[foxa]

Saw the second preview of this and thought it had a lot to recommend it. It was my first trip to the Chocolate Factory and I did the meal deal (during previews this is £29 for a two course meal in their very pleasant restaurant - fantastic service, good Eton Mess - and tickets - probably not the best tickets, we were diagonally positioned towards the stage - but absolutely fine.) Every single seat in the theatre was filled.

It's a farce which depends on lots of door slamming and surprise entrances and offstage sound effects which I thought would be difficult in such a small space, but actually worked really well (very funny 'appearances' from an dog.) Edward Baker-Duly as the caddish Clive was excellent - and also sings very well (funny line when Gerald Popkiss complains about him holding Rhoda's hand 'trying to sing.' ) Mark Hadfield was also v. good and memorable in golfing shorts.

So for an absolutely light-hearted, escapist, trip back to another era (with daily women, cigarette cases and dressing gowns) this makes a fun evening out. My favourite bit was 'I found some biscuits' - when you see it, you'll know why.

One odd thing - there seems to be a nightclub next door and halfway through the third act loud music came pounding into the auditorium. Does that always happen?

[foxa]

Ah, that would explain it. I went on their website - I'll have some explaining to do if my laptop is ever confiscated - they are advertising some 'fur-filled' nights and a special leather event in early May and they are very local. According to their opening hours they run on Wednesdays and Saturdays - I was at the Menier on a Friday, so maybe that was a special event?? It really did break the atmosphere of the last act, you could see some of the audience looking around with 'What the....?' expressions on their faces and it must be a real treat during musicals!

[foxa]

How funny! The Menier is going to be presenting 'Forbidden Broadway' this summer. Maybe they could work the XXL nightclub/Send in the Clowns/Maureen Lipmann in costume into one of their numbers ('Send in the Bears?')

[Backdrifter]

Oh great - I'm seeing it on Wednesday so no doubt I have the backbeat to look forward to. I'm also on the meal deal, what flavour Eton Mess is it?

By the way, should this thread be in the Off West End forum? It's usually pretty thin & undernourished and could do with feeding up and a few more visitors.

[Laughingmonsta]

Done!

[Reich]

By the way, should this thread be in the Off West End forum? It's usually pretty thin & undernourished and could do with feeding up and a few more visitors.

i still don't really get the point of this section. a play is a play regardless of which theatre it's on at

[Trev]

i still don't really get the point of this section. a play is a play regardless of which theatre it's on at

Beat me to it. As a professional librarian I would ask exactly the same thing. Moving posts just to fill an underused section does mean that fewer people are likely to read it.