Jenny Ell - Page 14

How does one write about a work of art? Cameron Macintosh's touring production of The Phantom of the Opera is exactly that and brought the house down at the Birmingham Hippodrome last night. The 19th March is apt for the final press night of the current tour as the show is also marking it's 11,000th performance in the West End. That itself shows the incredible draw that Phantom has some 27 years on.

Chita Rivera is one of Broadway's most accomplished performers and is entering her seventh decade in the industry; no mean feat for any artist. She has no intention of retiring either and is currently starring in the Broadway revival of The Mystery of Edwin Drood

Somewhere In The Audience is a celebration of Gaudi, Gambler, Poe & Dancing Shadows; four of the late Eric Woolfson's musicals. This compilation is released on March 18th on what would have been his 68th birthday.

Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, or the 'Trocks', have just started their 2013 UK tour. Back by popular demand, this ballet company provides an alternate view of classical ballet and features an entire company of men performing roles traditionally danced by women. Their comic approach to the art form has meant critical acclaim all over the world. The Trocks were formed thirty five years ago and judging from tonight's performance, their appeal has no sign of fading.

Today saw the press launch for War Horse at Birmingham Hippodrome which coincides with the tickets going on general sale for its run this autumn.

Panto season is well and truly here and no more so than at Birmingham Hippodrome where Robinson Crusoe & the Caribbean Pirates is playing right through til the 27th January. QDOS pantomimes can always be relied on to deliver the best quality productions and this one is no exception.

Simon Bailey is a well established British performer, currently starring as Raoul in the UK touring production of Phantom of the Opera. He has many theatrical credits to his name including Les Miserables and We Will Rock You and is also a member of the brilliantly successful vocal group Teatro. In addition to this, he has somehow been able to find the time in his busy schedule to record this beautifully intimate album Looking Up.

Original, creative and 'absolutely bonkers' - Molly Wobbly's Tit Factory is anew musical written entirely by the incredibly talented Paul Boyd and produced by The Lyric Theatre, Belfast.

Anthony Newley has had an extremely successful career since the 1950's. A star of stage, screen and music; this new album The Last Song is a celebration of his work and features fourteen previously unreleased tracks including duets with Petula Clark, Julia McKenzie and Marti Webb.

Bill Kenwright's production of Blood Brothers seems to be constantly touring the UK. Some may say a little too often but with Birmingham Hippodrome packed to the rafters last night and the reaction that the show received, there is still obviously a high demand for the production.

This morning I had the pleasure of attending The Lion King UK Tour press launch which will be playing at Birmingham Hippodrome from the 29th June 2013 for a three month run.

Sister Act is a musical production based on the hugely popular 1992 film starring Whoopi Goldberg, who is also a producer on the show. Having had a massively successful run in the West End, regional audiences have been treated to this production for the past year or so now and Birmingham Hippodrome marks it's final venue on this outing.

Unique, laugh-out-loud funny, crude but above all, genius - just a few ways to describe Chris Thatcher's album, Jesus Chris Superstar.

Theatre Lore: A Dictionary of Backstage Language, Expressions and Useful Stage Knowledge for those Theatrically Bent or of a Curious Nature is a new book written by Nick Bromley, a Company Stage Manager who has worked on over fifty plays and musicals in his incredibly successful career. Being a trained Stage Manager myself, I have been eagerly awaiting the release of this publication.

Getting the opportunity to review Madalena Alberto's newly released EP 'Heart Condition' was very exciting to me, having heard her phenomenal performance as Fantine in the 25th Anniversary touring production of Les Miserables. Even more exciting is that the four songs featured on the EP are written by Alberto herself. For me, there is nothing more refreshing than a musical theatre performer who can take direction and deliver someone else's music AND be able to write, compose and perform their own work as well.

We are so lucky in the Midlands to have such a fantastic venue in the Birmingham Hippodrome. Playing host to a massive number of large scale national UK tours and entertainment legends over the years, in addition to being home to Birmingham Royal Ballet (BRB) and a regional venue for Welsh National Opera, was bound to take its toll eventually. It was during the 1980s when the theatre's stage was last refurbished and some thirty years later it is time again for work to be done to enable the theatre to maintain its five star reputation.

The In-Between is a new fantasy musical written entirely by Laura Tisdall, an up and coming musical theatre writer. The show is a fully written, two act production which is yet to receive any commercial backing. Therefore this original concept album is great publicity to showcase Tisdall's work, and judging by what I have heard, she ought be snapped up immediately. All of the orchestrations, original instrumental programming, recording, mixing, lyrics and book have been done by Tisdall which is no mean feat! This is one talented lady.

"Nobody puts Baby in the corner" and "I carried a watermelon" are probably two of the most iconic phrases in the history of film, and are ones that were welcomed with a rapturous response at the press night of Dirty Dancing at the Birmingham Hippodrome last night.

'Someone Else's Story' sees the return of New Zealand-born performer Meredith Braun after a ten-year break. During her fruitful career, she played lead roles in 'The Phantom of the Opera', 'Les Miserables', 'Sunset Boulevard' to name but a few. She also starred as Belle in 'The Muppet Christmas Carol', the Disney film released in 1992. This album, produced by Stage Door Records, showcases new material from Braun and is a reminder of just how good she was, and evidently still IS.

'Once in a Lifetime' is a tribute to one of the UK's leading musical theatre stars, Dave Willetts. Celebrating his 25th year in the industry, Stage Door Records have produced an album featuring a mixture of classics, live recordings, as well as two brand new numbers for 2012.