Follies in London 2017

[MartinG]

I'm sure I didn't imagine it 

[Gordonb]

I'm sure I didn't imagine it  

Exactly, but @Chris L was beginning to doubt himself.😉

[Leighton]

How odd!  I wondered if the drag Margie and Sally was typical of the show/written in, or a directorial choice

No drag Margie and Sally today.

That's a change then!
How were the snug seats?

[Gordonb]

How odd!  I wondered if the drag Margie and Sally was typical of the show/written in, or a directorial choice

No drag Margie and Sally today.

That's a change then!
How were the snug seats?

Less snug than the last time I sat in them - I hope that means my fat arse is less fat than it used to be!
It was honestly a stunning position from which to see the show.

[Bobster]

"Margie" and "Sally" were originally men in drag when the Original production started in Boston but that got changed after just a show or two.

[Leighton]

Looks like the London production went off that idea, too, then!

[Chris L]

We finally saw the NT Live broadcast. Based on some of the comments I've seen on Facebook I was worried that it might not have been a good representation of the stage production, but in fact it was a brilliant representation of the stage production, occasionally even better. Nothing can replace the experience of seeing a show in person, but since we've already seen it in person, it was thrilling to see the actors in close-up, getting a much more detailed view of facial expressions and movements. "Losing My Mind," in particular, was stunning in close-up view.

I'd seen comments online about the staging, about how the actors were too far apart when they interacted or weren't looking at each other, but most of that was the result of the thrust stage. The performers were surrounded by a 180-degree audience and tried to play evenly to all sides. Maybe because I knew where the audience was, this never bothered me in the broadcast. And I still think the cast was superb.

The crossdressing was definitely absent from "Buddies Blues," though. And the projection of Philip Quast on the scrim was there, though the cameras pushed in so tightly on Quast that it wasn't always visible.

One thing that bothered me, though it's rather trivial, is that despite Phyllis's lamentations that she's no longer Juicy Lucy, in close-up Janie Dee is actually sexier than the actress playing her younger ghost, who is at best cute and perky. But maybe that's just a sign that I'm getting old.

[Gordonb]

One thing that bothered me, though it's rather trivial, is that despite Phyllis's lamentations that she's no longer Juicy Lucy, in close-up Janie Dee is actually sexier than the actress playing her younger ghost, who is at best cute and perky. But maybe that's just a sign that I'm getting old.

You are, as is Janie Dee, but to quote Enobarbus in "Antony & Cleopatra":

"Age cannot wither her, nor custom stale
Her infinite variety"

[Chris L]

That's a horrible photo of Janie Dee! 

(But Juicy Lucy looks as chipmunk-faced as ever.)

[Gordonb]

That's a horrible photo of Janie 

But when she lets her hair down and kicks out her legs ...

[Leighton]

https://www.thestage.co.uk/news/2018/follies-return-national-theatre-release-cast-recording/ !!!

[scenicdesign71]

Returning to NT Live on cinema screens this September:

https://follies.ntlive.com

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXpAFaY4X58