London 23.-28.07.2014

After two months, I was finally back – and this time, I would spent almost a week here, with one of my best friends around me 24/7, plus, 6 amazing shows and one soccer game. Safe to say I was beyond excited. And as I don’t want to spam people with numerous blogs about each show, I’ll put them all in here.

Wednesday, 23rd of July: “Billy Elliot”

This was my 2nd trip to the Victoria Palace Theatre since January 2013, and although at first I hadn’t been a huge fan of the show (with not having seen the film and not even being slightly interested in changing that), but even back then I thought it had potential and it was truly hilarious. Now, after this 2nd time of seeing the show, I keep asking myself: “Why haven’t I seen it more often whenever I was in London since last January?” Because hands down: it has gotten to me. Big time. I absolutely adored every single second of the show, and the Billy we had that day – Matteo Zecca,- was beyond amazing. He didn’t impress me as much as my first Billy, Harris Beattie, but then again, no one can beat your first, right? Just as with Tomi Fry, who is just hilarious as Michael, and who always is one of the highlights of the entire show for me. The woman who played Mrs. Wilkerson, Ruthie Henshall, was flawless. Not only her dancing talent, or simply her acting, but the entire way how she displayed the Ballet teacher, and how she treated Billy. Even the moments where she got pissed off at things, or excited, or sad, they were massively impressing, and I think her acting talent is really worth every pound you invest into that show when you decide to see it. Of course, the guy playing Mr. Braithwaite, David Muscat, was adorable, and his ability of tapdancing and doing a split was a real “Wow” moment for me, considering his stature. And the little girls who played the ballet class were beyond adorable, and so absolutely talented in everything they do, and the audience could easily see how much they enjoyed their roles. It’s always impressing when you can see kids on a stage, because sometimes, they can even upstage the grown-ups with their talent. I have to admit that I even kind of fell for the songs this time, especially “Solidarity” or “Electricity”, two really amazing tunes, and, of course, the best thing about the show: the opening of Act 2, “Merry Christmas, Maggie Thatcher”. That never fails to make me laugh.

Thursday, 24th of July: “Wicked”

My birthday show! One short notice beforehand: I do not hate the show itself, because that’s the impression a lot of crazy “Wicked” fans will get when they read this. Thing is: when I booked my ticket together with my friend Sarah, we decided to go up into the circle, because she said up there you could have a good overview of the stage and everything around it. Which was more than true. The stupid thing is that back then, I did not think of the fact that I was short-sighted, and that, when far away from something, I sometimes have problems with the acoustic in a room like this, meaning I barely understand a word…which made my first experience of the show one that I wish I wouldn’t have made. And the story just isn’t my kind of thing, I have realized after seeing it. The Cast, however, was mindblowing. We had both understudies for Glinda and Elphaba that day, Sophie Linder-Lee and Emma Hatton, plus, Jeremy Taylor as Fiyero.
Sophie was amazing, I loved her display of the bitchy Glinda, the girl who thinks the world evolves around her and who’s just so dislikeable at the beginning; but still, she was hilarious in it, and her voice sounded beautiful. And Emma Hatton…just wow. That girl can sing, and wow, HOW she can sing. I knew her from seeing/hearing her on the “We Will Rock You” stage, and I always knew she had an amazing talent, but what I was honoured to witness on the “Wicked” stage that day was breathtaking. Her voice has improved even more, and the vocals she belted out were giving me goosebumps. No surprise that she got the biggest Standing Ovations together with Sophie, and that various people afterwards said to her they were shocked to hear she was “only” the Understudy, and thought that she should have the principal role.
After the show, when me and my friends were waiting for her and the others at the Stage Door, the biggest surprise showed up: Katie Paine, former Cast Member of “We Will Rock You” (Killer Queen Understudy) and good friend of Emma. We were all so pleased to see her, and it was funny to confuse people at the Stage Door when we ran up to her, hugging her, and everyone thought she had been on the show, too. Whoops.

Friday, 25th of July: Charity Football Match on Old Street
This football match took place in small pitch where the Cast member of various West End shows – “The Commitments”, “Billy Elliot”, “Miss Saigon”, “Matilda”, “Wicked”, etc. – were playing for a good cause, and it was highly entertaining, yet a bit scary to see how those talented men all turned into aggressive sportsmen with the will to fight and to win their games, and how some of them could turn into very bad losers when challenged (don’t look at me like that, even the Cast Members themselves called some of their teammates “twat” at some point!)

Friday, 25th of July: “Miss Saigon”

A show I was excited about since my best friend had made me read its summary on Wikipedia months back. I am highly interested in “War Drama”, as I like to call it, Pearl Harbor, Vietnam War, you name it. And I am really happy that this show didn’t disappoint my expectations, despite the fact that it reminded me of “Les Misérables”, with not more than two or three sentences spoken normally, but sung. In some way, the music in “Miss Saigon” made it easier for me, and almost all of the songs were absolutely beautiful, mostly due to the fact that the people performing them were total stunners. Eva Noblezada, for starters, who plays the bar girl Kim. That girl is only 18 years old, but my God, she can sing like there is no tomorrow. Best voice I have heard in a long time, and her performance of Kim was flawless. She gave me goosebumps all over, and more than one tear in my eye. I see her having a very bright future on the stages of the world ahead.
Then, of course, Alistair Brammer as the soldier Chris. I could go on all day about how beautiful he is, how fit, how absolutely gorgeous and every girl’s dream. But most of all, his voice is breathtaking, and his acting talent was out of this world. I know now that this show isn’t easy at all, it doesn’t have a happy ending, but especially the last scene of it, just before the Curtain Call, is beyond difficult to play, I imagine. And Alistair was stunning in that scene, and in every single one before. You could see how emotionally caught up he is in his role, and that makes his display of Chris even more convincing.
Also, Kwang-Ho Hong as Thuy, Kim’s to-be love interest – WOW. I totally get why he’s so well-respected and popular in Korea. That man is amazingly talented. and it’s no suprise that he got one of the loudest Standing Ovations after the show.
Last but not least, one person who also impressed me was Hugh Maynard, who played the soldier John. His performance of “Bui Doi” was just amazing, and so heartbreaking, with all the pics of poor little kids in the background. These are the things that captivate me most about shows like that: the realistic inputs that remind you that all of this is real, that it has happened at one point in history. Overall, this show blew me away, and I think I will definitely be back at some point.

Saturday, 26th of July: “The Lion King”

That show was something I had heard different things about, and it made me partly wanting to see it and partly to avoid it. I get one of my friends’ disappointment when she first went to see it years back, saying how the heads on the actors heads were confusing her, making her dislike the show because the costumes were so disappointing (which, if you compare it with “Tarzan” definitely is a true thing, I can tell you). But after now having seen it, I am glad I gave it a shot anyways – after all, it was the first childhood movie that really impressed me 20 years ago. And right at the beginning, my tears had already started running down my cheeks, because when I listened to and watched the performance of “Circle Of Life”, all those memories came back to me, and it was a beautiful thing to watch all those animals coming onto the stage, filling it with life and music, and constant goosebumps were the result. Although even the woman right next to me said how silent the sound/acoustic was compared to the tour version she had seen once, and despite the fact that this show is definitely not one that has a lot of challenging vocals compared to other shows, I was impressed and loved it. The Cast was absolutely talented, especially the guy who played Simba that day, Nic Vani. When he came on stage during his “growing-up scene” in “Hakuna Matata”, I constantly fell in love with his amazing voice.
The highlight in this show, though, for me, were 4 people who don’t even have the biggest roles: Brown Lindiwe Mkhize, who played Rafiki exactly as I always thought he should be on stage, and the 3 people playing the hyenas, Shenzi, Banzai & Ed: Sarah Amankhwah, Taofique Folarin & Mark McGee. Just wow. I absolutely adored their costumes, and together with the one of Pumba, they were my favourites and the best in the entire show, and even more so, their acting talent was both flawless and hilarious. Watching them definitely made my night, because they were playing exactly as I remembered it from the movie. Though a few things were completely different to what happened in said movie, it even gave the show more spirit, and those changes were necessary to make it such a successfully running thing on the West End.

Saturday, 26th of July: “Book Of Mormon”

Cast Change day. I wasn’t aware of that until only a few days before my departure, and I knew the theatre and the Stage Door would both be packed, because the two Principal Roles, Gavin Creel (Elder Price) & Jared Gertner (Elder Cunningham) would be having their last show. AND WHAT A SHOW IT WAS. It was my 2nd time seeing it, and I can say nothing else than that I fell in love with it even more than during the 1st time. Everyone on that stage was and is beyond talented, and it’s the most hilarious thing I have ever seen in my life – and don’t even try and get me to explain it to you, because, hands down, “Book Of Mormon” simply is something that you can’t explain to anybody. So I advise you to go and see it yourself as soon as you can 😉
As we had Jared Gertner, who is the First Cast for Elder Cunningham, it was a different experience for me than the first time, when I was lucky enough to get David O’Reilly in that role. Jared was flawless, without a doubt. His Cunningham is beyond adorable, and he has a certain thing around him that makes you forget that behind all that clothing and Make-Up there is a grown man. You can’t help but love his talent and his display of that role, and although his role doesn’t really require huge singing talent (in my opinion, that is), his voice was wonderful to listen to, and there’s no doubt about his future acting career in the USA. Still, I have to admit, I desperately missed David O’Reilly on stage that night, because for me, he is “my” Elder Cunningham, someone who makes that role even more special in my opinion.
Gavin Creel…what can I say? He was flawless, his Elder Price is breathtaking, and with just a few words, a few moves, a few vocals, he has the entire audience tightly in the palm of his hand. His talent is insane, and the way he plays his role is indescribably good. Whenever I listen to him, I can’t help but at least bobbing with my head, or tipping my feet on the ground, and just smile widely the entire time. He has this certain thing around him that makes you feel welcome, that makes you feel kind of “home”, and I am truly blessed and honoured I had the chance to see the massive talent of his twice on stage. And although I hope he will be back on the West End stage more than soon, I wish him all the best for his life and career in the USA.
Alexia Khadime, as usual, was breathtaking, can’t say it any other way. That woman is just wow, no matter what she does or says or sings. I don’t know what is more stunning, her acting or her singing talent, and she is – without a doubt – the best Nabalungi that anybody who goes and sees the show will ever get to see.
With the rest of the Cast, especially the Elders, there is massive talent on that stage. No matter if it’s singing or acting, whenever I see them on stage (I know it’s only been two times, but it feels like way more), I am beyond impressed by how fitting each and every single on of them is in their roles, it never fails to amaze me. And I hope everyone of them will be staying for a while longer in this show, because without a doubt, you can see how much they love and enjoy to be part of it, of the Mormon Family. And they just simply deserve to be in it.

Sunday, 27th of July: “The Commitments”

If you have read an earlier post of mine on here about the show, then you know how little I liked it, mostly due to the fact that I barely understood anything (I blame the thick irish accent). And I think if you don’t understand a show, there is no way that even the best Cast can help you enjoy it anyway. I had, however, decided to give it another shot. And yes, I am SO glad I did.
I have never seen myself as a soul person, and although the songs sounded familiar, I never really liked them, they’re not my kind of thing, I guess. This show changed everything, though. The Cast was absolutely on fire, and I can’t even emphasize anyone in particular, because hands down, what the guys and girls on that stage do up there every night is mindblowing. May it be Ian McIntosh, who is the understudy for Deco, and who is just one of the most talented and blessed young men any stage has ever seen, or Mark Dugdale, who is just hilarious as Derek in any way I could think of, or Joe Woolmer, who I massively adore since the first time I saw him in the role of Mickah (seriously, if that guy doesn’t make you almost pee yourself laughing, then something really is wrong with you), or John McLarnon, Andrew Linnie, Sarah O’Connor, Denis Grindel, who we had as Jimmy that day (and who was good but not as brilliant as Thomas Snowdon on my first visit last November), Brian Gilligan, Stephanie McKeon…I could go on and on. The thing is: the talent on this stage is what makes the show vivid, and even more so, makes it such a feel-good show. I didn’t realize it the first time I went to see it, maybe because I had no idea what it was about, didn’t understand Jack Squad and was accompanied by just the wrong people, but I can safely say that now I absolutely adore this show and its brilliant Cast.
The Stage Door afterwards was total madness for us and I don’t even know how to understand anything that happened that might, but at some point, Mark Dugdale re-named me “Helga” because he thought “Tanja” wasn’t a very german name, hugged me multiple times to apologize that he forgot we had already met and was just a total star, like everyone else. Definitely made that last show experience of the week the best of all. Go and see the show if you can, you’ll come out with the biggest grin on your face and soul in your feet (if you’re not like me the first time you see it, that is 😉 ).
 

Apart from all the theatre experiences, I, overall, had the most amazing time in my favourite city, with the best people I could ever ask for, who not only made my birthday special, but the entire trip. I have amazing friends in them (old and new), and I feel absolutely blessed that they could be with me during almost all of that week. Thank you Sarah, Simone, Laura, Ali, Noor, Sigal, Steph, Jus, Carol, Tracie, Natalia, Gabby, Kim and whoever I have forgotten now. You all rock, thank you for making this trip so absolutely fun and unforgettable!

Book Of Mormon – Prince Of Wales Theatre 17.05.2014

It took me over one year to finally see this show (mostly due to absolutely ridiculous & horrendous ticket prices!), but it’s safe to say I was beyond excited when I got into my seat; the view was absolutely perfect and totally worth its price. Plus, I had nice company right next to me (a 45ish pilot to my left who tried to hook me up with the guy next to my right and was just hilarious). The theatre itself was not as big as other ones, but it was wide and the stage was lovely set, with love for details, that was easy to see.

When the show started, it soon became pretty clear that it is not to be taken too seriously. It’s weird, though, but although I loved it so much, I can barely remember every joke or pun or funny scene, even if someone would point a gun at my head – there were just too many. The story itself is also better not taken seriously, and the entire Cast and Creators definitely don’t take themselves seriously at all. Everyone’s taking the piss out of the whole baptizing thing, making fun of the church and its strict rules and commitments; for someone like me, who has never been religious and neither really believes in a higher power, this is just the perfect show. And the fact that you can’t actually describe it to anybody who has never seen it because it’s just something really different and has to speak for itself…for me, that makes it even more amazing.

What can I say about the Cast? Right at the beginning, it was announced that Elder Cunningham would be played by David O’Reilly, who is actually the understudy for that role. Safe to say that from the moment he came on stage – I absolutely loved him. I don’t know how Jared Gertner plays the role, but to me, David was perfect. His weird laugh was one of my highlights, and he’s definitely one of the funniest guys I have ever seen on a stage. Plus, seeing him, walking, running and dancing over the stage with his “Star Wars” backpack and his need to have a best friend in Elder Price, made me go all “Aww” for him, because something inside of him reminded me of something inside of me. And his voice is definitely very remarkable, too, something you probably wouldn’t expect from a short, chubby guy – but he was absolutely adorable. He kind of stole the show for me, especially whenever he wasn’t able to call Nabulungi, one of the ugandan girls, by her real name, or during the part of the show where he “baptizes” her, which definitely has the most hilarious ambiguity I have ever witnessed!

Gavin Creel as Elder Price – WOW. The moment he first started singing was magical. Even when he was just talking, he was completely drawing me in, and I get why he was cast for that role – he’s born for it. He sells the role of the missionary Mormon so well, the dilemma of his beliefs and where he really wants to be in his life (Florida!), that it’s really difficult to not fall for him, to empathize with him. Even him being a narcissistic young man who thinks he’s the best and deserves the best and that he will be the one who changes the world – you can’t help but love that about him. What’s with his voice, it’s absolutely stunning. There wasn’t any note that wasn’t perfect and everything about his performance was flawless. His version of “I Believe”, his solo – it had already been my favourite before I had even seen the show, and I loved it even more when I finally saw it on that stage. Plus, his hair in the 2nd part of the show – jesus (see what I did there)! Talking about sexy bed hair without being in bed, he can definitely wear it! stage.

Alexia Khadime as Nabulungi, oh my. She has the voice of an angel, it was absolutely breathtaking listening to her hitting the high notes like her life depends on it; you would never guess how much power there is inside this little cute girl. Plus, the way she played her role was adorable. I can’t believe I have never seen her on a stage before, because she has some huge talent right there. Just wow.

Kevin Harvey, Ashley Samuels & Chris Jarman as Mafala Hatimbi, Doctor & General – holy mother of…! These three are the most hilarious people that have ever set foot on a stage! I can’t remember any moment where they didn’t make me almost falling out of my seat from all the laughing. Especially Ashley was mindblowing, casually throwing in “I’ve got maggots in my scrotum” every now and then, when you least expect it. Chris as the General reminded me of some american actor, although I couldn’t put my finger on it, and just as Ashley, he got me in stitches, especially when he revealed his name or during the last musical number.

The rest of the Cast were just as flawless as the forementioned people. They are working together like they haven’t done anything else in their entire life, you can feel the connection between them, and they are all so amazingly talented, even if it’s just pulling weird faces – not a moment where I didn’t enjoy watching them doing their thing. The two musical numbers they sing together (the ugandan tribe), “Hasa Diga Eebowai” and “Joseph Smith American Moses” – safe to say they were two of my highlights, because I think I haven’t laughed so much for a long time.

My resumé of the show: WOW. Although I expected to laugh a bit more than I actually did, it does not diminish the love I already feel for this show, neither does it make me regret paying a hell of a lot for my ticket – because I don’t. I now understand why the ticket prices are so high, why the show and Cast get so many good critics and publicity, why people love everything about it so much. It’s definitely one of the best shows I have ever seen, and it’s worth every penny. The songs are perfectly written, fit into every single scene and are nothing else but absolute catchy tunes – I think flawless describes it pretty well. The directors of this show have definitely done everything right with creating it and bringing it into the West End – and I sincerely hope it will continue its successful run at the Prince Of Wales Theatre for a very very long time!