'Vampires Rock'
Well that was a strange night.
Text message in the early afternoon: pub at 6:30. Fair enough; a bit early, but there are a few birthdays coming up and I can never remember when, so I was expecting to be summoned to pubs a couple of times in the next few weeks. Rang to confirm, and was told that it was early because they were going to the theatre after. Seems sensible enough, until I found myself roped into going with them...
Vampires Rock is a vampire-themed concert of classic rock covers, with a vague attempt at hanging the songs on an unlikely plot involving a night-club run by said creatures of the night. Good fun, with performances that were technically very good all round (especially the musicians, although there were a few moments during which someone should have reminded the lead guitarist that it doesn't matter how impressive it is if it sounds bad).
The costumes were a bit crazy. People dressed as vampires is fine, but I didn't quite see how that encouraged the male lead - not a tall or thin man, by all accounts - to wear floor-length coats that made him look like a short person about to trip over. And the less said about the gargantuan zebra-striped coat the better. Ignoring some of his changes, the costumes added to the effect nicely, and contributed to an enjoyable mock-horror atmosphere. The fact that this town seems to be Goth Central and most of the audience was in their best flowy/strappy/lacey/leathery/black/white/red helped.
The choice of songs was good, for the most part, although I felt they could have made better use of the available singers. Strong and characterful singers as male and female leads just begged for more duets, but even the ones they did were mainly shared lines, rather than the sort of harmony or alternation they should have gone for. Production wasn't great in that respect either; level too low in the vocal for some pieces, and more dynamic control of the respective volumes in the duets would have been nice.
The other odd thing was the lead man. As I said, he wasn't tall (not sure whether he was actually short, but the lead lady had almost 6 inches on him with her heels on), he was a bit portly, and for the sporadic spoken segments he had a typical faux Eastern-European accent. I kept expecting him to burst into a speech about the glory years of the Centauri Republic, an institution he had clearly been exiled from for losing his wig...
Provided you don't go expecting an actual plot (they go through the motions, but there's no conflict, and hence no drama) any fan of the classics should have a good time; all of our party did. If they pass through your neck of the woods, consider seeing them. It's a good night out.
Text message in the early afternoon: pub at 6:30. Fair enough; a bit early, but there are a few birthdays coming up and I can never remember when, so I was expecting to be summoned to pubs a couple of times in the next few weeks. Rang to confirm, and was told that it was early because they were going to the theatre after. Seems sensible enough, until I found myself roped into going with them...
Vampires Rock is a vampire-themed concert of classic rock covers, with a vague attempt at hanging the songs on an unlikely plot involving a night-club run by said creatures of the night. Good fun, with performances that were technically very good all round (especially the musicians, although there were a few moments during which someone should have reminded the lead guitarist that it doesn't matter how impressive it is if it sounds bad).
The costumes were a bit crazy. People dressed as vampires is fine, but I didn't quite see how that encouraged the male lead - not a tall or thin man, by all accounts - to wear floor-length coats that made him look like a short person about to trip over. And the less said about the gargantuan zebra-striped coat the better. Ignoring some of his changes, the costumes added to the effect nicely, and contributed to an enjoyable mock-horror atmosphere. The fact that this town seems to be Goth Central and most of the audience was in their best flowy/strappy/lacey/leathery/black/white/red helped.
The choice of songs was good, for the most part, although I felt they could have made better use of the available singers. Strong and characterful singers as male and female leads just begged for more duets, but even the ones they did were mainly shared lines, rather than the sort of harmony or alternation they should have gone for. Production wasn't great in that respect either; level too low in the vocal for some pieces, and more dynamic control of the respective volumes in the duets would have been nice.
The other odd thing was the lead man. As I said, he wasn't tall (not sure whether he was actually short, but the lead lady had almost 6 inches on him with her heels on), he was a bit portly, and for the sporadic spoken segments he had a typical faux Eastern-European accent. I kept expecting him to burst into a speech about the glory years of the Centauri Republic, an institution he had clearly been exiled from for losing his wig...
Provided you don't go expecting an actual plot (they go through the motions, but there's no conflict, and hence no drama) any fan of the classics should have a good time; all of our party did. If they pass through your neck of the woods, consider seeing them. It's a good night out.
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