Last Friday I was lucky enough to be invited by the lovely J to the Sunset Boulevard understudy matinee and what a performance! Jessica Martin (Norma Desmond) as always gave her all and was in all the right places funny, needy, elegant and took the whole audience on an intense emotional journey and trip through Norma's muddled pchyce (sp?)
I've seen both Jessica and Kathryn Evans in the role and both are wonderful but for me Jessica takes the edge due to the wide range of emotion she envokes in her performance. Don't get me wrong, Kathryn is wonderful, has the part pretty much down to a tee and has an amazing voice, it's just for me her Norma is flatter. Jessica's voice has a raw quality that allows her to express herself emotionally through her vocals as well as with her eyes and bodylanguage. While Kathryn turns in a solid performance with a wonderful vocal I just find it harder to empathise with her. When Jessica's performing I find myself willing Joe to stay with Norma and support her instead of running off to be with Betty at every available opportunity. Her final scene leaves me in tears everytime due to the fragility she shows after she shoots Joe and how she appears to let go of the last shread of sanity she has having been betrayed and losing the one person she's allowed into her life (excluding Max!)
Right, enough of compari
ng the ladies- onto the rest of the cast! The entire show had an amazing atmosphere from the start. The ensemble as usual were excellent. They are always alert and following whatever happens on the stage and at times it is as entertaining to watch them as to folllow the actual story. Tomm Coles Ben was wondefully sung and gave a different softer approach to Joe at times making the audience more sympathetic towards his story. HIs chemestry with his costars is wonderful to watch. Sioned Saunders as Betty is excellent although she plays Betty with a slightly harder edge and gives the character more of a "fighting spirit" which is fantastic in her scenes with Joe. Tim Jackson's Artie is very endearing although I do think he's slightly too young for Demille but even so he still did a wonderful job. In spite of having very tough shoes to fill Craig Pinder did a fantastic job finding the right mixture of menace and compassion for Norma.
ng the ladies- onto the rest of the cast! The entire show had an amazing atmosphere from the start. The ensemble as usual were excellent. They are always alert and following whatever happens on the stage and at times it is as entertaining to watch them as to folllow the actual story. Tomm Coles Ben was wondefully sung and gave a different softer approach to Joe at times making the audience more sympathetic towards his story. HIs chemestry with his costars is wonderful to watch. Sioned Saunders as Betty is excellent although she plays Betty with a slightly harder edge and gives the character more of a "fighting spirit" which is fantastic in her scenes with Joe. Tim Jackson's Artie is very endearing although I do think he's slightly too young for Demille but even so he still did a wonderful job. In spite of having very tough shoes to fill Craig Pinder did a fantastic job finding the right mixture of menace and compassion for Norma. Overall the entire show was wonderful, personal highlights included:
- Surrender- always touching.
- The Lady's Paying- in my opinion the strongest part of Tim's performance
- Perfect Year- i just love this scene, seeing norma's giddy happiness at the prospect of her perfect year is a joy to watch and I enjoy the tango to!
- As If We Never Said Goodbye- not a lot I can say about this, well actually there's a lot! Firstly, this is my favourite song EVER! Jessica's delivery was perfect (except for a slight slip with the lyrics!) This song basically embodies Norma, from her fragility down to her abesolute belief that she's still loved.
- Eternal Youth is Worth A little Suffering- No matter how many times I see this show this number still appears fresh and entertaining. All the ensemble numbers are strong and energetic.
- The finale- Jessica's transformation from needy and desperate to finally snapping and giving into madness is both riveting and touching and makes me want to wrap her in cotton wool and take care of her.
So, I've finally reached the end of this epic! Hope you've enjoyed it. My advise to everyone... go see Sunset, It's not going to be here for long so make the most of it- regardless of the cast!
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