Halloween is always a good time for the musical Wicked, the whole green faced witch thing fits in rather nicely with the dressing up and trick or treating. It also tends to coincide with the October half term which is always a very busy time for theatre. 

Last week’s half term was no exception and Wicked reaped the benefits. The show had its highest grossing week since it opened 4 years ago. Over 20 000 people saw the show last week and the box office gross was an extraordinary £923,612.

Considered one of the most popular musicals worldwide, Wicked is one of the most recognised shows of recent times. The untold story of the witches of Oz is dramatically played out with a superb score and special effects and has won many awards over the years.

The two lead actresses Rachel Tucker and Louise Dearman will perform the roles of Elphaba and Glinda until December 2011 and Lee Mead will continue as Fiyero until February 2011.

If you buy a stalls or dress circle ticket for Wicked midweek, you can get a free 2 course dinner at a nearby restaurant. For a selection of Wicked dinner packages on discounttheatre.com click here.

It’s not just the performance schedule that is changing at Legally Blonde (Sunday performances have been ditched) but cast changes will be coming into effect when the new booking period starts on the 25th October.

Rumours were circulating that Sheridan Smith who plays lead character Elle would depart the show, but it has been confirmed that she will stay until at least early next year.

The biggest name to sign up to the show is new mum Denise Van Outen who will play the role of Paulette. It’s been awhile since we last saw Denise in the West End, but I guess she has been a little busy with being a judge on BBC talent shows, getting married and having a baby. Her husband Lee Mead is also starring in the West End as Fiyero in Wicked, so it’s set to be a busy time in the Van Outen/Mead household. I wonder who will be looking after baby Betsey?

In addition to Van Outen, a number of the supporting current and upcoming cast members are played by reality tv alumni. Susan McFadden won the role of Sandy in Grease on the ITV production of Grease Is The Word, and she now plays Serena in Legally Blonde. Aoifie Mullholland of How Do you Solve a Problem like Maria? followed up stints in The Sound Of Music and Chicago by snagging the part of Brooke in Legally Blonde; now she is reunited with fellow …Maria contestant Siobhan Dillon who will play Vivienne from the 25th October

And rounding out the list of notable names is Carly Stenson, not a reality contestant, but a very popular Hollyoaks actress. She played Steph on the soap for 10 years, but makes her West End debut as Margot in Legally Blonde. She also appears from the 25th October.

Legally Blonde has some great discounts at the moment, Stalls and Dress Circle seats are reduced to £45.99 and Upper Circle to £23.99, in some cases saving you over 30% off the normal price. Don’t wait to book one of the most light hearted and fun shows in the West End!

Buy Legally Blonde Tickets here.

Ok, the public got it right this week….

What’s been so fascinating about this version of the reality show is that no clear favourite has emerged. On Sunday night two different girls were in the sing off again; Emilie and Sophie sang ‘I Know Him So Well’ from Chess, made famous by the great Elaine Page and Barbara Dickson.

I think from the moment Emilie’s name was announced as one of the bottom two, everyone knew she had no chance. The judges thought her Saturday night performance of Cyndi Lauper’s ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’ was better than the week before, but personally I think they were just being nice because they didn’t want her to cry again. Emilie’s performance was simply AWFUL. I’m not trying to be mean, but she looked like a cartoon character flouncing about on stage.

I had a feeling Sophie would be in the bottom two, I’m a great fan of hers, but her styling is all wrong and I think Andrew Lloyd Webber is right, she needs to look a bit more wholesome rather than like someone playing dress up.

Jessica was really good this week and she managed to perform without pulling all of the dramatic faces. And Steph was superb, not sure if she’s Dorothy, but we were thinking that she would make an excellent Elphaba in Wicked.

I think I’m going to need another week to fully make up my mind about the potential Over The Rainbow favourites. Any ideas?

Over The Rainbow contunues next Saturday.

The good folks at Wicked were kind enough to send over a Q and A session with Lee Mead, who will be starring as Fiyero from the 10th May. Mead was catapulted into stardom when he won the role of Joseph on the BBC program Any Dream Will Do, and fans flocked to see his performance at the Adelphi Theatre. He then got himself hitched to Denise Van Outen and is now about to become a dad! Here’s Lee Mead’s answers to some all important questions: 

Q: What’s you’re favourite musical (film/stage) and why?

A: So many, but probably Phantom of the Opera… and of course WICKED!

Q: If you hadn’t become an actor, what would you have done?

A: I probably would have worked with children because I just love kids, perhaps a teacher or something along those lines.

Q: What’s your daily routine on a show day?

A: I like to be in at least a good hour before the show so I’m relaxed – I hate to be rushed as it comes across in my performance, so I just read and try to focus as much as possible.

Q: Do you have any good luck charms?

A: I don’t actually, sadly no good luck charms!

Q: What’s currently playing on your iPod?

A: A new album by a group called Elbow, and a bit of Lady GaGa always goes down well! I like Beyonce as well and band music like Stereophonics.

Q: Describe your perfect evening out

A: A very relaxed meal with friends or my wife.

Q: Which character would you have played in the film The Wizard of Oz?

A: Probably the Scarecrow

Q: London or New York?

A: I can’t decide! I love New York so much, but I’ve lived in London for a few years now.

Q: If you weren’t playing Fiyero, which witch would you play? Which witch are you?

A: Glinda of course!

Q: What is the last CD/book you bought?

A: The last book was a baby book because I’m about to become a dad!

 

There you have it, everything you need to know about Lee Mead.

Mead will be starring in Wicked until 5th February 2011 (except for his holidays which are posted on Discount Theatre, so check carefully Lee Mead fans) Wicked is booking at the Apollo Victoria Theatre until the 30th April 2011 and tickets are available from £37.50. Buy your Wicked tickets here.

Just stay with me for a moment….yes I am referring to the TV show.

I had heard the buzz regarding the new show Glee, but didn’t really take much notice. Did I really want to watch another American high school show that portrayed a totally unrealistic view of the rather traumatic place that high school really is? With Gossip Girl and 90210 already occupying my time, I dismissed the idea immediately. But when I visited my sister in Canada at Christmas time, Glee was the topic on everyone’s lips - she was raving about the show. I knew that it was set to premiere in the UK soon, and when I saw the adverts on E4, I recorded some episodes for a rainy day.

I finally got around to watching some of the show this weekend…..and it is fantastic. I had no idea that every episode features songs from musicals as well as contemporary chart toppers. So far, I have heard renditions of You’re The One That I Want from Grease, Mr Cellophane from Chicago, Maybe This Time from Cabaret, and On My Own from Les Miserables. And apparently in one of the coming episodes the cast sings Defying Gravity from Wicked.

Combined with edgy humour, Glee is the perfect balance between hip comedy and musical revue. Yes the characters are stereotypes (think jock, cheerleader and primadonna) but how else do you visually portray the complexities of the high school hierarchy so easily?

Despite its comedic narrative and characters, at its core, I think Glee is a great promoter of musical theatre; just as Subo’s performances of I Dreamed a Dream managed to breathe a new life into Les Miserables, this show highlights some great musical theatre numbers that are not usually emphasised in mainstream media. 

Next episode is on tonight….I can’t wait.

Family favourite Oliver!, currently playing at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane, isn’t calling time on the West End just yet. The production was one of the fastest selling West End shows in history, thanks to the BBC program I’d Do Anything highlighting a search to cast the role of Nancy as well as 3 youngsters for the part of Oliver.

Ah, good times watching Lord Lloyd Webber on his throne as the music from The Phantom of the Opera thundered through the studio; great panto moment. In fact, Lloyd Webber’s entrance is almost as good is hearing an over excitable John Barrowman repeat everything he says 3 times….. I do hope they will all be back when the search for the Wizard Of Oz’s Dorothy commences next year.

Jodie Prenger eventually won the role of Nancy, but after occupying the part for over a year, it was announced that Kerry Ellis will take over from the 29th March 2010.

Ellis is probably most well known for dipping herself in green paint every night to play Elphaba in Wicked (washing the paint off was probably no small feat in itself, I’m sure). She will join Gryff Rhys Jones, who will star as the nasty Fagin when Omid Djalili finishes his run in December.

Some of the best known show tunes are from Oliver! and include Consider Yourself, As Long as He Needs Me, Oom-pah-pah, and Food, Glorious Food.

Oliver! Is booking until the 26th February 2011. If you still want to see Jodie Prenger as Nancy, Upper Circle tickets are reduced to £34.75 starting from January. Buy your Oliver! Tickets here.

It’s been a winning formula for a couple of years now…

Take a hit West End musical, and transform it into a high budget glitzy movie starring Renee Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones or Pears Brosnan. Then sit back on your private yacht with the champagne and Honeyz all around, and watch the $$$$ roll in.

I can almost hear the unscrupulous movie producers’ distorted minds ticking over through the din of cocaine-induced jitters and gurning: “It worked with Chicago, now let’s do it with The Producers. It kind of worked with The Producers, now let’s do it with Mamma Mia!. And by God did it work with Mamma Mia!, let’s do it with Wicked next fall.”

So basically this concept works out great for all involved, Catherine Zeta-Jones is happy because she becomes even more worthy of her marriage to ‘alleged’ sex addict Michael Douglas; the movie producers are happy because they can pay the tab on their lives of sin and debauchery; and the shows are grateful for the additional interest, because there is no denying that movie exposure puts fresh pink booty on seats.

But an interesting role reversal has been taking place recently, because now it seems that kind and virtuous West End theatre producers (who seem in most ways to be the direct opposites of their movie counterparts) are returning the favour, and using some of cinemas best-loved offerings as inspiration for new shows. The first of these being Rain Man at the Apollo Theatre, based on the Oscar-winning film staring Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman, closely followed by Edward Scissorhands in December (although it was actually on stage a while back, too), and an exciting production of Sister Act proposed for the New Year. Read more