I’m starting to think being publicly disrespected by Andrew Lloyd Webber was the best thing that could have ever happened to Carrie Hope Fletcher. The public support she has right now is truly catapulting her career forward. I wouldn’t be surprised if she has her own BBC series within a year or two.
That's very optimistic. She is going things now that ppl do at the start of their career. She has been on shows years now and her work is very limited. A lot of repetitive shows. She is 30 now
I love the fact you took the time to explain the plot and introduced what it means for something to be Brechtian. Your reviews are always so thoughtful and go above and beyond!
I saw it last week and was completely blown away by Carrie. Her acting is brilliant and while all the cast were good, her singing voice is just outstanding.
As someone who works in the industry, I find this style of production the most fascinating. The possibility to rule break the show and explore new ideas are endless.
I had to do a scenic design for this show senior year of high school. I set it in a broken down theatre, old “wings” are exposed, the back wall has fallen down (potentially after an attack on the the theatre). The show is kinda weird, and not my favorite play but was a lot of fun to design. I leaned on the idea of a theatre troupe on rough times using this broken down space so I imagined the ensemble moving broken down scenic pieces around. Weather it’s moving left over boxes/crates around. Or just finding boards around to create visuals that were needed. I wish my set model had survived my mom’s move, cause I thought it was beautiful. If I’d been earlier to the culture of taking photos of everything I’d have taken photos of it. And maybe I did but it’s been lost to new phone transfers.
'i'm not saying the name, i'm not doing it' cinder*lla is the new beetlejuice, confirmed!! but instead of beetlejuice turning up, MickeyJo ends up having to do another goddamn cinderella video lmao. also as a german I've had to read A LOT of Brecht back in my schooldays so I'm...eh about him. Loved seeing and reading some plays, disliked some others. (never got around to the caucasian chalk circle) though i'm biased towards some plays more than others, as my dad is an actor and has done several Brecht plays lol but I do in general very much appreciate the...Brechtness of it all ngl.
I'm quite gutted I won't get to see it because I love Carrie and I'd love to see a production of the play. I studied it for half a year during my a levels and I couldn't tell you a thing about the story. I don't think I could back then either. Either way I basically decided Brecht wasn't for me and I've never revisited that opinion. Edit: ah the court case! That explains why I remember playing the lion's court that time 😂
I've only seen one Brecht play (The Life of Galileo about 9 years ago, with Ian McDiarmid in the title role) and definitely noticed all the hallmarks of Brechtian theatre you pointed out - it's heartbreaking, naturally, because of the story it's telling, but it also never loses that note of irony. Brecht is certainly an acquired taste, but I've also noticed (at least in my experience) that it often tends to read better than other theatre, perhaps because of that tightrope you have to walk between irony and earnestness. Very much enjoyed your review - this sounds like a really enjoyable show, and as one of those fans who aged with Carrie (though her writing isn't so much my jam) I do really wish I could see this.
One really interesting piece of Brechtian theatre I saw was a production of Woyzcek at my university in 2014 where the actors constantly had significant distance between them.
One of my favourite musicals is "the clockmaker's daughter" which has stunning vocal performances by Fra fee, Christine Allado and Ramin Karimloo. Would be fantastic if you maybe reacted to the cast recording!
I thoroughly enjoyed the play but didn't know much about Brecht and his approach to theatre. It's funny, however, how easy it is to understand and visualise his style when experiencing this production (even before the show actually starts, with the cast coming on stage minutes earlier and interacting with each other off character), despite not having much context about his work (which probably means they did a great job translating Brecht). Thanks for such an insightful review!
I've been thinking about this production ever since we saw it on opening night last week and you just put such accurate words to my experience of it. I agree that act 2 was significantly better (even though Carrie's performance stood out and was excellent, and the majority of it was indeed in act 1) because of the imbalance in tone. It felt a little confused about the tone and message it wanted to relay to the audience to me and I entirely agree with your review and score. I also thought the outside story was underutilized and could have helped nail the messaging in the end if they'd come a full circle with it, which felt like going 90% of the way there but not quite. Thank you for this super interesting watch!
Random comment but I was intrigued by the extent of the difference that the change in the microphone made, I'd never really understood why people spend good money on these things before but now I get it! Also doubly random comment but your skin is gloooowing, how on earth do you manage that when you have all these late theatre nights?? All of which to say I really appreciate your content, it's fascinating to hear a more detailed perspective on all these shows and it was interesting to learn about Brecht - not sure it'd be my kind of theatre but always good to learn new things! Cheers :)
I think a lot of the contradictions - in costume, in the style of portraying characters, in setting the interval - feel very Brechtian to me, a German who relatively recently graduated school with her a-levels in the bag. We had to read quite some Brecht, including Galileo Galilei, as well as watched a great movie adaptation of the Threepenny Opera, and everything about that just mirrors what you‘ve said about this version of the play. I think that all of Brecht‘s plays are incredibly difficult to judge because of their forced objectivity. This does not say that your review was bad (it was great!), however I think that even the bad things would have been right up Brecht‘s alley.
Ok. I finished. Something I really love about your reviews is how smart and thoughtful you are. I live in the US, and I'm not able to leave my house much, but I feel like I can enjoy theater vicariously through your videos. 💕
Saw this on Saturday and thought it was amazing. Booked partly to see Carrie and partly because I was curious about the play in general and the idea of adding music to a play as formidable as thus one. Had seen other productions of The Caucasian Chalk Circle before but never fully got the plot or characters. This time around I felt very immersed and felt everything was so super clear, the staging was really interesting and I actually thought the songs added an extra level of interest to the play (it was the one thing I was slightly nervous about as sometimes adding music to a play doesn't work very well). Was overall very impressed and would go back to see it again if I had the money
Definitely agree with what you said about the interval placement. I was in the youth production of CCC that the rose did about ten years ago and we put the interval after she crossed the glacier. It was a much more even split between first and second act timings
I waited to watch your review until I saw it today. Thanks for sharing your thoughts as ever. I really enjoyed the production. And I agreed with your thoughts overall. I think the pacing was a little off. Felt like one beat for the whole first act in particular. I thought Carrie did a wonderful job, almost too good a job. She drew us so into the emotional journey and was more likeable that I've ever seen Grusha. For me is what created the friction of styles in the first act. But I enjoyed it and me and my partner discussed it for a good two hours non stop after which I think proves your point that it's worth seeing.
Thank you for doing this review. As I am not in the UK I can't go to see this production. I wonder if the first act was more serious because of the direction choices or because of how Brecht has written it ( in contrast to act two)
I went to see it on Wednesday and I decided to class it as an educational trip since we’ve studied Brecht a couple of times at uni, not just because I’m obsessed with Carrie😂
As someone with a Masters in English Lit I admit I LOL at hearing about this casting from your recent vlog so this is going to be a fascinating watch..
Unrelated to this, but have you got any intention to review “Are You As Nervous As I Am” - it is a new British musical. I am going tomorrow! Heard it is good - missed the “Ride Run”, love off-west end shows too
So interesting to hear this review - the first half felt too long and it did on occasions feel a bit pantomime in places but I thought the singing/music was really interesting & I thought the story was building. The fact the second half started with what felt like a completely different story/main character felt jarring- perhaps that was the point but I found Jonathan’s performance a bit OTT as well & lots of different characters coming and going & I did not get who they were/their relevance to first act. For me, the first half meandered too much but the second half felt rushed and less polished. I also thought Zoe West’s performance was note worthy but hey life would be boring if we all thought the same!
I like Brecht (or Brechtian style) in theory, but I don't think I've ever seen it performed well. I saw a student production of this show once as a teenager and I still cringe when I hear the title.
Brecht is bonkers but excellent. I studied him for A Level, remember seeing a version of Fear and Misery of the Third Reich during college adit always stuck with me I seem to remember learning Hitler applied for a set design job with him at one point
I love the fact that you broke down the Brechtian theory of drama so extraordinarily well. First of all I had not heard of it which is embarrassing as I was a theater student under a a Tony Emmy and Oscar nominee/winner, Kim Stanley who herself was a multi nominee/winner of all three. She was an original students of the actor‘s Playhouse and favorite of Strasbourg himself. Trust me when I say that whenever Auntie Kim was in the room, theatre was the only thing discussed. I love your content it is exceptional and you broke this method down like a professional professor. Love your content! And your ongoing (as I am sure it is not over) saga of BC is hilarious but spot on. ALW SHOULD look at your posts!!!
I forgot to add, KS was my aunt. She actually did some West End. She was not my university teacher, that was someone no quite as famous but perhaps I slept that week in class…but KS and her methods were a large part of my training. She was before our time, original Bus Stop, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Thee Sisters, etc.
Thank you for an extensive review of the Caucasian Chalk Circle. May I ask if the plot of this play also took inspiration from the Bible's The wise King Solomon judgement on the true mother of a child. I appreciate your explanations and specially on discussing the suitable audience for this play.
Hi MickeyJo, love the content. Just wondering about Horse-Play which you said in one of your videos that you were going to see but I can't remember seeing you review it? Also, uh, you said in a video a while back that we were to remind you to go and see something that you keep meaning to see but never have...this is the reminder, I just don't actually remember what it was, sorry!
Azdak is the dictatorship of the proletariat personified. I played Azdak back in the 70’s. CCC is rarely done these days especially here in the USA. The play is so unapologetically Communist. That shift in tone between the acts is quite an ego trip for the actor playing Azdak. The play picks up, the audience wakes up and you get all the credit.
Agreed, but slightly different as he is appearing at nine of the most prestigious theatres across the UK and Ireland! Canterbury? 😂 Also he's not playing second fiddle to a Strictly finalist...
Love how they got drama students to see her, even though she didn’t get into Sylvia Young or had any formal drama training. That’s a joke. She’s the James Corden of the West End. I’d respect your opinions more if you actually gave a proper review instead of constantly being Carrie’s “yes man”.
You don’t have to go to drama school to be a good actor. She’s a fantastic actress and deserves all of the roles that she gets. I couldn’t say the same about James Corden however. She is talented enough to get these roles and I think your comment is a little unfair personally
Please can you look at the camera lens and not at yourself in the view finder, it would make for a better viewer experience rather than you looking disinterested. Cheers.
Thank you for an extensive review of the Caucasian Chalk Circle. May I ask if the plot of this play also took inspiration from the Bible's The wise King Solomon judgement on the true mother of a child. I appreciate your explanations and specially on discussing the suitable audience for this play.
I’m starting to think being publicly disrespected by Andrew Lloyd Webber was the best thing that could have ever happened to Carrie Hope Fletcher. The public support she has right now is truly catapulting her career forward. I wouldn’t be surprised if she has her own BBC series within a year or two.
That's very optimistic. She is going things now that ppl do at the start of their career. She has been on shows years now and her work is very limited. A lot of repetitive shows. She is 30 now
I love the fact you took the time to explain the plot and introduced what it means for something to be Brechtian. Your reviews are always so thoughtful and go above and beyond!
Thank you! I worried I'd waffled on with too much context in this one but I thought it was important!
@@MickeyJoTheatre Not all all mate!!
I saw it last week and was completely blown away by Carrie. Her acting is brilliant and while all the cast were good, her singing voice is just outstanding.
The Brechtian nature of Six The Musical: Live In Concert. Now that would be a PhD thesis and a half!
Totally unrelated to the content of this video but I am very much enjoying the growing number of musical theatre related cuddly toys! ❤️
Talk about rambling!!
I enjoy them too sometimes I try and guess which musical the cuddly toys are from .
As someone who works in the industry, I find this style of production the most fascinating. The possibility to rule break the show and explore new ideas are endless.
i'm playing simon in our gcse production of caucy chalky (as the play has been dubbed by our class) so i'm very excited to see this on thursday !!
The theatre class I was in called it *Caucasian Asian* for reason which still leave uncertain.
I had to do a scenic design for this show senior year of high school. I set it in a broken down theatre, old “wings” are exposed, the back wall has fallen down (potentially after an attack on the the theatre). The show is kinda weird, and not my favorite play but was a lot of fun to design. I leaned on the idea of a theatre troupe on rough times using this broken down space so I imagined the ensemble moving broken down scenic pieces around. Weather it’s moving left over boxes/crates around. Or just finding boards around to create visuals that were needed. I wish my set model had survived my mom’s move, cause I thought it was beautiful. If I’d been earlier to the culture of taking photos of everything I’d have taken photos of it. And maybe I did but it’s been lost to new phone transfers.
'i'm not saying the name, i'm not doing it' cinder*lla is the new beetlejuice, confirmed!! but instead of beetlejuice turning up, MickeyJo ends up having to do another goddamn cinderella video lmao.
also as a german I've had to read A LOT of Brecht back in my schooldays so I'm...eh about him. Loved seeing and reading some plays, disliked some others. (never got around to the caucasian chalk circle) though i'm biased towards some plays more than others, as my dad is an actor and has done several Brecht plays lol but I do in general very much appreciate the...Brechtness of it all ngl.
Same, and also Brecht was a lot more interesting than Nathan der Weise imo.
I'm quite gutted I won't get to see it because I love Carrie and I'd love to see a production of the play. I studied it for half a year during my a levels and I couldn't tell you a thing about the story. I don't think I could back then either. Either way I basically decided Brecht wasn't for me and I've never revisited that opinion.
Edit: ah the court case! That explains why I remember playing the lion's court that time 😂
I've only seen one Brecht play (The Life of Galileo about 9 years ago, with Ian McDiarmid in the title role) and definitely noticed all the hallmarks of Brechtian theatre you pointed out - it's heartbreaking, naturally, because of the story it's telling, but it also never loses that note of irony. Brecht is certainly an acquired taste, but I've also noticed (at least in my experience) that it often tends to read better than other theatre, perhaps because of that tightrope you have to walk between irony and earnestness.
Very much enjoyed your review - this sounds like a really enjoyable show, and as one of those fans who aged with Carrie (though her writing isn't so much my jam) I do really wish I could see this.
One really interesting piece of Brechtian theatre I saw was a production of Woyzcek at my university in 2014 where the actors constantly had significant distance between them.
One of my favourite musicals is "the clockmaker's daughter" which has stunning vocal performances by Fra fee, Christine Allado and Ramin Karimloo. Would be fantastic if you maybe reacted to the cast recording!
+1
Yes! I've had story of my own on repeat for months.
Would love to see you review The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe! It looks like a cool piece of theatre
I thoroughly enjoyed the play but didn't know much about Brecht and his approach to theatre. It's funny, however, how easy it is to understand and visualise his style when experiencing this production (even before the show actually starts, with the cast coming on stage minutes earlier and interacting with each other off character), despite not having much context about his work (which probably means they did a great job translating Brecht). Thanks for such an insightful review!
I've been thinking about this production ever since we saw it on opening night last week and you just put such accurate words to my experience of it. I agree that act 2 was significantly better (even though Carrie's performance stood out and was excellent, and the majority of it was indeed in act 1) because of the imbalance in tone. It felt a little confused about the tone and message it wanted to relay to the audience to me and I entirely agree with your review and score. I also thought the outside story was underutilized and could have helped nail the messaging in the end if they'd come a full circle with it, which felt like going 90% of the way there but not quite. Thank you for this super interesting watch!
I'm seeing it on Saturday as I am a chf fan but also doing drama GCSE and studying Brecht closely so double whammy!
Ah, love that for you! Hope you enjoy!
@@MickeyJoTheatre thank you!!
Random comment but I was intrigued by the extent of the difference that the change in the microphone made, I'd never really understood why people spend good money on these things before but now I get it!
Also doubly random comment but your skin is gloooowing, how on earth do you manage that when you have all these late theatre nights??
All of which to say I really appreciate your content, it's fascinating to hear a more detailed perspective on all these shows and it was interesting to learn about Brecht - not sure it'd be my kind of theatre but always good to learn new things! Cheers :)
Side note: I think this is a great look for you today. Also, love the colour of your jumper
I think a lot of the contradictions - in costume, in the style of portraying characters, in setting the interval - feel very Brechtian to me, a German who relatively recently graduated school with her a-levels in the bag.
We had to read quite some Brecht, including Galileo Galilei, as well as watched a great movie adaptation of the Threepenny Opera, and everything about that just mirrors what you‘ve said about this version of the play.
I think that all of Brecht‘s plays are incredibly difficult to judge because of their forced objectivity. This does not say that your review was bad (it was great!), however I think that even the bad things would have been right up Brecht‘s alley.
Haven't watched yet...but I've been waiting for this. 💕
Ok. I finished. Something I really love about your reviews is how smart and thoughtful you are. I live in the US, and I'm not able to leave my house much, but I feel like I can enjoy theater vicariously through your videos. 💕
So excited to watch - love Carrie and gcse drama so far is all about Brecht
Saw this on Saturday and thought it was amazing. Booked partly to see Carrie and partly because I was curious about the play in general and the idea of adding music to a play as formidable as thus one. Had seen other productions of The Caucasian Chalk Circle before but never fully got the plot or characters. This time around I felt very immersed and felt everything was so super clear, the staging was really interesting and I actually thought the songs added an extra level of interest to the play (it was the one thing I was slightly nervous about as sometimes adding music to a play doesn't work very well). Was overall very impressed and would go back to see it again if I had the money
That's cool to know! I'm glad it was good. :)
Definitely agree with what you said about the interval placement. I was in the youth production of CCC that the rose did about ten years ago and we put the interval after she crossed the glacier. It was a much more even split between first and second act timings
I'm sad I'm not in the UK. That sounds like an amazing show!
I waited to watch your review until I saw it today. Thanks for sharing your thoughts as ever.
I really enjoyed the production. And I agreed with your thoughts overall.
I think the pacing was a little off. Felt like one beat for the whole first act in particular.
I thought Carrie did a wonderful job, almost too good a job. She drew us so into the emotional journey and was more likeable that I've ever seen Grusha. For me is what created the friction of styles in the first act. But I enjoyed it and me and my partner discussed it for a good two hours non stop after which I think proves your point that it's worth seeing.
I don’t think not knowing where you fall/what you think is not a responsible place to ding the play. After all, that is the point of Brecht.
Would be cool if you would take a trip to Vienna to review Rebecca and the hunchback of notre dame...
Ooh I like both of those novels
Thank you for doing this review. As I am not in the UK I can't go to see this production. I wonder if the first act was more serious because of the direction choices or because of how Brecht has written it ( in contrast to act two)
Omg Bertolt Brechhhhht my *boy*
My summer theater program did Caucasian Chalk Circle the summer after my Senior year. It was a lot,
Whaaa. How am I only just learning of this.
We did it in the round and no props or scenery, I remember having to act out crossing the bridge with no bridge there lol, with a toy doll.
This was the 1st main role I had when I was a 1st year , yr7 , at secondary. I was grusha.
Hello, lots of love from Suffolk, UK
Can you review the clockmakers daughter? There's a full staged concert version on TH-cam and it has Fra Fee in it
I went to see it on Wednesday and I decided to class it as an educational trip since we’ve studied Brecht a couple of times at uni, not just because I’m obsessed with Carrie😂
Looking like Noah Galvin today!! Really great review for people like me who are unfamiliar with the material. Thanks
As someone with a Masters in English Lit I admit I LOL at hearing about this casting from your recent vlog so this is going to be a fascinating watch..
Thx for this yuour opinion will be very similar to my gcse drama responce i need something for those 15 markers on plays you have watched
Unrelated to this, but have you got any intention to review “Are You As Nervous As I Am” - it is a new British musical. I am going tomorrow! Heard it is good - missed the “Ride Run”, love off-west end shows too
So interesting to hear this review - the first half felt too long and it did on occasions feel a bit pantomime in places but I thought the singing/music was really interesting & I thought the story was building. The fact the second half started with what felt like a completely different story/main character felt jarring- perhaps that was the point but I found Jonathan’s performance a bit OTT as well & lots of different characters coming and going & I did not get who they were/their relevance to first act. For me, the first half meandered too much but the second half felt rushed and less polished. I also thought Zoe West’s performance was note worthy but hey life would be boring if we all thought the same!
I like Brecht (or Brechtian style) in theory, but I don't think I've ever seen it performed well. I saw a student production of this show once as a teenager and I still cringe when I hear the title.
I studied the Caucasian Chalk Circle in Drama at High school
Brecht is bonkers but excellent. I studied him for A Level, remember seeing a version of Fear and Misery of the Third Reich during college adit always stuck with me
I seem to remember learning Hitler applied for a set design job with him at one point
I love the fact that you broke down the Brechtian theory of drama so extraordinarily well. First of all I had not heard of it which is embarrassing as I was a theater student under a a Tony Emmy and Oscar nominee/winner, Kim Stanley who herself was a multi nominee/winner of all three. She was an original students of the actor‘s Playhouse and favorite of Strasbourg himself. Trust me when I say that whenever Auntie Kim was in the room, theatre was the only thing discussed.
I love your content it is exceptional and you broke this method down like a professional professor.
Love your content! And your ongoing (as I am sure it is not over) saga of BC is hilarious but spot on. ALW SHOULD look at your posts!!!
Can you review Miss Saigon? 🙏
I was confused about the plot and concept of the play already and after this video..I am more confused!
The plot sounds super confusing 🧐
Getting some serious Nick Terho “the thing about Harry” vibes from you today
I forgot to add, KS was my aunt. She actually did some West End. She was not my university teacher, that was someone no quite as famous but perhaps I slept that week in class…but KS and her methods were a large part of my training. She was before our time, original Bus Stop, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Thee Sisters, etc.
May I say you look great in your beanie and fringe great L look - stay warm
Thank you for an extensive review of the Caucasian Chalk Circle. May I ask if the plot of this play also took inspiration from the Bible's The wise King Solomon judgement on the true mother of a child. I appreciate your explanations and specially on discussing the suitable audience for this play.
In short the answer is yes! It was also based on an old Chinese play called The Chalk Circle.
Hi MickeyJo, love the content. Just wondering about Horse-Play which you said in one of your videos that you were going to see but I can't remember seeing you review it? Also, uh, you said in a video a while back that we were to remind you to go and see something that you keep meaning to see but never have...this is the reminder, I just don't actually remember what it was, sorry!
Azdak is the dictatorship of the proletariat personified. I played Azdak back in the 70’s. CCC is rarely done these days especially here in the USA. The play is so unapologetically Communist. That shift in tone between the acts is quite an ego trip for the actor playing Azdak. The play picks up, the audience wakes up and you get all the credit.
Mikeyjo. I cancelled my patreon with you because I was paying for content that was in here! I never saw any extras on there
Do you believe carrie is now trying to move away from music theatre, and in to more straight acting by taking on this role ???
I doubt it. I think as an actress she would want to branch out to other things but I don’t think she would leave musical theatre
CHF has had her day, omg hey she's going into a regional panto for pity's sake!!
She's in great company - some great actors are doing panto this year including Sir Ian McKellen, I've got a video about this coming soon! 😁
Agreed, but slightly different as he is appearing at nine of the most prestigious theatres across the UK and Ireland! Canterbury? 😂 Also he's not playing second fiddle to a Strictly finalist...
Love how they got drama students to see her, even though she didn’t get into Sylvia Young or had any formal drama training. That’s a joke. She’s the James Corden of the West End. I’d respect your opinions more if you actually gave a proper review instead of constantly being Carrie’s “yes man”.
You don’t have to go to drama school to be a good actor. She’s a fantastic actress and deserves all of the roles that she gets. I couldn’t say the same about James Corden however. She is talented enough to get these roles and I think your comment is a little unfair personally
Please can you look at the camera lens and not at yourself in the view finder, it would make for a better viewer experience rather than you looking disinterested. Cheers.
Thank you for an extensive review of the Caucasian Chalk Circle. May I ask if the plot of this play also took inspiration from the Bible's The wise King Solomon judgement on the true mother of a child. I appreciate your explanations and specially on discussing the suitable audience for this play.