Coriolanus – Savoy Theatre Hamburg 10.03.2014

This was the screening at a cinema of the original London play that took place at the Donmar Warehouse for a couple of weeks. I was quite excited for it since my best friend and I decided we’d go to see it together, because it would probably be the only time I’d ever get this close to a Hollywood Actor. Sad, I know. Plus, it had Tom Hiddleston in it. Now,  I have never been a huge fan of him; I adored his acting in the “Thor” movies and, especially, in “The Avengers”, but that was about it. But after seeing that play on the screen, my opinion has definitely changed, because, hands down – he was amazing as Caius Martius Coriolanus.

And sadly…that is all I can say about it.

As some of you know, I am not a native english speaker, I’m from Germany and english is definitely not my native language. And even in german, I have difficulties to understand the language in theatre plays of Shakespeare (a lot of people have that problem, right? Please, somebody say yes so I feel less stupid.). The language used in them is so….exhausting. My best friend and I decided that therefor, it would be easier to watch the “Coriolanus” movie first, to at least get a bit of the storyline that we hadn’t already read online somewhere. Fact is, that movie was exhausting, too. Maybe I am just not a Shakespeare person, or no, I definitely am not. If I watch something, I need to understand it to enjoy it. And that movie left me even more confused than I was before, and I just hoped that the screening in my favourite language AND my favourite accent would turn things around for me.

It didn’t.

I am not scared to admit (and yes, highly am ashamed of myself, to be fair), that during the 2nd half, I slightly fell asleep during the last conversation Coriolanus (Tom Hiddleston) has with his mother (Deborah Finlay) before he wants to go to “war” with Aufidius (Hadley Fraser). Partly the problem was that the cinema seat was way too comfortable: there was a square leather stool infront of my feet and I could stretch back in my seat and I would lay back, as if I am lying in a very leathery and soft lawn chair. The other problem was, that now, listening to Shakespeare in english, and more, in british english, that it was the first time I was seriously overwhelmed with my favourite language. At the first few minutes I felt like “Alright, this is going well, I understand it better than the weird movie language.”, but soon I realized I was wrong. Shakespeare-y language all along, and I am honest: if I wouldn’t have watched the movie first, I would’ve understood jack squad. Hell, even WITH the movie, I only understood things because they sounded familiar from it (like in the scene when Coriolanus and Aufidius meet again in the 2nd half and Aufidius welcomes him like a long lost lover – hilarious). And that is pretty sad, because I would’ve loved to fully get it. I feel stupid not getting it, not understanding it. Because I feel like I couldn’t fully appreciate the actors the way they deserved.

Because the Cast was absolutely wonderful. I couldn’t stop staring at Tom, his talent, and everything about him, he was flawless. He even had these tiny moments when he was hilarious without intending to be. Hadley Fraser…I totally understand why he is so popular and why he was cast in “Les Misérables”. When I saw Alfred Enoch (Titus Lartius), I stared at him every single second (that I was not staring at Tom, of course) because he looked so familiar…until I finally realized he was Dean Thomas from the “Harry Potter” movie series. How small the world can be.
I won’t even start on Deborah Findlay (Volumnia) – she was amazing. The way she acted – wow. She was so emotional and convincing in playing the desperate mother who wants her son back on the right track after somehow having pushed him onto the wrong one before.

But my star was definitely Tom. I have barely seen someone so convincing on a theatre stage, let alone, in a movie. Every time the camera zoomed in on his face and you could see the tears watering in his beautiful eyes….you just wanted to go over and hug him, because it looked so real! And it touched me deep inside, I have to admit. He makes you forgive him for his arrogance, his reckless and brutal behaviour in the first two and a half hours in his last 10 minutes in that role. He played it out perfectly, and the way he died was certainly quite brutal – but with me not having any problem with too much blood on a stage or a screen, I was at least fine with that (even if not with Tom dying, I even had tears in my eyes, myself, soft me).

So my resumé: I am glad I did this experience, that I got to see “Coriolanus” and that I saw Tom Hiddleston after I had heard so much praise for him for that role – which he most definitely deserves. But I have come to the conclusion that I won’t put myself in the same position of watching a Shakespeare play in english again, because for me as a native german it is just too exhausting, and I would hate to miss out on such an amazing Cast and set once again because I fall asleep or simply just can’t enjoy it because I have to focus too much on understanding it. The actors deserve more acknowledgement from me, more appreciation, and I couldn’t live with myself if I couldn’t give them that.

Dialogue In The Dark

While I was visiting my best friend in Hamburg this weekend, she came up with a new idea what we could do: “Dialogue In The Dark”. You ask – what is that?

Basically, it’s an exhibition, more like some kind of a tour, where you can see…nothing. You go through a couple of rooms that are pitch black, you don’t see anything at all, you can only rely on your smelling and hearing senses. A blind guide is walking you through all “exhibits”, asks you what you sense and feel, and you’re able to ask him/her questions about their job in these dark rooms, their life as blind or visually handicapped people.

I have to admit, at first I wasn’t sure if that was something for me. On the one hand, my best friend had told me about it (she had done the tour twice already), and the way she described it, it sounded really interesting; plunging into darkness to get a feeling how blind people cope in their every day life. On the other hand, when we were given our blindman’s sticks and the advise that when we couldn’t take the darkness anymore (we were a group of 8 people plus our guide, Mario), we would immediately be helped out of there…I felt a lump in my throat. I have never experienced seeing absolutely nothing, let alone being in complete darkness over a timeframe of 90 minutes with complete strangers. But I knew there was no going back once I held the stick in my hand.

And god, was I glad that I didn’t pull out there and then (which was maybe also because I had paid 19€ for he tour and I am not somebody to easily waste money).

It was one of the most interesting things I have ever done. Our guide – who was absolutely hilarious and had no inhibitions to make fun of being blind every now and then, – first made us all introduce ourselves, then we had to just listen to the sounds that were ahead of us. We slowly walked from room to room, including small bridges, a few small steps, round walls, a room full of different spices and smells and some kind of grocery store where real fruits and vegetables were on display (we had to guess what they were when we were able to get our hands on them). Plus, for a couple of minutes we were sat onto a small boat and our guide “sailed” us over to the other side, with a light breeze going around us, and after that, we rested in a room where a CD was played with a bit of music or just several sounds, like rain, or underwater/diving sounds, walking over a seashore, etc…

It was an amazing experience, and Mario, helped alot with that. He never failed to explain us everything, and he walked us through the darkness like we were the same – which, apparently, we were for these 90 minutes. One of the most remarkable things was the fact how insanely good his hearing is. There was one of these moments where we had to walk past him and he asked if everyone was there, saying their names when they went past him and through the next door. At one point, it was my turn, but before I said my name, I said something else to my best friend, and to my surprise, Mario went: “Tanja is there, too…” For a moment, I was almost speechless because he had recognized me purely because of my voice. Now I don’t know if his hearing is just stunningly developed or my voice is so weird it’s easy to remember – but it doesn’t matter. That moment impressed me a lot.

After the tour, we all went through the last door into a dark bar (funny, eh, considering that EVERYTHING during that tour was nothing but dark, ha-ha), and we got the chance for a face-to-face conversation (I am so not funny, I know) with Mario. He told us that he has been blind from birth on, and that he mostly does his grocery or clothes shopping with someone close to him, someone he trusts so they can tell him which is what and what color of clothes looks good on him or fits together with other colors. We were even told that there is a device that can tell you – simply when you hold it agains the fabric, – which color it has! It was weird to then think about that he had never ever seen ANY color at all, and it was interesting to ponder about how it would be if you had no idea at all about any color there is in the world  – something I just can’t imagine, to be honest. Not knowing about what red looks like, or blue, or the different kinds of red, like bordeaux or something…it’s just too much for me to even begin to realize.
Mario also told us that he had been a computer programmer for a long time and only quit the job because it didn’t go well with his long-distance-relationship. Overstimulation for me right there. I mean…you might think it’s not possible that you can programme anything on a computer when you’re blind, even if nowadays, there are ways to help with it, but I swear to you, he was serious. And I believed him. So did everyone else. It was mindblowing.

At the end of the tour/day, I can say: what an amazing experience. If anybody of you ever gets the opportunity to do a tour like that – do it, you won’t regret it. It was one of the most interesting things to slip into the role of a blind person, of someone who has to cope with their handicap 24/7, to get a feeling of how life could be.

Plus, it showed me once more how lucky I actually am. I am healthy, I can walk, I can hear, I can speak and I can see. I am so lucky. I do not even want to think about the possibility to be blind one day, simply because all my life I was able to see everything; my best friend and I agreed that it must be a lot easier for someone to be blind from birth than later, because then…well, let’s just say, for me, it is one of the most horrible things to know what the world looks like and then one day – everything’s pitch black. Just thinking about it and there is a shudder going through my entire body.

Now I have an even higher respect of blind people than I already did. What they are able to accomplish every day of their life – wow. Just wow.

2013 – A Year In Events

As the year now fast comes to an end, I decided to jump onto the known bandwaggon and make some kind of an end-of-year review of what my year has been like (I hear the screams of the “Oh no, not one of those AGAIN!”). If you’ve read this blog before, you’ll be shocked to see that it all mostly consists of me travelling around the world aka London. But anyways, I want to look back at all the lovely things I’ve experienced this year, all the lovely people I met and made friends with. Because this year consisted of so many beautiful memories that no one will ever be able to take away from me.

January
2013 started for me in the worst possible way. I was in a huge fight with a colleague who once had been a very good friend, and I thought about quitting my job due to the fact I couldn’t stand seeing and working with her all day. It was a very fine line these first weeks in the year. But then my life turned with a bang. Literally. Okay, not literally, but you know what I mean. At the end of this month, I was going back to London with my best friend for my 2nd visit – safe to say the moment I first stepped foot on holy british ground three months before, there was no going back. It was more than just a “quick visit”; we had both a full-packed plan. There would be 3 Musicals & 1 Live Concert at the Hippodrome Casino in just 2 days – little did I know back then how much that Casino visit would impress me! I went to see “We Will Rock You” together with a friend I met during my 1st visit in London in September 2012, simply because I was all on my own and back then, she was the biggest fan of Oliver Tompsett (who plays Galileo) I had ever met so far. That night was the first night I actually had a proper chat with him, and also, met the wonderful Katie Paine for the first time. She had been a mindblowing Killer Queen that night and hasn’t been topped by any other Killer Queen I have seen before or after her. She’s amazing. And nothing else but absolutely lovely and kind.

.

The 2 other shows that weekend were “Billy Elliott” and “Les Misérables”. It was my first time seeing both shows, and due to a really crap seat (seriously, never, EVER sit on the balcony if you love moving your legs. Or your body, for that matter.) I couldn’t really enjoy the latter. The voices were amazing, there’s no doubt about it, but that was it for me. I will never be a person who gets along nicely with texts that are not normally spoken but sung. “Les Misérables” itself is amazing, with everything around, but I think it’s just not the right thing for me. It was also the Cast Change day, and seeing Liam Tamne going after I’ve heard and seen his beautiful talent was heartbreaking – even he started crying during the last “Do You Hear The People Thing” so that he hadn’t been able to properly sing his part.

“Billy Elliott”, however, surprised me way more than I thought. I had never watched the movie, have never been bothered or interested in it, but the show itself was beautiful. All these talented kids…it was amazing to watch them dancing and singing on stage. Our Billy that day, Harris Beattie, was the most talented kid I had ever seen on a stage so far, and I know I will definitely be back for a 2nd time somewhen in 2014 for sure.

Last but not least, a concert awaited me and my best friend at the Hippodrome Casino, Matcham Room: Caissie Levy. I had heard her sing on the Cast Recordings of “Ghost – The Musical”, and I was absolutely stunned by her voice and talent, so I was more than excited for that night, especially because Oliver Tompsett & Paul Ayres (he played Carl in “Ghost”) would be there, too. And I wasn’t disappointed. It was an unforgettable night for me – especially at the moment when my favourite West End Person ever – Simon Lipkin – casually walked up the stairs, just 5 metres away from me, and queued to be let into the Matcham Room with everyone else. Seeing him made that night even more perfect than it already was, with all the beautiful voices and songs. I hopethat one day I will be part of that kind of special night again
 

The next 2 months were sort of…dead. Not literally, but almost. I love to think of February & March of the time I needed to recover my jaw from dropping all the way to the floor when I saw Mr. Lipkin coming up these stairs at the Hippodrome. Yes, I am that pathetic that I admit I need to recover from looking at this beautiful man. Sue me.

April
I was finally visiting my best friend again, after three long months (she lives about 4,5 hours away from me). There was not much planned, just having a great time together – and of course, seeing my beloved musical “Tarzan” again. It had been that one musical back in March 2012 that had me completely fall in love with Musical Theatre in the first place; I love absolutely everything about it, the costumes, the actors, the storyline, the songs, the stage set…I could go on and on and wouldn’t be able to explain it properly to you. It was my 3rd time back at the Neue Flora in Hamburg, and it still hadn’t lost any of its magic for me. These first few minutes when the show starts, when “Two Worlds” start playing – never has any beginning of any show made my entire skin crawl of goosebumps as the beginning of “Tarzan”.
Sadly, my best friend got sick that weekend so after watching the show, the rest of the weekend consisted of sitting infront of her TV, doing a “Full House” marathon. But you know what? That made this weekend even more wonderful, because it’s these little things I love about our friendship the most, the thing I cherish the most: relaxing, being lazy, and still never get sick of each other.

I also finally got to see one of my favourite comedians live on stage. She kind of disappointed me, as I knew she was funnier whenever I saw her on TV, but nevertheless, it was unforgettable to experience her on stage after wanting this so much for such a long time.

May
I love to call this the month of highlights.

Highlight No. 1:
I would be seeing another of my favourite comedians on stage, and although I already knew his programme, I was almost peeing myself laughing. That guy, Kaya Yanar is absolutely hilarious and I think I will be back for his new programme next year.

Highlight No. 2:
I would finally be seeing the german version of “We Will Rock You” on stage again after over 5 years. If anyone had told me that that first visit after all these years on May, 3rd, wouldn’t be the last one of the tour, I’d probably would’ve laughed. Loud. Little did I know. So little. The show blew me away more than I can tell you. Everything about it was mindblowing, the Cast was the best german Cast I had ever seen (apart from the “Tarzan” one, maybe), the songs brought up again all my love for the german version….long story short, I was back in love with my favourite show of all time. No surprise then, that I already went back on May, 17th, is it?

Highlight No. 3:
The Asylum Europe 4 Convention in Frankfurt – a Supernatural Convention, organized by Rogue Events, and the third one of theirs that I attended. I’m not gonna lie: it was the best weekend of my entire life. I had never laughed so hard with friends as I did that weekend. We had the best guests any Supernatural Fan could wish for (seriously, though: Ty Olsson – holy crap. Never liked him on the show, basically because I never understood a word he was saying. But seeing him in real, on stage, at the autograph tables…god, that man is a GOD. He’s sexy as hell and the funniest American I ever had the pleasure to meet. Totally in love with him now. No regrets. And of course, Kim Rhodes, biggest fangirl ever herself, tops even the creepiest Supernatural fan by far…and still is the most lovable person you will ever meet!), and honestly, even if I don’t talk to any of the girls anymore that I spent the whole weekend with (except for one) – it was the best weekend I ever had in my entire life. I felt accepted, I felt liked and I felt like I belong somewhere. I miss that time dearly (not the horrible goodbye from my wonderful friends Susie & Jaynee after the Closing Ceremony, though), and even if we don’t have to say anything to each other anymore: I also somehow miss the girls. They were and are amazing, and it was an absolute honour to spend three entire days with them. (If you see this: Angii, Becky, Justine, Vanessa, Claudia & Laura – THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart.)

Highlight No. 4:
The first Road Trip ever with my 4 girls to Hamburg to see “Tarzan” (they hadn’t seen it yet at that point) and do some sightseeing and simply have a good time together before one of them, my closest friend here, Mimi, would leave for Korea for 2 years. I won’t lie, the weather was the shittiest I had ever experienced on a “holiday” (seriously, “it’s raining cats and dogs” was nothing compared to the shitstorm that we endured that weekend), it was exhausting, partly embarassing (for me, to be honest; you might have noticed, if you read this blog before, that I turn into a massive fangirl whenever I am near a Stage Door, I don’t care about anyone or anything then), but all in all, SO worth it. Each of my girls absolutely adored and loved the show, and the goosebumps we all got while watching it was proof enough of it. It was the last time I saw the show before it moved to Stuttgart 5 months later, and I still cherish every single moment of that last day. And I was happy I could make my friends somehow understand why I loved that Musical so much.

June
The month I like to call the “Crazy WWRY month”. 6 shows in two and a half weeks, new friends made, spending time with the best and nicest german Cast I have ever met, including a heartbreaking Dernière on June, 30th (=Closing Show). Until that moment I barely had cried so much in my life than in that last show; the last 4 songs somehow passed by in a blur, I couldn’t sing, I couldn’t clap, I couldn’t cheer up to the people on stage that have found their way into my heart so fast and easily. Every single of these last shows were special in its own ways, with insane vocals, tears, breathtaking performances by each and everyone of them, and the group of fans coming from all parts in Germany….until that point, I had never experienced such a supportive and dedicated fanbase, and I am proud that I have been a part of it for 2 months.
 

July
Birthday month! I turned 27 this year, but nevertheless, I was excited like a 6-year-old for the first time in years. Mostly due to the fact that I would be spending the two days before and one day after it in my favourite town: LONDON. Plus another “We Will Rock You” show on the 23rd and my birthday show at “Rock Of Ages” – for reasons, of course. I haven’t been seeing that show for over 10 months when I went back, and I never thought I would ever again, due to the move to the Garrick, the ticket prices that had gone up since last year and the problem that I had no one to join me. But as it happened, twitter brought me together with two lovely little girls from England: Sarah & Alison. They had decided to spent my birthday together with me, as I would be on my own in London, and what can I say, it was an unforgettable time, thanks to them. I got my Simon Lipkin birthday hug, my Nathan Amzi birthday High-Five (he’s born on the same day as me, crazy) and last but not least, Simon Lipkin aka Lonny called me up to his dressing room at the end of Act 1 in “Rock Of Ages”. That day herald the start of the most amazing half year of my entire life. Oh, and apart from that, entire London went totally nuts to the news that Prince George had been born. Totally went under the radar for me, I wonder why…

In retrospect it now seems as if the quiet August that followed was much needed, considering what would be following until the end of the year. I think my subconscious somehow tried to regain strength and save it for the upcoming events. Or maybe it was just the fact that I simply couldn’t afford a trip to London every month because then I probably would have to have slept under a bridge until the end of the year. Who knows.

September
Another birthday month, yay! Not mine, of course, but the one of Alison & Sarah. I wasn’t there when Ally celebrated her birthday in London, but I was as Sarah did 10 days later. I made a bad choice of a hostel on Russell Square (although it had free WiFi and it was quite close to Piccadilly Circus, but god, those STAIRS), walked way too much again, and of course, we went to see “We Will Rock You” together on Sarah’s actual birthday day and “Rock Of Ages” the day after. The WWRY night was absolute surreal and one of the most hilarious I experienced in my entire life (I will just mention the band that thought the birthday badges Sarah wore on her boobs were biscuits they stared at througout the entire show and of course Oliver Tompsett going “What nice big badges you have there!”). My night was absolutely made when the wonderful Alison caught Scott Monello, my very 1st Galileo at the Dominion in September 2012, before he could leave the Stage Door. I love this man to bits and finally meeting him was one of the most precious moments of my year 2013.

“Rock Of Ages” was another story. Can’t say anything else but how much I kept falling in love with this show and cast although I already knew it by heart. The two shows on the 21st were electrifying, and the best thing happening that day was that I finally got to meet the beautiful sunshine that is Noor, one of the RoAdie-Family. We were sat right next to each other, and what can I say: experiencing my favourite West End show right next to a RoAdie, to a friend, is the best thing that could have ever happened to me. Dylan Turner, who played Drew that day was breathtaking, so was everyone else, and I am more than proud I was part of the audience that day.

October
You’ll be absolutely surprised now when I tell you that two weeks after I had already been in London, I went back. Not? Alright then, was worth a try. It started with the most horrible and expensive train journey of my entire life, making me almost miss my “Rock Of Ages” matinee, but somehow (please don’t ask me why, because I still don’t know how I magically survived that) I made it after all. This time there were three highlights waiting for me and one I didn’t even know would be happening.

1. From Here To Eternity at the Shaftesbury
2. Rock Of Ages (shocking, huh?)
3. We Will Rock You

I have been watching out for “From Here To Eternity” since it had been announced that this new show would start at the Shaftesbury at the end of September. For me, being hugely interested in the Third Reich, and also, the story of “Pearl Harbor” (yes, I admit it, partly due to the movie, but come on, you gotta love Ben Affleck in that, and the music and the drama), it was a must-see for me. I went together with two other RoAdies, Ann & Mandy, and although our seats were not the best ones (B8, 9 & 10, at the far end of the row, with people constantly coughing and moving their heads infront of us the entire time although they were sitting in the FRONT ROW), it was a beautiful and at least for me, magical experience. That show totally got me under its spell, with the actors, the costumes, yes, even the love songs (everyone who knows me knows how much I despise love movies or songs), the entire storyline. I already can’t wait to hopefully be back in April 2014 for a 2nd visit.

“Rock Of Ages” was surprisingly good…okay, no big surprise there. It was wonderful to see Ross Hunter again, the smiley face that I had last seen 3 months before. The moment Nathan Amzi took a picture of me with Simon Lipkin probably will forever be one of my favourites in the history of Stage Door visits, due to the fact that I got to stand next to my boy a lot longer than usual (because the poor Steph who was at there with me had problems with my camera first) and him pulling me closer into him just before Nathan took the photo. I am that insane, I know. Plus, I finally met the adorable Rocky, the puppy of Tim Howar. Totally in love with him although I still prefer cats before dogs. And forever will, you just gotta love cats.

The “We Will Rock You” Cast Change…long story short: it was emotional. Heartbreakingly emotional. It was the day we had to say goodbye to so many amazing people, and three certain ones: Rachel John, Emma Hatton…and my Scott Monello. Alison, who was with me that night, and me were already a sobbing mess during “Radio GaGa” (the first song, for god’s sake), and we were done by the time “(No-One But You) Only The Good Die Young” started. That entire show was breathtaking, and the vocals of Oliver Tompsett were the best I had ever heard of anyone on stage; the audience was absolutely on fire, being part of that crowd that sung along with “Bohemian Rhapsody” as loud as they could…I can’t find words for it. The appearance of the one and only Mr. Brian May kind of made this night even more perfect, when he came up on stage during the guitar solo of “Bohemian Rhapsody”. It was wonderful all in all, I got to talk to a lot of Cast members way more than I had ever before – despite the crowd at the Stage Door that was insane – and I enjoyed every second of it.
 

Which made me the happiest person this planet, no, this universe has ever seen and will ever see is the fact that by pure coincidence, one of my closest friends, Susie, was in London at the same time I was (she’s from Scotland). We spent wonderful 6 hours together before she had to leave for home again, but that moment I finally got to hug her again after 5 almost unbearable months not being able to see and spent time with her…no words. Nothing will ever make me happier than that moment did.

November

This was the month I feared the most since it was the month were “Rock Of Ages” would close forever. It is also the month I cherish the most because despite all the tears and my breakdowns that last weekend in London for 2013, it was also the month I got to know and meet the wonderful Laura & Ali and felt the biggest support of an entire group of people/fans that I had ever experienced, although I met a lot of them for the very first time. It was madness when all the box offices were out of order for over three hours, it was madness when we all sang along for Natalie Andreou  when she broke down during “More Than Words”, and it was madness in general. There was so much love before, during and after the show that I can’t really put it into words. That’s why I’m going to let the pictures speak for themselves.

To have some chance to distract myself from my favourite show closing, I decided to go and see “The Commitments” the day after, and I have to say: it was good. Not the best thing I’ve ever seen and I think nothing that I need to see twice (hands down: I have never been and never will be a Soul person), but it was wonderful to finally see Ian McIntosh on stage, in a lead role, because I can’t say anything else than that he was breathtaking. Absolutely breathtaking.

December
Quiet month. Still recovering from half a year of travelling to the UK & Hamburg and back, 10 “Rock Of Ages” shows, 7 german “We Will Rock You” shows, 2 UK “We Will Rock You” shows, 1 “From Here To Eternity” show & 1 “The Commitments” show, including going through 2 heartbreaking Closing shows. Not even to speak of my bank account that was desperately in need of recovering. I’m not even kidding, the joke with sleeping under a bridge became quite scaringly real for quite a while.
Before this amazing year ended for good, there still was one thing that made this year absolutely perfect: I fulfilled myself one of my long-cherished dreams and finally got a tattoo on my right wrist on December, 23rd, the day before Christmas. It’s dedicated to “Rock Of Ages”, which has helped me through this year and the message that is behind its last song, “Don’t Stop Believin'”.

Because if there is one thing I have learned in 2013, it is that no matter how hard life gets, no matter how many times you get kicked down, how many times you’re let down, you should never stop believing that one day it will all get better. That one day, the sun will shine for you again, too, and you will realize it was all worth it.

On that note: HAPPY NEY YEAR 2014! May it be filled with loads of laughter, love, success & health for all of you!

Tarzan 19.05.2013

My 4th and last show at the Neue Flora before it moves to Stuttgart in December…and my hopes for it were high, as I was taking my 4 girls with me that day, with three of them not having seen the show before. Damn, was I excited.
First surprise of the day: Rune Hock Moller, who was supposed to be Tarzan, wasn’t on at all – instead, it was Rupert Markthaler, who actually is barely on stage these days, he’s actually almost only Walk-In Cover. It came to me during the first scene where the grown-up Tarzan swings himself on stage; when he turned to the audience to make this gorilla-like sounds, my first thought was: “That’s not Rune. Can’t be. This is Rupert.” You have to know: I had never seen either Rune or Rupert in person before, I only knew them from some short looks on their facebook headshots. And I never had heard any of them speak or sing, but anyways, when Rupert sang his first few notes, I was pretty sure it was him; there was not any accent in his voice, something I know Rune has, as he’s danish. During the interval, I went straight for the Main Hall to check if and why there had been a change in the Cast. Sadly, the woman at the counter didn’t know anything at all about any changes, but thanked me for the information and said she’ll go and check up on it.
Now to the show. WHAT. A. BLAST. I honestly couldn’t have wished for a better Cast that day. As soon as I heard Rupert’s first few notes on “Two Worlds” right at the beginning, I knew this was going to be good; his voice was absolutely MINDBLOWING, just wow. In retrospect, I honestly have to say he was even better than my first Tarzan, David Boyd, because he put many special little things into his acting, like the boy-ish behaviour that none of the other three guys I’ve seen in that role had on them. And the interaction with Jane was just amazing, it was like they actually had been together for years; now, I don’t understand why Rupert had never been the Main Cast for this role (apart from the fact that he is the best looking Tarzan/Musical Actor I’ve probably seen in a very long time!). Oh, and how do I start with Jane, played by Ina Trabesinger again? Holy mother of God, that woman is a GODDESS! I had seen her twice before, but these two times were nothing compared to the show she gave everyone that day, NOTHING. Ina at her best, by far. I even feel like she put some giggles and laughter and moves into her role in that show that she never did before, and everyone must have felt how much she enjoyed her performance. And when she sang…god, it was like an angel was singing, for real. Maybe I’m dramatic right now, but if you’d ever had heard her sing, you’d understand what I mean. I don’t know where she gets all her talent from, but when she came to the high notes, just when I thought I couldn’t get any stronger goosebumps – she did it. She’s simply breathtaking and amazing, and it drives me totally insane that she’s going to leave the Tarzan Cast forever on June, 2nd, 2013.  I actually feel like everyone on stage that day was at his/her best. Melanie Ortner, on again as Kala, Tarzan’s mother, was so emotional and heartbreaking, like I haven’t seen her since my first time, and the boy who played the little Tarzan, Marvin Magg, was bigger than the other boys so far, but still, so effing cute! And of course…my eyes were practically glued to two of the Gorillas, or better, the two guys who were on as Gorillas that day: Emanuele Caserta & Alessio Impedovo.
I have to admit, I didn’t actually have any idea who was who, I just remember three things that just made me helplessly fall in love with them (or one of them *lol*):

1. During that scene where Tarzan brings Jane to his family, one of the Gorillas – either Emanuele or Alessio – pulled Rupert at his loin cloth from behind (which is NOT in the script, trust me). He then started to giggle, and soon he and two or three others of the Gorillas/Actors were almost dying of laughter, they were lying at the edge of the stage, near to the stairs, rolling themselves around on the floor, and everyone on our left side of the stage just HAD to start laughing, too. Me, personally, I couldn’t concentrate on any of the serious, romantic things that were going on on the rest of the stage!

2. At the Curtain Call, every single actor was standing at the edge of the stage, the Gorillas a bit further back, to not steal the Main actors their show. And there was this one Gorilla – Emanuele or Alessio, goddamn it that I have no idea who it was under all this Make-Up! – stared and grinned at me for MINUTES! And normally, I feel really really uncomfortable about this, but in that moment, something happened to me and I just couldn’t stop staring back, smiling like a stupid fool. He seriously looked at me in this “Yes, I know I’m damn hot and good-looking, ya know”-macho-like way, and I actually almost made a sign with my hand to show him I’ll be at the Stage Door after the last applause, and I have no idea how I stoppped myself from it, haha 🙂

3. After the show was done, one of my girls, who had seen this Musical for the very first time, told me that during the last applause, one of the male Gorillas on her side of the stage (she was sitting on the right) was noticing that she was wearing slippers in the theatre (it had rained the entire day before, and on that morning, too, and all of our shoes were SOAKED, so she brought some warm and fuzzy slippers to the show, which was kind of…weird…considering coming from a person who’s 4th Tarzan Show it has been, yeah, I know^^). He stared at her for a couple of minutes, staring at her slippers, back at her, and then, out of nowhere, gave her a huge High Five and shouted at her “What the hell is this?! YOU ARE PHENOMENAL!!!!” He showed one of his Gorilla colleagues the slippers, and they were literally dying of laughter, because they had never seen anything like it before – someone sitting in the theatre with slippers! After that he took the slippers and held them up high into the air while standing on the stage. That turned my friend into a complete theatre geek!

We then literally ran to the Stage Door (well, alright, I was getting really nervous and ran, as I didn’t want to miss Ina AGAIN), only then, I realized that it had been the first show of the day, and normally not everyone of the actors comes out inbetween the shows. There we were standing outside, waiting like fools, being the only ones apart from two guys and their friend waiting for Mel, whom they knew for about 10 years. First one to come out was Peter Stassen, whom I’d finally seen as Porter, and who had been absolutely amazing in that role! He sadly had to rush off for about 30 minutes, to take care of his and Mel’s dog, but promised to be back soon. After that, I saw Ina & Rupert – Jane & Tarzan – standing inside at the reception, when a delivery guy got inside with some chinese food. I was shoving myself to the door further and further, scared of missing out of Ina again, and Rupert, too, who still was kind of in his Tarzan Make-Up (my friends were standing a bit away, mostly because they must’ve felt embarassed by me, haha). As soon as the food delivery guy left, I shouted Ina’s and Rupert’s name, asking them if they had a minute, and if we could take quick pictures. Ina said “Sure”, but also told me that they were quite hungry, and I promised her it won’t take long. I then told her that I had missed her 3 times before and that I really wanted to catch her today, that I absolutely loved her performance and that she was absolutely mindblowing. She thanked me and we took this wonderful picture – god, I really, really love this woman and will deeply miss her!

Then Rupert came to us, and I instantly asked him how it came that he was on that day, and he told me that sadly, Rune had become ill and he, Rupert, had to fill in as Tarzan last-minute. I told him that I was glad he had been on, because he was just amazing, that he had been the best Tarzan I’d ever seen, and he thanked me and we took a picture ( I actually hate that my friend didn’t zoom back before she took the picture, and I hate myself even more that I didn’t check on the pic before Rupert left -.-)

Then Mel came out, looking absolutely beautiful although she was still in her Make-Up, her hairnet and in old and dirty sweatpants. For about 10 minutes, she was talking to her friends, telling them that she was going to get married in Stuttgart to Peter in July 2014, which meant that she would be staying with the Tarzan Cast when they move over. After their conversation was over, I got to talk to her a bit, congratulating her for her marriage, asking her how her and Peter’s holiday on Ibiza had been, and of course, she said “Very nice, but just too short!” (something everyone seems to be saying once in their life). I asked her for a picture, and then let her go upstairs again, as she was almost starving for food 🙂

When my friends almost wanted to go, Peter finally came back. We were kind of blocking the stairs to the underground-carpark where he came out of, and he stared at us shortly, not even remembering me from 30 minutes earlier, but then he recognized me after all, we all asked for a picture, then he left.

Then we said goodbye to one friend of us, who lives in Hamburg, because we had to leave already. This day, this show, will always have a very special place in my heart, because it was definitely the BEST Tarzan Show I have seen so far, and that means a lot!

Tarzan 19.04.2013

On the day, exactly 1 year after I’ve last seen the Show, I was finally back in the Jungle! And this time, the Cast List was perfect. John Vooijs was going to play Tarzan that night, Ina Trabesinger was going to be Jane, and I was super excited. I’ve only met John outside the Theatre, at the Stage Door, and he was so lovely and nice (and he smelled like heaven, seriously!), and since last year I really hoped to see him just once in that role, as my friend Kim told me he was absolutely faboulous and kind of a “Macho-Tarzan” 🙂 And Ina…well, there’s not much to say about her, really, except that she’s got the best voice in the entire german theatre land, making my eyes overflowing with tears and my skin being full of goosebumps – she’s kind of a german Siobhan Dillon for me, just flawless!
When we came into the hall, I felt the well-known shiver going through all my body, because the Stage Design and the sounds around are just one of the best I’ve ever seen/heard, and it always feels like I’m coming home when I’m there.
Sitting in our seats, me and my friend were waiting for the well-known shot of a cannon that marks the beginning of the Show, and we were both actually squeaking when, for the first time ever, we didn’t get frightened by the loud blow. The first few seconds, when the actor that plays Tarzan – that you don’t see yet – starts singing “Two Worlds”, are ALWAYS my favourite, I always feel like melting in my seat. These first few notes are always sung so powerful and with so many emotions, no matter which actor sings them. Hearing John Vooijs sing them, was so surreal, because I knew his voice from talking to him in person, and it sounded so different, and yet, so good. Then the gorillas started brachiate all through the hall, hanging from lianes, and everywhere were jungle sounds and it all had this amazing green colour – it’s just so indescribable!
The entire show was just wonderful. The little boy who played Young Tarzan, Julius Störmer, was so cute, and his acting was SO good, I was actually quite blown away by him. Even his gorilla sounds were just plain perfect, it was actually as if there was a real gorilla on stage, not a little human being. And his voice had a perfect edge to it that made me really enjoy the few times he sang. Melanie Ortner, who was on as Kala, Tarzan’s mother, was perfect again, too, though I feel like the first two shows I’ve seen her in, she was even better than that. Especially her desperate scenes were the ones she really touched me with her acting and voice. Rommel Singson, playing Terk, Tarzan’s best friend, somehow was even more funny than I remembered him to be, and more than once I felt like there were small parts in his conversations with Tarzan that weren’t used in the first two shows I’ve seen a year ago, but I wouldn’t bet on it 🙂 John Vooijs…The moment he swung himself onto the stage on a liane during “Son Of Man”, wearing nothing more than a brown loincloth made me feel really uncomfortable, and I felt my face becoming quite red almost purple, haha 🙂 I only knew him in his clothes so far, had talked to him for about 15 minutes, and it felt so wrong, seeing him half-naked! Anyways, I loved John’s way of acting, he was even more like a child than the other two actors I’d seen playing Tarzan, he had that special edge that made you forget that he is actually a grown-up man who’s supposed to play a grown-up man! In the scenes where there are so many emotions in Tarzan, where he’s so confused with what’s going on in his heart and head, and in his parents’ head, John’s voice was so powerful that for a moment, you could’ve thought it would break, because it cost him so much effort to put out every word. That really touched me. Oh, and Ina Trabesinger as Jane…god, what a woman, what an actress!! She blew me away the first time I had seen her last year, and her voice was just as perfect as I remembered it, and even better than that. The goosebumps I felt throughout her scenes, I can’t count them. And her acting, holy mother, it was even better than I thought it could become. She was more hilarious than last time, and I couldn’t get enough of her. And she didn’t disappoint me, she brought me to tears all over again, not only by singing, but also by acting, especially in the scene in which she is about to leave the jungle with her father’s expedition team, being torn between her love for Tarzan, the wish to stay with him and going back to her life in England. Everytime I see her standing there, with her little scrapbook in her arms, I just want to rush onto the stage and give her the biggest hugs.
When the show was over, there were standing ovations (in an audience that was somehow really really restrained), and in that moment, I thought for the first time that it will definitely will be a very very sad last show on October, 2nd, when the Show leaves Hamburg forever. It actually almost brought me to tears, just thinking about it again that night.
My friend and I then rushed off to the Stage Door, where, apart from 3 other girls, we were the only ones, feeling really stupid…which was no comparison to how stupid we felt 5 minutes later, when more and more members of the Ensemble were coming out, the three girls were suddenly gone and we were the two only people standing there in the dark. We kept waiting, and a few minutes later, our patience paid out, as David Boyd came out. He had been my very first Tarzan one year ago, and of all three I’ve seen so far, he’s by far my favourite, I loved him to bits and guess I’ll always do – you never forget your first, right? That night, he had been playing one of the gorillas and a plant that “dances” around Jane in her first scene, and whenever he had been on stage, I could do nothing but stare at him. I walked up to him, and me and my friend told him what a great show it had been, that he had been amazing as always. I also told him that he had been my very first Tarzan and that he was really really good, but that he also made a great appearance as “a plant”. Ouch. I don’t even know what happened to me the moment I started talking to him, but I was such a stuttering mess! I didn’t even realize I was saying the plant thing, until after he had left, my friend couldn’t stop laughing at me, reminding me that he hadn’t only been a plant but more, a Gorilla – god, did I feel stupid! Before David left, we asked him when would be a good chance to maybe see him as Tarzan on stage again before he leaves the Cast in June (as he isn’t on that much anymore), but he couldn’t give us an exact answer, so I said it’s always kind of a lucky game to catch him. We both asked him for a pic, and he said “Sure!”, and when it was my turn, I placed myself beside him, grabbing his waist and tilting my head towards him, and I felt his head almost squeezing right into my face, and in my head, I was all like “Oh God, don’t lose your composure now and ruin the pic, just smile and enjoy it!” Well, and I guess I was lucky, because the pic turned out to be absolutely beautiful:

When David had left, we were standing there and waited, Melanie Ortner and her boyfriend, Peter Stassen, were the next one who came out (Peter mostly plays Kerchak or Clayton, sadly not that night), but they were apparently in a hurry. Mel said “Bye!”, smiled, and they rushed off to their car. I was still determined to NOT leave until we talked to Ina and had a pic with her, and when my friend told me that the small, brown-haired woman with the thick red winter jacket and a huge suitcase by her side that was standing by the door was actually her, I didn’t know how to react. When she came out just a few metres away from us, there was this short, very short second, where I almost spoke to her, saying “I didn’t know she has short brown hair, you never told me she did!” to my friend over and over again (in the Show, Ina/Jane has long, blonde hair), but before I could, there was a Taxi stopping beside us, and Ina packed up her suitcase, the Taxi driver put it in the trunk, Ina entered the car and closed the door. I was standing there like: “No, you can’t just let her go like that!” and I was staring at the window of the Taxi where she was sat, and I felt a huge smile appear on my face, and suddenly, she looked at us through the window and gave me a huge smile too. No one knows how stupid I felt in that moment, waiting for her to wave her hand at me. I didn’t allow myself the thought back then, but when the Taxi turned around, for a moment, I actually hoped that she had forgotten something and would step out of the car again, so I’d get my shot to talk to her and get my pic…but then, she drove away – and I deeply, deeply regret it today that I didn’t bring up the courage to just walk up and talk to her! Especially because she’s already leaving in June, too, and I will only have one very last shot next month to see her 😦
I hadn’t really recovered from that when finally, John Vooijs came out as one of the last people. He was focused on his IPhone, but walked straight up to us, and I think that if he wouldn’t have looked up in time he would’ve just bumped into us 🙂 We shortly talked to him, told him that his show had been amazing, and again, somehow, I was such a freaking stuttering mess, I didn’t actually think before I opened my mouth, at one point I thought he wanted to say that he remembered us both from the long conversation we had had last year, and I bursted out “Yeah, we were here last year, but didn’t get the chance to see you, so…we did it now.” God, when did I become such a fangirl with lame answers? I soon realized that his mood wasn’t the best, guess he didn’t have such a good day, so I was kind of glad when my friend asked him if we could take a picture with him. He said yes, and we both got our pictures:

On our way home, we were both still laughing and making fun of my stupid conversation with David, and during that night, the word “Pornoflower” was born, which will always mark this night for me! 🙂

Ralf Schmitz Live 22.04.2012

Ralf Schmitz – a german comedian mostly known because of size (he’s so tiny it’s ridiculous, haha) and the fact that he seems always like he’s on drugs or something. He runs and hops hectically over the stage and everything goes so fast with him. But it was a hilarious night, I don’t think I’ve ever laughed so much and so hard in my entire life. After the show, he said that who’d like to, could come into the hall and grab an autograph and a pciture with him (of course, something he wouldn’t have to tell me (and Kim again 🙂 ) twice 😀
Sadly, the bodyguard who took my picture wasn’t a good photographer, so the pic turned out to be quite bad, because I’m standing so far behind, but still, it’s a lovely memory.

Tarzan, the 2nd 21./22.04.2012

Only 1 month after I first had seen Tarzan, I felt the urge to see it a second time, as I really wanted to see Alex in his role as Tarzan, and as it turned out, this time I was lucky. You have to know, Alex was the first winner of the german version of “American Idol” in 2001, and so he was a big star here; you might understand why everyone – including me – felt like it was a must to see what progress he had made since the Casting Show win. And I wasn’t disappointed. It was werid, hearing his voice in the theatre, which sounded SO different from the time where he sang Pop songs and all, it sounded so mature and was really not what I had expected. But nevertheless, he blew me away, and it was clear for me that we (Kim and me, as I dragged her along with me again) would have to talk to him and get a picture taken after the show. But I wasn’t lucky that night, because as we stood at the Stage Door, Alex came out, but was so in a hurry, that we didn’t even had the chance to ask him for a pic. I was quite disappointed, and my mood went from blown away to drop dead sad. But it turned out that I would get my chance a night later.
On saturday, we hadn’t booked a Tarzan show, but it was very clear to me that I would not want to drive back home without having seen Alex at the Stage Door. So that day dragged along, Kim and I shuffled around the back almost half the day, listening to the Music during the Matinee Show (which we could clearly hear, coming out from the “basement” at the far end of the building), which gave us goosebumps. And after the last show that day ended at 11pm, we were standing at the exact place we stood one night before, waiting patiently for the actors to come out (though I was sitting on a wall right infront of the door the actors would come out). Suddenly Kim grabbed my arm and whispered “There’s John, oh my god!” And I turned around, saying “WHO?!” because I honestly had no idea of any of the Cast members at all. Kim pointed at the door and told me that John Vooijs was her favourite Tarzan (aka “Macho-Tarzan”) and we both considered asking him for a picture, which was a bit weird, because we weren’t even sure how much german he understood. But when he came out, he smiled at us, and we three started talking like old friends, about the show, about the Netherlands (where he originally is from), about just everything. He asked us if we were coming to the show the day after, and we both said we didn’t know yet (though we hadn’t planned it at all!), and he said he hoped we would come see the show. Just after he started smoking I decided we waited long enough and just asked John straight away if if was okay if we took a picture with him. He said “Of course” and we both got our pic – my very first Stage Door pic!

John left a huge impression in my memory, because he was so nice and normal and oh, he smelled like heaven, having put on an amazing perfume! We also tried to get an autograph, but sadly, he had none on him, but promised that if we would be back the next day before the Matinee Show, he would personally come out for us and give them to us (which he really did, but I come to that later).
After that, it all went quite fast. First of all, Peter Stassen (who played Clayton that night) and his girfriend, Melanie Ortner (Main Cast Kala, Step-Mother of Tarzan) came out, looking at beautiful as I hadn’t expected. They were both so nice and kind and they both took a lot of time to talk to each fan who was standing at the Stage Door. Mel actually would’ve talked with us even longer (though it was already after 12am!), but Peter said “Honey, the dog’s waiting!” which was seriously the cutest thing ever, considering they both had a little puppy called “Hayley” who is just too adorable.
 
Then Rommel Singson came out, the guy who plays the Main Cast of “Terk”, Tarzan’s best friend (who, in the movie, is actually a girl, which was a bit confusing for me at the first time already). And he’s exactly as he’s on stage: just a little sunshine. He’s smiling all the time, and nice and funny…and when I took my picture with him, I felt like standing beside a little kid, because he was so tiny. Also, would you’ve guessed that he’s already 41 years old?! I was shocked when I found out because he looks no day older than 25!
Then it went quiet outside, as almost every actor had come out already – it was already after 1am, it was getting quite chilly outside, and Kim and I slowly got a bit annoyed that Alex still hadn’t even shown his face. Rommel had told us that he was still inside, but that as they were celebrating a bit up there, he had no idea when we’d going to see Alex.
Just when I started to lose hope I’d ever meet and get a picture with him (and with a growing fear that Kim would make me leave because that waiting was senseless), he came out with his girlfriend Nadja, who had played Jane that night. And what can I say: he was absolutely adorable. He laughed a lot, took time to talk to everyone, gave autographs (Kim and I were the only ones who actually got one, along with one other girl, if I remember it correct, because he hadn’t that much on him), and was really, really patient with everyone that wanted a picture. That night, I officially became a real Alexander Klaws fan, and I talked about him the entire night through, couldn’t stop looking at my 2 pictures with him, and wanted that night never to end. It was an unforgettable weekend, and I’m still impressed how normal all the actors had stayed, though their success on stage.

P.S. On sunday, Kim and I went back to the Theatre, as we wanted to see John again, who’d promised to give us our autographs. When we arrived, he just passed us, and of course, he remembered us, saying “I’ll be right back!”…which was actually 45 minutes that we waited for him, mostly because we were too scared to wait at the actual Stage Door this time, feeling like stalkers. When we alreay thought he wouldn’t come back the way he left or forgot about us after all, he peeked around a corner, and when he saw us, came to us, signed his autograph cards as promised and gave them to us. He asked us again if we were going to see the show that night – where he’d play Tarzan, – but we had to disappoint him (and apparently Kim, who for a while considered to cancel our actual plans and go see him on stage). But he said “Maybe next time!”, smiled and left. Which was an amazing end to an amazing Theatre Weekend 🙂

It all began with a Tarzan…23.03.2012

I have to admit: it wasn’t my 1st Theatre experience. I once saw “We Will Rock You” in January 2007 with a former friend, and I was blown away. But as life goes, for over 5 years it was my first and last Theatre visit. Then in September 2010, I met Kim, who became a very close friend as from that day, and it happened that she is supposed to be the biggest Theatre Addict I know. And soon enough, she made me want to visit her and see “Tarzan” at the Neue Flora Hamburg (Germany). I used to watch that movie as a child and decided to give it a go (as I really didn’t call myself a Theatre Person at that moment).
When I first entered the room with the stage, I was honestly speechless. There was a huge screen with a picture of an old map of Africa, and the sounds blaring into my ears – ship sounds, waves hitting against fore and aft, – gave me the first goosebumps that evening.

Then the show started, and although at first I was a bit disappointed that the Main Cast Tarzan I wanted to see became sick last minute – Alexander Klaws,- it  turned out to be an even better experience with David Boyd in that role. His voice made me shiver from the first moment, and the woman who played Jane – Ina Trabesinger – still leaves me speechless after almost one year. Plus, I heard that, during the show, the people who played the gorillas, were hanging down from lianes inside the audience, so you could actually touch them if you sat in the middle and reached high enough with your hands. What I did NOT expect was that I was going to lose my show for a while in the middle of the show!
You see, I was sitting right in the front row and as it was quite warm in Hamburg that weekend, I only wore ballerinas that easily slipped off my feet – which was a bad idea, because at one moment in the show, me and Kim saw two “Gorillas” checking me out from the stage for about a minute, and then, before I knew what was happening, they stormed off the stage, placed themselves right infront of me and grabbed one of my ballerinas that was hanging losely from my feet! Of course, Kim right beside me was shaking with laughter, but all I could think about was: “My shoe! How do I get back my shoe?!” As it turned out, the Gorillas make stuff like that as a part of the show, stealing shoes, handbags, etc. and after a few minutes (whilst the two thiefs examined my shoe on stage), I finally got it thrown back at me.
That was all that was needed to make this evening my best experience so far. After the final applause, I still stood there, thinking it was the best show I had ever seen, with such detailed costumes, amazing voices and a huge package of laughter. Kim and I went round the back to the Stage Door (which was the first time I ever heard of sth like that!), but sadly, we didn’t catch any of the actors.
Nevertheless, that mindblowing night at the Neue Flora changed my life, and I decided it wouldn’t be my last Theatre Experience.