Having been lucky enough to have attended three Musicals during the last week, what did I learn from them? The first of the three was Charlie and the Chocolate Factory at the Palace Theatre in Manchester. I’ve seen the Gene Wilder film, but until last week I hadn’t seen a stage version.
Although the first half felt a bit too long and lacked pace, after the interval, and the entrance of Gareth Snook as Willy Wonka, the show was lifted to another level. The acting was excellent, but it was the inventive set and clever use of lighting and special effects that lifted it to excellent. Once the cast were in the Chocolate Factory, the back wall and floor worked together to create a very immersive and effective illusion, which was outstanding.
The next show I attended was South Manchester Amateur Operatic Societies version of Avenue Q, which is heavily inspired by the TV programme Sesame Street, but is for adults only, despite most of the characters being muppet style puppets. The music is brilliant and is written by the same composer, Robert Lopez, who wrote the songs for Book of Mormon, one of the longest running musicals in the West End, and Frozen.
Despite being an Am/Dram, performed at Altrincham Little Theatre, with a capacity of about 120, this was an exceptional production that had a cast that could easily have performed on a professional stage. I’d seen Ben Vaughan, who played Princeton, in a recent version of West Side Story in Tameside, but Abbie Venables as Kate Monster was also exceptional. My son Steven brilliantly played Rod and the rest of the cast were top class.
The real stars of the show were the music and comedy. I’ve seen the show a few times, including a professional version at the Lowry Theatre, and it never disappoints.
On Saturday afternoon I was at the Liverpool Empire to watch Titanic the Musical. I’d missed it when it was at the Lowry recently, but I have to admit I was a little nervous as I drove along the M62 to watch it. My son, who has always been fascinated by the story of the ill-fated Ship of Dreams, had decided not to go and see it because he said, “Watching a singing and dancing musical about Titanic sinking and killing 1,500 people doesn’t seem appropriate.”
I understood his concerns, so I took my seat wondering what to expect. The opening ten minutes of the show were very choral, with the large cast largely singing together. It took a few minutes more to get used to, but eventually it started to feel right. This was a very respectful telling of the story with Valda Aviks and David Delve as Ida and Isidor Straus central to the emotion of the story.
They were playing the real couple who sailed on Titanic but decided to stay together rather than be separated when Ida had the chance to get into a lifeboat without her much moved husband. This wasn’t a show that was about singing and dancing and trivialising such a tragic event, the show honoured those who set sail. As we left the theatre a full-size curtain with all the names of the souls that perished was hung there. It was honourable and respectful and got a much deserved standing ovation.
What did I learn from the three shows I saw this week? As good as the actors always are, never forget the writing, the directing, the song writing, the set designers etc and trust these talented creatives to produce something special, because they nearly always do.
Join me this Sunday for Break-a-Leg on Tameside Radio when my guests include Hayley Tamaddon, soon to star in There’s Something About Jamie at the Lowry and there’ll be features on Heathers at the Palace and Zog at the Lowry during the school holidays.
