Review – Sunset Boulevard with Glenn Close, London Coliseum

Well this wasn’t intended to be our 5th in the series of shows-missed-first-time round as we were due to be at The Suicide at the National Theatre but that was cancelled due to laryngitis. Javone Prince’s who plays the lead role – not ours.

And Sunset Boulevard? Well, Phil saw it first time round with Patti LuPone and then Elaine Paige but not Glenn Close who did it on the Broadway some 20 plus years ago, so it does fit our theme. Sorta.

Anyhoo, Ms Close “makes her West End debut” according to the publicity, Phil saw her Blanche Dubois at the National 14 years ago so is this strictly her West End debut? Discuss.

Review – The Sound of Music, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre

One of Phil’s earliest memories is of being taken to Manchester’s Gaumont Cinema to see the film of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II‘s The Sound of Music (book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse) after it had just opened.

This family outing came with the added thrill of knowing that it would probably take up to a year to reach his local, The Vista, Westbury*. He’d never been to such a grand cinema before, tickets had been booked in advance and he recalls being fascinated by a fountain on the staircase up to the circle. As you never needed to book in advance at The Vista and its “circle” was only 2 steps higher than the stalls, it’s hardly surprising he was beside himself with excitement.

But above all he remembers becoming moist around the eyes as Maria got hitched to Captain Von Trapp. The scene came after the intermission (hands up if you’re old enough to remember films with intermissions) but Phil’s tears were of joy for Maria, despite her annexing a Captain with seven children. Now he’d be weeping for other reasons and looking forward to their appearance on The Jeremy Kyle Show.

Review – Into the Woods, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre

There are some marriages made in heaven. Not that of the Whingers, of course. Their uneasy, warped version of wedlock is one parboiled over the flames of hell, yet still half-baked.

But whoever came up with the idea of staging Into the Woods in the gloriously seemly setting that is the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre should be appropriately ennobled. The biggest question is: why has it taken them so long?

With memories of previous years’ Hello Dolly! and Gigi still transforming the Whingers’ usual grimacing countenances into beaming smiles (despite the downpours of rain encountered on both occasions) expectations were raised to an unreasonably imprudent level.