June 2013 Reviews - London

[Caelc]

Saturday 15 June ( matinee)

Red was the colour, Rance was the name,
His acting superb, His dancing the same,
Pauses, expressions, with enquiring glances,
Top quality movement in all of his dances,
No more could be asked of this young man,
Who wowed the audience, not just this fan,
We clapped and we cheered right to the finish,
Our delight for the show did not diminish,
Finale was fun and put a seal on the show,
Redmand was fantastic, I thought you should know.

I saw the show. Redmand was fantastic.

I was there. It was my Birthday. Traveled a long way and have to say, my best Birthday ever. What I liked the most, which may seem weird is when Redmand got a standing ovation, what I saw in his face was pure Joy. It showed how much he enjoys what he does and there is not one ounce of arrogance in him.

[Katwoman]

Saturday, June 22nd (matinee)


My sister saw BETM long before I did, and spent a couple of years trying to persuade me to go. On my infrequent visits to London, I always managed to see a different show, with the excuse that it wouldn't be as good as the film. In all that time, not once did she mention any facet of BETM, beyond saying that it was better than the film. When I eventually gave in and became besotted, I asked her why she hadn't told me how wonderful it is. The gist of her answer was that she didn't want to influence me too much and that she wanted me to have a nice surprise!

So when we rolled up on Saturday afternoon for our first visit in a year, to return the compliment I did not say a word when I saw Harrison's name on the board in the foyer, apart from the fact that he had played Billy on my last trip to the VP. I did not watch her reactions during the first act because my eyes were glued to the stage, but at the interval she was raving about his dancing and acting. And the singing was pretty darn good, too. I also thought Harrison's performance was magnificent. Both times I have seen him he has put everything into the show: humour, pathos, joy, anger and sadness. From Row D in the stalls we could see every nuance of his performance and I was in awe that someone so young could be so talented. He really is a wonderful Billy.

I was also mightily impressed by the supporting cast. Anna-Jane Casey is everything I hoped she would be: mouthy, sassy and bossy, but showing great range and subtlety in the scenes with the letter and when she and Billy say goodbye to each other. Her great singing voice means that she can really belt it in her big numbers. I especially loved the shortest Mrs Wilkinson shorts ever in "Shine". Hilarious!

The new additions to the cast seemed to have settled in seamlessly, unlike the transition in November 2011, when some of the reviews on this site seemed close to despair.

So, my sister and I had a great afternoon: as she said on our way out, "I could stay and watch that again. Why didn't we book for the evening?"

Next time, we'll be better organised!

[patc]

Thanks so much for your review, Katwoman. I'm so glad you both enjoyed the show so much

"I could stay and watch that again. Why didn't we book for the evening?"

LOL, yeah..........nothing quite like the double .

Pat

[Barry Appleby]

A big " Thanks" also from me, Katwoman, all reviews are so much appreciated,

[Katwoman]

Thanks for your kind comments, Pat and Barry. Unlike Pat, I haven't kissed the Blarney Stone, but I do my best. My next visit will have to be the double, because I'm not sticking on thirteen shows for any length of time. I'm not superstitious, but I don't believe in tempting fate!

[ERinVA]

Saturday 15 June ( matinee)

Red was the colour, Rance was the name,
His acting superb, His dancing the same,
Pauses, expressions, with enquiring glances,
Top quality movement in all of his dances,
No more could be asked of this young man,
Who wowed the audience, not just this fan,
We clapped and we cheered right to the finish,
Our delight for the show did not diminish,
Finale was fun and put a seal on the show,
Redmand was fantastic, I thought you should know.

I saw the show. Redmand was fantastic.

I was there. It was my Birthday. Traveled a long way and have to say, my best Birthday ever. What I liked the most, which may seem weird is when Redmand got a standing ovation, what I saw in his face was pure Joy. It showed how much he enjoys what he does and there is not one ounce of arrogance in him.

Welcome to the forum, Caelc. Glad you had a wonderful BETM birthday. It seems you got the PERFECT present.

[dancingboy]

Thursday 20 June ( matinee) -with apologies for delay in posting.

Harrison is Billy, of that there's no doubt
No acting with him, playing himself throughout
The audience were thrilled, they held him in awe
By the end of the show they were asking for more.

Athletic and fit, with energy to spare
Harrison at full-throttle, ne'er turning a hair
He danced and he sang and strutted the stage
So amazing for thirteen years of age.

Harrison and Joe were such a good team
Going together like peaches and cream
With a dress and a skirt they played around
For Billy ( and Harrison) surely new ground.

The red mist descended as Angry Dance came
With shouting and swearing, certainly not tame
The first half ended following tap dancing supreme
Would Billy ( and Harrison) be fulfilling their dream?

Harrison at his best in Electricity, for sure,
His hip-hop and acro all round the floor
The audience they cheered for so long and so loud
Harrison must have been on that number-nine cloud.

Throughout the theatre there was a great buzz
For Harrison's happy at what he does
There's one thing to tell you and that's for nowt
Harrison is Billy, of that there's no doubt.

[angelenroute]

thanks for that, dancingboy!

[patc]

Thursday Matinee 27th June

Tade/Zach/Millie

Grandma: Gillian Elisa
Dead Mum: Claudia Bradley
Big Davey: Craig Armstrong

I haven’t been at a funfair in recent years but there used to be a gadget in most of them called, I think, a hammer bell that was used to test your strength. A hammer was used by the contestant to strike a lever that sent a puck soaring up a tower. If you were strong enough the puck went up all the way and struck a bell. The puck would then fall back to earth to await the next blow. I was reminded of this at the matinee today. The big and tremendously enthusiastic audience were struck by blow after blow and sent skywards with delight. The only difference was that we didn’t fall back to earth. We were all left up there in the clouds and even as of now, some nine hours afterwards, I can’t get it out of my head such was the quality of this phenomenal show. I can hardly even remember going through Gatwick and the flight home!

Any fairground worth its salt has a rollercoaster. On this rollercoaster you had a most incredibly talented boy by the name of Tade Biesinger in the lead car, the full cast and music gurus behind him and in tow behind them all the other cars were filled with us lot. Where they went we followed and, trust me, we went everywhere there is to go.

At various stages of the show Tade had to get off and ride the dodgems, at first being bumped and teased and bullied but, eventually, he got things under control and brought his tormenters fully on his side. This he accomplished by giving an exhibition of the most incredible acting, singing and dancing. By the time he was finished he had the lot of them driving fully behind him as he danced his merry way around the arena.

The eyes had it. They say that eyes tell you all you need to know. Every word was accompanied by an eye movement or flicker that instantly conveyed his innermost feelings. But there were three pairs of eyes lighting up the stage. Three pairs of expressive eyes that you won’t see in any other theatre, anywhere all at the same time. The other two pairs belonged to Zach Atkinson and Anna-Jane Casey. Whether it was Expressing/Shine or Winter Scene/Mrs W’s Good Luck Billy scene, watching the eyes of the participants accompany their brilliant acting was breathtaking, funny where required and extremely emotional in the dramatic scenes.

I felt myself being torn apart piece by piece as this very moving story and all its wonderful characters was brought to life. Tears, laughter, tears, laughter, tense moments followed one after another. You hardly had time to take a breath let alone wipe your eyes dry. After the emotional Letter scene (with Dead Mum today beautifully played and sung by Claudia Bradley) I was still wipin’ 'em as Tade was giving a grandstand skipping exhibition in B2B and Simon Ray was doing his thing.

It was exciting to listen to the reactions of the large congregation of school groups in the audience. Their first experience of the dancing performed by their peers on stage that would subsequently blow them away was at the end of Solidarity. You could already sense their excitement and approval. Tade and Zach in Expressing brought them on even further and Tade’s superb Angry Dance was greeted with all the exuberance of youth that needed to vent its feelings. In other words they all went wild. Dream Ballet left them in awe but, once again, the piéce de résistance was Electricity. The way that Tade built this up from song to dance was simply stunning. My heart was thumping crazily in anticipation as he approached the front of the stage. I have seen this before just two weeks ago and knew what was coming but it made no difference. Remaining calm was out of the question. There is no way I am able to watch Electricity without becoming emotionally involved and long before it ended with that unique Tade pose the applause was reverberating around the theatre and my eyes were awash. That applause went on for ages and Tade stood there in total disbelief as the theatre shook from Stalls to Grand Circle. As usual, as all of this went on, my thoughts turned to his folks so far away and wished they had been present to see and hear what their son was doing to an audience in London’s West End.

In that radio interview midweek linked by Billy Whiz (thanks for that, David) Deka and Lee Hall were trying to answer the question about the show’s popularity and people’s love for it. It’s not an easy question to answer in words and I think that you have to go see it to find the answer and that end-of-Electricity moment is the point when you know and that you will be coming back to see it again.

A funfair is just that. A place to have fun but, once you’re out the door, the fun is over and you move on. Billy isn’t like that. It keeps you going for a long time afterwards.

Every member of the cast and creative deserve the greatest of accolades for what we are currently seeing at the VPT. Not only is it the Greatest Show on Earth but it is also the 8th Wonder of the World. If I had been an actor/singer or dancer having it on my CV would have been a must-have – at any cost.

Pat

[Westletonion]

That applause went on for ages and Tade stood there in total disbelief as the theatre shook from Stalls to Grand Circle. As usual, as all of this went on, my thoughts turned to his folks so far away and wished they had been present to see and hear what their son was doing to an audience in London’s West End.

This young man is an absolute master craftsman and a complete genius in what he does. Seldom have I been moved to the extent of that experienced at yesterday's show. He had the large audience completely mesmerised.