Cliffs Pavillion Southend – until 29 February 2020
Reviewed by Molly Stannard
4****
Priscilla: Queen of the Desert is an uplifting musical that brings a ray of sunshine. Filled with humorous jokes and glamorous fun, Ian Talbot has crafted the perfect adaptation for theatre. The three main characters Joe McFadden (Tic/Mitzi), Miles Western (Bernadette) and Nick Hayes (Felicia), work well together bouncing innuendo and humour off each other as three glorious drag queens.
They begin a life changing journey across Australia tackling many challenges of self-identity and prejudice. Despite the serious undertones a light-hearted camaraderie was maintained between the characters with their strong bond of friendship and the fight for equality.
The music was brilliantly orchestrated by the cast and the three divas singing rousing classics that the audience joined in with. Fantastic voices that were beautifully harmonious and great dance moves kept you entertained throughout the show. Kevin Yates who played Miss Understanding was particularly entertaining with his Tina Turner impersonation.
A show well worth seeing to brighten up dull days.
The Las Vegas Symphony Orchestra to make UK debut at Cadogan Hall
with
THE KING SYMPHONIC: THE MUSIC OF ELVIS PRESLEY
Featuring Presley’s classics reimagined by full symphony orchestra
A brand-new show celebrating the king of rock and roll will sweep into town on 3rd April 2020.
For one night only, the acclaimed Las Vegas Symphony Orchestra will make its UK debut at Cadogan Hall with its hit show The King Symphonic: The Music of Elvis Presley. The show will feature vocals from Grammy-nominated vocalist and producer Shea Arender under the direction of Steve Rawlins. This will be the first time that the Las Vegas Symphony Orchestra has performed in London.Presented by Worldwide Entertainment, The King Symphonic will take Elvis fans on a symphonic journey of his greatest hits. Audiences will experience a breath-taking performance jam-packed with classics such as Can’t Help Falling in Love, Suspicious Minds, It’s Now or Never and Blue Suede Shoes.
Shea Arender has amassed international recognition through his work as a symphonic and Broadway producer, with previous production credits including the Tony Award-nominated musical A Night with Janis Joplin. As CEO of the Las Vegas Symphony Orchestra, Arender is at the forefront of delivering world-class symphonic programming to a global audience. Speaking about their London debut, Shea said:
“I’m very excited about debuting in the UK. Elvis always loved his British fans but never got a chance to perform here. It’s amazing that over 40 years after his death his music lives on and remains so popular among audiences the world over. I’m looking forward to representing my heritage, and Elvis’ too, and performing these beautiful songs in a symphonic setting at Cadogan Hall.”
The critically acclaimed Musical Director, composer, arranger and principal conductor of the Las Vegas Symphony Orchestra, Steve Rawlins, will also join the orchestra for their UK debut. Rawlins has arranged for the likes of Smokey Robinson, Bette Midler and Chaka Khan and will conduct the symphonic reimagination of some of Elvis’ most recognised songs.
Following the inaugural performance of The King Symphonic: The Music of Elvis Presley, Worldwide Entertainment has announced that in 2021, the concert will return to the UK to complete a tour of some of the UK’s major concert halls.
To purchase tickets for The King Symphonic: The Music of Elvis Presley, call the Cadogan Hall Box Office on 0207
Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford – until 29 February 2020
Reviewed by Terry Genis
4****
The programme notes mention shows such as Yes Minister and The Thick of It, but I wasn’t sure if I was watching a mockumentary or actual history. Whatever one’s politics are, we all know the principal characters portrayed.
The play starts with a factual event in February 2016 when Boris Johnson and his then wife Marina Wheeler entertained Michael Gove and his wife Sarah Vine, and Evgeny Lebedev, the British Russian major shareholder of the Evening Standard. During the dinner Johnson decides to vote ‘leave’ and so sets in motion a chain of events that take us to today. The play shows us how he is influenced by the presence at the dinner of the spirits of three former Prime Ministers – Churchill, Thatcher and Blair. In turn or together they tempt him with the accolade of historical greatness if he is to take a firm position.
The second part of the play takes place in 2029 in post-Brexit Britain, where Boris Johnson has been Prime Minister for some of the time, but for familiar reasons has returned to writing. He is still an MP and the powers consider that it would be good if he became the leader again. The plot reprises the gathering in 2016 but the spirit trio still has an impact on events.
The set was sparse – a grey wall of eight panels with a couple of door openings – and was totally sufficient as the stage was filled by some big characters. I was frustrated by the small dining table and four chairs – why not have a slightly bigger table and another chair for the guests?
Will Barton is the Boris Johnson we think we know. It was very disconcerting to be seeing the Prime Minister on stage when the papers are questioning his whereabouts during flooding disasters. The other four members of the cast each portrayed three characters and gave good impressions of the known people.
This is a story of our time, so the script will be updated to reflect events. There were also some clear references to the locality, which all added to the fun interpretation of our recent history and a possible future.
2019 Box Office figures released by Society of London Theatre
The Society of London Theatre (SOLT) has released 2019 ticket sales data for its member venues, which include all of the commercial West End and London’s major subsidized theatres.
The figures reveal an annual London theatre audience of over 15.3 million – nearly 1 million higher than Broadway – filling a record 80.7% of available seats and generating £799m in box office revenue.
Highlights from the data:
Attendances of 15,315,773 (down 1.4% from 2018)
Gross revenue of £798,994,920 (up 4.3% from 2018)
Average ticket price paid £52.17 (up 5.8% from 2018)
VAT generated for the Treasury of £133,165,820
80.7% of available seats filled (up from 77.5% in 2018)
18,364 performances (down 1.8% from 2018)
Plays saw a nearly 3% rise in audience numbers, while musicals dipped by just under 2%. This reflects the fact that four of London’s largest musical houses – the Dominion Theatre, the Theatre Royal Drury Lane and the newly renamed Sondheim Theatre – were dark for a significant proportion of the year, in some cases to carry out significant renovation projects. A total of 371 dark weeks in 2019, compared to 207 the previous year, explains the small drop in overall attendances.
Kenny Wax, President of SOLT, said:
‘These figures demonstrate the buoyancy of London’s theatre industry and the city’s status as the world’s leading theatre destination. Our major theatre owners and producers continue to present world class work, while investing in their historic venues to give audiences the best possible experience.
Audiences remain hungry for a quality live experience, evidenced by the unprecedented percentage of seats filled in 2019. The theatre industry is committed to offering a wide range of affordable tickets, alongside discount schemes, school outreach projects and SOLT audience development initiatives like Kids Week and New Year Sale. It is fantastic to see that over 5 million* tickets were available in the commercial West End at £40 and under last year, with only 1.1% at £150 and above.’
SOLT 2019 attendances and revenue by genre (with percentage comparisons to 2018):
Ahead of the 20th annual WhatsOnStage Awards this Sunday, 1 March, at the Prince of Wales Theatre – hosted by Jodie Prenger and Tom Read Wilson, and for the first time this year broadcast live on BBC Radio 2 hosted by Elaine Paige and Paddy O’Connell – WhatsOnStage announce the presenters of the individual awards: Aimie Atkinson, Amy Booth-Steel, Amy Hart, Max Harwood, Tyrone Huntley, John Kani, Oti Mabusi, Danny Mac, Daniel Monks, Vinegar Strokes, Liam Tamne, Giles Terera, Faye Tozer and Susan Wokoma. In addition, Maureen Beattie will present the Equity Award for Services to Theatre; and Elaine Paige will present the BBC Radio 2 Audience Award for Best Musical.
Each of the 5 nominated productions for Best New Musical will perform live at the event – Bit of a Sort from Only Fools and Horses, You Will Be Found from Dear Evan Hansen, It’s My Life from & Juliet, Welcome to the Rock from Come From Away, and She Used to be Mine from Waitress.
There will also be a performance of I’m Here by the cast of Curve Leicester and Birmingham Hippodrome’s production of The Color Purple, which is nominated in the Best Regional Production category, as well as two further numbers specially created for the evening. The event is co-produced by Paul Taylor-Mills.
Leading this year’s nominations is the new musical & Juliet – currently running at the Shaftesbury Theatre, with 13 nominations across acting and creative categories including nominations for leading actors Miriam-Teak Lee and Oliver Tompsett who play Juliet and Shakespeare respectively, supporting actor nominations for Jordan Luke Gage, Cassidy Janson and Melanie La Barrie, Best New Musical, Best Choreography, Best Costume Design, Best Graphic Design, Best Lighting Design, Best Set Design, Best Sound Design and Best Video Design. In the musical categories, Evita follows with 8 nominations and Mame and Waitress with 7 nominations each, and Come from Away and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat both with 5 nominations.
In the straight play categories, Best New Play is a contest between The Doctor, The Son, My Beautiful Laundrette, Life of Pi and Appropriate; and Best Play Revival nominees are Betrayal, Death of a Salesman, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Lungs and Present Laughter. The latter of these leads the play categories with 8 nominations; including Best Actor in a Play for Andrew Scott, Best Supporting Actress in a Play nominations for Sophie Thompson and Indira Varma and Best Direction for Matthew Warchus.
For the full list of nominations, please see below.
FIRST THEATRE COLLABORATION FROM BRADFORD’S MIND THE GAP AND GECKO THEATRE COMES TO LEEDS PLAYHOUSE
Two of the UK’s most innovative theatre companies, Gecko and Mind the Gap, come to Leeds next month with their first co-production.
a little space is at Leeds Playhouse on Friday 6th and Saturday 7th March.
Set in an apartment block, the devised piece follows the lives of five people and explores what happens when they connect and disconnect from each other whether through choice or through isolation. Drawing on the performers’ own experiences, a little space is a powerful piece of physical theatre, which uses movement, imagery, sound and lighting to portray the needs, desires and fears of the subject.
Mind the Gap has an internationally respected methodology and approach to its work and is considered a beacon for learning disability arts and artists; a little space is their first physical theatre production.
Award-winning physical theatre company Gecko has toured globally to audiences of over 200,000; a little space is their second associate production following on from the international success of The Dreamer in 2016.
Director Rich Rusk of Gecko said:
“It is our great pleasure to be collaborating with Mind the Gap, a company we have enormous respect and admiration for. Together we have created a piece about people; about the positives and negatives of living and being alone; the stories unfold in a space that everyone will recognise so it has given us an opportunity to really make the ordinary extraordinary, using a blend of theatre, choreography and dynamic sound design.”
Mind the Gap’s Charli Ward: “Our recent productions – the critically acclaimed ZARA and Mia – each put learning disability at the heart of the story; a little spacebrings the artists’ experiences to the fore but is fundamentally about us all.”
Tiata Fahodzi’s Seeds in association with the Leeds Playhouse, Soho Theatre and Tara Finney Productions is being world premiered in Leeds. Written by Mel Pennant and directed by Anastasia Osei-Kuffour, Seeds, is about two women who meet and share their grief and sorrow concerning their sons – one living and one who has passed away and the circumstances have brought on their survivals.
Both women, Evelyn (Judith Jacob) and Jackie (Penny Layden) share their accounts which relate to that day, 15 years ago, when Michael Thomas was stabbed. Jackie wishes to clear her conscience and Evelyn is planning to publicly pay a tribute speech. The revelations powerfully explore the themes of prejudice, racism, violence and death. Set in Evelyn’s living room with a standout tribute picture of her son, the quest for justice and answers on both the women’s part are met with accusative controversy, personal attacks, blinded ignorance and hard hitting emotions.
With such difficult and sensitive subjects being intensively explored and at times, Seeds is provocatively and evocatively powerful. It is explosive with the revealing of events that happened before the fatal stabbing and the repercussions afterwards, legally and emotionally. Unsurprisingly this production can be uncomfortable viewing especially for those who understandably relate to those circumstances and the sufferings that it brings. However the producers considerably offers support by inviting the audience to leave the auditorium if they need to and encourage those who need it to seek the relevant support including key professional agencies.
Both Jacob and Layden’s portrayals of Evelyn and Jackie respectively are done so well and their performances bring the story to life with created impact that moves the audience to be united in their plights. Things don’t appear as clear cut as originally envisioned and believed as it includes undocumented mitigating circumstances and newer developments, revealed in the story. The women are encouraged to see things in different perspectives though emotively charged with their personal circumstances.
With the powerful impact being personally experienced Seeds is a play very well written, very well performed and very well directed. Though it can be intense and uncomfortable at times, it is a testimony to how well the producers have delivered this 90 minute powerful play. It will no doubt be well felt and well received when this play continues to tour at other venues.
On your feet is written by Alexander Dinelaris and directed by Jerry Mitchell. The Story of Emilio and Gloria Estefan falling in love, singing through their journey together and their fight towards stardom. A passionate story about love, family and determination.
Gloria (Philippa Stefani) whose love is music, always breaking into song. It’s clear she’s destined to sing but is nervous, shy and struggles in the spotlight until she meets Emilio (George Ioannides). He is very driven, motivated and gets crazy when it comes to talking about music, who later gets told he shouldn’t compete in the English market which then gives him more determination to take them to the top and to let the people decide.
Their journey becomes more than packed, then with one twist of fate things change, making the family realise the importance of one another and the love and strength that they all share. The connection between these two, Gloria & Emilio on stage from the start to finish is just passionate, playful and outstanding. Including some amazing songs such as Don’t Wanna Lose You Now sang by Emilio an emotional, memorable, satisfying song that had the audience gripped, what a voice. As well as Gloria singing Coming Out Of The Dark which was classy, beautiful and sang with so much affection, passion and empathy just an exquisite performance all round.
Gloria Fajardo (Madalena Alberto) who plays Gloria’s Mother comes across stern and disagrees on many of her daughters choices as well as disapproving her choice of partner. She at times comes across jealous and judgmental. But deep down she is proud of her daughter and finds it hard to show. She plays a very convincing part.
Gloria’s Grandma Consuelo (Hollie Cassar covering for Karen Mann) is encouraging towards her, she’s full of character sees it as it is and keeps persuading her to do what makes her happy which is to sing. She’s over enthusiastic is a joy to watch and has the audience in laughter on many occasions.
The set was done amazingly well with tall shutters used for their home life which later changed into lighting for on stage concerts as well as tall billboards. Smaller props were brought in for change of scenes, weather a kitchen or a bed all making it very effective. The lighting and sound was dramatic at times enhancing the show and giving great affect as well as some beautiful backgrounds and romantic scenes of fireworks. The costumes were steamy, full of colour lots of sparkle and sequins giving an amazing Latino feel.
The whole show was upbeat with the whole cast showing amazing energy and great passion. Fantastic choreography as well as seeing a strong connection from all throughout. Just an all-round electrifying performance which had the audience singing along and joining in with a smile from ear to ear. This is an outstanding show and one that you wont want to miss out on!
WAITRESS CAST MEMBERS PERFORM TO CUSTOMERS TO CELEBRATE THE ‘OPENING UP’ OF PIZZAEXPRESS ON THE STRAND
Diners in a PizzaExpress pizzeria were amazed when the team serving them turned out to be the cast of the hit West End musical, Waitress.
To mark the re-opening of the sociable pizzeria’s The Strand: Trafalgar Square location, diners in the 350-seater restaurant were treated to a highly spirited tableside performance.
The musical celebration included the aptly named song ‘Opening Up’ and was performed by cast members including Marisha Wallace and Evie Hoskins.
Marisha Wallace, who plays Becky in the show, said: “We had so much fun surprising diners with some of the show’s most recognisable songs. The look on everyone’s faces when we began was amazing – I’d love to do it all over again”
Zoe Bowley, managing director of PizzaExpress, said: “Our sociable pizzeria ‘The Strand: Trafalgar Square’, is the latest in a number of locations to be transformed to showcase our fresh new look in what marks our 55th anniversary year. Live music and spirited performances have always been a big part of PizzaExpress’ history.”
The Waitress cast were joined by seven of the pizza-maker’s resident ‘pizzaiolos’, who flared dough in unison to the performance.
The performers then descended upon Trafalgar Square to continue their celebratory performance outside, much to the delight of on-lookers and traffic who stopped in their tracks to find out what was going on.
Marisha Wallace continued: “Our show is all about the fun of baking, and is jam-packed with songs, which are truly good enough to eat. Even though our special surprise performance at PizzaExpress was a one off, we’re serving fully-baked performances down the road at the Adelphi Theatre until Saturday, 4 July before touring the rest of the UK. So, if you missed out, why not enjoy a slice or two of the UK’s favourite pizza before heading down the road to see our show!”
Waitress celebrated its official opening night at the AdelphiTheatre on 7 March 2019 and the Tony-nominated musical is now booking until 4 July 2020. The show has also just announced a new UK and Ireland tour which will open in Dublin in November 2020. Sara Bareilles and Gavin Creel will be appearing in the London production of Waitress until 21 March.
Sara Bareilles first achieved mainstream critical praise in 2007 with her widely successful hit Love Song, which reached No. 1 in 22 countries around the world from her debut album Little Voice. Since then, Sara has won a Grammy® Award this year, and previously received seven further Grammy® nominations, two Tony nominations and three Emmy nominations. Her book, Sounds Like Me: My Life (So Far) in Song, was released in the fall of 2015 by Simon & Schuster and is a New York Times bestseller. Making her Broadway debut, Sara composed the music and lyrics for Waitress, and made her Broadway acting debut in 2017 by stepping into the shows lead role. Recently, Sara teamed up with Apple as an executive producer for Little Voice a 10-episode series, which she will create the original music for. On April 5, 2019 Sara released her fifth full-length and first album of original material since 2013, entitled Amidst The Chaos, to rave reviews. For this latest body of work, she joined forces in the studio with legendary Academy® Award-winning producer T Bone Burnett. As a result, the album spotlights her voice as a singer and storyteller like never before, while making an enduring statement. She recently completed her Amidst The Chaos North American tour.
Gavin Creel received a Tony Award for his performance as Cornelius Hackl in Hello, Dolly! starring Bette Midler and David Hyde Pierce. He made his Broadway debut originating the role of Jimmy Smith in Thoroughly Modern Millie, for which he received his first Tony Award nomination. He has since created such memorable performances on Broadway as Claude in Hair, which earned him a second Tony Award nomination, Jean-Michel in La Cage Aux Folles, and Stephen Kodaly in the Roundabout Theater Company’s production of She Loves Me, which was filmed live and is available on BroadwayHD. No stranger to London audiences, Gavin most notably originated the role of Elder Price in the West End production of The Book of Mormon, for which he received the Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical. He also starred as Bert in Disney’s Mary Poppins and reprised his performance as Claude in Hair. As well as starring opposite Sara Bareilles in the Broadway production of Waitress, his other stage credits include The Book of Mormon (on Broadway and originating the First National Tour), and the world premieres of Stephen Sondheim’s Bounce (at The Goodman Theatre and The Kennedy Center) and Prometheus Bound at A.R.T. On television, Gavin co-starred alongside Julie Andrews in ABC’s Eloise at the Plaza and Eloise at Christmastime. He has released three original albums GoodTimeNation, Quiet (which landed on Billboard’s Top Heat Seekers) and Get Out, and his single Noise raised money and awareness for marriage equality. Creel was a co-founder of Broadway Impact, the first and only grassroots organization to mobilize the nationwide theater community in support of marriage equality. A native of Findlay, Ohio, he is a proud graduate of University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre and Dance.
Waitress tells the story of Jenna, a waitress and expert pie-maker who dreams her way out of a loveless marriage. When a hot new doctor arrives in town, life gets complicated. With the support of her workmates Becky and Dawn, Jenna overcomes the challenges she faces and finds that laughter, love and friendship can provide the perfect recipe for happiness.
Brought to life by a ground breaking, female-led creative team, Waitress features an original score by seven-time Grammy® nominee Sara Bareilles (Love Song, Brave), a book by acclaimed screenwriter Jessie Nelson (I Am Sam) and direction by Tony Award® winner Diane Paulus (Pippin, Finding Neverland) and choreography by Lorin Latarro. The production is also currently touring the US and Canada and has announced an Australian premiere in 2020 at the Sydney Lyric Theatre with further productions to open in Holland next year and Japan in 2021.
Waitress premiered on Broadway in March 2016 and has since become the longest running show in the history of the Brooks Atkinson Theater. The production is also currently touring the US and has announced an Australian premiere in 2020 at the Sydney Lyric Theatre with further productions to open in the Netherlands in September 2020, the UK and Ireland in November 2020 and in Japan in 2021.
On its Broadway opening, Waitress was nominated for four Outer Critics’ Circle Awards, including Outstanding New Broadway Musical; two Drama League Award Nominations, including Outstanding Production of a Broadway or Off-Broadway Musical; six Drama Desk Nominations, including Outstanding Musical; and four Tony Award Nominations, including Best Musical.
The Ghost Hunt is led by Paranormal Research York and takes place at the Grand Opera House York after dark, includes audience participation throughout. This is a tour of the Grand Opera House after dark and the theatre will be dimly lit by the emergency lighting systems.
A range of traditional methods such as a human pendulum and divination activities, using crystals and a divining rods, also a range of technical equipment for guests to use such as an SLS camera (stick man camera) and gadgets that can detect spirit energies. This is an interactive event and guests will be as involved as they dare to be.
Paranormal Research York (PRY) are a team made up of experienced and professional paranormal investigators who are local or live in York and have come together to investigate predominantly in the city of York. They can access a range of haunted locations in and around the city and then research their findings to go with the legends.
Clare Bryant (PRY) says about the event
“We are very excited to be hosting the first ever ghost hunt at this amazing, historical building. From our first walk around at The Grand Opera House, we could feel the spirits already coming forward.”
Kevin spindloe (PRY) says about the event.
“Wow! Friday 13th and we have the privilege to be investigating here. It’s so active here and the spirits seem keen to tell their own ghost stories. As a guest you can be involved in the activities or just watch. Either way you will experience an event like no other.”
This event has an age restriction of 18+
The activity is facilitated by the Grand Opera House York Creative Learning & Community Partnerships team and is inspired by Ghost Stories. Parts of the building are only accessible by stairs and the tour will take place on all levels of the building. Please advise of any access or additional needs before booking. (Questions can be directed to CreativeLearningYork@theambassadors.com)
