Hello world! Welcome back to another blog. Today I will be talking about my review of Opening Night, which I saw on 3rd April 2024 at the Gielgud Theatre in London starring the brilliant Sheridan Smith.
This was based off of the film with the same name which tells the story of and cast and crew of the second woman written by Sarah Goode and a documentary crew come and capture the process. Not only does leading actress Myrtle Gordon struggle to connect to the play due to her character being Seinfeld by age in her opinion, and having her ex Maurice being her opposite co-star, but after witnessing fan Nancy getting hit by a car, she starts seeing the ghost of her, which also shows projections of myrtles youth she fears she’s loosing. And as this intensifies, will myrtle and the rest of the cast achieve a perfect opening night?
The cast were all flawless. So here are a few stand outs.
The first one of course was the incredible Sheridan Smith. With Smith herself you get what you see. And to see her live was honestly a dream come true. She was able to capture the emotional tension within the character of myrtle and that how she can make herself cry without taking over the body is incredible. Seeing her live has officially been ticked off a thing off of my bucket list and I’ve never been happier.
There were other characters that stood out to me. These included Shira Hass who played fan Nancy. I felt that before her death she felt lost and alone but Myrtle helped her cope. And that after she died and took over myrtles life, she was able to brainwash her into thinking that she needs Nancy in order to have some youth in her is sinister but definitely hooks you in. And I wouldn’t want to mess with her that’s for sure.
Nicola Hughes who played Sarah Goode was also a star. She took on the role of the playwright brilliantly, and just like every playwright, making the actor see the true intentions of what they do what they do, and show that as Myrtle will see later on, realise that they have alot more in common than they thought. And I must say I’m the finale of Act 1, her voice was just impeccable, and that the reason why Sarah wrote the play and how Nicola was able to absorb that feeling is just flawless.
Hadley Fraser played the role of director Manny. I had mixed opinions about this character, as even though he cares so much about the play and wants to bring out best in myrtle and the rest of the actors (as seen in the song “The Pantomime"), I feel that he’s taking his marriage to Dorothee (played by the talented Amy Lennox) for granted. This can also be seen in the song “Marriage” which Dorothy sung, where I think that even though the moment between Myrtle and Manny was a moment of madness, I think he does secretly love her more than Dorothy. But giving what’s happened to myrtle and how she’s feeling, he wouldn’t want to add any extra pressure on her. Which for me shows chivalry at its finest, but also shows that for the sake of his reputation as a director, he knew that things like this should be kept a secret.
The final character that stood out was Maurice played by Benjamin Walker. I couldn’t imagine working with a constant who’s also your ex, band I think both Maurice and myrtle knew that it would be awkward. Even though I don’t know the full reason as to why they broke up it there was one key thing towards the end of the play that myrtle did which without giving any spoilers, I think said it all. But at the end how they got everything together and performed The Second Woman showed true professionalism, and that Maurice’s solo song “Trojan Woman” really gave off why this play was so important to him. So for that I’d say well done Benjamin.
As this was a play within a play, and that it was also based off of a film set, it really got the flavour of that it was a documentary. They had screens on the front of the stage and at the sides so that you can see the genuine facial expressions up close so you don’t have to zoom in on their faces. what also interests me in that setting was that in screen acting you can’t be too over the top and be more naturalistic. but in stage, you need to be more open to reach the audience. So I would’ve loved to know the process on finding the balance to make it as theatrical as possible but knowing that a screen would be shown keep it as natural as possible.
The songs in the show were the first time I’ve heard them, but they’re easily not forgettable.
The first song was "Magic", which was Sheridan's first solo in the show. It really sets up the mood of the play and what the character goes through in her role as an actor. I thought this song was a catchy one and definitely one I would sing along to if I needed a pick me up. I couldn't find the soundtrack on YouTube for some reason, but I'm hoping it goes on there soon as it finishes.
"Life is Thin" is another song that stood out and it was towards the end of act 1. The vocals Sarah produced on the song was mind blowing, and you could see the feeling on Sarah’s facial expressions when myrtle tried to change it up. I think it also showed Sarah’s disappointment and that because the topic, maybe it was based off of Sarah’s life and her fear of aging, and that even though myrtle refused to go with the original idea, it would be disappointing Sarah as she wanted to tell other women her age that if anyone else was feeling like she was, then they knew that they were not alone.
"Makes Me Wonder" was another moment that I liked. It had a little bit of humour to kid up the tone and it also showed that Sarah and myrtle are alot more alike than they thought. And sometimes it’s moments like this where you can get new inspirations from and that those unexpected moments and encounters will develop steady strong relationships or form new ones in the process.
The final song that stood out to me was "Ready For Battle". This was moments before the cast present the play, and myrtles mental health takes a turn for the worse. And this was also one that nearly had me in tears, as this just goes to show that so many actors like her are fighting a battle that no one else sees but yet they’re still willing to do a excellent job on the project they’ve worked so hard for.
I think the only thing that let the side down was the strobe lighting. As someone on the autistic spectrum sensory overload is a major trait. And there was one moment where Myrtle had a mental breakdown after seeing Nancy from the dead. I get that they wanted to show what a breakdown can look like and they did have a warning on there, but for me it didn’t do any justice. And when the breakdown was over my eyes were all over the place.
Overall I would give the show a 4.95. It was a different to what I saw, and as mentioned before the strobe lighting didn’t do me any justice. But it showed the reality of prepping for a new project and that not everything you see on social media or on tv is the same as behind close doors.
I hope you enjoyed this review. If you want to see the show for yourself then please see the link below where it’s on until 18th May this year. And the sooner you book the better, as for those that have seen it you’ll see why it’s a big hit in London: Home - Opening Night The Musical (openingnightmusical.com)
See you soon for another blog. Until next time…
This is The Autistic Actress signing off :)
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