483 posts
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Post by deej4life on Feb 15, 2024 15:08:49 GMT
Megan Gardiner is on as Glinda for the matinee today today, Stephanie Lindo is on as Nessarose (15th February, 2024).
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483 posts
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Post by deej4life on Feb 16, 2024 17:15:46 GMT
Julie Cloke is making her debut as Madame Morrible tonight (16th February, 2024).
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Post by jacob on Feb 17, 2024 23:09:27 GMT
okay .. maybe I revoke my comments from earlier 🫣 The cast was on TOP FORM tonight. This is possibly the best sounding UK cast I’ve heard yet. Laura is just STELLAR! Riffs in all the right places and her tone is phenomenal. SO clear. A long audience cheer after TWAI which was well deserved. Sarah seemed much bubblier too which I’m quite happy about! They’ve all settled in very well for the Bristol run and I’m looking forward to being back soon. Donna as MM as well is brilliant casting, I loved her very menacing portrayal.!!
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483 posts
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Post by deej4life on Feb 18, 2024 13:50:09 GMT
Really happy to hear that the cast have settled in more and improved as the tour has progressed. I'll be seeing them again in Dublin, so it will be interesting to see them at that stage of the tour!
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Post by ntherooh on Feb 18, 2024 14:27:53 GMT
Wicked isnt selling very well in the West End lately is it? Or has it been like this for a while? Ofcourse it’s a barn of a theatre, but some nights it’s almost half empty.
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1,172 posts
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Post by theatrefan62 on Feb 18, 2024 14:38:46 GMT
Wicked isnt selling very well in the West End lately is it? Or has it been like this for a while? Ofcourse it’s a barn of a theatre, but some nights it’s almost half empty. It's been like that for a long time. It was half empty when I last saw it 12+ years ago. Survives on weekend performances
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Post by flyingsolo on Feb 27, 2024 3:07:05 GMT
Saw the tour last week and this was definitely my best time at Wicked in a long while! Sarah really surprised me!! I liked her way more than I thought I would. Her voice is still quite weak for Glinda standards however it's very pretty, and her Popular, though not very much played for laughs, is very enjoyable and flows well. Laura is amazing, giving a very clean vocal performance with some nice riffs that she wasn't allowed to do in London, but not over the top! Carl is just the best Fiyero Wicked UK has seen in YEARS!! So charismatic..
The rest of the cast is very strong as well, with Donna Berlin as Madame Morrible as a standout. A few awkward spots during Shiz where she was a little late with lines but loved her acting! Daniel Hope (temporarily covering for the injured Jed Berry) made for a very cute Boq, and it was fun to see him return to the show after 8 years.
The orchestra is VERY powerful (and the drummer is absolutely smashing it), and they seem to have fixed the tempo as they're not rushing through Defying Gravity anymore. ALAYM and For Good definitely felt very slow though, and the whole of Act 2 generally felt just a tiny bit more messy/less rehearsed compared to Act 1, not just in the orchestra but also in the performances on stage.
Some other things I noted was how the set piece with the roman numerals are fixed and don't leave the stage, and that the walls in the back fly in instead of enter from the wings (they're also a different design). Also the curtain rises early in the Act 2 Opener. An awkward change I found was in the Engagement Ball scene between WWOTE and Wonderful where instead of Fiyero and Glinda dancing alongside fellow attendees, they were being escorted by the guards doing some awkward choreo, with the orchestra having added marching drums to the transition music. Weird. It was funny to see Chistery holding up the Grimmerie for Elphaba in NGD though. Definitely the most different production compared to the original Broadway production it's based on..
Overall I'd give this production a 4/5. It's VERY solid with strong, fresh performances (Something London needs to allow again by loosening up on their cast). If they can fix the issues in Act 2 I'd actually give this a 5/5.
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Post by westendgirls on Mar 3, 2024 0:38:38 GMT
Wicked isnt selling very well in the West End lately is it? Or has it been like this for a while? Ofcourse it’s a barn of a theatre, but some nights it’s almost half empty. It's been like that for a long time. It was half empty when I last saw it 12+ years ago. Survives on weekend performances I was there tonight (Saturday) and was surprised how empty it was. We got rush tickets for about a quarter of the price they should have been if bought at full price
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529 posts
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Post by drowseychap on Mar 3, 2024 2:51:58 GMT
I’ve not seen this for a few years after seeing you tube clips of the Hamburg production and Brazil I think it looks and feels dated compared to them wish it would have a refresh
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Post by aingidh on Mar 7, 2024 12:54:21 GMT
Maddison Firth (1st cover Elphaba) and Lydia Gerrard (2nd cover Glinda) both make their debuts today
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Post by StageyBrum on Mar 7, 2024 13:39:54 GMT
Maddison Firth (1st cover Elphaba) and Lydia Gerrard (2nd cover Glinda) both make their debuts today 😠missed it by a show. Was there last night at media night and the cast were on fire. I’m assuming these are scheduled performances.
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483 posts
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Post by deej4life on Mar 7, 2024 14:26:22 GMT
So jealous of anyone seeing either of the shows today! Maddison will be Elphaba for the matinee and Lydia will be Glinda for the evening show.
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Post by danb on Mar 7, 2024 18:43:28 GMT
I hope Maddison smashed it! I’m quite sure she would have done. A really great and versatile MT actress imho.
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Post by StageyBrum on Mar 8, 2024 10:07:45 GMT
I hope Maddison smashed it! I’m quite sure she would have done. A really great and versatile MT actress imho. Had a couple of friends in who saw her and they said she was sensational. I was hoping something to listen to might pop up somewhere if you get my drift but know this tends to be quite unlikely on tour. I know it was ages before any of Casey’s shows rocked up on YT.
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Post by danb on Mar 8, 2024 10:38:20 GMT
I hope Maddison smashed it! I’m quite sure she would have done. A really great and versatile MT actress imho. Had a couple of friends in who saw her and they said she was sensational. I was hoping something to listen to might pop up somewhere if you get my drift but know this tends to be quite unlikely on tour. I know it was ages before any of Casey’s shows rocked up on YT. Just the bows so far.
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483 posts
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Post by deej4life on Mar 8, 2024 17:18:41 GMT
Maddison Firth is on as Elphaba tonight (8th March, 2024).
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Post by darreno on Mar 8, 2024 19:15:17 GMT
Maddison Firth is on as Elphaba tonight (8th March, 2024). Ahhhhh, didn't know she was cast!! I was turn between this and a local show tonight and I'm at the local one!!!
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483 posts
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Post by deej4life on Mar 9, 2024 13:53:46 GMT
Casey Al-Shaqsy is on as Elphaba for the matinee today (9th March, 2024).
Stephanie Lindo was also on as Nessarose for both shows on Thursday (7th March, 2024).
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483 posts
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Post by deej4life on Mar 9, 2024 18:46:05 GMT
Maddison Firth is on as Elphaba for the evening show (9th March, 2024).
Casey is recovering from being sick, so only performed the matinee. Laura Pick is also off sick at the moment.
Russel Dickson is on as Fiyero for both shows today also.
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24 posts
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Post by viscountviktor on Mar 9, 2024 22:12:08 GMT
Sounds like there is no violin/cello in the tour band, unlike the west end show.
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483 posts
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Post by deej4life on Mar 10, 2024 15:28:39 GMT
Maddison Firth is on as Elphaba today (10th March, 2024).
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Post by erik24601 on Mar 10, 2024 21:10:37 GMT
Shall we just rename this the 'Who's on tonight in Wicked on tour' thread?
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4,527 posts
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Post by Being Alive on Mar 10, 2024 23:15:00 GMT
Sounds like they're running a tombola pre show of who goes on...
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Post by erik24601 on Mar 10, 2024 23:21:36 GMT
I would seriously prefer a separate thread for these incessant posts about who is and who isn’t performing each day so I can just skip the thread and only check when something interesting is posted on this one. BurlyBeaR ?
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4,527 posts
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Post by Being Alive on Mar 10, 2024 23:32:21 GMT
Oh it's been a thing on the Wicked London thread for years - deej4life's knowledge is wild, and I say let it stay where it is!
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215 posts
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Post by Jane Parfitt on Mar 11, 2024 3:49:41 GMT
You can always mute a user if you are finding their posts "incessant" then although you can see they've posted you can choose whether to click on it or not .... I would seriously prefer a separate thread for these incessant posts about who is and who isn’t performing each day so I can just skip the thread and only check when something interesting is posted on this one. BurlyBeaR ?
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Post by erik24601 on Mar 11, 2024 4:17:45 GMT
You can always mute a user if you are finding their posts "incessant" then although you can see they've posted you can choose whether to click on it or not .... I would seriously prefer a separate thread for these incessant posts about who is and who isn’t performing each day so I can just skip the thread and only check when something interesting is posted on this one. BurlyBeaR ? I didn’t know this. Thank you. I am sure the info is very interesting/helpful to the hardcore fans but not really on a daily basis.
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18,902 posts
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Mar 11, 2024 7:25:02 GMT
Thing is, nobody is posting anything else about the show. Who is on /not on currently seems to be the only interesting thing going on. Same applies to the London thread. Simple fact is that if you want the discussion to go in a different direction then go ahead and make it happen!
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196 posts
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Post by Peter on Mar 11, 2024 14:57:55 GMT
Sounds like there is no violin/cello in the tour band, unlike the west end show. Sadly not, though it's still a good sized band for a tour and they sound fantastic (even if the amplification of the drums was a little too 'Blood Brothers' in parts). At the show I saw in Bristol they were: Musical Director / Conductor MATTHEW J. LOUGHRAN Assistant Musical Director HARRY HADEN-BROWN Piccolo / Flute / Alto Flute / Soprano Recorder in C JENNAH SMART Oboe / English Horn / Penny Whistle ELEANOR TINLIN Soprano Sax / Eb Clarinet / Bb Clarinet / Bass Clarinet STUART EMINSON Trumpet / Flugel Horn JACOB ROSENBERG Tenor Trombone / Bass Trombone ADRIAN HALLOWELL French Horn HAYLEY TONNER Electric Guitar / Nylon Acoustic / Banjo / 12 string STEVE BRAMWELL Double Bass / 5 String Electric / Fretless Electric AIDAN PLATTS Drums CRAIG HANSON Percussion MURDOCH MACDONALD Keyboard 1 PHIL WADDINGTON Keyboard 2 / Cover Conductor JOHN REDDEL Keyboard 3 HARRY HADEN-BROWN Keyboard 4 / Cover Conductor MILLIE DAVIES
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Post by SuttonPeron on Mar 11, 2024 16:44:45 GMT
No Trumpet 2 either, so it´s the same reduced orchestration as the US Tour. Glad to see there´s a female (cover) conductor though.
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