We decided a new section was in order for reviews of the musicals we saw in London. The page is pretty short, but this stuff doesn't really fit anywhere else. London's West End is the equivalent of Broadway in New York City-it's chock full of great musicals and plays to see.
The Beautiful Game
September, 2000; Cambridge Theatre; London, England. The brand new Andrew Lloyd Webber musical-music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, book and lyrics by Ben Elton. The setting is Belfast, Ireland in the year 1969. Ireland was very much in the thick of the "troubles", as the problems between the Catholics and Protestants are known. The story is about a local football (soccer) team and how the "troubles" affect their lives. The guys and their girlfriends dream about what will become of them, but disturbing turns of event disillusion them and make each couple's path completely different. We were lucky enough to be in London while the show was in previews, so naturally we made a beeline to see it. We weren't dissapointed. The show was great! The music was excellent and the storyline was moving. Being Americans, we aren't as close to the problems in Ireland, so it gave us some more insight on just what it's all about. The cast did a fantastic job, especially Josie Walker, playing Mary, who had an accident when a blank gun went off a little too close to her. She went on and finished the show. We highly recommend this show-it's best for kids over 12-there are a number of quite violent moments. We're sure it will do well in England, hopefully when it opens in the USA, it will have a long run as well. We loved it, but weren't sure about how many of our fellow Americans will understand (or care about, sadly) the storyline to make it have a good run on Broadway. Hopefully we are wrong-and we also hope that they don't try to "Americanize" it for Broadway-that would ruin it.
Mamma Mia!
September, 2000; Prince Edward Theatre; London, England. A musical by Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus, both of the group ABBA. Benny and Bjorn took 22 of the group's best songs, collaborated with Catherine Johnson, who wrote the book, and came up with this totally cool musical. The story is set on a mythical Greek island, where a wedding is getting ready to take place. The bride has, unbeknownst to her mother, invited each of the 3 men who could possibly be her father to the wedding. The men arrive, stirring up alot of emotion in the woman they used to (and still) love. The bride to be spends her time trying to figure out which one is her father, while the mother of the bride spends her time reliving the past with each of her former lovers, as well as her 2 sisters, who she was in a rock band with. This is the most fun we've ever had at any show. The way the ABBA songs are woven into the storyline was great. The group ABBA is still really popular in England, so whenever another song started, naturally there was a little chuckle out of anyone familiar with their work. The cast was top notch and really did justice to all the old ABBA hits. Don't miss this show. It's great fun. We loved this show and would definitely see it again. It's going to tour the USA at some point, but once again, we're not sure how well it will be received. ABBA, even though they don't perform much (or at all) anymore is still HUGE in England-you can tell just by all the tribute shows being put on all over the place, not to mention that Mamma Mia! is sold out every night. Americans aren't as into the group anymore as the Brits are, but hopefully that won't keep anyone away from the show.Back to BroadwayBack to Litterbox home
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