‘WE WILL ROCK YOU’ – Final Matinee, London Coliseum, 27 August 2023: Fan Review.

There was a moment at the opening of this final show of ‘We Will Rock You’, the last in a run of a hundred at the London Coliseum, when I felt I was witnessing the start of an infinity mirror effect. Once the section of ‘Innuendo’ (performed live these days) was over, Ben Elton, scriptwriter, director and now also Rebel Leader at the centre of his own drama, mentioned the original staging of the musical at the Dominion Theatre, and how it was panned by critics. This latest realisation of the rock phenomenon is a reference to its predecessor in so many ways, but one that has moved on twenty-one years in time from the 2002 premiere, and is now framing it within the annals of prophecy carried into the dysfunctional future of the ‘iPlanet’. But still, the critics haven’t correspondingly moved on from criticising – and, as ever, miss the point: the viewing public may just like to come to the theatre for an afternoon or evening of live Queen greats interspersed with a little light-heartedness.

Certainly, the latter concept is true to the history of the Coliseum itself. With its stately interior rising high to culminate in that distinctive dome, it seems an unlikely venue for rocking insurgents to pitch their cause. However, back at the turn of the 20^th century, its architect, Frank Matcham, envisioned a “people’s palace of entertainment” to house variety performances. Furthermore, like the Dominion, where Freddie shared the stage with Cliff Richard in a charity performance of the musical ‘Time’ in 1988, the Coliseum contains a little of the Queen lead singer’s history, too: in 1979, he performed with the Royal Ballet there (also for charity) involving both the singing of and dancing to ‘‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and ‘Crazy Little Thing Called Love’ - with Jamie Moses, later of the Brian May Band and Queen and Paul Rodgers, playing guitar in the orchestra pit. In welcome contrast, for this ‘We Will Rock You’ appearance, the musicians weren’t placed down in the depths, but high on a platform rear of stage, where they were sometimes clearly visible, and always, thankfully, just as audible – among them being birthday boy bassist Neil Murray, a veteran of the Dominion shows.

The new location is unable to take advantage of an underground station for the underground Bohemians: unlike the Dominion, situated right on top of Tottenham Court Road tube, it doesn’t have one that nearby. In many other aspects, though, the ‘Heartbreak Hotel’ is similar to its previous counterpart, and many of the old gags about internet-generated uniformity are replicated for this production. There are, however, some additional targets: AI, virtual friends, and bots, as the twenty-first century continues to develop the assault of cybertechnology at a cracking pace. The costumes are also a variation on the previous ones, with the ensemble clad in a microchip design. Furthermore, Ben doesn’t pass up on the opportunity to introduce other themes: the environment, the trains, and Brexit, all with a satirical twist. Even the pandemic gets a look-in, as Scaramouche and Galileo don surgical face-masks for a kiss.

Talking of the romcom leads, Elena Skye and Ian McIntosh transported us quizzically through their quest, yet at the same time making the whole performance look effortless, and Brenda Edwards, a vision of blue funk as the Killer Queen, excelled particularly on ‘The Show Must Go On’, brought in at the end of the first half, whereby ‘Play the Game’ had been dropped from earlier in Act 1. Another change from the original was that her devious lackey Khashoggi, acted by Lee Mead, no longer got to interrupt her in the initial bars of ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’, but she sang it through in its entirety. Brit, played by Adrian Hansel, presented as a kilted Highlander, displaying those slick martial arts moves and a comparable vocal dexterity; and the role of his marvellous match, Meat, was taken on by Christine Allado.

Towards the end, we were reminded - by an onstage replica of the giant statue of Freddie that stood at the front of the Dominion for its twelve-year run - of his mastery of Wembley Stadium, which was particularly appropriate for me as I’d been staying the month in London next door to it! The finale climaxed into the crescendos of ‘We Will Rock You’ and ‘We are the Champions’, followed by the ever-remarkable rendition of ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’, today made even more remarkable by the emergence, to a terrific roar from the audience, of Brian conjured into the multitude through the trap door as he played the first solo. He then proceeded downstage to complete his part, returning, of course, to perform the rock solo too, with a more conventional onslaught from stage left this time. Such an appearance precipitates a range of emotions – some joyful, some tearful, some plain surprised. I, who’d known that he surely wouldn’t miss playing his part in this final show, just felt that I’d been granted yet another bequest: as an early fan of the band as a London teen in the seventies, I always remember having very much been there as Freddie’s six-minute masterpiece took hold of our world, but also noting the cynicism of the music press from the very beginning. In those pre-internet times, the critics were already at it – that part of life hasn’t changed, although nowadays they have to acknowledge, sometimes genuinely, sometimes grudgingly, that Queen’s music is still so amazingly and worthily popular - despite every negative word they’ve ever written.

And, as if to prove the point, on returning to my digs near Wembley Stadium after the show for one last London evening, what could I clearly hear through the window from the spectators at the ‘All Elite Wrestling’ event taking place there? Yes, of course…none other than a rousing delivery of ‘We Will Rock You’!

© Alison Sesi, 2023

 

Queen Will Rock You in 3D - Proud Galleries, London - Fan Review

One day last week I woke up to notice that my mobile phone was carrying a new fitting - its appearance altered by a metal slab on its back, looking like a primeval relic of the industrial age anachronistically attached to my bit of essential 2020s technical kit. Then I recalled how it had got there. The previous day I’d been fiddling with something called an ‘Owl Virtual Reality Kit’, which would enable me to place the back of my Samsung on to a magnetic holding plate so that I could view stereo images relayed from the device as they appear in 3D through the Owl’s lenses. I’d purchased this gadget at Proud Galleries near Charing Cross, London, where I’d been taking a look at Sir Brian May’s collection of stereo images of his band, exhibited at the ‘Queen Will Rock You in 3D’ exhibition – and mused on the fact that I would now only have to get my phone out to remind me that I’d become something of a 3D devotee: as with his other occupations and pastimes, the enthusiasm of my favourite band’s guitarist for stereoscopy is infectious.

So, what of the exhibition itself? Well, as you enter on the ground floor, you can truly immerse yourself in seventies and eighties Queen – the Freddie era, going right back to their fledgling days. Yes, everyone starts somewhere, but by the time you see them at Kempton racecourse in 1976 – as organised by their then manager John Reid for the launch of their fifth album, ‘A Day at the Races’ - you note that they’d all mastered the art of backing the same winning horse. Whether you’re interested in seeing the band at work or at play, or, as in this case, a bit of both, there are plenty of pictures to view: on display is Brian’s visual log of the band’s development. From 1975 there’s Freddie ‘off guard’ under a hairdryer; Freddie performing in Boston in a Zandra Rhodes costume, ‘swirling around on stage like a great bird’ in its ‘plated wings'; and  Freddie smiling, with drummer Roger and bassist John, from the back seat of a limo in New York...as the crooning Sinatra would sing, ‘If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere’. So the remaining collection on the ground floor bears witness to those other tours and travels through the seventies – Europe, Japan, Hawaii, South America – as well as carefree days relaxing at Ridge Farm studios during the making of ‘A Night of the Opera’, the 1975 album that had made it all possible. By 1977, Freddie’s looking ‘chuffed’ to have won a Britannia award for its seminal single – his six-minute-long creation ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’. There’s also plenty to see of the ‘Radio Ga Ga’ and ‘It’s a Hard Life’ video shoots of 1983 and 1984 respectively. But there’s one picture reminding you of that time of pre-fame: Freddie and John at Trident studios during the making of the band’s eponymous debut album in 1972.

As the exhibition coincides with a short season – finishing a month before the exhibition does - of the musical ‘We Will Rock You’ at the nearby Coliseum Theatre, there are a few pictures of that show that you can view before heading for the staircase to the basement; on the way down, I spent some seconds taking in the continuity of the exhibits, before being greeted at the bottom by a plastic prototype of the 1977 ‘New of the World’ album’s robot, Frank, fulfilling its promotional function of cradling the LP for display purposes…and then there’s Brian’s smiling mum Ruth showing off the programme made for the premiere of the ‘Flash Gordon’ movie in December 1980 (for which Queen had provided the soundtrack), evidencing the original black and red artwork which was rapidly ditched in favour of the well-known bright yellow.

The basement focuses on Queen after Freddie: there’s one photo of Brian playing ‘God Save the Queen’ on the roof of Buckingham Palace in 2002; another providing brief glimpse of the subsequent concert collaboration with Paul Rodgers from 2005; and numerous shots of the extant one, now over ten years old, with Adam Lambert, many of which capture the versatility of the current Queen lead singer’s stage presence, as he’s seen striking a variety of poses. These, of course, weren’t taken by Brian himself – in addition, notably, there are plenty of superb snaps of him, and Roger too, in action. One photo shows Brian in the context of his solo collaboration with singer Kerry Ellis, taken for their 2017 album ‘Golden Days’, and another from the same year presents a line-up of the cast who played the four members of Queen in the ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ movie. Even this floor, though, is not without its flashbacks: we’re also treated to three shots of Brian as a boy, when his lifelong passion for stereo photography was first ignited.

The exhibition continues until 23rd September, with part of the proceeds from entry tickets supporting the animal welfare charity ‘Save Me’, established by Brian together with Anne Brummer. And remember – stereoscopic equipment, mostly in the form of LITE Owls, is provided for your viewing pleasure! There’s also a shop selling a range of stereo-themed books (including  'Queen in 3D' itself) and equipment: who knows – you might come away with one of those Owl VR kits, and like, me, finish up with a metal slab on the back of your phone as an ever-present memento of your visit!

© Alison Sesi, 2023.