Last night I went to see The Wizard of Oz at the Palladium. It was the first night of the new cast, which meant a brand new Dorothy (Sophie Evans), Wizard (Russell Grant), and Lion (Martin Callahan). The role of Glinda was played by the understudy (Florence Andrews) as well. I am a fan of ALW's talent shows (though not of his musicals), so knew of Evans before I attended. Her voice has improved remarkably since the TV show, and whilst she gave a good performance it wasn't an amazing one, though Dorothy is quite an annoying character so it may jut be that she needs a part with a bit more substance. The Scarecrow (Paul Keating), Tin-Man (Edward Baker-Duly) & Lion, made an entertaining trio, and had a great camaraderie. In fact I came away with a crush on the tin man (I'm a sucker for a bass - in both voice & guitar). Glinda was good and her dress was fabulous, I actually really like seeing the understudies perform, as it showcases fresh new talent. The star of the show for me was the Wicked Witch of the West (Marianne Benedict). I do love a baddie, and she played it very well. Her voice had a beautiful power behind it, and I enjoyed her song the most. I do feel her role was too small though, and she deserved a bit more stage time.
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| Sophie Evans |
The weakest link in an otherwise good cast was Grant as the Wizard. Unsurprisingly he is not gifted in the singing & dancing departments, and his acting is very hammy and camp (shocking I know! I just think the Wizard needs a stronger stage presence, as the play has more than enough comic characters). He spoke his song, and his American accent was atrocious. I can't imagine he'll stay for too long, or maybe it was first night's nerves & he'll grow into the role (though I seriously doubt it). Toto on the hand gave a consistently charming performance throughout, though he was very distracting as I was constantly watching (hoping) for him to do something off script!
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| Glinda & my dream dress |
The best thing about the production was the set. It was incredibly designed, and makes the show very enjoyable (even more so for kids). I especially like how some characters flew down from the theatre roof (the actual roof, not the stage roof). I've always said ALW knows how to put on a show, and is a great producer (even though I'm pretty harsh about his music), and this was no expectation. I also really liked how the first few scenes actually appeared to be in black & white! The whole production is visually spectacular & worth seeing just for the twister scene.
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| Scarecrow, Lion & Tin-Man |
I do have a few bug bears with this show however. I don't usually say this about ALW's shows, but I felt as if it needed more songs. All the songs from the original were there, and they were performed beautifully by the orchestra. ALW & Tim Rice teamed up again to write a few extras (one for the witch, Glinda, the Wizard, and Dorothy) but none of these were very memorable or strong enough to match up to the original classics. I also felt that both the good & bad witches and the wizard needed more stage time as well as more songs, as it felt slightly like wasted talent. Also towards the end of the show, it started feeling very panto & the humour was quite slap-stick & lame (though me and my friend couldn't stop laughing at the line, "I'm proud to be a friend of Dorothy" - so much so that she bought me the t-shirt!). All in all the show didn't feel quite finished, it still felt that it was preview performance.
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| Wicked Witch - and yes the new cast meant a ginger doll! |
All in all I enjoyed my night in Oz, and I did come away smiling. Would I see it again? No. Would I say it is a must-see? No. Would I recommend it? Yes. It is a good night out, in a lovely theatre, and I do think people should see it, although it would not be at the top of my list.
Rating : 6/10
Have you see the Wizard of Oz? What did you think?
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