185 posts
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Post by boybooshka on Sept 10, 2017 21:40:54 GMT
She was better than Dusty. Yup. I said it. Better than Dusty. I really like her, but come on really? Lol Hoping the choreography for the show is inspired by numbers such as the one below from her to show in the seventies.
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Post by hulmeman on Sept 10, 2017 22:58:28 GMT
You are gonna fry in hell for that Mr BeaR
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Post by ilovewemusicals on Sept 11, 2017 6:12:14 GMT
I went to the press night on Friday evening; script writer Jeff Pope, Cilla's son, Bill Kenwright and Paul O'Grady were there. All lovely to fans except for Kenwright.
Verdict: Kara Hayworth was a strong Cilla but I felt her performance went from Cilla impersonation to Kara as herself. The two elements of her portrayal need to gel together more. I felt she did achieve this wonderfully during the song Alfie - which gave me goosebumps and one of the best renditions ever. Sadly the big Act One closer "Anyone Who Had A Heart" I felt was orchestrated wrong. The instruments overpowering the vocals. Plus still not sure why all of the big numbers are staged at the side of the stage rather than the centre.
Carl Au as Bobby was a star. He really can sing and act... Great chemistry with Kara too.
Staging: A bit strange. The Cavern club does not have the famous wall, it's just a stage and could be anywhere. Everything seems very simplistic but it does work and I was O.K. with it.
The main problem for me was the length of Act Two. It felt like too many non-Cilla songs were added to pad out the time and give Kara a break. The duet between Cilla and Bobby, although good, was so very random at the moment they broke up. They have broken up, why are they singing this sweet song? It would have been nice to see this expanded running time used to examine more of Cilla's later career like Blind Date and Surprise, Surprise. I also did not see an Old Cilla despite one being mentioned in the original cast list. The darker side of Cilla from the TV show has also been lessened, maybe as a result of this now being a tribute to her life - I kind of get that.
Overall though, I was entertained. The story is very intriguing and the Merseybeat scene in the 60s was unparalleled. **SPOILERS** The audience was fairly badly behaved, as I have just read they were at The Band. Singing along to a Beatles song, saying "Brian's dead" before that was revealed and "it's gone to number one". Stupid. It was nice to see the show in Liverpool though; references to Everton FC and Cilla being from Wales got the reactions you would expect. I am going again when the show visits Stoke and hoping that Kara will have developed her Cilla to an even better one.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Sept 11, 2017 7:12:56 GMT
You are gonna fry in hell for that Mr BeaR Hee hee
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Post by stevejohnson678 on Sept 11, 2017 7:26:45 GMT
Held off booking this but after reading the reviews have decided to take the plunge and see it in Liverpool tonight. Like showgirl , I can't pretend to have a great interest in Cilla Black but I could say the same about Carole King and I loved Beautiful so really looking forward to it.
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Post by zsazsa on Sept 23, 2017 17:45:43 GMT
Saw today's matinee in Edinburgh. I thought Kara was fantastic as Cilla. Her performance was spot on and at no point did it feel like an impersonation. Carl Au was also great as Bobby and loved their duet in Act Two.
The show itself sticks close to the structure of the tv drama which does not translate well to stage and feels a bit drawn out. The songs don't flow in and out of scenes well. Something that Jersey Boys does quite successfully.
The staging is very unimaginative and follows the same clunky Dreamboats & Petticoats format.
Such a shame that this isn't in the hands of a better director and producer as it has potential to be a great show.
Spoiler: The show ends with 'Through The Years' but I feel the moment really would be better with some projected video / images of the real Cilla Black. A missed opportunity to pay tribute to a great icon.
Kara really is sensational and worth seeing for her performance alone.
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Post by Dannyboi on Oct 15, 2017 13:58:05 GMT
Caught the Matinee yesterday in Birmingham and here are my thoughts...
Spent most of the first act thinking it was just ok but nothing really grabbed me. Kara was instantly a likeable and believable Cilla but didn't have much to do in the line of singing for most of Act one. A large stage that made up the Cavern club would roll forward,various groups would perform non Cilla songs whilst the young leads met,danced and spouted lines lifted directly from the tv show in front of the stage. I begun to quickly realise this really was a very faithful adaptation of the tv show,only every song performed in the club was played in full,over and over. The stage would roll back, a scene would be set in the house or on a street, then the stage would roll forward again for another cavern club scene, which became repetitive and quite boring. Was not a fan of that bloody stage!
And then came Anyone who had a heart. WOW. Kara was amazing and blew the song and the rest of the show that came before it clean away. And this momentum carried on for me over into the second act with performances of You're my world, Alfie, and step inside love all showcasing what an absolute star in the making Kara Lily Hayworth is and she really is the ace up this shows sleeve. Sounding enough like Cilla,but not an imitation, her voice and full and warm with a big belt,every cilla number was a winner.
Which for me was the main problem with the show, too many songs especially other peoples crow barred in at every opportunity,making the show too long (3 hours!!) without really adding anything to the very slim story. I realise this was to pad out Act 1 before Cillas first hit,and you can't blame them for wanting to end Act one with it, like I said before its phenomenal, but did anyone really need,or expect Mamas and Papas to randomly show up half way through act 2, as nicely performed as California Dreaming was.
Its easy to rave only about Kara but the rest of the cast also did a great job with the material. Carl Au's Bobby bought all the charm needed to invest in his and Cillas romance,even if there wasn't much drama in their second act break up,you know they end up together,but at least you believed in thee two of them.
Andrew Lancel was also great as Brian Epstein. The book may have dealt with his personal life with all the subtlety of a sledge hammer ,and having him sing You've got to hide your love away was as on the nose as you can get,but this moment was quite a highlight for me,the emotion was raw and quite unexpected.
I usually hate enforced standing ovations in musical theatre,but this one has to be admired for sheer calculation and cynicism!! The end of the show proper,the finale,and the curtain calls all seem to strangely merge into one. You're like oh,were at that part now,which robs the ending of any emotional clout. Plus that bleeding stage makes a return for the finale,leaving the whole company to clunkily stand in front of it,nearly falling off the front of the real stage as they manoeuvred round each other for their solo bits, and into my lap! I was in the second row,and the awkwardness as each company member moved the other out the way was quite unnerving! Please get rid of that stage lol.
So in closing, was Cilla a flawless and well directed piece of musical theatre? God no. Did I (eventually) find it a hugely entertaining crowd pleaser performed by an amazing cast? YUP. Is it worth seeing just for Kara Lily Hayworth? Definitely. Could a good show be turned into an amazing one if they removed about half an hour of filler? Maybe. Have I just booked to see in again in Nottingham next year? .... Might have! xx
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Xanderl
Member
Not always very high value in terms of ticket yield or donations
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Post by Xanderl on Oct 15, 2017 14:20:05 GMT
Hadn't heard Andrew Lancel was playing Epstein again - he was very good in the same role in this a couple of years ago - epsteintheplay.com/ - although the script wasn't up to much (most of it was along the lines of "I guess you could say Brian was A REAL NOWHERE MAN. He lived at a time when if you were gay everyone told you that "YOU'VE GOT TO HIDE YOUR LOVE AWAY". But when THIS BOY came along he realised that really ALL YOU NEED IS LOVE".)
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Post by Dannyboi on Oct 15, 2017 15:01:58 GMT
Yes I only realised he had played him before whilst reading the programme,no wonder he had such a firm grasp on the character!
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Post by Deleted on Oct 15, 2017 20:37:59 GMT
Saw the show last Wednesday in Birmingham, Kara has an amazing voice which unlike the real Cilla's didn't change key mid-song. This show could be a great launch pad for her as other good roles should come her way. Carl Au was also very good as Bobby who went from being a wideboy chancer to being totally devoted to Cilla. He could also hold a good tune and wasn't overshadowed by Kara on You've Lost That Loving Feeling.
I wasn't sure why they randomly had the Mammas and Papas crop up on the Ed Sullivan Show, surely it would have made more sense to have given Bobby's character an extra song or even the Mum and Dad singing an older song.
Special shoutout to the guy who was Danny La Rue type character - he looked amazing.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 17, 2017 23:10:26 GMT
I just registered now to post a comment about Cilla the musical. I just saw the musical tonight at the first night in Blackpool. The show is darn good. It is not a cheap production. There are 18 performers in the show. The first half edges towards being a stage drama. In the second half the show keeps hitting you with many great songs by great performers until your face has to smile. Standing ovation at the end. It may have been slightly engineered but was well deserved. If you like musicals, go see it, it is the bees knees.
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Post by showgirl on Nov 5, 2017 5:45:39 GMT
Those who have seen it recently, could you please give an idea of the current running time, which Dannyboi reported, some weeks ago, was close to 3 hours? I am seeing it this week but neither the show's website nor the venue's gives any idea of this, which is really unhelpful and frustrating. I booked a matinee anyway (thank goodness!) but am wondering what I can book to follow this, which depends on when it ends. Thank you.
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Post by macksennett on Nov 5, 2017 7:09:02 GMT
2hrs 50min - it's a long show!
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Post by showgirl on Nov 5, 2017 8:00:14 GMT
Thank you very much, macksennett, for the fast and helpful response. It's still about 10 mins shorter than I'd allowed for, so ample time for me to see an early evening film nearby or scoot into central London for an evening show.
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Post by musicalmarge on Nov 8, 2017 23:25:24 GMT
“CILLA” the musical! Some of it great, some of it terrible. Some goosebumps other parts I cringed.
Andrew Lancel playing Epstein needed to be shot for over acting and the musical was too long at almost three hours.
But the lead girl playing Cilla was super. She just needed bigger teeth.
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Post by showgirl on Nov 9, 2017 19:58:47 GMT
I enjoyed the matinee at Wimbledon today, though it's a shame for the show and the venue that it was nowhere near sold out. Best show I've seen there in a good couple of years and after leaving so many disappointing ones at the interval, I began to think perhaps I should simply steer clear of that particular theatre.
Yes, at 2 hours 50 minutes it is long and probably could and should be cut - down to about 2 hours 30, say - but at no stage did it drag for me, though the pace picked up noticeably once the songs kicked in and the story really took off. I found myself wondering if the real Cilla had had a better voice than I thought, as Kara Lily Hayworth is really impressive and her rendition of "Anyone Who Had A Heart", which closes Act One, was absolutely spellbinding.
All in all, time and money well spent in my opinion.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Nov 9, 2017 20:10:23 GMT
I found myself wondering if the real Cilla had had a better voice than I thought, as Kara Lily Hayworth is really impressive and her rendition of "Anyone Who Had A Heart", which closes Act One, was absolutely spellbinding. That’s an interesting comment SG. What do you base your opinion of the real Cilla’s voice on? I ask because I think she became a parody of herself later in her career and the voice in her early recording years was overshadowed by her tv persona which was a bit of a joke.
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Post by showgirl on Nov 9, 2017 20:19:19 GMT
I don't think I ever heard that much of the real Cilla singing, BurlyBeaR but whatever I did hear - and probably songs from later in her career - left me believing that her voice wasn't up to much - but that's just my opinion and besides, her voice could have changed over time; plus performing style can make a huge difference to the overall impression. Certainly I thought of her more as an "entertainer" than singler and what I did hear didn't leave me wanting more, whereas seeing the show today, I couldn't get enough of Kara Lily Hayworth as Cilla. Now, assuming that the aim was verisimilitude and that the producers therefore wouldn't have chosen someone with a better voice than the person she was playing, does that mean I've misjudged Cilla? Or that I'm over-rating Kara Lily Hayworth's singing?
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Post by Deleted on Nov 9, 2017 23:29:29 GMT
When I saw the showw, it did not occur to me that the lead actress had a better voice than Cilla. On looking at Youtube videos you are correct she does. As you say, performers voices can change over time, if they are not careful. No wonder we where impressed.
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Post by musicalmarge on Nov 10, 2017 16:52:51 GMT
When I saw the showw, it did not occur to me that the lead actress had a better voice than Cilla. On looking at Youtube videos you are correct she does. As you say, performers voices can change over time, if they are not careful. No wonder we where impressed. I think we all need to realise that this was the 60’s and voices were different then. Cilla had a natural nasal tone with odd vowel sounds and a rather shrill belt that could almost be unpleasant to listen to. The girl in the current musical is a much better singer and because of that it is much more pleasant to the ears. The perfect casting.
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Post by argon on Nov 11, 2017 22:22:52 GMT
Lora Lora Laughs & the music was decent and bubbled along nicely, cracking performance by Kara Lily Hayworth. The production seemed more polished for a touring one (spending a little bit more can make all the difference). After seeing Flashdance last month at the NWT watching Cilla felt like I was watching this in a West End Theatre. Kudos to the production team.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Nov 21, 2017 23:23:42 GMT
Audience behaviour off the scale tonight in Manchester. Absolutely dreadful and not just me, I heard other people talking about their own experiences on the way out.
As for the show, total guilty pleasure. Cilla’s early work is before my time but I was introduced to it by an ex whose mum was a superfan and played us the greatest hits constantly. Cilla had an amazing voice as a youngster (and no, Kara Lily Hayward’s voice is not better) and it was great to hear those huge ballads as well as one of my faves Love Of The Loved.
I really liked it but a couple of things jarred. Brian Epstein singing Youve Got To Hide Your Love Away with a black eye was clumsy, if not crass. That was one of two points where the songs moved away from performances and became narrative and neither of them worked. It was just odd for them to start doing it when everything else was performance. The other jarring note were the notes of the synthesised strings. Yuk.
Kara is very good, as is the whole cast. Some of the wigs are questionable. Overall a good night.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Feb 15, 2018 11:59:47 GMT
Back ain Manchester, this time at The Lowry for a week 28th August.
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Post by musicalmarge on Feb 15, 2018 14:12:53 GMT
It’s too long but I thought this was great!
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Post by alicesprings on Mar 3, 2018 11:01:41 GMT
Saw Cilla in Newcastle last night and it was brilliant. Kara Lily Hayworth has a lovely voice, powerful when needed. The actor playing Bobby was brilliant too. The supporting cast were great too. I was worried it might drag a bit at 2 hours 50. But it didn’t! Great set too. (Only thing for me is a man sitting near me asked his partner what happened in America; before it happens on stage as I didn’t know so a little bit spoiled for me but didn’t ruin the night!). Anyone Who Had a Heart and Through the Years stood out for me. Standing ovation at the end thoroughly deserved. Sold out performance despite the snow and travel disruptions.
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Post by Steve on Mar 25, 2018 23:31:12 GMT
Kara Lily Hayworth singing "Anyone Who Had a Heart" was also my highlight. Just exquisite, and worth the trip just to hear that. Still, this is an odd one, given that Cilla isn't the show's main character, probably not even the second most important character, which is poor Brian Epstein, constantly engaged by his closeted battle with fists that kiss. (Spoilers follow. . .) Of course, the main character is Bobby, who has all the narrative challenges, with Cilla a somewhat whiny obstacle for him to overcome in his quest to become a kind, generous and all round wonderful guy. I mean, Cilla doesn't even know there are obstacles in the way of her getting more money for her first performances, as noble Bobby digs deep into his own pockets to ease her every desire. And boy does he desire her, though God knows why, cos the thanks he gets from her is to demote him to number 2 manager (below Epstein) and then unthinkingly tell him to get out of her line of sight, while she records a song. Of course, Bobby is dealing with the death of his father, yet he acquiesces to every demand of his desired Diva, cheers on Cilla, despite her problems being nothing but petty, sacrifices his own ambitions, and ultimately wins the heart of his Princess. Compared to the inspiring portrayal of the heroic Tina Turner at the Aldwych, Cilla is a total brat who lucks her way through her entire life, while Bobby and Brian suffer and work their way through real challenges. I cannot believe the real Cilla would have been OK with this story lol! Also, compared to Tina the Musical, so little thought has gone into dramatising the songs, which are mostly just concert appearances. The laziness, but also the genius, of this approach is compounded by throwing in songs by the Beatles, Gerry and the Pacemakers and the Mamas and the Papas, all just so songs we know and love can be trotted out in undramatised, yet thoroughly entertaining concert performances lol. Kara Lily Hayworth enchanted the heck out of me, singing "Anyone who had a Heart" with power and grace, but the only one who has a heart in this story is lovely Bobby, and Carl Au is FANTASTIC as Bobby, self-effacing and funny in the lighter scenes, vulnerable and heartfelt in the weightier ones, and every bit Hayworth's equal in his lovely duet with Cilla, "You've lost that Loving Feeling." Anyway, despite this being the jukeboxiest jukebox show ever, thanks to Au's great performance, and thanks to all those unearned but superb concert numbers, "Bobby the Musical" proves to be a thoroughly entertaining show! 3 and a half stars.
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Post by yamcandy on Mar 26, 2018 2:51:36 GMT
Does the musical mention that Bobby wrote most of Cilla's b-sides? He pocketed as much money from Cilla's hit versions of "Anyone Who Had a Heart" and "Alfie" as the Bacharach/David partnership did (more if one considers that he didn't have to split the proceeds, like Burt and Hal did). He got his monetary investment in Cilla Black back in spades.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Mar 26, 2018 10:21:10 GMT
Compared to the inspiring portrayal of the heroic Tina Turner at the Aldwych, Cilla is a total brat who lucks her way through her entire life, while Bobby and Brian suffer and work their way through real challenges. I cannot believe the real Cilla would have been OK with this story lol! I’m pretty sure she authorised the Sheridan Smith tv drama that this musical is based upon. And her son authorised the musical. ETA her son Robert Willis is executive producer.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 28, 2018 0:34:00 GMT
Cilla's oldest son Robert was Executive Producer of the TV drama as well as the Musical so the family must be happy with how it portrays her.
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Post by musicalmarge on May 21, 2018 23:21:35 GMT
At the Albert Hall tonight they said this is going to the West End!
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