Hi Kinloch. Many thanks for sharing your experience of seeing Sarah a second time. I’m a big fan of hers so it’s great to hear you enjoyed her performance and felt she was playing to her strengths. I wish teleportation existed so I could see the show but no such luck. All the best. 😉
I saw Sarah for the first performance and I thought she was very good, I applauded and stood up at the end. But since then I have seen Silvie Paladino's performance and Silvie really was Norma for me, her voice and acting was amazing. And I saw her again this past Wednesday (for her final show) and ended up getting a photo with her. I am glad I got the chance to see Sarah as I love the fragility she brought to Norma and that underlying sadness was conveyed really well. I really rooted for her to succeed, and could see why Joe was drawn to her, my heart really broke for Norma in the scene where Joe came home from New Years Eve and she's just cut her wrists. I see there is always talk about Norma, but I really have to give credit to Tim Draxl and Ashleigh Rubenach who were both stellar in their roles and their chemistry being so good together.
Just seen this production so I can now fully comment. I agree with pretty much everything you've said, but overall I would say Sarah Brightman is struggling in a role for which she is patently unfit. As someone who does musical theatre I noticed two areas where she let herself down. Firstly her diction and technique were so operatic that it was impossible to hear what she was singing most of the time, a serious flaw in this genre where the music and lyrics move the story on. Secondly, she performed the songs well, but failed to stay in character and appeared more like she was on the concert stage than in a musical. Consequently her numbers became distracting interludes to the action. Surprisingly, I found her acting outside of these moments to be pretty good, and overall it was a fantastic production, but I'm afraid that Sarah was a poor choice for this part, and that the producers were more concerned about getting a name, than someone who actually has the chops to do it.
I love Sarah, just not in this role. I went to the first previews so I could see her. I have no doubt Sylvie was awesome, my family loved her when they saw her. The production itself was opulent, the orchestra was fantastic. The other cast were solid. Tim Draxl was great. I loved seeing Robert Grubb. I'm sure she would improve as time went on. I'm glad things improved. x
I haven’t seen the show but I know that Norma was written for a dark belting voice. Sarah is an opera singer and a fantastic one. But her voice isn’t right for this role. Why not have a local Australian actor doing it. So unnecessary to get an overseas opera singer.
Yeah, it was a gamble but an educated one. She had done several shows in a row and I guessed that she would be motivated to power through now that the Melbourne season is nearly over. It’s the best way to prepare for opening in Sydney.
I watched 2 Sarahs and Silvia’s performances and was impressed by Silvies much stronger, her voice, emotions, presentation was Awesome. Sarah was great too, but voice is aging as well unfortunately. Sunset Boulevard was a grandiose event in this year. Tim was just superb as well.
Cool - you were at the same performance I was at on Saturday night! (I flew over from Auckland to see it... am also seeing Sylvie on the final Wed matinee). Sarah's performance was not the disaster described by reviewers. And yes, she can sing, but I think her complete lack of chest voice was a real handicap. Ultimately, there were much, much better casting choices available; while Sarah was competent in both singing and acting, she excelled in neither (as they applied to this particular role). However, the audience seemed very supportive and her curtain call ovation was enthusiastic. It's interesting that Sunset's original Melbourne run in 1997 was also plagued by issues with the leading lady (though rather different circumstances)... not to mention the show's long sordid legacy of casting issues historically. I enjoyed hearing your thoughts.
@@kinmanthebrave I thought that vocally, she knocked it out of the park. Superb performance. Not the most vivid Norma in the world (though, I'm inclined to think that both Sylvie and Sarah are hampered by the direction of this production)... but she certainly elicited a few tears from me, in the right places! She was a convincing character. The audience were rapturous at curtain call, with a full standing ovation for her. I noticed Maria Mercedes in today's audience too (who was the alternate Norma in the 1996 Melbourne production). I would love to know what she thought!
@@foreignparticle1320 I was there too on Wednesday and thought she was excellent, I even got a picture with Silvie at the end. Maria Mercedes gave her flowers and I'm pretty sure I overhead that she had seen Silvie perform before and loved it. It was a couple of days later when I saw her on Facebook, and I read she played the alternate Norma in 96.
Now that the show is moving to the Sydney Opera house, I wonder if changes will be coming to the cast? I'm partial to the Glenn Close soundtrack, and even saw Diahann Carrol in the role in Toronto. I've seen Sarah Brightman in every tour she's done, but this role is not for her.
Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE Sarah but I just don’t see her as Norma Desmond. I LOVE Patti LuPone. But she was not Norma either. In a word miscasted. Besides Glen Close, the only one who I think could pull it off and own the role is Emma Stone. Both have played Cruella, and Cruella is only a short hop to playing Norma. Oops I forgot Betty Buckley❤
I saw the same show on Saturday, and was pleasantly surprised with how favorably it compared to the best SB clips I've seen on youtube. Based on the quality of the show and the crowd reception, you wouldn't think that this was a troubled production. I thought Sarah performed well, and even if it didn't compare to Close or Buckley I didn't think she dragged down a stellar cast and production values. Although I do have a few notes. She shot the gun waaaay too high in the finale, hence it wasn't at all believable that she could have killed Joe. And her kooky entrance when the police arrived elicited laughs, which isn't at all the right reaction for a pivotal scene.
The shooting has been a rushed, uncomfortable moment every time I’ve seen it. And it is hard to reconcile the staging with the projections at the start. We are shown the body falling into the pool, but when she shoots he is nowhere near the pool. And there is no splash sound effect. Odd, huh? I wasn’t bothered by the laughter but you are right that it is not the desired effect at that moment. They recovered quickly, which is admirable.
That's not good for her. I was lucky to go see a one night production of sunset boulevard at the royal Albert hall London. If you go on RUclips and watch. Sunset boulevard at the royal Albert hall London that was a fantastic production. I was sorry you didn't enjoy Sarah brightman in Somerset boulevard.
Hi Kinloch. Many thanks for sharing your experience of seeing Sarah a second time. I’m a big fan of hers so it’s great to hear you enjoyed her performance and felt she was playing to her strengths. I wish teleportation existed so I could see the show but no such luck. All the best. 😉
I saw Sarah for the first performance and I thought she was very good, I applauded and stood up at the end. But since then I have seen Silvie Paladino's performance and Silvie really was Norma for me, her voice and acting was amazing. And I saw her again this past Wednesday (for her final show) and ended up getting a photo with her. I am glad I got the chance to see Sarah as I love the fragility she brought to Norma and that underlying sadness was conveyed really well. I really rooted for her to succeed, and could see why Joe was drawn to her, my heart really broke for Norma in the scene where Joe came home from New Years Eve and she's just cut her wrists. I see there is always talk about Norma, but I really have to give credit to Tim Draxl and Ashleigh Rubenach who were both stellar in their roles and their chemistry being so good together.
Thanks great review I’ll be booking the Sydney opera house show then! 🎉
Just seen this production so I can now fully comment. I agree with pretty much everything you've said, but overall I would say Sarah Brightman is struggling in a role for which she is patently unfit. As someone who does musical theatre I noticed two areas where she let herself down. Firstly her diction and technique were so operatic that it was impossible to hear what she was singing most of the time, a serious flaw in this genre where the music and lyrics move the story on. Secondly, she performed the songs well, but failed to stay in character and appeared more like she was on the concert stage than in a musical. Consequently her numbers became distracting interludes to the action.
Surprisingly, I found her acting outside of these moments to be pretty good, and overall it was a fantastic production, but I'm afraid that Sarah was a poor choice for this part, and that the producers were more concerned about getting a name, than someone who actually has the chops to do it.
I love Sarah, just not in this role.
I went to the first previews so I could see her. I have no doubt Sylvie was awesome, my family loved her when they saw her.
The production itself was opulent, the orchestra was fantastic. The other cast were solid. Tim Draxl was great.
I loved seeing Robert Grubb.
I'm sure she would improve as time went on. I'm glad things improved. x
I haven’t seen the show but I know that Norma was written for a dark belting voice. Sarah is an opera singer and a fantastic one. But her voice isn’t right for this role. Why not have a local Australian actor doing it. So unnecessary to get an overseas opera singer.
👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻
How did you find out who was performing before giving it another chance? I was supposed to see Sarah but they swapped her out with Sylvia twice.
Yeah, it was a gamble but an educated one. She had done several shows in a row and I guessed that she would be motivated to power through now that the Melbourne season is nearly over. It’s the best way to prepare for opening in Sydney.
I watched 2 Sarahs and Silvia’s performances and was impressed by Silvies much stronger, her voice, emotions, presentation was Awesome. Sarah was great too, but voice is aging as well unfortunately. Sunset Boulevard was a grandiose event in this year. Tim was just superb as well.
Cool - you were at the same performance I was at on Saturday night! (I flew over from Auckland to see it... am also seeing Sylvie on the final Wed matinee). Sarah's performance was not the disaster described by reviewers. And yes, she can sing, but I think her complete lack of chest voice was a real handicap. Ultimately, there were much, much better casting choices available; while Sarah was competent in both singing and acting, she excelled in neither (as they applied to this particular role).
However, the audience seemed very supportive and her curtain call ovation was enthusiastic.
It's interesting that Sunset's original Melbourne run in 1997 was also plagued by issues with the leading lady (though rather different circumstances)... not to mention the show's long sordid legacy of casting issues historically.
I enjoyed hearing your thoughts.
What did you think of Sylvie today?
@@kinmanthebrave I thought that vocally, she knocked it out of the park. Superb performance. Not the most vivid Norma in the world (though, I'm inclined to think that both Sylvie and Sarah are hampered by the direction of this production)... but she certainly elicited a few tears from me, in the right places! She was a convincing character. The audience were rapturous at curtain call, with a full standing ovation for her. I noticed Maria Mercedes in today's audience too (who was the alternate Norma in the 1996 Melbourne production). I would love to know what she thought!
@@foreignparticle1320 I was there too on Wednesday and thought she was excellent, I even got a picture with Silvie at the end. Maria Mercedes gave her flowers and I'm pretty sure I overhead that she had seen Silvie perform before and loved it. It was a couple of days later when I saw her on Facebook, and I read she played the alternate Norma in 96.
@@lachlanw8127 Nice! Glad you got to engage with Sylvie - she seems like a very pleasant person.
Now that the show is moving to the Sydney Opera house, I wonder if changes will be coming to the cast? I'm partial to the Glenn Close soundtrack, and even saw Diahann Carrol in the role in Toronto. I've seen Sarah Brightman in every tour she's done, but this role is not for her.
Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE Sarah but I just don’t see her as Norma Desmond. I LOVE Patti LuPone. But she was not Norma either. In a word miscasted. Besides Glen Close, the only one who I think could pull it off and own the role is Emma Stone. Both have played Cruella, and Cruella is only a short hop to playing Norma. Oops I forgot Betty Buckley❤
I saw the same show on Saturday, and was pleasantly surprised with how favorably it compared to the best SB clips I've seen on youtube. Based on the quality of the show and the crowd reception, you wouldn't think that this was a troubled production. I thought Sarah performed well, and even if it didn't compare to Close or Buckley I didn't think she dragged down a stellar cast and production values. Although I do have a few notes. She shot the gun waaaay too high in the finale, hence it wasn't at all believable that she could have killed Joe. And her kooky entrance when the police arrived elicited laughs, which isn't at all the right reaction for a pivotal scene.
The shooting has been a rushed, uncomfortable moment every time I’ve seen it. And it is hard to reconcile the staging with the projections at the start. We are shown the body falling into the pool, but when she shoots he is nowhere near the pool. And there is no splash sound effect. Odd, huh?
I wasn’t bothered by the laughter but you are right that it is not the desired effect at that moment. They recovered quickly, which is admirable.
Hi. I love your gigantic hands. Nice review.
Sarah is best, but Norma isn't same good as Sarah...
That's not good for her. I was lucky to go see a one night production of sunset boulevard at the royal Albert hall London. If you go on RUclips and watch. Sunset boulevard at the royal Albert hall London that was a fantastic production. I was sorry you didn't enjoy Sarah brightman in Somerset boulevard.