Show Reviews Part 1!

Hey guys!

 So this past week I went to New York, and I was lucky enough to see four Broadway shows (yay for discount ticket booths!), so I decided that I would write some reviews for the shows! The reviews turned out to be a little long, so I’m going to make two posts out of it. This week will be Matilda and Fun Home, and next week will be Something Rotten! and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time! Hope you enjoy!



Matilda

Matilda has been the musical that I have consistently been obsessed with for the past couple of years, so I knew that this was one show that I wanted to see no matter what. I’m so happy that I was able to see it before a lot of the current cast leaves (especially Lesli and Matt, who were amazing as usual). I don’t know why, but for some reason I found that Lesli sounded different, I almost didn’t think it was her during her first couple of lines in Miracle. Maybe it was the Americanized British accent, but she sounded different than other performances I’ve seen of her.

I was pleasantly surprised that Mattea was on as Matilda that show (I had a hunch and thought it was going to be Alexandra, but that hunch was obviously wrong). She is so small and adorable (I even heard an audience member say “Oh my gosh, I can’t handle how cute she is!” in the middle of the show), and very, very talented! Her voice is so strong, and you can definitely tell that she has a dance background. After Mattea imitated Miss Trunchbull during one of the stories, her hair had gotten stuck in her bobby pins and was sticking straight out, but both her and Karen Aldridge (Mrs. Phelps) didn’t miss a beat. Although she was a little hard to understand during Story 2, her accent was for the most part consistent. Some of my Mattea highlights were her “Big, Fat, Bully”, Quiet (especially the big note during “Everything everything IS”), Naughty reprise and her acting in the scenes around My House.

Alison Luff was incredible as Miss Honey, her emotions were so heart wrenching, especially during Bruce, which was a scene that I had never noticed Miss Honey in before. You could tell that she wanted to help him so badly and that she felt horrible for what was happening, but she knew that she couldn’t do anything to stop it. It was so heartbreaking to watch, as was My House. Christopher Sieber had the audience in the palm of his hands, he was hilarious! He really brought the Trunchbull to life. All the kids are so incredibly talented and high energy, it was so much fun to watch them perform, especially in Revolting Children.

By the time bows came around, I was really struggling to hold in my tears, it’s such an emotional rollercoaster of a show. It was so entertaining and uplifting, and I am extremely happy that I can say that it was my first Broadway show.





Fun Home

Okay, I’m going to be totally honest, this is my all time favourite show. I actually splurged and bought tickets to Fun Home before I left, because I knew that I couldn’t miss it. I ended up considering the ticket my high school graduation/18th birthday present because it ended up being so expensive that my parents asked me if I was crazy for spending that much money on one ticket. But it was in the second row. THE SECOND ROW. It was 100% worth it though, especially in the Circle in the Square theatre. It was so fascinating to watch the actor’s stage business when they weren’t being focused on. I even caught Beth Malone eating something out of one of those squeeze packs that little kids will eat apple sauce or something out of during one of Middle Alison’s scenes!

Being in the round and that close to the stage made it so much more personal, which I think is very important for a show that is so emotionally taxing. Every single person in that show is so talented, there isn’t one actor who’s a little bit weaker than the rest. The show runs so smoothly and seamlessly, and each new scene had me impatiently waiting for whatever was going to happen next, even though I usually knew what to expect.

Nicole Van Giesen was on as Helen, and she was spectacular, especially since her first time going on as Helen was only two days before! I almost started crying when Sydney sang her first note, and my emotions were so profound for the duration of the show. I cried during Telephone Wire, laughed during Raincoat of Love, my heart was so full during Ring of Keys and Changing My Major and then I cried again after the show when my parents asked how it was. The stage was unbelievable, and the staging of the show in The Round was so well done, I never felt like I missed anything because an actor was facing the wrong way.

After the show Sydney unfortunately had to leave right away and couldn’t stage door, but everyone else did! Zell was so adorable and outgoing, I had brought all the kids maple lollipops (because the house is on Maple Avenue) and he was SO excited, and kept on talking to me the entire time until I left. I learnt that his older sister had actually been in the Original Broadway cast of Matilda. Emily Skeggs was so sweet and friendly, and Michael Cerveris was really nice and humble. This was easily one of the best nights of my life, and Fun Home is overall an amazing show.



I hope you found my reviews both interesting and helpful, make sure to check back to read my reviews for Something Rotten! and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time!



What are some shows on Broadway that you wish you could see? Mine are Hamilton (I actually got offered a ticket to see it, but I was leaving three days before the day of the show so I couldn’t), Spring Awakening and School of Rock (even though they haven’t opened yet).



Until next time!

Sarah

Twitter: @sarahvandale

Instagram: sarahvandale

You're New To Theatre

Everybody knows the stereotypical theatre kid right? Loud, Wicked over dramatic, has a huge heart and can turn every sentence into a musical reference (notice the Wicked pun in the one you just read). You're probably smiling right now because you know all those things are so true, and if you did, congratulations you are the typical theatre kid!

But all these qualities can be a little intimidating if you aren't a typical theatre kid or you're new to the arts. You want to talk to your cast mates and have fun at rehearsal but you just might not know how to connect to them. I get that, because I have been there. I think we have all been there. So here are some ideas to help you connect.

1. Do some research- Broadway.com is a great place to start for some general information about what's going on in the theatre world. You could look at the news about shows and actors and spark up a conversation about what's going on on Broadway right now.

2. Learn some names- You should know the big names in the business because no matter what show or subject you're talking about I bet you will hear some of these names. Also, as you start to learn more and more about your favorite stars you are sure to pick up tons of information about shows. Some of my favorites: Idina Menzel, Sutton Foster, Kristin Chenoweth, Patti LuPone, Darren Criss, Jeremy Jordan, Matthew Morrison and Aaron Tveit

3. Don't be to basic- Please don't say your favorite movie musical is High School Musical and don't make your favorite musical The Lion King just because that's the only one you know. These things just get on theatre kids' nerves for obvious reasons. It's fine to love popular musicals, don't get me wrong, just make sure you do research on other shows as well.

4. Have a favorite show- Having a favorite show allows you to have some sort of a stance on things. Pick a show that you love the story or the actors. But make sure you love the soundtrack! My personal favorite is Wicked (but picking a second favorite is like picking a favorite child). I can listen to the soundtrack on repeat, actually that's basically all I do. Some more shows that everyone seems to love are Newsies, Pippin, Rent, A Gentleman's Guide and basically anything that has had a substantial run on Broadway.

So those are my tips to fitting in with the theatre kids! I'm sure you will be just fine. When in doubt do jazz hands (no don't). Good luck!

Nick Esposito
Instagram- nick_esposito71

Twitter- nickesposito71

So, It's your first rehearsal

Here are some of the do’s and dont’s of your first rehearsal with a new theatre company!

BE EARLY!

Being early shows the directors that you are prepared and take their production seriously.
There is a saying in theatre: “Ten minutes early is on time, on time is late”. 
Rehearsal starts promptly at the time called. If call time is 6:00, rehearsal begins AT 6:00. I cannot stress this enough.

DO NOT BE ON YOUR CELLPHONE.

Being on your phone is distracting to other actors and to yourself. You could miss important notes or your entrance. It is also very unprofessional. So, turn your cellophone off when you enter the rehearsal space.

WEAR CORRECT CLOTHING!
If you know you are going to be dancing, don’t wear your favorite pair of skin tight
jeans and a crop top. Wear something you are comfortable moving in. If you know you are going
to be doing intense dancing or acrobatics i suggest a leotard and booty shorts or leggings and a tight exercise shirt.

BRING YOUR SCRIPT AND A PENCIL!

At any rehearsal, you will most likely be given notes. Whether you like to keep your notes directly
on your script, or with sticky notes, or a notepad, ect.. 
You always need your script and a PENCIL. Blocking is often changed especially early on in rehearsal, so writing in pen would not be advised.

And the biggest tip for going into a new theatre company;
Keep and open mind!

Hope I helped some of you out! ~Elizabeth Hampton!
Twitter @paresseamant ­Instagram @mickeymousetache 
Have a lovely day! <3