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Another Fabulous Review

Posted by:
Jacqueline 02:07 pm UTC 03/15/17
In reply to: re: Here's the 6th 5 star review ( out of the 6 reviews I have found!) - Jacqueline 11:13 am UTC 03/15/17


http://www.oldham-chronicle.co.uk/news-features/14/reviews-news/102564/ovation-earned-for-new-stunner

Ovation earned for new stunner

Reporter: Paul Genty
Date online: 15 March 2017

Bat Out of Hell, 

The Musical

Opera House, to April 8

It has been kicking round in composer Jim Steinman's mind since the Seventies, apparently - and now Bat Out Of Hell, The Musical arrives in Manchester with one of the newest leading men in the business.

Andrew Polec went to an open audition not long out of college, and weeks later found himself invited to perform in it in the UK. 

Which brings us to the Manchester Opera House and the world premiere of a show that since the middle of February has been seen by around 30,000 fans.

That's a lot to take in, and not just for the youthful star. 

Over two hours and 40 minutes the evening overwhelms in almost every department, with the sort of sound you normally get at big-name rock concerts, walls of light, an epic set that reaches out to the circle balcony, projection, live video on multiple screens, TV monitors everywhere, sheets of flame, glitter cannons... even a car being pushed into the orchestra pit!

This is an immense project with a hugely impressive pedigree (and budget), that happily rests its reputation on no-name performers - all of whom are good enough to remain when it arrives in London.

Immense project

The story is a Dystopian-future riff on Peter Pan, actually not bad. There's a Peter - Strat (Polec); leader of genetically perennial 18 year olds outcasts in the abandoned subways of New York. 

Above ground is everyone else, ageing normally, including industrialist Falco (Rob Fowler), his wife Sloan (Sharon Sexton) - the Darlings - and their 18th-birthday-girl Raven (Christina Bennington), our Wendy. 

There's even a Tinkerbell - well, Tink (Aran Macrae), a mutant, stuck at 17, and a nurse, Zahara (Danielle Steers).

Raven falls for Strat, her father sets on a path of vengeance and hatred - of course - and there's an eventual resolution wrapped in a lot of singing and some surprisingly soft-centred choreography for such a hard-driven show. 

The cast members, leading and supporting, are uniformly excellent.

The band is brilliant, the evening super-slick and the performances worthy of their standing ovation. 

If you can get a ticket, don't hesitate.

PG



Sent from AOL Mobile Mail
> https://opening-night.org
>
> Bat Out Of Hell
>
> Over 50 years in the planning and boy is it worth the
> wait, Jim Steinman’s Bat Out Of Hell – The
> Musical explodes into life from the minute you enter the
> theatre, the looming set is immense, the transformation
> of Manchester’s Opera House to accommodate this ground
> breaking world premiere is astonishing. The set designed
> by Jon Bausor uses every inch of height available; it is
> vast, intriguing and innovative. If you weren’t sure
> before you certainly are now, Bat Out Of Hell is without
> doubt the biggest theatre event of the year.
>
> Set against the backdrop of a post-cataclysmic city we
> meet Strat (Andrew Polec) the forever young leader of The
> Lost, a tribe of wasted youth who will never grow old.
> Classed as mutants by Falco (Rob Fowler) the oppressive
> ruler of Obsidian, The Lost live for love, freedom and of
> course rock ‘n’ roll. Falco’s daughter Raven (Christina
> Bennington) gets a taste for life on the dark side when
> she meets Straton the eve of her eighteenth birthday and
> from that moment on things will never be the same again.
>
> Telling Strat when he sneaks into her bedroom at Falco
> Towers, “If you don’t go ‘over the top,’ then how are you
> going to see what’s on the other
> side?” Raven and Strat begin their adventure and take the
> audience on the ride of their lives. The talent on stage
> is staggering, Andrew Polecembodies absolutely everything
> you would want from a rebellious, tribe leading, rock God,
> he is wild, wired, dangerous and utterly mesmerising. His
> performance is quite simply incredible, strutting and
> swaggering he draws you in and completely seduces you, the
> chemistry between him and Christina Bennington (Raven) is
> pure magic, their relationship a total meetings of minds.
> They perfectly illustrate the angst and heartache of
> forbidden love, Bennington’s vocals are heavenly, at first
> seemingly delicate and pure she soon morphs into the
> ultimate rock chick, the power in her voice is
> astonishing, we soon realise the wide-eyed innocent
> daughter of Falco and Sloane (Sharon Sexton) has been
> waiting to be corrupted as she discovers a whole new kind
> of freedom with Strat.
>
> Of course Strat and Raven’s relationship was never going
> to be accepted by Falco, who sets about destroying what
> they have found, trying to end things before they have
> even had chance to begin. Rob Folwer as Falcois
> exceptional, brooding and intimidating; he has great stage
> presence and a superb rock voice. Falco’s seemingly long
> suffering wife Sloane (Sharon Sexton) delivers a fine
> performance, constant cocktail in hand she is so bored
> with this life yet so tied to it she is lost in a
> seriously wretched place. Their scenes together offer some
> real stand out moments, Paradise By The Dashboard Light is
> a riot, raunchy, wild and superbly staged, they deliver
> the narrative exquisitely. Both give a deeply heartfelt
> performance of new song What Part of My Body Hurts the
> Most, emotional and moving the quality of the writing is
> so good even for a new song it feels strangely familiar.
>
> Danielle Steers and Dom Hartly-
> Harris as Zahara and Jagwire give knockout performances,
> powerful and emotionally charged their interpretation
> of Two Out Of Three Ain’t Bad is staggeringly good, they
> really feel the music and deliver Steinman’s lyrics with
> real heart and grit. Their second act performance
> of Rock and Roll Dreams Come Through is bursting with
> attitude and sass, backed up by a magnificent ensemble who
> give absolutely everything to this production.
>
> This is a piece that proudly showcases the talent on
> stage; Director Jay Scheib really has created something
> magical here. Cutting edge and dynamic choreography
> from Emma Portner compliments Steinman’slyrics
> and Scheib’s direction perfectly and adds even more
> attitude to already explosive performances. Special
> mention also must go to Giovanni Spano (Ledoux) and Andrew
> Patrick-Walker (covering as Blake) who together with Dom
> Hartley-Harris deliver a strikingly heartfelt rendition
> of Objects In The Rear View Mirror May Appear Closer Than
> They Are.
>
> The staging of this production is truly something
> spectacular, designed by Jon Bausor, it’s a struggle to
> find words to do it justice, the set continually evolves
> to deliver more and more intricate layers and surprises
> you just didn’t see coming, add to this the innovative use
> of multiple screens and live filming projected over almost
> every inch of the set, it’s quite literally a multimedia
> masterpiece, it feels as if the set is alive, I’ve never
> experience staging like it, it’s such a visual feast. The
> beauty of this multi-layered, multi-levelled set is that
> it allows for every person sat in any seat within the
> theatre to feel part of the production, in effect breaking
> down that third wall, you are scooped up into the action
> and fully immersed in the experience. Costumes
> from Meentje Nielsen combined with video design from Finn
> Ross and lighting design by Patrick Woodroffe further
> confirm the sheer quality of this production.
>
> Bat Out Of Hell is astonishingly good theatre, immersive,
> incredible and utterly mind-blowing, there is no doubt in
> my mind that Manchester has witnessed history in the
> making tonight. This is a journey that is only just
> beginning, the success of this show is unlimited, a
> stunning production with the most sublime of casts, a
> monster of a hit, which oozes world wide appeal.
> Spellbindingly epic, an absolute must-see!
>
> Undoubtedly ***** theatre, bold, dynamic and sexy as
> hell!
>
> Tickets available
> here; http://www.atgtickets.com/shows/bat-out-of-hell/opera-house-manchester/
>
>  
>
>
> Sent from AOL Mobile Mail


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Previous: re: Here's the 6th 5 star review ( out of the 6 reviews I have found!) - Jacqueline 11:13 am UTC 03/15/17
Next: Seven great reviews. Seven great songs on the original Bat. Interesting, hey? n/m - rockfenris2005 02:14 pm UTC 03/15/17

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