As a child, I used to sit on the floor in front of the TV watching the King and I on a Sunday. I would drool over the dresses and the singing and dancing. So when I heard the production was making the way to Sunderland on its UK tour I immediately told my mum we HAVE to go.
The scene is set in Bangkok and takes us back to the 1800s. It tells the story of the King and his many wives and children and teaches us how people live very different across the world. Yet, we are all the same!
The King although very stubborn is charming and funny! He is at the front of the unconventional relationships that occur throughout the show however it’s hard to ow fall for him in the end. As a child I always expected the king to have a baldy head, just like in the movie. This king did not. But was the perfect fit for the role.
His many wives were beautiful however his head wife had the voice of an angel and was exceptionally talented at acting and singing.
There are lots of women in this show so expect to see lots of beautiful costumes. 300 hundred in fact with over 2500 metres of fabric.
It would be easy to think that was used in Lady Anna’s dresses alone. How she carried herself over 3 hours of acting, dancing and singing in her corset and caged dresses was remarkable.
Did you know her dress was 40 Lbs and had a circumference of 14feet?
Yet she seemed to do with ease and perfection. Anna was played by the wonderful Annalene Beechey who I truly think was born for this role. She was stunning! Her voice was so soft and soothing, I could listen to her sing and talk all day.
As far as the cast went, I felt like I was so engrossed in the story and in love with each and every character that I forgot these were actors. They worked together so well that it was effortless and what is a 3-hour show seemed 5 minutes.
It wouldn’t be a Richard and Hammerstein Broadway performance without the famous Shall we dance?, Whistle a happy tune and getting to know your songs. The audience was full of ages and I could hear them humming along to the classical tunes we have all known for years.
The show is here until the 15th of June 2019 and you can get your tickets HERE
Trust me you don’t want to miss this!
*Gifted tickets
