Posts with the label alistair brammer
Showing posts with label alistair brammer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label alistair brammer. Show all posts
Monday, 13 August 2018
West Side Story (Prom 39), Royal Albert Hall | Review
Prom 39: West Side Story (BBC Proms)
Royal Albert Hall
Reviewed on Saturday 11th August 2018 by Olivia Mitchell
★★★★
At 61 years old, West Side Story remains one of the most well-loved and socially relevant musicals. Following the rivalry between the Jets and the Sharks and a forbidden love between Maria and Tony, it's a beautiful and heartbreaking story about the strength of love. The score was performed by a wonderful cast and the outstanding John Wilson Orchestra, but the omission of the majority of the text did dim the impact slightly. Following the narrative was a little difficult and some of the key characters were sidelined without their text but it was still a stunning performance.
The concert provided a reminder of the phenomenal way Bernstein contrasts musical styles and completely makes his own rules as he combines classical and contemporary music with exceptional effect. Tricky time signatures, scotch-snap rhythms, syncopation and chromatic notes are just some aspects which were played so wonderfully by the John Wilson Orchestra which Wilson conducted himself. The intensity and passion which they played with transferred to the audience and created some magical moments.
Our leads, Tony and Maria were played by the exceptionally talented Ross Lekites and Mikaela Bennett. Mikaela portrayed Maria's excited, fresh love with humour and warmth before bringing her heartbreak to life with honest pain. She was also vocally stunning with her pure operatic sound providing power which drew you to the character and worked wonderfully alongside Lekites' smooth, strong voice that flowed with flawless abandon.
Louise Alder performed Somewhere in a hauntingly beautiful way and was a certain highlight of the night. Eden Espinosa was vocally and physically fiery as Anita and gave a truly memorable performance of America alongside the vocally stunning Emma Kingston. Leo Roberts' Riff was notably strong, especially during his performance of Cool.
The concert provided a reminder of the phenomenal way Bernstein contrasts musical styles and completely makes his own rules as he combines classical and contemporary music with exceptional effect. Tricky time signatures, scotch-snap rhythms, syncopation and chromatic notes are just some aspects which were played so wonderfully by the John Wilson Orchestra which Wilson conducted himself. The intensity and passion which they played with transferred to the audience and created some magical moments.
Our leads, Tony and Maria were played by the exceptionally talented Ross Lekites and Mikaela Bennett. Mikaela portrayed Maria's excited, fresh love with humour and warmth before bringing her heartbreak to life with honest pain. She was also vocally stunning with her pure operatic sound providing power which drew you to the character and worked wonderfully alongside Lekites' smooth, strong voice that flowed with flawless abandon.
Louise Alder performed Somewhere in a hauntingly beautiful way and was a certain highlight of the night. Eden Espinosa was vocally and physically fiery as Anita and gave a truly memorable performance of America alongside the vocally stunning Emma Kingston. Leo Roberts' Riff was notably strong, especially during his performance of Cool.
The ensemble brought the two gangs to life, with Alistair Brammer, Jocasta Almgill and Michael Coulbourne standing out. The ArtsEd ensemble and Mountview choir added extra oomph, especially during their brief interactions with the performers on stage.
From the rapturous applause it was clear that Bernstein's score, performed by a stellar cast is a surefire way to entertain an audience. West Side Story is a beauty and it was truly glorious to see it performed in this well-rounded Proms version.
The BBC Proms continue until 8th September 2018
photo credit: Chris Christodolou
photo credit: Chris Christodolou
Friday, 14 October 2016
Miss Saigon: 25th Anniversary Performance (film) | Review
Movie musicals often get a bad rap and with some previously released ones its not surprising, so I was cautious about how the spectacle that is Miss Saigon would translate to film. Before watching the movie I thought that a production as big as this could only really be experienced live in the flesh... I was wrong. This is a momentous and immersive triumph like no movie musical I've seen before.
Universals HD recording brings every moment of Miss Saigon to life; we hear the background conversations and see all the facial expressions which could easily be missed live at the Prince Edward Theatre. Every breath, song and moment of choreography is perfectly framed with a mix of close-ups and wide angles making the whole production visually stunning. Every magical feature of Bruno Poet's lighting design and Totie Driver and Matt Kingley's fantastic set design is highlighted and glorified.
The whole thing isn't just watching a musical filmed live from a theatre, its a cinematic experience where one feels truly immersed in the production and can relate and attach to the characters even more. I truly have no faults with this film and for the majority of it being filmed in front of a live audience on one night, its really mind boggling how perfect the team have managed to make it!
Of course a review of Miss Saigon would not be complete without mentioning the insane talents of the cast. Although I saw this cast twice live at the theatre, I was even more in awe of their talents watching this recording. The extreme close ups show every emotion that crosses their faces and you can truly see how much they commit making their characters as realistic and provocative as possible.
Eva Noblezada's voice as Kim is just on another level; it actually depresses me how young and talented she is and I can only dream of being so flawless one day. Every note that comes out of her mouth is golden and its worth going to see the film purely to hear I'd Give My Life For You which sent chills down my spine! Jon Jon Briones gets the comedy and depth of the hilarious but calculating engineer down to a tee and I will never be over his performance of The American Dream. Alistair Brammer is the perfect lead, his voice soaring with ease and complementing Eva's dulcet tones entirely. If I could mention every cast member I would but I'm afraid that would take forever so I'll just say that every performance is remarkable and each individual truly shines in this recording.
Whether you've seen the production before or not, you must go and see this film. If you saw the show at the Prince Edward you'll get to see it in an entirely new light and if you haven't seen it before you'll be introduced to one of the most fantastic works of musical theatre in complete and utter style. Its definitely a must-see for musical theatre fans but I am almost certain that anyone will enjoy it. This is a production which is truly, completely and utterly unforgettable and altogether an impeccable cinematic experience. ★★★★★
Miss Saigon will be at cinemas on Sunday 16th October 2016 and will then be released on DVD.
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