r/TheWestEnd

Hi All, super super excited for my upcoming West End trip next weekend 28th-29th Aug!

I have the following tickets:

1. AvenueQ Sat Matinee

2. Paddington and Death Note Sat Evening

3. Totoro (2nd Time) Sun Matinee

4. Heather's the Musical (Following week up in Leeds)

I'd bought Paddington a while back but seeing reviews of Death Note I got a ticket. I'll only be able to see one which do you suggest?

Not many shows on for the Sunday Matinee that I haven't seen it was between Totoro the second time, saw it last year or Hadestown which I haven't seen. Because Totoro is leaving soon and I loved it last time I went for this as Hadestown seems to have mixed reviews.

Doing these solo so if anyone is attending any of the shows and would like to meet prior or during the interval to discuss that would be great 😊😊

I took my daughter to see the matinee performance of Hamilton last Thursday. I want to preface this by adding some context. I had saved and saved for tickets as a gift for her 21st birthday. I am a low income single parent working full time on minimum wage and although I have always encouraged my children to enjoy theatre and literature and the arts in general and not be trapped by the stereotypes of our socio economic situation, the West End to me was always seen as a Middle Class world and I was so nervous that we would stand out like a sore thumb and be judged and made to feel unwelcome. The behaviour we witnessed soon knocked any imposter syndrome out of me and made me realise I was so wrong.

Whilst in our seats waiting for the theatre to fill up, a woman on the row in front took her shoes off, put her feet up on the back of the seat infront and began to apply cream or lotion to them and then lifted her dress all the way to her underwear to apply it to her legs too.

The gentleman seated next to my daughter decided he wanted to grab another drink from the bar before it started. Instead of taking the extra few seconds to wait for people to stand to give him space to leave the row he saw that the row behind was still empty and clambered over his seat to that row. Upon hearing the clearly audible crack/creak of the wood he didn't stop he just continued with his full weight. He also used his thick programme to fan his face throughout the show but wafting it at an angle directly in my daughters eye line. He also made very exaggerated yawning sounds to the point his wife pulled him up on it during the interval.

On the train home we encountered two women talking about the show so I gave them a smile and pointed to our programme. They were really friendly telling us how they had been multiple times and simply had to go again to see LOJ and showed us videos of stage door. They were also both ABSOLUTELY hammered and still drinking on the train. The state they were in was comparable to the sights we see in our local area with the people who sit in the park drinking tenants super all day.

We both were absolutely blown away by the production, the opulence of the theatre and the novelty of being in the hustle and bustle of London but I also realised that maybe I had totally built up my own misconceptions of it not being for "the likes of us" and that it is something accesible to someone of our background. And in the same way I don't want to be seen as a stereotype, I need to work on my unconscious stereo typing of others.

Went to see Hamilton tonight. Outstanding. 10/10 for everyone. Totally blown away.

But friends, what the fuck. Has theatre etiquette gone to the dogs?

Why did I experience someone beside or behind me singing along in the first few songs? Thankfully they soon caught on to how annoying they were and stopped.

I had to throw a dirty look to the people beside me for talking in the first 3 songs. I know. It’s great. Leslie is there! Shut up. Talk about it in the interval.

There was a row of 3-5 people in front of me aggressively bopping to every beat. I mean genuinely rocking backward and forward.

Are we incapable of sitting somewhat still? In silence? I could not believe it. I’ve never experience anything like it at a theatre show. I expect it during movies at this point but there are people on stage performing and you want to ignore that?!

I’ve been trying for the musical’s rush tickets for the past 3 days now, and it never seemed like it was possible to get ahold of any - it’s always being held. I am a student but a really big fan of the songs, so I’m hoping to watch the musical at a cheaper price…

But if this goes on I don’t think I’ll have a choice but to pay for the original price for the final day, but I’m really hoping someone would know the chances of me getting the rush tickets beforehand, and if anyone here has gotten it before?

Thought it was interesting that they held up the no phones signs during the bows at Book of Mormon recently. I’m neutral about filming bows although I only do it when I see most others doing it. I’ve noticed it’s more common in shows with a younger audience like Evita, John Proctor and Heathers. Was surprised that they specifically didn’t allow it for Book of Mormon. Thoughts?

Hello! I’m so excited to visit London this October! My sister and I are coming from the NYC area and will be in London for 6 nights. We’re avid Broadway theatergoers and are hoping to see ~4 West End shows while we’re there, but I’m having a hard time narrowing down our options.

For context, we see Broadway shows regularly. Operation Mincemeat is my favorite show (I’ve seen it 4x), and I’m seriously considering seeing it again at the Fortune just to experience it in its original home.

Basically: what’s good right now?! Is there anything on the West End that you’d consider a can’t-miss? Anything on our list that you’d skip, especially with only ~4 slots?

Our (very inflated) shortlist:

• My Neighbour Totoro
• Jesus Christ Superstar
• Operation Mincemeat (again!)
• Phantom (mostly because we can’t see it in NY anymore)
• The Mousetrap (intrigued by the history of it)
• Mamma Mia! (I saw it in London in 2018 and thought the production was fantastic)
• Paddington (I’m 100% going to see this when it opens on Broadway, so I’m torn on whether it’s worth using one of our London slots on it. I have absolutely no problem seeing shows twice, though!)
• Matilda (lower on the list)
• Les Mis (I’ve seen it many times, but it’s a classic and I’m always tempted)

For a sense of my taste, some shows I’ve loved: Operation Mincemeat, Titanique, Sunset Blvd, Heathers, Stranger Things, Chess (Really, I am open to almost anything)

There aren't a ton of shows I actively dislike, but some shows from New York I haven’t loved: Schmigadoon, Beetlejuice, Hell's Kitchen, The Great Gatsby, Six.

I’d especially love to hear from people who see a lot of West End theatre: if you had to narrow this down to 4, what would you pick? And is there anything great that isn’t on our list that we should be considering?

Thank you!!

Okay so this is the order I am doing things:

Thursday:
• Death Note Matinee at the Barbican
• Cats Evening at Reagents Park

Friday:
• Cabaret Evening (lounge access, floor seat)

Any got tips on places I can go for food inbetween, or tips for the theatres?

Went to Oliver! recently and loads of people seemed to have little vouchers giving them free ice creams, anyone know what's up with that? As a serial ice cream buyer I wouldn't mind one, especially as they recently put the price up by 25p, albeit they're still cheaper than many other theatres.

As a big Game of Thrones fan and someone who works in the theatre industry I obviously had to drag myself to Stratford to see this!

I think it’s currently just scraping into the 4 star region, and with some refinements has the capacity to be a top-band 4 star or maybe even 5 star show. It’s clearly still in development, and I’m aware that things are still being changed show to show.

It’s so clearly expensive to produce that I am utterly convinced there will be a future life for this show, and I suspect they’re targeting the West End first. I don’t see a lot of scope for a touring production because of the way the staging is configured.

The Good (Why I’m Glad I Saw It)

A lot of the performances are fantastic. My particular standouts were Elizabeth Ayodele as Elia, Maxim Ays as Jaime, Noah Ritter as Rhaegar, Michael Shaeffer as Aerys and Tanisha Spring as Ashara Dayne. The biggest standout for me was Mariah Gale as Rhaella. She only appears as that character in one Act but she steals the show every scene she’s in.

The staging is extremely interesting; sort of a combination of in the round and traverse with a cruciform shape. This really added to a sense of awe and scale, and was in its own way quite immersive.

The production design is absolutely sumptuous. It’s a feast for the eyes, and a lot of it was quite ambitious. A special shoutout for the puppetry which was absolutely masterful and at its best when representing creatures; dogs, horses, >!dragons!<.

I absolutely loved getting to see more of the dynamics of Aerys’ court - these were all my favourite sections. The relationships in the Kingsguard, Rhaella - really interesting and gave colour and light to something that has always been 2 dimensional in the series & books.

The Bad (Things I Hope They’ll Refine Before a Transfer)

Unfortunately, I think the two leading Starks (Lyanna & Ned) are a little miscast. I found both of their Northern accents to be jarring and unfamiliar in their mouths. Michael Abubakar didn’t offer a very grounded Ned, which was very at odds with what I know of the character from the show & books. He’s also of very diminutive stature and while this shouldn’t hold him back, it definitely led to awkward scenes; for example, there’s a section where he “holds back” Robert Baratheon from attacking The Mad King, which was unintentionally comical because he was about half the size of the actor playing Rob. I feel that more awareness of the dynamics was needed by the director here.

Those performances not resonating is particularly problematic given that it seems the writers are trying to make these two characters the emotional heart of the story. Dramaturgically there’s some work to be done in general here; Act I feels very much like “Lyanna’s story” and then, as she is effectively absent in Act II due to >!her pregnancy!< they pass the baton to Ned without really having done the work to make that change effective. They’re leaning heavily on the audience already having goodwill for Ned and an understanding of who he is from the TV series, which is a bit lazy, and if they want this show to reach a non-fan audience will need revision.

I think the writers would benefit from considering whose story they’re telling in this show. Is it Rhaegar’s, Elia’s, Lyanna’s, Ned’s? You could make an argument for any of them. A TV series as long as GoT can afford to give equal weight to contrasting, nuanced perspectives, but a theatre show (even a mammoth 4 hour one) needs to pick a lane and stick to it a little more. Currently the story doesn’t necessarily feel self-contained, which again, could be problematic if they want to access non-fan audiences. A clearer tightening of this would also help create better cohesion between Act I and Act II, which are currently a little disparate.

A lot happens off-stage that I thought should have been on, and vice versa. It would be far better for an audience to see The Knight of the Laughing Tree ride rather than see Rhaegar win several rounds of jousting against knights. Similarly it would have been infinitely preferable to see >!Rhaegar and Lyanna run away together!< than any of the scenes with Catelyn Tully, whose inclusion felt entirely like fan service. I generally had an issue in Act II, as the play’s chronology started to line up with things we’ve seen in other material - the writers seemed to get caught between wanting to show “new” scenes, and feeling like they had to include things we’ve seen in the series and books, leading to at least one scene that’s lifted verbatim from the TV show. I absolutely could have done without that rehash after being there for nearly 4 hours!

The Ugly (Theatre Sins)

The cast is huge, and they’ve clearly prioritised acting talent over securing movers but there are several scenes dependent on fight choreography delivered by people who simply can’t do it. It looks very clumsy in places. Especially since they’ve got some very interesting conceits going on with lighting & sound in the combat sequences - those cues needed to be tight, and they were quite the opposite. Also - for a show that tries to be very realistic in places (we get fake urine and fake amniotic fluid splashed about the stage) - no blood?!

While I commend the puppetry for animals, there were several fight sequences where puppets were swapped in for the actors. This looked so clunky, slowed down the action, and was completely unnecessary. This is the biggest thing I hope they change if this show has a future life.

The transitions are not slick at all. This is partially due to the stage configuration (which I wouldn’t change), but almost every scene was bookended with several long seconds as the actors tried to hurry off the absolutely massive stage, which again slowed the production down and contributed to the fat runtime. Solutions would probably include (1) transferring to a smaller stage and (2) allowing the next scene to start as the previous scene is ending - the stage is “zoned” such that this would be relatively easy. This was actually deployed in a few places and really worked.

Overall Verdict / TLDR

Makings of a really good show. Currently trading more on spectacle than story, but I think in the hands of the right dramaturg it could be made really compelling.

With some tightening I think it could be a truly stand-out West End show, but there’s some refinement to do before it will appeal to people who aren’t already fans of the source material.

Just as the title asks: how exactly does an emergency cover work if an understudy goes on for a role they haven't covered with very little to no rehearsal time? I'm asking this because tonight at Paddington, Rose Mary O’Reilly is currently making her emergency Millicent Clyde debut. O'Reilly is usually a swing and an understudy for Judy Brown and Millicent Clyde is a role she doesn't cover. So I'm curious to know how this would be pulled off effortlessly with a very limited rehearsal time.

So apparently the show has been cancelled again tonight due to cast illness. Rumour has it, it has been cancelled due to no one still being paid.

How can a show do this and not pay its actors? Lawsuit incoming. Terrible stuff!

Hello everyone ! I'm planning on seeing Cabaret in London next month on my solo trip and I really want to make my experience special by booking a table seat, but I cannot book a single table seat :(

I would love cast interactions and to have an immersive experience, so should I just book an aisle seat in row D or do a stupid thing and splurge on two table seats for the price of £260 ? Let me know if it's that worth it !

It has an insane set with many large, colorful props, the costumes are super detailed, and not to mention the actor who plays Beetlejuice - he engages with the audience while still maintaining the script. I think it is massively underrated, I wonder how come?

edit: the post was written with positive vibes. i don’t know why people take it as an opportunity to be mean

Hey mates✨
Me and my friends are gonna be in London for the end of August (26-31), and we wanted to go watch a musical live show, but we've never been to any. We did watch Hamilton and liked it very much, as well as the Epic musical.
Do you think we will we also like Hadestown?
Or is there another one worth watching?
Btw, I'll be happy if someone could tell me if the rush tickets on the app are worth it or if it's better to just show up and see which tickets are left (we're flexible).

Thanks😌

My husband and I just got back from seeing 12 shows in 6 days on the West End to celebrate our anniversary. I LOVE taking theatre vacations. This was my biggest yet and my first to London. A few months ago, I saw that Death Note was playing at the Barbican. That's his favorite anime. I've also been wanting to see Mincemeat at the Fortune, so plans were made. We initially planned to just see those 2. Then I snuck in tickets to Paddington. After a couple months of milling around ideas on what to do, we made a deal: I get to fully plan this vacation, and he gets to plan the next one. No input from each other. I know that he also loves going to the theatre, so I got to work planning. I am less familiar with where London theatres are and distances between them, so I used Google maps and a gsheet to plan walking times between theatres and figure out the best plan.

Sunday: Storms in the US didn't allow us to our hotel until 9am before our 1pm show.... But we survived....

• Cursed Child parts 1 & 2. I had been putting this off for so long. As a huge fan growing up, I immediately read the script and hated it. I knew I wanted to see the magic but there was always something better to see. Finally bit the bullet so I could see it in 2 parts. And now I never need to again. It was cool to see the effects, but the story is glorified fan fiction.

Monday: Couldn't find a single matinee, so we spent the day at Windsor

• Evening: Death Note @ the Barbican. This was phenomenal, particularly the set design and choreography. I absolutely loved how they utilized the upper level and rotating stage.

Tuesday:

• Matinee: Mousetrap. Not a lot of Tuesday matinees, so this felt like a good time to see the longest running play. Well done, but not my favorite play. About what I expected.
• Evening: Operation Mincemeat. This was my husband's first time, but I am a huge fan. I also love crafting, so I had knit myself a Spilsbury inspired sweater and completed the ensemble with Brain, my lung purse. We were in the 3rd row, and when we stage doored, Madeline Jackson-Smith said she clocked me from stage <3 The show was amazing as expected.

Wednesday: Weird day for theatre. Both of our shows had technical holds.

• Matinee: A Comedy About Spies. Fun if you like The Play That Goes Wrong (which we do). Occasionally, there was a joke that went on a tad long, but overall enjoyable. After a fight scene, we had a hold to replace the actor who plays Bernard. After, they said it was just a pulled muscle, which, given what happened in his next scene, I don't blame him at all for not pushing through.
• My Neighbor Totoro: This was absolutely amazing. The puppetry was really cool. I loved that the puppeteers were visible, played all of the extras, and moved all the sets. I knew how well received this was, and yet, I was still entirely surprised at the Totoro puppet. Just very well done. Our technical stop happened near the end. Totoro opened his mouth to roar and nothing came out. Immediately, the SM came to get the 2 on stage puppeteers and Satsuki ran off stage. They came back after a few minutes with no further issues.

Thursday: My first 3 show day!

• Matinee: Hot Mess. I knowing that I would probably like it based on its somewhat silly premise. I did not expect it to stick with me. I woke up singing it 2 days later, and now have been listening to the soundtrack on repeat. I loved it.
• Early Evening: Oh, Mary! This was my 2nd time seeing it. It was my husband's first (and sadly last) time seeing it. It was not his style of humor. Which is sad, but now we know.... I guess that just means that all my future showings are half off because I only need to buy one ticket...
• Evening: The Producers. I have loved this show for 2 decades. This was a really fun production. Definitely a great way to end the night

Friday:

• Matinee: Stranger Things. As far as tie in shows go, this was good. Cool effects. I just didn't love it. Between the cat effect and the absolute lack of air on a day when the heat was back in force, I was incredibly uncomfortable.
• Evening: Paddington. This was my splurge. We bought tickets just a couple weeks after the Oliviers, so the only seats left were premium seats that came with lounge access. I wouldn't recommend going out of your way for the lounge, but it did have nice perks: drinks, multiple very tasty desserts, a marmalade sandwich, crisps, a private bathroom, and a place to store our things during the show. If you do get it, be sure to come early to enjoy it. We weren't necessarily told when we could come, but we came about an hour early. The show itself was so good. Paddington was adorable. The costumes were beautiful. I absolutely loved Mrs. Brown's green corduroy dress. We also had our 3rd technical stop of the trip, to change out the Paddington actor in the suit.

As Americans used to well-run aircon, I was a little nervous about the heatwave and the older theatres. The beginning of the week was fairly comfortable outside, so even in theatres without good air, we were pretty comfortable. By Thursday, it was heating up again. Friday at The Phoenix was easily the most uncomfortable (we were in the dress circle). Sunday at the Palace in the stalls was starting to warm up by CC Part 2. The Barbican dress circle was a little stuffy. Those are the only standouts for me.

Finally, ice cream at the interval needs to hop the pond. I didn't do it every show, but it was so fun to have a nice treat.

I am coming to London solo in the beginning of December for 8 days, this is my second time visiting. I work as a designer in theatre in NYC (and live there) and would love recommendations for shows to see that are not necessarily the big ticket/big draw shows. If it played in NYC I probably already saw it, however I am not against experiencing an American show with a London/European crowd- last visit to London I saw Slave Play which generated some excellent conversations with my seat mates as well as in the pub after.
I know it’s a ways out, I would really appreciate any recommendations as I am a planner, and some of the best shows I saw last time were from conversations at the intervals (I saw Operation Mincemeat that way). Best part of coming solo is no compromises on what to see 😉
Per the rules- shows I loved - Operation Mincemeat, Hadestown, Slave Play, John Proctor is the Villain, anything Oscar Wilde (LOVED the National’s revival of Importance of Being Ernest), Every Brilliant Thing, Into the Woods, Fat Ham (if it’s a Shakespeare adaptation I am always interested!)
Much thanks in advance!

I am looking at seeing Mrs Doubtfire at Birmingham. Is it worth paying extra to sit up close? Or shall I save a few pounds and sit at the back?

According to West End Understudies (@WestEndCovers on X), there were 8 understudies on during Sunday’s performance! Is that normal? Or is there something bigger going on?

Since about 7pm to now (11pm) I’ve had my phone go off three times with the same fire warning.

I can’t imagine how that may have gone down for all the shows this evening since it wasn’t a one & done thing.

I remember when the gov tested this system the first time, but to give a national warning of ‘don’t set things on fire in a drought’ I can’t help but feel is misuse. We all thought something disastrous had happened and were panicked for a second.

Even if it isn’t, it clearly still has teething problems if it’s still going off…three times has made me on edge for if something really happens if it goes off a fourth time