is what's so crucial about theatre, not to mention the amount it brings to the economy and the number of people it employs.
 
The best musical, and show of any type, I ever saw was Chess at the ENO with Michael Ball, Cassidy Janson and Alwxandra Burke. Enthralling, I doubt I'll ever see such an incredible cast again

One of the most spectacular musicals ever saw is a bit of a forgotten and fleeting one called Bombay Dreams. It was incredible, a shame it didn't last.

The last one I saw before lockdown was Aladdin just before it finished its current run. Was brilliant with an outstanding performance from the genie.

I've seen loads over the years, very rarely they've been actually bad. Dirty Dancing came close.

Thameslink Rail said:
Do you people go to the West End to watch musicals or is there a theatre near you that the tour companies go to?
I always go to the West End because no tour companies go to Luton because we are so close to London (this is actually quite annoying because train tickets to London from the commuter belt are very expensive)
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Always the west end. I have a similar problem in Essex being too close to London for a lot of the tours, but the few I have seen locally have never been as good as those designed for a long London run. They cant bring the same staging and rarely such a strong cast on the road.
 
Went for a socially distanced show this week, Amelie at the Criterion. Was worried the masks and spaced out crowd would take away from the atmosphere, but it didn't detract at all really.
Felt like one of the most effectively managed Covid situations I'd been in throughout the whole pandemic too, really slickly done to avoid groups coming together.

The show was wonderful. It's picked up some slightly middling reviews which aren't at all deserved, it is light and wistful by design as is the film it is based on but the critics don't seem to appreciate that at the moment, wanting everything to have a more powerful and purposeful message.

The staging is like nothing else I've seen before; the cast are the orchestra. I know it's not that unusual to have some of the music contributed by actors, but to have the entirety of the score played by them is quite some feat, with some of the instruments serving as part of the set as well. A cast of incredible talent that also incorporates some very skilled puppetry. I couldn't reccomend it more.
 
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Still annoyed I missed Amelie when it was in Liverpool a year or so ago, had friends who went and they loved it.
 
Noone has seen a show for 2 year? 😮

Saw The Lion King last night at The Lyceum. Some aspects are still spectacular (the scale of some of the animals, the puppetry, the percussion, the quality of the cast, especially Rafiki), but some of the effects, lighting and staging feel a bit dated and tired up against more modern productions. Maybe not helped by sitting in the 4th row so seeing it a bit up close, it could probably do with some updating though.

Doesn't stop it being a superb and very enjoyable show, still recomemded.
 
Saw 'Come From Away' last October at the Phoenix Theatre in London. Wow. Absolutely brilliant. Very much looking forward to seeing the tour next year!
 
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Think I posted somewhere else but in June I went down to London to see two musicals in one day.

Started with the matinee of Back To The Future which I thought was great

Then in the evening it was The Old Vic to see Groundhog Day The Musical which was absolutely stunning. Hope after this run it either ends up on the west end or tours the UK.

Booked a few bits for the coming months, MacBeth in Liverpool (with Ralph Fiennes), Hamilton in Manchester, and Come From Away in Liverpool.
 
Just got back from seeing MacBeth in Liverpool. At a venue called The Depot which is one of the recently built sound stages in the city, they've constructed a 900 seat theatre in the space.

Starring Ralph Fiennes as MacBeth it's brilliantly staged and acted, still in the language of Shakespeare but dressed in a modern day setting of soldiers and King's wearing suits.

Would definitely recommend, it's in Liverpool for a few weeks before playing in Edinburgh, London, and Washington DC.
 
On the subject of Liverpool, I’m heading there in November next year to see a new production of ‘Dear Evan Hansen’ which is touring the country in 2024 and 2025. Very much looking forward to it.
 
Just heading home from the Palace Theatre in Manchester after seeing Hamilton on the first stop of its lengthy UK tour.
Absolutely amazing musical, saw it in London in early 2019 and it's just as good. Definitely recommend going to see it if it's going to come near to you.
 
John_P said:
Just heading home from the Palace Theatre in Manchester after seeing Hamilton on the first stop of its lengthy UK tour.
Absolutely amazing musical, saw it in London in early 2019 and it's just as good. Definitely recommend going to see it if it's going to come near to you.
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Also went to see if last week after seeing it London. Thought it was great.
 
I keep meaning to post in here.

July 2022 - The Lion King (Tour), Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff. First time seeing The Lion King musical, I thought it was brilliant. Great soundtrack, great sets and production values. Loved it from start to finish. 8/10
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October 2022 - Heathers the Musical, West End, The Other Palace. Based off of the 80s black comedy film Heathers (it's a great film, worth a watch), I was a bit dubious going into a small theatre but it was a great production, funny and the cast were brilliant. Loved it. Sadly this production has now left the West End but I'm sure it will return in a few years. 8/10
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October 2022 - The Phantom of the Opera, West End, His Majesty's Theatre. I mean, it's a classic. Again first time seeing this show. Really enjoyed it, great sets, great cast. Can't fault it. Saying that, it's not a show I would necessarily be in a rush to book again in the near future, it feels like something I would go with a long gap before watching again. 9/10
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August 2023 - Heathers the Musical (Tour), Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff. Enjoyed this again. Didn't feel the cast were as good on this compared to the West End cast we saw the previous year. The soundmix was very poor too, with a lot of songs it was difficult to hear the lyrics, which dampens the show somewhat as a lot of jokes are within the songs. Still an enjoyable night and given Heathers is a relatively 'small' musical, it was a full house (Wales Millennium Centre holds 2,500 seats) so the atmosphere was amazing. 6.5/10
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November 2023 - Stranger Sings (Tour), New Theatre, Cardiff. This one is for the hardcore Stranger Things fans. A parody musical of the Netflix show, it's primarily focused on the events of the first season (with mentions of stories from other seasons), it's filled to the brim with 80s references and funny from start to finish. The cast were brilliant and all play multiple roles so I've got to commend it to them, they are all very talented. Again like the Heathers tour the soundmix was a bit all over the place. I believe Stranger Sings will be coming to Southwark Playhouse Borough in London soon, and it will continue on tour in 2024. I recommend it if you're a fan of Stranger Things. The set doesn't come across well on camera due to all the blue lighting. 7.5/10
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I think the last Show I saw was Back to the Future. Highly reccomend it, purely for the epic practical effects.

Don’t know if anyone has heard, but they are bringing back Starlight Express? Gotta love any show that dangerous!
 
Went to see a panto today in a small local cheap theatre, which should be pretty unremarkable, but it wasn't. It was outstanding, truly spectacular.

Cinderella, with all the usual panto silliness, lots of talk of the Prince's magnificant balls, drag ugly sisters, one renamed fanny who needs getting out and filling up with things, etc etc. But the staging and effects were incredible for a local thing, full (silent, none of the loud distracting machinery in themepark theatres) snow, flying horses, flashbang dress changes.

The one effect that floored me though I'd never seen before, and I don't really understand it. Smoke filled bubbles. Thousands of them, which pop into a perfect ring which whisps away. Has anyone seen them before? How do they do that? Would love to see them used in a park show.

If you are anywhere near the Towngate Basildon I can't recommend it more, but afterwards get the hell away from Basildon. It's horrible.
 
News from the West End this week is that Frozen, currently playing at Theatre Royal Drury Lane, is going to be closing in September this year. That would mean the production has *only* played for 3 years - I’d have thought it was going to be on for years to come, and especially strange that they don’t push on to Christmas.

I went to see it last year and really enjoyed it. Technically it’s very impressive, and it doesn’t feel like it drags on too long. However it’s a massive show that would presumably have to be scaled down if, say, it was to tour. The wing and stage space at the Lane is enormous (you could practically fit another full set of Frozen behind it), and enables them to perform some of the clever tricks, which without them the show wouldn’t be anywhere near as magical.
 
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