Theatre Breaks by Coach, Rail or Self Drive
The Wizard of Oz
The Wizard of Oz is Andrew Lloyd Webber’s new adaptation of the musical classic with Danielle Hope from Over The Rainbow as Dorothy, and Sophie Evans standing in on Tuesdays and holidays.
Previews in March 2011, Wizard of Oz opens in April 2011
| Contents |
| Over the Rainbow – the final 7 |
| Bronte is not Dorothy |
| Over the Rainbow – the judges |
| Over the Rainbow Programme 2 |
Over the Rainbow – the final 7
The search for Dorothy
Over the Rainbow, the BBC’s search for a Dorothy for The Wizard of Oz, moves into a more serious phase now. We’ve said goodbye to Dani Rayner and Emilie Fleming. You can read more about them and their departure on the Wizard of Oz London blog. Now we are on to the really hard stuff. There 7 girls left and every single one of them is a potential star.
She could still be Dorothy
These girls are tightrope walking without a net, the slightest falter and they are gone. The standard is so high in this competition I’m convinced we are now watching the start of at least 4 classic West End leading ladies careers and 2 possible pop divas!
Here they all are performing this week’s mash-up:
So, in classic Over the Rainbow style, here are the remaining contestants in no particular order:
Danielle Hope, 17, from Manchester
I like Danielle. I thought she would do well but I was not sure at first about her voice. Well, now I am sure! She could be Dorothy. Her voice is much better than I’d realised and she has a great tone combined with real power and strength in ballads. She can act too and her dancing is pretty good. More than any of that she has star quality and I think she could be a long term West End hit.
Jenny Douglas, 18, from Scotland
Jenny is cute and attractive. She’s got a smashing voice and a great quirky quality. Her dancing is coming on and she is definitely still in the running. If it doesn’t work out for her I think she’d make a super pop singer. I disagreed with the panel and enjoyed her version of Warwick Avenue!
Lauren Samuels, 22, from London
I love being proved wrong! I wasn’t that keen on Lauren but she’s really grown on me. Great voice, good dancer, nice acting skills. I think that even if she’s not Dorothy,(and she may well be!) she’ll still go far. I think she’ll be in the top 5
Sophie Evans, 17, from Wales
Well, Andy said “She’s Welsh, of course she can sing” but I’m afraid we’re just not hearing it at the moment. She’s got it all there, singing, dancing even acting but she seems to be holding back. I think she’s a bit overwhelmed, poor kid. I fear she’s the weak link at the moment and was lucky that Andrew Lloyd Webber saved her. Personally, based on the sing-off, I would have saved Emilie!
Stephanie Davis, 17, from Merseyside
Stephanie has a great voice and good dancing skills. Full of life, warmth and energy. She’d make a charming Dorothy and I expect her to be in the top 5. If not she’s going to have a great career anyway either on stage or as a recording artist. Love that voice, as Charlotte Church said “I could listen to you sing the phone book!” I do wonder about her acting range but only because she’s not really had chance to show us.
Jessica Robinson, 18, from Middlesborough
Great face, something of the Liza Minnelli or maybe Lorna Luft there. Little bit gawky and awkward sometimes, and so were they at her age. She going to be a star. I’m not totally sure she’s Dorothy but watch this space. This girl will go far. I’d love to see her do musical comedy but there’s more depth to her than just that.
Steph Fearon, 21, from London
Good voice, good dancer, nice acting skills, great on stage presence. Steph can still be a little bit too R&B sometimes but she’s got to be a contender. She is becoming a real favourite and she’s got the maturity to handle a huge production resting on her shoulders.
The Wizard of Oz and the Search for Dorothy Continues
I’ve really been enjoying the programmes this time. As far as reality casting TV goes this show must be the best they’ve done. Andy’s been collecting all the videos over on The Wizard of Oz London blog so if you’ve missed anything, or you just want to see something again you can find them there.
Who’s your favourite?
Bronte is not Dorothy
The search for the perfect Dorothy for Andrew Lloyd Webber’s forthcoming production of the Wizard of Oz continued in Over the Rainbow this weekend.
The latest hopeful to hand back her silver shoes (don’t get me started on how weird that is!) was Bronte Barbe. I felt really sorry for her as she’d obviously not expected to go out so early. I thought she was a good bet for the top 5 (so did ALW!) but the public vote disagreed.
Bronte Barbe
Bronte comes from Macclesfield, a quiet, sensible town at the edge of the Peak District. It’s not quite Kansas but I expect it sometimes feels like it to someone like Bronte! She lives there with her Mum, sister and dog. She’s only 18 and she’d been working as a volunteer teacher at her former dance school before the show. She does have some amateur musical theatre experience and she’s got her Grade 8. I think she’ll do well and she could have been Dorothy.
Over the Rainbow Show 5 put an end to Bronte’s Dreams of the Emerald City
One not quite brilliant performance of K.T. Tunstall’s Suddenly I See and Bronte was doomed to be in the bottom two. I thought quite a few of the Dorothys were on dodgy ground on Saturday night’s show. The producers had given them all songs that went against type. Some of the girls pulled it off but I agreed with the public vote that both Bronte and Lauren struggled. I though Sophie struggled even more than either of them though so I was surprised that she survived.
Steph on the other hand was a revelation singing “It’s So Quiet” she seemed to finally get her R&B warbling under control and give us a real musical theatre number. Very nice! Not sure she’s Dorothy but still, very nice.
So why did ALW save Lauren? He said it was down to experience and Lauren is 22 against Bronte’s 18. However I also think Lauren has a stronger voice. She might even be Dorothy if she can just stop mugging to the camera!
Goodbye Bronte
My Favourites for Dorothy
My favourites at the moment, in no particular order (where did I get that idea from?) are:
Jenny Douglas – Good voice & full of life and devilment.
Danielle Hope – Reasonable voice, good stage presence. A strong dancer she has that adolescent quality that Dorothy will need.
Dani Rayner – Lovely voice, looks the part, just a bit worried about her acting skills and very young at only 16.
And almost any of the others – it is as they say, all to play for, and the standard is so high that one slip can be fatal. I’d feel sorry for them but I know how well many previous losers have done! Talent won’t be ignored and for some of them not being Dorothy might be the best career move they’ll ever make! Bronte would make a smashing Glinda for Wicked 
Over the Rainbow – the judges
The search for Dorothy
Over the Rainbow continues Andrew Lloyd Webber’s search for Dorothy this Easter weekend. By Sunday night we will know which girl will go home and definitely not be Dorothy. While we wait for that result I thought I’d take a look at the panel of judges, tell you a bit more about each of them and explain why they are uniquely qualified to help choose Dorothy.
Charlotte Church
I suppose most of us know who Charlotte Church is, or at least think we do. After all some of us remember her first TV appearance with Richard and Judy. On that occasion she was a child with an amazing voice who sang Pie Jesu down a phone line because her aunt had rung in to Good Morning.
Charlotte Church
We watched her grow up and for a while turn into a bit of a wild child. Well, she’s moved on somewhat since that. Although she doesn’t have any musical theatre experience there is a lot she could teach the Dorothies.
She’s a very good technical singer with a deep understanding of how voices work. She also seems to be quite good at explaining to the girls which aspects of their singing they need to work on.
John Partridge
John Partridge
We all know John Partridge best these days from his soap career as a member of the EastEnders cast but he has a long history in musical theatre. John was a member of the touring cast of Cats in 1988 at the tender age of 17 so he understands some of what the younger Dorothies are going to face. Then much later he starred in the West End production of Cats first as Rum Tum
Tugger and later as Mukustrap. He also played Rum Tum Tugger in the film. John has also played lead roles in Starlight Express, Miss Saigon and Rent. He’s bringing this depth of musical theatre experience to the panel and giving the girls quite detailed feedback on their performances.
Sheila Hancock
Sheila Hancock
What to say about a trouper like Sheila Hanock? She’s a gifted and intelligent actress who also sings. She has an impressive depth of knowledge and experience in the theatre. Her list of theatrical credits would take up the whole page! An alumnus of Joan Littlewood’s famous Theatre Workshop, Sheila has been treading the West End stage since 1958. She’s currently appearing in Sister Act as the Mother Superior and still enthralling audiences.
The best thing about her in this context though is that she can and does clearly and precisely tell the girls how to improve their performances.
Dorothies or Dorothys?
I’m torn. Should it be ‘Dorothies‘ or ‘Dorothys’. I’ve checked and that august organ the BBC uses Dorothys. I was always taught that proper nouns (names etc.) that ended in ‘y’ took ‘s’ for their plural form. but my co-writer here, and editor, Andy prefers Dorothies. Which of us is correct? Do you know?
Over the Rainbow Programme 2
The search for Dorothy
The BBC show Over the Rainbow quickly narrowed the field from 20 hopeful Dorothies down to 10 this week. I watched the show with Andy, my co-writer here and author of the Wizard of Oz London blog.
The girls worked in 5 groups of 4 and each group faced the judges twice. The groups each sang a pop song and then met with some of our favourite West End leading ladies to work on a show song.
First I’ll go through my impressions of how they got on and then I’ll share some video of the show and tell you what I thought of each of the final 10 potential Dorothies.
Tamzin Outhwaite – Sweet Charity
Song: If They Could See Me Now
It was hard to focus on the group whilst they were with Tamzin, the camera undoubtedly loves her. She gave them some good advice and some of this group worked really well. It’s such a classic song in a way this group had an easier time than some. Having said that I was impressed. Dorothy might just be in this group.
After the group sang ALW made Tamzin blush by saying how fabulous he thought she is in Sweet Charity.
Sheridan Smith – Legally Blonde
Song: Legally Blonde
Sheridan Smith was funny and helpful and I thought her group would do well. Legally Blonde isn’t an easy song, and though the group were OK they were a bit stiff. A couple of them still might be Dorothy.
Kerry Ellis – We Will Rock You
Song: Somebody to Love
Despite excellent advice from Kerry this group didn’t do very well. They found the rock number tricky. Although they did their best it was obvious that some of them struggled with the rock format.
Ruthie Henshall – Chicago
Song: All That Jazz
Ruthie was divine, of course. Full of good advice she guided them through their song. It is a deceptively easy song that relies heavily on good timing and they made quite a success of it. Her group were also probably the best dancers. Dorothy might be in this group.
Mel C – Blood Brothers
Song: Tell Me It’s Not True
This group were totally in awe of meeting a Spice Girl but she soon put them at their ease. She told her group to keep their song ‘small’, they did. It’s a sad and difficult song and the best I can say is that it was OK. One of them forgot what the song was about and kept grinning. Understandable given the pressure but not good. Having said all that one member of this group really caught my eye as a potential Dorothy
The final 10 +1
The format is that the judges picked their 10 with the ‘help’ of ALW.
So the final 10 are….
Danielle Hope, 17, from Manchester
I quite like Danielle. I think she’ll do well but I’m not sure she’s right for Dorothy.
Amy Diamond, 22, from Cheshire
Oh dear. I’m sure she’s got a great voice and is talented but er, she’s too grown up to be Dorothy. She’s a woman and she will have to be an amazing actress to make me believe she is a child.
Lauren Samuels, 22, from London
Again, lovely and talented but not maybe not Dorothy. I might be wrong and I would like to see more of her.
Bronte Barbe, 18, from Cheshire
She’s definitely got some sort of charisma, nice voice but I’m just not sure. Need to see more of her.
Jenny Douglas, 18, from Scotland
Not bad at all, she stood out in what was not that strong a group. I’m not sure what her dancing is like and we’re told they need a Dorothy that can dance as well as sing.
Steph Fearon, 21, from London
Good voice, tended to be a little bit too R&B sometimes. She’s a possible I think if they really are looking for a different Dorothy.
Dani Rayner, 16, from Cheshire
Youngest in the competition Dani really could be Dorothy. AWL likes her, she’s got a great voice and she seems to be a good actress. I was impressed.
Sophie Evans, 17, from Wales
As Andy (my co-writer and Wizard of Oz London blog) said “She’s Welsh, of course she can sing” . He’s right and I think she can act a bit too. I’d like her to do well but I’m not sure about the dancing …
Stephanie Davis, 17, from Merseyside
Very pretty, she’d make a charming Dorothy. I’d like to see more of her acting though.
Jessica Robinson, 18, from Middlesborough
Great face, something of the Liza Minnelli there. Little bit gawky and awkward in the pop song but she was totally at home in her show tune. She could be Dorothy..
And the wild card….. I wonder who you think should make it through?
Then the other 10 sang Somewhere Over the Rainbow so the public could decide who they wanted to bring back:
Personally I liked Sarah but I think they are all really talented and, though they may not be Dorothy, we haven’t seen the last of any of them.
Of course we’re in the world of social media now so you can follow the remaining Dorothys’ adventures on twitter - @overtherainbow or on Facebook and catch up on any shows you miss on the Over the Rainbow Youtube channel or on iPlayer.
If you just want a quick catch-up I think Andy will be doing that on the Wizard of Oz London blog
So who do you think will be Dorothy?
Thanks for reading Theatre Breaks articles about The Wizard of Oz on the London Theatre Breaks Blog
