December 2014 Reviews - London

Reviews of the show
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ERinVA
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Re: December 2014 Reviews - London

Post by ERinVA »

I don't comment on the reviews very often, but I just want to thank Westletonion, patc and others who have contributed to the thread this month. :D
Ellen



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Barnsley-James
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Re: December 2014 Reviews - London

Post by Barnsley-James »

Saturday 27th December - matinee performance.

Well, to say that I made it to the VPT at all yesterday was an understatement. Heavy snow fall (around 4 - 6 inches) fell in a few short hours here in Yorkshire on Boxing Day evening so my travel plans to London the next day were soon put into chaos!
I'd originally planned to get a taxi from my house to the train station but no taxis were running due to the ice/snow so at 7am stepped out and braved a 3 mile walk to the train station in awful conditions. 30 seconds after leaving I slipped on some ice and landed on my bum :lol: Luckily that was the only fall of the day and I didn't find it so amusing at that time in the morning...
After my first train was cancelled (typical!), I did eventually get to London at 11.30am (although the train was running late due to the weather) - relief. Funnily enough, no snow whatsoever in London.

Well, it was all worth it! It was my first time in the stalls (row C) and seeing the show up close. I was not dissapointed! This was the second time I had seen Ollie as Billy (the last time was at the start of October) and I think he has come on leaps and bounds to make the role his own. His Angry Dance was perfect as was his Electricity, both with real emotion. The near on sell out audience responded well to both and his portrayal of Billy rightly got a standing ovation at the end of the show.

David Bardsley who played the Dad did a cracking job - bringing something different to the part. The scene with the ballet dancer from Glasgow was hilarious as was his reaction after Electricity (basically telling the audition panel that Billy would easily get into the school after THAT performance :lol: ) It took me a while to warm to him as Dad (being used to Deka playing the part) but by the end of the second half, he'd definetley won me over.
I also think the stand in Grandma (sorry don't know the actresses name) did the part justice and it was good to see another take on the Grandma role.

Another thing I noticed about being close to the stage is how good the Ensemble cast are and how much they add to the show. The Ballet Girls really do add energy to the show and the scenes with the whole community singing as one at the start and the end of the show are brought to life by the great Ensemble cast.

All in all, a fantastic show that was very well received by the audience!
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jmh2014
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Re: December 2014 Reviews - London

Post by jmh2014 »

Tuesday 30th December

Brodie/Todd/Kyria
Bradley/Tomi/Connie

Both shows yesterday were a treat. First Brodie, still in the infancy of his time in the roll, but allowing the talent that he has to shine. Great double act with Todd despite the coat hangers doing their best to put them off. He was so unsteady on his feet during the “music box” scene, it seemed certain that he would put a foot down. Needless to say he didn’t. After being banned, he didn’t shout as loud at his dad as some, but the power of the statement came from the emotion in his voice.

A great angry dance, beautiful dream ballet, but his electricity trumped everything. Every move performed with such ease and grace and the final wall flip brought him a standing ovation. It’s not till you see him walk down the aisle that you realise just how small he is.

First time seeing Todd and his take on Michael. The look on his face as Cindy was whirled around was priceless. The ballet girls and the rest of the cast were on top form.

The evening performance had a lot to live up to. Tomi’s entrance was unique in so far as he almost crashed into Big Davey in the centre of the stage. He just managed to avoid a collision and earned a playful smack on his back for the trouble. His face went from shock to laughter and couldn’t stop smiling for the rest of the scene.

From Bradley’s first scene we knew we were in for something special – a genius at work. By the time we got to the letter he had the audience in the palm of his hand. You could hear a pin drop at the beginning of the scene and by the end, like him, many people were wiping their eyes.

Angry dance was outstanding and his shoes almost ended up in the front row of the audience. As we got towards Electricity you could feel the atmosphere building and he did not disappoint. He flew round the stage performing move after move to absolute perfection. He could not keep the smile off his face during the ovation which ensured that it continued for some time. The look on Deka’s face confirmed that we had indeed witnessed something very special. For a split second I thought he was going to break character and join in.

It was a masterpiece of a performance and a privilege to witness. It was a shame there was no curtain call to allow Bradley to receive the final standing ovation he deserved.
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