JIJane
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The Witches of Eastwick (UK tour)My thoughts for those resident in the UK who might want to see this:
- Marti Pellow was terrible, he does the score justice vocally but he was so over the top it was cringeworthy
- Rachel Izen was very good and stood out as Felicia but I have always liked her
- well directed, flying was naff though, set was fine for touring, orchestra was too small for this score, just too thin
- ensemble was fine I thought but not amazing, although some nice character touches ocassionally
- young ingenue couple (Jennifer & Michael): fine but nothing spectacular, thought the girl looked a tad too old really
- three witches - two of them were definitely too young-looking for their part. That whole line about despite wrinkles in our face I can still see that girl (end of act 1) just didn't work, especially Poppy who is in her late 20's! Apart from Ria Jones who did look about the right age but who was unfortunately a bit miscast because she looks nowhere near "fat" as her character is referred to in the script several times. Performances were fine, nothing spectacular, good singing, good acting but it was all a bit - predictable and lacked umph for me.
Verdict: There is a distinct lack of star quality attached to this production but then - it is a tour. Worth seeing if you get cheap tickets and don't expect West End standards.
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Millie1986
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I think it is worth seeing if you like the show, but it isn't anything like as good as the West End production. For a start I think the show itself isn't as good - I preferred it before they cut and replaced songs. The cast, I largely agree with J on. I also found Marti Pellow (and his fan club!) cringeworthy. Sure, he can sing, but hideously OTT acting, even for that role. Thought that with about 3 exceptions, there were some dodgy American accents, which did suprise me as I haven't often come across this in West End or large touring shows. Some were just a bit dodgy throughout, others were ok most of the time but then would suddenly say a line that would completely throw me.
Witches - I didn't like Ria Jones, I thought she was miscast. It wasn't even the weight thing that bothered me - whilst she isn't fat she did look quite a lot bigger than the other 2, so that wasn't really a problem for me (Lucie Arnaz and Josefina Gabrielle who played the role in London weren't exactly big, particularly Josefina!). Vocally though I didn't think she was suitable. I think she has quite a Merman-esque voice, and lots of vibrato, and her voice just wasn't right for this style of show for me - didn't like it. Didn't particularly like her spoken voice for the part either - she just didn't work for me. Poppy Tierney was good, but I did think looked far too young. She may be late 20s, but she doesn't even look that on stage. Decent performance, but miscast. Thought that Rebecca Thornhill was fabulous, and stole the show for me (and most other reviewers I have seen). I thought she acted it fantastically, and I love her voice anyway. Prefer her in the role to Maria Friedman. She does look fairly young, but to be fair she is about 40 now - she is obviously just blessed with youthful looks! So yes, she looked younger than Ria Jones, but I didn't think she looked too young for the part, whereas with Poppy I really did.
Rachel Izen was good. Sometimes felt she was a little lacking in power vocally, but Rosemary Ashe is certainly a hard act to follow in that department! She gave a good performance though, and I liked her.
Thought Jennifer and Michael were alright, but I actually thought he looked too old sometimes, and I wasn't overly keen on her portrayal. Ensemble were fine - thought they seemed a bit too small, particularly in Dirty Laundry, but that wasn't their fault! They were all fine, and one stuck out for me - Ngo Omene Ngofa - I thought she gave a very good performance, particularly in Dance With the Devil.
Overall - fairly good, but I have to say I was a little disappointed, as the West End recording is a big favourite of mine, and I would say that with the exception of Rebecca Thornhill, who I preferred to Maria Friedman, the cast was fairly weak in comparison, and I didn't like the new songs that had been added nearly as much as those that have been cut. So yes, I agree with J, I am glad I saw it, but try and get reduced tickets if possible.
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