#it's not the og cast it's a london production

[pardonmydelays]

and what if i tell you that i found a fucking proshot of dave malloy's preludes? what then?

[cometnoodle]

after many years hadestown is getting a proshot LETS FUCKING GOOOOOOOO

[wassupmygays]

HADESTOWN PROSHOT CONFIMRED

THEYRE FILMING THE OG PRINCIPAL CAST IN THE WEST END

LIFE IS WORTH LIVING

[dinahdoeeyes]

My ideal production of Starlight Express.

I suppose I'll just get right into it. First the list of characters, then the songs (excluding little bits/non-songs like Taunting Rusty and the races), then the rest.

Cast:

Rusty

Pearl

Greaseball

Dinah

Electra

CB

Ashley

Buffy

Poppa

Belle, the Sleeping Car (called Memphis Belle)

Dustin

Flat-Top

The Rockies

Volta, Joule, Wrench, Purse, and Krupp

The original National Engines

Duvay and the Sleepers

Control

Setlist (* = will be addressed below):

Entry Of National Trains

Rolling Stock

Call Me Rusty

A Lotta Locomotion ('83 Workship version, but with Buffy added)

He Whistled At Me (Minus the Rusty/Pearl conversation)

*Dinah/Greaseball duet

Freight (With the girls bullying the boys)

AC/DC

Pumping Iron ("Trying to build my body, trying to lose my mind" and "Stretching my bullworker, heaving on my weights" switch spots because I just feel that it'd sound better that way.)

Sleepers moment

*Dinah solo

Hitching and Switching (probably original)

Crazy

*That was Unfair (extended)

That's Me/There's Me (duet)

Poppa's Blues

Belle's Song (Combo of OG & Broadway — especially "sniffing the coke")

Starlight Express

The Rap: Hey You

*Make Up My Heart

Pearl Twirl

U.N.C.O.U.P.L.E.D.

Girls' Rolling Stock

Wide Smile (Mostly the Broadway version, except he says the OG "...C.B." in the chorus instead of Broadway's "...the Red Caboose," until the ending after Electra & co leave.)

I Was Robbed

Right Place, Right Time

I Am The Starlight

Rusty and Dustin

*Dinah's Disco (extended)

No Comeback

One Rock & Roll Too Many

I Do and/or Only You (I really want "I Do," and it feels redundant to do both in a row, but I feel like "Only You" is important?)

*GreaseDinah reunion (extended)

Light At The End Of The Tunnel

Starlight Express Megamix (of course)

Notes:

We are leaning hard into the 80's here! None of that trying to modernize StEx they've been doing since the 90's. It doesn't work, and the hyper-80's...ness is one of the best things about StEx!

This is about 60% the 1984 original, so keep that in mind.

Dinah & Greaseball look most like the original Dinah and Greaseball. (Though Dinah's hair looks like this. I'll get to her costumes below.) Greaseball looks completely like Jeff Shankley's GB.

Most of the costumes look like the Broadway versions.

However, Pearl gets 3 costumes; her pants outfit from the '84 previews (but with white pants), followed by her sleek Broadway dress outfit (w/ Electra), and then the fluffy dress outfit (w/ GB).

Dinah has 2 costumes; the first one being more Broadway (but I dislike the leggings, so different ones), and then, when she pairs with Electra, she changes to an outfit that is similar to her OG outfit.

C.B.'s look is very similar to the original, except his pants are black, and he has his later hat.

I want some of the choreography from the '83 workshop. ( x x x x )

Dinah & Greaseball banter a bit because "Incapable of feeding yourself, Greaseball?" Ohhh *chef's kiss* 2017 London Workshop did something right!

*Dinah & Greaseball get a couple's duet. It's a fun, cute, rock/80's pop mix song that touches on their love for each other and how they don't care about others' bullshit. ("Our Lips Are Sealed" kind of vibes, I suppose.)

Ashley and Duvay are sisters.

Greaseball pulls the girls during "Freight," like he originally did.

*Dinah gets a solo after "Pumping Iron" after the Sleepers talk their bullshit. It'd be about 3½ minutes long. If you've read my Dinah rants, you can get an idea of what it's about.

Greaseball, Bobo, and Espresso are part of the choreography during "Crazy" toward the end, racing around with Dinah, Ashley, and Buffy. (I promise this is FIRE in my head. Have faith. 🥺)

*Grease & Dinah have a longer argument before their breakup.

Dinah and C.B. have a duet. It's the Broadway version of There's Me combined with That's Me. (Dinah singing her solo part first.)

*Pearl sings "Make Up My Heart" about Rusty, Electra, and Greaseball. (Explanation here.)

*"U.N.C.O.U.P.L.E.D." is slower, sadder, and has more lyrics, like it was in the '83 workshop.

Buffy & Ashley are finally canon. It's Complicated™️, but they get it together by the end.

*"Dinah's Disco" is a bit longer, as is *Dinah & Greaseball's reunion/makeup.

Pearl is absolutely like original Pearl in this: A selfish bitch (who learns and gets better by the end); she is not "naive." ("Further from my vision" over "Sadder but no wiser.")

We actually acknowledge that Pearl is an asshole. But, like Greaseball, she learns and is working on herself by the end! 🙌🏽

Pearl apologizes to Dinah at the end. FINALLY. (During a break in LATEOTT.)

Control loves the engines/coaches/freight, and they love him. He's just a bossy little kid, but they're also actin' up. (I'm open to Control being a girl.)

Electra and the Components do come back.

I... think that's it. I hope didn't forget anything.

CHOO CHOO! 💋

[amymbona]

Yknow how they say you're connected to every person in the world through just 7 people? I did some thinking and now I wanna show yall how I'm connected to Josh O'Connor!

Alright so I have (1) a friend on twitter who is really into mcyt and met (2) Jack Manifold on twitch con once. Jack Manifold went to see the Hamilton the musical production in London. There surely was (3) an actor/dancer/stage manager/anyone who's connected to (4) somebody from the American production of Hamilton. In the OG cast of Hamilton, there was (5) Ariana DeBose. Ariana knows (6) Mike Faist through West side story. And Mike, obviously, knows (7) Josh!

In conclusion, I'm basically dating Josh!!!

[starlight-express-world]

An updated photo of my starlight program collection!

Left is the London 2024 program, top is some promotional postcards from the original production, middle right is the 1984 souvenir brochure, and the bottom is the og cast brochure

I do also have a phantom of the opera program from 1989 which is so amazing compared to the 2021 version I have lol

[casiavium]

I saw the West End production of The Lightning Thief in London! It's very cool and these are my thoughts

American accents lol. They're good but really enunciating every constant and losing some of the way we slur words together lol. "You" where we would say "ya/yuh" and vice versa

"sexy" Annabeth??? She's in a crop top and jeans with angel wings on the butt. Luke made some provocative comments and she reciprocated his flirting which is.... A choice

But the actress is sooooo good. Annabeth in a lower voice than the og cast recording is perfect

Clarisse and a background girl having a moment?? 👀 (not the Silena actress though which would have been better lol)

CLARISSE'S ACTRESS 😍

Amtrak from New Jersey to St Louis in the time frame they have? The British mind cannot comprehend the American transit system

HADES

ain't no way that Nico and Bianca were created with that version of Hades lmao

I can't find any photos or video but they made him capital F gay

Luke was soooo good. And attractive. However it didn't help the weird Luke/Annabeth going on that he had more chemistry with her than Percy. Percy and Grover were definitely playing as 12 years old but the rest of the cast was playing older teens maybe? Idk but Annabeth was not giving pre-teen

[lordoftheringsmusical]

Hello everyone!

Since I've gained quite a few new followers since the Chicago production opened, I think it's time for a short introduction.

My name is Eva, but I also go by Emerald online (either is fine by me). I've been running this fan blog since March 2023, shortly after the UK revival at the Watermill Theatre was announced, but I've loved the LotR Musical for far longer - since 2015. I got to see it twice in September last year!

'Fan blog' is the key - this is not an official source for the LotR Musical, and I am not affiliated with any production, past, present or future. You can find links to the official pages here.

I (re)post and reblog exclusively content from The Lord of the Rings and other closely related topics (when I run out of LotR content). Please do not expect or ask me to share anything else here, I will not do that. The content I repost is always linked to its original source, and strictly show-related, professional content from public accounts and websites run by cast and crew members.

The most important tags can be found here as well; if you'd like me to tag anything specific, feel free to ask. My inbox is always open ✨️

This is not my main blog; it's @emeraldskulblaka. If you see your LotR-related post liked by that account, it's me :) if you want to make sure I see it, tag me directly.

Self promo - my other blogs are:

@emeraldskulblaka - my main, mostly musicals. The LotR Musical tag there is ancient.

@glorfyndels - a general Tolkien blog! Mostly fanart, with fic recs linked in the pinned post.

@devilsdearhearts - pretty things. Nice to look at. Art, photography, animals. Have fun!

@everything-lauramkelly - an LMK fan blog because OG London Galadriel just so happens to be my fave 🥰 it's mostly inactive, though.

You can also find me on Instagram (story-focused), X, VK, and YouTube (playlist section). I curate a Tolkien stage adaptations calendar!! See you ✨️

[pumpumdemsugah]

These people don't think anybody but white men should be a part of the media or public life and I've noticed for a while people are taking the concerns of obvious far right ethno-nationalist seriously. Well we need original stories and I'm so mad everything is a remark 😡 are you this vocal when it's a white person on a remark ? Oh you're not? Stop feigning concern

When it comes to brown skin characters existing in the media they never cared about historical accuracy ( it's based on a real guy ) , they never cared about needing more OG stories that aren't just race bending, they never cared about accuracy because it was just a fancast and nobody checked before having meltdowns, never cared because stage plays have a history of men playing women and not having accurate casting and sometimes you get people apart of those groups say 'ohh they're doing this on purpose to make Black etc look bad'and it's forced diversity. The racists have become more emboldened.

These people are just racist neo Nazis but there are some otherwise liberal minded people pretending these people aren't. For a while I've noticed people trying to take their obviously racially motivated "concerns" seriously so now racist harassment campaigns have become part and parcel for not being a white man and being involved with the media landscape on a scale that never existed before.

Sure you can send a teenager racist death threats for being Indian and pretend what would have been a small theatre production in London - the same London that regularly gender swaps and race bends stage plays - becomes international news because Juliet is Black. These hate campaigns are being treated like natural disasters you can't do anything about and we must sacrifice a Virgin to a volcano ( let them harass people off social media )

[platadesangre]

we NEED to talk about jcs 1975 madrid cast!

i have come to make camilo sesto justice

(i finally finished this post yay!)

i may be a bit biased, since this was my first jcs.

short story on how i discovered it

my dad used to be an apostle for a bootleg staged playback jcs in peru during the 70s! they used this version.

he had the cd. he also had the mp3 files. i used his computer, so that was how 13 year old me found it.

those were tough times, bc later i started doing catechesis and i kind of got depressed and started questioning my faith lol. judas' character really resonated with me

since this is a recording, i didn't have any footage to reference, so i made up everything in my mind. (this is why it was a bit weird for me to see the english productions, bc they looked nothing like in my head lol)

now, a bit of historical context for spain in the 70's

camilo sesto was a popular spanish singer and actor who went to see the jcs 1971 broadway production in london. he loved it so much that he did everything he could do financially to bring the show to spain.

spain was in a fascist dictatorship at the time

they fought with censorship for years, that's why the lyrics are a bit different (i'll make a post about that too)

they had to remodel the alcalá-palace theater stage entirely

franco (our dictator) died two days after the premiere (about time lol)

the "ultras" (conservatists) didn't like the show so they did lots of crazy stuff (for example, praying for the cast outside the theater or sending BOMB THREATHS?)

anyways, this was the first official translation for jcs!

on the main cast we have

camilo sesto as jesus christ (he wanted the role from the beggining)

teddy bautista as judas iscariot

ángela carrasco as mary magdalene

here's an old pic of them (and some apostles)

(now that i look at it closely, it kind of looks like a bootleg jcs 1973 lol)

on the recording

it's a stereo recording, so use both headphones or you'll miss out on half of it

musically speaking, it's similar to the og concept album (songs ending on fade-outs and shorter trial before pilate) but it has some interesting choices (teddy, the producer and the voice of judas, took a lot of... artistic liberties)

some things this version has

it adds lots of synth. it's very psychodelic. i understand this can be a turn off for some people

they kinda change the key to many songs. maybe to fit vocal ranges idk

teddy just loves to make up new melodies (please give this man some water)

EPIC GUITAR SOLO in what's the buzz

what's the buzz and strange thing mystifying are separated tracks for some reason

camilo sings so good

cute synth in everything's alright ángela has such an angelic voice she makes such a good mary

the drums and guitars during this jesus must die are so danceable

the BEST simon zealotes i've heard. shit goes HARD. he goes CRAY

i really love this pilate, in my rating he would be the best one

camilo's "¡SALVAOS VOSOTROS!" during the temple is really pathetic lol

damned for all time interlude replaced by synths. the SAX SOLO is also replaced by synth (questionable choice)

cool thing happens during the end of this song that i'll talk about in another post

judas' occasional nervous laughter really adds to his character

also he cries a lot

"you sad pathetic man" part during last supper is... fairly different! (i'm looking at you teddy...)

camilo's gethsemane is epic. he's a baladist singer but MAN he can ROCK

cool harmonica during the arrest

i'll never shut up about our pilate (he nervous laughs too)

herod is so fruity

judas' death really hits different when you were depressed and questioning faith (this version is BRUTAL) also lyrics change (i'll talk about it i swear)

teddy's one of the few judas who sing the i don't know how to love him reprise in the higher scale!! it sounds so painful and anguished

the album continues acceptably

other cool things it has

jesus and judas have this interesting accent difference. since camilo is from valencia, he has this pristine and traditional spanish accent. and teddy is from canarias (also lived in the usa) so his accent is rougher and more, crusty? idk how to explain it but it's neat and stablishes their dynamic a bit. (ángela is from dominican republic! but her accent is barely noticeable)

on the footage aspect, we only have old vhs videos and live audios uploaded on youtube. also some old photos

there is a book about this version. it has some anecdotes (only available in spanish)

now we have a 4 episode mini-series about the odyssey that it was to produce this. it's called "camilo superstar" (i won't be watching it bc it's a bit fan-ficy from what i've seen)

the posts i'll make about this production will be tagged as #jcs 1975 madrid

you can listen to it on spotify!

or on youtube (playlist made by me)

[malkaleh]

OKAY SO LOTR MUSICAL TL;DR: it's a pretty straightforward musical adaptation of LotR. The first act covers FOTR and ends with Boromir's death and the second act is as much of TTT and ROTK as they could fit into about an hour and 15 minutes. This works better than you might expect it to. There are 2 main eras of the show: Original production and Revival era (which is currently ongoing HOORAY!!! :D) The og production began in toronto in 2006 and was ported over to the west end in 2007 where it was generally panned by critics and closed less than a year after opening. It was big, showy, and tried to capture some of the same drama as the movies with a lot of complicated effects work and a moving stage that resembled a layer cake. Costumes in this period were WILD, probably because they were trying to establish an identity distinct from the movies. Also the elves were on aerial silks for lothlorien and this is the one thing that I wish the revival had ported over because I ADORE silks in musical theater <3 The only official cast recording of the show is from the london run, although both the watermill and chicago casts have recorded versions of the flagship song Now and for Always in the last couple years Okay so that production crashed and burned in 2008 and the show was left basically untouched until 2023, at which point we entered... THE REVIVAL ERA!!!! The show was revamped in 2023 for the small Watermill theatre in England and given an entirely new artistic direction, although I'm told that the book is by and large the same. (They did change a few lyrics in the songs though, unfortunately mostly for the worse imo) The show's new vibe significantly scaled down the production, reducing the cast size and making it actor-muso to eschew the need for an orchestra. As a result of this the score was also rearranged for the smaller selection of instruments. The revival added the framing device(?) of the story being told by the hobbits via adding LARP sections to the beginning and end of the show: at Bilbo's birthday party and the Scouring of the Shire. I was lucky enough to get to participate in this when I went to see the show and truly it was the best part of the whole (overall excellent) experience. The framing device invites the audience to BE hobbits with the performers and justifies some of the plot decisions and general lack-of-epic-battle-scenes. Along with the new arrangement, reduced cast, and framing device, the show's new costume and production design is GREAT. They took inspiration from a wider range of cultures and styles of dress than the more traditional western fantasy of the og production, so now the elvish costumes are indian-inspired, gimli's costume and the doors of durin utilize celtic patterns, the orcs are dressed in aggressively modern gas masks and hoodies, and the steward of gondor (more on him later) is in scottish tartan. The hobbits are still in the classic suspenders and waistcoats, of course. This helps the show a lot because it sort of provides shorthand for all the culture and worldbuilding that the script doesn't have time to do. Honestly I could go on forever about the revival costumes, they are incredible and I love them very much. ANYWAY, the show was a smash hit at the watermill, sold out its july-october run, and was exported to chicago with a new cast in summer 2024 where it ran for several months before the cast transferred to aotearoa to do a few more weeks of shows before passing the baton to the current australian cast who iirc are between tour stops right now, but will be moving on to singapore and southeast asia after taking all the major theaters of australia by storm. :D The show will be returning to the UK (plymouth) this october (!!!!) before moving on to a european tour.

If you made it through this exhaustive history, thank you for your time. I yap a lot when it comes to this show XD Story-wise, the most major change from the books is that Rohan and Gondor are merged, which does a whole HOST of things to the stories of Boromir, Aragorn, Saruman, and Denethor. Denethor and Theoden are combined into one Steward character who is Boromir's father and ruling Gondor, but is under Saruman's spell like Theoden and dies nobly on the battlefield instead of giving in to despair. Aragorn also is even MORE of a reluctant king than in the movies and doesn't even reveal that he IS Aragorn until the end of act 1 when Boromir is dying!!!! He just goes by Strider until then!!! Otherwise, everything is pretty faithfully adapted, although it is HEAVILY abridged and a lot is cut out. Actually the musical is my favorite version of Aragorn and Arwen's relationship <333 they are SO cute and get so many great Yearning lines. The songs are all outstanding. Now and for Always is obviously the standout because of all the Hobbit Emotions, but Road Goes On and Cat and the Moon are also straight up bops, Legolas gets his disney princess moment with Lothlorien, Star of Ëarendili is a feast of overlapping parts and harmonies, Song of Hope duet is the peak romantic musical song, and Lament for Moria is an incredible somber tribute that is deeply true to the book. Gollum/Smeagol is an underrated gem imo because even though it's not that fun to listen to on the soundtrack, it is MINDBOGGLING in person. You know that bit in TTT where Gollum talks to himself with his two different personalities warring? This is that but a song. You get to watch that switch in front of your eyeballs and it is CRAZY. And then there's Wonder, which is just peak Tolkien Yearning. I could go on but this is already an ESSAY (sorry) so I will shut up now. Lmk if you want more ramblings :)) Also other blogs that have WEALTHS of information about the show and its various versions, if you care to peruse them (they're also all very lovely people (HI EMERALD MARY AND MO hope you don't mind being tagged)): @lordoftheringsmusical @nowandforalways @lotrmusical :)))

OH MY GOSH THE SILKS WOULD BE AMAZING! (That all sounds really interesting - I am definitely listening to the soundtrack and also OOOOOH actually I love the idea of it being hobbits retelling the story)

[tailsbeth-writes]

Thanks for tagging me @duchessdepolignaca03! So this is my first one of these actually, thanks to timezones it wasn't Wednesday when I got tagged but nonetheless here we go.

So I don't have WIP excerpts right now, I'm a 'gonna write a fic to post straight after' kind of gal (this will change with a long project next year though) so instead I thought I'd post some bits from my fanfic idea dump plus some og fiction WIPs.

-The Prince & He (Working Title - coming 2024)

The Prince & Me AU for Red White & Royal Blue. Alex is at UT and Henry decides to study in America, he tells his family it's to find himself but really it's so he can get away from his overbearing royal responsibilities. (Looking for betas for this btw!)

Potential RWRB fic ideas:

-it's Alex & Bea who have cakegate and after damage control, the queen thinks they should start a courtship... Alex & Henry have other ideas though (want to explore gendered differences, the damage control would be so different with Bea and I think I'd like to make her asexual & explore that within a structure of tradition)

-5+1: times that Alex was clearly being hit on by a dude but was completely oblivious & Henry is obviously the one (🥹)

- Potential song fic - Wasia Project: U Deserve - Nothing But Thieves: Do You Love Me Yet? - Liz Lawrence: I'd Rather

Original Fiction: Decompose

Near future London has been segregated by means of a new medical test, each sector representing a level of productivity. After going through the kitted out MRI machine, twin Harry Thorpe is wrongly moved from his comfortable life in the highly skilled sector where technology rules and excellence is expected, to the unskilled sector which seems stuck in the past but with much more variety.

Between alien customs and new romances with classmates, he discovers his own power hungry mum is trying to bring in the One Child Policy and that is only the beginning of her plans. Harry and a group of rebel social workers and civil servants might be the only thing that can stop her.

This is my first novel, it's young adult sci-fi, focuses on equality, chronic illness & disabilities, diversity, government corruption, found family, rebellion. It's got a diverse cast led by Harry, who is a soft pansexual bookworm with a sweet tooth. I'm currently editing & looking for beta readers for the next draft.

When You Get The Chance

My next book project is still very early days but it's a very queer holiday romance.

Coral 'Corey' Henderson is on holiday in Majorca for 2 weeks, her sister missed the start of the holiday leaving her alone. Enter Alice Ortiz, a member of an Abba tribute act performing at the hotel.

All of Abba Nice Day are queer, Corey is a ginger plus size Scottish lesbian event planner, Alice is a bisexual Geordie (half Spanish) who loves singing but also wants to go to uni to study politics. This book will explore family dynamics, dementia, biphobia, body image, protesting & finding your purpose. I'll do a call out for betas when we get to it!

Congrats if you made it through all this! I'm tagging @cl4r3m0nt @heybuddy-drabbles @candyspandemonium @firenati0n @nontoxic-writes & whoever else wants to do this! Tag me, I'm always looking for writer pals 🥰

(20/12/2023)

[mariacallous]

The first signs of a new remake of The Forsyte Saga appeared on production listings at the beginning of April 2024. While there had been rumors before about the series returning to television, the pre-production announcements were the first sign the project was getting off the ground, with Mammoth Productions most likely behind it. However, it was unclear if the show was a BBC series, an ITV series, or a series made for PBS or Masterpiece, or a combination thereof. But with filming now about to get underway, details are out, and Masterpiece is the one taking the lead on the project, with a stellar cast lined up to star.

The Forsyte Saga is considered the British period piece that allowed the WGBH folks to launch the Masterpiece anthology series as PBS launched nationwide. The series was first aired in the U.K. on the recently launched BBC 2 in 1967, a network most TV viewers did not have yet. It proved so popular that it was rerun on BBC One a few months later, making it technically the first show to make the jump from network to network due to rising ratings. The series then transferred to the U.S. and aired on local PBS stations across the country (which were at that point not under a national umbrella as yet) and proved a massive hit, bringing in numbers that beat out the "Big Three" networks of NBC, CBS, and ABC. Its success proved an appetite for the best of British programming, presaging Masterpiece's launch two years later.

It's now 55 years later, and though Masterpiece aired a new version in 2002, nowadays, it is no longer just an importer. The streaming wars have made it so that the anthology series must co-produce and sometimes take the lead on commissioning shows. The choice to make its own The Forsyte Saga is unsurprising, considering the show's history and its reputation, which means that it has pulled in quite an impressive cast.

One reason Masterpiece has taken charge of the project? This way it can dictate how many seasons there are and when it is renewed. Make no mistake, this is planned as a multi-season venture. Here's the series logline:

The first season of six episodes follows the lives of the wealthy Forsyte family in 1880s London and is based on John Galsworthy’s Nobel Prize-winning tale of love, loyalty, ambition, and betrayal.

The series cast stars Francesca Annis (Flesh & Blood) as formidable Forsyte matriarch Ann; Stephen Moyer (Sexy Beast) as her eldest son, Jolyon Senior, head of the family stockbroking firm Forsyte & Co.; and Jack Davenport (Ten Percent) plays Ann’s competitive younger son James. The next generation down features Danny Griffin (The Gentlemen) as Jolyon Sr.'s bohemian son Jo, Tuppence Middleton (Downton Abbey) as Jo’s status-driven wife Frances, and Eleanor Tomlinson (Poldark) plays Louisa Byrne, a Soho dressmaker and Jo’s first love. Joshua Orpin (Titans) plays James’ shrewd and sometimes ruthless son, Soames; Millie Gibson (Doctor Who) is Irene, the dancer whom Soames falls in love with, and Tom Durant Pritchard (Miss Scarlet) plays Monty Dartie, James’ son-in-law.

Outside of the titular family, Josette Simon (Broadchurch) will play Mrs. Ellen Parker Barrington, a wealthy heiress and friend of the Forsyte family; Jamie Flatters (Liar) is architect Philip Bosinney, Owen Igiehon (Disclaimer) plays lawyer Isaac Cole, and last (but certainly not least), OG 1967 The Forsyte Saga star Susan Hampshire OBE plays Lady Carteret.

Debbie Horsfield (Sanctuary: A Witch's Tale) will pen all six episodes, with directors Meenu Gaur (Murder Is Easy) and Annetta Laufer (Get Millie Black) splitting helming duties and Sarah Lewis (The Long Shadow) producing. Horsfield and Gaur executive produce along with Sheena Bucktowonsing, Damien Timmer for Mammoth Screen, and Susanne Simpson for Masterpiece. 

The Forsyte Saga Season 1 is expected to debut on most PBS stations in 2025.

[storyweaverofgondor]

Ok, but can i just take a moment to talk about how amazing Susan Jane Tanner is? She was in the Original London Production of cats in 81 as Jellylorum then she was in the 98 film. She, along with Femi Taylor and Elaine Paige, was part of the OG cast that returned. I don't think she gets nearly enough recognition for that.

[cadybear420]

Your ranking (lowest/highest) of hss books??

I'm planning a longer post for this but here's my short version:

6th Place: HSS:CA 2

The election plotline in this one was broken beyond all belief. Like, "trash the whole thing and start over from scratch" broken beyond all belief. It completely shoots itself in the foot with having Rory and Twin preach about how MC shouldn't feel pulled in two directions only for the conflict resolution to rely on MC choosing between the two of them, and the conflict turning point relies entirely on the whole school acting like a hivemind of five-year-olds over Lorenzo "saving" a kitten, which could only be resolved by the Greenhouse Ex Machina.

If there's any redeeming qualities it's that when it wasn't focusing on that stupid election bullshit, it did help the friend group grow on me more after finding them mostly unremarkable in Book 1, most especially so with Ajay.

5th Place: HSS:CA 3

This one should be the higher ranking of the HSS:CA books, as it's the more pleasant, competent, and exciting of the trilogy. Its main storyline actually had some semblance of structure, and it didn't make me annoyed with everyone else. But it's hard to get past how painfully nostalgia-baity the OG HSS characters' cameos were. A plot about the OG and CA gangs putting on a musical together and going to London together is something I want to like! Yet even when the OG characters are a part of the theatre production, they're still useless as all fuck and do nothing more than just tag along. They even admit in the story that they're only joining the musical to go on the London trip.

And what makes it really hurt is that this book is supposed to be the big grand finale to the HSS franchise as a whole. Yet the OG characters get such a cheap soulless sendoff, both in regards to the final chapter and the book as a whole. Yeah, this and LOA 2 have got to be the worst most inconclusive series finales in all of Choices.

4th Place: HSS:CA 1

Even though CA 3 is what I called the more pleasant of the bunch, CA 1 is probably the one that bothered me the least. I mean, Book 2 was just contrived drama for the sake of drama and Book 3's treatment of the OG characters is the equivalent to jangling plastic keys in front of a toddler. Book 1's problems are mainly just how forced Rory was, and how meanspirited the whole sabotage drama felt with the other theatre kids instantly believing that they were the culprit and cruelly ostracizing them for days on end, and then not even apologizing when their name is cleared. It was aggravating, but it wasn't outright insulting I guess.

Other than that, the story is pretty straightforward. Though it was hard to adjust to the new MC and cast, especially with seeing the OG MC around as a NPC. I'll be honest, there wasn't really much purpose for switching MCs this time around.

3rd Place: OG HSS: 3

While still great in its own right, it was definitely the weakest of the OG trilogy. I feel like they made a bit too much of a deal of Max and Kara wanting to be prom king and queen and threatening MC's prom campaign. The LIs don't really have much of a role in this book also and while they did come pretty far from how they were in Book 1, I'd have liked to see more.

That being said, it's still strong in other areas. The general conflict between Berry and Hearst and MC's tryouts felt pretty natural, and I liked that we could make MC a jerk and face consequences for it. It's also really nice being official with your LI and all the little moments such as the promposal, the love confessions, etc.

2nd Place: OG HSS 2

Isa taking over Berry was a great way to up the stakes. We get a bit of mystery and suspense, and all in all it's a pretty solid story. It especially hits hard if you're romancing Aiden, in which case it makes you want to kill Isa even more.

The only thing I didn't like is band and cheer turning against the basketball team. I understand why they did it, but seeing as I generally prefer playing a jock MC, it was very painful seeing them (Aiden included in the next chapter) turn against the wrong enemy.

1st Place: OG HSS 1

It's a pretty simple and straightforward story, but it establishes the exciting and escapist atmosphere really well. The different conflicts you're involved in based on your activity choice, getting to know all the different characters and their struggles, the yearbook photos. It's very iconic and makes its mark as establishing HSS in Choices. And there's very little I'd criticize about it aside from mostly nitpicky things or general Choices problems.

[glassprism]

With Broadway closing, Sydney and Vienna doing the restaged version and Italy and Spain doing a non-replica production it really seems like they are slowly trying to kill the original version. I know Japan, Korea and London still (more or less) show the og, but with the exception of the Chinese production (I think) it seems like there won‘t be a new production of the Prince/Lynne/Bjornson version anymore. :(

Honestly, if it were me, I'd say it was only Japan that has the original version (meaning, the version we had on the West End and Broadway pre-COVID). London has obviously had most of the changes from the most recent UK tour implemented (as well as a few new ones of their own), Broadway has fewer changes (but is closing, obviously), and as for the others...

The Chinese production has stated that they are using the creative team from the most recent World Tour, so it would not surprise me if they use the same sets from there, as they are available and which were also modified slightly to tour better (though nowhere near as much as the modified UK tour, much less the restaging). The Korean production has vaguely said they will use "upgraded technical elements", which feels like code for "we're going to make the same changes as in the reopened London production". And as you say, the Australian tour and the Vienna production (possibly the first stop of a European tour?) are using the restaging and Spain and Italy will be non-replicas, plus any non-replicas that were established before COVID, such as the Greece and Kristianstad productions.

I think what's also notable is not just the lack of the original version, but the lack of sit-down productions. It seems almost everything being announced is a tour; if it's not a tour, then it's a production where musical theater is less established, necessitating a non-replica. And it makes me wonder if that's deliberate. With a tour, you can justify having a modified or restaged version because "it needs to be able to move around easily, it needs to be cheaper". With a tour, you can hire a younger cast of up-and-coming actors who are less likely to have family tying them to one city and will be fine being paid less. With a tour, you can hit multiple cities or multiple countries in one run and establish this new, modified version in the newer generation's memories ("and it's practically the same thing, really!", they can also say). With a sit-down production, you can't really do all that, which is why it makes me think they are strategically avoiding announcing any sit-downs.

And I might be paranoid for saying this, but it feels a lot like what happened to Les Miserables, where a new staging that first started with a tour, was pushed into international productions (Madrid, Toronto, Seoul, Sao Paulo), tours (international tour, US tours, UK tours), Broadway itself, before finally replacing the London version entirely. And you know, obviously it's different for Phantom in that London was one of the first to change and the various modified stagings aren't nearly as drastic as the changes made in the Les Miserables restaging (can't say that about Phantom's restaging, though)... but it definitely feels like CamMack and co. are going, "Hey, this strategy of slowly doing away with the original worked for Les Mis, let's do it for Phantom."

This is not to say I don't appreciate the non-replicas or the modified stagings or the... sigh... restaging (I guess)... because I do! I like the new interpretations, I like that they allow more people to see the show. But I also like the original, I still want that to exist as well. And most of all, I question the motivations behind pushing tours and new stagings, because it feels like it's all about money.

Makes this old ask of mine look almost prophetic...