Prom 21 - 2.08.14: Kiss Me, Kate

[Quarky]

........My Fair Lady may be appropriate??

[clive heath]

I've seen "Kiss Me Kate" at the Minack Theatre, Cornwall, a backdrop ( of cliffs and sea ) as about as far removed from the milieu of the setting(s) as it is possible to get. Terrific show from a company based in West London.
"According to the "Kinsey" report"? from "Too Darn Hot". Heard a version earlier this week where Kinsey had been changed to ?something else or maybe the line changes with the different verses.

[Bert Coules]

Personally, I wish that most opera singers would put the same sort of emotional variety into their vocal delivery as the best musical performers. The cult of "beauty of line and tone before everything" is death to drama.

[Roehre]

Personally, I wish that most opera singers would put the same sort of emotional variety into their vocal delivery as the best musical performers. The cult of "beauty of line and tone before everything" is death to drama.

I prefer "Tonschönheit ist Nebensache" à la Hindemith too

[pastoralguy]

For me, this Prom has been the highlight of the season so far. It's performed with genuine love compared with the mediocre, under rehearsed, going through the motions, let's get it over with as soon as possible so we can pay the mortgage that most of the classical people have given us so far.

[french frank]

For me, this Prom has been the highlight of the season so far. It's performed with genuine love compared with the mediocre, under rehearsed, going through the motions, let's get it over with as soon as possible so we can pay the mortgage that most of the classical people have given us so far.

Will you be wanting your coat or can I take it to Oxfam?

[pastoralguy]

Will you be wanting your coat or can I take it to Oxfam?

It's hard to properly assess these concerts since I'm 'only' listening on the radio but I've been (largely!) unimpressed with what I've heard so far. Maybe I've heard too much music and been to too many concerts but there's been very little to make my pulse race.

Still, the Edinburgh Festival starts soon so maybe my enthusiasm will be re-kindled.

[pastoralguy]

Will you be wanting your coat or can I take it to Oxfam?

I did offer it to Oxfam but they didn't want it!

[Mary Chambers]

I think you described it very well in your previous post. I think it's less of a prejudice than pure personal taste. So many musicals come over to me as saccherine, 'pleasant', musically vapid, emotionally heart-on-sleeve; while opera is blood-and-guts, fire, raw.
I
Light music is to me much like musicals ... I find it easy to accept that John Wilson's orchestrations are superlative, and the orchestral performances likewise. I just don't like them, and they don't interest me because the music doesn't. And, yes, of course it says more about me than about JW. And, no, there's no reason to think it 'sad': there is more than enough music that does interest me to fill all available hours for listening

I feel more or less the same, and I'm not in the least apologetic about it. I especially like your 'musically vapid' description.

[Bryn]

I recall being taken to see the 1953 film of this as a child. I don't recall much about it, except that I didn't like it much. Should I put time aside to try again with this Wilsonian version? Hmm. Maybe not. There's so much else sitting on the iPlayer waiting to be auditioned.

[Pianorak]

Loved the opening of tonight's Prom - In fact, got quite carried away and forgot about Proms Extra on BBC2. - Operatic voices surely shouldn't be allowed near musicals.

[pastoralguy]

Loved the opening of tonight's Prom - In fact, got quite carried away and forgot about Proms Extra on BBC2. - Operatic voices surely shouldn't be allowed near musicals.

[Bryn]

... Operatic voices surely shouldn't be allowed near musicals.

[gurnemanz]

Operatic voices surely shouldn't be allowed near musicals.

It can work well. We greatly enjoyed Opera North's Carousel at the Barbican two years ago and to a lesser extent Bernstein's Candide at ENO.

I tend to regard Porter as essentially a great songwriter. Most of his musicals are no longer performed. We enjoyed Kiss Me Kate a while ago at the Victoria Palace. We hardly ever go to musicals, but the ones we have attended more recently have all been very good value in their different ways:
West Side Story at Sadlers Wells
Kurt Weill's Street Scene, Young Vic
Spamalot
Book of Mormon

[Stanley Stewart]

I, too, hugely enjoyed this Prom and only regret that we shan't see the DVD recording until the Festive Season. The 'Brush up your Shakespeare' routine should be a treat in itself judging by the rising enthusiasm of the audience reception.

Happy memories of Michael Blakemore's production of "Kate" at the Victoria Palace Theatre, circa 2002,with Marin Mazzie and Brett Barrett both so stylish in the leading roles.

In the meantime, I've recorded tonight's broadcast on minidisc - the big band sound is, in itself, quite luscious, indeed, thrilling. I've also set aside the 1990 EMI 2CD recording, John McGlinn/London Sinfonietta and Ambrosian Chorus; a veritable classy cast of Josephine Barstow, Thomas Hampson, Kim Criswell and George Dvorsky bringing style and vocal prowess to the performance.