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Post by apubleed on Jan 22, 2023 11:58:45 GMT
I personally found Buckley's yelling too much in the theatre but think it's toned down appropriately on the CD - I enjoy it!
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Post by theatrenerd on Jan 22, 2023 13:38:38 GMT
Full cast album listening party from Friday night can be caught up on Instagram (can’t see it on YouTube or anywhere else yet). A fantastic insight into the production by Eddie, makes me want to go back and see the new cast already! www.instagram.com/tv/CnpxCCGoVjS/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
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Post by distantcousin on Jan 23, 2023 10:12:51 GMT
I think the recording is fine, but why would anyone want to listen to Buckley singing those songs out of context? It works in the context of the show, on the cast recording it's just a woman yelling... I should say I think all cast recordings of Cabaret are dreadful - you either have a Sally who is rubbish, or a Sally who is trying to be rubbish and I don't want to listen to either of those things.
So you want Liza Minnelli-esque renditions of all the songs? An Amercanised alternate-Sally Bowles?
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Post by Being Alive on Jan 23, 2023 12:52:51 GMT
I think the recording is fine, but why would anyone want to listen to Buckley singing those songs out of context? It works in the context of the show, on the cast recording it's just a woman yelling... I should say I think all cast recordings of Cabaret are dreadful - you either have a Sally who is rubbish, or a Sally who is trying to be rubbish and I don't want to listen to either of those things.
So you want Liza Minnelli-esque renditions of all the songs? An Amercanised alternate-Sally Bowles?
I just don't personally want to listen to someone either being rubbish or trying to be rubbish on a recording - this isn't a Buckley specific issue for me, I don't think any cast recordings of Cabaret work for this exact reason. You need to see it in the context of the show for me, otherwise it just doesn't work. Glad it does for others, but if I want to hear the songs sung on a recording, then yes I'll probably go to Liza
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Post by Kubrick on Jan 23, 2023 19:50:01 GMT
This recording is marvelous and brings back such memories.
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Post by mkb on Jan 29, 2023 2:14:56 GMT
I'd been adamant that there was no way I was paying a three-figure sum for this. I'd seen at least three previous versions of Cabaret on stage, the most recent being the 2019 tour (five stars), and which I was sure could not be topped.
But FOMO, the overwhelmingly positive feedback on here, and a third-row stalls table seat at today's Saturday matinée for £150 persuaded me to relent. I managed to snag a good Dress Circle single at £100 for my partner. As always when two seats together are not available, we take a random pick to see who sits where and swap at the interval.
Thus, I had the advantage of viewing proceedings from two different vantage points, the longer first act from downstairs, the second from above. Both were on the front seating side, rather than the new rear, the front being better I think. Although the production plays to all sides, the choreography seemed to favour the original front side.
My husband later explained that the audible sighs of joy coming from the circle as the lights dimmed for Act 1, were because the suspended lampshades over the stage were seriously blocking the view upstairs, and the sudden ascent of said lights to the rafters was a blessed relief.
While the view from the stalls was superb, the table seat was decidedly hard. The back was nicely padded but the seat "cushion" was thin and useless. I haven't had such bum ache since I travelled on Thameslink. The Dress Circle regular seat was, in contrast, supremely comfortable.
One final piece of business before discussing the show itself concerns ATG and their penny-pinching. For a show with such inflated prices, you'd think the theatre could manage more than one staff member scanning tickets and one checking bags. The long line meant that, from arrival outside to reaching the Green Bar (for pre-purchased snacks/drinks), took the best part of half an hour. Huge thanks to the unflappable waitress who endured my venting and restored my good mood with nothing more than genuine charm and bonhomie.
The show itself has some very clever touches and is very different to what I've seen before. I am not sure the intimacy of the Kit Kat Club worked in its favour. I missed the spectacle of the big musical set-pieces.
I actively disliked the Act 1 costumes and make-up of the assorted cabaret performers. The remit seemed to be to subvert stereotypical sexual fetish attire by making it as unalluring as possible. The result was a cross between clown and grotesque that, while no doubt deliberate, had the effect of dehumanising the characters. I felt no emotional engagement with their plight.
What was outstanding was the performance as Emcee of Callum Scott Howells. What a revelation! With his pumped-up biceps, this is a world away from It's a Sin's Colin. His stage presence and star quality shine. He dominates whenever on stage. I hope he'll find time to grace the stage again and not be entirely lost to film and tv.
If I'd not seen Cabaret before, and had I paid half as much, I think I'd be raving about the production at the converted Playhouse. But as it stands, it's a noble, brave and memorable reinvention that has not quite matched the benchmark set by the previous version.
Four stars.
Act 1: 14:05-15:39 Act 2: 15:59-16:47
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Post by lonlad on Jan 29, 2023 3:10:25 GMT
>>He dominates whenever on stage. I hope he'll find time to grace the stage again and not be entirely lost to film and tv.[/quote]
Callum opens on Feb 21 in Romeo and Julie at the National/Dorfman, so your wish has been granted. He's the real deal and, in fact, I had thought he'd left CABARET by now (his cover, Matthew Gent, is coming in for a few weeks before John McCrea takes over). Whom did you see as Sally?
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Post by mkb on Jan 29, 2023 10:14:05 GMT
I believe it was Madeline Brewer. (She looked like the picture on the website.) I think yesterday was the last day for her and Callum.
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Post by Steve on Jan 30, 2023 8:29:58 GMT
I actively disliked the Act 1 costumes and make-up of the assorted cabaret performers. The remit seemed to be to subvert stereotypical sexual fetish attire by making it as unalluring as possible. The result was a cross between clown and grotesque that, while no doubt deliberate, had the effect of dehumanising the characters. I felt no emotional engagement with their plight. What was outstanding was the performance as Emcee of Callum Scott Howells. What a revelation! With his pumped-up biceps, this is a world away from It's a Sin's Colin. His stage presence and star quality shine. He dominates whenever on stage. I hope he'll find time to grace the stage again and not be entirely lost to film and tv. For me, those costumes are a major part of what I find so unique and special about this production.
Some spoilers follow. . .
Other versions have indeed been more earthy and alluring, but there is something so sinister about those mechanical looking costumes, as if the distractions of this Cabaret are part of some greater machine working in concert with the politics and emotions of the people to bring about horror as some kind of inevitability.
I saw the Saturday matinee, and I also loved Callum Scott Howells in his (second last appearance in the) Emcee role, as he seemed to me to be moving like a (muscular) sinister machine, diabolically pushing forward both the distractions and the inevitability of the coming horror. There was such deliberate yet effortless control to his movements, with the Emcee's zaniness subservient to the mechanical nature of his movements.
I felt he and the costumes worked in frightening robotic sync, and what a contrast to his equally scene-stealing yet unforgettable good-natured affability in the Menier's "She Loves Me," as the most junior yet most charming of the shop assistants lol!
Eddie Redmayne, by contrast, seemed to me to be playing the Emcee like an elastic (one of the most astonishingly elastic performances I've ever seen) comedian, with an improvised looseness and remarkable range in his movements and manner of speaking that screamed of an inner "freedom" rather than slavery to the machine, as if the costumes he was forced to wear couldn't capture his soul. For that reason, I found his personal plight much more tragic and moving than I experienced Howell's Emcee, who felt much more complicit in the horror.
Both approaches worked powerfully for me.
Madeline Brewer's Sally Bowles felt more of a psychological mess to me, her rasping confused desperation evident from the beginning, than Jessie Buckley's, who felt more self-contained and powerful. I never felt there was any hope for Brewer's Sally, as she seemed so tragically internally broken by some horrible history, whereas Jessie Buckley's Sally felt like she might have broken free of her psychological bonds and then upsettingly fails to do so.
Once again, both approaches worked for me.
I think Richard Katz is amazing as Herr Schulz, possibly the most dreamy, light, gentle and romantic I've seen that character.
Overall, I adore this production. From the Kit Kat Club itself, with it's one way passages leading you seductively towards doom, to the mechanical costumes and performances of the dancers winding that doom on, I felt like a ballerina caught in a clockwork music box, lulled by the music into accepting my inevitable doom. Wonderful!
I do feel the ending is a bit subtle, and can be experienced as an anticlimax. It takes time to sink in, and doesn't have the punch of more bloody and visceral endings that have capped other productions. Overall, though, I will be back to see this production again, as I love it! 5 stars from me.
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 1, 2023 16:04:29 GMT
I caught this again on Monday night, which I'd booked expecting this to be the first night with the new cast. As it happened, I got Matthew Gent and Emily Benjamin, both of whom come highly recommended in their roles. It's great that they're allowed to put their own twist on their performance as well.
They've found a new route into the Kit Kat Club, which managed to get me rather confused, especially as I arrived close to the start. No drink token any more, but you do get a business card telling you the location of the bars.
Upper Circle seat C1 is terrible, with a lighting rig blocking off at least half the stage. It's a shame, as most of the Upper Circle has a very clear view, but this seat is just too far across to the edge. Not such a big deal as I've seen the show, but one I would certainly avoid in future.
Quite a few covers (and some debuts) on in the ensemble as well.
Worth seeing during the two week changeover period. This still seems to be selling well as experience theatre, regardless who is on.
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Post by mkb on Feb 1, 2023 22:31:38 GMT
There were complimentary shots to help yourself to as we went in on Saturday afternoon.
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Post by nomoretalkofdarkness on Feb 1, 2023 22:47:35 GMT
You still get a complimentary Drink when entering through the Stage Door Entrance. But I believe it depends on what time you get there as they were offering them on Tuesday.
Also Can't Recommend seeing Matthew Gent and Emily Benjamin enough, as they are both fantastic in their own ways that was really refreshing as I very much struggled to Get into the previous two.
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Post by djp on Feb 4, 2023 19:01:31 GMT
This recording is marvelous and brings back such memories. Strangely on youtube if you look for Amy Lennox cabaret you may still find youtubes with a similar logo which look like part of a cast recording of that cast too . Interesting comparison with Jessie.
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Post by sondheimhats on Feb 13, 2023 14:43:24 GMT
Hello,
I'm coming in from the US next month to see some shows, and I purchased a ticket to Cabaret with the intention of seeing Aimee Lou Wood in the role.
Just this morning I saw an article saying that she would be out for certain performances, which, as far as I can tell, wasn't indicated in the initial press release. There also doesn't seem to be any indication of which performances she'll be out. But given that I have a ticket to a Wednesday matinee, it seems like I'm right in the "danger zone."
Given everything I've heard about the refund policies on the West End, I'm assuming that I would NOT be entitled to a refund if she was out for my performance, even though it wasn't announced beforehand. Is that correct?
In either case, has anyone seen her performance schedule published anywhere?
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Post by anthony40 on Feb 13, 2023 15:07:29 GMT
Hello, I'm coming in from the US next month to see some shows, and I purchased a ticket to Cabaret with the intention of seeing Aimee Lou Wood in the role. Just this morning I saw an article saying that she would be out for certain performances, which, as far as I can tell, wasn't indicated in the initial press release. There also doesn't seem to be any indication of which performances she'll be out. But given that I have a ticket to a Wednesday matinee, it seems like I'm right in the "danger zone." Given everything I've heard about the refund policies on the West End, I'm assuming that I would NOT be entitled to a refund if she was out for my performance, even though it wasn't announced beforehand. Is that correct? In either case, has anyone seen her performance schedule published anywhere? Hello, Firstly, welcome (in advance). I hope that in addition to the shows that you have booked that whatever else that you whist you're here, that you enjoy yourself and have fun. Just to respond to one part of your post, usually you wouldn't be entitled to a refund. Most theatres cover themselves by saying that the attendance of any one performer cannot be guaranteed. If the show as a whole could not go ahead because of circumstances beyond the theatres control, like a flooding, an electrical issue that couldn't be fixed in time or something more serious then there would be no question.
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Post by topaz on Feb 13, 2023 15:17:41 GMT
Crossing fingers Aimee does Wednesday matinees She seems to be alternating Wednesday matinees and Thursday evenings - this from the website: Aimee Lou Wood is not scheduled to perform on 15 Feb (matinee), 16 Feb (evening), 23 Feb (evening), 1 March (matinee), 9 March (evening), 15 March (matinee), 23 March (evening), 29 March (matinee), 6 April (evening), 12 April (matinee), 20 April (evening), 26 April (matinee), 4 May (evening), 10 May (matinee), 18 May (evening) and 24 May (matinee. Hoping that you've booked for the 8 March matinee...... For the poster above, from earlier in the thread.
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Post by dm913 on Feb 13, 2023 15:23:31 GMT
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Post by sondheimhats on Feb 13, 2023 15:31:44 GMT
Thanks all! Apologies for not looking more carefully through the thread + website (afterward, I did manage to find it on the website but it did take some digging around). Regardless, I appreciate your directing me to that info.
Anyway, it looks like I lucked out! The Wednesday Matinee I'm attending is NOT listed as one of her absences.
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Post by Being Alive on Feb 13, 2023 23:37:41 GMT
Aimee Lou Wood is, in short, remarkable.
John McRea...is not.
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Post by playingdangerous on Feb 14, 2023 1:29:16 GMT
Aimee Lou Wood is, in short, remarkable. John McRea...is not. Heard someone say John as the Emcee was like Jamie New as the Emcee..
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Post by Dr Tom on Feb 14, 2023 7:50:21 GMT
Having seen the new cast yesterday, I feel this is the weakest set of leads so far, but I will caveat that by saying this was their first performance and things may change. The vocals were not great, although the whole show is still strong. I thought that both John and Aimee were doing their best to be different to their predecessors, different movements, different ways to saying the lines etc and some decisions just got irritating. With that said, if we take the view that Sally Bowles is meant to be only a seedy nightclub level singer, Aimee Lou Wood did perform with energy throughout and made up for a disappointing Maybe This Time with a powerful Cabaret. I would watch the second half again with this cast, but I'm not sure I'd want to watch the first half again.
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Post by Being Alive on Feb 14, 2023 13:02:43 GMT
Aimee Lou Wood is, in short, remarkable. John McRea...is not. Heard someone say John as the Emcee was like Jamie New as the Emcee.. Correct, he just felt like he had absolutely no idea what to do with it. Hard disagree with the above on Aimee though - thought her Maybe This Time was heartbreaking, and then her descent through Act 2 to get to a point where she could do Cabaret was pitch perfectly...in fact she's probably my favourite Sally that I've seen in this production (didn't see Madeleine but have seen the other principals) - she wasn't angry from the beginning and had a proper arc...really superb.
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Post by sfsusan on Feb 14, 2023 13:25:47 GMT
Does Sally have any songs outside of the club environment?
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Post by Kubrick on Feb 14, 2023 13:36:17 GMT
Does Sally have any songs outside of the club environment? Maybe This Time and Perfectly Marvelous.
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Post by sfsusan on Feb 15, 2023 13:30:15 GMT
Maybe This Time and Perfectly Marvelous. Thanks. Now that actors are highlighting Sally's lack of talent in her club performances, I was wondering if anyone ever did these outside songs in Sally's 'interior' voice... ie, trained, polished, professional singing since I'm sure she thinks that's how she sounds.
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Post by nottobe on Feb 17, 2023 15:53:06 GMT
Has anyone else ordered the vinyl? I pre-ordered on Amazon and it was meant to be released today however Amazon says it will be delivered on Tuesday.
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Post by stevejohnson678 on Feb 19, 2023 12:22:00 GMT
The last time I got chills in a theatre it was thanks to the Liverpool Empire treating its audience to an immersive performance of White Christmas, leaving the heating off on a freezing cold December evening.
The Kit Kat Club was a comfortable temperature yesterday afternoon so I can only put the return of the goosebumps down to Aimee Lou Wood's sensational performance as Sally Bowles.
She's funny, high-energy, vulnerable, heartbreaking and completely mesmeric to watch. I enjoyed John McCrea too and the ensemble were always engaging but it was Aimee everyone was talking about as we filed out of the Kit Kat Club at quarter to five.
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Post by jacob on Feb 21, 2023 23:10:56 GMT
Hi all- what’s seating like for this one? Are the cheapest ones still okay or is it best to splurge.. or is lottery my best bet?!
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Post by thistimetomorrow on Feb 21, 2023 23:16:21 GMT
Hi all- what’s seating like for this one? Are the cheapest ones still okay or is it best to splurge.. or is lottery my best bet?! Honestly you'd be fine with the £30 front row edge grand circle A or B seats or even centre row C seats. If you want to splurge a bit more, the £50 back of the stage side dress or £70 back of normal side dress are really good. Going to the box office on the day can also get you a good deal. I wouldn't rely on the lottery, very low chance of winning.
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Post by darreno on Feb 22, 2023 16:16:59 GMT
Hi all- what’s seating like for this one? Are the cheapest ones still okay or is it best to splurge.. or is lottery my best bet?! I've tried a few different seats to try and get the best of everything, just can't justify the really expensive ones as I go on my own and they seem better suited to couples/groups. From my experience, Dress Circle H8 is perfect! I think I've sat in 4 different areas so far and that's what I would recommend to a friend for sure, and is where I'll be sitting on my next visit!
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