Yesterday my little theatre nerd heart was fulfilled. My mum had requested that we went to see The Buddy Holly Story at Richmond Theatre; there was no way I could refuse. I grew up listening to Buddy Holly songs, so I knew that this jukebox musical would take me on a road down memory lane. It was a delightful experience; the audience were happily clapping along by the end of the show.

The Buddy Holly Story is a musical that showcases the songs by Buddy Holly and The Crickets, a rock and roll sensation, while also giving an insight into the journey that was his career! In this production Buddy was played by Alex Fobbester, Joe Butcher appeared as Joe B. Mauldin, Josh Haberfield as Jerry Allison, Thomas Mitchells played The Big Bopper, and Jordan Cunningham played Ritchie Valens. Other actors included Kerry Low as Maria Elena Holly, Matthew Quinn as Hipockets Duncon, and Alex Tosh as Norman Petty. There were many more performers in the show. The show had a relatively small cast, with actors playing various different characters.

All of the actors played their own instruments; this is something that I love to see when I see a performance. Fobbester and many of the other actors did a very good job pronouncing the southern American accent, although during one particular angry moment his diction lacked a little. However, this is just a minor thing compared to the entertainment that he brought to the audience. By the end of the show he was sweating from dancing around the stage so much!

Sometimes the narrative overtook the songs. A famous song would be mentioned and played briefly and that would be it, you wouldn’t hear any more of it, even though it would’ve been something that got the audience riled up. I mean, I would’ve loved to have heard more of Peggy Sue! Such an amazing song, but we only got a little snippet. My favourite moments were definitely when they just let the music tell the story. Buddy Holly serenading his wife with an acoustic version of Heartbeat is all I need to be mesmerised. That was definitely one of the greatest moments.

A re-enactment of the Winter Dance Concert got everyone up off their seats. Featuring La Bamba by Ritchie and Johnny B Goode, everyone clearly loved it. The tragedy of the plane crash that ended the lives of Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J P Richardson (The Big Bopper) and the pilot was communicated with the utmost respect and dignity. A spotlight on the guitar that was used by the performer of Buddy Holly and a speech spoken off stage was all that was needed to portray the sad events.

The Buddy Holly Story proves to everyone that Buddy Holly’s music still lives on. The show did a fantastic job in portraying the ups and downs of Buddy’s career. As is mentioned in the programme, Don Mclean named that fateful day as “the day the music died” in American Pie but Buddy’s music is still played decades later. If you get the chance to this show then do, it’s not one to be missed.

There is nothing I love more than books. They tell a story through words, there are no visual images, it is left to you to imagine the scenery with the words you are given. Films give you all of it, the dialogue, scenery, even music! Life is so different when you don’t have music playing in the background. For a while I have thought that theatre is a halfway between the two. While a lot of information is provided for the audience, props, costumes, sound effects, character’s features, there’s still a lot of gaps for us to fill in. One thing that I love immensely is crossovers. Don’t you always wonder, how would this book be played out as a film? What particular moments would create a good musical number?

As we know there are lots of books, many of which have been created into musicals and films. This would be the perfect opportunity to discuss a few of my favourite book to musical adaptations! So here are my top five bookish musicals.

Hamilton

Let’s start it off with a recent online favourite. Hamilton took the world by storm when it debuted on Broadway in 2015. The musical is revolutionary. Why? Almost every song is rap. In the last decade it has been quite difficult to find an original musical that sticks around for very long. However, Hamilton has challenged this in many ways and given a new meaning to the musical. It’s astounding to think that this rap musical was inspired by the biography, Alexander Hamilton. Using the book about the American Founding Father, Lin-Manuel Miranda made musical theatre history. I’m impressed, as are most people! Not only is the musical full of rap, it is also full of diverse characters, giving many people in the minority a chance to shine. I have not read Ron Chernow’s book myself, yet there has been a rise in people researching Alexander Hamilton’s role in history since the musical found popularity.

Favourite Song: The Schuyler Sisters

Show Boat

We’re going back in time quite a few years to 1927. Show Boat is a classical musical, one of the first and very controversial at the time. It is based on Edna Ferber’s 1926 book of the same name which explores inequality, and gave a voice for people of colour in a time when that would’ve been unheard of. The book and musical showed that there is a connection between the poor and rich, fortunate and unfortunate, and at the time, between the black and the white. This was during a time when segregation was still at large. Showboat was one of the first book musicals, and was the start of talking about this subject. Again, I have not yet read the book, however watching the musical has made me want to explore it more. The issues brought up are still relevant in our society today.

Favourite Song: Old Man River

Cats

If you’ve been on my Instagram then you would know that I have been loving the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, Cats, a hell of a lot lately. This mega-musical has been a long-time favourite of mine. For years I had no idea that it was actually based on a poetry book by T.S. Elliot. In fact, it isn’t just based off of the stories; it is the poetry book in song form. The majority of the lyrics to Cats you can find in, Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats, apart from Grizabella’s songs which were written privately by T. S. Elliot. Perhaps you can argue that this musical is in fact a jukebox musical, maybe one of the first! From what I have seen there have not been any musicals based off poetry since, however I would love to see a new musical develop from a poem! The Lady of Shallot has always been a favourite of mine. Maybe that could create something? I’m sure lots of readers would like to see how Sylvia Plath would fare. Personally, I wouldn’t mind a bit of Shakespeare!

Favourite Song: Grizabella the Glamour Cat and Mister Mistoffelees.

Carrie

Not one of the most successful book musicals, when Carrie first opened on Broadway in 1998 it flopped. Perhaps one of the worst in the era; it prompts the question, can a horror book be transformed into a musical? Most musicals are cheesy and bouncy right? Even if they’re not that, they’re very emotional. I discovered Carrie the Musical after I finished reading Stephen King’s book a few years ago. Carrie was and always will be one of my favourite novels. I loved seeing how the story unfolded, so I was incredibly excited to find that a musical existed. I’ve tried watching the bootleg of the original production; however, I didn’t enjoy it. Carrie is a very subtle, in the beginning anyway, book where the story unfolds slowly until BAM! Everything’s falling apart at once. The original was too dramatic yet not dramatic enough. However, I am pleased to say that the writers did a revival. Although it doesn’t quite do the book justice, the ending doesn’t contain the amount of umph it needs to, the build to the end is incredible. The musical explores everyone’s emotions, how they want to fit in, and how as strange as Carrie is, she is full of love. Carrie is a lot more emotional and heartfelt but this new perspective on the normally creepy book, gives the same message. Bullying is wrong, everyone is just trying to fit in, and we should be strong. We all have a way to shine. Maybe one day will tweak it a bit more and tour it, I’d love to see the show in action!

Favourite Song: I Remember How Those Boys Dance

Wicked

This is the musical that spurred many retellings. Debuted in 2003, Wicked is based on the life of the wicked witch in The Wizard of Oz, giving her more heart than she had in the original story. I find the transition from book to musical one of the most fascinating, as in this case, the musical is indeed very different to the book. Many parents take their children to see Elphaba and Glinda battle it out with the Wizard. Not to mention that we all swoon at Fiyero. However, you wouldn’t want your children reading Gregory Maguire's novel. It is quite a bit raunchier than its musical counterpart. Stephen Schwartz needed to make the musical appealing to a wide audience. Plus, a 500 page novel has to be whittled down into a 2 and a half hour performance. Of course subplots and characters are going to be lost! At one point Schwartz was considering cutting out the political animal storyline. This is one of the fundamental parts of the book! Despite being very different from the more serious and sarcastic novel, the story and points are all the same. I have found both very enjoyable, and recommend you explore both!

Favourite Song: For Good (and every other song in the musical, really I could I choose?)

That’s all for Show Sunday this week! It was very difficult to whittle this list down to five. There are so many musicals like this out there! I’d love to do a post like this in the future, perhaps being more specific. Most of the books mentioned in this post are for adults; however, lots of children’s books have been turned into musicals. Matilda being one of them! Oh how I wish I could see that again! Stick around and you might see a children’s book to musical post in the near future.

Now I’d love to hear more from you. What are your favourite musicals that are based on books? Also, what books would you love to be turned into musicals? 

On Thursday 25^th May I went and saw The Addams Family at the Marlowe Theatre. Though it has been professionally performed on Broadway, The Addams Family has never been showcased in the UK; until now of course. I believe that there is a reason why. I found that the musical didn’t quite live up to its expectations. Even before I saw it I was skipping multiple songs in the soundtrack. The Addams Family misses that pizazz that I look for when I go to see a show. There’s some creepiness, but not quite enough to get you hooked. Some comedic lines did not land, and I didn’t laugh as much as I expected I would.

I don’t think that this is due to direction or the performers. The performers did the best that they could do with the material. Carrie Hope Fletcher stood out among the rest, with her extremely powerful voice and bold facial expressions. The main character, Gomez, played by Cameron Blakely also stole the show. He had finesse and poise, plus his Spanish accent was spot on; from what I can tell anyway! He was very lively and charismatic, creating moments to laugh at. As for Morticia Addams, I didn’t quite find her creepy enough. I’ve never seen The Addams Family, but I’d expect when talking about enjoying death and all things ghoulish that the mother would be a little more sinister with an added sprinkle of sultry. The Samantha Womack played the character as mature, comedic and slightly sultry, but there could’ve been more seduction and oomph.

I found myself turning off a few times during some long scenes or songs. A lot of the songs were too repetitive, most sounded the same, and the ones that didn’t often didn’t quite fit. The first Act felt like a blur to me and it was hard to pay proper attention. I missed a lot of lines and jokes as the melody often sounded monotone. There were times as well when there was too much happening on stage, taking away from the matter of the song itself. To add to that, a lot of scenes either didn’t flow into each other, or didn’t make sense at all.

All criticisms aside, there were scenes that hooked me in, that I wish I could see more. It’s no wonder that Pulled is such a popular song as it is to die for! It doesn’t quite fit with some of the other songs, but it really is a hit. Not to mention that Fletcher does an outstanding job in performing the song. Another favourite in Act 1 is Full Disclosure. A longer scene that is really fun to watch! The Game, a group activity where you drink from a chalice and tell a secret, is something completely relatable. Everyone bounced off of each other in this scene. What was going to happen next? Whose secret is going to come out next? There was a little bit of suspense with that sprinkle of comedy and drama. It is at this point in The Addams Family, that we see Charlotte Page's immense talent. The moment when Alice Beineke drinks from the chalice is one of the best parts of the show. Her operatic voice bursts out and we see her ability to play the dark as well as the light.

I enjoyed Act 2 a lot more but like in Act 1, a lot of the act 2 songs sounded like filler, and again, I really enjoyed Fletcher’s performance in her duet with Lucas, Crazier Than You. Another catchy song that speaks of passion and taking chances; one of my favourites in fact, I'm sure the romance helps with that. It's something incredibly relatable and fun! However, like Pulled it didn’t fit in with the rest of the music.

I have no idea why Les Dennis’ character, Uncle Fester, was in love with the moon, and whether he actually did meet the spirit of the moon in his song. It wasn’t quite clear. That part was strange, very very strange. I like quirky storylines, in fact I love them, but this musical didn’t seem to know whether it was surreal or normal. One song would be comedic like The Producers, and then suddenly we’d have an emotional number that doesn’t fit in with the dissonance of other songs. I would’ve loved to have heard more songs like the When You're An Addams, a bit more upbeat with some sass. Unfortunately, we had slow numbers such as Just Around the Corner, and long-winded exposition numbers like, Gomez' solo, Trapped. The Addams Family was confused with what theme it was going for. In one scene its stagey comedy like The Producers, then it’s emotional rock like Next to Normal or Rock of Ages, and suddenly at the end I feel like I’m watching the end of Cats. Are we going for classic music, rock or 80’s? I’m confused, mixtures of styles are common in musicals but these songs don’t fit together at all.

Although I didn’t find the musical particularly captivating, the costumes were wonderful. I loved the idea of all the ancestors, and their different weathered outfits. I would’ve loved them to have more involvement in the show, perhaps within the storyline. My favourite of them were the ringleader and the geisha.

It’s a pity that I wasn’t impressed like I wanted to be. I would’ve liked the storyline to be more complex, and at times, truer to how certain characters are. But perhaps The Addams Family is a style of musical that just isn’t for me. Despite the show lacking consistency, I’m glad that I went to see it, there were moments that I loved, and I got to see some incredible actors. I’ll be singing the opening song and clicking for days.

The Addams Family has taken social media by storm, with lots of people giving it five star reviews, so I’m sure lots of people disagree with my 3 star rating. I’d love to hear more of your thoughts if you’ve seen the show. Do you disagree with me, if so why? The Addams Family is touring the UK right now, so you could join the discussion by seeing it yourself! Alternatively, listen to some of the songs and let me know what you think. That’s all for this week’s Show Sunday.

A few weeks ago on Show Sunday I wrote a post about the shows I’m looking forward to seeing this summer. I thought it would be only fitting if I told you guys about some of the best musicals I’ve seen in the past. This is in no particular order. I can wittle it down to five, but order them?! I’m too indecisive for that!

Miss Saigon – In 2015 I saw the revival of Miss Saigon at the Prince Edward Theatre. Based on the opera, Madama Butterfly, the story is heart-wrenching and tragic. Miss Saigon is a mega-musical about Kim, an orphaned Vietnamese girl trapped in the midst of the Vietnam War, and Chris, an American soldier. Kim is lead to a strip bar where she and Chris meet and fall in love. The star-crossed lovers only spend a short time together before they are torn apart by the unfortunate circumstances around them. What happens next is moving in many ways.

I’ve seen some mega-musicals that haven’t impressed me too much, the tourist vibe was either too strong or the performers didn’t quite hit the mark for whatever reason. However, Miss Saigon did not fall into that category. I was blown away, in fact I pretty much cried the whole way through. All of the performers were incredibly talented, it amazed me how they could reach such emotional depth eight times a week.  Eva Noblezada and Chris Peluso had phenomenal stage chemistry. My favourite performance would have to be from Jon Jon Briones though. He captured the audience as the Engineer, creating comedy in the perfect moments. After I left I found myself listening to the soundtrack for months. I still get goose bumps when I hear the notes soar two years on. Mark my words; I will see it again someday.

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers – A more traditional revival, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers toured in 2013 and I was lucky enough to see it. I hadn’t seen MGM’s movie so this was a completely new experience. I was enthralled by it! If you haven’t heard of the musical before, here’s a quick plot summary! Milly, played by Helena Blackman, meets backwoodsman Adam Pontipee, played by Sam Attwater, at the local tavern. They subsequently get married, and Milly goes to live with her new husband, only to find that he has six other brothers to look after. To solve the situation she decides to marry them off, and turns an unfortunate situation into a merry one.

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers was one of my first traditional musicals to watch and it is still one of my favourites now. The production was filled with lively and flawless choreography, with performers leaping over each other, lifting each other up and doing lots of quick turns. To add to this the vocals were flawless, and the costumes were to die for! Petticoats were twirling everywhere. All the men and women wore different bright colours, lightening up the stage. Just talking about it now is making me wish I could see it again! I’ll just have to watch the film instead.

Gypsy – I was lucky enough to see Imelda Staunton star in Sondheim’s biographical musical at Chichester Festival Theatre before it moved to the West End. A lot of popular West End shows were originally produced in Chichester; I guess I chose the right university to go to! Gypsy is based on the burlesque entertainer, Gypsy Rose Lee’s memoir, which tells the story of her childhood, relationship with her mother and rise to fame. Its musical counterpart focuses on Rose Hovick’s need to live through her two daughters to experience the dreams she could never achieve herself.

Staunton’s performance left me speechless. Each line was delivered with expertise, she was a true gem! Her performance of the finale, Rose’s Turn was definitely a favourite of mine, the anger and passion in her voice and acting was immense. As well as Rose’s Turn there is another favourite part of this musical. During Let Me Entertain You (Reprise) in Act 2, Louise transitions into Gypsy Rose Lee, shown through a sultry yet sophisticated burlesque act. I wish I could be as classy and sexy as Lara Pulver who plays her.

Avenue Q – I have been waiting and waiting for Sell a Door to do another tour of Avenue Q. This musical is a lot more quirky and controversial than the last three shows on my list. Plus, it is funny as heck! Avenue Q is a parody of children’s puppet shows such as Sesame Street, addressing important topics through obscene jokes; topics ranging from the troubles of life and racism to sex and love. This show proves that you really don’t need a huge set to entertain an audience. A few puppets, a backdrop and some brilliant actors will do splendidly!

The story starts when Princeton goes in search of his purpose after getting a BA in English. The only affordable place he can find to live is Avenue Q, where he meets lots of hilariously unique characters such as Kate Monster and Gary Coleman. You get the opportunity to laugh through their strange conversations as you watch their relationships develop. I saw this performance so long ago now that I can’t remember who played who, but I do remember their voice acting being quite impressive, especially the woman who played cute Kate Monster as well as Lucy the Slut. It’s not surprising to me that people who aren’t musical theatre regulars also adore this musical. Now can they tour again please?!

Matilda – Matilda is one of those shows that you’ll leave and think, why can’t I have that much talent? Because believe me, the children in that show are stars. Right from the beginning they perform with a mass load of energy. I found myself grinning from ear to ear. Since I saw it for my birthday (thank you Fern) I have been dying to go see it again. Every aspect of this musical is incredible. The lyrics, the melodies, the set, the costumes, the performers, everything! Although it’s aimed at children everyone can love it. The show does feel a little bit like a pantomime, especially in the television song, but that’s what makes it so loveable!

Matilda, written by Roald Dahl, is an inspiring story about a little genius who develops a parental bond with her teacher and sets out to save Miss Honey and her fellow school friends from the awful headteacher, Mrs Trunchball. Mrs Trunchball’s costume was goofily terrifying might I add! One parent had to take their child out because she started crying upon seeing her. It reminded me when I was a child and hid under my seat when the wicked witch came on stage. 

The child and adult performers really work together to make this show delightful. It is warm, clever and full of hope and joy. Just like a chocolate cake! (Small Bruce reference there) Tim Minchin does an amazing job at creating witty, intricate lyrics that matches with an equally intricate set and choreography! Like all the other shows mentioned, just thinking about it is making me want to see it again. I won’t give too much away as you really should see it yourself. I really hope that this musical stays in the west end for a good length of time. That way I can see it again!

So that’s my top 5 musicals that I’ve seen so far! I may have waffled on a bit, there’s so much more I could’ve mentioned. I hope you’ve enjoyed it, and stay tuned for next Sunday when I’ll be reviewing The Addams Family. I can’t wait!