World Premiere BIC Bournemouth, UK Thursday 13 April 2006 On the Road with MaggieMay... There was a tremendous flurry of activity the next morning in the same lounge and bar that had seen the cast and the musicians partying well into the night. I sipped my morning’s latte in a quiet corner while production meetings whirled around me. It was clear that every last detail was being checked, every aspect fine-tuned for the world premiere. SHOW NOTES I had really enjoyed Alexis James performance of the song “Brave New World” at the Dress Rehearsal and had mentioned that to Jeff Wayne at the greet. It’s amazing how I have the ability to touch on something controversial or painful when that was never my intent. Sigh James’ showpiece was the one song that had had a major difficulty (I just can’t bring myself to say “cock-up”) at the Dress Rehearsal. “Oh, but the bridge MAKES the song” lamented Jeff. ??? I hadn’t noticed anything amiss in James’s performance! Bridge? What bridge? 
The bridge made its appearance at the premiere, lowering from the ceiling to enclose James on the stage. Jeff was right of course – James fully utilizes the bridge, running up one side, leaning over the top while brandishing his shovel (to my consternation as I was almost directly below him), hanging on the side, expressing the concept “underground” in sight and in sound. It says reams about James that he smoothly altered his performance to cope with the technical difficulties (the bridge had been hung up far above him at the Dress Rehearsal), doing such a fantastic job that not only did I not even notice the problem, but thought that his performance was extraordinarily good! I was even more impressed with him when I realized what had happened, or rather, not happened. He’s a professional: with bridge or without bridge, his segment in the second half is fantastic. “Brave New World” is even better live than on cd. James gives the song great energy, expressing hope for humanity and the determination to survive with just a touch of insanity. The lead guitar work by Chris Spedding is simply glorious, a fabulous soaring guitar part that is just fantastic live. The bows were cut down considerably, though they were STILL too long. The recognition of the video cast is a little strange. Really, do they get a lot out of hearing my applause? Aren’t they...”on tape”? If the people in the video are to receive special recognition (and they aren’t really there) well, shouldn’t Richard Burton get his moment? I’m sure he’d hear it from the Great Beyond! There was a huge sell-out crowd at the BIC to enjoy the premiere of The War of the Worlds; it was truly an impressive fill of the venue. Even more impressive was the standing ovation the audience gave the performance. It was an excellent start to the tour. MaggieMay In a Brave New World, With just a handful of men, We’ll start, we’ll start all over AGAIN! 
Photos courtesy of Gabe Tolnay |
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