What Sophie Said

J. K. Rowling. I wonder if she ever realised what a phenomenon that little boy with the lightening scar and his stories would become.  The first book came out when I was about 6 or 7, so I’m of the generation who well and truly grew up with the Harry Potter books and then the films. But what is it about the wizarding world of Hogwarts and Harry Potter that still keeps us so captivated? I don’t have the answer, but I felt the need to put down here just how much I love the books and (although to a lesser extent) the films. They formed such a huge part of my fictional world as I grew up, and the anticipation for each new book was huge. I have all the books sitting on a shelf back at my parents’ house, the final few particularly special due to the little birthday messages from my lovely grandad in the front who always used to encourage my love of reading. I guess the point of this post was that I realised over the last few months that none of my love for the Ha...

I’m going to start by laying my cards on the table: I was not a huge fan of The Bodyguard the musical.  What I did like and enjoy was a tribute to Whitney Houston featuring one of my very favourite voices, Beverley Knight. I know people absolutely love this musical and I desperately wanted to feel the same way but I just didn’t. I came away happy because I saw Beverley Knight and Rachel John perform stunning renditions of classic songs. That was the part I loved. Beverley Knight (Rachel Marron) is a firm favourite of mine, a position confirmed further when I saw her in Memphis  last year. In Memphis her character, her songs and the rest of the cast were all fantastic. In this, she is one of only a couple of standouts, and the beauty of her role is not so much in the acting as it is in the music. She is a star, and she performs the role of a star well. One Moment in Time had me in tears, and I Will Always Love You was breath-taking. Rachel John (who, in fact, w...

Hello, July. I’m really, really glad to see you. You’ve always been my favourite month, my birthday month, my happy month. June was really hard. In June I hit a brick wall when it came to my anxiety and depression and I had to press reset. I spent two weeks sleeping, reading, learning. I returned to work. I’m building up my food intake. I’m building healthy habits. I’m learning to cope. But it’s been a hard, hard month. There have been achievements during it and I’ve learned an awful lot, but I’m ready for the fresh feel of a new month. I’ve come out of June with a new outlook. Rather than masking my problems and pretending I’m fine, I need to tackle them properly. Fully. For good. Take on those deep-rooted issues I’ve spent three years just masking and ‘getting on with’. It’s been hard, and there’s a long road ahead, but long term these changes will make a huge difference to my health and my happiness. So, July. I’m glad to see you....

May was about realising when I need a break. The week in Kent was a bit of a wake up call, reminding me how important it is sometimes to switch off from everything. The month ended with a beautiful evening at Lambeth Palace for a masquerade ball. And what about this month? The theatre trips are back, for a start, which is good because I'm having withdrawal symptoms! My dad's coming to visit so we can head to Funny Girl, and I'm also seeing Titanic the Musical later in the month. I saw an amateur production of it a few years ago and was really impressed, so I'm looking forward to seeing it in the West End, complete with one of my sister's friends as a cast member. There are films lined up that I want to see, including the new X Men and Race, plus the excitement of looking forward to my birthday month in July. I want June to be about enjoying the things I have lined up whilst remembering what I took away from Kent: the need to slow my mind down and try and...

I've taken a while to get my thoughts down on The Maids, because I was left with a very strange mixture of being both absolutely amazed and slightly let down. I've taken time to reflect on that in the hope that my review can now help me sort through those two feelings. The acting: flawless. The overall show? It left me feeling a bit flat. The Maids has a phenomenal cast. Uzo Aduba and Zawe Ashton, as maids Claire and Solange, delivered a masterclass in acting. The characters show vulnerability, strength, comedy and anger, and the relationship between the two women is at times touching at at times very odd, menacing and twisted. I thought this relationship was portrayed beautifully, and multiple times throughout the show I was on the edge of my seat, completely unsure which way their actions would swing. There were also an awful lot of long monologues, which both Aduba and Ashton delivered flawlessly. I'd been expecting great things based on how much I've love...

A few weeks ago, the New Wimbledon Theatre played host to my second viewing of Avenue Q. Currently touring the UK, the quirky, lively and hilarious show is as memorable as when I first saw it four or five years ago. It has a very distinctive style, and is so different to anything else mainly down to the innovative use of puppets. The actors, in blacks, are clearly visible - indeed, some characters have no puppet - but the puppetry and story are so fantastic you completely lose sight of the people operating them. The story follows Princeton, a fresh graduate with big dreams, and the people who live around him in his new home on Avenue Q. Touching on love, sex, racism, alcohol, homophobia and discovering who you are, the show leaves no stone unturned. With songs such as 'Everyone's a Little Bit Racist' and 'You Can Be As Loud As The Hell You Want (When You're Making Love)', Avenue Q is daring, outrageous, and has the audience in stitches. I felt the shock...

If you love West End theatre, you won't want to miss the current exhibition in the 'Theatre and Performance' section of the V & A. I went with my mum on Saturday to Curtain Up! and it's a complete visual treat. Telling the West End and Broadway story, mainly over the last 40 years, the exhibition features costumes, designs, set models, scripts, budget sheets and programmes / playbills from shows like The Lion King, Matilda, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, and The Producers. I'd say the more shows you've seen, the more you'll love it as it's amazing to see up close what went into the shows you've loved. There were sketches of Roxie's costumes in Chicago, and of the costumes of each lead adult in Matilda, along with one of Helen Mirren's outfits as the Queen and one worn by Judi Dench as Cleopatra. The space dedicated to the Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime reminded me just what a feast ...

You’ve come round quickly. January seemed to last for weeks on end, but February crept by without me really even noticing. I’ve had a fairly quiet month, mainly working then relaxing in good company. March is a busy one, this year. I’ve filled up my weekends with things I’m really looking forward to. There’s the day my mum is coming to London for food and museums and exhibitions. There are two shows in my diary. There’s an overnight stay in a place which looks beautiful and calm. We have a big event at work mid-month which I know will be a long day, but I’m interested to see how it all runs, as I hadn’t joined the company yet when it ran last year. I’ve started seeing a new counsellor. More to come on that soon, but those sessions will be another key feature of the month. We had our first appointment last week and I’m feeling good about it. Apart from that, there are catch-ups with friends lined up, and a couple of my favourite people have birthdays...

Let me start by saying that yesterday’s trip to see The Woman in Black wasn’t my first. Or my second. Or my third. According to my last count I think it was viewing number six. But I've never seen it in its West End home, never before sat three rows back from the stage, and not been for the last three years, so managed to justify another trip. The Woman in Black is one of those shows many people have seen; it’s got a (well-deserved) fantastic reputation, and is celebrating 25 years in the West End. Stephen Mallatratt’s adaptation of Susan Hill’s wonderful novel manages to maintain the tension and atmosphere of the original tale and delight and terrify audience after audience. I feel like it’s one of those shows you have to see to understand its impact. When I tell people it’s effectively two men and a wicker basket, and really scary, I can see why some just look a little confused. But the way this script is put together, and the way that combines with sl...

Today’s theatre review moves away from the world of musicals and into some classic Harold Pinter. I bought tickets for the 50 th anniversary production of The Homecoming for my dad for his birthday, and yesterday was the day we took our seats at Trafalgar Studio One. Produced by the Jamie Lloyd Theatre Company, directed by Lloyd himself, this production is a masterpiece. Pinter’s style is so distinctive, and his characters so precise, that it’s easy to do wrong, but phenomenal when ‘done right’. This production has a cast of the highest calibre, and I believe we saw them doing some of their very best work. Ron Cook’s Max was just perfect, bristling with tension and complaining like a man who has lived his life hard-done-to. His monologues in particular were superb, and his heavy breathing after a particularly violent moment was eerie. Sam, played by Keith Allen, juxtaposed his brother excellently, providing light relief and a depth of chara...

I’m a theatre-lover, especially when it comes to musicals. One outcome of that is that I regularly get asked by friends and family for recommendations, and what my favourites are. I think I’ve now done it. I’ve come up with my top five. Well, I was aiming for five and ended up with five plus two 'special mentions', but that’s close enough. Three are, in fact, shows which I only saw for the first time within the past six months, which quickly cemented their place in my favourites. These aren’t in any particular order as ranking them is too hard, but here is my list: Wicked Of course. I love, love, love this show. This potentially wins out in my favourite soundtrack award, and I just love the story. It’s an intricate storyline and so cleverly tells the prequel of The Wizard of Oz. I went with my mum when it first came to London. I went with my friend Rosie and her housemate back in April, and I went in Manchester when it was on tour with my dad only a month or so...

Gypsy has been a musical I’ve wanted to see for years, but has never quite been top of my long list of things I want to see. Until I saw Imelda Staunton was taking on the lead. And then the even better news came: BBC4 would be broadcasting the show live from the Savoy Theatre over Christmas. It offered the perfect opportunity to see the show without having to justify to myself the ticket prices, and is something I’m so pleased they decided to do. To be able to see the production on stage as it’s done at the theatre, with audience in situ, but with camerawork allowing close-ups of the actors, was a fantastic chance and one I really enjoyed. I knew very little about the show, except for a single song, ‘Some People’, which I had performed in a show aged about 13. Gypsy, the musical, tells the story of burlesque star Gypsy Rose Lee, but is really the story of her mother, Rose. Focusing on ‘Gypsy’s’ (originally named Louise) childhood for the first part of the show, Ros...

Finally, my dreams of seeing Miss Saigon on stage have become a reality. Having adored the music for years, and sung my heart out to song after song whilst growing up, my expectations were high and my excitement was through the roof. Luckily, the current West End production of Miss Saigon does not disappoint. The Prince Edward Theatre is beautiful, and no expense had been spared on the set. The steps, buildings, fencing and even a helicopter were skillfully moved around the stage, and visually the performance was a treat. I have to start by talking about Eva Noblezada, who played the most stunning version of Kim my childhood dreams could have imagined. There has been a lot of buzz around her in the role, and I can see why. Her voice was truly spectacular, with the beautiful essence of someone who appears like every note is effortless. Her huge songs were phenomenal, but never pushed too far, never a note was strained for, and never did show-stopping notes become ‘shou...

I went to Elf the Musical fully aware I wouldn’t be seeing the best musical ever written, but ready for some Christmas fun. And that’s exactly what was delivered. I wouldn’t give it any awards when pitched against other musicals (not even close), but Elf the Musical is probably the most unapologetically Christmassy entertainment you’ll find on any stage. The musical is incredibly true to the film, which is potentially both what makes it great and what lets it down. Was it ever really going to beat the film so many name as their favourite at this time of year? Especially a film so well-known and so ‘quote-able’. However, all of the classic lines and the heart-warming story are there. The musical had a huge cast, considering there are only a few named characters, and this really added to the ‘party’ feel of the bigger, Christmassy group numbers. ‘Christmastown’ was a great opening, and set the mood for the show ahead. The elves were hilarious, with each actor giving their ...