If there is one perk I love most in my career, it is undoubtedly the opportunities I get to preview the West End’s next big productions.
New York’s sparkling Broadway meets historic theatres and an explosion of multinational talent in London’s West End. At the centre of the world, London is a creative hub where all of the best writers, directors, actors, singers and dancers unite to put on new and innovative shows as well as all-time favourites.
The Queen’s Theatre is always full to the brim with tourists (and diehard fans like me) eager to see the beautiful Les Misérables musical, sometimes for the second, third, or fourth time. London is the home of the tragic show about Revolutionary France, and the site of its hugely successful opening — 26 years ago.
Its popularity in London is comparable only to its biggest competitor, Andrew Lloyd Weber’s emotive production of The Phantom of the Opera in Her Majesty’s Theatre. Encapsulating music and magical sets render viewers in awe, and few leave the theatre without the emphatic music having made an impression on their hearts as well as their ears.
For Renaissance theatre, of course, Shakespeare’s plays and those of his contemporaries are best seen within the circular walls of The Globe. Its statement architecture is a neighbour to the dramatic Thames-side power station now known as the Tate Modern art gallery.
And although the theatre’s turbulent history means that the reproduction of the 16th century original is only 14 years old, the venue retains the historic class divisions and riotous commotion from the ‘plebeian’s pit’ that make theatre going a true spectacle.
Shakespearean roles are highly sought after as the classic stories attract big crowds on the merit of the tales alone. However, the widely acclaimed actor Jude Law’s performance in the 2009 London production of Hamlet did not hurt attendance figures. For TV actors premiering in theatre, and theatre actors yearning for recognition, Shakespeare’s home city is the place to be.
But if Renaissance does not fit an actor’s niche, there are plenty of other theatres in London in which performers are desperate to play a part. Modern renditions of 19th century plays, powerful political commentary, thrilling songs, dynamic dance and contemporary plots all feature on the numerous London stages, and there is something for every performer and every audience.
Even Broadway originals receive just as much attention in London as they do in the iconic New York City. In fact, the fabulous Big Apple musical Chicago will be reopening in London next month with an American television star who is leaving the U.S.A.’s theatre capital to make her stage debut in the West End.
America Ferrera, best known for her lead role in the popular American sitcom Ugly Betty, will ironically be flaunting fishnet tights and sky-high stilettos in the sexy, burlesque production this side of the Atlantic. The buzz around the show is already wild, and securing seats to the opening on Nov. 7 is next to impossible.
Ferrera is one of many following the footsteps of other major Hollywood actors and actresses to star in West End shows this year.
I have had the fortune of reviewing Keira Knighley’s performance in the West End revival of the controversial 1934 Broadway production of The Children’s Hour.
I have also enjoyed a night out in the glamorous Haymarket Theatre and observed Sienna Miller’s performance in Flare Path, a heartwarming Terence Rattigan play about Second World War romances.
Most recently, I was inspired and invigorated by Havana Rakatan, a spectacular dance recital by a cast of dancers and musicians straight out of Cuba.
I never know what I will be sent to next, but I always look forward to my theatre assignments. Even a disappointing show, by the standards with which I have to report, is at worst an evening spent in a grand hall, in the company of some of the world’s most talented individuals, and taking in sets, costumes, music and theatrical arrangements challenged by few cities around the world.
So if a visit to London is in your near future, ensure that you are well informed of the West End features at the time. Whatever your pick of the crop, a London production is always a dazzling one.
Brit Kennedy grew up in Red Deer and graduated from Lindsay Thurber Comprehensive High School. She attended university in Scotland and is now living and working in London, England.