Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Lucy Moss. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Lucy Moss. Sort by date Show all posts

Monday 31 December 2018

Olivia's Top 10 Shows of 2018


2018 has been a whirlwind year full of amazing theatre. I was lucky enough to see a total of 150 shows so whittling them down to a top 10 was extremely difficult. Although this list is in an order, I really loved each of them equally as they all moved me in a particular way and provided some theatrical treats. 2019 is the year of change for West End theatre as a lot of beloved shows close and we get a number of new shows and shows from across the pond. I can't wait to see what next year provides and if we get anything like the treats from this year, it's going to be truly wonderful...


This was one of the wackiest nights out at the theatre. Alan Menken's score, accompanied by the changing natural light, a dancing tongue (shoutout Billy), and a host of standout performances, you couldn't help but smile and laugh at this treat of a summer show.



My heart was torn out and I ugly cried most of my train home but this was a magical theatrical experience. Highlighting the struggles of grief, this production cleverly used simplistic, ensemble staging to create a highly moving, highly polished, yet still raw piece of theatre.



This is one of the most truthful productions I have ever seen in my life. The outstanding cast seemed as if they were living the show for the first time as they travelled through Nine Nights of mourning with humour and depth in perfect balance. 



This show deserved better. Mythic was a whole host of self-aware-hilarity accompanied by the catchiest music. A modern twist on the Greek Gods, it was 90 minutes of unadulterated brilliance and I can only hope 2018 isn't the last time this show graces the stage.



Robert Hastie's revival of The York Realist was 130 minutes of theatrical perfection. Handled with genuine care and a real attention to detail, this was a beautiful exploration of love, class and life. 



All I can say is that London is not ready for the perfection that this show is. Book your tickets NOW.



Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss are the best thing to happen to British theatre in a long time. Telling the stories of the wives of Henry VIII, Six uses modern musical styles, mixed with laugh out loud one liners, out of this world performances from the Queens and it's just spectacular. It's a show for all ages that is sure to wow audiences for years to come as they keep coming back for their royal fix.



This is another gem of a show from Trafalgar Studios. Arinzé Kene gave the most devoted and energy fuelled performance I've ever seen. Misty is vibrant and fresh as it uses the dual-narrative structure perfectly to leave you wordless.



If The Rink was a person, I would've married it by now. Caroline O'Connor gave a masterclass in acting and this show needs to come back right now. Roller blades, delightful music and fabulous staging made this a faultless production.



I saw Hadestown twice this year but if I could've made it 20, I would have. I truly can't describe how special this show is; the lighting, staging, choreography, ensemble, leads and music come together to create an emotional journey and spectacular theatrical experience. The entire show is painfully relevant and the whole spectacle of it is exceptional.


So there we have my Top 10 Shows of the year, do you have any of the same ones? I'd like to give mention also to Bat Out of Hell which became a huge part of my year and provided some wonderful memories; and the BTA who put on two fantastic shows: Spring Awakening and Bring it On which featured stellar performances from the stars of the future.

For me, this was the year of female led performances and a real forward movement in the showcasing of diversity in theatre which are two huge positives in the industry. Lets hope for a continuation of these changes in 2019! Wishing you a the stagiest of stagey 2019s!

-Olivia x

Monday 14 September 2020

Six to be the first West End musical to open post-Lockdown



The international smash-hit SIX announces that it will be the first West End musical to reopen since Lockdown

Electrifying musical phenomenon SIX by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss will become the first West End musical to resume performances in a West End theatre when the show temporarily moves from its home at the Arts Theatre to the Lyric on Shaftesbury Avenue for a limited 11-week run beginning on Saturday November 14 through to January 31, 2021.

SIX will perform 9 shows a week at the Lyric Theatre. Capacity has been reduced to comply with COVID-19 Secure guidelines for social distancing plus robust risk mitigation. In addition to hand sanitation, face coverings and track and trace, other measures will include contactless tickets, temperature testing and the deep clean and sanitation of the theatre.

Simultaneously SIX is announcing that the UK Touring Cast will resume performances in the Lyric Theatre at the Lowry in Salford from Friday November 27, 2020 for a 6-week Christmas season.

SIX producers Kenny Wax, Wendy & Andy Barnes and George Stiles say, ‘Across our two UK productions of SIX we have the opportunity to give work to 100 or so actors, musicians, technicians, stage managers, production managers, costume makers, marketing, press, ticketing and office staff. We accept that with social distancing it is unlikely to be economically viable, but we hope to entertain many thousands of theatregoers who have been starved of live entertainment since March. We hope that opening SIX will help build audience confidence and bring business back to the local economy. We also understand that restarting productions, particularly musicals, remains impossible for most producers for reasons of scale, finance and lack of cancellation insurance. We continue to look forward to the day when social distancing is removed and theatre can play to 100% capacity.”

SIX has become a global phenomenon since its early days as a student production in a 100-seat room at Sweet Venue during the 2017 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. As the pandemic struck, SIX was playing to sold out houses in London’s West End, across the UK and Australia, and had its opening night in New York on Thursday March 12 cancelled when the New York Governor shut down Broadway three hours before the show was due to open.

SIX will return to the Arts Theatre in March 2021 subject to the lifting of social distancing, and ‘Get Up, Stand Up!  The Bob Marley Musical’ opens at the Lyric.

Tickets for SIX at the LYRIC THEATRE will go on sale at 8am Friday 18 September

Photos by Eleanor Howarth

Friday 18 March 2022

Full Casting Announced for 101 Dalmatians at Regent's Park


Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre have today announced full casting for their forthcoming production of 101 Dalmatians (12 Jul – 28 Aug), a newly commissioned musical written by Douglas Hodge (music and lyrics) and Johnny McKnight (book), from a stage adaptation by Zinnie Harris. Based on the book by Dodie Smith, leading the cast as the iconic villain Cruella de Vil is Olivier and Tony Award nominee Kate Fleetwood.

Dalmatians Pongo and Perdi are puppeteered by Danny Collins (Pongo Voice), Emma Lucia (Perdi Voice), Yana Penrose (Perdi Head) and Ben Thompson (Pongo Head).

Also joining the cast are: Jamil Abbasi (Ensemble), Stuart Angell (Captain Head), George Bukhari (Jasper), Sonya Cullingford (Ensemble), Jade Davies (Swing), Karen Fishwick (Danielle), Joseph Fletcher (Ensemble), Taofique Folarin (Swing), Courtney George (Ensemble), Tash Holway (Swing and Dance Captain), CJ Johnson (Ensemble), Kody Mortimer (Ensemble), Simon Oskarsson (Swing), Tom Peters (Captain Voice), Eric Stroud (Dominic), Jonny Weldon (Casper), and Grace Wylde (Madam Doué).

Director Timothy Sheader said:
“We are incredibly excited to finally bring 101 Dalmatians to our stage after postponing the production twice due to the pandemic. I think audiences are going to love reconnecting with this favourite story outside in Regent’s Park; the original home of Pongo and Perdi. The brand new script and music are both packed with fun and joy and I am delighted that Kate Fleetwood’s filming schedule for The Wheel of Time allows us the opportunity to work with her on creating that all time baddie, Cruella de Vil.”

101 Dalmatians is created by: Shanaé Chisholm (Casting Assistant), Josie Daxter (Associate Director),   Jill Green CDG (Casting Director), Tash Holway (Associate Choreographer), Barbara Houseman (Voice and Text & Season Associate Director), Howard Hudson (Lighting Designer), Maia Kirkman-Richards (Assistant Puppet Director), Nick Lidster for Autograph (Sound Designer), Katrina Lindsay (Costume Designer), Ingrid Mackinnon (Season Associate: Intimacy Support), Tarek Merchant (Musical Director), Verity Naughton and Nick Hockaday for Verity Naughton Casting (Children’s Casting Directors), Toby Olié (Puppetry Designer and Director), Colin Richmond (Set Designer), Timothy Sheader (Director), Liam Steel (Choreographer) and Sarah Travis (Musical Supervisor and Orchestrator).
 
The Open Air Theatre is working with Mousetrap Theatre Projects to create a relaxed performance of 101 Dalmatians on Sunday 14 August (2.15pm). Relaxed performances are designed to provide those with learning disabilities, those who are on the autism spectrum or have other sensory and communication needs who would benefit from a more relaxed environment, the opportunity to experience the production.
 
Kate Fleetwood currently plays the leading role of Liandrin Guirale in Amazon Prime’s The Wheel of Time. Her previous stage roles include: Lady Macbeth (Chichester Festival/Gielgud/ BAM/Broadway) for which she was nominated for a Tony Award, Medea (Almeida) and Goneril in King Lear (National Theatre). She also appeared in Absolute Hell and Ugly Lies the Bone (National Theatre), Bug (Found111) and Life is a Dream (Donmar Warehouse), for which she received a WhatsOnStage Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. Kate received an Olivier Award nomination for Best Actress in a Musical for London Road (National Theatre), and she also played Tracy Lord in High Society (Old Vic).

Kate’s television credits include: VictoriaWar and PeaceThe People Next DoorThe WidowerBrave New World and Fate: The Winx Club Saga. Her film credits include: Star Wars: The Force AwakensThe NegotiatorLondon RoadPhilomenaLes Misérables and Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows: Part 1.

Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre’s 90th Anniversary season also includes the musical Legally Blonde     (13 May – 2 July) directed by Lucy Moss, co-writer and co-director of Six the Musical, and - in a second commission from the theatre in 2022 - Antigone (3 – 24 September) by Barber Shop Chronicles writer Inua Ellams after Sophocles, directed by Max Webster and co-directed by Jo Tyabji.
 

Wednesday 5 September 2018

Six, Arts Theatre | Review

 
Six 
Arts Theatre 
Reviewed on Friday 31st August 2018 by Olivia Mitchell 
★★★★★★ (it seems only right)
 
As someone who grew up spending her weekends visiting Hampton Court Palace, Six is  pretty much my ideal musical. Bringing the wives of Henry VIII to us live in concert and changing HIStory to HERstory this show is a celebration of girl power and shows us that there's far more to the rhyme we all grew up hearing.
 
Written by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss, Six is fresh, modern and unlike anything I've experienced. The lyrics are fast paced and extremely clever but draw you in so much that at no point do you find yourself struggling to understand them. Each Queen has a distinct style which works fantastically. From the jazzy feel of Catherine Parr's solo to Catherine of Aragon's Beyoncé style song, all the music feels relatable and makes you feel you could be friends with any of the Six ladies.
 
 
Each Queen is inspired by current pop-stars with the cast bringing clear influences from pop culture as well as making the roles truly individual and memorable. As their respective wives (Ex-Wives *mic drop*) Jarneia Richard-Noel, Millie O'Connell, Natalie Paris, Alexia McIntosh, Aimie Atkinson and Maiya Quansah-Breed are outstanding. It's unfair to talk about them individually as they all bring so much to the show and despite having solo's, make this show the united, ensemble piece it's meant to be.
 
The Ladies in Waiting aka the on stage band bring energy and even more power to Six. Emma Bailey's set is simplistic in the tiny space of the Arts Theatre but extremely fitting, with the black box almost becoming a chapel where we can worship these powerful women. Tim Deiling's lighting helps achieve the pop concert vibe and is especially effective in Haus of Holbein where Anna of Cleves' tells her story accompanied by strobe lights and fluorescent neck ruffs.
 
 
Carrie-Anne Ingrouille's choreography is sharp and fills the space extremely well. Alongside Gabriella Slade's fabulous and flirty costumes and Jimmy Jones' chiselled makeup looks, the ladies really do own the Arts Theatre and become the hottest girl group in London.
 
Six is inventive, coherent, uplifting and full to the brim with talent. The varying tempos and genres make the piece continually engaging and the "Britishness" of it all is truly wonderful when so much of the West End is currently/soon to be dominated by imported shows. Henry VIII may have been the Tudor King, but these Queens are the rulers of London theatre.
 
Six runs at the Arts Theatre until  14th October, and then tours around the country
 
photo credit: Idil Sukan