Grüße aus Zürich!

A very busy January ends with us finally ready to show our 2017 version of MARY POPPINS to Swiss audiences here in Zurich.

Since my last post I have now conducted the show in its previous incarnation twice, at the end of the UK Tour in Cardiff earlier in January, then we continued cast change rehearsals in London before jetting off to chilly Switzerland for a week of technical rehearsals ahead of previews.

As ever on a huge production like this, the rehearsal period has been pretty intensive, not helped by me acquiring some sort of stomach bug along the way. The sheer amount of work somehow helped me to fight it off, and I've managed to just about pace myself through these rampant few weeks...!

We've had some changes to the show over the past month: a new Mary, as well as around half the cast made up of new personnel. James Powell has redirected some sequences and James Dodgson, MD of a previous incarnation of the show, has been around to refine some of the musical corners and in recent days work alongside the sound department to create a brand new sound design for the show. We are into previews now and a certain amount of attention has turned to making the two keyboards sound as good as they possibly can out front as well as in the pit - no arguments on that front from me!!

In the mere moments I've had away from the show, I managed to see Harry Potter & The Cursed Child at the Palace Theatre. As expected the magnitude of theatrical wizardry on show is incredible, although I struggled to completely enjoy the experience as my stomach bug was taking hold that day. I may have to go back for a second viewing in a year or so! I also got my final bit of depping out of the way on JERSEY BOYS, as they will be shuttering the show on my return from Zurich, so it was good to have a final send-off with that wonderful company and band.

A huge gala-style press night is planned for our show tomorrow, which I'm very much looking forward to. Once everything settles back down, we'll get on with the pressing matter of understudies, as well as relearning the conduct for this new version of the show, and then I look forward to exploring a little more of Switzerland!

Adieu for now.