Monday night - Sunderland Empire
 |
| At the Theatre |
I think one of the best things about living
in the North East is that despite being far from the capital of musicals in
England (i.e. London), there are still opportunities to watch top-class
performances in one of the local theatres. On this occasion (Monday 14th
July at 7:30pm to be more precise), we (i.e. myself and my significant other)
decided to go for the comedy/ musical, Avenue
Q, at majestic and extravagant, Sunderland
Empire Theatre.
Normally, I opt for shows that are more,
shall we say, glitzy and more dazzling in terms of special effects. I also
wasn’t sure if I was super keen on the puppet and human mix that made up that
characters of the show. Plus I have a thing for songs that evoke Disney and
other musical numbers that are slightly more geared for a younger audience. So
in truth, I was a bit sceptical about the play at first.
What can I say? I’m still (and ALWAYS will
be) a child at heart.
Despite my scepticism, I decided to give
the show a go because I hadn’t seen it before (plus my significant other said
he’d drive me home and buy me dinner << now who can resist that?).
And honestly, I couldn’t have made a better
decision.
I don’t think there was a single moment
during the performance that I wasn’t blown away by some aspect of it. I know
that most theatre reviews commonly start with summarizing the main plot of the
play. But I for one would like to begin by giving praise to the actors
themselves. There weren’t many of them, so I thought that their ability to
portray so many different characters, both human and puppet, and in so many
different voices was truly incredible. The story itself was also admirable –
with the theme of adulthood thoroughly reiterated throughout the play, Avenue Q
provided the audience with a performance that addressed the many issues and
troubles faced by individuals entering this period. A highly realistic show, it
was simultaneously tied together by a stream of jokes and sarcasm, overall
indicating that despite the hardship, there’s still hope and time for laughter
at any stage in life.
Oh and did I mention that we got upgraded
to better seats? Totally worth it.
Sensational and memorable – if Avenue Q is
ever on tour in your town, be sure to watch it.
