u/RockyStonejaw

I’ve just finished Michael Ball’s memoir “Different Aspects” (2023), documenting his then-current (and ultimately failed) revival of Aspects of Love. It’s a decent read, nothing groundbreaking. He’s a good writer, but the book is rather guarded and lacking in detail as far as autobiographical works go.

He has a brief chapter on his enduring and loving relationship with partner Cathy McGowan, touches on the fact he couldn’t have children of his own, touches on his early career and breakthrough into mainstream celebrity.

Michael is very “showbiz” (and I know this myself from being around him a few times in the past, and from people who have worked with him) and this comes off in the book. His anecdotes are very safe and inoffensive, and he rarely has a bad word for anyone. He isn’t shy about recognising his own status and talent, but he always follows up a self-aggrandising statement with a self-deprecating joke about himself, to soften things. He is very protective of his image and makes mention several times throughout the book to being a “nice guy”, “loveable”, a “national treasure”, being “not a diva/easy to work with” and so on. I must admit alarm bells did start to ring a tiny bit that he felt it important to mention this so frequently. He litters the book with theatre slang (which he helpfully translates for those not in the ‘biz) and is quite old school.

His memories and stories are structured but not chronological; he jumps back and forth from present day to past, giving often surface-level anecdotes which often leave the interesting/juicy parts out. For example, an angry Andrew Lloyd-Webber storming out of the sitzprobe for the Aspects revival;

“Overnight, there were toys hurled out of prams. People were threatened with the sack. There was a bit of ‘if he goes, I go’ action. Then, by magic, it was sorted. And this is why I don’t want to go into much detail about it; I don’t want this to be the headlines, because it was just one of those little things that happen during a show.”.

Well, quite, but they're exactly the kind of things people want to know when you write a book specifically about the creation of this same show. It’s truthfully not that interesting to hear you think the cast are the best ever, everyone is “fabulous” and Andrew Lloyd-Webber loved the show when he saw it a month later. Understandably, he speaks in hugely glowing terms about the Aspects revival and is philosophical about its failure. He is at pains to praise the “at times difficult and challenging for the audience” show.

Unfortunately, despite being 336 pages long, I’ve come away learning very little about Michael Ball I couldn’t read in this article; www.theguardian.com/culture/2021/jun/29/michael-ball-my-breakdown-made-me-a-better-performer-and-a-better-person and his Wikipedia page.

But there were a few things which stood out/I didn’t know;

- Both the Aspects and Sweeney productions he starred in came about solely because of his desire to play each role. The productions weren’t even a possibility until he pitched them. He had the idea of playing Sweeney/George and went to the producers asking if it was possible to play the roles in new productions. An interesting section details his solo efforts (and a bit of deception) to get Aspects greenlit with both Nica Burns (co-owner of Nimax) and Lloyd-Webber himself with back to back meetings the same day. Is emphatic with praise for the cast of the revival, especially Laura Pitt-Pulford and Jamie Bogyo.

- Mentions a few times that due to his fame, draw and seniority (after all, he got the shows made essentially) he was afforded a good amount of creative input, including a veto and vote in casting. Says reputation and attitude are very important factors, and he didn’t/doesn’t hesitate in saying “not him/her” if they have a poor one or he has worked with them and had a “personality clash” (why would that happen, Michael? I thought you said you always get on great with everyone?).

- Ball says he has been almost entirely offer-only (doesn’t audition) since the early 1990’s. The exception being Hairspray, which was he was desperate to do and badgered to get an audition after seeing it when it was new on Broadway

- Barely touches on Eurovision (did it, enjoyed it, was chosen to represent the UK before the song was picked, which was taken from his upcoming studio album - “One Step Out of Time”. Ball is on record elsewhere saying he doesn’t like the song much, he doesn’t say anything else on the subject in the book).

- Mentions his breakdown a little, without going into much detail. Discussed his use of beta-blockers in his early career to combat panic attacks, hasn’t used them in a long time. Was called out of the blue by Cameron Mackintosh with an offer to take over Raoul in Phantom, after 9 months essentially housebound following glandular fever. Says he was told to “sh*t or get off the pot” and knew it was make or break for his career, so said yes despite his fears and anxiety.

- Talks about his attendance being very good following what happened with his run in Les Mis. Says standards post-Covid with young performers have slipped. This was during and after a passage talking about Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “difficulties” with Bad Cinderella. Again, no names from Michael because it’s something critical/negative, but I inferred what I had heard from friends - it was not a happy company. Questions young performer’s work ethic and professionalism.

- Wanted desperately to appear in Nicholas Hytner’s Carousel at the NT, but they wouldn’t even see him for an audition because of his “baggage”, which he attributes to his “fame” (?)

- Was hugely disappointed not to get the part of Joe Gillis after playing the role at Sydmonton but says it was nothing personal - just business.

- Frequently references old and cult movies and has a reverence for old-time movie and TV stars. One anecdote about being invited backstage by Joan Collins along with a tipsy Diana Rigg, who promptly gave Joan an unsolicited “note” (comment on her performance) was mildly amusing. He talks about going to Barbados and being invited for tea with Claudette Colbert. He speaks extremely fondly of Roger Moore (“Uncle Rog”) and the sadness in his sudden departure from the original production following a disastrous sitzprobe. (He was let go, but allowed to publicly resign to save face. He couldn’t hold a tune and/or pick the right note to sing with an orchestra playing, but was fine with just the piano).

- Is an ex-smoker, now vapes, can’t read music, claims to only have had 2 singing lessons in his life (presumably he means professional life, because he went to Guildford School of Arts where singing lessons are frequent, even on the acting course which he took rather than musical theatre).

There is no sadly no index in the book (why?) and his first acknowledgement in said section is for his good friend and long-time assistant/dresser Andrew Holmes, who is mentioned frequently in the second half of the book; “Firstly, a huge huzzah to Andrew Holmes for guiding, listening, cajoling, encouraging and making sense of it all . . . We laughed a lot.”

Overall an interesting insight into the creation of a new production, but light on detail.

Avenue Q: First time seeing the revival, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. We had the full cast on Friday night, and they were very good overall.

It’s a very safe and faithful revival of the original West End production. Lines have been added/amended to keep things up to date, largely successfully. The blocking and direction were very similar to previous productions I’ve seen and remember fondly - the Selladoor tour (where the set fell over leading to a long show stop!), the original West End run and a brilliant amateur production in Eastbourne.

Standout numbers for me were There’s a Fine, Fine Line and Fantasies Come True, which were both very strong. But the quality was high throughout.

With not a lot to add about the production - it’s basically Avenue Q again - onto the cast. Emily Benjamin is a lovely Kate Monster/Lucy, and Noah Harrison is terrific and my pick of the cast as Princeton/Rod. I particularly liked Charlie McCullagh as Nicky, although his Trekkie Monster voice wasn’t quite what I’m used to (not deep/gravelly enough ala Cookie Monster) and wasn’t as strong as others I’ve seen.

Everyone else is good, although I thought Amelia Kinu Muus’s accent as Christmas Eve was a little all over the place. The audience loved her, though. The biggest audience reactions came from the Lucy “incident” and Christmas Eve’s song.

It’s not a favourite show of mine, but one I always enjoy all the same and this time was no different. 4*

But finally, onto the audience. I went on Friday night with a friend visiting from America, and we got good stalls seats on TKTS for £40 apiece mid-afternoon. I’m sad to say the stalls were only around half full, so goodness knows what it’s like during the week. It’s particularly concerning because the show has only just opened and really should be pulling in strong weekend audiences this early in the run.

There were several completely empty rows in front of us, and the theatre felt very quiet. I didn’t see a single customer at the merchandise booths any time I passed them. We were handed a £10-off voucher for a return visit on the way out, but obviously this only applies to full-price box office tickets, and the show is already heavily discounted elsewhere, making it effectively worthless.

I hope things pick up, but on the basis of Friday night, I’m not convinced it’ll last until the end of the current booking period, never mind enjoy a longer run.

The Producers for a fourth(!!) visit - this time with a friend - for Saturday’s matinee. And finally some understudies, having seen the full company on all three prior visits.

The show remains in FANTASTIC shape and every time I go there are minor changes/differences, which is fun for repeat viewings and no doubt for the cast.

At Saturday’s performance we had standby Ryan Pidgen on as Max, first cover Olly Christopher on as Leo, first cover Megan Armstrong on as Hold-Me Touch-Me and Jermaine Woods on as Carmen (and as a result a swing on to cover Woods’ usual track).

Ryan Pidgen is the best singer of the three I’ve seen in this production, and probably across all productions I’ve seen (the other two recently of course being Andy Nyman and Richard Kind). He has a deep, powerful voice and isn’t afraid to use it where it’s appropriate. He is a solid understudy and holds things together well, but some laughs are occasionally lost from his at times very quick delivery. I did miss Andy Nyman. Pidgen plays Bialystock with a straight bat, but for me the result is he isn’t actually a lot of fun. But it’s a decent performance and I liked lots of his ideas, but overall he was just not perhaps at the level of the others I’ve seen with the comedy, desperation and sleaze - which is how I love the character portrayed.

The other slight issue is his playing age.Both he and Olly Christopher as Leo read and play about 10-15 years younger than the actors they are covering, so it did make things feel a bit understudy-ish to me at first. He easily could pass as Richard Kind’s son age wise.

Olly Christopher was great as Leo and I really liked some of the character touches he added, making his performance feel unique and not a replica of Marc Antolin (who I think is also terrific). Olly is an excellent dancer and “I Wanna Be a Producer” was a real highlight. I liked him and he didn’t play the role as camp as Antolin, which kind of makes sense for the story.

Another full-ish house, another standing ovation and big laughs from the audience and extended applause throughout. Still 5* but I don’t think I’ll go back without a fairly comprehensive cast change - just to see new takes on the characters as I’m in danger of seeing this to death.

£8.95 including large white Americano coffee.