Theatre End Of Year Review

First part of 2024 I attended 19 shows and in this summary I tick off the other 20. It should have been 21 but I made a mistake and ended up being in Greece when I should have been at the show. A trade off I can live with. That being said, 39 is a lot of shows. Up from 34 in ‘23 and 29 in ‘22. Too many perhaps! I am going to try to do less in 2025 and focus on quality instead of quantity. Late 2024 thought sure did have some crackers so let’s go…

Rankings

New shoes then final ranking at the end…

20) Mother Goose

Dame Bella’s Zoo is facing hard times, and she is desperate for a change of fortune. Her hapless nephew Dennis stumbles across a bedraggled Goose whilst walking across Cleadon Hills. Priscilla seems to be the answer to all of their problems, however the evil Demon, Gander, is in pursuit and is determined to steal Priscilla away and take her back to Goose Land. Fear not, our magical spirit Twyleth is determined to bring a happy ending. So join us all in Cooksonville for fun and frolics in Pantoland!

A panto. Was drenched in fake snow at the end. One of the actors was obviously aimed at 5 year olds but the repeated screeches nearly made my ear drums melt. Some good performances though and the physically comedy section was very well done.

19) West Side Story

Inspired by Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, it is set in 1950s Manhattan’s Upper West Side, then, a multiracial, blue-collar neighbourhood. It explores the rivalry between the Sharks and the Jets, two teenage gangs who vie with each other for dominance.

I think this was more of an amateur theatre group performing this. One of the singers was good but it was a beat or two off. The stage hands would get the backdrop of the scene wheeled in 10 seconds late and the acting was not premium but not terrible. Much better than some of the “professional” shows I saw this year.

18) Starlight Express

As a child’s train set magically comes to life and the engines race to become the fastest in the world, Rusty the steam train has little hope of winning until he is inspired by the legend of the ‘Starlight Express’.

What a big silly mess this was. In a specially built space for the show it was all rollerblading and nonsensical stories. Lots of kids there and honestly I have no real clue what was going on with the story. Was an expensive spectacle though.

17) Saint Maud

A devout young nurse moves to a seaside town to care for a former dancer now terminally ill. Becoming increasingly obsessed with saving her patient’s soul, Maud falls into a spiral of self questioning that leads to a truly shocking act of faith.

A bit creepy and well acted. Was quite short and was left with some unanswered questions but it did make me want to watch the movie which is a good sign.

16) Hairspray

Join big hearted Tracy Turnblad and her new friends, the spirited Seaweed and his sister Little Inez, heartthrob Link Larkin and the resolute Motormouth Maybelle as they strive to change the world.

Great singer, bit of a dead audience. Was very lightweight but rumbled by with some nice songs and a good message.

15) Now that’s what I call a musical

It’s Birmingham, 1989. Gemma and April, two school friends, are busy with very important business – planning their lives based on Number One Magazine quizzes and dreaming of snogging Rick Astley! Fast forward to Birmingham 2009, and they’re confronted with their worst nightmare: the school reunion…!

This should have been a total car crash but was really much better than it had any right to be. I noted down there was a lady clapping and singing out of time to all the hits and it was obviously aimed directly at the nostalgia crowd. Ended up being a deeper story then I ever expected.

14) Gwyneth goes skiing

She’s the Goop-founding, Door-Sliding, Shakespeare-In-Loving, consciously-uncoupling Hollywood superstar. He’s a retired Optometrist from Utah. In 2016, they went skiing.

Should be terrible but loads of silly fun with audience participation at this. Somewhat forgettable but a solid night had.

13) 101 Dalmatians

When fashionista Cruella de Vil plots to swipe all the Dalmatian puppies in town to create her fabulous new fur coat, there’s trouble ahead for Pongo and Perdi and their litter of adorable, tail-wagging young pups.

Great puppet work and a more touching story than you would expect! The big highlight is that they literally bought some dalmatian puppies which tore the roof off.

12) A Face In The Crowd

When radio producer Marcia Jeffries meets drifter “Lonesome Rhodes”, she immediately gives him a slot on her show. But as Lonesome’s fan base grows and the politicians take notice, Marcia realises she has unleashed a force she can no longer control.

Excellent performances. It had the actress who was in Oklahoma (and incredible). Not as much oomph as I wanted but some great moments with the drifter character breaking after someone made a funny noise and getting into the crowd at one point.

11) Grapes of Wrath

Forced to travel West in search of a promised land, the Joad family embark on an epic journey across America in the hope of finding work and a new life in California.

Lots of water on stage. Quite heavy and not laugh a minute. Good performances though, well put together.

10) Guys and Dolls

The Bridge transforms for one of the greatest musicals of all time. It has more hit songs, more laughs and more romance than any show ever written.

Been eager to catch this for a long time. I might of over hyped it in my head as it was very good but didn’t rock my world. Certainly looked amazing and acting top notch. Just lacked a tiny bit of magic. Worth seeing though.

9) Player Kings

A divided country, leadership crumbling, corruption in the air. Welcome to England.

This was supposed to be Sir Ian Mckellen but he was injured. The stand-ins were incredible though. I’d never seen Henry IV so it was very joyous all round. Quite long perhaps but Falstaff especially was a stellar performance.

8) Abigail’s party

Beverly, the queen of suburbia, is hosting a cocktail party. Next door, 15-year-old Abigail is throwing a party of her own. No one can stop talking about Abigail’s party. No one can stop thinking about Abigail’s party. Something must be done about Abigail’s party.

Amazing 70’s staging, brilliant character work and awkwardly funny.

7) Spirited Away

Studio Ghibli’s Oscar-winning SPIRITED AWAY, created by legendary animator and director Hayao Miyazaki is re-imagined for the stage by Olivier and Tony award-winning director of Les Misérables, John Caird. The original Japanese cast perform this extraordinary production with wildly imaginative puppets, dazzling set and costume designs and a live orchestra playing the magnificent original film score by Joe Hisaishi.

I don’t know how I can even describe the staging. It was colossal. Like a gargantuan town that would spin around with hundreds of puppets all moving around. I am not sure I will ever see a show on this scale ever again. Negatives are that it might be about 30 mins too long.

6) Please Right Back

Combining handcrafted animation and bold storytelling, Please right back sweeps audiences in a magical, mischievous world, inspired by a true story.

Visually very very very impressive. A mix of all sorts of styles and sometimes quite surreal. Almost salad fingers-esque. I noted down I cried in this, had a very sweet moment.

5) Unfortunate

Join everyone’s favourite Disney Diva, Ursula, as she gives her take on what really happened all those years ago under the sea. With an original hot pop soundtrack and trademark filthy humour, it’s time to take the plunge and dive into this year’s hottest night out.

Crude, filthy but funny. A few drunk people at this which made for a riotous evening.

4) Dr. Strangelove

Seven-time BAFTA Award winner Steve Coogan stars in the acclaimed adaptation of Stanley Kubrick’s comedy masterpiece Dr. Strangelove.

Funny, political and very cleverly all put together. Steve Coogan is a comedy legend and seeing him in this was brilliant.

3) Stranger Things

Hawkins, 1959: a regular town with regular worries. Young Jim Hopper’s car won’t start, Bob Newby’s sister won’t take his radio show seriously and Joyce Maldonado just wants to graduate and get the hell out of town. When new student Henry Creel arrives, his family finds that a fresh start isn’t so easy… and the shadows of the past have a very long reach.

Another marvel of a stage setup. Had seats right at the front so got blasted by wind machines and saw all the special effects up close and personal.

2) Hades Town

HADESTOWN  takes you on an unforgettable journey to the underworld and back, intertwining two mythic love stories – that of young dreamers Orpheus and Eurydice, and that of King Hades and his wife Persephone.

I had heard good things but this show was really really great. Excellent music, the stage opens up dramatically as the story progresses. Loads of Americans in the audience, perhaps they couldn’t get tickets on Broadway. Fab musical, worth seeing.

1) Chicago

Set amidst the razzle-dazzle decadence of the 1920s, Chicago is the story of Roxie Hart, a housewife and nightclub dancer who murders her on-the-side lover after he threatens to walk out on her.

Fabulous music as you would expect but this show was actually way better than I thought it would be. Quite sparsely set and with a band visible in the back. Lean performance but everything was pretty electric!

2024 Rank

Best to worst:

• Chicago
• Hades Town
• Stranger Things
• Dr. Strangelove
• Unfortunate
• Please Right Back
• The Bounds
• Spirited Away
• Abigail’s Party
• Everybody’s Talking About Jamie
• Player Kings
• Guys and Dolls
• James Acaster
• Here you come again
• Grapes of Wrath
• Wizard of Oz
• Underdog
• A Face in the Crowd
• An Officer and a Gentleman
• 101 Dalmatians
• Gwyneth Goes Skiing
• Now that’s what I call a musical
• Hairspray
• A Song For Ella Grey
• Wor Bella
• 39 Steps
• Drop the dead donkey
• Saint Maud
• Peter Pan Goes Wrong
• Jamie Hutchinson
• Blood Brothers
• Frankenstein
• Gamble
• Starlight Express
• West side story
• Cluedo 2
• Mother Goose
• Grease
• The Syndicate

Total average score was 80.2% which is pretty good. Certainly not a year of stinkers. Four shows that scored 90% or above. Even got to visit some theatres I’d never visited before which is always a joy!

What is next?

Still got stuff booked in, even if a lighter load then 2024. Inside No.9 could be amazing and I’ll see Hamilton for the first time! Will aim for a bit more comedy in 2025 too just to change things up a bit.

Good year all round. Hope 2025 can better it!