Ali MacGraw & Ryan O’Neal back together in LOVE LETTERS

Leave a comment
Ali MacGraw, Ryan O'Neal

Photo credit: Austin Hargrave

Hollywood legends Ali MacGraw and Ryan O’Neal are back together once more to star in the upcoming UK tour of LOVE LETTERS, celebrated playwright A.R. Gurney’s enduring romance about first loves and second chances. Following a critically-acclaimed Broadway run and sell-out US Tour, the production comes to the UK for a twelve-week tour, opening on Monday 11 September 2017 at the Theatre Royal Bath.

Ryan O’Neal and Ali MacGraw are best known for their onscreen pairing in the well-known weepy, Love Story back in 1970 – where Ryan was chosen from more than 300 hopefuls to play the role of Oliver Barrett opposite Ali in the film, proving to be his big break.

47 years on they have another story to tell, in LOVE LETTERS…

Andrew Makepeace Ladd III (O’Neal) wrote his first letter to Melissa Gardner (MacGraw) to tell her she looked like a lost princess; they were both seven years old. For the next fifty years, through personal triumphs and despair, through wars and marriages and children and careers, they poured out their heartfelt secrets to each other. They defied a fate that schemed to keep them apart, and lived for the one most meaningful thing, their undying love for each other.

Producer David Ian said: ‘I am absolutely thrilled to be bringing two such huge stars to the UK in this wonderful and moving play. Ali MacGraw and Ryan O’Neal ‎are true Hollywood legends and it will be very special indeed to see them live on stage together’.

LOVE LETTERS comes to Manchester’s Opera House from 20-25 November 2017.

BRB – Cinderella

1 Comment

brb-5Birmingham Royal Ballet triumphantly returns to the Lowry with David Bintley’s magical production of the classic and much loved fairy-tale ballet, Cinderella. Originally performed in 2010 and broadcast by the BBC as their 2010 Christmas ballet, Bintley’s award winning production features the complete original score by Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev delivered superbly by the Royal Ballet Sinfonia. Staying true to the Cinderella story, we meet the wicked stepmother, Cinderella’s two ugly sisters (who we of course love to hate), as well as the handsome prince and not forgetting her magically gifted fairy Godmother.

brb-4

We begin in the dark and dank depths of Cinderella’s kitchen dwelling where a bare foot Cinderella has been cast by her wicked stepmother and ugly sisters, her only purpose in life seemingly to serve them. Despite the bleak and depressing surroundings Jenna Roberts ensures Cinderella shines and her joyous and delicate performance is enchanting. She moves with poise and perfection, light on her feet and full of endearing charisma.

brb-1

The story telling in this production, as with all Birmingham Royal Ballet productions is wonderfully clear allowing for a beautifully paced performance where we move effortlessly from one piece to the next, eager for more. Complimenting this exceptional narrative is an impressive set and deliciously extravagant costumes both designed by John F. Macfarlane, familiar to audiences as designer of the BRB’s hugely popular Nutcracker. The excellent narrative also allows for some great comedy acting from Skinny (Samara Dowes) and Dumpy (Laura Purkiss), the ugly sisters. Both excel in their roles and their acting is wonderful, offering the audience laugh out loud moments each time they enter the stage they are a fantastic fun and absolutely adored by the audience.

brb

Perfectly partnering Jenna Roberts’ Cinderella is handsome Prince, William Bracewell. Strong and athletic Bracewell is perfection in the role and the two of them glide beautifully together, their pas de deux performed at the grand ball is utterly mesmerising, they delivery of Bintley’s choreography is precise and striking. As the clock strikes twelve the dreamlike scene begins to crumble as Cinderella dashes from the scene leaving only her sparkly slipper, cue a highly entertaining hunt for the wearer of the shoe.

brb-2

Birmingham Royal Ballet succeeds once more in making a production which is not only enchanting and utterly thrilling but accessible and appealing to all. It is wonderful to see a diverse audience from very young children to those senior in age all totally captivated by this stunning production.

Cinderella is a work of magic, enchanting and sublime, an absolute delight.

On at The Lowry until 4th March

http://www.thelowry.com/event/birmingham-royal-ballet-cinderella

 

 

Dance – Sampled

1 Comment

dance-2In Dance Sampled, we are witness to ten minute extracts of dance from companies in genres including Flamenco, Tango, Contemporary, Ballet and Break. This example of how to see dance and also how we can become audiences of dance is a really interesting and intriguing one.

Delivered by The Movement, a collaborative from Birmingham Hippodrome, Saddlers Wells and The Lowry, all are committed to bringing a new wave of watching, focussing on accessibility and inclusivity. The collection of work is an exceptional evening of dance from 8 dancemakers who enthral the audience. It is wonderful to see that the audience present matches the variety and diversity of the performances in a packed out Lyric theatre.

Before each performance we’re introduced to the work with a projected interview on stage with the performers or choreographer. This is insightful, it lands the work for the audience and magnifies the eloquence of language we have for the variety of performances we are celebrating.

Flamenco trio dotdotdot open the evening with flamenco collaborations in a sublime cacophony, fan opening across live guitar across vocals from Javier Ribera across dancers beating through canons of dance from the determined trio and layered with lyrics from spoken word artist Toni Stuart, magnificent!

dance

BBC Young Dancer of the Year 2015, Conor Scott holds the centre of the evening with a majestic physicality, presence and creativity. His original piece is a wonderful exploration of loneliness, nostalgia and joy.

The audience welcome the essence of purity in The Faun danced beautifully by Yanelis Godoy and Julio Torres, choreography by Sidi Larbi, Cherkaoui originally danced by James O’Hara & Daisy Philips with Music by Claude Debussy and Nitin Sawhney.

The evening culminates in a daring performance by bgroup The Ruggeds from Holland dancing with skills that I have never experienced before, they’re pushing boundaries, skating across the floor in inversions, twisting in the air with raw energy and landing like tigers. The have a capacity for danger and play, a really exciting performance.

dance-1

The dancers and the dances throughout this evening have an extraordinary flare and each have a really unique talent, which makes the evening a real spectacle. The beauty of this project lies not only in the stunning performances but the accessibility of it, the highly engaging bite-sized excerpts give audiences a chance to experience a broad range of dance at affordable prices, with tickets available for just £15. In addition to this audience members were also invited to participate in a wide variety of workshops activities within the theatre foyer across the two day stay, an enormously engaging evening and a great opportunity to experience all dance has to offer. Highly recommended.

Guest reviewer: Kate Jackson

 

Etta James show to visit North West!

Leave a comment

atlastettajamesstory-creditlightboxphotographylow

The smash-hit show, At Last – The Etta James Story, is set to tour later this month starring the sensational Vika Bull; marking its UK debut on the 28th March when it opens at Liverpool’s Epstein Theatre, the show also stops off in Manchester on 10th April at Royal Northern College of Music.

Following its world premiere in Melbourne in 2013 At Last – The Etta James Story has since packed theatres throughout Australia and New Zealand. In 2016 the show returned to Melbourne for a sell-out season at The Arts Centre and July saw the show triumph for a third season at The Sydney Opera House.

The show tells the story of soul legend Etta James’ turbulent life and features some of her most beloved songs including Tell Mama, Something’s Got A Hold On Me, Sugar On The Floor, the heart rending I’d Rather Go Blind, plus her iconic signature song At Last and much more. Vika puts her heart and soul into this unforgettable show and is joined on stage by some of Australia’s finest and funkiest musicians.

at-last-4_credit-matt-deller-1

During a long and tumultuous career that saw her win six Grammy Awards and a star on The Hollywood Walk Of Fame, Etta James has influenced a vast array of artists from Diana Ross, Janis Joplin, Stevie Wonder, The Rolling Stones and Rod Stewart and is acknowledged as inspiring the careers of a new generation of singers from Christina Aguilera, Joss Stone, Adele and the late Amy Winehouse. Sadly, Etta’s frantic recording and touring schedule coincided with her ever-growing addiction problems and over time she not only sang the blues…she lived the blues. Mercifully, her passion for life and strength of character saw her conquer her demons and she continued to record and perform into her seventies.

“Phenomenal vocals – outstanding!” Broadway World

Tuesday 28th March, Epstein Theatre, Liverpool www.epsteinliverpool.co.uk

Monday 10th April, Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester www.rncm.ac.uk

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yank! Preview

Leave a comment

img_4218

On March 9th award-winning venue Hope Mill Theatre will host the European Premiere of the much anticipated Yank! A moving World War II love story which will examine what it means to be a man, to be in love, and explore the struggles simply being in love can bring.

Based on the 2010 Off-Broadway production written by David Zellnik with a score created by his brother Joseph Zellnik the musical transports us back to the unforgettable sounds of the 1940’s, focussing on the life of Stu (Scott Hunter) who is called up to serve for his country. Stu meets and falls in love with all-American guy Mitch (Barnaby Hughes) and so begins a tougher and more emotional fight than Stu ever expected to be facing.

img_4201

Yank! will be the third in-house production delivered by the hugely successful paring of Hope Mill Theatre and Aria Entertainment, who brought runaway hit Parade and cult classic Hair to Manchester audiences last year. This pairing is clearly one which understands the importance of getting things absolutely right, they put their heart and soul into delivering emotional, powerful, dynamic and beautiful productions, the prospect of them handling something with issues so current and so important is utterly thrilling. Add to this the fact that James Baker (director of Parade) is at the helm along with the addition of a third co-producer, Ben Millerman from Mr Millerman Presents and you soon realise that this is going to be something very special, without doubt crafted with love.

img_4207

We were lucky enough to join the cast for a preview at Hope Mill Theatre and hear from director James Baker who shared just how thrilled he is to be given the opportunity to tell such a beautiful story and really examine what it means to love in a time when division is so rife.

“I read the musical and just absolutley adored it, I think for me it’s important that when I pick up a musical, I absolutely  fundamentally love the story, for me it’s always about the story and Yank! has such a beautiful story. It’s about two people, two men that fall in love in World War II  in America, that alone is an exciting prospect, a gay love story set in World War II, that was enough to hook me in, but then the layers, the questions, the things that it asks, made me think there’s much, much more to this musical”

The cast delivered several of the shows musical numbers including the beautiful Rememb’ring You, My Soldier and Your Squad Is Your Squad each of which were absorbing and really gave a taste for this vibrant and dynamic production. Scott Hunter and Barnaby Hughes’ voices perfectly complimented each other, rich and powerful with an enormous amount of warmth. Sarah Louise Young the only female in the production sounded exquisite as she delivered her piece with real emotion and heart.The 12-strong cast are hugely talented and totally committed to doing justice to this emotive and bold piece of theatre, we fully expect Yank! to follow in the footsteps of Parade and Hair in firmly placing Hope Mill Theatre on the cultural map as a groundbreaking and innovative venue and one of Manchester’s brightest and boldest assets, roll on opening night!

img_4213

Yank! will run for four weeks from Thursday 9th March to Saturday 8th April at Hope Mill Theatre. Tickets are available now. Previews £15, all other performances £16-£22

www.hopemilltheatre.co.uk

Funny Girl

1 Comment

Funny Girl

Hot on the heels of it’s much adored, critically acclaimed not to mention record breaking West End run, Funny Girl embarks on a 22 city UK and Ireland tour with Manchester being its first port of call. Boasting some of the most recognisable songs in entertainment history, Don’t Rain On My Parade and People, the hugely iconic show tells the story of the delightful Fanny Brice (Sheridan Smith) a lovable comedic singer and dancer striving for a leap across the water from Brooklyn to Broadway.

funnygirl2016prodjp_04219-medium

The recent West End revival was the first since the original 1964 Broadway production transferred to the Prince of Wales Theatre with the one and only Barbara Streisand who then went on to immortalise the role on the silver screen, winning an Academy Award on her way. Big shoes to fill you might think? Enter Sheridan Smith! What a talent!

For anyone wondering how Fanny could be played by anyone other than Streisand wonder no more, book yourselves a ticket and see for yourself, Smith is quite simply perfection. Her characterisation and comedic timing is sublime, you can literally feel the audience fall more and more in love with her with every line she utters and every kooky facial expression she pulls, she is a true star. While she plays the clown perfectly she also has sass and class in bucket loads, she is utterly captivating. She gives the gutsiest of performances from belting out the iconic Don’t Rain On My Parade with heart and determination to her stunning rendition of The Music That Makes Me Dance beautifully tender and deeply moving. You literally cannot take your eyes off her. A personal highlight for me was You Are Woman, I Am Man, where she finally falls under Arnstein’s clutches, although who is seducing who is debatable, I had tears of laughter by the end of this riotous scene.

Funny Girl

Smith is joined by a fine cast who add to the joy of this brilliant production, the dashingly handsome Nick Arnstein, Fanny’s gambling chancer of a husband is played wonderfully by Chris Peluso. The show also has many impressive chorus numbers which are beautifully choreographed by Lynne Page and delivered with precision by the hardworking ensemble. The trio of Fanny’s Mother and neighbours, Mrs Brice, Mrs Strakosh and Mrs Meeker are terrifically entertaining (Rachel Izen, Myra Sands, Zoe Ann Brown). With stunning costumes from Matthew Wright and set design from Michael Pavelka, Funny Girl delivers everything you would hope for and more. It is no surprise that the audience leap to their feet during the finale, this show and Smith truly deserving of the full standing ovation they received.

Funny Girl

If Manchester didn’t feel lucky enough to be the opening stop on the tour then the we must be pinching ourselves knowing that Funny Girl complete with Sheridan Smith will be returning to close the tour in August, tickets are available now but will no doubt be snapped up so act quick! Funny Girl is just magical, an absolute triumph! A five star masterpiece!

http://www.atgtickets.com/shows/funny-girl/palace-theatre-manchester/

Palace Theatre – Saturday 18th February – Saturday 25th February 2017

Returning Monday 7th August – Saturday 19th August 2017

 

Danza Contemporanea De Cuba

Leave a comment

cuba

The three works explored a huge celebration of cuban culture, talent and the collision of contemporary and cuban techniques. Each of the pieces ask so differently of the dancers we see the power of their embodiment transform throughout the evening.

Reversible by Anna Lopez Ochoa immediately introduces us to the intimacy of the work to come, two statues framing the stage. Man and Woman dressed only in underwear both bare chested, raised high by a circle of supporting dancers. The hugely talented 25 strong cast weave through duets designed to break force and stretch intention in combined forces meeting their equal intensity, the engagements explore provoking couples who resists and draw out and detach, playing with attraction and sensuality the choreography finds new ways to move without losing contact, with fluidity the cast fall through the space. With moments of outstanding dancing from bodies moving in totality the company dance as one body of movement one voice heard in 25 tones, Ochoa is looking at the essence of humanity when caught in the broils of love and attraction. The bare chested men and women is unquestionably identifying strength and sensuality within humanity. Costumes by Vladimir Cuenca style men in skirts and women in trousers suggesting gender equality.

cuba-a

The Listening Room by Theo Clinkard, sets the stage for a thoughtful performance sending a blanket of silence across the audience he opens with a line of dancers quietly engaging with the soundscape they are hearing through their own set of headphones, each are set up with an mp3 player. We’re witness to their interpretation. The authenticity in the concepts that were being delivered brings a new light to the stage, a humanness which is celebrated through the choreographer, later in the after show talk Theo Clinkard talks about his focus to see instinctive choices. This is apparent and resonates with moments of authenticity and humility. The cast find it a pleasure to play in this arena, which is also deeply crafted in movement and phrases of choreography. We can see that they have enjoyed this creative process. Really stunning lighting accompanying the piece is designed by Fernando Alonso.

cuba-c

Matria Etnocentra by George Cespades is an ultimate delivery of cuban rhythms beaten together with an army soldiers solidarity and so fierce and passionate. They dance from their hearts with rhythms so complex and with furious speeds but with a dignified cool. Army boots, khakis and tanks, sometimes underwear, sometimes work wear.The cast move easily in the complexity of the formations, they thrive as the layers get more intense – a build of endurance fighting within the formations and the rhythms. Choreography that we would normally see as celebration is reversing its position and driving this work as a protest. George Cespedes is prehaps staging his protest. Matched by electronic duo nacional Electronica and Hermanos Exposito.

cuba-b

A really brilliant triple bill, with outstanding talent, it was a pleasure to hear the director talk about his interest in Contemporary Dance and Cuban Dance ‘colliding’ to make progressive world class dance Miguel Iglesias which is certainly what he is delivering. They will take Europe by storm wishing them the very best with their tour.

Guest reviewer – Kate Jackson

 

Target Live to open Manchester Office

Leave a comment

 

havas-manchester

Fantastic news for the Manchester theatre scene today as Marketing and PR agency Target Live announce they are to open a new Manchester office.

 

The newly established team is made up of three firm favourites from the Manchester theatre marketing and PR scene, Emma King, former marketing manager at ATG, who takes on the role of account director for marketing. Emma is joined by Anna Whitwood, who was a founding member of AKA North and is current marketing and communications manager for Manchester’s Palace Theatre and Opera House, and Kate Goerner, who has been press officer for the Palace Theatre and Opera House for the past eight years.

 

Bought by global communications firm Havas Group last year, the new Manchester team will be based at Havas Village on Princess Street, right in the heart of the city.

 

Describing Manchester as “a high priority” for the company, Havas Media Group chief executive Paul Frampton highlights the importance of Manchester not only in the North West but also nationally as a hub for not only touring productions but new and innovative pieces of theatre.

 

Target Live’s current clients include Bill Kenwright a firm favourite on the touring scene, revival musical 42nd Street which begins previews at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane in March and Opera North who regularly visit the Lowry with their touring productions.

 

We’d like to wish Target Live, Emma, Anna and Kate every success in this exciting new venture, a team we have always enjoyed working with, we’re thrilled to hear this wonderful news!

 

 

 

Dark Hearts of Space – The Lowry

Leave a comment

dark_heart_of_space_main

Dark Hearts of Space, realised and perform by Dasha Rush & Stanislav Glazov explores offered visuals and sounds which filled the stage as the cinematic images were visualised through a double screen. Projectors filled the syc back stage and a huge gauze screen up stage giving a 3 dimensional effect which was was highly engaging. The 40 minute performance displayed a way to escape, a space to expand your mind, it was ever so cool.

The experience was a visual play of many different black hole creations which credits the visual Graphic Designer Stanislav Glazov the male part of this charming duo, as later in after show talk we hear that the technology and artistry is extremely advanced. To an untrained eye, it was a little disparate. The shift of ideas felt more of a scratch performance making the whole experience very open ended and non-directional and I didn’t feel a connectivity to couple that with a philosophical notion or spiritual notion, the abstract determined non attachment to the ideas that were playing out.

Dasha Rush played an electronic sound score that washed over the subconscious mind and supported the visual lead, I found this quite meditative. A unique piece in which the cosmic space created in this collaboration was at times spellbinding.

 Guest reviewer, Kate Jackson

 

Babe, The Sheep-Pig

Leave a comment

babe-3

It’s almost time to meet the lovable Babe in a heart-warming tale of friendship, adventure and bravery. Adapted from Dick King-Smith’s much-loved children’s novel which inspired the Oscar-winning 1995 film, Babe, The Sheep-Pig will be brought to life on stage in an enchanting new production. Featuring stunning puppetry, an original score and an utterly charming ‘baa-ber sheep’ quartet, Babe and the residents of Hogget’s Farm will visit The Lowry from Tue 11 to Sat 15 April as part of a major UK Tour.

babe-1

When Babe arrives at Hogget’s Farm he is taken in by the trusty sheep-dog Fly, and soon discovers a talent for herding. With the help of his adopted Mum, the polite piglet soon wins over the most suspicious of sheep. But can a small pig make it in a dog’s world, and when his farmyard friends are in trouble can Babe save the day?

Babe, The Sheep-Pig is adapted for the stage by Olivier Award-winning playwright David Wood OBE, who is best known for his adaptations of classic family titles including Goodnight Mister Tom, James and the Giant Peach, The BFG and The Tiger Who Came to Tea. It is directed by Michael Fentiman, whose productions include The Taming of the Shrew and Titus Andronicus (RSC), and The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe (Kensington Gardens) which he co-directed with Rupert Goold.

babe-2

The residents of Hogget’s Farm will be brought to life by beautiful hand-crafted puppets, created by award-winning puppet designer Max Humphries (Chief Puppet Designer, Cirque de Soleil) and Dik Downey, with the ensemble cast delivering masterful puppetry by puppetry director Matthew Forbes (Associate Director in Puppetry & Movement, War Horse).

Book your tickets now for this delightful adventure for all the family, on at The Lowry from Tues 11th – Saturday 15th April.

http://www.thelowry.com/event/babe-the-sheep-pig

babe

 

 

The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time

Leave a comment

c1

Returning to The Lowry as part of a new 25 city tour, The National Theatre’s multi-award winning production The Curious Incident of the Dog in The Night-Time, is as spellbinding and incredibly moving as ever. Adapted by Stockport born Simon Stephens and directed by Manchester’s own Marianne Elliott, Curious introduces us to a very, very special person, the utterly extraordinary, Christopher Boone.

 

The story follows fifteen year old Christopher (Scott Reid) upon his alarming discovery of the murder of his neighbour’s dog Wellington, whom he has found speared with a garden fork. Christopher, wrongfully under suspicion makes it his mission to solve the mystery of the murder by documenting the facts he discovers through his thorough and detailed investigations. Christopher is a complex yet truly remarkable boy, like many autistic people Christopher sees the world very differently to perhaps you and I, for one he truly ‘sees’ the world, he notices each and everything around him, he observes and processes every physical detail in his environment, colours, sounds, textures, everything Christopher sees is in exact and minute detail. His brain is as complex as it is fascinating, metaphors don’t make sense and people are generally confusing.

c3

 

Scott Reid as Christopher is fantastic, he makes such a physically and emotionally challenging role appear effortless, he is hugely likeable and engages the audience from his very first scene, you quite literally fall in love with Reid’s Christopher, you want him desperately to succeed and to be happy, safe and secure. The relationship he has with Siobhan (Lucianne McEvoy) his teacher is beautiful; she calms and soothes Christopher when things get too much and he stops being able to process the endless information his brain is constantly receiving, more importantly she totally and utterly believes in him.

c2

As the story develops we soon realise that Christopher like many people on the Autistic Spectrum is uncomfortable with touch, the amount of physical contact he will engage in is minimal and must be on his terms, this is beautifully directed and makes for some of the most poignant and emotional scenes in whole production as we witness Christopher’s parents battle to simply comfort their child.

Director Marianne Elliot along with Movement Directors Scott Graham, Steven Hoggett and Adrian Sutton have created something truly unique with their cast, from weightlessly floating through space to the trauma of using the unwelcoming and chaotic underground the way the cast move is mesmerising. The organisation and exact movement of the cast is outstanding, their fluid movement so intricate.

c4

Complementing the brilliant cast is a truly stunning set, it is in effect part of the cast as it is so involved in every aspect of what happens on stage, the cast and the set at times almost become one, moving fluidly together to astonishing effect. Designer Bunny Christie, Lighting Designer Paule Constable, Video Designer Finn Ross and Sound Designer Ian Dickinson have created something truly magical here.

Curious is a production that leaves an huge impact, at times heart-warming and funny it is also through provoking and incredibly moving, without doubt an absolute must see.

On at The Lowry until Saturday 4th February

http://www.thelowry.com/event/the-curious-incident-of-the-dog-in-the-night-time

Preview – Bat Out Of Hell- The Musical

3 Comments

christina-bennington-andrew-polec-in-rehearsals-for-bat-out-of-hell-the-musical-credit-specular-2

Exactly one month to the day Bat Out Of Hell – The Musical will be all revved up and ready to take to the stage at the Manchester Opera House for the first night of an impressive seven week run of what is set to become one of the biggest musical theatre events of the year.

Originally called Neverland, and based on a futuristic version of Peter Pan which writer Jim Steinman originally work-shopped in 1974, Bat Out Of Hell – The Musical has been many years in the planning. Set against the backdrop of a post-cataclysmic city adrift from the mainland we meet Strat (Andrew Polec) the forever young leader of The Lost who has fallen for Raven (Christina Bennington), who has been locked away in the palace towers by her Father Falco (Rob Fowler), the oppressive ruler of Obsidian. The show takes us on an adventure of romance, rebellion and rock ‘n’ roll and features many of the monster hits we all know and love including You Took The Words Right Out Of My Mouth, Bat Out Of Hell, I Would Do Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That) and Two Out Of Three Ain’t Bad, as well as two previously unreleased songs, What Part of My Body Hurts the Most and Not Allowed to Love.

andrew-polec-and-the-cast-in-rehearsals-for-bat-out-of-hell-the-musical-credit-specular

We were lucky enough to be treated to a preview from the rehearsal rooms and boy is Manchester in for a treat! The large cast are absolutely full of energy and sounded incredible, Polec led the charge as we were given a taste of what to expect when the show premieres at the Opera House on 17th February. Directed by award-winning theatre and opera director Jay Scheib, Bat Out Of Hell – The Musical is no doubt set to become a theatrical triumph , vibrant, sassy and full of attitude, the cast delivered each song with passion and were brimming with energy and the self-assured confidence you’d wish for from any rock star. The cutting edge and dynamic choreography of Emma Portner compliments the soundtrack perfectly and adds even more attitude to already explosive performances.

Sitting down with director Jay Scheib and producers David Sonenberg, Michael Cohl, and Tony Smith we heard more about the work that has gone into bringing this production together and the commitment they each have to ensuring the dream of seeing Bat Out Of Hell turned into a musical becomes not just a reality but an exciting and vibrant theatrical experience. Discussing the appeal and longevity of the music Scheib said, “You can have one perspective on the songs as a teenager and that perspective can shift as you move into different stages of your life, some songs get old where these songs just get different and their meaning changes, so they are always relevant”. David Sonenberg noted also that “Steinman first wrote the song titles then challenged himself to write a song that lived up to the title, he is a brilliant lyricist, just amazing at writing melodies”.

booh

It’s clear to see why Andrew Polec was given the lead role; the minute the music starts he is transformed into Strat, totally focussed and committed to delivering a performance Meatloaf himself would be proud of, if there is such a thing as having ‘it’ then Polec has got ‘it’ in bucket loads. It’s clear to see why the producers knew so quickly when Polec arrived at the open casting in the United States that he was “Born to play the part”, his casting in the role couldn’t be more perfect, Tony Smith states “You have to have an incredible voice for these songs, he’s not blown away by the scale of these songs, he’s amazing” Beautifully complimenting Polec’s strutting and rebellious Strat is Christina Bennington as Raven, she has the most beautiful voice and a wide-eyed innocence that’s just waiting to be corrupted by some serious rock ‘n’ roll, Bennington describes Raven’s meeting with Strat as a meeting of minds, “…she craves the love of her parents but feels suffocated by it, once she meets Strat she feels there’s the chance of a whole new kind of freedom but, she has an internal battle as she is torn between the love of her parents and her love for Strat”.

There is some real star quality involved in this new musical, the heartfelt delivery of new song What Part of My Body Hurts the Most by Rob Folwer and Sharon Sexton gave me goosebumps, emotional and touching the quality of the writing is so good it would be right at home on any of the Bat Out Of Hell albums. Fowler describes the songs as “…totally relatable, they tell the story for you, they’re full of honesty, even the new songs feel so familiar” a true sign of excellent writing. Likewise Danielle Steers and Dom Hartly- Harris give a powerful, emotionally charged performance of Two Out Of Three Ain’t Bad that left me desperate to see more. Manchester audiences may also recognise Andrew Patrick-Walker, most recently seen in Hair at Hope Mill Theatre, Andrew is thrilled to be returning to Manchester with such an exciting and ground-breaking show.

christina-bennington-andrew-polec-in-rehearsals-for-bat-out-of-hell-the-musical-credit-specular

There is some serious weight behind this production, the sets and costumes promise to be spectacular with the building of the set beginning at the Opera House almost 6 weeks before opening night it is a show of enormous scale. Following our discussions with the cast and creatives it is obvious that this show is going to be nothing short of epic, the care taken to ensure this production is of the highest standard is clear to see, the opportunity to get to know Bat Out Of Hell as a theatrical piece is going to be an absolute joy, roll on February!

Tickets are available now via http://www.atgtickets.com/shows/bat-out-of-hell/opera-house-manchester/

http://www.batoutofhellmusical.com

17 February – 29 April 2017

Opera House, Manchester

Performances: Mon-Sat at 7.30pm, Thurs & Sat at 2.30pm (no matinee on Sat 18 February)

Tickets: from £17.50