LONDON TRIP REVIEWS

August 2000

Hi everyone, and welcome to my theatre trip review. I was in London for two weeks, and had a wonderful time. If anyone has any questions or comments, please feel free to e-mail me at edm@sfu.ca

The cost of each ticket and the seat's location is included in parenthesis after each show.

Friday, August 18:
Arrived at Heathrow in the early afternoon, but by the time I got checked into my accommodation and took the tube into Central London, it was around 5pm. I went to the Leicester Square ticket booth, and decided on WHISTLE DOWN THE WIND (£19.50, Stalls, G3). I chose WDTH because a) "it's Andrew Lloyd Webber, how bad could it be," and b) I knew the song "No Matter What" comes from this show. Anyway, the show was not what I expected, but good nonetheless. The story was a bit less than enthralling, and a couple of the performances were lackluster, but the stage production was fabulous: the rising and falling sets, the train, etc. Exceptionally glad I wasn't in the first few rows: real, live snakes and theatre do not mix, as far as I'm concerned.

Saturday, August 19:
Really wanted to see Pirates of Penzance at the Open Air Theatre of Regent's Park, but it was not to be. I tried to queue for returns an hour before performance, but they ran out before I reached the front. So I headed back to Leicester Square and got a ticket for A BUSY DAY (£18.25, Stalls, A6). I had never heard of the play or the playwright prior to this, but I am a devoted fan now (ending up buying the script at Samuel French's). Fanny Burney rocks! The play was very Jane Austen-ish, but with a broader sense of humour. Wonderful cast, with the particular standouts being Sara Crowe (of "Four Weddings and a Funeral" fame) as the hilariously ditzy Miss Percival, Stephanie Beacham as the nasty Lady Wilhelmina, and the very adorable Ian Kelly as Frank Cleveland. Unfortunately, the show has been given its notice, and will be closing soon. It's a shame, 'cause this was one of my favourites of the trip.

Sunday, August 20:
Went to the Shakespeare Exhibition at the Globe Theatre. Pretty cool, although not much new information that I didn't already know. I would have much preferred an extensive backstage tour of the theatre itself instead of the 30 minute talk, which was okay but nothing you don't learn in any English Lit class. Anyway, decided to get a seat for the matinee performance of THE TWO NOBLE KINSMEN (£10, Lower Gallery, B51). I wasn't familiar with the story, but William Shakespeare and John Fletcher based on one of the tales from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, so it was easy to follow. The actors in the lead roles (Jasper Britton as Palamon and Will Keen as Artice) were especially wonderful. The best part of the production was its venue: seeing a Shakespeare play at the Globe was a wonderful experience which I highly recommend.

Monday, August 21:
Got a ticket for LA CAVA (£18.25, Stalls, S8) at Leicester Square. Not sure if the crappy seat had a correlation with how I felt about the play, but it's possible, because I expected to love this play and I ended up being really disappointed. Nothing amazing and certainly not worthy of the hype I've heard and read. The basic fabula is alright, but the way it is told here is too melodramatic and the songs aren't appropriate (some even seeming like Rogers & Hammerstein or Disney movie knock-offs). Julie-Alanah Brighten (as Florinda) was less charismatic and lively than she needed to be, and Oliver Tobias could not muster enough chemistry with her and neither was he able to come across as the battle-worn King (more the script's fault than his).

Tuesday, August 22:
Bought a full-price ticket earlier in the week for THE KING AND I (£37.50, Dress Circle, A37). Should have just rented the movie instead. Oh, this production was fine, but it was in essence the movie being acted out live. Elaine Page has a great voice, but as other reviewers have mentioned, she's just too, um, mature, for the role. The guy replacing Jason Scott Lee was very good, but there was no chemistry between the two.

Wednesday, August 23:
Day trip to Bath. No theatre today.

Thursday, August 24:
Got a student standby seat for the matinee of LES MISERABLES (£17.50, Stalls, F26) twenty minutes prior to showtime. God, I love being a student. I saw Les Mis the last time I was in London, and loved it. This time was no exception. Largely different cast, all very good. The real standout is Joanna Ampil as Eponine. "On My Own" leaves me in tears every time. In fact, the whole thing makes me cry like a baby, and I wasn't the only audience member to do so. A true classic of the West End.

For the evening, I got a ticket at Leicester Square for NOTRE DAME DE PARIS (£19.50, Stalls, L10). Like other shows seen this week, Notre Dame was not what I expected! I had envisioned a "Beauty and the Beast"-ish retelling of the Hunchback story with period costumes and a straight-forward narrative line (e.g. scenes of acting between the songs telling us what's going on). Instead, Notre Dame is more concert than theatre. Songs are strung together without much pause and there is very little straight acting. Performers wore an eclectic range of era-appropriate gowns, sparkly silver club-wear, riot police gear, jogging suits, and so on. The choreography was the most original I've seen in a musical, incorporating acrobats and breakdancers. The "Bells" sequence must be seen to be appreciated. The cast was a mix of the regular leads and the alternate performers, all very strong singers. The story itself is rather weak (Hunchback meets girl, Hunchback loses girl), but with such wonderful songs, who really cares? I, like many people there that night, ended up buying the CD before I left.

Friday, August 25:
Having tried and failed to get a standby ticket elsewhere, I headed over to the Criterion Theatre to try my luck with THE COMPLETE WORKS OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE [ABRIDGED] (£10, Stalls, D5). This is the second time I've seen this show, and although many of the jokes were exactly the same as last year, it still cracked me up. From the "Shakespeare's histories as a football game" skit to the rapping Othello to the absolutely brilliant rendition(s) of Hamlet, this play is fabulously funny. Probably more effective on students of English Lit and other Shakespeare lovers (such as moi) than those who just don't dig the Bard, but I could be wrong. One warning: if you're sitting in the first few rows, prepare to be soaked, made the butt of jokes, or called on stage to play a part. But hey, it's fun.

Saturday, August 26:
Purchased a student ticket for the matinee of STONES IN HIS POCKETS (£14, Stalls, A11). Yet again, very much not what I expected but simply wonderful! I had no idea going in that this was a two-man act, but it was incredible how the actors (Sean Campion and Conleth Hill) handled the switching between characters (and there are a lot). The story of how the filming of a movie impacts a small Irish village, the play mixed the comedy with the more dramatic elements very well. Highly recommend it!

Unbeknownst to me when I bought the seat at Leicester Square, the evening performance of HARD TIMES (£19.50, Stalls, V10) was to be its last. The play was very odd, but okay. It seemed very old-fashioned - appropriate, I suppose, considering it's based on the Charles Dickens novel - and although bits of it were genuinely funny, it focused so heavily on the moral of the story that it became more of a chore to watch than a pleasure. Actually, my favourite parts were the farewell speeches by the cast, and one scene where the brilliant Brian Blessed inadvertently started to laugh and couldn't stop for several minutes.

Sunday, August 27:
Went to the new Tate, but didn't see any shows.

Monday, August 28:
After an afternoon at the Notting Hill Carnvial, I attended THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (£30, Upper Circle, A19). I had booked my tickets the previous week, and was eagerly anticipating the show. So imagine my surprise at how terrible it was! I tried to love it, really I did, but it was no use. Oh, some of the special effects were good and I liked putting a couple of previously-heard songs into context, but the story was weird and unbelievable and the acting seemed awkward at best, clownish at worst. In its defense, perhaps my expectations were too high. Friends raved about it, and based on the Andrew Lloyd Webber Birthday Concert TV special - in which Antonio Banderas performs the Phantom's songs, with Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman played Raoul and Christine, respectively - I had certain preconceptions about what the characters and the story would be like, and this performance failed to measure up.

Tuesday, August 29:
Went to Leicester Square for a ticket to THE COMPLETE HISTORY OF AMERICA [ABRIDGED] (£15.75, Stalls, D10). Now I know why this only plays once a week. Oh, it was funny enough - though very juvenile - but not one-tenth as hilarious as The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. And again, as with the aforementioned play, be prepared to get wet if you sit near the front (from the water guns in the boys' replication of the WWI trenches). As a side note, I am Canadian, and maybe it'd be funnier to an American when it is their own history that is being mocked (although I must say, I loved the idea that Canada is to the US as Wales is to Britain).

Wednesday, August 30:
What a day! For my last day in London, I decided to attempt a feat that few would dare: I saw two Hamlets back to back. First was the matinee performance of HAMLET (£5, Groundling). The production was...okay. I probably would have enjoyed it more from a proper seat: a girl next to me fainted and I felt light-headed and in danger of collapsing too. But it was interesting viewing a play as a groundling (standing in front of the stage, for those not in the know). The actor playing Claudius was particularly good, and the actress playing Ophelia held her own in a role that is exceedingly difficult. However, Gertrude seemed strangely insignificant, Horatio was far too old, and don't get me started on Laertes! I could barely contain my laughter! What a sniveling fop! The highlight of the performance came right after the show, when a couple behind me was heard to remark, "My, that was rather dreary, wasn't it." Well, yeah!

The second HAMLET (£24, Stalls, T13) was in a proper theatre with cushy seats and air conditioning. Just what I needed. Simon Russell Beale was a fabulous Hamlet. One couple stated that he was "Too old. Too short. Too fat," but I liked him, and the two lovely ladies beside me were devoted fans, informing me of this theatrical prowess, of which I was unaware. Beale was a somber mix of melancholy and madness (compared to Mark Rylance's more manic portrayal at The Globe). This was a very slick and artful production, with fabulous effects: the use of candles was wonderful and the sets made of luggage were clever (even though sometimes looked more like a train station than Elsinore). This Hamlet was less true to the text than the Globe production (even going so far as to totally cut Fortinbras!) but it was more satisfying, I think because it was capable of being dark and moody, whereas the Globe production was sunny and bright, which just didn't suit the tone of the play.

Thursday, August 31:
Flew home, happy but broke!

Thanks for reading!

(Erin McInnis)
Email: edm@sfu.ca