451 replies to this topic

[ABowlerHat]

Wandering Ranger, on 17 August 2012 - 08:59 AM, said:

Technically possible isn't just to do with "can we make the thing fall safely". Clearly they can do that. It is also to do with "can we make the thing fall safely with a reasonable financial outlay for a rig, chandelier, insurance etc.". Things like insurance are much higher than they were when POTO last toured and it may well have been that the cost of having a falling chandelier on tour was higher than was deemed necessary for what they would be getting.

Theatres had to be reinforced to cope with the chandelier when the show last toured. In Bristol for example, the 2 streets around the theatre had to be taken up by a crane which hung over the roof of the Hippodrome to hang the chandelier. That's just not really possible now. Not to mention that the last tour had two sets so one would be set up at the next tour stop whilst the show was playing at the present one as the get-in took a long time.

[Bricabrac]

There have been quite a few positive comments about the cast, especially the two leads.
Earl Jones, whom I liked better than JOJ in the original production, should also be quite good. Any guesses about how this production will fare with other, possibly lesser, leads?

[djp]

Bricabrac, on 17 August 2012 - 11:40 PM, said:

There have been quite a few positive comments about the cast, especially the two leads.
Earl Jones, whom I liked better than JOJ in the original production, should also be quite good. Any guesses about how this production will fare with other, possibly lesser, leads?

Earl Carpenter has already had a period playing the Phantom in London alongside Katie just before the tour started - and listening in the usual place  they sounded great together to me. The tour's also got some strong understudies/alternates  judging by comments and the net. As far as I have read,  there are no other cast perms on the tour. I think they have been very careful about casting their leads.

Its pretty subjective how much the current tour would work in other hands.  .I think the tour leads go  superbly with the tour version,  and work well in London too. The entire cast was strong and worked for me - i didn't once feel anything was weaker than London - which I have with some  tours.   I may be right that  other people wouldn't have the same impact on  the tour, but I  have no idea whether the  audience as a whole would notice as much. l also think its inevitable that at some point in the future one of the up and coming male stars who are very good already as understudies and the like,  will have to be promoted to Phantom - unless ALW does have a down on the males of the  profession and keeps on flying people in when one of the top experienced Brits isn't available. I think thats going to be a very interesting time and it will be wrong to think of them as "lesser leads"  .As someone said above,  if you didn't have reviewers commenting on how good the leads were,  they might be fiunding something else to write about -  like chandaliers. How crucial that , or the  quality of the product,  is to sales though - compared to the  fact that  we are in an escalating recession -  I have no idea.

[peggy sue]

Saw the show yesterday afternoon in Edinburgh and thoroughly enjoyed it. Olivia Brereton was on as Christine and thought she was brilliant. Had tears in my eyes when she sang "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again". Have never seen Katie Hall so can't compere. John Owen Jones was brilliant as always. Theatre was about three quarters full and gave a well deserved standing ovation at the end. If only I had sufficient funds to see it again!

[ABowlerHat]

As I mentioned before, I think Olivia is far better than Katie in the role. Can't wait for this to come to Cardiff in December so I can start seeing it again!

[Priscilla's heel]

Did anyone on here see John Owen Jones last day yesterday? He posted a picture on twitter of the crowd at stage door who waited to see him, people had came over from America!

[bickypeg]

I was intrigued by his comment that the beard would be back soon...

[SimonAitken]

Priscilla, on 30 September 2012 - 03:03 PM, said:

Did anyone on here see John Owen Jones last day yesterday? He posted a picture on twitter of the crowd at stage door who waited to see him, people had came over from America!

Me! He was fantastic, instead of having a speech at the end he decided to take off the ENTIRE prosthetic mask which drove the audience CRAZY!

To those who said that the sets screamed 'cheapness' I saw no such thing. Maybe it's cause I haven't seen it as much as some on here but the changes, costumes, sets etc did not bother me one bit. The only bit that felt extremely odd was the Blind Fold bit in 'Music of the Night' but aside from that I very much enjoyed it.

[Rozzi Rainbow]

I have been to see this twice more - the final matinee in Leeds and last Saturday's matinee in Edinburgh, to see James as Raoul Both shows appeared to be sold out. I managed to see three different leads in Edinburgh to Leeds - in Leeds we had John, Olivia and Simon, and in Edinburgh we had Earl, Katie and James. We also had a different Carlotta, but I can't remember her name. James was excellent as Raoul   I'm pleased to have got the chance to see him on a day and venue I could get to. He plays it very different to Simon (who I also like), much less serious.

In Leeds I was sat at the edge of the circle and managed to spot how the Phantom disappears at the end by keeping a very close eye on him. Knowing how it was done I thought I would also be able to spot it last time, but I was sat mid stalls and it was done so quickly I missed it. Some of the cast said how a lot of the choreography is now very different as Earl has put his stamp on the show - I don't know it well enough to be able to detail any changes, but I did notice a lot of things in particular in the final scene that I didn't think I'd noticed before, but that could just be me!

[Uk59]

I arrived at Edinburgh playhouse very sceptical regarding POTO 25 A.Tour having seen it in Leeds. i wasn't filled with confidence after the first 10 minutes of the show. Until... A certain "alternate" Christine (Olivia Brereton) started to sing. Having seen Katie Hall previously I can hand on heart say they have the casting the wrong way round, Olivia demanded attention and her diction was clear as crystal. She had a wardrobe malfunction during think of me, which required calmness and grace and all I can say is she made it her own, I was hanging of every word. Absolutely stunning performance. This was the first show I had seen on the tour with Earl as the phantom. With huge boots (j.Owen Jones) to fill I believe he gave something to the role that john never could... PASSION, his voice will never match up to that of JOJ but his acting surpassed it massively. Himself and Olivia had a chemistry that producers dream of, they make people believe. As the show continued I was slightly disappointed with the orchestra, with several mistakes and queues missed, it was testimony to especially Olivia's professionalism that she adapted and definitely delivered! Certain things in the show had been slightly altered but I believe for the better.. The final lair scene emphasised emotion and empathy to the highest possible degree with Earl and Olivia captivating the audience with every note.

Having seen the tour several times I can honestly say I believe they are on to a winning formula with the new Phantom and the wrongly titled "alternate" Christine (Olivia) who has the audience hanging of every note waiting for the next. I would highly recommend seeing the show in MK or Cardiff,

Same old show, fantastic new alterations

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