We Will Rock You – Frankfurt 09.01.2015 (Dernière Day)

Never in my wildest dreams would I have ever thought that this last day at the beautiful Frankfurt venue would be one of the best days of my life, two of the best shows I’ve ever seen – and that three of my biggest (show-related) dreams would finally come true.

Matinee
When I first stepped into the Opera House, to my delight, they finally had set up the Cast list for the performances at the reception. The even bigger delight came when I saw who would be on as Galileo & Scaramouche: Fabio Diso & Leoni Kristin Oeffinger! I took the list into my hands and stared at it with a shocked expression on my face and a loud squeak trying to make its way up my stomach, into my throat and out of my mouth – F***ing YES! I had come across the fact of how rare it was to get Fabio as Galileo, and to get Leoni as Scara was even more rare, and I never expected (although wished for it) to ever get to see either of them in one of the lead roles during that short run in Frankfurt – and now I had them both.
Leoni as Scara…uhm, holy moly. I had only known her as teacher so far, and whenever I thought about her as Scara after seeing pics of it, it felt weird, although if you’d ask me, I couldn’t give you a reason why. Maybe I’m too biased by always seeing Jeannine Michele Wacker as Scara 😉 Anyways, the moment Leoni stepped foot on the stage, it was totally hers. Her voice is totally different from Jeannine’s, but absolutely stunning nonetheless. It’s deep, with a slight rasping sound when she comes down to the low notes, but at the same time, all powerful, which left me completely speechless. I’d never guessed that this was lying dormant underneath that teacher role. From the acting point, her Scaramouche is adorable, she has this very headstrong and stubborn attitude, with what she makes the Galileo at her side – in this case, Fabio – look very tiny and small. If I think about it, if I was a guy and was to play Galileo next to her, I’d be pretty scared of her 😀
And now, to Fabio Diso…OH MY GOD. First of all: he is, without a doubt THE most adorable, cute and “Oh, I want to run on stage and hug him like a little boy” kind of Galileo I have EVER had the pleasure and honour to see on and off stage. He has this certain kind of way to style his hair…I mean….just look at him. (Fabio, if you see this: sorry that I borrowed the pic off your page, but I thought best to have people see what I mean, if that’s okay with you 🙂 )

Anyways, second thing: HIS VOICE. I’m honest, I had very high expectations of him after that short recording. And all of them were pretty much just by far surpassed! Even after his first few vocals of “I Want To Break Free”, I couldn’t keep myself from shaking my head, murmuring “Holy crap.”, because he was better than I had ever expected and thought possible. His voice is the most powerful any other Galileo of the german Cast has ever presented to the audience, and especially in the high vocals, he puts all his power, energy and talent into the notes, it was mindblowing. The moment he opens his mouth, you don’t believe your ears, if that makes sense. I could go on and on, keep praising him, but there are just no words to express HOW breathtakingly good and talented this young man is, you have to see it for yourself.
Third thing: the interaction/harmony between Fabio and Leoni. One word: WOW. I always thought there was no pair that seemed to be more made for each other on stage than Christopher Brose & Jeannine Michele Wacker, but those two proved me wrong. Every oh so tiny movement and word is geared to each other, and their voices just match. And as to how they play the characters, I think Fabio is the most talented Galileo of all. Each of them is dorky and insecure and weird in their own way, which is wonderful and a joy to watch, but he gives it the last touch that I think the role needs to be just perfect. He’s even more dorky and insecure than Chris or Stuart, and if you didn’t know the show as I do, you could never believe that that little boy is capable of becoming the biggest rock star in the history of the iPlanet, because hands down, if you look at that cute little face, you don’t buy it that he’s a hero or sort of a “guitar guy”. And seeing him proving everybody wrong – mindblowing. As to Leoni, she totally lights a fire under him, she has him in the palm of her hands and she bosses him around as she pleases. The way Fabio reacts to that is what I call talent. Whoever decided to put these two up on that stage together in the two lead roles has my deepest gratitude. Just wow.
The two other roles that were completely different than usual were Robert Meyer as Brit and Marjolein Teepen as Ozzy. Seeing someone else than Markus Neugebauer in the role of Brit was weird, but refreshing, and although my first thought was “He looks a bit like a milksop without a beard”, I was positively impressed by Robert. I only knew him as Madonna, one of the Bohemians, and I must say, he did a good job. I liked the way he tried to look extremely strong and macho-like, and also, that his voice is lighter than Markus’, it was a refreshing new touch to see in the role. There is a lot of potential in him, and I hope he gets to play the role a few more times during the running tour, because he definitely deserves it. As to Marjolein as Ozzy…let’s just be honest: I’m totally biased as to who plays this role. For me, there’s only one true Ozzy, and that is Andrea Sánchez Del Solar. Period. Marjolein‘s voice is stunning, no question, she has some killer vocals and a huge talent, especially on the high notes, but in comparison to other Ozzy’s, she just doesn’t touch me with them, not even during “(No-One But You) Only The Good Die Young”. I can’t explain it, maybe my mind is too gridlocked on my opinion, and I know people will think I’m a horrible person, but that’s how it is. I met Marjolein in person three times, and I know for a fact that she is a very loving, caring, nice, lovely & patient person who takes her time with her fans, and I would never diminish her talent in any way. But I guess once you have your favourites, and those favourites impressed you so much with their first performance, it’s hard for others to convince you of something else. I’m sorry for that.

Over all, this show left me in total awe, and with a new favourite Galileo – Fabio Diso, with whom the current Cast has THE most talented one in their midst, someone who definitely has the talent to take over the lead role, and I sincerely hope he gets to play it much more during the tour.

Evening
It seems like destiny saved the best thing for the very last show in Frankfurt: Andrea Sánchez Del Solar as Scaramouche. Ever since I had seen her as Ozzy and learned that she was also one of the three understudies for the roles, it was one of my dreams to see her as Scara at least once. And there it was, where I least expected it. When she told me about it right after the Matinee, forgotten was the migraine I suffered from for the entire 2nd Act, pumped full of pills against the headaches and the terrible nausea – nothing in the world would keep me from witnessing my favourite WWRY alumni doing her thing in the biggest lead role. And hell, what a show it was.
The moment she stepped foot on stage in that purple wig and the black dress thingy, belting out the few german lines of “I Want To Break Free” that Scaramouche sings at the beginning…I was feeling like a proud mother. Or friend. I know it sounds strange, but that’s how it is. I felt tears welling up in my eyes when I heard the vocals coming from her, and they almost overwhelmed me. And a few big fans across the aisle that cheered her on loudly proved my point: she deserved this role. Her “Somebody To Love” was absolutely beautiful; she can hold notes for as long as not many people I’ve met (who are in the theatre business) can, and it’s so wonderful and refreshing to have a complete different intonation, a much deeper voice than any of the other Scara’s. And still, even more so, her high vocals are breathtaking, from what I could gather in the first row, she left the audience in complete awe with her amazing singing talent (not that it surprised me, though). As to her acting, her way of displaying Scaramouche…wow. I know that the role is supposed to be cheeky and mean to Galileo, bossing him around, taking the lead and such, and I’ve seen quite the ways of doing it since last year…but without a doubt, Andrea‘s way was just beyond hilarious, adorable and cuddly! The way she intonates some of Scara’s sentences, how she behaves around and with Galileo (Christopher Brose, in this case) is just…whoa. And it looked like she enjoyed herself in that role so much, which is wonderful to see – when an actor gets the opportunity to play big roles and do it with such a naturalness, because that’s what they all work really hard for. No surprise she got some of the biggest applause after that last show, it was more than deserved, and still, after over two weeks, I feel really proud of her. Although it still feels surreal that I really witnessed it.

Thank you, “We Will Rock You”, for amazing 7 shows in Frankfurt, for giving me so many beautiful memories, and I hope to maybe see all of you again in Hamburg – or at the latest, in Cologne, where it all began! THANK YOU for being such a talented, lovely & wonderfully crazy bunch!

We Will Rock You – Frankfurt 19.-21.12.2014

After over one and a half years since the last time I had seen the show on german soil – and knowing that its Cast was almost the same as it had been when they toured through Basel and Essen in 2013 – I went into it with a lot of excitement and expectations. I was mostly looking forward to see everyone again after such a long time, as there were at least two people among them that I dearly missed and had stayed in touch ever since the closing. And I was also looking forward to how much everyone’s talent had improved since the last time I’ve seen them. And I was NOT disappointed.

19.12. 2014 (Evening/Preview)
I didn’t realize the first two shows that weekend would be previews – I was convinced that that show actually was the Premiere, until I saw some of the Casts posts on facebook. Anyways, despite a few technical difficulties (that, honestly, I didn’t even realize were technical difficulties because I hadn’t seen the show since June 2013 and thought “Oh, well, guess they’ve done a few more changes than usual” to myself, ha-ha), the feeling of being back with this talented bunch covered everything that had gone wrong that night.
Galileo & Scaramouche were played by Christopher Brose & Marjolein Teepen. I know Chris from last year, where he completely blew me away. His voice is incredible, and I was excited about having him as my 1st Galileo on this tour again. And despite the fact that he seemed somewhat sick to me, or tired, he still gave me goosebumps. The way he displays Galileo again was exactly how I thought Galileo must be. He’s that dorky, stupid guy who pulls off the role as a limelight hog at the end as if he’s never done anything else. He shows the audience he loves to be up there, which is, for me, one of the most important things any actor on a stage can do.
I was, however, disappointed about Marjolein. Not because of her talent, no way at all, because she HAS talent, she has proven it more than once to me when I had seen her as Killer Queen – her voice is really stunning. But to me, her display of Scaramouche was lacking  something that I love about that character, although I can’t put a finger on what that is. Maybe it was that she wasn’t as cute-bossy as the lead role, Jeannine Michele Wacker, who, until then, had been my main Scara on last year’s tour, or maybe that the relationship between her and Chris seemed a bit cold to me. But that’s all my personal opinion and is not supposed to diminish anyone’s talent in that Cast!
Markus Neugebauer played Brit once again, and after Anna Lidman last year, Ozzy was played by one of the new Cast members, Linda Holmgren. As usual, Markus‘ talent knocked me off my feet. I knew he was good, I had seen him last year and already thought he was the best Brit I had ever seen, but what he did on stage that night – wow. He has developed SO much since 2013, something I thought wasn’t possible. It was just tiny things, notes, that he did and sung differently, but those changes were truly amazing, especially the even more raspy sound of his voice on the high notes or the “waves” he gave some of his notes in “I Want It All”. And to see Linda was something I was curious about. I love the role of Ozzy, because she sings one of my all-time favourite Queen songs, and therefor I always have very high expectations to the person stepping into that role – and I might be a bit overly critical ever since I first saw Rachel John in that role at the Dominion Theatre in London and especially Andrea Sánchez Del Solar in 2013 in Essen. And Linda did not disappoint me, I even liked her better than Anna last year. Her voice is a lot higher than either Anna’s or Andrea’s, but it was something new to me, and she definitely did that role justice – especially in the high notes. That woman knows how to sing.
Brigitte Oelke & Martin Berger as Killer Queen & Khashoggi – do I need to say more? These two are institutions, have been with the show since 2004, and no matter how often I see them, their talent and amazing stage presence blows me away. Their interactions with each other, their voices, their acting – there’s not much better on german stages nowadays than these two. Brigitte’s voice…well, there is no word for it, you have to hear it for yourself. I’d bet that if she wanted to, she could blow up all the headlights in the theatre hall, and not even with a lot of effort, because her voice is THAT powerful.

20.12.2014 (Matinee & Evening/Premiere)
FINALLY, I would be seeing Jeannine Michele Wacker as Scaramouche again, and I couldn’t have been more excited for it. I had missed everything that I adore about her display of the role, and when she first came on stage, I couldn’t stop the major grin on my face. The thing with her and her Scara is, she’s the cutest, but also bossiest one I had seen so far. You look at her and think “Oh, look how tiny she is, how adorable!”, but then that girl opens her mouth and what comes out of it is too good to be true. Her voice is absolutely BREATHTAKING. It had already been like that last year, but what she did on stage that day was beyond my expectations. I knew she had different engagement over the past couple of months, even during this WWRY tour, she’s working at “Artus” in St. Gallen (Switzerland) every now and then, but you’d never guess the stress she has. Her intonation is crazy, her high vocals are not only high, but as strong as I’ve barely heard any other german singer being capable of. And her way of commanding Galileo about is just something you have to enjoy.
My Galileo that Matinee was Stuart Sumner – something I’ve noticed right away during “Radio GaGa”, when I didn’t spot him in his usual place as a teacher in the background. And although at first I was a bit sceptical – I had only seen him in the lead role once, and to be honest, he hadn’t fully convinced me back then. There were quite a few times he mixed up his text or one time, forgot it for a moment, and although I know it’s normal, they’re all just human and german isn’t his native language, (and I’d be the last person to judge anybody about it!!!) it disappointed me a bit, as I had heard opinions about how amazing he was as Galileo. This time, however, I was more than impressed. His voice had always been amazing, it was the one thing he convinced me with last year, but hearing him again showed me how much it had improved over the past months. And his interaction with Jeannine was adorable. He’s the most “manly” Galileo of all I have seen so far, the most “Rockstar” kind of guy of all of them, and every single time, his long vocals at the end of “We Are The Champions” leave me in complete awe – he knows how damn good his voice is, and he sure knows how to use it to have the audience in the palm of his hand.

Then….Premiere night. My first ever, with – of course – all the main Cast in the lead roles. I only want to say a few words to the (for me) dream pair of Galileo & Scaramouche: Christopher Brose & Jeannine Michele Wacker. Ever since Essen in 2013, I can safely say that I can never get enough of the interaction between those two on stage. They work together so unbelievably well, their voices match SO well, too, and all their movements and vocals are totally geared to each other as if they never did anything else in their life than being up on that WWRY stage together. Jeannine’s cuteness in playing Scara takes Chris’ dorky Galileo-behaviour to new highs, and Chris’ rocking side at the end lets Jeannine turn into a small pile of fangirl – I barely have seen two people who seem so destined to sing and act together – and their duet of “Who Wants To Live Forever” is one of the most beautiful and tear-bringing things I have ever seen on a stage.

21.12.2014 (Matinee & Evening)
Two different Galileo’s, Killer Queen’s & Bap’s – nice. When months before, I had booked my tickets for that weekend, I had only booked the evening show, as my original plan had been to meet up with a friend that day – which turned out to be a fail, so 30 minutes before the show started and after I had overheard a conversation whereby Isabel Trinkaus would be playing Killer Queen that afternoon, I spontaneously purchased another ticket in the middle of the 6th row (which was actually the 3rd row – what exactly the staff at the Old Opera House thought about that confusing seating, only god knows!)
To have Isabel as the evil Killer Queen was something I was absolutely thrilled about. Honestly, you can’t compare her to Brigitte Oelke in any way, and you’d be very wrong to even try to. Whereas Brigitte’s KQ is nothing but evil, loud and the very meaning of a “Diva”, Isabel’s KQ is even more evil, loud, scary – and extraordinarily bitchy. Which is actually a good thing. I love that touch so much that she gives the role, and since the last time I had seen her in it, she has improved so unbelievably much, her voice has become so incredible it was more than a delight to see her in that huge lead again.
Now to that day’s Ozzy, who was – in both shows – played by Andrea Sánchez Del Solar…if you know me well enough, you know what that fact means to me. Ever since I had first seen her Ozzy, and everything that comes with that role, I was done. I don’t even have words for the talent that that girl has inside of her. Her deep voice fits perfectly to “I Want It All”, and the soul in it never fails to make me completely cry my heart out during “(No-One But You) Only The Good Die Young”. She’s the first and only person after Rachel John at the Dominion Theatre in London who ever made me tear up at that song, even BEFORE she has started singing – simply because I know what’s coming, and it’s the most beautiful thing I ever witnessed on stage. Moreover, the harmony between her and Markus Neugebauer is perfect. Their voices are geared to each other, it seems, because they’re both so unbelievably strong and a guarantee for goosebumps. If you ever have the chance to see either of them somewhere on a stage in the world – grab a ticket.

Over all, that weekend was a wonderful and memorable one. I met wonderful people again – Jeannine & Andrea, who I had massively missed over the past 18 months, Stuart & Brigitte, who recognized me despite my not so memorable face, and seemed genuinely happy to see me again and cared about how I’d been since we’ve last seen each other, Victor Barretto, who had been part of last year’s Cast and who, sitting in the same row as me during the Premiere show, also recognized me and asked how I had been…and not to mention two of the nicest people I have ever met. Martin, one of the band members, who I genuinely came to like, because he was so lovely and funny, and made me look a teeny tiny less stupid and dumb as I was standing all by myself at the Stage Door between and after all (!) of the 5 shows of the weekend, outside, defying cold, wind and rain, and who I sadly never got to say a proper Thank You & Goodbye to. I hope one day I can have another shot at that. And of course that WONDERFUL blond woman of the crew whose name I sadly never learned, but who was the kindest thing I ever came across at a Stage Door – taking care of me, making sure I wouldn’t freeze myself to death after the Premiere, and after two hours of waiting for the ones I was waiting for, dragged me (under my protest) to the premiere party to get out of the cold and right into the fun of it. If you read this: THANK YOU for everything, and I sincerely hope we’ll meet again one day.
And of course the numerous hugs, smiles, winks & waves of the people I genuinely care so much about – not just as actors, but more, as human beings, as people like you and me, – will stay in my memory of that weekend.

 

Any Way The Wind Blows…

May 31st, 2014. The day an era of 12 years at the Dominion Theatre ends, and after that day, neither Tottenham Court Rd. nor London itself will ever be the same.

I have been thinking long about whether I should do this post. I don’t want to sound like my life is ending now that my favourite show of all times is sadly closing. I don’t want to tell anybody out there that it has majorly changed my life or changed it at all, for that matter, because that would be a lie. It’s just going to be my personal way of saying Goodbye to something that means a hell of a lot to me.

I remember the first time ever that I watched the show. It was January, 13th, 2008. Cologne, Germany. Originally, I only went to see this show because I got 2 tickets for a former friend’s birthday 10 days before. She had spoken about it months earlier, and although I always had some kind of soft spot for some of the Queen songs, I never gave it much thought or even planned to go and see it, mainly because at that time, I had nothing to do with musical theatre at all. I was 22 years old, and I couldn’t think of anything more boring than paying to watch people dancing and singing on a stage.

Safe to say that this birthday gift was the best idea I had ever had.

The moment the show started at the Musical Dome, I was sucked inside. “Innuendo” has always had a very special meaning to me since that day, because whenever I hear it, goosebumps are everything I’m made of. I remember when “Radio GaGa” started a few minutes later, and I thought: “I love this shit.” And I do until this day forward. I don’t even know or remember the Cast we had back then, but I know they had a huge impact on the fact I fell in love with this show from the get go (although I was as far away as you could be on your first ever musical from knowing what a “Stage Door” was or that you could actually meet the actors after the show).

Years passed by where I completely forgot about it. My life went on, friends came, friends left. Then I met a certain person online, Kim, who today is one of my best friends. We became friends over the fact that we were both crazy “Supernatural” fans (nothing crazy about that anymore) and went to the same Convention hosting actors of the show in 2011. But what I only discovered later was that Kim was the biggest musical theatre fan I had ever met. I always saw her pictures of shows, “Cats”, “Tarzan”, “Rocky Horror Show”…and I have no idea how it happened, she somehow drew me completely into that musical theatre thing, made me fall head over heels for “Tarzan” (which is until today still one of the best things that could have happened to theatre land), and before I even knew it, I was sitting in Seat C 29 of the Stalls at the Dominion Theatre in London on September, 20th, 2012, on my first ever London trip.

The only thing I regret about that night? That I did not have any device on me to record the show. Yes, I know it’s prohibited, but if I had known back then what I knew today, I would’ve done anything to keep it recorded for eternity. Because that show simply knocked me off my feet. I had both understudies for Galileo & Scaramouche (which I didn’t know until I actually thumbed through the programme), Scott Monello & Emma Hatton. And up to this day, these two will always have a very special place in my heart. I fell head over heels for Scott’s adorable display of Galileo, for his vocals and his small dancing parts, and more than once after the show I thought how it could be that he was “only” the understudy? He was absolutely breathtaking. So was Emma; she sang the roof off the theatre with her insane vocals. Her hight notes gave me goosebumps, and having had the honour and luck to see her perfom one more time exactly one year later, I was more than happy to see and hear how everything in her voice had improved even more. Plus, her Scaramouche was one of the most adorable things I had ever seen on a stage (and note, that was only my 2nd ever musical at that point in my life). That I had also the honour to see Rachel John as Meat that night will probably always be one of the biggest highlights of my life. That woman has a voice that is out of this world, and she was the first and only person until last year who actually made me cry the instant she started singing “(No-One But You) Only The Good Die Young”.

After that 1st visit, I was not only totally in love with London (coming from someone who always despised the british accent and never cared about anything british at all, I guess that’s saying something), but also helplessly with musical theatre, and it was just natural that I was back at the Dominion only 3 months later. This time, I would be seeing the new Cast doing their thing, forwardmost, Oliver Tompsett as Galileo. I had seen him in the role of Drew Boley in “Rock Of Ages” three months before, and back then, I he knocked me so hard off my feet with his talent that I was beyond happy to see him in my favoure show. And what can I say? He did definitely not disappoint me. He was, and still is up to this day, the most talented person I ever had the pleasure and honour to watch. His vocals, his talent, his acting skills, yes, even his silly little dancing steps during the show, were and are completely out of this world, and I don’t even know of one second that he didn’t give me chills all over my body. I had high hopes and expectations about him as Galileo, since I knew what he was capable of if you let him do his thing on a stage, but what I saw that night was beyond said expectations. The moment I saw him performing “I Want To Break Free” and through every song he performed that night, I knew he was exactly where he belonged. There is one word in Germany for someone on a stage who enjoys every second of it, who is practically overflowing with vitality, gratitude and happiness, all displayed by the biggest grin on their faces during an entire show: limelight hog. And that is what hit me the moment Oliver stepped foot on that Dominion stage, and that special feeling never left me whenever I came back to see him four more times; it was a gift from God he was chosen to play Galileo Figaro.
Rachael Wooding, who played Scaramouche – wow. I have barely seen any woman (apart from Emma Hatton three months earlier who had such a positive energy inside her little body and such mindblowing vocals than her. Plus, her interaction with Oliver was amazing, they seemed like they had done this job together for years instead of months! The chemistry between them was the one thing I will always remember the most about all my Dominion shows, because not only between Galileo and Scaramouche it’s a very important thing, but between all the other characters, too.

Months passed until I went back to the Dominion, but instead, I was part of two crazy months in May/June 2013, when the german Cast of “We Will Rock You” were on tour close to my hometown, in a city called Essen. I have talked about it in certain posts on here, and the fact that I spent a hell of a lot money for 7 shows in 8 weeks says a lot about how much I fell even more in love with the show than I already had. The Cast was the best thing I had ever witnessed on a german stage, and the time I spent watching the show and hanging out at the Stage Door was definitely one of the best times of my life. I made wonderful friends during the tour, including two Cast members, and it was all thanks to them that the show grew even bigger in my admiration than it already had. Even though a few songs were sung in german (which was weird after 5 years and recently having seen the West End Cast two times), I couldn’t help but sing, cheer and clap along with them. Some people say that different versions of the same show might be having different impacts on the fans, and I’ve heard a couple of times that a german Cast can never achieve or do what a West End or Broadway Cast is capable of. But here’s me saying: THEY CAN. And hell, HOW they can. The german Cast has shown me that no matter in what part of the world “We Will Rock You” is performed and no matter how much scepsis you will feel towards it at first, the songs and the feelings you have throughout it will never be different. They will always suck you in, because it’s the show itself that will always provide its inexplicable magic.

The thing that impressed me the most was the Cast Change day at the Dominion on October, 5th, 2013. It was a very emotional day, as it was the last performance of Scott Monello, Emma Hatton, Rachel John & Wayne Robinson (who played Brit), but also because it was the day that Brian May came up in the middle of the stage during “Bohemian Rhapsody”. Safe to say that together with the entire Cast smashing the song and his breathtaking guitar solo he totally blew the roof off the Dominion. It is, up to this day, the most amazing show of that Cast that I have seen, because everyone was on fire and giving it 200% of their talent.

I am gutted to no end to see this wonderful and amazing show leave the West End, because theatre is losing one of its biggest and best pieces today, but although I couldn’t see it more than 6 times, I am beyond grateful for these few times, and each and every one of the shows I was part of I will always cherish deep down in my heart. I am also grateful for every single actor of the Cast that ever took their time to come out and chat with the fans, with me, who were always so patient, kind, funny, caring, and never got tired of us showing up on their doorstep to tell them how amazing they are, or asking for photos or autographs. This goes especially out to the following people that I have met over the past one and a half years and that grew to my heart so much that I will always try and support them in whatever they’ll be doing: Scott Monello, Oliver Tompsett, Katie Paine, Rachael Wooding, Rachel John & Emma Hatton.

Thank You, “We Will Rock You”, for the past one and a half years, for every single amazing show, for every laughter, for every tear I shed, for every beautiful moment at the Stage Door, for all the goosebumps you got me, simply for all the beautiful memories that you brought me and that I will keep in that special place in my heart forever. You will all be massively missed, and it is more than wrong and sad you have to go, but one thing I know for sure: you’ll be going out with a bang, because that’s what you deserve.

THANK YOU.

 

We Will Rock You – Dominion Theatre 17.05.2014

My very last ever “We Will Rock You” at the Dominion – that day definitely came way too fast. It had been my very first show back in 2008, and since then, had always been my absolute favourite. But even if people will slaughter me after reading this: I wish my very last memory/experience of this show would be the Cast Change on October, 5th, 2013, and not this show. The reason for this is simple: the Cast. I am not someone to slate new Casts when I see them first, when I am used to an old Cast, because I know it’s all hard work and a tough job to step into big footsteps, and everyone deserves a chance. Maybe I expected too much from my last show, as I already walked down the aisle to my seat with tears in my eyes. But from the beginning.

I arrived in London at 12pm that day, and my friend Sarah had told me that if I wanted to catch Oliver Tompsett & Katie Paine before the Matinee to give them their farewell gifts, I should head right down to the Dominion. Safe to say I rushed into the tube to Piccadilly Circus with my heavy suitcase and the bags, and from there, ran for my life, as it was getting later and later and people seem to love stepping into my way as if they had no care in the world. Thankfully, I reached the Theatre just in time, because after 5 minutes, Katie arrived, greeting me from afar, hugging me and apologizing for not replying to my tweet that morning, asking when she’ll arrive. She then told me that Olly would probably be already in, as they had rehearsals at 1pm, so I did not only give her her own present (she was absolutely taken aback, thanked me a couple of times and told me what a very nice thing to do it was), but also the one for Olly, which she promised to give him. Before she went inside, she asked me where I was sitting in the evening show, and when I told her that I’d be seated in C20 in the Stalls, she smiled and said she’d wave at me from the stage. Such a sweetheart 🙂

First thing that shocked me when I got into the theatre that evening and checked the board – Rachael Wooding (Scaramouche) wasn’t on. Safe to say my heart sank, because I couldn’t have imagined a better Scara to end on than her. Plus, the actual cover, Catriana Sandison, wasn’t on, either, as I noticed when the show started – after the Matinee, she had felt poorly and Sophie Ayers had to jump in, and apparently, the Dominion Staff hadn’t had the time to change the board (which is not a big deal, really, just confusing 🙂 ). Thankfully, the wonderful Oliver Tompsett was on as Galileo, and that was the thing that mattered to me the most.

When the show started, I was already in tears. During every song, every scene, the fact that it would be the last time I see them was in my head, and it broke my heart. What I noticed pretty soon was that since the Cast Change last October, they had changed a lot of the script, which was confusing at first, as I thought maybe the Cast had forgotten some of their text (which is highly unlikely, as they know what they do, but they’re just humans, after all), but as the changes kept happening, I realized it were no mistakes – which I didn’t like, to be honest. For me, it felt like some of the jokes were taken away (like when Olly/Galileo tells Sophie/Scaramouche that he had been tweeting the entire time – what was left out at that point was him saying “Only important stuff, what I had for breakfast and stuff”, which is basically the thing that makes this scene work the most!). Plus, for someone who knows the show by heart, it’s a confusing thing, it actually made me feel like I haven’t seen the show in years instead of only 6 months.

Now to the Cast. I feel bad for stating my opinion like this, but I have to say that from all the different Casts I have seen over the last couple of years, that one was the weakest for me. Not the “old” ones (Alasdair Harvey, Oliver Tompsett, Brenda Edwards & Katie Paine), but the “new” ones. Maybe it’s like I said, I was used to the 2012/2013 Cast, they grew to my heart, and with them being gone, it was bound to be different. But the voices weren’t giving me goosebumps, to be honest. Amanda Coutts (Meat) was probably the one I was most excited about, as I heard a couple of good things about her voice and performance, and I was more than looking forward to her “(No-One But You) Only The Good Die Young”, which had always given me tears when the former Meat, Rachel John, had sung it. I have to admit, Amanda was okay, good, actually, because she has a lovely voice, and you can really see her talent shining through, you can see why she was cast as Meat in the first place. But it’s fair for me to say that she didn’t touch me inside my heart with her performance. Plus, maybe it was only me being spoiled by Rachel John & Wayne Robinson in the roles of Meat and Brit, but to me, it felt a bit cold between her and Rolan Bell, can’t put my finger on it. Rachel and Wayne always had a special connection, you just bought it that they were a couple madly in love, living for the dream of real music coming back one day. I just didn’t feel that about Amanda and Rolan. His voice was good, too, and I have to admit, it was way better than the one of Wayne when I first saw him in 2012, Rolan had much more strength in it, and he was able to sound louder than the orchestra. But I didn’t have that certan special feeling inside of my stomach that I can’t quite put my finger on.
Sophie Ayers (Scaramouche), what can I say about her? I think for people who know the show by heart, the role of Scara, and her songs, it’s obvious that she is the 2nd Scara cover. I’m not saying her voice or performances were bad (because they weren’t, none of the new Cast one’s were, if they were, they wouldn’t be part of the show, after all), but it’s just that she hasn’t got what Rachael Wooding displays in that role; one essential and important thing for me, personally, about this role is to hold notes for a bit longer than usual – especially during “Somebody To Love”. A powerful voice is what makes this song so beautiful, what makes the actor singing it grow to your heart. I am truly sorry, but that just didn’t happen for me with Sophie. I felt like something was missing. I can imagine that something like this can happen if you’re thrown onto a stage on such a short notice, you have to work in your role and work with the other actors on stage, and I know it must be difficult. And I am not saying that Sophie isn’t talented, because she most definitely is, and I can see how amazing she can be with a lot more stage experience as more than a 2nd cover, which I wish to happen to her. I just didn’t warm up to her as much as I did with any other Scaramouche I’ve seen on stage in my life.
The “old” ones were fab as always – I absolutely love how Brenda Edwards & Alasdair Harvey interact with each other on stage as Killer Queen & Khashoggi, there’s nothing like it, really. I know some people don’t agree on that, but for me, Alasdair is Khashoggi, he has been my first one and will always be my favourite; he lives the role. Brenda isn’t my favourite Killer Queen, I have to admit, but I have barely heard such a powerful voice on stage than hers, she just gives me the goosebumps whenever she hits the high notes.
And Oliver Tompsett…what a man, what a talent. I knew he’d blew me away once again, and it’s safe to say he was on fire that night. It doesn’t matter which song he sings or how dorky he dances, everything he does on that stage gives me the biggest goosebumps. Once again, from “We Will Rock You” until the end of “Bohemian Rhapsody”, he had me in tears, and during every second of these songs, you can see how much he loves playing the role of Galileo; to me, it seems like he is actually born for that role. He’s a limelight hog, he enjoys playing with the audience, he enjoys drawing them in, and his “Day-Oohs” are legendary. I have never heard a more powerful voice, or seen more talent on a stage than the one he has. He’s one in a million for me, and having him as my very last Galileo at the Dominion was more than a gift for me. It’s too sad the show is closing in a few days, but I think it’s safe to say that it couldn’t end on a better Galileo Figaro than Oliver Tompsett.

The Stage Door afterwards was barely busy, which surprised me, as it was a saturday and it was getting closer and closer to the end. Thankfully, a lovely woman from Norway stood with me, so I wasn’t completely on my own. I got to talk to the ones I wanted to – Olly & Katie, mostly,- got my pics and therefor, wonderful memories. Olly said he was sorry for it having been my last WWRY show, and he and Katie thanked me again for my gifts, gave me a couple of hugs and were generally the most lovely people you can ever meet at a Stage Door.

I also got a few words with Amanda Coutts, Alasdair Harvey & Brenda Edwards, and I had a funny moment when Alasdair signed my ticket book. Apparently, he had put his autograph into it, writing a bit over the one Olly had written down just moments before, and he apologized, and I told him I didn’t mind, which came out a bit like “Oh, never mind, it’s just Olly!”, and Alasdair pulled a shocked face and went “I’m going to tell him that!”, which was hilarious, as I know he was joking (I had never seen him anything else than serious at the Stage Door before, so that was a nice thing 🙂 )

All in all, yes, I was a bit disappointed by my last show, which was probably my own fault due to high expectations and a lot of emotions inside my body, sue me. But seeing all the familiar faces one last time, talking to them one last time and properly saying goodbye to them was all that mattered. And to everyone in that Cast/Show, I hope they’ll continue to do amazing things, to improve their talent, and to have a bright future!

Greed, the sad conqueror of the West End

The latest news that happened to be confirmed two days ago and, as a result of this, the – at first – sad reactions to it and now, angry fans and supporters of “We Will Rock You” in London made me want to state my own opinion on things. Because, let’s be honest here: that show closing is just another brick in the West End theatre wall that is kicked out. And slowly, that brick is thinning out more and more.

Fact is: over the past year, more than one or two shows on the West End will have closed by the end of May, each with huge, supportive fanbases, left with the thought: “Why?”

For example: “From Here To Eternity”. That show started at the Shaftesbury Theatre on September, 22nd, 2013. It’s closing on March, 29th, 2014. Only 6 months of running. I have seen that show for myself once, and I think it was utterly beautiful and has/had huge potential. The actors are amazing, and the story itself is just catching the audience. Yet, after only such a short time, it’s going to leave the West End already, with no sign that it’s ever coming back so far.

Second example: “Rock Of Ages”. Now, I know I might be a bit subjective here, as a massive fan of that show and Cast myself, but if you know the show, if you know the people that worked hard on that stage every day, if you’ve seen the massive support and love that each and every single fan has shown them…it’s unfathomable that on November, 2nd, 2013, it closed for good after 2 years of a successful run.

And the newest victim of the West End ticket price policy: “We Will Rock You”. Again, I might be a bit subjective here, but…well, that show was my 1st ever musical in 2008, and the 1st show I have ever seen on the West End in 2012. I have gone through one closing in June 2013 already, of the german production, and I just have a really deep bond with it, with both productions. I’m not gonna tell anybody that it changed my life, that it made me who I am today, because that’s absolute bullshit. But it has that special place inside of my heart that I just can’t explain, and seeing it close once again is just bugging me. Twelve absolutely successful years at the Dominion, and after all, that show follows in the footsteps of so many shows before.

Why is that?

I have talked to a couple of people/friends, and everyone agrees: the ticket prices that nowadays are out there are insane, and sometimes, more than unfair. For the producers, it seems, the money is way more important than pleasing a lot of people who come to see their shows, which is just a huge shame and pretty sad. Theatre is supposed to make people enjoy music and acting, to have a good time, to forget their worries for 3 hours. But now, with all the amazing shows closing due to not enough tickets being sold – as a result of partly ridiculous price ranges, – it’s like daylight robbery, like the producers do the exact opposite of what they are (in my opinion) supposed to do: making people who come see their productions happy.

It’s wonderful if new shows are opening and having such a huge success at the beginning – like “The Commitments” or now “I Can’t Sing”, – but to be honest: I hate getting attached to a new show, like I did with “Rock Of Ages”. With everything seeming to go south on the West End, great productions leaving way too soon, this uncertainty of how long you’re actually able to enjoy a show/cast, is seriously exhausting.

Maybe the producers should stop thinking with their heads deep down in their wallet and instead, focusing on their supposed “life goal”. I am sure – and I am not the only one, – that if ticket prices would actually be more humane, they’d all get way more visitors and bigger audiences. Because greed never got anybody anywhere.

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.

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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!

We Will Rock You – Dominion Theatre 05.10.2013 (Cast Change)

There it was, Cast Change day. The day I would sadly have to say Goodbye to the 4 most inspirational theatre people that I ever had the pleasure and honour to meet: Rachel John, Wayne Robinson, Emma Hatton & of course my first and one and only Galileo – Scott Monello.

And boy, would that night be a special one. A very special one.

On twitter, there had been that rumour spread that the legend himself, Brian May, would be at the Dominion that night, as he usually always is when there’s a Cast Change, or Freddie Mercury’s birthday, or the Dominion’s birthday – on special occasions. Somehow, I knew this wasn’t a hoax at all – I bet the theatre would’ve gotten a lot of nasty letters if that would’ve been just a campaign to sell more tickets!

And for God’s sake, what an emotional show it was. Right at the beginning, when “Radio GaGa” came on, mine and my friend’s Alison’s view went straight over to the right side of the stage (after I was looking for Scott in the GaGa boys, I admit that) – to Emma Hatton. They weren’t even more than 30 seconds into that song, and we both saw that Emma was already crying, trying to pull herself together. In her eyes, at the same time, there was so much pride and sadness that it was absolutely heartbreaking – no surprise I already had started crying and sobbing myself, same as Alison. There are no words of how emotional, breathtaking and amazing that show was – no words. I will not lie to anybody – through the entirety of the show, no matter who was on stage at that moment, my eyes kept being glued to Scott Monello, with sometimes switching to Emma. I just felt like I needed to take every last possibility to have a look at that one man who had been my 1st Galileo one year ago, who had me fallen in love with this cast in the first place, and who I desperately wished would be staying forever.
I don’t think that throughout that show, I stopped crying or holding back my tears for even an instant – but when it was Rachel John’s turn to sing “(No-One But You) Only The Good Die Young”, it was absolutely over for me. Even seconds before she started singing, I was a complete mess, sobbing away. And there are no words of how goddamn beautiful that last time of Rachel was – NONE. She was on fire, she was on her best, she killed the song in ways I had never heard anyone singing it, she touched me deep down in my heart, in places I thought had already died in the past – and simply EVERYONE in that audience felt the same – the minutelong applause she got after the song was over was proof enough of that. Rachel was standing with her back to the audience, her shoulders rocking back and forth, Wayne comforting her, hugging her, standing with her in the back of the Heartbreak Hotel as she wasn’t able to keep it together anymore. It was the most heartbreaking thing, and it seriously topped everything I had expected for that moment to be like.
Of course, Oliver Tompsett as Galileo and Rachael Wooding as Scaramouche were at their absolute best again, and the mindblowing “Day-Oh’s” Olly gave us at the end of “We Are The Champions” was priceless, amazing and one thing I’ll definitely never forget.
And then, the big moment came. Just before that well-known guitar solo of “Bohemian Rhapsody” started, that automatic hole/elevator in the middle of the stage was opened, and very slowly, BRIAN MAY got lifted up onto the stage, doing the most amazing and best guitar solo of that song that I have ever heard in my entire life – and I don’t even have to tell you that the entire audience went completely mental. I have never heard an entire room screaming SO loud, and singing along to that song SO loud that you could barely hear the actors on stage singing! And of course, Brian ended that unbelievable night with a personal speech on  everyone of the actors leaving that day, while me and everyone around me and Alison either recorded the whole thing or took pictures of the stage – it was nuts and the best thing I had experienced in a long time.

At the Stage Door after, it was insane, it was so crowded because everyone wanted to see Brian May, while my actual and most important goal was to see Scott Monello, Rachel John & Emma Hatton to give them their farewell gifts I brought them, and Oliver Tompsett to have him doing me a huge favour for Simon Lipkin. With Alison sadly being on crutches, it was even more difficult, and don’t ask me why, but we managed to have an amazing time there! 30 minutes passed and everytime, Brian’s bodyguard (Mr. Sontaran, what Ali and I called him the entire time *lol*) came out, telling us all to stay calm, etc. Thankfully, I caught everyone I wanted to – Scott came out, and when I told him again that he had been my very first Galileo at the Dominion and gave him my present, he was so touched and pleased and thanked me over and over for my support, hugged me tight, and even after I took my pics with him, before he left, he repeated how thankful he was for all my support. No surprise I really really really didn’t want to let him go 😦 Wonderful, beautiful man.

Then it was time to talk to Rachel John, to give her my gift and say Goodbye. While Alison and I were waiting at the Door for Brian May to come out, we decided to give Ali’s mum our tickets to be signed, as we doubted anyways that we would get a picture with him. Rachel was so lovely, I can’t say it any other way. And she was so absolutely lovely and touched by my gift, gave me a hug and thanked me over and over again. It’s truly more than a shame I will never get to see her as Mimi in “RENT”, because I just know she will be absolutely kickass.

While Alison and I were still talking to Rachel, suddenly her mum called us over, asking if we wanted a picture with Brian May – we hadn’t even noticed he was already out! We shoved ourselves through to him – or at least tried to, which was too difficult for Alison, being on her crutches. So without even thinking twice, I shouted “Let the disabled girl through!” and everyone turned around to us, making space for us – that way Alison and I got my picture, and I think I made her pretty happy that night, according to the happy tears she shed after finally meeting her idol (I look awful on my pic, but the man is a legend, so I’m proud of it anyways).

The excitement around fell apart after he had left – thank God – but we sticked around a bit more, especially as finally Oliver Tompsett came out. He greeted us with a big smile, asked us how we were, and instantly, I grabbed him and asked him to do me a huge favour for his buddy Simon Lipkin – which he did, then somehow thanked me for letting him doing it, hugged me, and it was a real surprise that after that, I didn’t start crying out of sheer relieve (I will not tell on here what he did, because I think a lot of people know what Simon means to me and I don’t want anybody to kind of steal my idea for his last day at “Rock Of Ages” – call me childish, but sorry)! We chatted away with him, took our pictures and told him with laughter that we expected to get a birthday cake with our faces on our birthdays next year, too (inside joke between some WWRY/RoA Fans), plus a shirt with our names on it, and he laughed and said “Alright, will do that!” – that man is a piece of gold, even if it was all just a joke…and he finally smiled on my pic *lol*

After that, it all went so fast….Emma Hatton, Katie Paine & Rachael Wooding all came out together, and I was not only desperate to give Emma her gift, but also finally get a pic and chat with Katie and Rachael…and man, these three were/are the most lovely girls you can imagine. I have barely seen actors or people in general having such an amazing time with their Castmates and fans, I have never seen them so happy and grinning the entire time like little kids on christmas. They are honestly the most amazing ladies you will ever have the honour to meet in your entire life.

The last persons we caught were Jeremy Taylor (Understudy Galileo, who left that day, too), Harriet Bunton & Wayne Robinson (he also left that day). All were absolutely lovely, but Wayne…oh God. Not only did he smell like heaven – I love men who smell nice, can’t help it – but no, when we stood at the corner to get a picture together, I felt his grab around my shoulder, and it took all my composure to not turn around to him and say “What the hell are you doing, Mister?!” Seriously, his grab was so firm and tight like I have never been grabbed before, he pulled me SO close to him…and no, I won’t complain about it, because I admit it, I loved it, and I love the pic even more 😀

This night was so absolutely breathtaking and surreal that I still have problems to properly process it. It was heartbreaking to see so many lovely faces and talents leave, but I’m more than sure I will soon see them again!

We Will Rock You – Dominion Theatre 20.09.2013

Back at the Heartbreak Hotel for Sarah’s birthday show – and by the end of that day, I would’ve been laughing harder than I had in a long time! I was supposed to pick her and her mother up at the Garrick – she had been at “Rock Of Ages” for the Matinee, too – so I rushed there after arriving at St. Pancras, just in time for the end of the show. We ended up taking pictures with some of the actors – Dylan Turner, Sandy Moffatt, and, unexpectedly, Cameron Sharp, who had his very first Joey Primo show that day due to the fact that they were short on people and he had to come in 10 days earlier than planned after only 4 days of rehearsals! And still, he appeared like he had been on the Cast forever, feeling like he already belonged to that RoAdie family for years!

So after we took our pictures and chatted away with Cam, we went straight for the Dominion, where we would meet up with Alison; Sarah was wearing HUGE badges on her shirt saying “Birthday Girl” all over her breasts – a fact that would leave us breathless by the end of the night. The show itself was absolutely brilliant, as always. We had the entire First Cast on that day, and our Seats just in Row A, right infront of the stage, were absolutely perfect. Of course, when Oliver Tompsett finished his “I Want To Break Free”, we were all three screaming at the top of our lungs, and also, screaming for Rachael Wooding as Scara that night was a must – I somehow had forgotten how absolutely amazing her voice and performance is. Of course, Rachel John as Meat again left me completely in tears when she sang “(No-One But You) Only The Good Die Young”….that woman is the only one having the power to completely break me everytime I hear her voice. Plus, who really impressed me that night – Wayne Robinson. I knew his Brit, and honestly, I always had issues understanding his accent and thought that right next to Rachel’s powerful voice, his own voice always sounded a bit…silent, not to say a bit weak. But that night, he was absolutely on fire, and I was taken aback by how much he had improved over the last 8 months since I had seen him. His vocals were loud and deep, and it was exactly what I imagined Brit to sound like. Safe to say he was absolutely flawless.
At the end of the show, when they were all getting their well-deserved applause and Standing Ovations, there was this moment when Kevin Kennedy (who played Pop that night) ran over from the left-handed side of the stage to the right one, glancing at Sarah, who’s huge birthday badges were all glittery, and he grinned at her, shouting “Happy Birthday!” – it was hilarious. And when we went back around to the Stage Door, waiting for everyone to come out, we were already laughing about it and not thinking of anything bad when suddenly, one of the Band Members came out the door, staring at Sarah and saying “We were wondering what they were! Biscuits maybe!”. He left with us laughing, screaming at the top of our lungs, gasping for air; these things must’ve definitely shone from the Stalls up to the stage, so it was no surprise they had irritated them!
When Rachel John came out, she was seeing us grinning and still laughing, and I told her about the Band, which left her all like “WHAT? That is so not appropriate, they should seriously focus on their texts! That is so wrong! I looked at them too, but of course, in a completely different, loving way!” Oh that woman is so lovely….and it was hard to see Sarah saying her final Goodbyes to her, as Rachel would be leaving on Cast Change day 2 weeks later and Sarah wouldn’t be there.
Then Rachael Wooding & Katie Paine came out together, and you have no idea how long I’ve been waiting for seeing both of them again, talking to them and getting a picture (as Katie always rushes off afterwards). When Katie saw us, she gave Sarah & Alison a hug, and she introduced herself to me with “Hi, I’m Katie!” and I went to tell her that I knew that, that I had been the girl who had sent her the fan letter 5 months earlier, and she smiled widely, saying her Thank You. Unfortunately, they both had to rush off, but as I asked Rachael for a pic, she stopped for a short moment, standing between Sarah and her mom…then rushed off after I took the pic, and I was like “Uhm…it was actually ME who wanted the picture…?” It was weird, but I knew I would be seeing her two weeks later, so I got over it.

Then FINALLY, Oliver Tompsett came out, greeting us all with a wonderful smile and a huge hug for each of us, and his stare went right down to Sarah’s breasts, to these huge badges she wore for her birthday, and he completely cracked us up by grinning like a school boy, saying “What nice big badges you have there!” – priceless, absolutely priceless. If there was any more reason I needed to love this man to bits, it was that moment. Nothing’s more lovable than a man who can truly make you laugh 🙂

And then, the most beautiful thing happened, the thing I had waited for for over a year. While we were talking to Oli, taking pictures and all, Scott Monello came out. You need to know, he had been my very 1st Galileo at the Dominion back on September, 20th, 2012, when I first came to London, and ever since, I had adored him, wanting to meet him and all, but never got around to it because he always rushed off after the show. So I had told Alison & Sarah in advance that no matter what, we just HAD to catch him at the Stage Door, as I knew, he, too, would be leaving on Cast Change day, and it would just crush me not ever having the chance to tell him how amazing I thought he is. I still remember during the show that night, I had done nothing but always staring at him the entire time whenever he showed up on stage as one of the GaGa Kids.
Thankfully, Alison was standing close to the door, and when Scott came out, she shouted for him, and when I heard his name, I thought I must have stopped midsentence to Oli, seeing Scott standing there. I went over, and I don’t even know what I said, but I remember telling him he had been my very first Galileo and that he always was my favourite, though I never got to see him more than that one time. He was so lovely, smiled all the time, and I saw that he really appreciated what I told him. Of course, I must have been the happiest person alive when I asked him for a picture, he said “Of course” and I was standing there, in his arms, smiling like the biggest idiot on the planet! Alison said afterwards that it was a beautiful picture and you could actually see how really really happy I had been, and I have to agree: I love the picture, and I still smile like a fool when I look at it 🙂

After such a wonderful and eventful night, I was heading back to my hostel, as it would be a double “Rock Of Ages” show the day after – and I was seriously more than excited to be back on the Strip!

We Will Rock You – Dominion Theatre 23.07.2013

Third time for me at the Dominion, and I would finally see Ross Aldred as Brit for the first time and Emma Hatton again for the 2nd time, which I had been hoping since the day I had booked my ticket.

Before I went inside, I was pretty nervous, as this would be the first time I would finally be meeting two girls I knew from twitter, Alison & Sarah. Therefor I went to my seat pretty late, and as I was approaching it, I could already make out Alison’s red hair – it’s too bright to not notice 😀 I went up to both of them, and when they saw me, it was like we knew each other for a long time, as if this wouldn’t be the first time we met. We hugged, chatted away, and I was so relieved when I realized I haven’t forgotten my english, which I use to whenever I have to talk to native british inheritans *lol* Sarah told me I had the best seat when it came to Oliver Tompsett’s performance, as he would fall down on his knees right infront of him, and I assured her he would still be his, no matter what ^^

Then the show started, and what can I say: it was flawless. Ross was simply amazing as Brit; I was honestly really happy I finally had someone in that role who’s accent I could understand properly, as I always had difficulties understanding Wayne Robinson. Moreover, Ross’ voice was wonderful to listen to, and he and Rachel John were SO good together, I can’t even. I don’t think I have to say anything about Rachel’s perfomance; she blew me away again, and already at the first few notes of “(No-One But You) Only The Good Die Young”, she completely got to me, and I had no control at all over the tears that were flowing out of my eyes like they were leaking. She was so absolutely wonderful again, and I can’t think of anybody who ever had that kind of impact with singing that song like she had and always has. Oliver Tompsett was as flawless as he always is; seriously, there is never even the slightest negative thing I can say about his performance. Every single note is perfect and gives me the strongest goosebumps, whenever he sings, it goes right into my heart and touches me deeply inside, no matter what song he is singing. And his acting and stupid little dancing is both breathtaking and hilarious. I really wish he could do that role forever, he definitely deserves it. Oh, and Emma Hatton…that lovely little woman! She was mindblowing, and she has improved SO much since the last time I had seen her. Her voice has definitely got even better than it already was, and those high notes she hits during “Somebody To Love”…holy shit, what a talent! I loved that I finally got to see her again, as she always had that special place in my heart for being my very 1st Scaramouche at the Dominion. Also, I caught myself more than once looking for Scott Monello on stage, who was part of the ensemble that night, and I always started smiling like an idiot when I made him out 😀

One thing about the show was a bit…weird for me, though. There was this moment just when “We Will Rock You” started…you have to know, from the 7 german performances I had been to just a month before, I was used to give the Cast full Standing Ovations from “We Will Rock You” to “Bohemian Rhapsody”. So of course, when the first few notes began, I was jumping out of my seat, clapping, and Oliver looked over to me, winked at me and nodded, all smiling. But when I noticed that I was the only one standing, I felt pretty weird and sat down again (which I honestly thought was pretty sad, as all the Cast deserves Standing Ovations so much!). During “We Are The Champions”, I sneaked out of my seat over to Alison and Sarah, squeezed myself right into their seats when I realized I wouldn’t be convincing enough to get them to stand up with me *lol* But Oli actually noticed all three of us anyways, as we were the ones cheering the loudest and longest, and seeing his happy and smiling and appreciative face was absolutely wonderful.

After the show,  we went round to the Stage Door, and we weren’t even there for more than 2 minutes when Oliver already came out. We chatted away, took pictures, and I finally gave him the small present I had brought for him, his wife Michelle and Baby George. He smiled, thanked and hugged me and sadly had to leave way to early…but I think I could start to fall for him, too *lol* (Sorry, Sarah :D)

After that, we caught some of the others – Emma Hatton (finally!!!), Rachel John, Ross Aldred & John McLarnon (I actually can’t believe I missed my beloved Scott, my very 1st Galileo at the Dominion, who was rushing off and too far away when I noticed he was out), – whom we got Autographs from and chatted away with. My camera was a total screw-up, with its setting being put on “manual”, which meant I had to focus and sharpen the pics by hand…resulting in test shots before the actual pictures. I hated it, but it got me a nice picture of Ross & Rachel, so I guess that’s okay 😉

It was a wonderful night, and I’m so glad that I finally met Alison and Sarah, who actually were one of the main reasons why this night (and the following day) were absolutely perfect and wonderful, and for that I will always be grateful ❤

We Will Rock You Dernière – Colosseum Essen 30.06.2013

So the day was finally there: the very last show of “WWRY” in Essen for God knows how long. I expected it to be emotional; but what I experienced during that show was beyond my imaginations.
The girls and I were at the Stage Door hours before the show started, to see and talk to the actors before and mostly, to give them their farewell gifts, in case that after the show there won’t be enough time. I didn’t really get the chance to talk to any of them…mostly due to the fact that I concentrated myself entirely on Andrea Sánchez Del Solar, who had arrived quite early. We chatted along, and I asked her to sign my Copper Book, and…well, talking to her was wonderful again. Just like I knew her for ages, not from a few times at the Stage Door. And I realized it wouldn’t be that easy to say Goodbye today, as she had really grown to my heart. Big time. I know it sounds pathetic and needy and weak, but she’s the one I miss the most; I miss her utterly every day, and I really hope I will be able to built up some kind of a friendship with her. I have barely met people with such a wonderful, lovely, genuinely nice and unique character like her.

Anyways, somehow I got to talk to Anna Lidman just before she rushed in, and after she signed my book and let me take a picture with her, I told her that I would be seeing her on stage, and wished her an amazing last show. SHE really grew to my heart, too, such a wonderful person. The fact that she saw me crying from the stage like someone had just died is quite embarassing, though.

Just before we went in to gave everyone the little free glowsticks for the show that Nurhan had ordered, I took a last sneaky picture of some of the ensemble members – a picture I wanted for such a long time and am actually pretty proud of, sue me 😉 (sadly only know that the two guys on the right are Nathaniel Scott & Dan Keightley, the guy on the left is the gorgeous Tom Nihill). These guys – and all the ones I didn’t catch in here, – are so underappreciated, which is a shame. Biggest talents in dancing and acting I’ve seen in a very long time.

Then we went into the theatre. Somehow I managed to switch my seat at the left side of the stage, Row 4, Seat 14, to the one right beside my beloved Katharina – right hand of the stage, Row 4, Seat 2 – just at the center aisle, which allowed me to have not only a perfect view of the stage, but also gave me the opportunity to go through this last show right next to a friend.
I knew this last show would be kind of special, which was proven by a lot of things:

1. During the scene where Bap/Pop is telling about the past, when Live Music was still allowed, and he was talking about “real men” and “women throwing their knickers at them”…which was the exact moment dozens of panties were flying onto the stage. Stefan Müller-Ruppert, who was playing Bap/Pop that night was actually pretty startled, stuttering “Y…yes, yes, I remember that…”, and while he was caught in the Laser Cage, being interrogated by Khashoggi, he actually tried to grab more than one of them. Then, hell broke loose. “Radio GaGa” started, and the whole audience went mad; everyone was cheering as loud as they could, clapping through the entire song, and what was the most amazing thing: everyone stood up, giving the singers/dancers their Standing Ovations while they were still performing! It was stunning, and just looking at the actors’ faces was enough to know how much they loved this, how much they appreciated it; I believe seeing Andrea Sánchez Del Solar grinning as much as I had never seen anyone of the GaGa-Kids grinning 😀

2. Brigitte Oelke, on as Killer Queen in that last show, was on fire. In that scene where Khashoggi reports to her and she gets her bikini zone waxed, and shouts “Wax!”, she suddenly put her hand up on the screen, holding a huge tuft of red hair in her hand – it was hilarious. And different to the usual script, she didn’t say “We destroyed every rock on this planet…and of course, the Katzenberger-Remembrance-Rock on Mallorca!”, but instead, blurted out “…and of course, the Jürgen-Drews-Remembrance-Rock on Mallorca!” (this is something only germans will understand as hilarious)

3. There is this one guy, Austin Garrett, who plays Axl Rose in the german version, and in the Heartbreak Hotel scene where everybody introduces themselves, he usually runs forward, falling to his knees, shouting his own name 3 times in a row, until the Rebel Leader tells him to shut up. Now, I knew that the day before in the Matinée, Austin had been allowed to shout out at least 7 times, so I hoped for it this time, too…sadly, it were only 4 times, but still, I loved it – as I love the entire scene.

4. “(No-One But You) Only The Good Die Young”…was horrible. It was the most heartbreaking thing I had ever seen on a stage. Soon after the first few notes that Anna Lidman (Ozzy/Meat) had sung, I saw one of the Ensemble members, Walesca Frank, wiping her eye, and a few seconds after, it was Andrea Sánchez Del Solar who also started crying. Me and my friend Katharine noticed that and I was already tearing up, as I always do when I hear the song….but all composure I had left me when I saw Christopher Brose (Galileo) crying like a baby on stage; he couldn’t stop at all, and after a couple of seconds, while tears where streaming all down his cheeks, he turned around, with his back to the audience, and all I could see were his shoulders, going up and down, and Chris shaking from all the crying. When the song was over, even the other men on stage where crying, and Markus Neugebauer (Brit) pulled Chris into his arms, comforting him, and the entire audience gave them Standing Ovations longer than anything I had experienced before. It was absolutely heartbreaking to see someone so professional being so touched that he loses all of his composure during a scene.

5. During the scene where the KQ plays with the GaGa-Girls and Khashoggi shows up to tell her the rebellion is vanquished and the KQ thinks for a short moment that they’ve won and started that short part of “Don’t Stop Me Now”, she’s usually interrupted by Khashoggi after a few seconds, and the next song started. This time, it was different. As I was told by Brigitte herself later, she and the GaGa-Girls all had planned a special something that neither Martin Berger (Khashoggi) nor the Band knew about: when Khashoggi interrupted her, she just kept singing the entire song! The band was so startled that for a few seconds, not a tune of music was played, leaving them thinking “What the hell?”, while Brigitte was singing, until they finally caught up and played along – it was hilarious. When Brigitte had finished and we all stopped cheering like idiots after Martin waved his hands and arms to make us stop, he changed his usual sentence into “Madam, and again, you have not let me finish talking!”, and Brigitte answering “You have NOT let me finish singing!”

6. Just short before “We Will Rock You” started, and Bap/Pop asks the audience if anybody wants to see his tits, everyone in the room went mad; we all cheered and shouted yes, and Stefan was smiling like an idiot. It was so wonderful to see Jeannine Michele Wacker (Scaramouche) smirking all over her face, saying “Shut up, Bap…and miscellaneous others!”

7. The Band was flawless that last time, and the Standing Ovations we gave them were more than well-deserved. They all got to our hearts when they waved their hands and arms, pulling weird gestures to make us cheer even louder and longer.

8. There was this special encore song I knew had also been played at the last show of this Ensemble in Basel, Switzerland: “Show Must Go On.” I didn’t think about it at all, neither did I ever expect that it would be the song I would love the most about the entire show. The 6 Main Actors got their own parts; when one person was finished (standing in a Spotlight that was centered on them), it went dark and the next one got his/her spotlight. And their voices…man, they were flawless. I think I have never heard Markus Neugebauer any better than in his part of the song; it still gives me goosebumps, and so do the parts of Anna Lidman & Jeannine Michele Wacker. No one can imagine the atmosphere all around the room in these 4 minutes; honestly, I have never felt so close to a family as I did while standing there, enjoying every tune that came out of the Cast’s mouths.

It’s actually embarassing, but I have to admit that I cried through the entire last 4 songs without even a slight break: “We Will Rock You”, “We Are The Champions”, “Bohemian Rhapsody” & “Show Must Go On”. Everyone was standing, so was I, but while everyone around me waved their hands from one side to another or clapped, I was just gripping tight to the chairback right infront of me, not even being able to look up to the stage. I was crying, shaking, trembling, and from time to time, shook my head in disbelief that this was really over in a few minutes. I wasn’t able to smile when Jeannine saw me crying, or Anna, neither was I able to give all of them the credit they deserved so goddamn much. I was a sobbing mess, and I had lost all composure that was left inside of me. Considering that I had already started crying when “Radio GaGa” had started, or when everyone stood up during “I Want It All” or even a bit durign “One Vision”, and of course, through the entire song “(No-One But You) Only The Good Die Young”, I was really surprised I had been pulling myself together until the end of the show. It had honestly been the most wonderful, yet heartbreaking show I ever had the pleasure and honour to be part of, and despite all the tears and everything, I would never ever trade that day for anything.

After the show, we all went to the Stage Door that one last time, and I barely remember anything that I talked about with the actors; I was getting autographs and pics, mostly, and of course, gave my two presents to Chris & Jeannine – they both got a Plushie that were made by a friend of mine, Kim (from London), Jeannine getting a Scaramouche one and Chris a Galileo one; I really wanted to give them something special, something to remember their roles in WWRY, something to remember me. When I gave the Galileo one to Chris, he was staring at it for a couple of seconds, and finally, he said “How AMAZING is THAT?!?!?! Is that for me?!” and showing it around to his colleagues, pretty happy and proud. He hugged me and I knew he was really loving it, which was the greatest gift for me in that instant. I told him I needed a pic with him and the Plushie as a proof he loved it, and after a few complications (he almost left without taking that picture), he told me to come into the corridor with him where only the actors had access to, went to the reception and asked the receptionist to give him the doll for a second. Then he stood there, posing, while I took my picture with both of them, feeling all happy and special 🙂

Same goes for Jeannine. She was smiling from one ear to another when I gave my personal letter to her and the Plushie, and I have to say, I always loved her smile to pieces, because she’s just such a gorgeous young lady. She was totally touched, hugged me tight and thanked me. Later, a friend told me (when I saw the Scaramouche Plushie lying on the ground somewhere) that Jeannine had handled her with kid gloves, like she could break any second, while she was putting her right next to her bag. It was all I needed to know that this, too, had been just the right present for her 🙂 I even saw a pic on facebook where she had it tight in her arm on the bus when all the actors where leaving Essen – the biggest gift ever for me!

I took a lot of pictures with a lot of people, but barely remember a word I spoke to them; it was so much input, and it was so emotional to stand there and know this would be the last time for a very very long time, partly forever, with these people, and honestly, I never wanted it to end.
Walesca Frank:                                                                            Christopher Brose:                                                             

Isabel Trinkaus:                                                                 Brigitte Oelke:                                                            Jessica Kessler:

Marianna Neofitou:                                                                Lucy Wilkerson & Koco Zavaleta:

Jeannine Michele Wacker:

And now the only thing for me to say now is: THANK YOU to everyone who made these 3 months so absolutely mindblowing, wonderful, emotional, unforgettable! Everyone of them is SO talented, and I wish all of them the best from the bottom of my heart, wherever their way will take them. I miss you all so much, but I strongly believe we will all see each other again somewhere. These guys made me the happiest person alive for 8 weeks, and it’s something I will be forever grateful from the depth of my heart.