Harry Potter and the Cursed Child at The Palace Theatre London

About the show: 

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is a British two-part stage play written by Jack Thorne based on an original story by Thorne, J. K. Rowling and John Tiffany. Previews of the play began at the Palace Theatre, London on 7 June 2016, and it premiered on 30 July 2016.

The play opened on Broadway on 22 April 2018 at the Lyric Theatre, with previews starting on 16 March 2018. Its cast is similar to that of the first year on West End, with returning actors Anthony Boyle, Sam Clemmett, Noma Dumezweni, Poppy Miller, Jamie Parker, Alex Price, and Paul Thornley.

The story begins nineteen years after the events of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows and follows Harry Potter, now a Ministry of Magic employee, and his younger son Albus Severus Potter, who is about to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

At the 2017 Laurence Olivier Awards, the London production received a record-breaking eleven nominations and won an again record-breaking nine awards, including Best New Play, Best Actor, Best Actor in a Supporting Role, Best Actress in a Supporting Role and Best Director. At the 2018 Tony Awards, the Broadway production won six awards, including Best Play. The play also set the record for highest all-time weekly ticket sales of any play after grossing over $2.5 million at the Lyric Theater for the week ending on December 30, 2018. 

More information: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Potter_and_the_Cursed_Child

My opinion: 

I've wanted to see this play ever since it came out! In the beginning it was hard to get tickets and you really had to plan ahead. After going to London in February and passing the Palace Theatre several times, I just looked at tickets for April (my next holidays). When I saw there were tickets available, I started planning a whole Harry Potter inspired trip and booked tickets. 

FINALLY!!!!! I was so excited! 

Wednesday, April 17 was the day. Before going into the theatre, I took a few pictures outside and then headed for the line to get in, you have to wait a bit, but the line is constantly moving. When you get in the first thing you see is the "gift shop". They have lots of merchandise and souvenirs, which is great. I took some time to look at them, but didn't buy anything yet. They have house related things, Cursed Child related, Hogwarts things and much more (no spoilers). I bought a program, looked at in the bar area and then took my seat. I almost started crying then already. The curtain was lifted already and there was the stage, ready for scene 1. 

When it actually started with the scene we all know (19 years later), I had some tears in my eyes. It was such a special moment and I think I just couldn't believe actually being in the theatre and seeing the play. I have read the play twice, so I was very familiar with the story. The great thing though, is that I always discover new details and now I also had live pictures with actual actors. It made it so much more real, lively and exciting. I really liked what they did with all the scene changes (there were so many). The actors moved things around, but they always swinged their cloaks first and some were just moving. When they lifed something they kind of did it slow motion and things appeared to be flying in the air. They used stairs and moved them around and omg the time turing! The time turner was flying, the clocks turned backwards and then they had this special effect of everything getting blurry and wavey (like being underwater) and with the sound, it was awesome!!! There were also scenes, which were added by music and choreography, that added a more magical touch to it and now let me talk about all these special effects and the magic on stage. It's incredible!!! I don't know how they did all these things, but it was really impressive. There were sparks, floating objects, flames, sometimes people vanished or transformed, it's amazing!!!!

The acting was spot in as well. I think the roles were reall well cast, especially Ron, Harry and Albus Potter, but also Snape, McGonagall, Draco Malfoy, Hermione, Ginny, Delphi Diggory and Moaning Myrtle. You might realise that I haven't mentioned one important character yet: Scorpius Malfoy. It may be that his role is supposed to be that way (then he did a great job), but for me it was a bit too much and overacted. I kind of had a different picture of his character, so that was a bit confusing to me. There were so many funny scenes and LOL moments, as well as emotional and touching scenes. The feelings came across really well. Some actors played several roles, which is very impressive too.
The first part ended with a big wow and just made me more excited for part two. It never felt boring or long, because the storyline just moved along wonderfully. 

Before the second part started I bought some souvenir and merchandise, I had time to think in the break, what to actually get. A must for me was the music, it's beautiful, a great mixture and the individual tracks fitted the scenes perfectly. I can't wait to listen to them again. 

I feel like there is so much more to say about the play, but I'm still overwhelmed. I can't pick a favourite part or scenes, there were so many memorable ones. I had tears in my eyes several times, but the scene, where Harry and all the other characters have to watch his parents die, is heart-breaking. 

The announcements before each part and after the intervalls were very creative and magical. Each time a character was talking, including the way they speak and their personality, especially Umbridge was great, they also included words like muggles, just fab! 

A must see for all  Harry Potter fans, I really want this to become a movie as well and maybe hear about Albus' and Scorpius' future. 

Musical Review - Fiddler on the Roof

About the show: 

Fiddler on the Roof is a musical with music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, and book by Joseph Stein, set in the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia in 1905. It is based on Tevye and his Daughters (or Tevye the Dairyman) and other tales by Sholem Aleichem. The story centers on Tevye, the father of five daughters, and his attempts to maintain his Jewish religious and cultural traditions as outside influences encroach upon the family's lives. He must cope both with the strong-willed actions of his three older daughters, who wish to marry for love – each one's choice of a husband moves further away from the customs of their Jewish faith and heritage – and with the edict of the Tsar that evicts the Jews from their village.

The original Broadway production of the show, which opened in 1964, had the first musical theatre run in history to surpass 3,000 performances. Fiddler held the record for the longest-running Broadway musical for almost 10 years until Grease surpassed its run. It remains the seventeenth longest-running show in Broadway history. The production was extraordinarily profitable and highly acclaimed. It won nine Tony Awards, including best musical, score, book, direction and choreography. It spawned five Broadway revivals and a highly successful 1971 film adaptation and has enjoyed enduring international popularity. It has also been a popular choice for school and community productions.

My opinion: 

When we were in London in February, we didn't have time to go see this show. It was playing at The Menier Chocolate Factory and because it was so popular they extended the running and moved it to the Playhouse Theatre. I grabbed the chance and booked my ticket. 

I absolutely loved this show!!! I don't even know, where to start with this review. It's the story of a Jewish family and their whole village. Tevye And Golde have five daughters and it's time for them to get married. Of course, they get matched with someone, that's tradition. However, the daughters are about to break the tradition. Tzeitel is in love with Motel, her childhood friend. They have never told her parents, so her dad promises her to someone else, someone much older. The shock is big when they finally reveal the truth, but Tevye agrees and comes up with a funny dream to explain everything to his wife. Well, the second daughter Hodel falls in love with their teacher Perchik, a poor student from Kiev. They managed to convince the dad about their love. Hodel then goes after Perchik. And they live away from the family. Chava is the third daughter and she, unfortunately, falls in love with Fyedka, a Christian. She then runs away and eventually the whole village is expelled by the Russians. And they have to leave. 

The acting was on point from the whole cast, they really transmitted the feelings and got into their roles. It was real and authentic. I really liked the three daughters played by Molly Osborne, Harriet Bunton and Nicola Brown), their voices were beautiful and their acting was brilliant. Andy Nyman, who played the dad was absolutely phenomenal, great voice, fab actor! I didn't really like Tania Newton, who played his wife, it was the understudy and her voice seemed shaky and not secure. Then we have the men, mainly Stewart Clarke and Matthew Hawksley (Perchkin and Fyedka), they were great! I might have fallen in love with them a little bit myself ;). I actually saw both Andy Nyman and Stewart Clarke in Assassins four years ago, so that was fab.
The company scenes were fantastic, very well staged and the choreography was very effective. I also liked what they did with the stage and the scenery, it's the perfect theatre for this show. 

A very special thing was also the cast being on stage and interacting before the show even started. 
I wouldn't recommend sitting in the first row, maybe start with the forth, and the seats were really tight and not a lot of space for the legs. 

Of course, this is still a must-see show in the West End, I would definitely go and see it again. 

Musical Review - Follies

About the show: 

Follies is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by James Goldman. The story concerns a reunion in a crumbling Broadway theatre, scheduled for demolition, of the past performers of the "Weismann's Follies", a musical revue (based on the Ziegfeld Follies), that played in that theatre between the World Wars. It focuses on two couples, Buddy and Sally Durant Plummer and Benjamin and Phyllis Rogers Stone, who are attending the reunion. Sally and Phyllis were showgirls in the Follies. Both couples are deeply unhappy with their marriages. Buddy, a traveling salesman, is having an affair with a girl on the road; Sally is still as much in love with Ben as she was years ago; and Ben is so self-absorbed that Phyllis feels emotionally abandoned. Several of the former showgirls perform their old numbers, sometimes accompanied by the ghosts of their former selves. The musical numbers in the show have been interpreted as pastiches of the styles of the leading Broadway composers of the 1920s ands '30s, and sometimes as parodies of specific songs.

The Broadway production opened on April 4, 1971, directed by Harold Prince and Michael Bennett, and with choreography by Bennett. The musical was nominated for eleven Tony Awards and won seven. The original production, the most costly performed on Broadway to that date, ran for over 500 performances but ultimately lost its entire investment. The musical has had a number of major revivals, and several of its songs have become standards, including "Broadway Baby", "I'm Still Here", "Too Many Mornings", "Could I Leave You?", and "Losing My Mind".

More information about the show: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Follies

My opinion: 

Another Sondheim musical with wonderful songs. Sadly this production didn’t really

impress me. 

It hard to explain why, but here we go. 

We watched it at the National Theatre and I really liked the stage and the stage design. However, it didn’t really work in the performance. The orchestra played behind the stage and somehow the sound got blocked and didn’t really come through. It didn’t really match with the singing (sound wise, not timing wise). 

Most actors and actresses were always on stage, I didn’t really know where to look. I also felt like some characters weren’t very well cast. 

Some others were perfect for their roles and did a wonderful job. I also liked how they did some of the songs.

The spark just didn’t fly for this show. Maybe I expected too much, but something was definitely missing for me.

Musical Review - Waitress

About the show:

Waitress is a musical with music and lyrics by Sara Bareilles and a book by Jessie Nelson. The musical is based on the 2007 film of the same name, written by Adrienne Shelly. It tells the story of Jenna Hunterson, a waitress in an abusive relationship with her husband Earl. When Jenna unexpectedly becomes pregnant, she begins an affair with her gynecologist, Dr. Jim Pomatter. Looking for ways out, she sees a pie contest and its grand prize as her chance.

Stage rights to the film were purchased in 2007, while the musical's creative team was assembled by 2013. The original production of Waitress premiered at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge in August 2015, with direction by Diane Paulus and choreography by Chase Brock, and starring Jessie Mueller, Drew Gehling, and Joe Tippett as Jenna, Jim, and Earl, respectively. It made its Broadway debut at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre in April 2016. A U.S. national tour began on October 20, 2017. In 2019, Waitress will be opening at the Adelphi Theatre in London's West End.

My own opinion: 

When we heard that Waitress is coming to the West End with Katherine McPhee, we booked tickets immediately. 

Katherine McPhee is one of my faves. I discovered her in the TV show Smash, where she played on of the main roles. 

In Waitress she playes the main characters Jenna and she was absolutely brilliant in the show!!! Her voice is just amazing and her acting was on point as well. 

The show has so much more to offer though. All the other characzers were very well cast as well, especially Dr. Promatter (David Hunter) and Jenna’s two best friends Dawn and Becky. The acting is great, the choreography is on point and they just created this fab atmosphere. You feel part of it in the audience.

The band is playing on stage and kind of part of the cast. It worked really well. 

The music of this show is fantastic, I loved all the songs and can’t stop listening to the songs.

Musical Review - Company

About the show: 

Company is a 1970 musical comedy with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by George Furth. The original production was nominated for a record-setting fourteen Tony Awards and won six.

Originally titled Threes, its plot revolves around Robert (a single man unable to commit fully to a steady relationship, let alone marriage), the five married couples who are his best friends, and his three girlfriends. Unlike most book musicals, which follow a clearly delineated plot, Company is a concept musical composed of short vignettes, presented in no particular chronological order, linked by a celebration for Robert's 35th birthday.

Company was among the first musicals to deal with adult themes and relationships. As Sondheim puts it, "Broadway theater has been for many years supported by upper-middle-class people with upper-middle-class problems. These people really want to escape that world when they go to the theatre, and then here we are with Company talking about how we're going to bring it right back in their faces.

My own opinion: 

I saw Company once before, 20 years ago (I was about nine years old), when my theatre group performed it. My mum was in it and since I was still quite young, I only allowed to watch the dress rehearsal. It’s not really a show you would take your children to, because of what it is about. 

Anyway, here we are in 2019 and I finally got to see a West End production of this fab show. Stephen Sondheim is one of my fave musical composers and I just love the songs from Company. I also think the story is fun and entertaining. The lyrics are absolutely brilliant!

The special thing about this production was the transgender aspect of it. The main role Bobbie is originally played by a man, but they did it with a woman this time. They also turned some other things around. It worked really well and made it special and unique. 

The production and the staging were brilliant!!! It’s a very lively show, there are so many things going on, but they did an awesome job with all the scenes, as well as the choreography for the songs. The show is so much fun to watch, I would go again immediately!

Musical Review - Miss Saigon

About the show: 

Miss Saigon is a musical by Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, with lyrics by Boublil and Richard Maltby, Jr. It is based on Giacomo Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly, and similarly tells the tragic tale of a doomed romance involving an Asian woman abandoned by her American lover. The setting of the plot is relocated to 1970s Saigon during the Vietnam War, and Madame Butterfly's story of marriage between an American lieutenant and a geisha is replaced by a romance between a United States Marine and a South Vietnamese bargirl.

The musical was premièred at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, London, on 20 September 1989, closing after 4,092 performances on 30 October 1999. It opened on Broadway at the Broadway Theatre on April 11, 1991, and subsequently played in many other cities and embarked on tours. Prior to the opening of the 2014 London revival, it was claimed that Miss Saigon had set a world record for opening day ticket sales, with sales in excess of £4m reported. 

The musical represented Schönberg and Boublil's second major success, following Les Misérables in 1985. As of April 2017, Miss Saigon remains Broadway's thirteenth longest-running show.  

My opinion: 

I was finally able to see this show!!! I wanted to for a really long time and when they announced that the UK touring company is coming to Zurich, the decision was made. 

I listened to the soundtrack several times before going and I already fell in love with the music then. No surprise it’s by the same composers, who wrote Les Misérables. 

The story was very easy to follow, but let me tell you one thing, it’s really intense, but so well done. The scenery was great, the helicopter scene was done in a fantastic way and I always felt like being right there with the characters. This is true for so many other scenes as well. 

The music is amazing, very emotional and gives me goosebumps every single time. The actors added a lot of charm and charisma with their acting, wow! Certain scenes very powerful and strong, just how it needed to be. There are so many wonderful songs in this show. My faves are I Still Believe, Bui Doi, This ist he Hour, The Movie in My Mind and Last Night oft he World. 

The actors were brilliant especially Ashley Gilmour, who played Chris and  Sooha Kim, who played Kim. He has an amazing voice and she was perfect fort he part. She was tiny, but wow can she sing!

I had to cry several times during this musical. It’s actually a really sad story, with a sad ending, but it’s a must see!!! It's touching, I loved it! I would definitely go and see it again. 

Sweeney Todd – Opera House Zurich

About the show: 

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street is a 1979 musical thriller with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Hugh Wheeler. The musical is based on the 1973 play Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street by Christopher Bond.

Sweeney Todd opened on Broadway in 1979 and in the West End in 1980. It won the Tony Award for Best Musical and Olivier Award for Best New Musical. It has since had numerous revivals as well as a film adaptation.

More info about the show: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sweeney_Todd:_The_Demon_Barber_of_Fleet_Street

Link to the Opera House show: https://www.opernhaus.ch/en/spielplan/calendar/sweeney-todd/season_50348/

My opinion: 

Ok, so I’m a big Stephen Sondheim fan (I even wrote my dissertation in high school about him – yes, I had to write a paper in high school). Sweeney Todd is probably my fave musical by him and I have never been to the Opera House in Zurich. 

The afternoon of December 14, was a day of firsts for me. I was really excited. 

The show started with a big scream and the lights, which surrounded the stage made a first appearance. That was really effective and a bit creepy. 

The music and the lyrics of this show are absolutely brilliant, Stephen Sondheim really is a genius. The actors and the choir did a wonderful job singing these complex songs. Bryn Terfel played Sweeney Todd, he was great and so were Elliot Madore (Anthony), Brindley Sherratt (Judge Turpin), Melissa Petit (Joanna) and Spencer Lang (Toby). The woman in the main role Angelika Kirchschlager did a good job, with English not being her mother tongue, but she still had an accent sometimes and something was just missing for me. 

Sweeney Todd kills people on his barber shop chair and sends them down to Mrs Lovett’s pie shop. That could have been done in a more effective way. They just had part of the stage move up and down. They didn’t do a lot with the stage anyway and the pictures in the background didn’t change much. Sometimes the stage seemed to crowded for me, especially with it being in dark colours and all oft hem wearing dark colours as well. The insane asylum was done really well though. 

The audience were mostly older people, who have a season pass for the Opera house and I wasn’t sure if they really understood what was happening on stage ;). The applause in the end was loud and people left happy, even though it’s an intense story. Subtitles were in English and German for the songs and German ones for the dialogues. 

A great show with fab and talented actors. I’m very happy, I went. 

Musical Review - WICKED

About the show:

Wicked: The Untold Story of the Witches of Oz is a Broadway musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and book by Winnie Holzman. It is based on the 1995 Gregory Maguire novel Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, an alternative telling of the 1939 film The Wizard of Oz and L. Frank Baum's classic 1900 novel, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. The musical is told from the perspective of the witches of the Land of Oz; its plot begins before and continues after Dorothy's arrival in Oz from Kansas, and it includes several references to the 1939 film and Baum's novel. Wicked tells the story of two unlikely friends, Elphaba (the Wicked Witch of the West) and Galinda (whose name later changes to Glinda the Good Witch), who struggle through opposing personalities and viewpoints, rivalry over the same love-interest, reactions to the Wizard's corrupt government and, ultimately, Elphaba's public fall from grace.

More information: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wicked_(musical)

My opinion:

Last weekend I saw Wicked fort he second time in Zurich. My first time was 9 years ago in London. It’s my favourite musical together with Les Misérables, so when I heard that the touring company was coming to Switzerland, I booked the tickets immediately.

We had great seats, right in row 6 in the middle. Row 6 is the best one in the “Theater 11” in Zurich, because it’s a bit higher up than the rows in front.

The music of this show is brilliant! I get goose bumps every single time, when hearing the opening and seeing it on stage makes it even more special. The costumes are absolutely stunning and so is the set. Of course they have many great effects to, which makes it more exciting.

I really like the story of the musical. I think it’s very gripping and full of ups and downs. I had to cry several times and I just didn’t want it to end. Defying Gravity is a fabulous and powerful song and Amy Ross sang it beautifully. Her voice is absolutely incredible! I also really liked all the ensemble numbers, not inly because of the costumes, but also because of the staging and the choreography. The sound of the ensemble was wonderful too. The harmonies and the melodies are magnificent.

I have never been a big fan of Glinda’s character. She is obviously part of the story and needs to be like that, but I never warmed up to her. Helen Woolfe is a good actress (but I don’t think the role is challenging when it comes to acting), but I didn’t like her singing. Her voice is squeaky and just doesn’t have a pleasant sound for me.

Fiyero (Aaron Sidwell) and Elphaba had great chemistry on stage. He is a brilliant actor, but yet again the singing didn’t convince me. I lost my heart to the first Fiyero I saw (Oliver Tompsett) anyway ;).

This musical is marvellous on so many levels. It’s great for families as well and I love the little references to The Wizard of Oz (still have to see that musical).

It was absolutely WICKED!!!!!!