You could say this this week's theatre trips have been a match made in heaven for me. I’m not sure of the last time I had such a run of shows that I enjoyed this much and were of such high quality! Oliver! in Chichester was just brilliant - a great cast and great direction from Matthew Bourne. Then I finally got to see a staged version of one of my favourite soundtracks, Something Rotten. It was everything I'd hoped it would be! I'm crossing everything for a full West End run off the back of it. Then last night it was time to head back to my favourite summer venue…
AD - GIFTED. I received free tickets to this show, however my review remains completely impartial!
Believe it or not, Fiddler on the Roof is one of those classic musicals that I have just never got around to seeing. So when the Open Air Theatre announced it as their big summer musical I was excited to finally tick it off my list. I, like many newcomers, know of the big hits such as If I Were a Rich Man and Matchmaker, so I was quite surprised when these came thick and fast in the first 15 minutes or so! I wondered if the show actually had anything else to give. Well I can safely say, musically at least, it does. The score is wonderful - beautifully peppered with Jewish motifs and sounds, while remaining suitably theatrical. The highlight has to be violinist Raphael Papo, who appears throughout the show, almost as if Tevye’s conscience, stunning the audience as the titular fiddler.
Despite being top-heavy with the well-known songs, it sadly isn't top-heavy with plot. It feels like a good 40 minutes passes before you get anything concrete. You dance around the subjects of poverty and matchmaking but there's no real conflict or direction. I think this impacts the overall effect - if the story was pacier it would have a bit more punch. But this production definitely does its best, with the music and the visuals coming together perfectly in the piece.
Adam Dannheisser is a model Tevye. He guides the audience through the highs and lows of life and oncoming threat of the pogroms, playing the comedy so well and giving light relief among the more serious moments. He balances the internal struggle between tradition and modernity and takes the audience on the same journey.
The set and costuming is really clever, also mirroring the unstoppable threat of change by giving the younger characters hints of contemporary clothing. It is a treat to both look at and listen to. If this is the musical I have managed to miss seeing over the past 30 years then surely this is the production of it that was worth seeing! Fiddler on the Roof is playing at the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre until 21 September. You can get tickets from £15 directly, or there’s great £30 rush seats available from TodayTix every morning.
Happy ticket-buying!
Rochelle 🎭🎫
Carrying the banner
In the news this week…
National riots: Jesus Christ Superstar, Pretty Woman and more cancel performances after unrest
Shakespeare’s Globe evacuated mid-show after firework lands in venue
Purple cow deflates as power cut causes Edinburgh Fringe chaos
Idris Elba, Maya Jama and Little Simz to serve as producers for West End transfer of Shifters
I’m kind of a big deal
Cake: The Marie Antoinette Playlist is returning to London for a full run following a few 'concert’ stagings last year. Zizi Strallen is back as the scandalous queen of France, and she’s joined by original Six queen Renée Lamb.
There’s currently a 24-hour offer for the show on TodayTix with some fantastic seats at £15 at the very front of the theatre!
Hey big spender
Here’s your discounts, offers and cheap seats this week.
🎲 New lottery alert! The Wizard of Oz is doing £25 lottery tickets while it’s back in London. (Scroll down on the page to enter.) If you win you can buy up to four tickets for the following week’s performances.
🏃 New rush alert! You can get £20 tickets to Farm Hall every morning on the TodayTix app.
Here’s your weekly reminder of the two great summer offers currently running. There’s free kids tickets with Kids Week (more have just been added for MJ the Musical!). And there’s big savings and tickets from £15 for shows across the country with the ATG Summer Saver.
There’s 50% off tickets to The 13-Storey Treehouse in Manchester, making the cheapest seats just £7.50!
There’s up to 50% off There’s a Monster in Your Show, with tickets from just £11.
There’s £15 tickets for Farm Hall (which I've just seen tonight! Review on my instagram soon…)
Get £15 tickets to The 39 Steps.
There’s £15 tickets for the next two Showstopper! shows in London.
Get best seats for £20 for Buyer and Cellar starring Rob Madge.
There’s also £20 best seats for Wiesenthal.
There’s £25 tickets to The Baker’s Wife.
DMT have just announced there’ll be £30 tickets for under 30s for Oedipus. There’s some fantastic seats available on this scheme too.
There’s some brilliant seats at £31.20 for Oklahoma! in Concert at later this month.
And there’s 30% off Edinburgh Festival playtexts with Nick Hern Books throughout August - use code NHBED24.
Don’t throw away your shot
Competitions, on-sales and announcements.
The Shark is Broken will have a UK tour to mark the 50th anniversary of the film Jaws. It opens in Oxford in Jan 2025 - check local venues for tickets and on-sales.
People, Places and Things and Vanya are going to be streamed on NT at Home on 19 Sep. They’ll be screened back-to-back from 7pm and will then be available to watch on the platform. A monthly subscription is just £9.99, and while you’re there you can watch loads of other great plays too!
Waitress star David Hunter will be performing his own new musical Stuck at a staged workshop in London in December. Tickets are on sale now.
And another staged workshop, this time with Europop and revolution! The Singing Revolution will have a performance at the Savoy on 5 Sep. Tickets are on sale and are only £15.
Punchdrunk’s immersive experience Viola’s Room is extending! You can now book until 3 Nov.
And finally win four tickets to see Terrible Tudors plus a royal afternoon tea!
That’s all for this week. If you enjoyed the newsletter, please tell your friends. I’m also open to suggestions and requests for certain discounts, so do drop into my DMs. Right, time to head home and watch yet more Olympic action! 🏅