musical

Kinky Boots at the London Coliseum

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A photo of the inside of the London Coliseum before the start of Kinky Boots

We’ve been back from London for a week now, so I suppose it’s about time I started writing about what we got up to whilst we were away. We went down last Thursday, and on the Thursday evening, we went to see Kinky Boots at the London Coliseum.

When Christine and I are in London, we usually try to see a show there too. Sometimes it’s planned – we booked the tickets for Kinky Boots a week in advance, and have done the same with Matilda, Wicked and The Play That Goes Wrong in the past. And other times, like when we went to see We Will Rock You, we picked up last minute cheap seats on the afternoon of the show.

The plot of Kinky Boots

Kinky Boots was originally a film which same out in 2005, and is based on a true story that was featured in the BBC2 documentary series Trouble at the Top. It follows the story of Charlie Price, who inherits his family’s shoemaking business in Northampton. The business is falling on hard times; though the shoes it makes are good quality, it can’t compete with cheaper imports and is about to go bust. But a chance meeting with a drag queen, Lola, sees Charlie finding a niche – making high quality boots for drag artists.

As you would expect from a musical that features drag artists, it’s very camp, but also touches on homophobia and transphobia.

The musical of Kinky Boots premiered in Chicago in 2012, and moved to Broadway the following year. The actor Billy Porter earned a Tony award for his portrayal of Lola, and he sings on the official soundtrack. The music was written by Cindy Lauper, but it’s not a jukebox musical – the songs were written for the show, so there’s no renditions of Girls Just Wanna Have Fun. The music is really good, and I appreciate musicals that have new music written for them as opposed to jukebox musicals.

Kinky Boots in the West End

Its first London run was in 2015, where it ran for four years at the Adelphi Theatre, closing in 2019.

This time, it’s at the London Coliseum, which is the largest theatre in the West End seating 2,359 people. Normally the Coliseum is the home of the English National Opera, so Kinky Boots probably attracts a rather different crowd. The role of Charlie Price is played by X-Factor winner Matt Cardle, with the South African actor Johannes Radebe playing Lola.

We really enjoyed the show. There’s some sad bits, but (as mentioned) the music is excellent and it’s well put-together, with great use of lighting.

Kinky Boots is on a limited run, which, as it stands, ends in mid-July. Tickets start from £25; we bought the £35 tickets for the upper circle, which is the third of four tiers in the London Coliseum. The view was pretty good from our seats.

If you’re looking to save a little bit of money on tickets, then Official London Theatre charges a lower booking fee than booking direct with the theatre, and they accept Theatre Tokens. If you’re a member of a site like JamDoughnut or EverUp (referral link) then you can buy Theatre Tokens at a discount.

Accessibility

Accessibility at the London Coliseum is pretty good, as the theatre was extensively renovated in the early 2000s. There is lift access to most floors, and wheelchair spaces are available. There are disabled and unisex toilets available, but there isn’t a Changing Places toilet. That being said, the London Coliseum is only a short walk/wheel away from Trafalgar Square where there are Changing Places toilets in the National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery, although they will only be available during the gallery opening times.

There are special showings with captions, audio descriptions and British Sign Language interpretation in April and May.

The nearest tube stations are Leicester Square and Charing Cross, and it’s not too far from Embankment station either.

Unfortunate – the untold story of Ursula the Sea Witch

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A photo of the encore of Unfortunate the Musical, showing a lit up stage at the Bradford Alhambra theatre

Last week, Christine and I went with a group of friends to see the Unfortunate Musical at Bradford’s Alhambra Theatre. It’s a musical parody of The Little Mermaid, but told from the perspective of Ursula the Sea Witch; indeed, Ariel doesn’t appear until towards the end of the first act.

I suppose you could say that Unfortunate is to The Little Mermaid as Wicked is to The Wizard of Oz. However, Unfortunate is very much an adults-only affair, with plenty of swearing and sex references throughout. The touring version of the show sees Shawna Hamic as Ursula, who is absolutely fantastic, and Ariel is played by River Medway, one of the contestants from series three of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK. There are also standout performances by Thomas Lowe as Triton and Allie Dart as Sebastian (and several other roles, including two in the same scene).

It’s very, very camp, as you would expect from a show with more than one drag queen in the cast, and isn’t afraid to poke fun at Disney’s film adaptations. It makes good use of a multi-level set, and Ursula’s character breaks the fourth wall on multiple occasions throughout. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and it was worth arranging childcare for our eight-year-old to be able to see it.

Unfortunate is still on a UK tour until July, with some more dates in the North to come, including York, Newcastle and Blackpool. If you like big, camp comedy with original music, then I would heartedly recommend it. I took the photo for this blog post during the encore when photography was encouraged.

Our House – The Madness Musical

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The logo for Our House - The Madness Musical

Tonight is the opening night of Our House at the Bradford Playhouse – and I’ll be backstage helping out.

It’s a musical show based around the music of Madness, and follows the story of Joe Casey, a 16 year old who lives on Casey Street in Camden. He’s faced with a choice that will change his life – and the musical follows ‘Good Joe’ and ‘Bad Joe’ as it explores each implication of his decision.

Whilst Madness isn’t one of my favourite bands, like most people I know many of their songs and they fit well with the script. Even though this is not a professional production, I enjoyed it more than We Will Rock You.

I got called in to help at the last minute on Monday, just in time for the technical rehearsal, which was rather rough and ready. But last night’s dress rehearsal went really well, and the show looks fantastic. The cast are excellent and it promises to be a really great show.

Tickets are still available – I’d thoroughly recommend it, even if I wasn’t taking part. Performances are tonight, Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, and a Saturday matinée.

Hear Me Sing!

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The poster for the show 'Never work with children or animals'.

A rare opportunity to hear me sing has arisen! I’ll be joining the chorus of BUSOM in their summer concert entitled ‘Never Work with Children or Animals’, featuring songs from popular musicals on the theme of childhood and animal magic.

I’ve helped with BUSOM behind the scenes for some of their main shows like Moby Dick! The Musical and Little Shop of Horrors, but this will be the first time I’ve sung in front of an audience since secondary school – karaoke excepted. I wouldn’t say I’m a great singer (and have some issues with timing that need sorting out pronto) but apparently I can hold some semblance of a tune. At least, enough to be part of the chorus.

The concert is this Thursday, in the Escape Bar, Student Central at the University of Bradford. It starts at 7:30pm and tickets will be available on the door.

Moby Dick! The Musical at the Bradford Playhouse

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The poster for Moby Dick the Musical at the Bradford Playhouse. It's on a purple background, with a chalk drawing of a happy whale on a green chalkboard.

Next week, Christine and I will be part of a production of Moby Dick! The Musical at the Bradford Playhouse, along with the rest of BUSOM – The Bradford University Society of Operettas and Musicals. Christine is the producer and has a minor acting role, and I will be a part of the technical team.

If you’re like me, then this may be the first time you’ve heard of a musical theatre adaptation of Herman Melville’s famous book. The musical version dates from the early 1990s – it had a brief run in London’s West End at the Piccadilly Theatre, but closed after a four month run due to poor reviews. Don’t let that put you off though.

Moby Dick! The Musical is essentially a meta-play – a play within a play. It follows the girls of St Godley’s School – faced with closure, they put on a performance of Moby Dick to raise money to save the school. Whilst the cast is predominantly female, the role of the headmistress/Captain Ahab is usually played by a male actor in drag.

Christine has been working on the show for months now and it’s been great to see it come together. There’s just a few more rehearsals before it opens on Thursday night, with further showings on Friday and Saturday.

You can buy tickets online – they’re £10 each, or £8 for concessions. If you’re local to Bradford, it would be great if you can come along and support the students who have worked so hard to put on this show. I hope I’ll see you there!

Little Shop of Horrors

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This coming Thursday, my wife Christine will be featuring in an amateur production of Little Shop of Horrors, along with other students from the University of Bradford where I work. It’s on at The New Bradford Playhouse and runs until Saturday.

As well as playing a character in the show, Christine has been helping out for a number of weeks now, and I also spent much of the weekend helping and/or hindering the technical team as they set up in the theatre. It promises to be a good show, and the puppets they’re using look really good.

So, if you’re available on Thursday, Friday or Saturday nights this week, we’d both very much appreciate it if you were able to come along. Tickets can be purchased online here.