Miss Saigon Bristol Hippodrome Review

Miss Saigon
Bristol Hippodrome
18/05/2018

It’s almost impossible to find the words to describe the refreshed and revived touring production of Miss Saigon, currently on at The Bristol Hippodrome.

It’s a juggernaut of a show. This is not your average touring production. This is full-scale West End musical theatre expertly fitted into the Bristol Hippodrome in just three days. The technical aspects were ovation worthy in their own right and the powerful cast moved me to tears by the second song, such was the impact of the performance.

Based on Puccini’s tragic Madam Butterfly and transposed into Miss Saigon by Les Misérables creators Cameron Mackintosh, Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, it’s a show that pulls the audience through an emotional wringer.

This new show is better than the original I saw at London’s Theatre Royal in Drury Lane, in the early 90s. Labelling it as musical theatre is a disservice. It cannot be described as such. This is high impact musical drama that doesn’t shy away from making fresh, unspoken judgement on terrible acts of both war and humanity. It sets its cart out straight away, bombs fall and explode around the innocent 17-year-old Kim – played by Sooha Kim – who has walked into a hell.

Bruno Poet’s lighting focuses the audience’s attention to all the right places. From dirty street scenes to the brassy Saigon bars. The military precision and totalitarian Ho Chi Minh City (former Saigon) to the excess of the American Dream showtime.

Between the lighting, direction, set design and high quality slick technical team, the show has a visually cinematic feel. With the drama on stage – which has always been culturally sensitive – you could have heard a pin drop in the auditorium. This is an epic scale show that has perfection and high standards from the top down.

Initially, I had baulked at some of the ticket prices for the show, but you can see where the money goes and what a difference it makes when you have producers that don’t plump for the cheaper options. The famous helicopter scene doesn’t disappoint. It’s full size and dominates the stage. Moving the scene to an Act 2 flashback was a brilliant move for sustaining the action throughout. You would be hard-pressed to see a show of this quality touring the country for a long time.

Whilst the Vietnam War was always a key part of this show, in this production you feel the tragedy on a much larger scale. It’s not just a tragic love story, there’s an urgency, desperation and rawness from start to finish.

Aicelle Santos’ Gigi raging through The Movie in My Mind was hard hitting and beautifully performed. As was Ryan O’Gorman’s Bui Doi. This was a particularly affecting number, which tapping away on my keyboard this morning in a position of privilege really hit home. So much tragedy.

That’s why Red Concepción’s The Engineer was a welcome relief. Despite being a sleazy hustler, he provides the much needed comic moments.

You can almost imagine the Mumsnet post on the internet from Elana Martin’s Ellen:

Dear Mumsnet, Am I Being Unreasonable to kick out my husband. I’ve just discovered he has a secret wife and son from military service in Saigon. His other wife wants me to take on her son but I don’t want to. I want my own children. Am I wrong?

What a thankless role Ellen must be, but Elana manages to find the inner turmoil necessary to stop the character from being a complete cow. Although the way she swoops in with new found Disney dad Chris – Ashley Gilmour – to take Tam prior to Kim’s suicide is particularly galling at the end.

Of course, this is Kim’s story, played by Sooha Kim with innocence, gritty determination and anguish.

You Will Not Touch Him – every autism parent’s meeting with a school headteacher – was an incredible moment. Little Harvey Ip as Tam, the innocent in the sordid world, received the biggest cheer of the night at curtain call.

I thought this touring production of Miss Saigon was going to be an enjoyable nostalgia moment. A throwback to a time of epic 90’s musicals that they don’t really make anymore. I couldn’t have been more wrong. This was hard-hitting, perfectly crafted theatre that took the audience on an emotional roller coaster.

It’s at The Bristol Hippodrome until Saturday 23 June 2018. Go and see it, then go and see it again while you have the chance.

www.atgtickets.com/Bristol

 

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