Happy Birthday Apollo Victoria!

There aren’t many 80 year olds whose birthday celebration involves Bollywood dancing,  rollerskates and semi-nudity.  But the Apollo Victoria’s 80th Birthday Gala Performance included it all.

Last night, the theatre, currently the London home to hit musical Wicked, hosted a star-studded cast to ensure the celebrations went down in theatre history.

I’ve admitted in a previous post to being a geek – but when I read online that the cast of Starlight Express would be reuniting a whole new geek bubbled up inside –  I grew up listening to the original cast recordings, I know all the words, all the versions – and my goodness I wasn’t going to miss a chance to sing along with the stars of my childhood.

Aside from a few technical hiccups, the one-night-only performance was spectacular.  The first act saw the cast of Wicked (with a few musical-theatre friends) guide the audience though the Apollo’s history – from cinema  to live act venue – on a rollercoaster of ballads and high-energy dance.  The cast of Priscilla Queen of the Desert were transformed into the Supremes (those guys have some amazing legs!), the Jersey Boys performed a fantastic medley of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, and Sharon D Clarke (the original Killer Queen (We Will Rock You)) belted out a fantastic Gladys Knight.  Even Bucks Fizz reunited to bring the theatre into the 80s – complete with a skirt-ripping Making Your Mind Up.

But it was the second act that we die-hard theatre fans had been waiting for.  With a sequined Christopher Biggins as host, we were treated to performances by Wayne Sleep and James Fox, and some big musical numbers from some of the shows that had graced the Apollo’s stage.

The one let down of the night were the performances of the Bombay Dreams numbers – clearly the orchestra pit was not large enough to accommodate sitars and the other instruments needed to create the Bollywood sound, meaning the performers mimed along to a backing track… the dance routines were stunning, but this tarnished the gloss of the evening for me.

And Starlight Express? Fan-bloody-tastatic.  I don’t care that Greaseball slipped over during his solo in Rolling Stock, he was still note perfect even when his arms were pin-wheeling.

It must have been like returning home for a lot of the original cast.  Gone were the tubes and piping that made up their costumes in the 80s, 90s and 00s, this performance saw the casts skating and singing together is suits and ties – paying their respects to the birthday girl that had been the musical’s home for 7,461 performances.

It was a night of laughter, singing, dancing, clapping and cheering.  The Apollo Victoria’s Charity Gala Performance was a fantastic trip down memory lane, whilst showcasing some very current West End talent.

Happy Birthday old girl.

by Claire Dunford

Over-throw the Rainbow: Where Andrew Lloyd Webber could go next.

The vocal cords are warmed up, the gingham dresses are pressed and the final line up is in.

This time next week Andrew Lloyd Webber will have found his new Dorothy.

 

Andrew Lloyd Webber is hunting for Toto

 

For the last few years my weekend viewing has been punctuated by Andrew Lloyd Webber’s televised search for his next theatre star.  From Maria, to Joseph, to Nancy and now Dorothy the BBC shows have helped reinvigorate the West End and get more visitors through the theatre doors.

But where could ALW go for 2011?

Personally I think it’s time for something new.  In 2007 they pulled in the teen viewers by concocting a storyline in Channel 4 soap Hollyoaks.  Then in 2009 producers turned the search spotlight on cute-as-a-button 8 year-old boys.  Then, this year, they upped the cute-stakes further by hunting for Dorothy’s adorable four-legged friend…  If the show gets any sweeter I think even avid theatre fans  will start to feel queasy.

What our Saturday night viewing needs is a bit more spice…

We Brit’s can’t help but love a good TV villain – Big Brother 1’s Nasty Nick, Bad Girl’s Jim Fenner even Simon Cowell have captured our home-grown imaginations – so why not exploit it to the full.

 

Villians are a staple of Saturday night TV

 

Simply put villans are more exciting.

Do a televised search for the Wicked Witch of the West, or the Child Catcher from Chitty.   Imagine the possiblities – no more of the hideous ‘Musical Mash-ups’ but rather ‘goodie’ vs ‘baddie’ duets.

You’re guaranteed to get some brilliant characters auditioning and the if  the recent popularity of television shows like Doctor Who have proven anything, it’s that kid’s like being scared.

Go on Andrew, give us someone we’ll love to hate.

It happens every time, they all become blueberries.

(originally posted on 25th November 2008 on Bobbin’s Movie Night)
Breaking News: Brown Ale Scones on Tea Time Menu – BBC News

You mention “scones” and a lot of people think about terribly British summer afternoons supping tea and munching cake with generous dollops of cream and jam. For me just mentioning this particular cake product brings out a cold sweat recalling lengthy debates over pronunciation, but somewhere in Northumberland customers are clamouring for some weird and wacky afternoon teas:

Garlic scone anyone?

But odd as Nibbles café may sound, movie land is where you find the truly bizarre consumables. Who can forget old Sweeney Todd and the charming Mrs Lovett feeding the London populace on… well… each other? And how about Delicatessen, where an admirably economical Parisian butcher makes his delectable dinners from some of his unwitting visitors? And need we even mention the possible accompaniments to a nice Chianti?

But the most creative of the movie world’s culinary crack-pots has to be the somewhat less cannibalistic Mr Willy Wonka.

Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)
Starring: Gene Wilder, Jack Albertson, Peter Ostrum, Roy Kinnear
Director: Mel Stuart
Running time: 100 mins
Genre: Children’s Musical

Mel Stuart’s film adaptation of Roald Dahl’s immortal novella Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is an off the wall, but honest tribute to what Wonka would deem “pure imagination.” A beef scone might upset the traditional English cream tea, but luncheons where you devour the tea set itself takes nibbling to a whole new level; but chomping on a bright yellow teacup is perfectly ordinary if you are Willy Wonka…

Chocolate Factory keeps you on your toes, which is one reason why it has matured so well through the decades. While a bit of a box-office failure in its day Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory has come to be deemed a minor gem of a classic family film era.

Sadly though the magic of this film is let down by its potted attempt at musicality. Yes, the Oompa-Loompa song is the most maddening piece of music ever, and Veruca Salt has the best singing temper-tantrum I’ve seen in a film, but most of the songs are instantly forgettable. On top of this many of the pieces are shoehorned in seemingly at random, riddling the film with strange shifts in pace. “Candy-Man,” for example, is a memorable number, but for some reason devotes a lengthy sequence to the eminently unimportant “Bill the Candy Shop Owner” where as poor old Charlie finding the final golden ticket – the emotional pinnacle of his life-so-far – doesn’t get so much as a bar… What the heck?

In spite of its musical shortcomings the film ingeniously intertwines dark adult themes and child-like whimsy, with a colour pallet drawn straight from “Spot Finds His Big Red Ball On Acid.” The over-bright colours of the Chocolate Room exemplify 60s psychedelia, whereas the pedalo ride from hell (complete with its shots of decapitated chickens) is nothing short of terrifying. And that’s before we even get to the star of the show…

Wilder’s Wonka is the image of the twisted genius, with his piercing blue eyes, mad-professor hair and sinister smile, not to mention that fact that his tour is nothing short of torment to his guests. His casual indifference to their harm is light years away from our contemporary compensation culture of sanitised childhoods and cotton wool… but I can’t imagine the snotty brats getting off scot-free either, and I’ve yet to find a child who hasn’t been captivated by Wonka’s casual cruelty. Wilder’s boundless energy makes him reminiscent of a favourite uncle, and you just cannot help forgetting, or at least forgiving, his ‘little’ eccentricities.

So, just as Colin and Jacqui Nevin, proprietors of Nibbles café, take an unorthodox approach to a traditional recipe Wonka takes a crazy pot shot at the dangers of lax parenting. Delivered with all the subtlety of a sledgehammer, Chocolate Factory imparts the message that bad parents produce “bad eggs,” just as reliably as a chocolate factory produces chocolate.

However, family-value fascism aside, Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory is a truly magical film for all ages, inviting even the oldest of children into a world where anything is possible with a bit of imagination… and some really crazy props!