Dublin Reviews

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porschesrule
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Dublin Reviews

Post by porschesrule »

A place for reviews of the BETMUK Tour at the Dublin stop.
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patc
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Re: Dublin Reviews

Post by patc »

Tues 26th July (Opening night in Dublin)

The street running alongside the BGE Theatre is called Misery Hill. After tonight’s show they’ll have to rename it. I must admit to having been a bit apprehensive before tonight’s opener. Irish audiences can be somewhat reserved. Sometimes they need a kick up the you-know-what. I needn’t have worried. They went absolutely bonkers and rewarded the cast with two standing ovations. I’ve never seen or heard anything like it at the massive Bord Gáis. Afterwards, the cast members said they were overwhelmed and overcome by the magnificent reception.

For me this was an extra special emotional night. All those years of flying to and from London never dreaming that this unrivalled show would ever be played on my local stage floor. It is surreal to see all the Billy posters in train stations, bus shelters, advertising hoardings, buses etc, just like it used to be in London in days of yore. It is fantastic to have the show only a half hour away. No wonder those fans living in or near London used to find it difficult to stay away. Another ticket is just a few mouse clicks and only few miles away. A wallet-emptying temptation hard to resist.

I was not only enthralled with the show but with anticipating and then hearing the audience reactions to each and every scene as it progressed. One of the extra pleasures of knowing the show. The whole cast has gelled together so well into a well trained unit. One of BETM’s strong points over the years is the scope granted to the actors (young and old). There are no clones. As they came and went each was allowed to put their own slant on things whilst keeping to the basic requirements. The Company has come up trumps again. Every principal cast member plays it differently and I love and enjoy them all, no exceptions.

It was clear from the outset that the cast were intent on wooing their first Irish audience. An extraordinary energy emanated from the stage. The crisp sound system in this theatre is second to none and helped spread the energy to all parts.

Matthew, he with such an endearing voice, was Billy and delivered a stunning performance throughout. A mighty tour-de-force packed with all that we have come to expect from these amazing youngsters over all the years. To me it seems like a daunting task even for an adult to walk onto a big stage in front of a 2000+ audience, far from home and in a strange country and expected to carry a million dollar show on your shoulders. Matthew took all this in his stride and not a bother to him. His smile at the end of the show was also worth a million dollars.

Wonderful Grandma (Andrea) set the ball rolling very early on and tonight’s audience (like those in the other venues) loved her from the off. It is so important to grab an audience early and she did some great grabbing. Grandma’s Song was a joy. The Boxing scene was one of the funniest I’ve ever seen. Leo’s George is hilarious. An inspired piece of casting. Funnily enough, the Muhammad Ali/Cassius Clay gag got a much bigger laugh than I ever heard at the VPT.

I love Annette’s Mrs. W. Her cranky, resigned sarcasm is astutely woven into her developing appreciation of Billy’s talent and her absolute determination to get him to fulfil his destiny. Her tall authoritative figure dominated the stage. There was a massive number of young audience members present. I have no doubt a great many were from dancing schools. What a thrill and inspiration it must have been for the girls among them to watch Mrs. W’s troupe of magnificent Ballet Girls perform to such a high level on a professional stage. I expect they went home dreaming that some day they might do the same.

Martin’s portrayal of Dad is a revelation. We should hate Dad for his deplorable humiliation of Billy down at the hall. But, like Billy at heart, we don’t really. We understand the times that were in it. Wife deceased, poverty staring him in the face, two totally different motherless sons to handle one of whom is at war with the police and scabs and the other “poncing around” doing ballet. Life couldn’t be worse. Martin’s depiction of Dad’s subsequent transformation into Billy’s biggest and most important fan is a work of art and, from this viewer’s viewpoint, an emotional experience of such quality. His rendition of “Deep into the Ground” is a truly heartbreaking moment in the show.

Scott has Tony’s role nailed to the wall. Angry and frustrated young man, easily riled, bossy big brother, “don’t tell me what to do” all rolled into one. His angry scenes with Dad and Mrs. W are most convincing without the need to go over the top and his final scene in the kitchen where the delicate balance between his genuine delight with his little brother's success and the devastating news from the Union is brilliantly done.

What more can I say about Daniel Page’s Mr.B. Always a favourite with longtime fans at the VPT he has brought the role to a new level of hilarity. With more time in this version of the show to project a physically unfit persona, his sudden bursting into dance in B2B brought howls of raucous laughter. The splits raised the roof with thunderous applause. In all the years I have never seen a better splits than this. Watching such a big man dancing, skipping and cartwheeling around a stage is really too funny for words.

Nikki has brought a very special Dead Mum to the Billy stage. Such a beautiful and tender singing voice is complemented by such pained facial expressions of heartbreaking despair and loss in the Letter scenes. The Letter Reprise is absolutely gut-wrenching as she finally and reluctantly tears herself away from her beloved son. There’s no point in trying to hold back the tears. Just let them flow.

When I first saw the show in London it was Dream Ballet that really left me gasping so I was looking forward to seeing how it went down for the first time in Dublin. Graceful and elegant Older Billy, Luke, took Matthew into his tender care to produce a scene of such magnificence that an already enraptured audience could hardly believe their eyes. The applause went on for ages. I loved every second of it.

We Irish have changed drastically over the past 40 years. A show like BETM could never have been performed in them there days. Even a scene like Expressing Yourself would have been condemned and drummed out of the country. Not so now. When Henry as Michael arrived on stage wearing a dress and singing a song to himself it was the beginning of ten minutes of such delightful entertainment and laughter. With a boundless and outstanding stage presence he completely took over the show. This Tour version of the scene is imbued with extra “glamour”. The tap dancing by both Henry and Matthew had to be seen to be believed. The tap dancing teachers in the audience would have been blown away and will be already gearing up for the challenges that lie ahead when they get back to their schools. Henry’s comedic talent was further evidenced by the “bit o’ ballet” and he beautifully handled Michael’s other side in the Winter Scene and again in the final scene on the bike.

In the same vein I waited with baited breath for the Toilet Scene that would have been a big no-no in the old days. Evie went to work with delightful matter-of-factness and expert timing. She had already made her presence felt with her feisty Debbie and this was her icing on the cake. The result was a hoot as was Matthew’s refusal of the offer.

I still have yet to see Lewis as Billy but he played a great Posh Boy at tonight’s show and little Bonnie was excellent in her dual role as Small "Boy".

The hugely talented Ensemble cast enhance the show immensely. The singing was outstanding and the athleticism and choreography in Angry Dance is a sight to behold. "Once We Were Kings" was a masterpiece of harmonies full of deep poignancy.

The Esquire joke came off brilliantly and brought immediate applause.

The music with its intricate orchestrations is stunningly awesome coming out of the aforementioned sound system.

At the end of his superb Electricity, Matthew walked forward to front of stage where he stood taking it all in as cheers and applause rang out for ages and ages. As always, this took its toll on my emotions even more so on this night of nights. Thanks to him the young boy dancers in the audience will have been immeasurably inspired. Thanks to him and the entire cast and crew for an unforgettable evening at the BGE. Their efforts were well rewarded.

Billy’s arrival in Dublin is so welcome. Riverdance every Summer at the Gaiety Theatre is usually the king of shows in Dublin. This year it has lost its crown…for six amazing weeks.

Pat
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angelenroute
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Re: Dublin Reviews

Post by angelenroute »

patc wrote:Irish audiences can be somewhat reserved. Sometimes they need a kick up the you-know-what. I needn’t have worried. They went absolutely bonkers and rewarded the cast with two standing ovations.
patc wrote:We Irish have changed drastically over the past 40 years. A show like BETM could never have been performed in them there days. Even a scene like Expressing Yourself would have been condemned and drummed out of the country. Not so now.
I clearly recall standing on a street in Inchicore (a village just outside Dublin where my father was from), and hearing my dad yell into a payphone, "Hold on, Jim, this kid needs a good kick up the [bleep]." Thankfully, he was referring to some neighborhood kid and not me, but I was floored as a 13-year-old to hear my dad even curse a little. :D So happy to read your review, Pat, and delighted to hear the Dublin audience enjoyed the show--all of it--so much!

-Seán

"Good writers define reality; bad ones merely restate it." -Edward Albee
Barry Appleby
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Re: Dublin Reviews

Post by Barry Appleby »

Cheers and Thanks Pat! for that extensive review of the tour, nice to see you back, putting pen to paper.
You lucky fella having the show on your door step. Ryanair will be going into administration.
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Re: Dublin Reviews

Post by Billy Whiz »

Thanks Pat for a brilliant review.

I'm looking forward to seeing the tour again soon ;)
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Westletonion
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Re: Dublin Reviews

Post by Westletonion »

A wonderful review indeed. Looking forward to seeing it there very soon.
Real Geordie
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Re: Dublin Reviews

Post by Real Geordie »

A review from the Irish Times - which seems to view the whole event with some cynicism.

http://www.irishtimes.com/culture/stage ... -1.2737375
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ERinVA
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Re: Dublin Reviews

Post by ERinVA »

Somehow, I don't think the reviewer's agenda was to review a show...
Ellen



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emcpow
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Re: Dublin Reviews

Post by emcpow »

Here's a much more positive review. This reviewer seemed to love the show.

http://theoutmost.com/entertainment/the ... ly-elliot/
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patc
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Re: Dublin Reviews

Post by patc »

You're absolutely right Ellen.

I wouldn't have expected anything else from this snob newspaper which 90% of the population doesn't read. You wouldn't expect him to understand a story like Billy's. He thinks it's about Maggie Thatcher. He only mentioned Adam in passing like as if he was just a prop on the stage. Completely ignored the scale and quality of his performance. I wasn't there for last night's Press show but I know people who were and they were blown away just like the 2,000 on Tuesday night. None of them will care what the Irish Times said.

Pat
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