West End Live, Trafalgar Square - FREE - ★★★★ - June 22 & 23, 2019


Hear a sample of what the West End has to offer as casts from all of your favourite musicals come out and belt it out. Even if you're not a big musical fan this event is great fun, and it is wonderful to see the amazing depth of talent that West End Live provides for locals and visitors alike. With over fifty performances there is something for all tastes. This is a chance to reminisce about shows you have seen and to get a sample of those that might be on your list. Wicked, Everybody's Talking About Jamie, The Lion King, Phantom of the Opera and many more... This is always a popular experience so there may be some queuing. There's lots of room and two gates which open shortly before the performances begin. People come and go throughout the day so you are sure to get in.

Reviewed by J.C.

 Our Score:  ☆☆☆☆ 

WHEN, WHERE, GETTING THERE:
June 22, 2019: 11 am - 5 pm
June 23, 2019: 12 pm - 5 pm
Trafalgar Square
Nearest tube: Charing Cross
https://www.westendlive.co.uk
Map & Location: Trafalgar Square, Charing Cross, London WC2N 5DN, UK

Latest Reviews

Slipped: Cinderella... Rebooted! - Royal Vauxhall Tavern - ★★★★ - Until January 8, 2020

Image
Seriously sick of 'Secret Santa'? This Xmas, why not get the office gang together and go to the RVT's wonderfully rude and sassy panto. This is not Cinderella as you might remember her. The unexpurgated version is a lot more fun and has better shoes! From Boris Johnson and Michael Gove to "Annie" and Adele there are more pop culture references here than in Kim Kardashian's tweets. The punch lines never stop coming and just when you've gotten one gag, you realise you've missed the next one. The song parodies are all clever with singing and choreography that are first-rate. The high-energy cast left us exhausted from laughing, and, of course, fromshoutingthe characters' catch phrases, plus warnings to our heroine. The audience is always kept involved and time flies at an amazing pace. Richard Watkins' Prince Charming was spectacularly over the top and really got things pumped up while Grant Cartwright as Cinderella was suitably coy ... not! Robe…
Full Details »

Whistle Down The Wind, The Union Theatre - ★★★★★ - Until December 21, 2019

Image
Whistle Down The Wind is a heartwarming show that has stood the test of time, and this is a wonderful production of it. The story which contrasts the faith and optimism of childhood with the darker and often harsher worldview of adults is an apt narrative for this time of year, and the cast and creative team have done a fine job of bringing it to life. Richard Taylor's music and lyrics were quite haunting. They captured both the stark, almost bleak, atmosphere of this Welsh village and its sudden illumination by the simple belief of children who discover a stranger in their barn. Sadie Levett as Cathy, Tara Lucas as Nan, and George Hankers as Charles all do a quite amazing job of making us see them as the children who can believe in miracles. It is so easy for adults playing youngsters to fall into parody or cliché but that never happens here. Even when the director takes the bold step of having the three of them interact with real children they manage to create entirely credible …
Full Details »

Singin' In The Rain, The Mill at Sonning - ★★★★★ - Until February 8, 2020

Image
The Mill at Sonning has another winner! This is a quite wonderful production of Singin' In The Rain with over 1,000 litres of water falling to create the spectacular stage effect of the title. The plot which is about the trials of silent movie stars of 1927 transitioning to the world of talkies is cleverly framed by the idea of the ubiquitous new way of accessing film on a mobile phone, and the narrative is interspersed with some black and white silent movie scenes that hilariously contribute to the atmosphere. But it is not the story that has made this show a favourite; it is the unforgettable songs and great dancing. This production completely delivers on both points. The principals, Philip Bertioli as Don Lockwood, Rebecca Jayne-Davies as Kathy Selden and Brendan Cull as Cosmo Brown are all excellent: their dancing dazzles and their singing soars. Sammy Kelly's comic turn as shrill silent star, Lina Lamont, is also a delight, and the rest of the cast are equally wonderfully…
Full Details »

Pinocchio: No Strings Attached! - Above The Stag Theatre - ★★★★★ - Until January 11, 2020

Image
If you can only do one panto this Xmas season, this should be the one. Pinocchio: No Strings Attached is the perfect representation of the genre. Jon Bradfield and Martin Hooper have created a terrific entertainment. If this doesn't get you in the Xmas spirit, you should be off playing Scrooge in another panto somewhere! This hilarious show hits all the right notes: silliness, social satire, sing along and unforced audience participation. Even if you are the reticent type, you can't help but 'Boo' when Christopher Lane's brilliant Figaro comes on stage. It's a great comic turn and you would have to have the hardest of hearts not to sympathise with Matthew Baldwin's wonderful Geppetta and Christy Bellis' perky Cornetta. Oli Dickson's Joe wants a relationship with strings and who couldn't identify with the love he feels for the talented tyke, Pinocchio, played delightfully by Jared Thompson. Briony Rawle is great fun as Chianti the cat, and we lov…
Full Details »

Orphée, London Coliseum - ★★★★★ - Until November 29, 2019

Image
Once again ENO has taken on a very difficult piece, but here the nettle is firmly grasped and a mesmeric piece of music theatre results. Netia Jones' outstanding new staging of Philip Glass' 1993 opera, which is itself closely based on Jean Cocteau's 1950 film, asks us to ponder whether life is a dream and questions whether art seduces one away from real human concerns. Conductor Geoffrey Paterson gives us every nuance of the subtly expressive vocal and instrumental writing which includes musical echoes of Nadia Boulanger and Darius Milhaud. Lizzie Clachan's expressionistic sets retain a dream-like quality in Act One with everything sliding slowly across the stage. When we go to the Underworld in Act Two moving walls are covered with drifting projections of catacombs. The singing is excellent throughout with a big cast led by Nicholas Lester as Orphée and Sarah Tynan as Eurydice. However, the voices that particularly stood out for us were those of Jennifer France and N…
Full Details »

Escape From Planet Trash, Pleasance Theatre - ★★★★ - Until December 22, 2019

Image
As Escape From Planet Trash began it felt like we'd arrived late at a party, Ginger Johnson and Sink The Pink "The LGBTQ+ Collective" are firm favourites here. Let us explain the plot: a spaceship lands on a post-apocalyptic earth now living in dread of giant marauding turkeys and... Oh, don't bother! Just sit back and enjoy the fun as it won't take long to get drawn into this show's very silly and unusual take on the Christmas panto! Ginger rules the roost with great aplomb as 'The Dame' and raises genuine laughs throughout the evening. David Cumming is quite outstanding as her son and is everyone's favourite! The other four talented members of the cast are variously space travelers and turkeys. Musically the show is well sung accompanied by a small but excellent live band. The production is slick and the scenery makes top grade use of the theatre's revolving stage as we whirl around the corrugated-iron shack where Ginger and her son live in …
Full Details »

An Act of God, The Vaults - ★★★★★ - Until January 12, 2020

Image
This is simply the funniest show we've seen in ages. Zoe Lyons as the latest incarnation of God sets the record straight about the commandments and deals with some of the questions that have vexed theologians and the rest of us: the existence of evil, the success of bad people and the suffering of the innocent. It's all sorted here and it is done so with some great quips and some rather sharp insights. David Javerbaum's play deals with humanity's oldest questions and is also as relevant as the evening news. Boris, Jeremy, Prince Andrew and Arsenal all come into it and are all suitably skewered. The evening really belongs to Zoe Lyons whose performance is pitch perfect. She makes it difficult to imagine anyone else doing the part. All those politicians and celebs with god complexes pale in comparison Zoe. Okay, she has a few wrath issues. Nobody's perfect! Oh, wait a minute she actually is? Anyway, Matt Tedford as Archangel Michael is suitably sympathetic and Tom Bo…
Full Details »

High Fidelity, The Turbine Theatre - ★★★★★ - Until December 7, 2019

Image
This delightful musical definitely makes our top-five list! Nick Hornby's story about the geeky owner of a vinyl record shop and his band of misfit friends is a great start; the addition of good music and smart lyrics bring it to life. Finally, we have a musical with songs that don't all sound the same and lyrics crackling with wit and insight which stay true to character and the plot. "Desert Island Top Five Break-Ups," "Ian's Here," "I Slept With Someone Who Slept With Lyle Lovett" plus the ballads "Ready To Settle" and "Laura, Laura" are just outstanding. The quality of the writing is also perfectly matched by an amazingly energetic cast who just don't stop. The director, Tom Jackson Greaves, does a great job using the limited space available while also bringing some completely believable performances out of his cast. Oliver Ormson is a dynamo, doing a great turn as Rob who can't take responsibility for very much…
Full Details »

All's Well That Ends Well, Jermyn Street Theatre - ★★★★★ - Until November 30, 2019

Image
All's Well That Ends Well is often labelled a problem comedy, and it certainly offers a problem for contemporary audiences and sensibilities. It tells the story of the unrequited love of the virtuous Helena for the rather shallow Bertram and really makes us question why she abases herself to pursue this unworthy object of her affections. Tom Littler tries to address this issue in a wonderfully economical production using just six actors. He does so by focussing on Helena's reaction to the trauma of her father's death and frames the story with her memories. She acts in response to her loss and to her need to belong. Hannah Morrish excels as the lovestruck Helena, and Gavin Fowler is equally strong as the callow Bertram. Robert Mountford is delightful as Bertram's friend of bad influence whose exposure as a coward makes the protagonist reconsider his behaviour. Miranda Foster is simply outstanding in her multiple roles as The Countess, Queen and Widow. She creates clear …
Full Details »

The Nativity Panto, King's Head Theatre - ★★★★ - Until January 11, 2020

Image
If you're familiar with the Christmas nativity story, this is not the story you are familiar with. What we have here is the tale of Mary and Joseph Christmas and their struggle to have a child whilst fending off the threat that evil Jack Frost poses to their offspring. They are supported in this adventure by their loyal companion, Rudolph, a reindeer with self-esteem issues and three very amusing wandering kings. The religiously-minded will not be offended by this very silly and fast-paced romp, and the story comes in three different versions in terms of family friendliness. We saw the adult version and it was not terribly blue. Those easily offended by off-colour humour will probably also be safe at this quite traditional offering. This production sticks to the usual formula of bad puns, audience interaction and some very funny song parodies. It is extremely well done and the acting hits just the right exaggerated note. The singing is generally excellent. While all of the cast ap…
Full Details »

The City Life Magazine. Reviews and Ratings.