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It’s always lovely going to the Royal Opera House to see a ballet, and this production of Swan Lake was beautiful to watch.
The principals and soloists made everything look so effortless despite it being some of the most demanding choreography in the ballet repertoire. I found Marcelino Sambé as Benno particularly wonderful as not only was his dancing incredible, but his acting was superb too. In fact, for me, he gave the best performance of the night, and seemed to somewhat outshine Vadim Muntagirov’s Prince Siegfried.
After the first number, I really wasn’t sure whether I was going to like this show. I knew that it was going to be quite silly and wholesome – I grew up on Salad Days because it was my grandmother’s favourite musical, so I knew what to expect – but I found the beginning overly silly and saccharine and, in fact, quite painful to watch. It was actually quite devastating, especially as I’d heard such good things about the show.
I couldn’t resist the opportunity to make an impromptu visit to the Swan Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon to see this production of one of Shakespeare’s least well known and rarely performed plays.
My goodness, this production is good. Shakespeare’s plays can often be impenetrable and so, for me, the sign of a good production is being able to follow the action and understand what is going on. This production was absolutely brilliant in terms of how accessible it was.
This is the next instalment of Mischief Theatre’s enterprises, and it is wonderful to see them doing so well.
Unlike some of their other shows, this show lacks a true narrative. The concept is simple: it is a magic show to raise funds for a charity and various tricks go wrong. However, there is nothing more substantial to the story than that, which means that, at times, it can feel a little slow, clunky and disjointed.
This is the production that started it all - I saw it and it was so incredible that I knew that I just had to write about it!
This production is the same as the one that I saw years ago, and it is simply exquisite. Words cannot describe brilliant and beautiful this show is, nor how much I love it. The choreography is breath-taking, particularly the argument scene between Vicky and Julian, and the acting is sublime.
This show is incredible, and just a good as when I first saw it.
It is so cleverly crafted and put together, the actors are sensational, and its music is catchy, feel-good, and toe-tapping. As this was my second time seeing it, it didn’t have quite the same this-is-something-new-and-exciting factor. However, this didn’t stop it from being completely brilliant, sensitive and poignantly beautiful.
I don’t really know what more to say about this show - I pretty much said it all in my first review!
I love a Christmas Eve matinee; no matter what show you choose to see, it really gets you in the Christmassy spirit. Going into the theatre when it’s light, coming out when it’s dark and cold, and everyone smiling and feeling happy about the day to follow.
So, off to Phantom we went this year; my favourite show. As always, it was fantastic, and I love that I always see something new every time that I see it - a slightly different characterisation, interaction etc.
Do you remember where you were when you first heard about 9/11 and saw the news footage of planes being flown into the twin towers? I do. This was one of the most horrific events to happen during my lifetime, and it has since shaped the world.
There are so many ways that a musical about 9/11 could go, but this one focuses on a small Canadian island that opened its arms and welcomed 38 planes (7,000 people) that were diverted due to the closure of American airspace.
I have seen a living legend on stage. For his 80th birthday, Sir Ian McKellen took this show to over 80 theatres around the UK. He has now returned to London for a limited season in order to raise funds for theatre charities.
It was inspiring to see him and hear about how he fell in love with theatre. And it was interesting to learn about a world of theatre that is unknown in the London theatre world today.
This production hasn’t changed since I saw it in previews a couple of weeks ago, so I don’t really have much more to say about it. It’s over the top and ridiculous, with painfully twee and cliched dialogue; the bass is still too much during a few numbers, and there are some moments where the lights are incredibly bright and blinding. However, despite all this, it is a lot of fun and there are some pretty great vocals singing songs that we all know and love.