Theatre: Totem, Cirque du Soleil

Wednesday evening was an opportunity to catch Cirque du Soleil's new production, Totem at the Royal Albert Hall. Since Johnnyfox is touring South America and probably not into acrobatics of this sort, Gio came along. It was a perfectly grey and wet evening and before taking our seats we decided to savour the damp and watch as the celebrities arrived. Well for me, that was mostly asking Gio, "Who's Katherine Jenkins?" and "Who's that?" I am pretty lousing recognising celebrities... But for the record, Katherine Jenkins (left) did look lovely in that yellow dress... Once I was given the lowdown of who she was...


Anyway I have until now been a cirque virgin. Sure I had seen La Clique at the Hippodrome and Soap at Hammersmith Studios. But after watching Wednesday's performance that featured a number of sexy acts including the trapeze duo pictured above, I was ready for a cigarette. Cirque du Soleil is not the only show in town that present these acts nowadays. La Clique and Soap were edgier and rougher versions of many of the same acts. But Cirque du Soleil does everything bigger, with more spectacle, live music and some incredible costumes, and this show succeeds at doing this... Mostly...

Linking the show is the story of a journey from amphibians to human acrobats. I am not so sure what it says about evolution, but it sure does look good. Earlier this year I enjoyed writer director Robert Lepage's visually beautiful The Rake's Progress, and this production didn't disappoint either in looking stunning and taking routines and injecting an emotional story to them. The projections of water and fire work very well and amphibians morph into acrobats.

On the down side there are a few less successful scenes such as an overlong segment involving Darwin morphing into a juggler of light bulbs balls. There is also a runaway flamenco dancer who looked like she escaped from Zefferelli's production of Carmen at Verona and was on the wrong set. The clowns did not hit the right note either with a surprising lack of comic timing in the second half. Perhaps the underwhelmed audience put them off, and it is probably never a good idea to pick on a cold fish in the front row to play off your comedy. One of them tried to make her laugh calling her beautiful but she was there obviously to be entertained rather than be part of the entertainment...

Still the businessmen on perches, the ladies on unicycles and the crystal ladies with the spinning tea-towels cloths all delivered incredibly thrilling performances. The downside to all these acts is that you expect it to be brilliant and overlook the degree of difficulty. I think we need some audience education with behind the scenes footage of the performers in the foyers amongst the merchandising stands. You don't get all that muscle and poise without an awful lot of practice...

The show runs until February 17 and is definitely the best looking thing playing in London right now.

Photo: Daniel Desmarais © 2010 Cirque du Soleil Inc.

First impressions: Totem: Cirque du Soleil

It was survival of the acrobats at Totem, Cirque du Soleil's latest production which opened tonight at Royal Albert Hall. This spectacular show traces the journey of humans from amphibians to acrobats in glittering costumes. It all goes to show that we have come a long way (or at least some of us have). The comedy relief was more hit than miss so in this evolutionary tale the acrobats are ahead. First impressions below...

Movies: Burlesque

I went along to see Burlesque on New Year's Day as I figured it would be camp and it would be crap. I was not disappointed. Leaving the cinema three other women were chatting to us commenting how dreadful they thought the film was. I was not sure what they were expecting in this Moulin Rouge meets Chicago meets Cabaret meets Devil Wears Prada meets Glitter musical about air rights and condos in downtown Los Angeles.

Watching it as an extended music video of Christina Aguilera songs is probably the best way to see this film... Along with watching it with a group of people after a few cocktails. Drink will help ease the pain of the plot and that dialogue... It is also a pity that the very talented supporting cast is not allowed to do some more scene chewing. Instead we are stuck with some very creepy scenes of Cher playing den mother and helping Christina put on lip gloss... All without moving any facial muscles... This is so bad... It is kinda good... I can't wait for the singalonga version...

Opera: Tannhäuser

The hours seemed to fly by watching the Royal Opera's new production of Tannhäuser on Monday evening. The opera about man's dilemma between passion and purity is told on a grand scale with an enormous cast and all are in very fine voice. Johan Botha in the title role is the man unhappy with the excess of Venusburg and unsatisfied with harsh earthly realities. There is no pleasing some people I suppose, but he manages to give this story credibility and power throughout the four hours of the performance.

The production itself is minimal with the orgiastic excess of Venus's grotto Venusburg limited to the Royal Opera's velvet curtain and a rather large dining table. When a sensual and athletic ballet emerges from what started to look like a gala dinner at the opera you couldn't help but wonder if all opera fundraisers are that fun. If there was only one disappointment here it was thinking that Venus (the lovely Michaela Shuster) should not be in a dinner dress as it just wasn't as hot as everything else being served up. Not that she could not cut through the most loudest of bellows from the orchestra. As for the ballet, it not only looked great, but you couldn't help but be impressed by it's ability to set the story. It did not look easy either and I was exhausted just watching them. Given Tannhäuser was also a big man, you could understand why he was exhausted with all the goings on in Venusburg as well...

Of course back at the earthly Wartburg the grass was not greener. Nor was the shepherd boy who heralds Tannhäuser's return to the Wartburg particularly melodic. But particularly nice about this version was the Eva-Maria Westbroek's ambivalent sexuality she conveyed as Elisabeth. It will be fascinating to see what she does in the upcoming production Anna Nicole. Again the simplicity of the production design adds to its wonder. The song contest at the Wartburg was so dramatic, with parallels drawn to a more recent European war a nice touch. Aiding to the drama was the fine voice of Christian Gerhaher in the role of Wolfram, who remains in love with Elisabeth (just to keep things a little complicated).

While at times the opera grinds to a halt with little action and an awful lot of libretto, what could have been a chore to watch was quite engaging with a great production and terrific cast. The audience loved it as well, although unlike Adriana Lecouvreur, no teddy bears were thrown from the circle. Conductor Semyon Bychkov received some well deserved cheers for keeping this performance engaging and fluid.
And in case you missed it, and will not be able to make the final two performances, the Radio 3 broadcast is available on iPlayer until the end of the week.

Movies: Loose Cannons (Mine Vaganti)

A rare trip to the cinema this week during the snow was also a chance to catch Ferzan Ozpetek's latest film Loose Cannons (Mine Vaganti). It is a family comedy drama with a gay twist. It was well worth the trip out in the snow to see a film that was well acted and nicely shot.

But along with The Kids Are All Right, it is probably one of the few films playing at the moment that is worth venturing out in the snow to see (unless you have diabetes perhaps). It's playing at the moment at some sensible London cinemas.

Another look: Love Never Dies

It is nice to get out the week before Christmas and see a show. Particularly as an attempt to see La Boheme at the Cock Theatre Saturday was thwarted by too much snow. So as a break from the usual Christmas festivities, I took Gio and Bill to see a refreshed version of Love Never Dies at the Adelphi Theatre. As we left the theatre by one of the fire exits, we brushed past a man who resembled Andrew Lloyd Webber racing the other way. It most likely was ALW and Gio and Bill wanted to stop and chat / stare / gawk or do whatever fans do. I pushed on as there was nothing to see only the composer...

When I last caught Love Never Dies I was a little bit disappointed by the plot, the gloomy characters and the unintentional hilarity of it all. Nine months have passed and in what must be some sort of theatrical gestation, the production has been reworked and it is a substantial improvement. The story is clearer, the characters make more sense and things generally flow a bit better. There are even some choice improvements to the lyrics. Having seen an early preview it is fascinating how some minor (and a few significant) changes make a difference.

The show has ditched the dreamy start and musings of an old lady and now starts with one of the stronger numbers (Till I Hear You Sing). This gives some context to the show and gets it going with a bang. The focus is now constantly on the central characters and there seems to be much less doom and gloom. The famous jacket throwing at the end of the first half is gone as well. In fact, there are even a few welcome gestures of humour. Ramin Karimloo as the Phantom, Sierra Boggess as Christine and Joseph Millson as Raoul all have fine voices, but also a great chemistry between them.

Of course the story is still a melodrama, but with some of the more curious aspects of the original production removed, it is an easier journey to go along with. And without the unintentional humour that previously existed. The revisions have also wisely not laboured the ending as before and like the best melodramatic operas, the curtain comes down quickly. I was still none the wiser about the motivations of two characters who are responsible for most of the mild peril in this show, but overall this is a ride you won't mind being taken on. It looks good and sounds good and now won't have you wondering what the hell was all that about. Some of the background to the revisions is below.



As to the final message of the show. Maybe it is love triangles end in tears. Or that at some stage of your life a man is going to make you do something you don't want to do because he has a big jewels. Even if you don't run into the composer as you leave, you are sure to have a good time now... Post show Audioboo musings were as follows...

Theatre: On The Twentieth Century

Tuesday night was an opportunity to catch the first preview of On The Twentieth Century at the Union Theatre. Cy Coleman's 1978 musical is set in the 1920s (or it could be the 1930s) where producer Oscar Jaffee is trying to score a hit again with his former leading lady, who has gone on to bigger success in the movies.

I had not previously seen this show, but over a pre-theatre fish and chips (or as they tend to call it in south London, fush and chups) at Masters Super Fish, Johnnyfox was waxing lyrical about how wonderfully rich and inventive the overture to the show was. So I felt his disappointment when the overture was arranged by musical director Oliver Jackson for a saxophone quartet and piano. It was still wonderful but not quite so rich. Actually throughout the show Johnnyfox was mostly singing along so I could sense it was going to be one of those evenings where I would be experiencing quite a lot of audience participation...

Anyway, this was the first preview and no doubt the performances will get better as the run progresses, but as a Twentieth Century virgin I had a great time. The performances of all the leads were great and I particularly liked Rebecca Vere as the star Lilly Garland. I last saw her in Batboy and comic timing and vocal range are perfectly suited for this role. She also looks great (although not that you can tell from the above cast photo). Valda Aviks also had a little star turn as the nut Letitia Primrose. It was particularly nice she singled out Webcowgirl as in need of repenting for a life in the cheap seats.

If there was one quibble it was that the staging of the show could have made more of the confined space of the Union Theatre, rather than spanning such a length that watching the show felt like being at a tennis match. But this still is a classy little show and an excellent little diversion over the Christmas period (particularly if you don't fancy seeing a panto).

On The Twentieth Century continues at the Union Theatre, until 15 January 2011 (no performances 24/12-3/1) Tuesday-Saturday at 7.30 and Saturdays and Sundays also at 2.30. Tickets typically £16.50 (£13.50 concessions). Box Office 020 7261 9876, or with a fee from TicketSource.

Audioboos from the jaded and usual suspects are as follows:

Overheard on the bus Monday evening

Man: There are elements of the play that just allow for those sorts of pathos...
Woman: Yes I would have to agree there
Man: Of course for other people it would be like oh yeah I would just rather watch Eastenders