Oh What A Beautiful Prom-Morning
This one is a little bit behind with this one, but since it is the Last Night of the Proms on Saturday, I cannot put it off any longer - and IT happens to be Oklahoma at the BBC Proms, conducted by the John Wilson Orchestra. This is not my first time talking about the show, as I did catch the 2015 touring production; and funnily enough, both were directed by Rachel Kavenaugh, plus Belinda Lang returned as Aunt Eller. Other than that, it was a completely different team, but the cast was hand-picked, and the interesting thing comes down to how they did the score.
Typical of John Wilson, it was the complete (as in entire/in full) score, and it sounds so rich and fantastic, as you would expect from this very special orchestra - the only downside, is that sometimes, score is cut for good reason, and so it makes the show (particularly the first half), really long - 2:51 in total; so make sure you have PLENTY of time to spare if you're thinking of watching it.
This is the 3rd semi-staged production he's done, following My Fair Lady in 2012 (which I haven't managed to find/catch anywhere), and Kiss Me Kate in 2014.
As our leading players Nathaniel Hackmann and Scarlett Strallen had amazing chemistry together as Curly and Laurey respectively. He's charming, arrogant and has a gorgeous and smooth baritone voice (and I would like to see more of him in the years to come). She was an interesting choice, and I still overall prefer Charlotte Wakefield's performance from the tour, especially vocally; but she played the scenes when she was arguing with either Curly or Jud very well.
Speaking of Jud, he was played by David Seadon-Young (currently in An American in Paris), and you in a strange way very nearly got behind him.... until you were reminded he essentially kept porn in his smokehouse... But having said that, Seadon-Young gave the character a lot of vulnerability and sadness, rather than play up the threat (which is what Nic Greenshields did more in the touring production), which gave him an advantage, as he doesn't look a lot like a dangerous person - just a lonely one. I would also like to mention the awkward tension during Jud Fry is Daid between Fry and Curly - bringing in some much needed comedy in an otherwise tense situation.
He was not the only An American in Paris star in the production. His former co-star Robert Fairchild played Will Parker, and showed some very impressive dance moves. (Ironically enough, Fairchild's replacement Ashley Day was the Curly on the tour).
My final note on the cast has to be the surprise of Marcus Brigstocke as Ali Hakim the peddler who tries wriggle out of marrying Ado Annie (Lizzy Connoly). The best singer, he is definitely not (even though Hakim doesn't have much anyway), but his portrayal was absolutely hilarious.
The prom goes off the iplayer this Sunday (10th September), so if you're planning on catching it before it disappears, make sure you do it this weekend!
Click the link to watch it here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b090ftl8/bbc-proms-2017-oklahoma
Typical of John Wilson, it was the complete (as in entire/in full) score, and it sounds so rich and fantastic, as you would expect from this very special orchestra - the only downside, is that sometimes, score is cut for good reason, and so it makes the show (particularly the first half), really long - 2:51 in total; so make sure you have PLENTY of time to spare if you're thinking of watching it.
This is the 3rd semi-staged production he's done, following My Fair Lady in 2012 (which I haven't managed to find/catch anywhere), and Kiss Me Kate in 2014.
As our leading players Nathaniel Hackmann and Scarlett Strallen had amazing chemistry together as Curly and Laurey respectively. He's charming, arrogant and has a gorgeous and smooth baritone voice (and I would like to see more of him in the years to come). She was an interesting choice, and I still overall prefer Charlotte Wakefield's performance from the tour, especially vocally; but she played the scenes when she was arguing with either Curly or Jud very well.
Speaking of Jud, he was played by David Seadon-Young (currently in An American in Paris), and you in a strange way very nearly got behind him.... until you were reminded he essentially kept porn in his smokehouse... But having said that, Seadon-Young gave the character a lot of vulnerability and sadness, rather than play up the threat (which is what Nic Greenshields did more in the touring production), which gave him an advantage, as he doesn't look a lot like a dangerous person - just a lonely one. I would also like to mention the awkward tension during Jud Fry is Daid between Fry and Curly - bringing in some much needed comedy in an otherwise tense situation.
He was not the only An American in Paris star in the production. His former co-star Robert Fairchild played Will Parker, and showed some very impressive dance moves. (Ironically enough, Fairchild's replacement Ashley Day was the Curly on the tour).
My final note on the cast has to be the surprise of Marcus Brigstocke as Ali Hakim the peddler who tries wriggle out of marrying Ado Annie (Lizzy Connoly). The best singer, he is definitely not (even though Hakim doesn't have much anyway), but his portrayal was absolutely hilarious.
The prom goes off the iplayer this Sunday (10th September), so if you're planning on catching it before it disappears, make sure you do it this weekend!
Click the link to watch it here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b090ftl8/bbc-proms-2017-oklahoma
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