From jazz hands and high kicks to Sondheim magic

[showtunesgirl]

Welcome to the Mumsnet Musical Theatre thread.

Pull up a sequinned pouffe, get cosy with a porn star martini, kick off those character shoes, take off the wig and let out your inner Bernadette Peters.

This is a thread for lovers of musical theatre, whether watching or participating in it. Anything Goes here so to speak...

I'll kick off by saying that in the last week I saw The Book of Mormon and sob, Merrily We Roll Along. Both excellent in completely different ways.

Anyone else?

I think I saw Jenna in Sunday In The Park and loved it. Had not seen Damien before, but you are right, Franklin Shepherd Inc is a tour de force!
I keep finding new favourite songs in the score!

Got to love Ruthie. I saw her in Marguerite. Great performance.

Ooh just remembered where I'd seen Clare Foster before! She was Mrs T in Avenue Q and she was great in that.

God, her Not A Day Goes By was just heartbreaking!

Yes it gave me a lump in my throat. Beautiful.

And the Reprise of that later on. WAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH. Jenna Russell was heartbreaking there too!

It's quite a draining show if truth be told. I keep thinking about the sadness of it over a month after seeing it.

Yes, it's really lingering this one.

The concert version of Company really stayed with me too as now that I'm about the age of the characters in the show, it gave me a lot more to think about.

I would love to do Company alhought I can never decide which character I'd like to play!

Amy for me! She's so neurotic, tense and unintentionally funny.

Actually, I have a corporate casting today where I have to be intense. I'll channel her.

I know is get (type) cast as Amy. I guess Joanne would be fun when I'm a bit older.

Just realised I've never seen the 2011 recording with Neil Patrick Harris. Is it worth getting?

Not keen on Lloyd Webber. Adore Sondheim. Also Jerry Herman.

Generally, I tend to prefer lesser-known or flop musicals. They often have better scores than some big hits , having were let down by the script. Bock & Harnick's biggest hit was Fidder on the Roof which I find dull. I'd much rather listen to their She Loves Me or Fiorello.

Favourite musical has to be Follies. Sweeney Todd second. Have been lucky enough to have been in both. Of the last 15 years, think the best scores have been Titanic, Hairspray and Light in the Piazza.

I love Titanic! "From every age mankind attempts..."

Actually, the Overture from Nine is my alarm clock music. Love Maury Yeston, shame the film was dire.

I have watched a lot of the NPH Company on youtube.

I tried to watch Nine about a week ago and managed ten minutes. Yawn.

Yes I like some smaller/less well known shows too. I've already mentioned Divorce Me Darling and The Drowsy Chaperone. I'm not to too au fait with some of the really niche stuff!

Have just seen that colm wilkinson is at the lyceum theatre in london on monday night- not sure if tickets still available. 2011 company is interesting- patti lupone's joanne is as you would expect- knock you down amazing. Strangely I think neil p-h is the weak spot- a bit cliched. As it has lots of non-mt celebrities it has a lot of novelty value. I think stephen colbert does a great job. Daniel evans did a production of company at sheffield where he is the artistic director and he played bobby- that is a version of being alive I would love to see!

It's such a shame that the film was so bad. I am one of the few of my friends that was also very disappointed by Chicago as well as the direcor just didn't know how to do the musical numbers. Almost all of them are "on stage". And he did the SAME thing in Nine!

Also he made Roxie into being a victim! The whole point is that Roxie and Velma are as bad as each other!

I also like Lippa's The Wild Party. Try that one. Some good songs Sorrel seeing as you're a belter.

Sorrel - the show is so unlike the film of Nine, it's hard to believe. Yes, the basic plot and characters are there but that's about it. The show has something like 30 musical numbers, unlike the 10 or so in the film and a couple of the songs were written just for the film.

Nine, the stage show, would be fourth on my list of most favourite scores in the whole world and Unusual Way is my favourite theatre song of all time.

Showtunes - to be fair to Rob Marshall on Chicago, the whole stage show (at least originally) was subtitled A Musical Vaudeville and was never played as 'realistic'. The numbers were staged as if being presented in a theatre (for example, the whole puppet/ventriloquist business in Reached for the Gun). And of course the two women go off into the theatre at the end. So perfectly valid approach for the film. Doesn't mean you have to like it, though!

I agree, however, that repeating that trick with Nine was a total cock-up.

I have mixed feelings about the film version of Chicago. On one hand it did showcase some good performers especially CZJ (who I thought was great but had her part almost made into a supporting role to Roxie!). On the other hand, Renee Zellwegger? WTF? Bloody atrocious.

Ok, have added The Wild Party to my list.

Just remembered The Rink. . That's a good comedy song.

I just felt that the staging was still rather contrived in Chicago. Yes, that works absolutely fine for Cabaret which he choreographed for Sam Mendes but felt it was still rather forced for Chicago. And then he was at a total loss as to what to do in Nine. Every single number it was like: Ooh, is he going to be brave enough to do this? Oh no, it's a bloody stage. Again!

I do think that Rob Marshall is a great choreographer though!

It's a shame Chicago was stuck in production hell for decades. I would've loved to have seen Goldie Hawn do Roxie.

www.oscars.org/features/04022012/chicago.html

Re: Merrily. Oddly enough, while I adore a couple of the songs, it is one of my least favourite Sondheim musicals along with Passion (the least favourite being Pacific Overtures) as an actual whole. I'd much rather listen to Anyone Can Whistle or Assassins.

I'm not really sure if Passion is the kind of musical that you could really say is your favourite? It's too intense and a bit twisted to like?

OK, I'll put it another way. I really don't like Passion! In fact, there is only one number I would want to listen to ever again. Oddly enough, I think Into The Woods is more fun to be in than to watch also. I don't listen to it very often. Mind you, Sondheim often has to grow on you. Only Follies, Sweeney, Assassins and Anyone Can Whistle grabbed me from the start. Company and Night Music had to grow on me.

Fair enough Jessica!

I find that every now and again, I have revisit his shows and then suddenly I find myself liking it.