London Theatre Guide: Miss Saigon
It's been a while since I last wrote a London Living post - so let's have a little break from dentistry!
Last weekend my mum came down to visit as I had promised her tickets to see the musical Miss Saigon for her Christmas present.
We saw this musical about 10 years ago when it was on tour in Nottingham but I have found that touring companies are slightly less polished than when a play or musical is performed in a more permanent venue.
I swear theatre tickets used to be cheaper than they are nowadays and it has been a while since I went to the theatre, certainly in London (I think it must have been the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night time back in 2013). But I found out a way I could get discounted tickets.
Some theatres have day tickets or stand-by tickets which you can only buy on the day of the performance and they only usually have a limited number available. I managed to get to the theatre half an hour before the box office opened in the morning but there was already a substantial queue outside! Luckily I was able to get two very good tickets at the bargain price of £20 each - the downside being we couldn't sit directly next to each other.
You'd probably have to get to the theatre pretty early in the morning on a Saturday to get tickets sitting together!
The view of the stage from where I was sitting |
The story is set during the Vietnam war and tells of a love story between a Vietnamese bargirl called Kim and an American GI called Chris whose relationship is torn apart by the American withdrawal from Vietnam during the fall of Saigon in 1975.
We were not disappointed with the London performance. The opening brothel scene is one of my favourites and is really effective, making you feel awkward and uncomfortable with the exploitation of the young women of Vietnam during the war.
The scene both me and mum were really looking forward to was the helicopter scene - having been disappointed with the flat projection of the helicopter 10 years ago we were blown away when the back wall opened up and real-life helicopter pod emerged!
I would definitely recommend Miss Saigon if you're looking for an exciting, thought-provoking and sometimes emotional west end show to see in London! Let's just say mum was in tears when I found her after the curtain went down!
Have you seen Miss Saigon? Would you recommend it? What are your thoughts about the show? Please leave your comments in the section below!
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