Welcome to the next edition of my Snap Show Showdown series! The series where I rank each West End show I’ve seen this month from best to less best and give you a snappy review.
But first, an intro...
This month is a pretty special one because, for the first time in my 22 years of living, I’ve seen more plays than musicals. I wouldn’t say that I particularly dislike plays. However, if I had to choose between a play or a musical I will always pick a musical, and I never find myself gravitating towards plays. However, with my job and the West End tickets we get, I get to sample a bit of everything. I wouldn’t be lying if I said I’m slowly understanding why people like plays.
This is also a great month because everything I saw this month was to such a high standard. As established in the last post, I rank these using a spreadsheet I created with a tonne of criteria. Therefore, even I don’t necessarily know which show will come out on top each month. This month, even the lowest ranked post on the list is doing better than the lower three of last times list. Basically, while the ranking sort of matters I guess, the lower ranked shows are definitely not bad. I thoroughly enjoyed everything I saw this month.
This month's West End pics
This month I saw six West End shows (Although one of them was technically in Wembley). Out of those six, 2 were musicals, 4 were plays and all were thoroughly enjoyable.
1) Wicked, Apollo Victoria Theatre
SNAP SUMMARY: Ever wonder how the Wicked Witch of the West from the Wizard of Oz became wicked? Well, Wicked takes all that wondering out for you. It’s beautifully written and heartwarming and full of emotion and laughs and fantastic music.
QUICK THOUGHTS: Up until Waitress came along, Wicked was my most viewed musical. However, I hadn’t seen it in about 5 years, so was very excited for the refresher. It’s absolutely fantastic and I remembered why I love it so much.
2) Noises Off, Garrick Theatre
SNAP SUMMARY: This play centres around a group of actors and their process of putting on a touring production. We open with their last rehearsal and learn of the drama between the cast mates, and end with their final performance and the mess that it is. It has real Mischief theatre ‘Play That Goes Wrong’ vibes (Except it was written first).
QUICK THOUGHTS: If you want something lighthearted that will make you laugh ’til your stomach hurts, I strongly recommend this. I’m always a little weary of comedies because I never know how forced humour is going to go. However, it was a barrel of laughs with such mixed levels of comedy that there was something for everyone to laugh at.
3) Warhorse, Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre
SNAP SUMMARY: Based on the book by Michael Morpurgo, Warhorse centres on Alfred: a young boy who raises a remarkable horse called Joey and follows him to war. Get ready for tears.
QUICK THOUGHTS: I hadn’t seen the play or read the book or watched the film prior to this, and I’m quite glad I hadn’t because got to experience this beautiful piece of art first hand. The puppetry is beautiful, the story is heartbreaking… It’s not technically on the West End, but I had to include it, because wow.
4) Ghost Stories, The Ambassadors Theatre
SNAP SUMMARY: Without giving too much away, you are positioned in a “lecture theatre” as a lecturer tells you all about paranormal activity. Throughout this you meet his interviewees, see their stories enacted in front of you, and watch as weird things ensue…
QUICK THOUGHTS: I’m a massive scaredycat, and just before this began I was really questioning why I was there in the first place. However, I ended up really enjoying it! They set the spooky atmosphere perfectly the second that you walk in, and the play is a big tension builder that constantly has you on edge.
5) School of Rock, Gillian Lynne Theatre
SNAP SUMMARY: Based on the Jack Black movie of the same name, School of Rock centres around Dewey Finn: a failing musician who has been dropped by his band right before the battle of the bands. He ends up enlisting a group of private school children to help him.
QUICK THOUGHTS: I won’t lie, School of Rock has been one of those West End shows I haven’t been too bothered about seeing. However, it was a really fun night, and the kids were amazing.
6) The Girl Who Fell, Trafalgar Studios
SNAP SUMMARY: The story is set after the suicide of Sam. It focuses on her mother, her best friend, her boyfriend and a bystander and explores their journey of grief and blame.
QUICK THOUGHTS: I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but I thought it was rather touching. It’s a small, intimate theatre with some really great acting. It’s worth a watch if you’re into some slightly more serious theatre. My one critique is that I think it could have been longer, as parts of it felt quite rushed.
And that's all folks
This month I saw some really fantastic pieces of theatre, and I would strongly encourage you to go see any of them if you have a chance. In November I currently only have one show planned (And it’s one I’ve been waiting for for months). However, with my job, I never really know what the month will look like theatre-wise until it’s happening.
Have you seen any theatre this month? Have you seen any of these? Let me know in the comments!
Lots of love,
Jas xx
You’ve already made it to the end… May as well pin the post 😉
Wicked photography by Matt Crockett // Noises Off photography by Helen Maybanks // Warhorse photography by Brinkhoff/Mögenburg. // Photography credit for the other shows could not be found, but the photos were pulled from their official websites.
Tell me what you think