Written: 13th August, 2011.
Ever since I can remember I have had a love for theatre and have been lucky to have the opportunity to see a wide variety of plays, pantomimes and of course musicals, as seen in previous reviews I have experienced two of the best nights of my life this year and that is down to the sheer brilliance of going to the West End in London and seeing some stunning productions. The Musical for me is my favourite type of show, I love the surrealism and the use of music to tell a story to explain a characters emotions. In this review I am going to be looking at my favourite musicals from both stage and screen; so sit back, relax, enjoy and all that jazz:
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10. “Ghost-The Musical” (2011-present)
I am not going to spend a lot of time on this one as I have previously written a review on the whole show which can be found here, http://mshayleyr1989.wordpress.com/2011/07/08/are-you-still-mine-a-review-of-ghost-the-musical/ and here http://www.eurythmics.me.uk/ghost-the-musical-audience-reviews/ ; however I currently can’t get enough of this show and it has been one of my biggest talking points as of late. As a musical it is very current and edgy and ambitious in terms of its use of digital imagery to create the setting for the story. The story is incredibly powerful and emotional; and due to it being a recent musical I have been fortunate enough to see the complete original cast who’s performances were beyond incredible; the leads Richard Fleeshman (Sam Wheat); Caissie Levy (Molly Jensen) Sharon D Clarke (Oda Mae Brown) and Andrew Langtree (Carl Bruner) created believable characters that kept the audience engaged. It would be my absolute dream to have the opportunity to see this show again as I have never experienced anything so magical in my entire life. I now own the cast album and fell in love with the music that captures both the tragic nature and the comedy of the show; the music seems to have a mix of rock and more soulful sounding songs especially Oda Mae’s numbers. I was delighted to hear that the West End run of the show has been extended till late 2012. All I can say is go see this show; I promise the experience is worth while and you will be absolutely spellbound. Believe.
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9. “Singin’ In The Rain” (1952)
Well what can I say?! “Singin’ In The Rain” (1952) is one of the all time classics. I initially saw this on stage in my home town back in 2004 prior to seeing the film, and I thoroughly enjoyed the production especially the iconic scene which featured actual water on stage; after viewing this I was spurned on to rent the film which I loved just as much. I have never actually been a huge fan of the older musicals in all honesty, maybe its a generation factor in some ways but I completely detest a lot of the Rogers and Hammerstein musicals such as “The Sound of Music” (1965) and “The King and I” (1956) ever since I was a child; I do however respect that they are considered classics and loved by many people but that’s just my opinion; I think what I liked about “Singin’ In The Rain” is the story; the fact that it is set in back-stage Hollywood and tells the story of the history of how the “talkies” came about; the decline of silent cinema and how technology in terms of the film industry was changing and advancing; I think the plot was what mainly held my interest. I also love how classic Hollywood this musical is; featuring entrancing dance sequences and memorable songs that can easily get stuck in the head; my personal favourite being “Good Morning”. Gene Kelly was such a fantastic dancer and his performance in the film as Don Lockwood has to be one of the best in terms of musical cinema. I think what I also enjoy about the musical is that it tells the story of the underdog who achieve’s stardom by the end; I am discussing the character of Kathy (played by Debbie Reynolds) here and I think her version of “You are my lucky Star” is one of my favourite songs in the entire musical. “Singin’ In The Rain” will definitely give you a glorious feeling!
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8. “Blood Brothers” (1983- present)
For me, “Blood Brothers” has always been a very underrated musical or as I would depict it “a play with songs”; I say this as I rarely hear people discussing it these days. Amazingly the show has remained on the West End for over twenty years and as far as I’m aware also has a touring production around the UK and has played all over the world at one time or another. Again with “Blood Brothers” similarly to the other musicals I have discussed I think the most powerful element it has is its story. The show or play mirrors a Shakespearean tragedy where the audience are taken on a lifelong journey with the characters of Mickey and Eddie; despite knowing the heartbreaking outcome we still remain transfixed with how their journey unfolds to the bitter end. What I like about “Blood Brothers” is that it feels very real, the characters are representative of people we could all know in real life and I love the true British grit it portrays; I love how it plays both tragedy and comedy very well; in terms of comedy I think its clever and daring to have the children versions of the protagonists played by adult actors; It really does give actors a chance to play such a range from child-like to the more darker parts of the play. I thought it was so clever ending the first half so upbeat with the number “Bright New Day” indicating that everything is now looking up for this working class family while lulling the audience into a false sense of security. A connection of empathy between the audience and the characters is created especially regarding Mrs Johnstone; watching her unfortunate struggle unfold is painful and her most iconic number “Tell Me Its Not True” is a massive tear-jerker. The character of the Narrator fascinated me acting as a negative conscience throughout the entire play for Mrs Johnstone; I liked his dark and superstitious nature and I think I enjoy his songs the most as he brings us back to the reality of what is happening to these characters. I have seen this show twice on the West End back in 2007 and 2008; although I would say the songs are incredibly repetitive it still has to be one of the most powerful pieces I have ever witnessed on stage.
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7. “Hairspray” (2007)
Unfortunately I have not as of yet had the opportunity to see “Hairspray” on stage; therefore I am going to purely discuss the film version that was released in 2007. This film was part of the musical-movie revival we had throughout the noughties possibly starting with “Chicago” (2003) or slightly further back with “Moulin Rouge” (2001). Ultimately I think “Hairspray” delivers a positive message demonstrating the struggle for acceptance that occurred for the African-American race during the 1960’s; I also like that the film focuses on the protagonist determined to make a positive change for the better. I think the film was brilliantly cast and all the performances are fabulous; Nikki Blonsky (who played Tracy Turnbland) offers so much potential up against the legendary performers that are John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken and Queen Latifah. The music in the film is infectious; “You Can’t Stop the Beat” is probably in my top favourite musical songs of all time; “Ladies Choice” is my second favourite number in the musical and ironically Zac Efron reminds me of a young John Travolta; I think all the musical numbers have so much energy and admittedly I do have a fascination with the dancing styles of the 1950’s and 1960’s; Queen Latifah’s rendition of “I Know where I’ve been” is the most powerful performance with lyrics inspired by the civil rights movement and for a moment does take a serious note and tones down the complete surreal nature of the film. Despite being fun and entertaining I feel that “Hairspray” is in place to educate audiences; you can’t help but feel you have taken something positive away with you after watching it. I think its important that it portrays a protagonist that isn’t conventional and that anybody can achieve their dreams if they work hard at it and make a difference. I hope that one day I will be fortunate enough to see a touring production of this musical as I would be interested to see how it is portrayed on the stage.
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6. “Mamma Mia” (Stage: 1999-Present) (Film: 2008)
“Mamma Mia!” is my favourite feel-good musical of all time; having seen both the film and stage version, when I come out of either I can’t stop smiling. Some people may be sceptical as its a “Jukebox Musical”; however if all you are looking for is a simplistic, light-hearted story and enjoyable music then “Mamma Mia!” is for you and those are the reasons I enjoy it so much. I can relate to the portrayal of the Mother and Daughter relationship so I think that is what the biggest pull of the story is for me; and of course like many I have grown up listening to ABBA music and I honestly believe that it hasn’t dated. Regarding the film version, I think the locations where it was filmed are absolutely breathtaking; the choice of cast was perfect and throughout the whole film it looks like they are having so much fun making it; Meryl Streep particularly impressed me with her rendition of “The Winner Takes it All” resulting in a powerful cinematic moment. What I liked about the show is that it gave so much more than the film and added more dimensions to the story; I loved how songs such as “Knowing me, Knowing you” and “One of Us” were included in their contexts and how the second act opened with a number called “Under Attack” a dream-sequence in which gave the audience an insight into the character of Sophie’s anxiety’s surrounding her wedding and finding her father. “Mamma Mia!” is complete escapism and is incredibly feel-good as I have previously stated; I think its going to be eternally popular and like other musicals such as “Grease” (1978) it will be one that can be watched over again and again!
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5. “Grease” (1978)
I first saw the film version of “Grease” as a child (however I think the innuendo’s completely went over my head!); nobody can deny that it is one of the classics and to an extent its themes of teenage growing pains still holds up and is still relevant to teenagers today. It is probably one of my most watched films and I have seen it on the stage on two occasions; professionally in Llandudno around ten years ago and as a toned down high school production. If looked at closer it has a lot to say about the difference in gender and how men and women are perceived differently in the film; for example in the song “Summer Nights” the lyrics entwine, however the male characters are placed in a separate location from the female characters and come off as more rebellious and crude, whereas the female’s especially Sandy (played by Olivia Newton-John) has a more innocent perspective on her romance with Danny (Played by John Travolta). The musical is also about friendship and being there when your really needed e.g. Danny filling in for Kenickie (Played by the late Jeff Conway) on Thunder road. My only issue with the musical as probably is with most people is the message it presents suggesting ultimately in order to win over a guy’s affections you have to “slut yourself up”, I think in order to enjoy the film for what it is its best not to take that part of the story too seriously, overlook it and just enjoy it for what it is; however I think Danny’s character also made an attempt to change for Sandy; therefore I think it should have been implied that no one should change for another person and accept each other for who they are deep down. “Grease” has some fantastic and memorable numbers that are addictive and catchy and people to this day still enjoy the “Grease Medley” at parties and disco’s. I also love the 50’s pop soundtrack during the school dance sequence as I am pretty obsessed with everything 1950’s; and as I stated previously, its just memorable and nostalgic.
4. “Chicago” (Film:2002) (Stage: 1975-Present)
Out of all the “new musical movies” I think “Chicago” (2002) is the one that dazzle’s the most! Catherine Zeta-Jones (Velma Kelly) Rene Zellweger (Roxie Hart) and Richard Gere (Billy Flyn) all gave out incredible strong performances. “Chicago” has the right mix of intensity, class and to a certain degree is modern enough to keep younger audiences engaged in the story and the music. I love how the fantasy sequences bring glamour to the dreary prison setting. The “Cell Block Tango” for me is the best number and on both screen and stage it is done cleverly through dance and music; I love how all the scorned prisoners stories unfold and its darkly humours when they reveal how and why they killed their victims. The characters are larger than life and entertaining especially Mama Morton. Roxie and Velma are brilliant characters, despite being murderesses and criminals as an audience you can’t help rooting for them hoping they won’t end up on death row; its an interesting spin having the protagonist committing a horrific crime yet the audience still expressing empathy for them; I think I enjoy the twisted nature of that aspect. I have been fortunate enough to see two professional productions of “Chicago”; on the West End in 2003 and more memorably last year in my home town of Aberystwyth which I think was its first UK production of the show off the West End; definitely something to be proud of. “Chicago” overall is dark, humours, impressive and down right entertaining and includes several memorable numbers; the opening of “All That Jazz” still gives me chills.
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3. “Once More With Feeling” (2001)
For the regular readers of my blog, you will all ready be aware that I am a complete nerd when it comes down to “Buffy The Vampire Slayer” (1997-2003) so the fact that this unique musical episode is on this countdown will come as no surprise. “Buffy” is a show that has several moments where it could be imagined that the characters would burst into song and its no secret that creator Joss Whedon had been itching to make a musical for so long and the perfect opportunity came in its Sixth Season; the storyline’s fit in brilliantly with the concept of a musical, Buffy (Played by Sarah Michelle Gellar) being out of touch with life after her resurrection, Spike’s (Played by James Marsters) not-so-secret infatuation with Buffy, Tara (Played by Amber Benson) being manipulated by Willow (played by Alyson Hannigan) and her descending into dark magick, Giles (Played by Anthony Head) no longer feeling needed, Xander (Played by Nicholas Brendan) and Anya’s (Played by Emma Caulfield) wedding nerves etc. I love how the cast gave it their all and the numbers brilliantly fit in with the context of the show’s current storylines. My favourite numbers have to be “Rest In Peace” performed by Spike as he can no longer hide and his feelings as they just spill out in song, I also like it because its more of a rock sounding song and definitely edgy; “Under Your Spell” performed by Tara is the perfect love song, and the episode’s antagonist the demon Sweet is sensational, Hinton Battle who played him was actually a Broadway actor, its great they added someone with that level of musical talent into the mix. The most powerful moment for me is “Something to Sing about” in which Buffy can no longer hide her emotions and reveals to her friends that she had been contented and was ripped out of heaven; it always chokes me up. I love “Once More With Feeling” it was a ground breaking piece of television and an nice little homage and comment on musicals in general.
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2. “The Wizard of Oz” (1939)
I have previously discussed in a previous review how “The Wizard of Oz” (1939) has been a huge part of me growing up and I think it has been the musical that I have seen on stage the most. I love the element of escapism, the powerful portrayal of women, the infectious, catchy numbers, the quirky characters and the ultimate message of discovering who you really are. I think that its an essential part of childhood and every kid should experience it. For me “The Wizard of Oz” has stayed with me my entire life; I think it has such a strong and positive message. Dorothy is a strong heroine, she is fiercely independent and a feminist of her time and for me is one of the best role model’s in cinematic and musical history. I love the film’s optimistic tone and the characters playing as metaphor’s for people in Dorothy’s (played by Judy Garland) life. The film was ground breaking in its day and it was the hope and escapism people needed; the second world war had broken out, America had seen a collapse in Capitalism, times were depressing and “The Wizard of Oz” reminded people of what really matters and the concept of home and how we get back to what’s important to us. It really did keep up morale and still holds up today in relation to the recent recession and fear of terror. Every time I hear Judy Garland’s rendition of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” I get chills and feel slightly chocked up as its just a powerful, stunning song as well as being iconic. I love the parallel idea of the physical world and the fantasy world; the realism of the Wizard’s character as a metaphor for believing in something and it not turning out how you expected. I love how the film was ahead of its time, the special effects were amazing for its day, without the option if CGI the tornado scene was created by using wind machines and dust which is impressive. My favourite numbers from “The Wizard of Oz” aren’t conventional choices I love all of them however my favourites have to be “Optimistic Voices” and the deleted scene “The Jitterbug”; I love the jazzy sound of it. “Wizard of Oz” is my second favourite musical of all time as it has stood the test of time, its easy to relate to, its message is strong and important and it provides escapism, along with several catchy, fun numbers, its part of history and I don’t think it will ever date.
My Review of the West End Version: http://mshayleyr1989.wordpress.com/2011/05/22/youve-gotta-go-there-to-come-back-oz-on-the-west-end/
…And Now…Ladies and Gentlemen; Here is what I think is the greatest musical of all time….
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1. “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” (1975)
I’m aware that this is not a conventional choice and I’m guessing many would disagree with me here but “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” or “The Rocky Horror Show” as the stage version is titled is my ultimate favourite; in some respects I view it as a more grown up “Wizard of Oz”; we have these protagonists Brad (Played by Barry Bostwick) and Janet (Played by Susan Sarandon) embarking on a journey of self discovery, having their minds opened (as well as other things!) and entering a whole new bizarre world. The “Transylvanian’s” could be viewed as the “Munchkins” of the piece; I love its Horror and Sci-Fi B Movie references, how it dares to be unique and outrageous. What’s wonderful about “Rocky Horror” is its such an interactive musical that allows the audience to engage with it; It wasn’t until I saw the touring version of the stage show last year in Llandudno that I experienced the full impact and the sense of community it brings; everyone dressed up, brought props and it was just good fun. The character of Frank-N-Furter (Played by Tim Curry in the Movie and David Bedella in the touring production I saw in 2010) is a complex one, he has appeal to both men and women and posseses masculine and feminine qualities; his entrance has to be one of the absolute best character introductions I have ever seen, “Sweet Transvestite” tells the audience everything we need to know about this sexually awakened transvestite alien; I love how it invites you to explore your true self and the best number for me has to be “Don’t Dream It; Be It”, I think its a unique yet poignant message which reminds you to just be yourself ad take the chance of becoming who you are while you can. I love the fun “Frankenstein Monster” sub-plot, the Meatloaf cameo and the awesome songs. I first saw “Rocky Horror” when I was twelve and have been doing the “Time Warp” ever since! Its wonderful, wacky, down right outrageous, fun, daring, shocking and completely cult and for all those reasons it is my favourite musical of all time! It most definitely thrills, chills and fulfils!
Thank you for reading; I would love to hear what you all think of my choices and what musicals you think should have been on my list!
Hayley Alice Roberts.
Night at the Musicals 