Musicals and Operas

[Voronwë the Faithful]

Congrats, Al and the whole company.

[Dave_LF]

I feel like I asked this last time, but who's doing the nominating? Congratulations regardless. When do you find out if you win?

[Alatar]

Its the Association of Irish Musical Societies. So, there's basically 140 affiliated societies, North and South, and of those 140, about 110 choose to be adjudicated. There's an A division and a B division, amusingly titled the Gilbert(Higher) and Sullivan(Lower) tier. There's an adjudicator employed for each tier, who travel round the country to see each of the shows and rate them in about 20 categories including Best Director, Best Choreographer, Best MD, Best Chorus etc. At the end of the season they shortlist to 3 nominees in each category, in each tier. There's an award weekend in June, which is like the Oscars in terms of presentation. There are some musical performances including the singing of the AIMS anthem by the best singer nominees, male and female from both tiers, and a guest society performance.

Over 1000 attendees sit down for a black tie Banquet and Awards ceremony followed by a hell of a party. Here's a few videos to give you a flavor.


Tribute to Brian Flynn 2014


Opening Ceremony 2018 - The Greatest Showman

[Frelga]

Very cool, Al. Congratulations!

[Dave_LF]

Anyone know where/how to buy/make a device that will emit non-toxic smoke for about 20 seconds without leaving a smell?

[Jude]

What about dry ice?

[Alatar]

How much smoke? Is it for a pyro effect or for a character to smoke?

[Dave_LF]

For a jetpack (single blastoff). Regular smoke bombs from a fireworks store give about the right amount, but the directors consider the smell unacceptable...

[Alatar]

I would think a stage Pyro would be ideal. We used indoor sparklers for the Fireworks scene in In the Heights. A couple of those on the Jetpack might work?

[Dave_LF]

Too late, I'm afraid. The director's put a kibosh on making any more changes to the show. So it'll be an SFX-only rocket ride.

[Frelga]

So. Um. Did you guys see the Cats trailer? :Q

[Jude]

No, but I read about it. It was in a Guardian article listing the worst animation horrors in recent film history.

[Frelga]

The animation is not the problem here! They walked into the Uncanny Valley and decided to build a subdivision there.

The CATS Trailer is Full of Cursed Energy and Nightmare Fuel

This cast is just wild—Ian McKellen, Idris Elba, Taylor Swift, Jason Derulo, Rebel Wilson, James Corden, and Judi Dench are all haunting cat versions of themselves, having sold their souls for Tom Hooper’s cruelest blow to the felis genus since Egyptians started burying cats with their dead rulers.

[Voronwë the Faithful]

I saw it. I wish I hadn't.

(I saw the show on Broadway on its original run when I was a teenager. I will hold on to that memory.)

[Alatar]

I saw it. Honestly don't see what the angst is about. Its ethereal and otherworldly, like the original.

[Frelga]

Works better with the sound from It trailer.

https://youtu.be/IFI4Oz5jiiY

[Alatar]

This should be required viewing for anyone interested in Musicals or the Theatre. Simply superb.

[Sunsilver]

So, Hamilton is coming to the theater in Toronto, and there's been a lot of people lining up for tickets. I don't usually go to live theater (hearing is difficult) but since it's a musical, I might see if I can find someone who would like to go with me.

I really got a chuckle out of this meme that popped up on FB. You have to know Ontario geography to get the joke though...

The city of Hamilton is quite close to Toronto and has a CFL team that is a rival of Toronto's Argonauts. Torontonians also like to make fun of Hamilton because it's a steel town and well...it SMELLS!

[Alatar]

Much and all as I love Hamilton Sunny, its rap and the lyrics are very hard to catch. I strongly recommend you get the soundtrack and read along with the lyrics at home before you go.

[Sunsilver]

Thanks, Alatar. I'm not a fan of rap, so I don't think I'll be going.

The last musical I saw live was Phantom of the Opera. That was well worth the price of admission!! The singer who played the lead was so awesome that he moved me to tears! Darned if I can remember who it was, though!

Edit: fortunately, the Mirvish Theater company has a detailed archive of past productions. It was John Cuida: https://www.johncudia.com/