...or for one reason or another will not be able to.

I posted my review of the show yesterday but was aware that there were some comments I could make that might spoil the enjoyment of those yet to see it. With this in mind I thought it might be nice to have a thread where those who have seen the show can discuss details or specifics without worrying about saying too much.

Soooo....don't read on if you don't want to know details (I think we all know the story!!)

A couple of things I wanted to note are as follows;

1. The megamix. I felt that it was a mistake to stage this with all the actors in white casual clothes. To me it suddenly made the show look like a rehearsal. I don't want to see what they look like without their costumes, wigs etc - they have just spent the last two hours trying to get us to suspend disbelief.

2. Did anyone else notice that they altered the lyrics of 'Go Go Go Joseph'? Either they added a verse or tweaked an existing one because I definitely heard Preeya sing 'The lines are still open / and you've got our vote'! Fairly safe to say that wasn't in the original but it made me laugh.

3. I thought Lee's singing of the first part of 'I closed my eyes' right at the end when faced with his father and the remnants of his dreamcoat was just beautiful; absolutely stunning, soft and emotional. You could have heard a pin drop in the audience. As I said in my review, the cast could turn the mood of the show in an instant.

So does anybody else have other bits they want to discuss or bits that got cut from their review to avoid "spoilers" ?

Or does anybody who can't go to the show have any questions?

I won't get to the show until September, but I love spoilers. Thanks for starting the thread - spoil away!

The version I saw of Joseph was pre-Megamix and I have, heh, mixed feelings about how useful it really is. My cynical side thinks, "Cheap way to get a standing ovation." What do you feel about it?

Hi jcello

I know what you mean about the standing ovation. The show I saw was a perfect example of that - massive cheers but people only got to their feet when the megamix started. I don't mind it provided it doesn't go on too long; this one was only a few minutes which gave all the cast members in turn a chance to strut their stuff at the front of the stage. Starlight Express does the same thing and I guess I have got a bit used to some form of planned encore. Interestingly the production of Guys & Dolls that I saw in May had only two curtain calls and no encore of any kind and I felt a bit cheated - I wanted to carry on cheering! I think my problem with this one was the fact they'd switched from costumes to vest tops and combat trousers. It honestly looked like a rehearsal. The strange thing was, although it was high energy, it was somehow a bit of an anti-climax.

I really agree ith your point about the Any dream will do song when he was with Jacob, holding the tatters of his coat. It actually gave the song a real sense of belonging to the strory, rather than being a strange poppy song at the end. I have to admit to a lump in my throat at that bit... and at our performance too there was total silence at this point. However I am not sure about the encore for Close every Door. It was magical in the cell, totally spellbinding, but then at the end when he stands there in his armour (which incidentally had HUUUUGE nipples????) it was an anti-climax. I wish they had left it as the one song.. or maybe as a final encore... when he is back in his coat.

I actually enjoyed seing all the cast without their costumes, I guess everyone will have different views on this.. To me it was a good end to the show, but then there were some in my party who didn't like it either for the same reasons you described.

The only other point I think I would make is that I really wished the hairy bunch of Ishmalites had been real. . . I guess they couldn't fit on the camel!!

Agree about the Ishmalites! Up close you could see them wobble on the back of the camel which was quite funny.

You've got a point about the gold nipples too....they were huge weren't they?!

I also really liked the point at which Joseph condemns Benjamin - particularly when he upends the goblet, presumably a 'thumbs down, you die' kind of gesture. Very coldly played and again silence from the audience.

Hi shoequeen, great post! To take your points in order:

1. The megamix. I've never been a fan of megamixes, I think they're just a form of padding - making the show seem longer without writing another song. This one was fun and everything, but I found it odd the cast took their individual bows after they had changed into street clothes - I couldn't recognise who I was clapping for.

2. I'm so pleased you mentioned the altered Go Go Joseph lyrics as I thought that was the funniest line in the show. Does anyone know what she sings immediately before though? It's "You are a winner, you... / The lines are still open and you've got our vote." It's been bugging me since I saw the show on Saturday.

3. Totally agree about Any Dream Will Do at the end, it really worked. I nearly cried. The bit where he reprises Close Every Door, though, was really wierd and out of place and, again, felt like the show was being padded.

Hmm, what else? King Of My Heart felt a bit tacked-on. It's quite a sad song, and when it finishes Preeya sings "This could be a happy ending, perfect place to stop the show" - they could've changed the lyric to be a bit more suitable!

The Go go lyrics were changed last time too, the we've read the book line was new to the palladium version, i think its a nice tradition, like the little list song in the Mikado being personalised every show.

I liked the normal clothes in the megamix, though perhaps being in colour like the kids would be nicer than white.
I thought uit nice to see what the brothers really looked like.

Thought the seeing jacob any dream will do was the strongest part of the show and the part to really distinguish lee from his poppy predicesors.
But for me the benjamin cup was the weakest part just not enough venom, hopefully its got better.

To me the megamix just feels like padding. The show would obvioulsy run less than an hour and a half without it and I'm sure in the Palladium version they didn't run through the whole of the Song of the King twice, but they obviously feel the need to lengthen it. That's not to say I didn't enjoy it, it is completely infectious fun and I'm happy to clap along with it. I just feel sorry for the cast who having performed the whole show then have to raise even more energy for another 10 minutes of serious singing and dancing!

I think the Pharoahs King of my heart song, although very nicely written does seem to dip the energy and generally slow the pace down, which felt a little odd at that point. It would have felt more natural to go straight into the brothers visit to Egypt.

OOOOOOOOOO you just said my thoughts re the clothes in the mega mix.......I did love it though and even if it was padding - I didn't want to leave. This was my first time seeing Joseph as a professional production and what a difference (as is the price - ok Dulcie I know you bought them as a birthday pressie!!)

The entrance to me was pretty spectacular and I didn't expect it to be so funny...Although that could have had a lot to do with Binny, Snippy and CB's captions.......I swear I saw Seamus hiding in sheep clothes saying to Jospeh do you think they know it is me!!

I also loved the eye they brought on - very funny!

I think I'm in the minority because I actually didn't care too much for the Pharoah scene. Yes, Dean Collinson is talented, but I found the whole scene a bit overdone. And my heart actually sank when he sang the whole song again. While funny (and it gave us a chance to hear Lee speak briefly rather than sing), it wasn't necessary, imo. And I did not like the added song...in terms of being in this show. It's a beautiful song (as I think most ALW ballads are), but it seemed out of place and slowed down the show. And I couldn't help but think Joseph deserved another song more than the Pharoah did. I can understand they probably needed to add time to the show to justify the cost of admission, but why not let Joseph have more time to shine? He is the title character after all, plus he's the reason most of us are coming to see this production (of course, ALW likely couldn't take the chance that a less qualified Joseph could have gotten chosen).

As for the megamix, I thought I wouldn't like it, but I found it energetic and infectious. The cast were brilliant, and it was nice to see them be able to strut their stuff. True, it became more difficult to tell who was who out of their costumes, but it almost didn't matter because they were all so talented and enthusiastic. I saw the show on 31 July, and I had a blast watching the cast members here...they didn't seem tired at all. And I love their sense of humour (when the final curtain was almost down, three or four of the brothers were trying to get low enough so that they could still wave out at everybody...really funny).

Lee, of course, was brilliant...he alone was worth the trip into Central London. I look forward to seeing the show again in a month's time.

I wasn't all that keen on the Pharoah scene either, mainly because I found his words almost impossible to understand. I know others have said the same thing (which is good to know... I thought I was going deaf ), but I guess it helps if you already know the show pretty well.

I quite enjoyed the megaxmix. As I said in my review, the music was so loud that the singers seemed to be struggling to make themselves heard, which was a pity. I did think it was a bit strange having everyone in white rather than in their costumes, but I just thought of it as separate from the main show. Like others, though, I had no idea who was who by that point... apart from Lee, of course!

Hi

Both really good points. I would agree that the new song added very little and the Pharaoh is not the most obvious character to give it to. As you say, it was a missed chance to redress a much-observed point about the show that the title character does not do the most singing. To me it was also very obvious as an addition. The other songs tell the story fluently and effectively, each adding something to the narrative. This one simply didn't.

The brothers did the same thing in the show I saw on the 30th. Very funny!

Have been thinking about whether or not I wish I'd bought a second ticket at the same time as buying my first. On one hand yes because I adore Lee. However I'm also very aware that everything went swimmingly when I saw it; a nigh-on perfect seat, a well-behaved audience, a performance that went without a hitch and at a perfect point in the show's run - a couple of weeks in meaning that minor glitches had been ironed out but there was still a sense of a 'honeymoon period'. So maybe a second performance might not be quite so perfect. Having said that, if I could relive the show I saw on Monday I would be there like a shot!

Hey dreaming girl!

I think the lyric I heard was 'don't give up Joseph, you'll get your coat, the lines are still open, and you've got our vote.'
I loved it!

Thank you so much, Best Girl. I thought it might've been "You are a winner, you made it so close," but that makes no sense and doesn't rhyme, which was why it was annoying me so much.

Will double check in 2 weeks when I go back AGAIN!

Yay!

Hi there - a de-urking newbie here!! I saw the show on 20th July, just two weeks ago, but it seems like forever!! I need another "Joseph" fix - and soon!!!

I saw the show on Wednesday night and agree about this being the perfect time to see it; been going long enough for the cast to get into their stride, but still very fresh. The accusation of Benjamin bit is either variable, or has improved, since I thought it was good.

Totally agree about the scene where Joseph is reunited with Jacob, it was beautifully sung and acted by Lee. I have not seen a professional production of the show before, only the soundtrack by JD. It was a joy to hear the part performed by Lee, who has a voice which is so much more developed and lyrical.

I rather liked the megamix; I didn't have a problem with the change of costume, and I wonder if it was designed around around Lee's re-appearance also in white, but with the coat. It emphasises him, as he makes that rather spectacular trip on the platform - the coat is the main point of colour. If so, it worked rather well for me

I liked the updated references as well, including the London Eye and I did appreciate Lee's opening arrival. Very spectacular (oddly enhanced by Twingle's little touch of ecstatic hysterics next to me).

I found Dean Collinson really quite frustrating. He is good, but his diction is annoying - I know the show very well, so I know the lyrics to Pharoah's song - I felt sorry for those in the audience who didn't and felt an overwhelming desire to to (loudly) agree with Lee when he said he hadn't got the bit about ears of corn!

The show is very padded, but mostly to pleasant effect. The children's reprise of the first part songs after the interval was great. Several of them had me in stitches, especially one little boy on the end who was really giving it some welly! It was lovely to watch. My biggest problem with the production is the singing of ADWD at the beginning - don't misunderstand me, it was a great performance and I enjoyed it immensley, but it absolutely makes no sense in terms of the plot.



That is choreographed - happened on my night too!

I really liked Reuben - as an ex firefighter, he makes a cracking actor/singer if a somewhat intermittant blogger. And he is big!

I'm glad it wasn't just me! I've only seen Joseph once before, and I didn't really remember this song... I just couldn't understand him at all, which was incredibly frustrating. I didn't hear anything about cows or corn at all.

I think the thing about ADWD is that it's outside the plot, sort of an introduction. So the Narrator sings the Prologue, and ADWD is Joseph's way of saying "Hello, I'm Joseph, this show is all about me" etc. The bit I didn't get, though, was the Narrator handing Joseph his coat because in the next scene Joseph is given the coat again by his dad!


I've been thinking about this: Maybe it's difficult to have nice clear diction when singing in Elvis style?

Absolutely not. Thinking of ADWD and the boys who did an Elvis one Craig suspicious minds and Ben blue suede shoes and think there were others. Plus, I have been to two Elvis impersonators night - both weren't Elvis but their diction was good oh and my daughter was married by an Elvis impersonator in Las Vegas (tacky I know) and again clear diction!!

That confused me a bit as well... I decided not to over think it!


I can't see any reason that this should be the case, other than that he was maybe so concerned with thinking about impersonating Elvis that he forgot we needed to hear the words. It's interesting that most of the critics didn't pick up on it, yet quite a few of us have noticed it.

I saw it yesterday 1st time and i was really impressed. I was especially impressed with Preeya (narrator) I thought she was possibly the best there and certainly stole the stage when she sung.
I was with my brothers and sisters who are younger than me and i was properly cringing when the ladies came on with those tassels...i did think that was a bit inappropriate for the likes of 8-12 year olds...
i really liked the way Joseph rose at the end and waved to us in the circle Im sure i caught his eye...

woo great idea this! I am going to see the show on Aug 29 - bit worried though because we are going to a matinee and scared his stand-in will be on instead of him! He must get days off but I was hoping as it has only just started that we will be lucky - I am only going because of Lee so hope he is there - can't wait.

Lee, bless his lovely white loincloth, says he plans to do all 8 shows barring illness or his planned holidays. So just keep hoping that he stays healthy and all will turn out great.

Good point about the coat! I didn't mind one song out of place with ADWD although they did reprise songs a bit too much. The handing over of the coat by the Narrator was pointless and slightly spoiled the scene when you see Joseph put it on for the first time and start twirling...

Hi rosieeee - Lee is doing all 8 shows per week and hasn't missed one yet. I'm sure you'll be fine