60-minute musicals

Festival of new musicals at the Norwich Theatre Playhouse

So, in the late afternoon and evening of 23^rd July, the three of us, Elaine, Eden and me, went to a venue we had never tried before.

Firstly, let me tell you about the place. We had booked it because there was a deal, we booked online for two shows ‘I wish you well’, at 6.30 and ‘Come Dine with Me’ at 8.30, at a really good price (£28 each for the two shows on one day). These were two of the three brand new musicals at previewing at the Playhouse before they head to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival for their debut! We booked the first night, and the shows run until 28^th July (at the time of writing there are still tickets available).

Each musical was about an hour long. The tickets were emailed with details of car parking, food and drink venues and other pertinent information.

The 300-seat auditorium was packed with a huge audience, the volunteers were everywhere directing us to the loos, the seating arrangements and any other facilities that travellers might find helpful.

We found both musicals really entertaining, with my favourite being the first, it had me smiling and laughing right from the start. Based on the (mostly) true story, as the theatre’s website says, ‘of the campest celebrity trial in history: Gwyneth vs Terry,’ and otherwise known as the Ski Trial.

I wish you well set

Choreographed by Dame Arlene Phillips and directed by Shiv Rabheru (resident director of Hamilton) with Diana Vickers starring as Gwyneth Paltrow, Tori Allen-Martin as Kristin (the lawyer), Marc Antolin as Terry, and Idriss Kargboas as Judge Jude the pace was fast and the performance tight with some great voices and original songs and dance that I can only describe as out of this world – the jump split and death drop from Idriss Kargboas had the audience cheering; lots of really up to date dialogue, some a bit raunchy, with references to modern political occurrences. Rated by me as 9 out of 10.

At the Edinburgh Fringe you can see I wish you well at Venue 300 Underbelly, George Square on Jul 31 Aug 1-11, 13-26.

Based on the popular TV show, Come Dine With Me, this musical written by Sam Norman and Aaron King was co-created by Nell Butler and Genevieve Welch TV producers who both directly worked on Come Dine With Me, so plenty of insider knowledge!

Audience interaction with from left: Teddy played by Harry Chandler Mary played by Daniele Coombe and Roy played by Tom Bowen

It was a little slower to get going, which was strange as the play started with some really interesting interaction with the audience. Once it got started it was funny, witty with great dialogue, songs, and set changes. The seven actors were very talented with some great solo performances and delightful ensemble singing. Four contestants plus the director, cameraman and sound man make up the cast and the connection between them makes the story believable.

The stand-out performances for me were Harry Chandler who played Teddy the cameraman, Sophie Hutchinson as Janey, and Kim Ismay as Barbara. My rating was a 7 out of 10 and really worth the time and money.

At the Edinburgh Fringe you can see Come Dine With Me at Venue 302 Underbelly, Bistro Square on Jul 31 Aug 1-12, 14-25.

In conclusion, the venue was about a 90 minute drive from North-West Norfolk.

Find out more at norwichtheatre.org/my-theatre. Car parking charge was about £5 and just a five-minute walk away. Separate bar, reasonably priced.