LondonTheatre1

London Theatre: Tickets | Reviews | News | West End | UK Touring Productions

View All Shows Booking Now
  • Home
  • Top Selling Shows
    • Musicals
    • Plays
      • A Christmas Carol
      • Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
      • The Mousetrap
      • The Woman in Black
      • Witness for the Prosecution
    • & Juliet
    • Back To The Future
    • Cabaret at the Kit Kat Club
    • Dirty Dancing
    • Frozen The Musical
    • Heathers
    • Jersey Boys
    • Les Misérables
    • Mamma Mia
    • Matilda the Musical
    • Moulin Rouge
    • Only Fools and Horses
    • Pretty Woman the Musical
    • The Book of Mormon
    • The Lion King
    • The Phantom of the Opera
    • Tina the Musical
    • Wicked
    • London Theatres
      • Seating Plans
      • Adelphi Theatre
      • Ambassadors Theatre
      • Apollo Theatre
      • Apollo Victoria Theatre
      • Duke of York’s Theatre
      • Fortune Theatre
      • Gillian Lynne Theatre
      • Harold Pinter Theatre
      • Lyceum Theatre
      • New Wimbledon Theatre
      • New Wimbledon Theatre Studio
      • Phoenix Theatre
      • Piccadilly Theatre
      • Richmond Theatre
      • Savoy Theatre
      • Trafalgar Theatre
  • News
    • Interviews
  • Reviews
  • UK Shows
    • Alexandra Theatre
    • Aylesbury Waterside Theatre
    • Brighton Theatre Royal
    • Bristol Hippodrome
      • Bristol Theatre Seating Plan
    • Edinburgh Playhouse
    • Glasgow Theatre Royal
    • Grand Opera House York
    • King’s Theatre Glasgow
    • Kit Kat Club London
    • Leas Cliff Hall
    • Liverpool Empire
    • Manchester Opera House
    • Manchester Palace Theatre
    • Milton Keynes Theatre
    • New Theatre Oxford
    • New Victoria Theatre Woking
    • New Wimbledon Theatre
    • New Wimbledon Theatre Studio
    • Princess Theatre Torquay
    • Regent Theatre Stoke
    • Rhoda McGaw Theatre
    • Richmond Theatre
    • Stockton Globe
    • Sunderland Empire
    • Swansea Arena
    • Victoria Hall Hanley Stoke
  • Newsletter
  • West End Theatres
Home » Reviews » The King and I: From the London Palladium

The King and I: From the London Palladium

December 1, 2018 Last updated: May 6, 2019 7:50 pm By Daisy Smith

The King and I - London- Image credit © Matthew Murphy.
The King and I – London- Image credit © Matthew Murphy.

The film version of the multiple Tony Award-winning Lincoln Center Theater production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s THE KING AND I: FROM THE LONDON PALLADIUM has become the biggest theatre event in cinemas of 2018 following yesterday’s (29th November 2018) screenings around the world. The production is expected to take $2.5m at the box office. In the UK the film reached the number one spot, with more than double the box office of the next film, Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald.

More than 135,000 filmgoers packed into cinemas across the globe to watch THE KING AND I: FROM THE LONDON PALLADIUM – filmed on stage at the iconic London Palladium. Such has been the demand for tickets, Trafalgar Releasing has scheduled encore screenings both in the UK and globally throughout December.

Producer Howard Panter says: “The response from cinema audiences around the world has been phenomenal. And I’m delighted that THE KING AND I: FROM THE PALLADIUM is now the biggest theatre event in cinemas of the year, taking the number one position at the Box Office. The demand for tickets has been so huge that we have scheduled many more encore screenings of the film all over the world – giving an even greater number of people the opportunity to enjoy this lavish award-winning production.”

*******

I don’t believe a cinema viewing of a show will ever truly replace a live performance, and I hope that it doesn’t, but I really enjoyed my ‘King and I’ theatre/cinema experience. It’s got to be a positive move to encourage newcomers, perhaps, to see these classics which The King and I certainly is.

Kelli O’Hara reprises her Broadway role of Anna Leonowens. Her voice is a masterpiece and her beautiful soul just captures the part so perfectly. The only thing that grated on me was the English accident at the start, although necessary to be “proper” English, it didn’t feel natural and did temper my enjoyment at the start. However, I soon was won over by the stunning truthfulness in her performance. She exudes that Julie Andrew-esq class and tone which was captivating.

I didn’t think anyone would truly capture the King as Yul Brynner did in the 1956 film (the version I watched repeatedly as a child) and so was delighted to watch Ken Watanabe bring a freshness to the role whilst maintaining that dislikeable but likeable balance that the King must have. His charisma was bold and strong and he was incredible commanding in the role. I am not sure Kelli and Ken had the chemistry seen in the film, but I still enjoyed their complex relationship.

Na-Young Jeon was sensational as Tuptim. In her first song, of just over a minute, she had already captured me with her brutal honesty and vulnerability. She has a stunning tone to her voice and true sadness behind her eyes. Perfect casting. Ruthie Ann Miles, although a strong performer, didn’t quite work for me as Lady Thiang. She had the presence but maybe not the maturity for me to hold the role as ‘head wife’.

No member of the company truly disappointed though. The royal children were an absolute delight and every member brought a different dynamic and a great energy. Although the cast were expectantly strong, what really blew me away was the costumes: the wealth and glorious mixtures of colour and fabrics is mind-blowing. Costume designer Catherine Zuber should be applauded. As should Michael Yeargan and Donald Holder: set and lighting worked perfectly to support and yet not distract from the performance too. It was certainly an indulgent performance full of richness and excess.

The King and I is such a classic piece of musical theatre with hard-hitting themes and serious matters paired with a lightness and comedy. A lot has already been said in the press about the story being awkward in this modern day, that I don’t wish to add to it. It’s a story I loved as a child and I was delighted to have revisited it in this cinema showing of The London Palladium performance. It has been directed expertly by Bartlett Sher, to add a lightness of touch to some of the “trickier” issues and I loved the sense of humour brought to the western vs oriental dynamics.

The main issue with a recording is you lose the vulnerability and closeness to the performers but also the presence of the band and power in the music sometimes but I would still recommend a watch. Whether it’s to revisit the classic story or as fresh eyes to the Rodgers and Hammerstein piece.

Review by Daisy Smith

*******

Production Information:
Title: The King and I: From The Palladium
Screenings: Throughout December
Starring: Kelli O’Hara, Ken Watanabe, Ruthie Ann Miles
Runtime: 180 mins
Certificate: 12A
Central ticketing site: www.kingandimusicalcinema.com
Official Hashtag: #TheKingandI

Tagged With: LondonPalladium

Search for Tickets
A Streetcar Named Desire

Review of Killing The Cat at Riverside Studios

It was when Maggie (Madelana Alberto) repeatedly expressed a wish to go home that I was finally in agreement with this quirky show. She does it so … [Read More...]

Hang by Debbie Tucker Green at Tower Theatre

Spoiler Alert for this review! Members of the audience are given a visitor’s pass along with an information leaflet. The latter, to the best of my … [Read More...]

Review of One Minute at the King’s Head Theatre

Simon Stephens’ enigmatic play is about the disappearance of a little girl and its impact on those whose job is to find her, or who want to help or … [Read More...]

Charlotte and Theodore at Richmond Theatre

In this serious yet very amusing play, we meet Charlotte (Eve Ponsonby) and Theodore (Kris Marshall). Two dreamers - colleagues, lovers and husband … [Read More...]

Black Superhero at The Royal Court Theatre

A heady mix of Gayness; Blackness; and Superhero. Ness. And as in all good threesomes, there is inevitably a dominant strand. Here, regrettably, it's … [Read More...]

Copyright www.LondonTheatre1.com
By using our website you’re confirming that you’re happy to accept our use of cookies.
Privacy Policy & Cookies - Advertising - About Us - Newsletter - Contact Us