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Post by karloscar on Sept 24, 2018 19:16:09 GMT
Joe's first dance last year was the jive....Joe's first dance this year also the jive. History repeating???
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Bodyguard
Sept 24, 2018 10:13:22 GMT
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Post by karloscar on Sept 24, 2018 10:13:22 GMT
Well season 2 will need a new leading man. If David Budd has regained his family and his sanity, he'll never go near the rest of those characters ever again.....Unless....
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Company
Sept 22, 2018 23:45:01 GMT
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Post by karloscar on Sept 22, 2018 23:45:01 GMT
Some of tempi seemed very relaxed compared to versions I know from the past. The only one that felt the same was Side by Side by Side. Read more: theatreboard.co.uk/thread/1950/company?page=40#ixzz5RsRddwQONone of the tempi will be fixed yet. Sitzprobe is the first chance for cast and orchestra to play together, so no surprise if things are a bit tentative. It will find it's own energy once they are in the theatre.
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Post by karloscar on Sept 20, 2018 22:31:21 GMT
"What a dump!"
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Post by karloscar on Sept 18, 2018 1:42:56 GMT
Dame Angela says she's only in it briefly as the balloon lady but she sings (part of?) the final song of the film.
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Post by karloscar on Sept 14, 2018 11:30:13 GMT
Well there's no guarantee that any advice offered will be followed. And Sondheim himself would always advocate finding your own voice rather than try to replicate anyone else's style. The complaint for many years was that "Everybody wants to be Sondheim...", and there were a lot of second rate imitations, but things have progressed somewhat since then.
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Post by karloscar on Sept 13, 2018 22:20:50 GMT
She was quite unique, amazingly versatile and in an earlier age would have been a huge star. So glad I got to see her in Kiss Me Kate and Ragtime. So sad we can never go back to before and hear her once more.
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Post by karloscar on Sept 13, 2018 17:14:46 GMT
He's offered a lot of help and encouragement over the years to Adam Guettel, Jason Robert Brown, Lin Manuel Miranda and Jonathan Larson before he died.
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Post by karloscar on Sept 11, 2018 9:06:34 GMT
A writer who resorts to insulting people who make a valid point about a piece they publish is clearly not much of a writer. Alison Bechdel ( you even mis-spell her name !) did not write the musical, and you give her credit for things she did not create. As a "writer" I'd expect you would want to be given credit for your work. Yours "condescending Tw*t"
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Post by karloscar on Sept 11, 2018 8:35:48 GMT
Oooh touchy! Just think that credit should be given to writers when it's due. That's not nitpicking. It's like saying Chris Bond wrote Sweeney Todd and Hugh Wheeler and Sondheim were mere bystanders.
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Post by karloscar on Sept 10, 2018 22:26:09 GMT
I really enjoyed reading your article, and while I agree with most of what you say, I'd add that Fun Home the musical is very different from the novel, and you need to credit Jeanine Tesori and especially Lisa Kron for what they achieved. Alison didn't write Ring of Keys or Days and Days or Telephone Wire. Her book inspired them, but there's a huge leap from the page to the stage giving voice to these characters and Lisa Kron deserves credit for that.
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Bodyguard
Sept 10, 2018 8:30:31 GMT
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Post by karloscar on Sept 10, 2018 8:30:31 GMT
Is Dame Keeley really gone though? Or is it all ploy to expose those who are out to get her?
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Post by karloscar on Sept 9, 2018 16:49:27 GMT
Anton is looking increasingly out of place amongst the male pros. And it’s not an age thing, it’s the whole persona and that whenever there’s a joke to be played they shove him into it. Like coming down straddling the mirror ball throwing glitter about last night. He does it very well and probably enjoys it. But it does mean he gets landed with a certain type of partner and as such doesn’t get taken seriously which is a shame if what’s said above about him being the only remaining ballroom expert us true. I’d take him off the dance team, ditch Zoe Ball from it Takes Two because she’s well past her sell by date in that role, and give Anton her job. He’d be brilliant. He’s funny (she isn’t) he can dance (she can’t) and he could have a proper rapport with the contestants through his understanding of what they’re trying to achieve. Then we can promote lovely ginger to the male pro line up. It’s a no brainer. Or if they insist on keeping him on the pro dance team, give him a proper partner and not the latest sack of spuds. The obvious job for Anton is Brucie's. Ditch the talent black hole that is Tess Daly. (How did she get so far on SO little?)She can't even read the autocue never mind deliver a joke, and the costume dept obviously loathe her, given the hideous frocks she's given. The only thing on Strictly with less vitality is Shirley's forehead. It'll ñever happen of course, but....
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Post by karloscar on Sept 5, 2018 10:32:34 GMT
Once you get past the cringey title, my first reaction is why would you put those voices together? I've enjoyed performances by all three at various times, but if I was looking to blend three great singers with contrasting but complimentary voices none of them would be on my list and certainly not together. And some of the chosen songs are odd to say the least. Still, they might manage to win me over.....maybe.
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Post by karloscar on Sept 4, 2018 16:08:34 GMT
You can have Jason Donovan back whenever you like! :-)
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Bodyguard
Aug 28, 2018 16:30:19 GMT
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Post by karloscar on Aug 28, 2018 16:30:19 GMT
Why? There's far less to worry about in fictional and satiric portrayals of politicians than there is in the blatant manipulation of truth and propaganda we are fed constantly by the main stream media. That's what would put me off, not a mere piece of drama.
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Post by karloscar on Aug 28, 2018 14:49:48 GMT
The musical theatre scene is healthier than it's been for decades. New shows are getting produced rather than just workshopped to death. Some of it is great, some mediocre, some popular, some innovative. And there's always room for a good revival of a classic.
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Bodyguard
Aug 28, 2018 14:43:08 GMT
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Post by karloscar on Aug 28, 2018 14:43:08 GMT
Cultural portrayals of politicians only reflect the reality I don't think it does - when Jo Cox was murdered everyone suddenly seemed surprised that here was a person in parliament who seemed to be pretty decent (even if her husband wasn't). The media - to its eternal shame - likes to focus on and give platforms to 'characters' rather than bread-and-butter politicians, so they are the ones whose careers thrive and who the public sees. When I lived in London I'd go to political meetings and some of those I met seemed to be OK human beings. [br Yes, but nobody ever got to be Home Secretary by being nice. They tend to be ruthless self-seeking bastards for the last half century at least.
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Post by karloscar on Aug 28, 2018 8:52:06 GMT
I'd heard the story from other sources too, and although Christine hardly demands the acting chops of Dame Judi, Claire is by far the better actress. Similarly when she was standby for EP in The King and I, she was much more believable in the role, and sang it better too.
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Post by karloscar on Aug 28, 2018 8:39:28 GMT
When does Dame Keeley sing "I Will Always Love You?" Not a bad remake, and Richard Madden is far sexier than Kev.
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Bodyguard
Aug 28, 2018 8:34:01 GMT
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Post by karloscar on Aug 28, 2018 8:34:01 GMT
The pop-cultural portrayal of all politicians as A-holes has, I think, put generations of decent people off entering Westminster. And now look where we are. Read more: theatreboard.co.uk/thread/5302/bodyguard#ixzz5PSZAQ7mgOh, they do a pretty good job of making A-holes of themselves. Cultural portrayals of politicians only reflect the reality, except Churchill obviously, who can only be seen as a saint it seems.
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Post by karloscar on Aug 27, 2018 10:45:38 GMT
You can do these concerts with a under a week of rehearsal if everyone knows the score fairly well before they start. Anything more elaborate requires more time, especially if choreography is involved, which bumps up the costs.
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Post by karloscar on Aug 26, 2018 15:51:08 GMT
God, I see the body fascists are out in force. What body type does Gabey have to conform to? It doesn't mention it in the script. He just needs to be strong enough to rescue his mates from the ocean. Nathaniel Hackman's slightly goofy naïvety suited the role perfectly. The whole cast was pretty spot on, but I loved Celinde Schoenmaker as Claire, a role that often loses out to whoever's playing Hilde. She was funny and sexy, and did a beautiful lead on Some Other Time. Will look out for her in future.
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Post by karloscar on Aug 25, 2018 11:47:11 GMT
Miss Crawford may have been the diva, but miss Brightman was a close second. She made a very quick recovery when she was feeling poorly in previews and Claire Moore went on with next to no rehearsals and outshone her in every way.
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Post by karloscar on Aug 25, 2018 11:22:05 GMT
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers and Calamity Jane have never had the magic on stage that they had on film. The casts, settings and choreography can never be equalled. Mary Poppins on film was always too saccharine and the children too nice, so I thought the stage version was far more exciting and also moving, and the new songs are even better than some of the originals. And much closer to what Pamela Travers would have wanted. Controversial I know.
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Post by karloscar on Aug 24, 2018 1:13:59 GMT
Freaky Friday with Jodie Foster is my first memory of her, but she seemed to be extremely versatile and talented. It's a shame she retired from acting at such a young age.
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Post by karloscar on Aug 23, 2018 17:06:37 GMT
Yes, he was touting for work and having a laugh, not announcing a role. Seemed perfectly obvious to me.
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Post by karloscar on Aug 14, 2018 10:31:25 GMT
Blood Brothers original run seems to have been mismanaged. Barbara Dickson was its main attraction, but surely a headline star could have been found to replace her once she wanted to leave. She herself says she wasn't really suited to an eight shows a week long run. And the show itself got far better reviews than Les Miserables did at the time. It seems odd that they didn't manage to market it well at all. (It played to packed houses on tour for ages with Rebecca Storm, before the Kiki Dee tour brought it back to the West End.)
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Post by karloscar on Aug 10, 2018 16:06:10 GMT
Metropolis was one of the most magnificent flops. Brian Blessed was Brian Blessed on acid, the set was amazing when it worked, the songs were tuneful, though the lyrics sucked, Graham Bickley was the drippiest leading man ever and then Judy Kuhn made you forget all that was wrong with it. Her ability to make dodgy material truthful and compelling is quite unbelievable.
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Post by karloscar on Aug 7, 2018 18:46:45 GMT
Don't Tell Me Not To Fly: Janie Dee. I thought she was funny and charming and sang well despite a couple of lyric slips, (understandable when you're not getting much of a run of performances). The use of projections with questions which are then repeated by some woman with an really obnoxious speaking voice was a complete waste of time and money. I'd much rather Janie had just had a chat and told us a few stories between songs. I presume each actress has to suffer similarly. Still Janie gets the prize for best use of a Magnum in a fringe show!
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