Broadway, West End, or your Local Theatre District.

Gramps49Gramps49 Shipmate
Every once in a long while, Mrs. Gramps and I will go to the theatre. For us, it is a 150 mile round trip to see a Broadway show. Today, we went to see Hamilton. You may know it is a Musical Rap on a figure that helped to start the United States of America. Great show. I was taken by the staging. The dancers would act as a stage crew, moving furniture on stage and off as the show went on.

We were in the nosebleed section, but it the sound system was good. Helped to know some o the biography of Hamilton to understand all that is going on.

In truth, this is the Hamilton Touring group. We went to Spokane to see it.

What have you seen lately at your local theatre?

Comments

  • We saw Hamilton a few months ago. My wife loved it, I didn't.

    Recently we have seen "Death of a Salesman" by Arthur Miller, and I went alone to "The Merchant of Venice 1936". Last Friday we saw the opera "Peter Grimes". We've also been to a couple of classical concerts and contemporary dance performances. We are fortunate in not having to do a 150-mile round trip!
  • MrsBeakyMrsBeaky Shipmate
    Eldest Beaky daughter had a career in musical theatre before she moved to NZ so I've been lucky enough to see many musicals. When she was over here in the UK the Christmas before last she took us to see Operation Mincemeat in the West End. It was fabulous.

    Our local theatre, Chichester Festival Theatre, is nearby to our home and we get productions which often then transfer to the West End. This has meant nearly 40 years of wonderful theatre going, as and when we can afford it!
  • jedijudyjedijudy Heaven Host
    This is a timely thread.
    I was invited to see (the closing show) of Shout yesterday.
    It was fun and the singer/dancer/actors were amazing, as was the band playing all the music!

    We have quite a number of theaters in my Fair City; this was in downtown, so only about a twenty minute drive from my house.
  • CaissaCaissa Shipmate
    Ms. C and I are frequent attenders of the the offerings of the Saint John Theatre Company now in its 35th year. https://saintjohntheatrecompany.com/
  • Gramps49Gramps49 Shipmate
    We do have a couple of local theatre companies. Mrs. Gramps and I have even performed in a few productions. But if we want to see a major production, it is a 150 mile round trip.

    I should also add, we have had two sons who performed in high school and college productions.

    One granddaughter performed in a couple of community theater productions as a kid, but she stopped when she was still in grade school.

    Another granddaughter has worked as a stage manager of three high school productions now--I would hope she continues into college. She is very good at it. I told her dad she would be amazed at the stage production of Hamilton.

  • MiliMili Shipmate
    I enjoy going to musicals and the theatre. Once or twice a year I might go to a professional musical or play, but I often go to performances by local theatre companies as they are more affordable and I find them just as enjoyable. Sometimes I go with friends or family and sometimes I go alone. It was recently my birthday so I decided to see a couple of shows.

    On the weekend I saw a local production of Macbeth, which I went to by myself as I think my friends and family prefer lighter performances or musicals. This production had the creepiest witches I have seen - like out of a horror movie. Usually I prefer Shakespeare's comedies, but Macbeth is one of the tragedies I like seeing different adaptions of.

    The week before I saw 'Murder Village' with my parents, an Agatha Christie style comedy-mystery improv play that was on during the Melbourne Comedy Festival. At the start the audience voted on which characters should be the murderer and victim and gave a few other suggestions on a Google doc, so every performance they put on has a different story-line and ending. The play was pretty funny and the actors played stereotyped, but entertaining characters - my parents said some of the characters reminded them of the Goons, who I don't remember well enough to compare, but they found them entertaining.

    Then at church the youth minister announced she is looking into taking some of the teenagers to see the professional performance of 'Jesus Christ, Superstar' and I have volunteered to help supervise if they go. As a child of the 80s Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals are nostalgic for me. I have previously seen 'The Phantom of the Opera' and 'Sunset Boulevard'.

  • We saw what I think is the same production of "Superstar" last year and were absolutely bowled over by it!
  • AravisAravis Shipmate
    I saw the same productions of Hamilton and Peter Grimes that Baptist Trainfan did (it’s even nearer for me - only 4 miles!) Loved Hamilton. Appreciated Peter Grimes (I’m not sure it’s an opera you can or even should “enjoy”?)
  • You're right - I'm 7.8 miles away (says Google Maps)!
  • Gill HGill H Shipmate
    We saw Merchant of Venice 1936 recently too (again, probably same theatre!)

    It was incredibly thought-provoking. It used Shakespeare's original text (with a few additions) but set it in the East End of London in 1936 and made Shylock a woman. The backdrop of the rise of fascism and the way Jewish people were treated at the time threw a whole new light on this often problematic play. Shylock wasn't turned into a hero by any means, but the background threw a whole different light on her actions. And it ended with an explanation of how people from all marginalised communities banded together to fight the fascists at the time.

    Sadly we live in public transport hell, so getting to theatre or cinema is a rare treat these days. The last train is just after 10:30 and we wouldn't get to the station in time to catch it. Plus, Hugal's work schedule includes every other weekend. So we're restricted to the occasional matinee.

    There is an am-dram society here which we've seen some performances from, as well as some really good shows at a local school. In particular, a few years ago we saw the school do 'Little Shop of Horrors' and the girl who played Audrey made me cry during 'Somewhere That's Green' - I wasn't surprised to read later that she won an award at a local drama festival, I'm sure she has a future.

    We also saw the school do 'Les Miserables', and seeing young teenagers embody the pointless sacrifice of the students was incredibly powerful.

    In complete contrast, we went to the cinema yesterday and saw the pro-shot version of the musical SIX. We've seen it several times when we lived in London and could get cheap tickets at the last minute. This version reunited the original cast, a few years down the line, and for me the additional theatre experience strengthened all the performances. The show is a blast, very cleverly written and makes some serious points amid all the fun.
  • TrudyTrudy Shipmate, Host Emeritus
    I love going to plays and musicals, from big productions to small ones. We have a lively theatre scene here for the size of our small city, and there are enough good plays on the go that we're not able to see everything we'd like to see. I've seen 4 or 5 local productions since Christmas, ranging from pretty good to pretty great. Most of them were the work of local playwrights. There'll be summer Shakespeare festival and other things like that throughout the year once the tourist season kicks in in July. My daughter (among her many jobs) does costuming for the Shakespeare festival so we try to see both of their major shows every summer.

    I do really like getting away to a larger centre -- London or New York, although travel to the US is not that appealing to me right now so we haven't been to New York since 2018 -- to see some "big" shows. We will be in London for a week in May this year and have tickets to Hadestown -- that was the one musical I wanted to see badly enough to buy tickets in advance. Otherwise we'll see what shows we can get day-of tickets for while we're there. If anyone here has seen any good shows in London lately that will be on in May and that you'd recommend, let me know!

    Because we're so out of the way, things like the National Theatre Live filmed productions are a real pleasure when they come our way. In the last few months we've seen Macbeth with David Tennant and Cush Jumbo, and Dr. Strangelove with Steven Coogan, at the cinema, and really enjoyed both. We were sorry to miss seeing The Importance of Being Ernest in the same series, because there were only two showtimes and both were at times when we couldn't make it.
  • Gill HGill H Shipmate
    Hadestown is a good pick. We have two shows booked for June, total contrasts - Disney’s Hercules and Sondheim’s The Frogs (both have a Greek setting in common I guess)! Possibly also planning to squeeze in Titanique which sounds ridiculous, silly fun.
  • Gramps49Gramps49 Shipmate
    These are the shows that will be coming to Spokane this next season. Which ones would you pick or would you get the season pass?
  • Merry VoleMerry Vole Shipmate
    Since Mrs Vole became disabled we have found that theatre is something she can manage and we both now love it.
    Our most recent foray to the theatre was to see the brilliant Piaf at the delightful little Watermill Theatre near Newbury. A restaurant lunch before a matinee performance, seating for coffee etc in the garden by The Lambourne river. Perfect! It's on for another 2 weeks.
  • Baptist TrainfanBaptist Trainfan Shipmate
    edited April 29
    That sounds absolutely delightful.

    We're soon going to be seeing "The Women of Llanrumney" which explores women in 18th century Jamaica. It comes highly acclaimed but will not, I think, be a comfortable ride!

    Llanrumney is a district of Cardiff; in the play it is a Welsh-owned plantation.
  • Merry VoleMerry Vole Shipmate
    That does sound interesting, Baptist Trainfan.
    Here in Southampton we are lucky to have the superb Mayflower Theatre. Peter Grimes by the WNO is on tomorrow evening for one night only. I would have gone but it would not be Mrs Vole's cup of tea, and it clashes with the folk club I run!
  • Baptist TrainfanBaptist Trainfan Shipmate
    edited April 29
    What a shame about Peter Grimes, it is excellent and Nicky Spence is outstanding. Not my wife's cup of tea either but she survived! I'd seen it twice before, at Sadler's Wells (Peter Pears) and Covent Garden (Jon Vickers).

    I was at Uni in Southampton. I think the Mayflower was a cinema then (?the Gaumont). But we had the late lamented Nuffield Theatre on campus - I remember seeing John Aubrey's "Brief Lives" with Roy Dotrice, Ibsen's "Ghosts" and Brecht's "Galileo", possibly one or two other things too although I was a very serious-minded young man who wasn't sure if God approved of me spending 50p on a ticket.
  • MiliMili Shipmate
    Gramps49 wrote: »
    These are the shows that will be coming to Spokane this next season. Which ones would you pick or would you get the season pass?

    I would pick Some Like it Hot. It sounds like an interesting update on the movie.

    I'm not sure if the youth musical outing is going ahead, so I am going to go see Les Mis the Arena Spectacular. I saw it at the theatre in London almost 20 years ago and wasn't sure how an arena spectacular would compare, but it's got good reviews and they added extra shows so more affordable tickets were available
  • KarlLBKarlLB Shipmate
    Hard as it may be for some who know me to believe, but I was at La Bohème at Sheffield City Hall last night.
  • MrsBeakyMrsBeaky Shipmate
    KarlLB wrote: »
    Hard as it may be for some who know me to believe, but I was at La Bohème at Sheffield City Hall last night.

    Oh I love that opera!
    And not hard to believe as imo you come across on theses boards as someone with very eclectic taste.
  • Gill HGill H Shipmate
    I haven’t seen Some Like It Hot but I adore one of the songs, “You Could Have Knocked Me Over With A Feather” which is on YouTube. No spoilers here, but that song is a spoiler for a plot twist that wasn’t quite the same as the film.
  • KarlLBKarlLB Shipmate
    MrsBeaky wrote: »
    KarlLB wrote: »
    Hard as it may be for some who know me to believe, but I was at La Bohème at Sheffield City Hall last night.

    Oh I love that opera!
    And not hard to believe as imo you come across on theses boards as someone with very eclectic taste.

    I think Mimi was putting it on at the end though - no-one that ill would be able to project over an orchestra, not even in a world where we sing about pawning old coats.
  • NicoleMRNicoleMR Shipmate
    I'm seeing a show tonight. The old movie Labyrinth (that's the Jim Henson one with David Bowie as the Goblin King) with live orchestral music. Should be interesting. I'll give a report tomorrow!
  • Nick TamenNick Tamen Shipmate
    KarlLB wrote: »
    MrsBeaky wrote: »
    KarlLB wrote: »
    Hard as it may be for some who know me to believe, but I was at La Bohème at Sheffield City Hall last night.

    Oh I love that opera!
    And not hard to believe as imo you come across on theses boards as someone with very eclectic taste.

    I think Mimi was putting it on at the end though - no-one that ill would be able to project over an orchestra, not even in a world where we sing about pawning old coats.
    Having a live orchestra accompany your death throes can bring on one epic last hurrah.


  • Baptist TrainfanBaptist Trainfan Shipmate
    edited May 2
    True, but opera singers often seem to manage one final burst before collapsing lifeless onto the stage as the curtain comes down.

    (Not so in "Peter Grimes" which we saw recently: he goes down with his boat, only seen at a distance and briefly commented upon by his fellow-townsfolk from the shore),
  • Nick TamenNick Tamen Shipmate
    edited May 2
    True, but opera singers often seem to manage one final burst before collapsing lifeless onto the stage as the curtain comes down.
    Exactly! But with opera, we are operating from a framework in which objection to artificiality has been thrown out the window from the get-go. If the dying person is going to sing to start with, she or he might as well sing something worth listening to and remembering.

    This article from the New York Times might be of interest: “Exit Arias: What Opera Can Teach Us About Dying.” (I hope the link I’ve provided is a free link; it’s supposed to be.)

    A few bits from the article:
    I understand that operatic exit arias have been a popular target of ridicule. Scenes in which a character dies, and sings about it at length, are fun to lampoon, and contribute to the sense of artificiality that can alienate a first-time listener. And feminist critics are correct to point out that the profusion of death scenes involving female characters cements patriarchal norms by ritualizing the destruction of exceptional women.

    But in recent months my thoughts have kept returning to what opera might teach us about death.

    . . .

    One of the most poignant scenes in opera comes at the end of Puccini’s “La Bohème,” when the lovers are reunited only minutes before Mimì succumbs to consumption. She senses that she has little time left.

    “There are so many things I want to tell you,” she sings, “or really just one, but it’s vast and deep and infinite like the ocean: You are my love and my life.”

    The musicologist and conductor Will Crutchfield pointed out that a death like Mimì’s—undeserved and unexceptional, from a common illness—was new to opera in the 19th century. In earlier eras, opera hewed close to the rules of classical tragedy, in which premature death is brought on by a character’s tragic flaw. The Enlightenment brought operas in which death is meted out as just punishment to the wicked, like Don Giovanni. In both these cases, a listener’s sympathies with the dying are guided by morality.

    In works like “La Bohème” and Verdi’s “La Traviata,” on the other hand, opera presented death “almost in the random way in which it happens in life, in that it doesn’t discriminate between the deserving and the undeserving,” Mr. Crutchfield said, noting that many 19th-century operagoers would have lost loved ones to similar illness. The listener, then, was invited to identify more closely with both the victim and those left behind.

    “I think it evokes from the audience an idealization not only of how they will face death but how they will face grief,” Mr. Crutchfield said.

    My grandmother used to say “Never let the truth get in the way of a good story.” I suspect the “exit aria” is an exemplification of that rule, or perhaps of a corollary: Never let factuality get in the way of Truth.
    And speaking of death, I heartily echo the recommendations of Hadestown above. I’ve seen it twice, and it’s quickly moved into my Favorite Three.

  • Gill HGill H Shipmate
    I have Victor Borge’s explanation of opera in my head now:

    “Before she dies she sings an aria. The so-called ‘die aria’…”

    Maybe you need a Danish accent.
  • NicoleMRNicoleMR Shipmate
    As I said above, I went to a production of Labyrinth in Concert, and it was a lot of fun, I love the move, the music was great, and there were lights as well. A good time was had.
  • MelisandeMelisande Shipmate Posts: 15
    I live near a city close enough to New York that I can go periodically for something special (it's the prices, not the hassle, that keep me away), but also have a variety of excellent live theatre nearby. I work part-time on the house staff of a regional Equity theatre, so I see what they do, over and over and over. :) I am also a devotee of National Theatre Live/@Home. I perform in community theatres when people will cast me (I'm in that under-represented highly-sought-after Plump Middle-Aged Woman demographic /sarcasm). I wrote my master's thesis on the relationship between live performance and audience. Theatre is magical.
  • Gramps49Gramps49 Shipmate
    edited May 6
    It's true. There is a direct relationship between performance and audience. I have been in community theatre too. One recent play I was in fell flat because, well, the audience did not get the jokes. But the next night a different audience appreciated the jokes, and it soared.
  • We've just been to see an amazing play called "The Women of Llanrumney" - it's about slaves in Jamaica in 1765: https://tinyurl.com/3j2juu38. Very powerful in quite a small space (and we were in the front row). I don't often go to see plays, but that's three within a month, the others being "Death of a Salesman" and "Merchant of Venice 1936". All have been good.

    We've also been to the opera ("Peter Grimes") and an orchestral concert. Ballet at the end of next week, then it all goes quiet!
  • TrudyTrudy Shipmate, Host Emeritus
    The first show we saw in London, last night, was The Comedy About Spies, by the same folks who did The Play That Goes Wrong. Pure silly fun which we thoroughly enjoyed. These people really know how to put on a good old-fashioned farce — the physical comedy and the staging were amazing.
  • Alan29Alan29 Shipmate
    Our main local professional theatre has for about 90% of the season touring productions of musicals. I cannot abide them, so I rarely go.
    Whatever happened to plain drama?
  • The RogueThe Rogue Shipmate
    Mrs Rogue and I are going to see War Horse tomorrow. We aren't regular theatre goers by any means but this is the second one this year. In January we saw Girl on a Train which we both enjoyed.
  • My son - who worked for years in the theatre and could be very critical - thought that War Horse was marvellous. Enjoy!
  • TubbsTubbs Admin Emeritus, Epiphanies Host
    We're off to see "Just in One Day" in the next few months. It's a musical about Live Aid. The friend who's seen it says it's wonderful. I'll let you know. (We're not big theatre goers. There's only so much money so we tend to put it towards live music).
  • HugalHugal Shipmate
    As Gill said we are in public transport hell and don’t drive. As I have worked for the same company for 25 years this year I get 6 months leave on full pay. I start beginning of August. That should free up some time for a theatre visit or two.
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