My Memory Returns....CATS!

CATS is my 2nd ever favourite musical behind The Phantom of the Opera. Ironically when I first got into musicals in the late 1980s/early 1990s I had a stronger desire to see Cats more than The Phantom of the Opera, which never appealed to me until one October evening in 1994 and then as you know the rest became history!

My parents weren't concerned about seeing the musical and I had to wait one September Saturday afternoon in 1995 when I finally got to see it! I was amazed and since then I saw it a few times in London since my first visit to the show until its closure in 2002.  I also saw it on a couple of UK National Tours in 2003 and 2006 in Manchester and Bradford.  I feel, even today, it was a big mistake to close the show at The New London Theatre even if The War Horse is so amazing!  Anyway, I understand Cats is returning to the West End in the not too distant future and it's currently on UK Tour.

 Cats at Braford's Alhambra

I recently had the opportunity to see the new tour production at the Bradford's Alhambra Theatre at the end of April.  It was the same theatre when I last saw Cats in 2006.  I was having a stressful day that day so I was really looking forward to it.  I began my evening in the lovely Restaurant 1914 in the theatre.  The restaurant isn't exactly cheap, but it's worth it for the quality of food and its presentation, and the ambiance with its eclectic decor and theatre's history memorabilia with flyers advertising variety shows and pantomimes!  I had a lovely meal with great views of city park.

 Having dinner at the theatre's Restaurant 1914 with views of the City Park

I had a great seat in the stalls.  I was disappointed that Joanna Ampil wasn't on as Grizabella but the understudy, Alice Redmond (I think!) was excellent.  We had Oliver Saville as Rum Tum Tugger; Nicholas Pound as Old Deuteronomy and Ben Palmer as Munkustrap.

 Waiting for the show to start!

The staging and lighting was impressive and it sychronises so well especially during the overture and the coordination of the musical numbers.  Munkustrap was the perfect narrator throughout the show with the entertaining Rum Tug Tugger.  There was the fatherly Old Deuteronomy and the sad and lonely Grizabella.  I loved the energy of the show with its dancing and gymnastics and how the cats 'interacted' with the crowds.  The characters of the show demonstrated different personalities of the cats and how unique each indiviual cat is. I think one can relate to one's personalities and uniqueness whether its emotions or characterisation in life.

During the interval I had my progamme singed by 'Old Deut' (Nicholas Pound). I was planning to stage door after the show but being offered a lift home from a work colleague was too good of an opportunity to miss, thanks Diane! I also saw another colleague I used to work with, Jessica and her husband, Adrian, after the show. It was nice seeing familiar faces as well as having a successful evening.

I plan to see Cats again on tour later this year! I was happy that a medley of Cats was performed at the 2013 Olivier Awards in honour of Gillian Lynne, who amazingly choreographed Cats and won a special award at the ceremony.

An Evening of Movies and Musicals in Cardiff!

I waited in anticipation for An Evening of Movies and Musicals at St David's Hall in Cardiff.  I was especially looking forward to the concert especially with the appealing line up of my two favourite phantoms, John Owen Jones and Peter Karrie. I have seen them a combination of 21 times as Phantom in my favourite musical. Soon as I heard they were in the line up I immediately booked!

I met up with some friends just before the concert.  It's nice meeting up with like minded friends who share my favourite musicals and performers such as Pat,  Matthew, Keiko and her friend.

 Pat and I outside St David's Hall, Cardiff, before the concert!

Matthew, Pat, Keiko and her friend at St David's Hall, Cardiff, before the concert!

Waiting for the concert!

The orchestra opened up the concert with hits from some of the movie soundtracks and also at interludes during the performance and introduced the second part after the interval. The music got us in the mood for what is to come for the evening.

The presenter, who was a substitute, introduced Fiona Kelly, a Scottish artist, who performed in a similar concert last year in Edinburgh.  She sang some hits from a variety of musicals.  There were impressive acts from the Siren Sisters, Live and Swing In and South Wales Gay Men's Chorus who performed a variety of movies and musicals hits. The choir was a wonderful ensemble throughout.  They sang in unison when singing hits from the musicals, Evita and Wicked.

A couple of schools including Stagecoach were invited on stage.  They were exceptional especially the younger performers. I specially enjoyed the act one of the schools with songs sung from 'A Little Shop of Horrors',

As expected, I thoroughly enjoyed seeing Peter Karrie on stage again.  I have fond memories seeing him as Phantom in Bradford and Manchester on the Phantom's Millennium Tour back in 2000.  He still is one of my favourite Phantoms and it was such a pleasure to hear him sing once more! He sang songs from 'Yentil' and in the second part of the concert he sang Jekyll and Hyde's 'This is the Moment'.

I saw Ruthie Henshall in Chicago in 1998 soon as the show opened in the West End.  I have seen Chicago once since then which was in Bradford last year.  I enjoyed 'All that Jazz' which was nicely choreographed with some dancers. Later on, I was awed with her Les Miserables ' I dreamed a dream'.

I was very impressed with Nathan James, a contestant on the Jesus Christ Superstar Arena Tour televised auditions.  I thoroughly enjoyed his act when he sang 'Gethsemane' and I think he would be a great Jesus in the Arena Tour.

The highlight of the concert was undoubtedly was John Owen Jones! Me and many supporters gave him a very warm,if not hot, welcome when he came on stage! He sang amazingly and unforgettably Phantom's 'Music of the Night'.  I was awed with it and felt I went in heaven and stayed there for the duration of the song!  It was so emotive and subtly so powerful that you couldn't hear a pin drop in the audience during the song! Hearing  'Music of the Night' reminded me how much I miss him as Phantom and is a joint favourite one after seeing him 14 times in the role.

In the second part of the concert, he sang 'Thunderball' following the soundtrack from James Bond by the orchestra in introduction to the second part.  I can't think of a better singer singing 'Thunderball' than John himself.  He sings it with so much power and conviction.  Later on in the concert, he sang a beautiful duet with Dafydd Christopher Gape.  They sang 'I Don't Remember You; Sometimes A Day Goes By (And The World Goes Round)' and it was so beautiful.  Dafydd is very talented and I'm sure I'll see him either on a musical or opera stage in the not too distant future.

John sang 'Bring Me Home' and it made me feel sad that I never had seen him as Valjean live in Les Miserables but still I was awed as ever!  We were treated to a great encore and finale when all the artists had sung 'One More Day' which was received well by the audience.  This also summed up what an incredible concert it was that evening.  It was worth the long journey to be there in person.

After the show we were able to have our programmes/memorabilia signed by the star artists despite the farcical crowd control/evacuation attempts.  I was honoured to have a photo taken with John and Peter.  It was also a pleasure to meet Nathan James and Ruthie Henshall.  With Ruthie I was going down to Memory Lane to 1998 when I last saw her live.

 Me with Peter Karrie and John Owen Jones

There was some sort of after show party going on as the bar was still open.  So it was nice to have a drink and catch up with everyone including Jacqui and her family and Lindsey and Jamie.  We even met some of John Owen Jones's family behind before and after the show!

 An unbeatable evening! With Jamie, Lindsey, me and Pat

Lee Hall's The Pitmen Painters

I recently went to see The Pitmen Painters at Bradford's Alhambra Theatre.  As well as enjoying this wonderful play I learnt a lot more about myself in relation to my personal, arts and humanities journey.

Credit: Live Theatre/National Theatre

I don't intend to talk about the Live Theatre/National Theatre production in general but do a personal abstract in relation to this.  Being a humanities graduate it is important for me to fully appreciate the arts and what it means to a lot of people especially those of the rich and famous!

Lee Hall's The Pitmen Painters took us through a journey of their personal lives and their political and social circumstances.  This had begun from attempting to try to appreciate art from a prescriptive and theory perspective and undergoing their definitions in a descriptive and practical setting.  The painters learnt through their journeys that art is about you and about yourself and it isn't representational, it's universal!

One does not need to rely on prescriptive art with its audience.  For example, the Romantics believed that art is within yourself and as a form of personal expression in whatever form as demonstrated at many art exhibitions.  The prescriptive genre would be considered as 'good art' but it doesn't necessarily mean it's exclusively good art.  The painters pointed out art reaches what really matters to you and how you feel.

I've always considered myself open to 'art' and view many forms whether they are paintings, sculptures, architecture, literature, language etc.  However I have to confess during the production there were some existing preconceptions I didn't realise I had!  These preconceptions and opinions were challenged and some change personally is in order.

I now look forward to exploring more about myself through the arts now and in the future.  I would definitely see The Pitmen Painters again and I highly recommend it.  Thanks to the cast and creative team for putting together an amazing production! It moved me and I'm sure many will share this sentiment.

 Please click on this link for further information about The Pitmen Painters.

My Graduation Day!

I've decided to dedicate this blog on my graduation day for my BA Honours degree in Humanities with English Language!  The graduation ceremony took place on 15th March 2013 and is one of the most important days of my life.  What it a journey it has been! Six years of distance learning part time with the Open University.  Holding a degree will open up opportunities which had been previously closed to me.

Anyway, I'll share my day.  The day began the night before after I had seen 'The Mousetrap' at The Leeds Grand, my parents picked me up and we drove to our hotel in Harrogate, North Yorkshire.  We stayed in the Montpellier Quarter, one of the oldest quarters in the town centre.

The following morning, my parents took me to Betty's for breakfast.  We thoroughly enjoyed the food and the presentation and quality are exceptional.  It isn't a cheap experience but worth it for a special occasion.  We returned to the hotel to get ready for the graduation ceremony.  After checking out we walked a short distance to the Harrogate International Centre where I registered and got adorned in my gown.

The ceremony was good even if it was a bit long winded for over 300 graduates to be congratulated by one of the Vice Chancellors.  Professor Ronald Carter received an honorary degree.  This was of interest to me because I studied quite a lot of his works on the development and creativity of the English Language in my final modules.  I had the honour of meeting him in person after the ceremony.

After refreshments we made our way home with an impromptu stop at a local restaurant for some dinner.  We reflected what an amazing day it has been and definitely I'm very happy and proud!  I look forward to planning my next life journeys when I'm ready!

With Mum & Dad

With Professor Carter

Matthew Bourne's Sleeping Beauty

Credit: New Adventures

I waited in anticipation to see New Adventure's production of Matthew Bourne's Sleeping Beauty.  Sleeping Beauty was my very first ballet I saw, back in 1993, and produced by the English National Ballet.  I'm not a big fan of ballet even if I'll make an exception for Swan Lake and I'm always selective about seeing a specific ballet.  This is dependent on how the story and themes are interpreted. 

I was appealed to the New Adventures production which stated 'A Gothic Romance'.  This appealed to me instantly and also the creative team behind the production which included 2013 Olivier Awards nominees, Lez Brotherton (sets and costumes) and Paule Constable (Lighting).  

This review is mainly subjective, not descriptive, so hopefully there shouldn't be any spoilers for those who are planning to see it but haven't yet.  

I love how the story is narrated on the stage at the beginning and in between acts/scenes.  It was a nice touch so the audience doesn't lose touch of the plot!  The story is told chronically from the development of Gothicism, from the Romantic Movement at the beginning of the 19th Century,  to the modern times of the 21st Century.  It didn't compromise the unrequited love between Aurora (Ashley Shaw) and Leo (Dominic North).  It is cleverly choreographed and directed perfectly.

I love the use of colours used on stage to feature the Gothicism and darkness along with the chosen moods for the scenes.  It was a down to earth realistic interpretation of a 'classic'.  Matthew Bourne isn't afraid of being different and it's not just restricted to literally interpreting the classical story with the wonderful score of Tchaikovsky.

I thoroughly enjoyed the production. I found the production refreshing as the usual classical ballet based on the well known story doesn't appeal to me.  I think Bourne's aim is to reach out to new audiences.

Some theatre etiquette couldn't have gone amiss to an annoying family who sat not far behind me.  They were rustling from unwrapping sweets, chatting throughout, banging seats and making unnecessary stops to the toilets.  This ruin the silent mood required for some of the dance acts and I had no choice but to complain to the usher during the interval.  I have a good mind to do a blog about theatre etiquette as the issue seems to be getting worse whenever I go to the theatre and I'm getting fed up of it!

On a positive note, I'm intrigued to see some more of New Adventures/Matthew Bourne's productions in the future. 

You can find out more information about the company and their productions via their website here.

My Phantom Journey 2013 (Part 1)

Liverpool

Liverpool has a special place in my heart.  There is something magical about the city and I always look forward to returning.  I couldn't think of seeing anything more special than see Phantom there! It also worked out that seeing Phantom was exactly a year to the date when I first saw the UK Production for the first time in Plymouth.

After my 56th (18th visit on the UK Tour) to Phantom!

Pierhead and Empire Theatre, Liverpool

On arrival in Liverpool I met up with my friends, Leni and Sabine whom I had the pleasure spending time with whilst in the city.  We stayed in Albert Dock, an ideal base for the sights and attractions even if it was bit of a walk to and from the railway station and the Empire Theatre!

It was great checking out the sights around Albert Dock. Sabine and I spent a morning at the Merseyside Maritime Museum and we visited the 'Titanic and Liverpool - The Untold Story' Exhibition.  I always wanted to see the exhibition and was glad to have taken the opportunity.  The exhibition was a powerful, emotive and moving exhibition which displayed real life stories of those who were on the Titanic.  I was close to tears and in all an excellent exhibition!  A rare comfort I learnt there were no cats on the ship but still very tragic in all other perspectives.  It affected Liverpool profoundly because the Titanic was registered in the city and a lot of the crew were Liverpool residents.  We also saw the permanent exhibition of the other doomed ships, Lusistania and Empress of Ireland.  

Leni spent her time at the Beatles Story Museum which she enjoyed. In all it was a good morning for our musuem fix.  After our fix we had a wander on Pierhead and saw some of the sights connected to the Titanic such as St James's House, the former White Star Line Office, and the Titanic Monument which was built in honour and memory of the engineer room staff hereos who lost their lives when the ship sank.

Dawn just about to visit the Exhibition at the Merseyside Maritime Museum

 St James's House and Titanic Memorial, Liverpool

Sabine & Leni enjoying their Flat Whites at the Pierhead Ferry Terminal Cafe

The first evening I saw the Les Mis movie at Liverpool One's Odeon whilst Leni and Sabine had their Phantom fix at the Empire Theatre.  I was tempted to see Phantom but decided to see Les Mis again the cinema instead.  Loved the movie even more on my 4th visit and now looking forward to the DVD.

 

Odeon Cinema, Liverpool One

Albert Dock, Liverpool at Night

I have been waiting to see Phantom in Liverpool since booking my ticket in June 2012.  The evening arrived and we braved the wet and cold weather to reach the Empire Theatre.  I was very pleased with my front row ticket. I never sat front row stalls seat for Phantom before so this was a first! Apart from not seeing their feet, the stage was high, I had a great close up view of the performers.

On my 56th visit (my 18th visit of the tour) we had most of the principals on including Earl Carpenter, Simon Bailey, Angela Cesar and we had Olivia Brereton as Christine (6th time seeing her on the tour).  I was even more moved by Earl's and Olivia's portrayals of Phantom and Christine respectively especially during Music of the Night when Christine offered the mask back to The Phantom.

After the show we braved the cold and did the usual stage door rituals.  We managed to catch Earl briefly and Sabine took a photo of me with him.  It was great to catch up with most of the cast especially Angela and Olivia.  Olivia and I were recalling when we met last time which was in Leeds on the evening of when we had the evacuation!  I missed David Phipps-Davies as he was on holiday but look forward to seeing him in Birmingham.  It was also great to catch up with Petra again, whom I met last year in Edinburgh, and we all took some friendship photos after the rituals.

Phantom in the City!

Me with Olivia Brereton (Alt. Christine), Empire Theatre Stage Door, Liverpool

Me with Angela Cesar (Carlotta), Empire Theatre Stage Door, Liverpool

Leni, Sabine and Me at Empire Theatre Stage Door, Liverpool

On the Saturday morning I bid farewell to Leni and Sabine who were continuing their Phantom adventures in London and I made my way to Liverpool Central Sation for a train to Port Sunlight on the Wirral Pennisula.  I always wanted to visit Port Sunlight, a preserved historic village and famed for the production of Sunlight Soap (now part of Unilever).  The founder of Sunlight soap and philanthrophist, William Lever, chose the village for his soap production and his workers.

Port Sunlight Village

I spent a few hours admiring the historic buildings and preserved landscapes.  I enjoyed visiting Port Sunlight Village Museum including Lever's vision in providing more than work for his employees and its fascinating how his social vision influenced greatly future generations.

Before returning to Liverpool I paid a visit to Lady Lever Art Gallery which was founded by Lever and I enjoyed mooching around and specially enjoyed The Lever the Collector display.  I was inspired by what Lever said that 'Art can be to everyone an inspiration.  It is within the realm of all of us...' (Lever, 1922, Lever Art Gallery)

It was a pity it rained during my visit but it didn't spoilit for me.  I would love to return in the summer and enjoy the village's landscape in bloom.  In all it was a good day and return to Liverpool happy.  Before catching my train home I met up with Annie, Kathy, Olaf and again Petra for a coffee after they saw Phantom.  It was nice chatting about Phantom and sharing our unequited love for our favourite show! 

This trip was full of happy memories and hope these will continue on on future travels.  Next and final stop of the Phantom UK Tour....Birmingham!

Petra, Annie, Kathy and Me outside the Empire Theatre, Liverpool

Fond memories of Liverpool and Phantom!