Rehearsals appear to be in full swing in the West End this week! Danny Bayne and Susan McFadden have now met their Rydell High classmates and have started learning their lines, perfecting their dance moves and polishing their respective American and Australian accents! Joining Danny and Susan is runner-up “how do you solve a problem like maria” contestant, Siobhan Dillon.

I’d love to be behind the scenes of Grease this week to learn all those funky dance moves and to see how well our three reality TV stars are settling in to their new roles. I have no doubts that Danny, Susan and Siobhan will be excpetional and I can’t wait to read the reviews after press night.

Let’s hope that the newest Rydell High gang go together as well as the original Grease cast. Found this video on youtube of Danny and Susan in their first week of Grease is the Word Live - they look so good together and their chemistry was just perfect from the very start of the competition and just check out those amazing dance moves!

Book your tickets to see the superb Danny and Susan star as Danny and Sandy in Grease. Top tickets to the show and an overnight stay at a top London hotel cost from just £111 per person with Show and Stay

Technorati Tags: danny bayne, Grease, grease is the word, siobhan dillon, susan mcfadden

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Ok, so Lee Mead is not quite at number 1 yet. But what an achievement, his first ever single and he reaches number 2 in the offical UK singles chart. Not only that, but the money raised from the sale of the single goes to Children In Need - what better way to start a musical career?

Personally, I think ‘Any Dream Will Do’ is much better than ‘Umbrella’ (’Umbrella’ is a good song until you get to that bit in the middle where you think the track is skipping!) I think Rihanna’s time at the top of the charts may come to an end this weekend and we may see Lee Mead in the coveted number 1 spot.

Lee’s my number 1 already but let’s make it official and help Children In Need at the same time. The single is available on iTunes, at some Tesco stores and in any half decent record store. Buy the single and let’s help Lee make it to number 1 this weekend!

Technorati Tags: any dream will do, any dream will do single, children in need, joseph, lee, lee mead

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Celebrated singer and West End legend, Micheal Ball, will be playing Edna Turnblad in the London production of Hairspray. The character of Edna Turnblad is that of the over-sized and overbearing mother of dance crazy teen, Tracy Turnblad.

Hairspray, the musical is based on the 1988 film by John Waters and is set in Baltimore in 1962. In the 1988 film version, the role of Edna Turnblad was played by Baltimore’s most famous transvestite performer, Divine.

In the 2007 film production of Hairspray, Edna Turnblad is played by John Travolta. I found the most fantastic clip of Travolta in a pink dress on youtube - it’s brilliant. Looking forward to seeing the film when it comes out but am even more excited about seeing Michael Ball in this role in the West End.

Technorati Tags: divine, edna turnblad, hairspray, john travolta, london theatre, michael ball

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The Lord of the Rings opened in London this week to rave reviews from fans and 4 star reviews from a number of noted theatre critics.

The show is unlike anything seen before in the West End and features a state of the art mechanical stage, flying Orcs with sprung stilts for limbs and some of the most impressive costumes and sets ever to grace a theatre. The budget for this show is also a West End record as the most expensive show ever staged in London at a cost of £12.5 million!

The Times theatre critic, Sam Marlowe, gave the production 4 stars and wrote that “the show has charm, wit and jaw dropping theatrical brio, it also has emotional heft. This show is a wonder.” He summarised by saying that the show is “a brave, stirring, epic piece of popular theatre.”

Dame Judi Dench attended the premiere and said that the show was “a terriffic treat” with “wonderful choreography.”

Noted theatre critic, Michael Billington of the Guardian gave the Lord of the Rings show a fantastic review, “I happily pay tribute to the skills of Warchus and the production team…The music never or hardly ever impedes the narrative flow…If Tolkein’s trilogy is to be a stage spectacle I don’t see how it could be better done.”

Of course, some critics have been doing what critics do best - criticising! Paul Taylor of The Independent stated that the production was “strong on dynamic spectacle but squeezed as drama and in two minds about how it wants to use music dramatically.”

As far as I’m concerned the show looks amazing and looks completely different from anything else in the West End. The cast is incredible, I’m certain that Laura Michelle Kelly as Galadriel is superb as always, and the acrobatics must add a completely different dimension to this show.

Lord of the Rings is certainly among my top London shows to watch and I believe will give theatre-goers a completely new theatrical experience.

Technorati Tags: laura michelle kelly, london show, lord of the rings, lord of the rings london show, show reviews, west end

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Lee Mead has been a very busy bee this past week! Since winning ‘Any Dream Will Do’ last weekend, Lee has been working non-stop! Last Monday he released his double A-side “Any Dream Will Do/Close Every Door,” which has been a very popular track reaching number 5 on iTunes singles download chart and number 18 on the UK singles chart.

The A-side features Lee singing ‘Any Dream Will Do.’ The B-side features all 3 finalists, Keith Jack, Lewis Bradley and Lee Mead, performing ‘Close Every Door.’ Money raised from the sale of this single will go to the Children in Need appeal.

He’s been doing interviews, press conferences, photo shoots, wig fittings (yes, really!) and has now started rehearsals. Lee’s co-star, Preeya Kalidas, has said that she thinks Lee is fantastic and that she believes that he has all the qualities that Jospeh should have, such as innocence, vulnerability and sex appeal!

Lee will be performing alongside some of the West End’s finest, including Preeya Kalidas, Dean Collinson and Stephen Tate. I think the video below demonstrates that Lee is capable of singing next to the best of them! Beautiful clip of Lee performing with the magnificent Josh Groban, just a taster of what we can expect in the future from the talented Lee Mead.

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s new production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat opens on 17th July at the Adelphi Theatre, London. We’re all looking forward to seeing Lee blow the critics away with a fantastic performance!

Technorati Tags: adlephi theatre, andrew lloyd webber, joseph, joseph and the technicolor dreamcoat, josh groban, keith jack, lee, lee mead, lewis bradley

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Ah, classic lines, classic movie, classic soundtrack, classic show! Could you get any better than Dirty Dancing? ‘Nobody puts Baby in a corner!’ Love it, love it, love it! I was doing my daily Youtube search this morning and stumbled upon the Dirty Dancing show video blogs and promo video, the show looks so good I got goosebumps! And I’ll tell you something else, there’s only one Joseph on my mind today and it’s not the one with the technicolor dreamcoat…it’s Josef Brown.

Josef Brown plays Johnny in the London production of Dirty Dancing and he is simply divine! Check out the superbly talented and rather gorgeous Josef Brown in the Dirty Dancing video blog. Then, for your second treat of the day, enjoy the Dirty Dancing promo video. Happy viewing theatre fans and look out for Josef in the future, he’s going to be a star!

Technorati Tags: dirty dancing, dirty dancing blog, dirty dancing cast, dirty dancing show, dirty dancing video blog, josef brown

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The new Lord of the Rings show is currently playing in the West End and has enthralled audiences since it opened last month. To celebrate all things Lord of the Rings related we’re challenging you to a LOTR quiz to determine whether you deserve the title of hardcore hobbit follower!

Just for fun take our Lord of the Rings quiz or invite your mates round and challenge them to a game!

Technorati Tags: elves, hobbits, lord of the rings, lord of the rings quiz, lord of the rings show, LOTR, LOTR quiz

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I just love Susan McFadden! I was rooting for her from the start. She’s beautiful, talented and seems really genuine and lovely. Been doing a bit of research to build up her Show and Stay biography and found out that she was a finalist on ‘You’re A Star’ (Irish equivalent of Pop Idol) Have managed to find these videos from You Tube and how she didn’t win is beyond me!

Actually, I’m very pleased that she didn’t win You’re A Star, otherwise she may not have been our Sandy in Grease is the Word! Anyway, enjoy the lovely Susan McFadden - Simply gorgeous!

Technorati Tags: Grease, grease is the word, sandy, susan mcfadden, youre a star

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Just been on the web trying to find out a little bit more about our favourite Danny and stumbled across this gem of a video on youtube! Did you know that Ben from Any Dream Will Do and Danny B were at the Italia Conti Stage School together? Nope, neither did I!

Thought you might enjoy this though, it really showcases their singing talents and shows us something that they didn’t really get a chance to show us on Any Dream Will Do and Grease Is the Word! Happy viewing theatre fans!

Technorati Tags: any dream will do, ben, ben ellis, danny, Danny B, Grease, grease is the word

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The whole office is jumping for joy today as Lee Mead was given the Techincoloured Dreamcoat and the prestigious role of Joseph this weekend. Giving two outstanding performances, Lee was chosen by the voting public to star in Andrew Lloyd Webbers “Joseph and The Technicoloured Dreamcoat” which will be in the West End this summer.
Keith gave a solid performance and was a strong competitor but it was Lee who shone out on Saturday and throughout the competition, I guess it’s back to the supermarket for Keith.
The audience were also treated to a reunion of the Joseph contestants, all the boys performed for one last time singing “The Boys Are Back In town”. It was a nice touch to the final of “Any Dream Will Do” and it was good to see that Seamus made it back after his embarrassing exit last time.

We all know Lee is going to do a superb job and I for one can’t wait to see him in the West End. If you’d like to know more about Lee Mead why not have a look at his biography, we’ve found out the all facts and information that any Lee Mead fan should know.

I have posted the final for those of you that missed it.

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