Wake Me Up When September Ends....

Erm, I last blogged here at the start of September apparently? Oh.  Doesn't time fly when you're having fun? And before you know it, it's nearly Christmas!

So, what on earth have I been up to, in a "world of theatre and musical theatre" kind of way? Oh my goodness, quite an awful lot. 

And I haven't got time, unfortunately, to review every single show I've seen in great depth, because I've been so rubbish and not found the time to blog......but don't despair! I have decided to give you a quick mini-review of everything instead! All in one blog post! Like a megamix! Yay!

Here goes....

September:
Little Women by Centenary Theatre Company at The Brindley, Runcorn

I have to admit, I have not seen as many plays as I would have liked. But this was a good place to start! A lovely ensemble with some believable characters and this classic story was portrayed in a charming way.  I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Footloose by Encore Productions at The Brindley, Runcorn

I can barely remember watching the movie Footloose ...I am that old and it was so long ago that I had mostly forgotten it. But this musical brought the story to life in a fabulous way. With a fantastic leading man and woman and brilliant supporting cast down to the excellent music and choreography this was a first class production that had us all dancing in the aisles.

Matilda, touring production, Palace Theatre, Manchester

This was my second time seeing Matilda, having seen it in the West End. And it was just as good second time round. Craig Els excelled as Miss Trunchbull and the child cast were outstanding. The only downside was that my seat was a little far over to one side so I missed a little of the action on stage which was slightly disappointing.. I think I will go for circle seats next time.. I am sure I will see it again at some point!

October:
The Railway Children, Encore Productions, The Pyramid, Warrington

This classic story was brought to life in a touching and humorous way by this local theatre group. I was lucky enough to see both casts (the child roles were all double cast) and each of these young actors were fantastic. The role of Mr Perks was played by Seb Farrell and he was fantastic, in character from the moment I walked into the theatre and he stamped my railway ticket. The supporting cast were brilliant and it was a real ensemble piece. A great play from Josh Hankey on his directorial debut.

November:
Kinky Boots, touring production, Opera House, Manchester

This was always going to be a special musical for me. Cyndi Lauper wrote the songs for a musical about MY HOME TOWN! Little old Northampton. Wow. And I can't find anything to fault about it. Fantastic leads in Charlie and Lola (thought that was a Cbeebies show haha),  the Angels were amazing and even though I was convinced the Northampton accent would be rubbish I have to admit they had a good go at it! A show that will definitely raise you up.

The Wedding Singer, Centenary Theatre Company, The Brindley, Runcorn

As a self-confessed "child of the 80s" (yes I'm that old) I have to admit I was looking forward to seeing a musical of one of my favourite films from the 90s set in the 80s....and it exceeded all expectations.  Fun from start to finish, a very very funny show with some amazing vocalists and stunning choreography.  A great night's entertainment, well done Centenary.

December:
Six The Musical, The Lowry, Salford

Now, I am a history buff and the Tudors is probably my favourite period of history.  So when I learned there was now a musical based on Henry VIII's wives and their stories I was beside myself.  Tickets were booked.  And OMG am I glad they were! Six was incredible.  Half rock concert/half musical, this 75 minute long show is just amazing from start to finish.  With songs based on the styles of Katy Perry, Adele, Ariana the wives were brought to live with amazing vocals and such an incredible bond between the actresses playing them.  I especially loved all the modern cultural inserts - very clever.  If you've not seen Six then make sure you do.  Absolutely stunning.

So that's my last few months. Busy busy but some brilliant shows that made me very happy.

So what's next? Shows to come in 2019:
Winnie The Pooh/Honk The Musical
Les Miserables (touring)
Joseph
Wind In The Willows
Our Day Out
Animal Farm
Book of Mormon

That's whats booked so far! Some of these may include my kids, I'll be honest. Haha..There will be a review of the year at the end of December and I promise I'll be a better blogger next year.   As Alexander Hamilton once said, just you wait...

REVIEW: BARNUM BY CODYS PRODUCTIONS: THE BRINDLEY 15 SEPTEMBER

P.T. Barnum is fresh in everyone's minds at the moment due to the phenomenon that is The Greatest Showman. But here at The Brindley this week Codys Productions have brought us the original Barnum The Musical. And what a great show it was.

Focussing on Barnum's life from when he opened his American Museum right through to his venture into political life with a whole heap of circus skills thrown in, this musical was an absolute treat from start to finish.

Barnum himself was expertly played by Clayton Roberts who had learnt to juggle, perform tricks, stilt walk and walk the tightrope during the rehearsal process. (In fact all of the 60-strong cast had been trained in some form or another of circus skills and it was an impressive display with them all showing off their circus talents on stage).  Clayton was charming and you couldn't help but root for Barnum as he tricked and "humbugged" his way through the show. Charity, his wife, was played wonderfully by Sophia Thomson, who has a truly amazing voice, and she and played the role of long suffering wife beautifully. The duet of The Colours of My Life was just gorgeous.

Other notable performers were Mollie Neal who played Joice Heth, (the Oldest Woman in The World) Erin Smith as Jenny Lind and Joe Campbell and Sophie Powell's version of Black and White was very impressive. The talent that these young performers have is astounding (Codys' age range is 11 to 18).

The principals were supported by an incredible cast, all of whom obviously love what they were doing. (This was evident in the impromptu finale!)

Choreographing 60-plus kids in the big group numbers Join The Circus and Come Follow The Band must have been a challenge but choreographer Natasha Bill did an incredible job.

The cast were accompanied by wonderful musicians under the direction of Simon Pickup.

Director Nick Cupit always puts on amazing shows and this was no exception.  Visually stunning and confetti cannon-tastic!

Overall this really was "The Greatest Show".  Audiences left with huge grins on their faces.

Looking forward to Codys' next show, Joseph, in March.

REVIEW: IN THE HEIGHTS - LIVERPOOL EMPIRE

I was lucky enough to see this production by Liverpool Youth Theatre.

In The Heights was written by the incredible Lin-Manuel Miranda and premiered on Broadway in 2008.  It tells the story, set over three days, of Usnavi de la Vega who is the "narrator" of the show and who owns a small bodega in Washington Heights.  The musical focuses on Usnavi and the people with whom he grew up and is really about friends, family and a sense of belonging.

From the moment the first titular song "In The Heights" began I knew I was in for a treat

Usnavi was played by Jamil Abbasi - and he managed the fast rap written by and for Lin Manuel magnificently - his Usnavi was funny and charming and he led the show fantastically.   Triple threat Ellie Norton played Nina, Usnavi's childhood friend recently returned from Stamford University with a bombshell to drop to her parents.  Ellie played this part wonderfully and her version of "Breathe" was a highlight and just spine tingling.  A faultless performance.

There are too many cast members to go through everybody but I want to make a special mention also to Esme Bowdler who played Daniela - she was very funny throughout and "Carnaval Del Barrio" (my favourite song) was stunning.   Emily-Louise Lockhart who played Camila performed "Enough" with such passion! I  also want to mention Scarlett New who played Abuela Claudia.  I have seen In The Heights twice before but this was the first time that the song "Paciencia y Fe" really struck me and gave a sense of Abuela's moving back story.

This production had everything - from set design to costumes to stunning colours and use of lighting.  Great choreography and ensemble work.  There was a lot of humour and also some tragedy - I will admit that tears were shed when one of the characters passed away (no spoilers!) at the end of the song "Alabanza".

If I have one tiny criticism it was that sometimes the levels seemed a little out - it was a struggle to hear the lead vocals over the backing at certain points - but other than that I can't fault it.

There was a real sense of teamwork and camaraderie amongst the cast and that paid off.

The future of the north west's musical theatre life is secured if Liverpool Youth Theatre are anything to go by.  A well deserved standing ovation.

REVIEW: THE JURY - THE BRINDLEY THEATRE

When I heard about The Jury, a brand new musical, which had its world premiere at The Brindley Theatre this week, I was intrigued.  After all, I love crime shows on the telly! And I studied a bit of law at uni....  And I (obviously) love musicals!!!  Perfect for me!  That was it, I had to go...

And I wasn't disappointed.  This musical was written by Ashley MA Walsh (music and lyrics) and Amy Fletcher (book) and directed by Joseph Meighan and tells the story of the members of a jury called to a murder trial.  It follows their lives and thought processes and events as the trial goes on and by the end all their lives have been changed forever.

The case is about Jason Schofield who has been charged with the murder of his wife Emily - but he is claiming self-defence.  It's up to our jury members to listen to the evidence and come to a majority verdict - guilty or not guilty?

The cast all seemed to understand their characters well and were very believable.  I really can't choose a favourite as the jury members were all such different people with different tales to tell - but they worked together so well as an ensemble.  

The music (all played magnificently on piano by composer Walsh visible to the audience at the back of the stage) was beautiful.  There were no big showstoppers to speak of  - but a wonderful musical narrative (with some to-die-for-harmonies) intertwined with a mixture of memorable songs - "Let's Play A Game" by Debbie the am dram fan (a wonderful Bethany Grace) was extremely funny at the outset, as she got other jurors to try and role play the crime -  but ended in one of the characters (Darren the work-obsessed CEO played brilliantly by Ben Cupit). questioning their own actions and unexpected responses to the situation ("That Wasn't Me").

As the trial continued and the jurors got to know each other, the audience too got to learn about their lives.  A song by the quietly religious "Hannah from Marketing" (Laura Meaton) about the loss of her child reduced me to tears.  The young and chavvy Jodie (Alexandra Wood) eventually befriended the retired Alma (Elizabeth Brooks) (and introduced her to the phrase WTF...!)  Family man and builder Andy (Jake Hankey) found a new career through his friendship with Carol (Janice Fryett) the building surveyor, who had finally found one man in the world that she could rely on.  Tim Sanderson played Simon the university lecturer who kept a firm hold on proceedings and you knew that he really wanted to be the foreperson all along.  Harry Turner was played so well by John Thacker - he did a fabulous job as the youngest juror with a secret past.  Charlie Culkin played Laura, the stay at home mum who almost jeopardises the trial, and another juror that almost does that is Tom the Media Graduate played brilliantly by Josh Hankey - it's fair to say these jurors broke a few rules but it provided us, the audience, with a fantastic story to follow and become caught up in.

The musical tackled difficult issues and was incredibly thought provoking.  Issues that haven't really been dealt with before in theatre, such as female and male domestic violence, child loss, gender identity, the care system....these were difficult subject matters but important ones nonetheless.  The musical highlighted the importance of talking....

 I really liked all the modern references - references to blogging (of course!) and Snapchat and so on...

But the best thing for me about this musical is that the audience were taken on the journey WITH the members of the jury - by the end of the show we were all just desperate to know what the verdict would be, we had invested ourselves thoroughly into the story and all had our own views on whether our accused had done the crime or not....

.....and we were left with the biggest cliffhanger ever...! 

But it got people talking.  In the theatre foyer the discussion was all about "guilty or not guilty" - whose side were you on? 

And we were all left with the message that "we must talk" - which can only be a good thing.

I think that The Jury is a fantastic concept, which was well directed, gripping, thought provoking and gritty ...and a musical which deserves to be seen and heard.

www.facebook.com/TheJuryUK
www.twitter.com/TheJuryUK
www.thebrindley.org.uk