Cardiff Reviews

Barry Appleby
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Re: Cardiff Reviews

Post by Barry Appleby »

I've seen the tour show 6 times, I wish it had been 66, its so refreshing, I like all the changes especially in Act 2. The scenery works, no worries about it failing to turn up, I so like the way the staircase dismantles in Angry Dance, as you know I like Angry Dance, so much action, the timing has to be spot on. We had chance to speak to the cast at Sunderland and Bradford, what a pleasant group they are, so interesting to hear about their visit to Easington.
I think the budget available, given to the producers, that they have done a great job, I do wish I had gone across the pond and seen the show in the Netherlands
The audiences in Sunderland and Cardiff were very emotional, mind you they were coal mining areas.
I've seen Adam, Matthew and Haydn, twice each, I'm so looking forward to catching Lewis sometime, maybe, I hope in Edinburgh.
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Bridget40
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Re: Cardiff Reviews

Post by Bridget40 »

I think Dancingboy is being harsh, but I agree with some of what he says, especially about how we were spoilt at The VPT. I have seen the touring show four times now, twice in Plymouth, and twice in Cardiff...... I like it, it's good. Some of the changes work and some don't! However, I know that I will never feel the same way about the touring show as I did about The London one. It just doesn't quite reach me in the same way, and I'm not sure why. I passed by The VPT tonight, and it looks quite a state, and it made me feel a little sad. I think it's time to call it a day on my own Billy adventure, and to be thankful for the great memories of seeing that show at The VPT in all it's brilliance!
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jmh2014
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Re: Cardiff Reviews

Post by jmh2014 »

First time I saw the tour, I was shocked at just how different it was, but I was very glad that I had booked more than one show.

Some of the changes work, some I just don't like. With regard to Annette as Mrs W, her singing voice takes some getting used to. It is inevitable that comparisons will be made to the VPT, and I did the same. The final few months at the VPT were outstanding and the tour, for me, has yet to reach those standards.

Having said that, I saw both shows on July 2nd with Matthew and Haydn. Matthew in particular was stunning, and both shows that day rekindled the Billy magic, something I didn't think I'd be saying after the first show.

Bristol will be my next venue and I'm convinced that the standard will be even higher then.

I would recommend anyone to see the tour. It is different, but still stirs the emotions unlike any other show I've seen.
Todd
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Re: Cardiff Reviews

Post by Todd »

I saw the show in Sunderland back in April and never did post a review, I think because it fell at about the same time the London show was closing and my mind was focused more on that at the time.

I happened to enjoy the tour show greatly, and wasn't bothered much by the changes they made compared to the London show. That's mostly due to the fact that I was used to seeing those newly-imagined scenes (the on-stage commotion during "Angry Dance," the "take this and this" during the "He Could Be A Star" scene, the Royal Ballet School scene that did away with Billy's audition tape, etc.) in the Broadway show and pretty much every North American tour/regional production. So I guess it wasn't the same "shock to the system" that might have greeted regular viewers of the London production who perhaps had never seen the show anywhere else but there.

While I would go see it again if I happened to be in a town where the U.K. tour show was playing, I will also agree that it's not the same as having it in London at the Victoria Palace Theatre. I kind of liken it to when the show closed on Broadway. While I've definitely enjoyed seeing it in all the other cities I've seen it in, it's still not the same as having the show at the Imperial Theater in New York.

I guess there's something about having a sitting production at a permanent location that gives you more of a feeling of being "home." I think there's also the connection that one feels to former cast members who had trod the same stage and come out the same stage door as the new performers whom you might be seeing for the first time. When I saw the show in London, there was something comforting about returning to the same auditorium and the same lobby - maybe even the same seat - and remembering a particular cast member or performance that you really enjoyed, and knowing that it was in that very place where all those things happened. For me, those are all the things you lose by having the show only on tour. So I wonder if those are some of the other factors at play for those here who have said they didn't particularly enjoy the tour show.

In my opinion, a professional production - which the tour is - is something to be thankful for, and is something not available to us here in the U.S. at the moment. Occasionally, a regional production comes along which is at the same high caliber, but it doesn't happen particularly often or at a convenient location. At least there in the U.K., a reasonable facsimile to the original is only - at most - an hour or two away by car or plane. For me, that would seem to make the tour production more appealing when you consider the alternative, which is to have "Billy Elliot" playing nowhere.
Real Geordie
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Re: Cardiff Reviews

Post by Real Geordie »

I think that you may have hit the nail on the head Todd - that there is an additional element in play here, quite separate from any individual performances, or alterations to particular scenes. An emotional aspect. I have always found it impossible to give an adequate explanation to others regarding why I keep returning to see Billy Elliot. In truth I don’t even understand it myself. I was slowly drawn into the web, and like others then became entranced by the show. Can I say which part of the package attracted me most, which part clinched the deal ? No I can’t - it is a mystical, magical and unknown ingredient. The last few months at VPT were certainly magical. When Bridget40 says “.............It just doesn't quite reach me in the same way, and I'm not sure why………….” - I can understand what she is saying. The tour performances are head and shoulders better than anything else doing the rounds in any theatre in the UK at the moment, and people who are first timers to the show are loving it. But for those who were long time attendees at VPT (I don’t include myself, I am a relative newcomer), yes the cast members changed over the years, but there would be a familiarity and continuity. The tour however introduces all new faces, different scenes, different interpretations, different physical locations, different theatre ambience ……….. just different. Somehow, somewhere maybe that magical unknown ingredient has been lost for some individuals, and it has just become another theatre performance of a show, rather than a unique experience. I will continue attending tour performances until the end of the run as for me it is the new normal. After Birmingham ………… what then ? I do however have great sympathy for those who just are not able to jump the divide, and must be feeling the loss of a friend, in the same way that I will if Billy Elliot comes to a full stop next April.
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Lola
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Re: Cardiff Reviews

Post by Lola »

I agree with all of your comments on Victoria Palace Theatre...When the show closed in London I wrote this on my blog:

"Until now nobody knows if Billy Elliot will return to a West End Stage in the near or distant future although a lot of speculating is going on. However, it is more or less known that the show will not return to the Victoria Palace Theatre. Somehow this is what makes me sad the most. I have always loved that classy theatre so much! It is without doubt the most beautiful theatre I have ever visited anywhere. The rumor is Hamilton will start its West End run at VPT, which also is wonderful, but for me and many other fans VPT will always belong to Billy. "

In Cardiff there was nothing magical about the theatre (even though it looks awesome from the outside), it was just a place. The atmosphere was certainly different in that regard.
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