|
Back again in
Liverpool - Jeff Wayne's Musical version of 'War Of The Worlds'
Photographs by Jo
Forrest.
RETURNING yet again to the
Arena, for its 6th time, in Liverpool, on 28 November 2014, was the
amazing
War of
the
Worlds, that coincided with the
75th Anniversary of the Orson Welles iconic radio adaptation, as
well as the 35th Anniversary of Jeff Wayne's classic multi platinum
album and the 115th Anniversary of HG Wells' classic novel. It was
also billed as 'The Final Arena Tour' but we hope that is not the
case. This event was a fantastic show and it was 1 of the most
ground breaking arena tours of all time. Conducted by Jeff Wayne, it
was the most ambitious production yet, featuring the Oscar Winning
actor Liam Neeson in 3D holography, as George Herbert, The
Journalist, plus live on stage was Jason Donovan, as Parson
Nathaniel; Westlife's Brian McFadden, as The Sung Thoughts of The
Journalist, X Factor 2005 winner Shayne Ward, as the Artilleryman;
Les Miserables' Carrie Hope Fletcher, as Beth, Parson Nathaniel's
Wife along with X-Factor 2013's Joseph Whelan, as The Voice of
Humanity... If that was not enough the show also had the 36 piece
ULLAdubULLA Strings and the 9 piece Black Smoke Band, performing
live. The show, even had an incredible 3 ton 35 foot tall Martian
Fighting Machine landing on stage while firing its real flame Heat
Ray over the heads of the audience.... and more, including a 100
foot wide 'animation wall' with 2 hours of enhanced
cutting edge CGI, the incineration of a cast member in front of the
audience's eyes, a ground breaking levitation effect,,, PLUS the
debut of the 1st new song since Jeff's original recording was
released. The event was amazing to see and hear, with remarkable
special effects and fantastic surround sound action! Adding a new
dimension and marking a spectacular finale, HG Wells, the author of
'The War of The Worlds', was also brought to life, not
once but 3 times throughout the show, aged 33, 53 and 79... HG Wells
was played by Scottish actor Callum O'Neill, who is best known for
his role as 'Wee Dingwall' in Disney Pixar's 2012 film
'Brave'. He also played Angus in Jamie Lloyd's Olivier
nominated Macbeth, at Trafalgar Studios in London's West End in
2013. To do this amazing show the production team had the help of
Oscar, BAFTA and Emmy Award winner, Mark Coulier, creative director
of one of Europe's leading make up effects companies, Coulier
Creatures FX, who have worked on movies like 'Harry Potter'
and 'The Iron Lady'. If you attended please let us
know what you thought of this show, by emailing us to:-
news24@southportreporter.com.
 |
 |
Review:-
"She Stoops to Conquer" at the Empire, Liverpool
Review by Jo
Forrest.
THERE is very little you
can say about this... Town and Country, old and new collide at Mr
Hardcastle's ancestral home; the shabby and unchic Liberty Hall.
Confined within these provincial walls the excessively coiffured Mrs
Hardcastle pines for the cultural polish of 'The Capital'.
Enter the good looking and eligible Young Marlow; potential suitor
to the quick witted and resolute Miss Kate Hardcastle. He is a man;
hopelessly tongue tied with toffs and positively improper with
plebs. She is a woman; sharp, sassy and in complete control. So when
he is duped into believing that Liberty Hall is a country inn, and
mistakes Kate for a lowly barmaid what could possibly go wrong?
'She
Stoops to Conquer' is a comedy by Irish author Oliver Goldsmith that
was 1st performed in Covent Garden, London in 1773. The cast
performing to a packed theatre at the Empire and delighted the
audience with this satirical play, set against the increasingly
chaotic proceedings of one very long night, this was a delightful
romantic romp filled with ludicrous misunderstanding, mischief and
mayhem. Fantastic cast and a fullerly enjoyable performance.
Cirque Berserk to perform in
Southport, in 2015
DIRECT from a 4th sold out
season in London's Hyde Park, Winter Wonderland, and its sell out
2014 theatre tour, Britain's favourite contemporary thrill circus
embarks at last on a nationwide theatre tour. Combining contemporary
“cirque” style skills with off the scale thrilling
stunt action, Cirque Berserk is a danger filled spectacle that will
amaze audiences of all ages. Presenting the world's most dangerous
circus act, the legendary Globe of Death, with 3 motorcyclists
speeding at over 60mph inside a steel cage, seen for the first time
live on stage in the UK. You can see it on Cirque Berserk will
perform at Southport Theatre from Monday, 9 March 2015 to Wednesday,
11 March 2014. For more information call:- 01704 500036 or visit the
Theatre's
website.
 |
