Jersey Boys Theatre Breaks in London

I watched theatregoers young and old coming out of the Prince Edward Theatre into Greek Street one summer evening and they were all oozing with enthusiasm for the show. So what may have seemed an unlikely musical for the London audiences has in fact turned out to be a strong favourite for theatre breaks. The Jersey Boys is the story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons which captures the heady rush to stardom of a group of ordinary boys, and that’s the kind of story which, when done well, can take the audience on a journey that pulls all the emotions in succession. For people of the right age, just the sound of the music is highly evocative but for those too young to remember, the catchy tunes and rich harmonies quickly provoke the same, fingersnapping sense of fun.

Soho Theatre Breaks with the Jersey Boys

The fabulous Art Deco Prince Edward Theatre is right in the centre of London’s theatreland, by old Compton Street and Greek Street in the lively Soho area where the nightlife buzzes and a myriad of different cultures converge in the streets, shops and pavement bars.

You might try and get a hotel as close to the centre as possible, to take advantage of the freedom afforded by being able to stroll back to the quiet comfort of your private room at whatever time feel inclined to retire. The Strand Palace down by Charing Cross, St Giles Hotel up at Tottenham Court Road or any of the Drury Lane hotels would be perfect. The whole area is brimming with little bistros and restaurants all doing pre-theatre and post-theatre menus as well so whether you book in advance to eat at the hotel or else wander the streets until somewhere takes your fancy you’ll be guaranteed to find something to suit all tastes. Try not to spend too long making your mind up though!

Jersey Boys Cast

The London cast of Jersey Boys are all very talented singers and performers in their own right, and have got the Four Seasons’ sound down to a tee. They do also have a strong following amongst female fans who seem to split along lines of opinion as to which Jersey Boy is the best looking, but don’t worry – there are plenty of very attractive Jersey Girls in the stage show as well, and there are many more than just the main stars on stage for the breathtakingly choreographed set pieces.

Jersey Boys at West End Live

This promotional video follows the Jersey Boys backstage as they prepare for the West End Live event in 2008 and gives a great idea of the rapport and fun between the cast that undoubtedly helps to make the show the success it has become, putting Jersey Boys Theatre Breaks at the top of the London visitors choices.

Click here to view the embedded video.

** book Jersey Boys Theatre Breaks  **

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Well it’s Saturday night and West End Live is half way through. There were some great shows on today in Leicester Square all to promote the West End and provide some free entertainment for the London crowd at the same time. Highlights sp far have been a good three song set from a big cast from We Will Rock You , always a high energy show, the lovely duet from The King And I and this performance from Jodie Prenger as Nancy from Oliver! who sang as if she thought she needed to win I’d do Anything all over again!

Click here to view the embedded video.

If you keep an eye on the Theatre Breaks youtube stream you’ll catch a glimpse of Patina Miller and sisters from Sister Act and also Jerry Springer in Chicago!

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West End Live 2009 Saturday 20th June

11.05 Hairspray

11.15 Been So Long

11.30 Wicked

11.40 Dirty Dancing

11.55 The King and I

12.05 Oliver!

12.15 Sister Act

12.25 We Will Rock You

12.45 Priscilla Queen of the Desert

12.50 Chicago

13.10 Jersey Boys

13.30 Thriller Live

13.50 Forbidden Broadway

14.05 The Sylvia Young Theatre School

14.25 The South Bank Centre presents ‘Tom Tom Crew’

14.45 Little Big Club

15.10 So Jest End

15.25 Avenue Q

15.45 Zanna Don’t

16.05 The London Gay Men’s Chorus

16.30 Too Close to the Sun

16.50 Faithless Bitches

17.05 The KB Fusionnaires

17.45 La Cage Aux Folles

17.55 Stomp

West End Live Sunday 21st June

12.00 Stomp

12.15 Little Big Club

12.35 West End Kids

12.55 Jersey Boys

13.15 Thriller Live

13.35 Noise Ensemble

13.55 Zanna Don’t

14.10 Honk!

14.20 SOLT – Competition

14.25 Royal Albert Hall presents ‘The Red Stripe Band’

15.05 Chinatown Arts Space Presents ‘TheBathroomGirl’

15.25 Bar Rumba presents ‘Salsateca’

15.40 Players Theatre presents ‘Victorian Music Hall’

15.55 National Youth Music Theatre

16.10 Lord Mayor of Westminster’s West End LIVE presentations

16.20 Octave8 presents ‘Yot.K’

16.50 Dover Street Restaurant and Jazz Bar presents ‘The Blues Engineers’

17.25 Ain’t Nothin But Blues Bar present the ‘West Western Bluesonics’

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West End Live Quick Update

West End Live, has grown in just three years to become the world’s largest free theatre festival, taking over the whole of Leicester Square for one weekend, this year from 11am to 6pm on Saturday 20 June and from noon to 6pm on Sunday 21 June.

Amongst the performers from West End shows the crowd of more than 150,000 expected visitors will be entertained by Jerry Springer from Chicago and Jodie Prenger from Oliver
Latest confirmed shows according to the official web site include:
Avenue Q,
Been So Long,
La Cage Aux Folles,
Carousel,
Chicago,
Dirty Dancing,
Hairspray,
Jersey Boys,
Oliver!,
Priscilla Queen of The Desert,
Sister Act,
Stomp,
Thriller Live,
Too Close To The Sun,
We Will Rock You,
Wicked

OOh I can’t wait! It was great last year but this looks even better!
Be there:
Leicester Square on the weekend of the 20th and 21st of June 2009!

Other Performers include:

• The Tom Tom Crew
• Salsateca
• Little Big Club
• Noise Ensemble
• London Gay Men’s Chorus
• The Players Theatre

Sideshow Exhibitors include:

• Postman Pat and Jess,
• Bob The Builder/Angelina Ballerina and Barney,
• Little Angel Puppet Theatre,
• Greasepaint,
• BFI,
• Forbidden Planet,
• Cartoon Museum,
• Science Museum,
• Royal Historic Palaces,
• Ripley’s Believe it or Not Odditorium,
• Victoria Albert Museum
• Chinatown showcase

All on Saturday 20 June and Sunday 21 June 2009.

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West End Live 2009 will take place on Saturday the 20th (11am to 6pm) and Sunday the 21st of June (12noon to 6pm). The venue will be Leicester Square.

This is the 5th annual West End Live and promises to be even bigger and better than last year’s extravaganza.

Although there’s no official running order or confirmations yet it seems likely we can expect to see performances from new shows like Priscilla and SIster Act as well as several of the more established favourites. As ever there will be some extracts from new off West End shows as well.

As soon as I hear what the running order will be I’ll post it here so you can plan your trip to be sure of seeing favourites. I really want to see Sister Act!

West End Live 2008

Last year’s West End Live was fantastic and well worth putting up with the crowds.

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Betwixt

One of the benefits from West End Live 2008 was an opportunity to peek at a new musical comedy called Betwixt. This show played at the Kings Head Theatre during June and is looking for a new home. There was a video excerpt from an american TV show on which the writers and actors talk about the fun they had putting the comedy musical show together.

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The Jersey Boys were a hit at West End Live on both Saturday and Sunday, giving a taste of their popular show to a happy audience in Leicester Square. Here’s a video from the Saturday

The stars of the show clearly enjoyed playing to an outdoor crowd for a change but had to hurry back to the Prince Edward theatre straight afterwards.

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Saturday’s West End Live lineup included so many class acts with full chorus lines, great songs, singing and dance choreography, performed as little set pieces from some of the best London musicals.

One in particular showed how a just a few minutes glimpse of a live act can give a really good idea of why it would be hugely enjoyable to go and see the full show at the theatre, and that was Buddy. These boys have so much energy, talent and showmanship you know you are just going to have a ball throughout the entire theatre show.

Many thanks to ‘flumpduck‘ for capturing Buddy on video, and for sharing West End Live 2008 pictures and video with the London Theatre Flickr group

** Book Buddy Holly Theatre Breaks **

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West End LIVE 2008 is a free family event taking place outdoors in Leicester Square, London on Saturday 21st and Sunday 22nd June. The entertainment kicks off at 11am on Saturday morning and again at 12noon on the Sunday with plenty of top acts packed in to the line up on the huge main stage. Most of the West End’s top shows will be presenting full cast excerpts from the shows with several songs and dances from each during the day.

Here is the running order, which is likely to stick pretty closely to the following schedule. If you are able to make it, have a great day out and do please share any photos and short videos taken in the London Theatre Flickr group or similar, posting links in the comments below. Cheers.

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West End LIVE 2008 is a free outdoor event taking place in Leicester Square this coming Saturday 21st and Sunday 22nd June. From 11am on Saturday and 12noon Sunday, the best of what the West End has to offer is showcased live in front of an audience of anybody who is in the area or can make the time to drop by.

For the running order on both Saturday and Sunday please see our new post: West End Live 2008 Running Order

The spectacle includes performances from many of the top West End shows, alongside other great musical acts and some interactive displays and exhibits from London’s Museums and attractions.

For further details you could try visiting www.westendlive.co.uk but when I went the spectacular scrolling banner display at the top froze my browser for minutes before I could regain control so you might want to read the page at Show and Stay’s Theatre News instead.

Shows performing on the main stage:
The 39 Steps
Avenue Q
Brief Encounter
Buddy
Chicago
Dickens Unplugged
Dirty Dancing
Divas
Grease
High School Musical
Into The Hoods
Jersey Boys
Joseph
The Lord of the Rings
Mamma Mia!
Never Forget
The Sound of Music
Stomp
We Will Rock You
Wicked

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