Review - West End Women (Cadogan Hall)

It may only be February, but 2019 is already looking set to be an amazing year for musical theatre, with Broadway showstoppers like Waitress, Come From Away and Dear Evan Hansen on the horizon, and home-grown musicals such as Six and the recently announced & Juliet making waves too. Aside from showcasing the breadth of the musical theatre genre, this theatrical line-up shares one other notable trait; they all feature an assortment of strong female characters in their ranks. And what better way to celebrate this vital leap in the right direction than a look back at almost 100 years of women in musical theatre?

 

Enter West End Women, Lambert Jackson Productions’ one-night-only celebration of some of musical theatre’s most memorable female characters, brought to life by an assortment of musical theatre superstars. 

 

The cast of West End Women
Photo credit - Michael Xavier

Headlining the concert were Rachel John, Lauren Samuels and Celinde Schoenmaker, three of the West End’s most dependable, versatile and spectacularly talented names. All three were given plenty of chances to shine in solo and group numbers. Rachel John delivered a hair raising rendition of Summertime from Porgy and Bess, whilst Lauren Samuels performed Never Enough from the 2017 hit film The Greatest Showman, and former The Phantom of the Opera star Celinde Schoenmaker revisited the mega musical to treat audiences to its ingénue Christine Daae’s star-making aria Think of Me.

Not only was West End Women a stunning showcase for the talents of its headlining performers, it also shone a spotlight on the stars of the future. Several up-and-coming musical theatre voices were on display, including Lauren Shields, Kayla Carter and Martha Boon, who opened the concert’s second act with Chicago’s vicious Cell Block Tango, Brady Isaacs who commanded the stage singing A Piece of Sky from Yentl, and Talia Robens, whose rendition of Everything I Know from In The Heights was a striking tearjerker.

 

The students of MX Masterclass, West End favourite Michael Xavier’s musical theatre training school, were equally impressive, bringing buckets of energy and pizazz to Blow Gabriel Blow from Anything Goes and America from West Side Story, accompanied by a peppy orchestra under the baton of Adam Hoskins.

Despite the omission of several famous female-led musicals, West End Women was a magical musical theatre celebration. The concept was solid, the performances were uniformly faultless, and the audience was left tapping their toes at the joyful and empowering finale, I’m A Woman!

Review - Hamilton: An American Musical (Victoria Palace Theatre)

Since it opened off-Broadway in 2015, Hamilton: An American Musical has been gaining plaudits exponentially. Having been nominated for a record breaking 16 Tony Awards in 2016, and winning 11, as well as the Pulitzer prize for Drama and countless other decorations, the buzz around this particular musical theatre phenomenon has been almost impossible to ignore. 

Jamael Westman and the London cast of Hamilton
Photo credit Matthew Murphy

With book, music, and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda, Hamilton is a sung and rapped through musical which tells the story of American founding father Alexander Hamilton, whose face can be found on the ten dollar bill. Told mostly through the eyes of Hamilton's jealous political opponent Aaron Burr, Hamilton covers the period of time between the American Revolutionary War of 1776 and Hamilton's death in 1804. It addresses many of Hamilton's biggest successes such as becoming the first secretary of the treasurer under George Washington, and his most notable failures, such as his part in America's first sex scandal, whereby he engaged in a highly publicized affair with married woman, Maria Reynolds. Although several embellishments are made to the historical events featured, Hamilton still manages to include a great deal of enlightening information about the titular character and those who surrounded him at a pivotal time in American history.

Despite its massive success on Broadway, there was no guarantee that Hamilton would have such a resonance across the Atlantic. After all, our ten pound note has the faces of Queen Elizabeth II and Jane Austen emblazoned across it, and the war for American Independence is just one of many wars which Britain fought in the 18th century, and therefore its significance carries a lot less weight over here. However, whilst the content is arguably less significant in Britain, the themes are incredibly familiar. It could be said that the unrest America faced in its infancy is not dissimilar to Britain today: torn apart by arguments about money and sovereignty in the face of Brexit, which has been a mainstay in British news since the results of the 2016 referendum. After all, the American revolutionaries' cries of "no taxation without representation" bear a striking similarity to the Brexiteers' campaign slogan that the £350 million sent to the EU each week would be better off being spent on the NHS (a slogan which has since been retracted). Similarly, the colour conscious casting of Hamilton, which highlights the diversity of both America and Britain today, feels particularly politically charged. When Caribbean born immigrant Alexander Hamilton and French military officer Lafayette high five and proclaim "immigrants, we get the job done" it's impossible not to be reminded of the Xenophobia which at least partially fuelled Britain's own brexit shaped 'revolution'. 

Regardless of how educational or reflective of the current British political climate Hamilton is, first and foremost it is a piece of mainstream musical theatre, and therefore it'd be nothing without some killer tunes and clever lyrics. A rap musical about the American founding fathers may have sounded unthinkable a few years ago, but of course the now astronomically famous Lin-Manuel Miranda, whose songwriting credits include In The Heights and Disney's Moana, has managed the seemingly impossible, and Hamilton is a triumph. 

The titular character, which the casting breakdown accurately describes as Eminem meets Sweeney Todd, sings and raps wittily, with some extremely clever and intricate rhymes showcasing both Alexander Hamilton's much lauded intelligence, and also the immensely talented lyrical skills of Lin-Manuel Miranda. Meanwhile, Hamilton's Schuyler Sisters, comprising of Eliza Schuyler Hamilton, Angelica Schuyler, and the lesser featured Peggy Schuyler, give off an R&B girl band vibe as they dazzle the audience with gorgeous harmonies and irresistible earworms, whilst looking for "a mind at work!" 

Rachelle Ann Go, Rachel John and Christine Allado as The Schuyler Sisters in Hamilton
Photo credit - Matthew Murphy

The London cast is filled with some of the most talented musical theatre performers working today, with Giles Terera giving a spine tingling performance as the spurned Aaron Burr, and Jason Pennycooke adding humour to the proceedings in his dual role as Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson. The Schuyler Sisters are a particularly enjoyable trio, with Rachelle Ann Go exuding sweetness and excitability as the lovestruck Eliza, and Rachel John commanding the stage with immense power as Angelica, the oldest sister. Christine Allado does what she can with the relatively small role of youngest sister Peggy, but shines in act two as sultry Maria Reynolds. Most notably though, the titular role of "young scrappy and hungry" Alexander Hamilton is taken on by newcomer Jamael Westman. The RADA graduate is the perfect fit, as although he seems at first to be less cocky and confident than his reputation suggests, Westman's Hamilton has an easy swagger and coolness which perfectly antithesis his intensely cerebral personality and at times fiery temper. 

Hamilton is not only a skillfully written and performed piece of musical theatre, it is also impressively designed and slickly directed. Paul Tazewell's costume design is simple yet beautiful, and merges the 18th century and present day very cleverly. In particular, the ensemble's somewhat androgynous costumes feel modern and quirky, whilst also harking back to the waistcoats, breeches and stockings popular in the 1700s. The quirkiness found in the design of the production is also seen in Andy Blankenbuehler's choreography, which mirrors the hip hop stylings in the music, whilst at times giving a nod to the balls which took place in the 18th century.

From start to finish Hamilton buzzes and crackles with a bustling energy, and director Thomas Kail keeps everything moving along slickly and succinctly, despite the fact that just like Alexander Hamilton himself, the musical's pace rarely slows down. With smart and snappy lyrics, a fascinating storyline, and an energetic cast which elevates the already sublime production, Hamilton is a new musical which will be admired for years to come. 

West End Live 2015

West End Live, an event which boasts of a free weekend of musical theatre in trafalga square, was an event I'd been dying to experience for several years, so when my musical theatre obsessed friends suggested we all take a trip down to London for the weekend I whole heartily agreed! Looking back now, I can't believe we missed it for the past couple of years! There is no better event on a musical theatre lover's calendar!

I headed down on the train, met my friends at the station and got into the queue at about 8:40. There were already loads of people queuing at both entrances, but when the gates were opened at just after 10am, we managed to grab a spot about 30 rows from the stage and dead centre! Result!

Throughout the day we were treated to some absolutely fabulous performances, some from shows I was already a fan of, and some from shows I'd not seen before. I loved seeing the 30th anniversary Les Mis cast in action, turned into a proper Righteous Brothers fangirl during the Beautiful: The Carole King Musical set, enjoyed the Miss Saigon performance which wowed everyone and, of course, adored the  Memphis performance, especially as we got to see 3 songs from that particular show including the final song, the crowd pleasing  'Steal Your Rock And Roll!'

We stayed for as long as possible at the event, but had to leave a little bit early in order to check into our youth hostel and freshen up before our evening outing to Memphis (what else could it be?)

The show was, of course, fabulous! It was my 5th visit but one of my friends had never seen it before so it was brilliant to hear what she thought of it afterwards! I won't be writing up a seperate recount because I feel as if every other thing I post on here is Memphis related! We saw the full principle cast, minus Rolan Bell, (Delray was instead played by Simon Ray Harvey) and as usual everyone was top notch! It was nice to see Killian in the role of Huey one last time before he leaves for Kinky Boots, but I digress...back to West End Live...

On day 2 due to the fact that we'd stayed overnight in London we were able to join the queue much earlier. In fact, we were one of the first groups of people there. This was fabulous, as when the gates opened at midday we managed to secure a place in the front row, at the very far left of the stage! The view was amazing and totally worth the early start and long wait!

We stayed for the whole day this time and witnessed too many wonderful performances to count! The Billy Elliot number 'electricity' was an incredibly powerful tearjerker (I need to see that show soon!), Let It Be's The Beatles set was rediculously fun, John Owen Jones made a surprise appearance and the West End Cabaret near the end of the day was wonderful too (Ben Stock and Caroline Sheen's rendition of 'Suddenly Seymour' had me longing for a production of Little Shop Of Horrors which I never knew I wanted). Of course, for me, the best performance of the day yet again came from Memphis. Felicia understudy Rachel John wowed the crowd with a rendition of 'Coloured Woman' which literally brought me to tears!

Then we got our very first taste of Xfactor's Matt Cardle as Huey, singing one of my favourite numbers from the show, the showstopping 'Memphis Lives In Me'. I had been sceptical but he really impressed me! He even went for the 'D' at the end if the song! A promising introduction indeed!

West End Live ended with an amazing surprise- a Rock Of Ages cast reunion! Host Oliver Tompsett announced that he would be singing 'Don't Stop Believing' from "Flock Of Cages", which was incredible to begin with, and even more so when ex cast members including Natalie Andreou, Nathan Amzi and Simon Lipkin to name but a few joined the stage. The atmosphere surrounding the performance was AMAZING and it really made the end of the event memorable.

Sadly, the weekend had come to and end though, which meant saying goodbye to my friends and heading home. Still, the weekend was absolutely the most enjoyable time I've had in ages and I cannot wait to check out some of the shows we caught a glimpse of at the event! I'll definitely be heading down again next year. Can it be June 2016 now, please?

Charlotte x

Were you at West End Live this year? What were your favourite performances?

Twitter: @OddJazzShoes

Bloglovin: Talkstageytome

Review - Memphis the Musical (Double alternate show)

If you've been following my blog for any length of time, you may have noticed that I am particularly fond of Memphis the Musical. The music is a mix of toe tapping numbers and powerful ballads, the choreography is incredible and the story is full of ups and downs, comedy and drama. For me Memphis is everything a great musical should be, and more. I first saw the show all the way back in October, while it was still in previews, and it's been wonderful revisiting it every couple of months and seeing how elements have developed, and how the cast have gotten more and more amazing in their roles every time! 

I am totally in love with the Beverley Knight and Killian Donnelly in the main roles, however, from my very first visit I was also very keen to see both alternate's takes on Huey and Felicia too, and so when I noticed that both leads were due to be off on a Saturday, I made a spur of the moment decision to see the show again.

Day seating was my best friend that day! Although I had to get on the slow train up to London at 5:40am (!!!) to get in the queue for 7:30, when the box office opened at 10am, I managed to buy two almost central front row stalls seats (I decided to treat my sister to an early birthday present) for £20 each! I definitely recommend day seating for this show, as the view was utterly fabulous! 

I'm sure I don't need to tell you that the show was incredible! I raved about it in my last 3 reviews/recounts, so really this post is more of a recount than a review. I do however, want to talk about the Huey and Felicia alternates, Jon Robyns and Rachel John! 

Wow! 

BB14, I could't have asked for better!

I saw Rachel on my last visit and totally loved her portrayal, and so I was very keen to see her in the role again. Her Felicia was strong and confidant and a little bit sarcastic which was fun, but there was also a vulnerability to her portrayal which was really interesting to watch. As before, her vocals were totally mind blowing. I loved all of the little touches she gave her character, which made her seem believable and made her interest in Huey and his propositions more understandable too.  

Jon Robyns was totally brilliant as Huey. The role itself is very over-the-top and funny (and at times a little bit odd) and Jon's Huey totally embraced this and lent in to the weirdness, but never went too far, which was perfect. He definitely made the character his own, with little traits/looks/expressions that were hilarious. There were so many little moments that were just wonderful (such as a mimed interaction between Huey and Bobby while he was in the radio booth (I've no idea what the technical name for that is!) during 'Everybody Wants To Be Black On A Saturday Night.') Little details like this which I hadn't noticed when I'd seen the show previously really helped to make this cast and this visit memorable. 

I was excited to spot this new poster on the tube.
It's great to see future principle Huey Matt Cardle
in costume. Unfortunately the Memphis programes don't feature
understudy slips, which is a shame. The programmes
for Wicked have cards inside with a picture of the understudy
in costume on it, which is a wonderful idea that I wish more
shows would think about replicating. 

The chemistry between the two leads was very strong and compelling and I really, really rooted for them to be together. For this reason, many of the dramatic moments in the show were particularly shocking and/or emotional! I loved the way Huey fawned over Felicia and how Felicia playfully made fun of him. (And I loved the pair's Eskimo kisses (I have never seen that before! It was very cute!)). Overall, as a pairing, there is now no doubt who my favourites are! Jon Robyns and Rachel John are my Huey and Felicia dream team for sure! 

Honestly, no matter who you see in the lead roles, Memphis the Musical is a must see show! I am looking forward to seeing it again next week (my friends and I planned our post West End Live entertainment months before I found out about this scheduled double alternate show. I don't normally return to a show again so quickly, but I'm still ecstatic to be going back again so soon!) and I'll be catching the show again no doubt after X Factor star Matt Cardle takes over from Killian Donnelly in the role of Huey on July 6th). Memphis has become one of my absolute favourite shows, and I cannot recommend it enough! Go, go, go if you get the chance! 

Verdict - 5 stars!

(Information about the cast can be found on the Memphis the Musical website)

Twitter: @OddJazzShoes

Bloglovin: Talkstageytome

Review - Memphis the Musical

Last week I visited Memphis for the third time since it opened in October, and as if I hadn't recommended this show/dragged people along to this show enough, this time I persuaded my grandma to see it with me. I fell in love with Memphis the first time I saw it, and my second visit confirmed that love, but I can honestly say that this third visit has been the most enjoyable one so far!

If you're not familiar with the show, Memphis follows the story of a young wannabe DJ named Huey Calhoun, who is inspired by a nightclub singer named Felicia Farrell to become the first white DJ to play Rock and Roll on the radio. It's a touching and inspirational story based on true events, and will have you humming its soundtrack for days. A must see on London's West End! 

I was already extremely excited to be heading back to Memphis for the first time since January, but when I collected my tickets from the box office and saw a sign tacked to the wall telling me that Rachel John would be playing the role of Felicia (the role is normally played by Beverley Knight) I was ecstatic! As I've mentioned in my previous Memphis blog posts, I am desperate to see both alternates in the lead roles, and now I've fulfilled half of this task I've got time to see other shows before returning to Memphis again at the end of June. This is all very exciting for me, but probably not why you're reading this post, so lets move on to the show...

Honestly, Memphis just keeps getting better and better. The music is brilliant (but then, in a show which is partly to do with 'the birth of rock and roll' you'd expect nothing less!), the costumes are gorgeous (I love a good period piece and this show is full of glam 1950s dresses, each and every one of them I'd love to steal for my own wardrobe) and the cast is one of the most hard working, enthusiastic casts on the West End right now! 

On the subject of the cast, I was as impressed as I always am. It feels as if Killian Donnelly was born to play Huey Calhoun, the hapless radio DJ whose story Memphis follows. Supporting cast members Rolan Bell and Jason Pennycooke both gave solid performances too. Bell does a fantastic job of making Felicia's overwrought and sometimes downright scary brother Delray an endearing and relatable character, while Pennycooke injects piles of humour into Bobby, a janitor with hidden skills of the performing variety. I also warmed to Gladys, Huey's mom (played by Claire Machin) much more this time, and had the pleasure of seeing Waylon Jacobs play the role of Gator (the role is normally played by Tyrone Huntly). His breakout moment at the end of act 1 had me and my grandma sniffling well into the interval.

For me though, the biggest treat of the show was finally getting to see Rachel John as Felicia. Not only did she have a stunning voice and embellished Felicia's songs with her own twists, she also brought out a different side to Felicia, which I'd not seen in other portrayals. I felt that the chemistry between between Huey and Felicia developed naturally throughout the course of act 1, and John and Donnelly really savoured the tender scenes, making you root for their relationship to blossom despite the adversities they face. I also loved the way Rachel John's Felicia's confidence grew throughout the show. While Beverley Knight's Felicia radiates star quality from her entrance, Rachel John's Felicia seems slightly more reserved until she comes into her own after her standout solo 'Coloured Woman' (which brought the house down! A really affecting,empowering song, wonderfully sung and acted.). I absolutely loved following Felicia's journey and watching her struggle and grow, and this made every decision she made in act 2 particularly understandable.

I feel so fortunate to have seen Rachel John in the role, and I am definitely thinking of returning to see her in the role again (my goal is to catch a double alternate show, but the next time this is scheduled to happen is a week before I have tickets to see Memphis again anyway, so I'm not sure I can justify to cost to myself... hopefully I'll be able to work something out though. Ahh, the joys of not living in London!) 

If you haven't seen this show yet then what are you waiting for? Not only was it one of my top 5 shows of 2014, it has also been one of my favourite shows of this year as well, and my grandma absolutely adored it too! Even if you have seen it (lucky you!) I recommend a repeat visit. It looks like this cast is only getting better, and it truly has something for everyone. Sharp, impressive choreography, memorable music and some of the most truthful and awe inspiring performances you'll see ANYWHERE on the West End! 

Verdict - 5 stars

Twitter: @OddJazzShoes

Bloglovin: Talkstageytome