#idea belongs to westendquiz on instagram

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Musical Advent Day 7

Favourite Musical Actor

Aaron Tveit

Aaron is my second most frequent tag on this blog so that says a lot, and he's also the one whose songs I listen to when I'm happy and want that *Broadway feel*.

Most often, I consider his portrayal of any role the "definitive" one. His voice is just so smooth and I love all of his acting choices, he makes the roles so much his own while not letting too much of his dorky self slip in. He's a guy who can portray Danny Zuko and Enjolras, Roger and Bobby, Christian and Gabe Goodman perfectly. I can't even count all the times I've listened to I'm Alive, Goodbye, Come What May or Take Me Or Leave Me. That guy. I really hope I'll get to see him perform some day.

A selection of his roles:

Link Larkin, Hairspray, Broadway

Fiyero, Wicked, Broadway

Gabe, Next to Normal, Broadway

Frank Abagnale Jr, Catch Me If You Can, Broadway

John Wilkes Booth, Assassins, MCF

Bobby, Company, BSC

Christian, Moulin Rouge, Broadway

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Musical Advent Day 14

Musical Song You're Currently Obsessed With

All I've Ever Known (Hadestown)

The new music video for this song is just beautiful, so romantic, and something I didn't expect to love this much? It's perfect. Wow I adore Hadestown, Eva, Reeve, and everyone involved in this production.

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Musical Advent Day 8

Favourite Musical Actress

Laura Michelle Kelly

If you've been following me for a while, you definitely know that she's my absolute favourite and has been since late 2015.

She's an incredible performer who lives each and every one of her characters, with a voice like sunshine and an unlimited amount of talent. On top of that she's got a wonderful personality and is known for spreading joy among fellow cast members and caring a lot for her family, friends and fans.

I'm running fan accounts for her here on Tumblr @everything-lauramkelly and on Instagram @ everything_lauramkelly.

A selection of her roles:

Éponine, Les Misérables, West End

Eliza Doolittle, My Fair Lady, West End

Hodel, Fiddler on the Roof, Broadway

Mary Poppins, West End & Broadway

Galadriel, Lord of the Rings, West End

Sylvia, Finding Neverland, Broadway

Anna Leonowens, King and I, US Tour

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Musical Advent Day 4

Soundtrack(s) On Repeat

Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 (Original Broadway Cast Recording 2017) & The Lord of the Rings (Original London Cast Recording 2008)

The only CDs in my car at the moment, and I'm not planning on changing them anytime soon, I love them too much right now. I don't really listen to music when I'm not driving.

Songs I ALWAYS repeat at least once are No One Else, Dust and Ashes, Letters, Preparations-Balaga-Abduction (Great Comet) and Lothlorien, Now and For Always, The Siege of the City of Kings, Wonder (LotR).

Fun facts:

(1) The Lord of the Rings was the second cast recording I ever bought, after School of Rock.

(2) The LotR cast recording has an orange cover, which I found very unsettling after having listened to YouTube uploads with a blue background for some time. Orange doesn't really fit LotR in my opinion. The CDs themselves are super pretty though!

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Musical Advent Day 18

Show You Know All the Words to Off by Heart

Hamilton & Great Comet

... or rather, used to, in 2016 and 2017 (only 2017 for GC). Both are sung-through musicals, so it's easy to learn all the words by listening to the cast recording. Over time, I forgot A LOT. I wish I'd still remember every single word, but I'm grateful for all the new shows and songs I've discovered and learnt to love.

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Musical Advent Day 19

Musical Dream Role

Sonya (Great Comet)

"Sofia Alexandrovna Rostova!"

- "You must call me Sonya..."

Let's be real, I won't have play any role in any musical - I can't sing, I can't act, I can't dance, and I have no desire to perform on a stage in front of an audience. Still - if I were to choose from the immeasurable pool of fascinating female musical theatre roles, I'd pick Sonya from Great Comet.

Sonya is a character I personally find very relatable, and she's helped me through a lot. Her "big solo", Sonya Alone, is one of my favourite musical songs as well.

"I will protect your name and your heart because I miss my friend. Because I miss my friend. Because I miss you - my friend..."

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Musical Advent Day 22

Favourite Show of the Year

Hadestown

I LOVE Greek mythology and I'm also a big fan of Eva Noblezada, and since Rachel Chavkin and Amber Gray, who were involved with Great Comet, are part of this show, I was BOUND to be interested in it.

It's great - incredibly creative, and a breath of fresh air. The worthiest recipient of the Tony Award for Best New Musical in a very long time.

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Musical Advent Day 1

First Musical I've Seen

The Phantom of the Opera (Gerber & Wilhelm)

Despite having seen Drei Wünsche Frei and Bibi Blocksberg as a kid, this production of Phantom was the first musical I've seen live "consciously".

I saw it in early 2016, either January und February, with my grandma. I didn't expect an ALW-level musical, but having read the novel by Gaston Leroux, I was very optimistic about the show.

I've talked about my experience in more detail here on Tumblr (I'll insert the link to the post eventually), but one thing should be said still: It was the worst experience I've had in a theatre in my life, which says a lot because I've seen a lot of plays I didn't like one bit.

I do absolutely not recommend watching this musical. Save your money!

[emeraldskulblaka]

Musical Advent Day 17

Show You Waited the Longest to See

Hamilton

I bought the tickets in January 2017 and saw the show in April 2018. Worth it!

I feel like Hamilton is often being written off as that show that was really popular in 2015/16 with an awful fandom, but there's so much more to it. It has a great score, fantastic choreography, a captivating story and incredible performers. It IS, or rather, WAS, a bit over-hyped, that's true, but it's a really good musical.

If you don't know it yet and think it's too late to check it out anyway - please do yourself a favour and LISTEN TO IT.

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Musical Advent Day 6

Last Show You Saw

Die fabelhafte Welt der Amélie

München/Munich, Germany

19th October 2019, evening

Sandra Leitner (Amélie Poulain), Andreas Bongard (Nino Quincampoix), Rob Pelzer (Raymond Dufayel/Collignon), Dorina Maltschewa (Amandine Poulain/Philomene), Stephan Bürgi (Raphael Poulain/Bretodeau), Fleur Alders (Georgette/Sylvie), Kira Primke (Gina), Christine Rothacker (Suzanne), Emanuel Jessel (u/s Joseph/Adrien Wallace), Charles Kreische (u/s Hipolito/Elton John/Gartenzwerg), Daniel Wagner (u/s Lucien/Pottwal/Mysterious Man)

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Musical Advent Day 2

First Musical I Was In

Drei Wünsche Frei

The first musical I was in, and the only one I'll ever be in I guess!

I was part of the ensemble and the choir of my elementary school's production when I was seven or eight.

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Musical Advent Day 13

First Musical Song You Fell In Love With

The Phantom of the Opera (The Phantom of the Opera)

This post ties in with Musical Advent Day 3! I first discovered this song when I listened to Kendra Masonchuck and Chance Bemmer's cover, and went on to look for the "original" version. I don't know how many times I've watched this BRIT Awards video. I still love the Title Song now, but upon learning that it's usually not sung live, my enthusiasm began to diminish...

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Musical Advent Day 11

Show You've Watched On YouTube

Wicked & Finding Neverland

I've obviously watched a lot of musicals on YouTube, but these two were the first videos I watched all the way through before I got into trading. For Wicked, it was a Broadway video with Donna Vivino as Elphaba and Alli Mauzey as Glinda, and for Finding Neverland, it was pre-Broadway August 2014 with Jeremy Jordan as J. M. Barrie. I LOVED both of them.

Other musicals I watched on YouTube either in clips or because I was too lazy to download the VOBs: Hamilton, Evita, The Secret Garden, The Phantom of the Opera, Les Misérables, Great Comet, Dear Evan Hansen, Waitress, Oklahoma, Miss Saigon, and many more

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Musical Advent Day 10

Show(s) You've Seen the Most Times

It's a draw between Company, Mamma Mia, Phantom of the Opera and Les Misérables! I've seen them two times each.

Company

West End, 22nd February and 23rd February 2019 (mat)

I'd only booked a ticket for the 23rd, but when I collected it the day before, the box office guy asked me if I was interested in seeing it that day as well, and I couldn't say no o.O it was a good decision because I got to see Rosalie Craig as Bobbie on the 22nd and Jennifer Saayeng on the 23rd, so that was cool (and I had really wanted to see Rosie so I'm glad I made that decision).

Mamma Mia

Munich (German Tour), 25th August 2018 (eve), and West End, 30th August 2019

The only musical I've seen in two languages! While I don't like the German lyrics that much, people weren't able to sing along, so that was a HUGE plus for the German tour. London was a pretty spontaneous decision - I'd gone to Holborn to take photos of the theatres in the area (and to see the Royal, Drury Lane because LotR, you know) when some guy told me they were selling 10£ tickets to Mamma Mia, so I went in twenty minutes before the start of the show. It was great, but I liked the German cast better 🙃

The Phantom of the Opera

West End, 23rd February 2019 (eve) and 31st August 2019 (mat)

I only went to see it a second time because of Amy Manford, let's be real. I'm glad I did because I was able to enjoy the show a LOT more in August, even though I had worse seats than in February. For some reason I couldn't see the stage properly, the people around me were annoying, and it didn't quite live up to my expectations. Looking back, I wish I'd paid more attention to the Phantom - Adam Robert Lewis. What I remember from his performance is fantastic, and his voice is my favourite Phantom voice ever. (I didn't really like Tim Howar in August. Angry little sewer goblin.)

Les Misérables

West End, 31st March 2018 (mat, Queen's) and 2nd September 2019 (Gielgud)

All my wishes came true when I saw Killian Donnelly as JVJ :) The show was everything I hoped it would be, so I was afraid I wouldn't enjoy the staged concert this year. No need for that - JOJ is the best, and I got to see and meet so many West End stars, and it was LES MIS so 10/10 perfect decision. Sitting next to the sound desk was very interesting as well, and practical because I could sneak out quickly during the interval and after the performance to avoid the queues yay

West End shows are much more affordable once you're in London... The only show I'll see again in Germany is Tanz der Vampire. And seeing non-Stage Entertainment shows again when I liked them the first time usually isn't possible as they tend to be tours that sell out quickly, or I'd have to travel to another city which I'm not the biggest fan of. I'd have seen Saturday Night Fever again in a heartbeat (for Filippo Strocchi), but that was sold out. Well.

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Musical Advent Day 9

Favourite Ever West End Live Performance

- Les Mis 2019! Or any Les Mis performance. I love 2016, 2017 and 2018 as well.

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Musical Advent Day 3

First Soundtrack You Loved

The Phantom of the Opera (25th Anniversary Soundtrack)

Since I got into Phantom via Kendra Masonchuck and Chance Bemmer's cover of the Title Song and the second thing to come up when you look for "Phantom of the Opera" on YouTube is the BRIT Awards performance, I was bound to come across this cast recording with Sierra Boggess and Ramin Karimloo.

Sierra singing Think of Me even made an appearance in my dreams.

Here's the soundtrack on YouTube