Paddington the Musical wows West End critics

0:02Hi, I'm Charlie Duffield and welcome back to The Standard Podcast. If you're new here, hit follow and give us a rating. For all the latest news, head to standard.co.uk. Coming up later in the show. Just a few weeks ago, the mere sight of a little Peruvian bear in his new stage form was enough to bring half the country to tears. And now, Paddington the Musical is finally here. I don't think it's any secret to anyone that it is a pretty tough time, globally politically in this country there's bad news pretty much every day and palington just kind of just creates this little kind of pocket where values matter simple things like politeness kindness matter i don't want to be too kind of ishmaltzy and twee about it but it creates this own little bubble where everything just feels a bit nicer for a while and where bad people get their comeuppance and where good people get to accept each other and prevail it sounds really naff but genuinely you can't help be kind of swept along in that when you're watching the show but first

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1:51Britain's most beloved bear made his stage debut in the capital at the Savoy Theatre on Sunday to rapturous reviews. Paddington the Musical has arrived in the West End and is inspired by the beloved children's books by Michael Bond and the films. The show is directed by Luke Shepard, the man behind hits such as The Starlight Express, with a music score written by McFly's Tom Fletcher. The story follows the small bear from Peru, known for his love of marmalade sandwiches, as he is taken in by the Brown family after a chance meeting at a London railway station. Last week I was lucky enough to be joined by two of the cast members and here's what they had to say.

2:34After you Amy. Okay I am Amy Ellen Richardson and I play Mary Brown aka Mrs Brown. And I'm Adrian Debra Warren and I play Mr Henry Brown. So how does it feel to be part of such an exciting new musical? We've been sort of in the industry long enough to know that these sort of events and jobs don't come around very often So we are trying to enjoy every second as hugely stressful and sort of the weight of sort of expectation of Paddington the musical has been. Yeah, we have such a responsibility to protect the brand and do Michael Bond proud. Yeah, but we've made ourselves really enjoy it and enjoy the process.

3:10Response has been genuine and palpable to see that every night. It's been extraordinary. Because Paddington Bear is such a quintessentially British character, isn't he? There's this global love for Paddington that we actually didn't know. And we didn't realise how beloved Paddington is all across the globe, really. Yeah, because growing up, part of our core childhood's memories is Paddington. For us, it was the Michael Gordon narrated stop motion animation series that was on television. But for other kids, it'll be the movies and others will be the books, the original books, 1958 books. So there's always been, it feels like there's been a sort of real personal response to Paddington.

3:46I think as well what he stands for is so important. Just to spread kindness, be a kind person, treat others as you would treat yourself. And accept differences. Yes, exactly. So does the musical stick closely to the original story? It's based, isn't it, on the first book, A Bear Called Paddington, and the first film. Yeah, and follows the narrative of the first film, doesn't it? Yes, follows the Brown family discovering a bear at Paddington Station and Mrs. Brown taking him in. It's the origin story. Yeah, it is the origin story. And there are so many other characters that are involved. Mr. Curry, Mr.

4:23Gruber. Mrs. Bird. Mrs. Bird, yes. They're all involved and Jessica Swell has done a fantastic job in adapting it for the stage. And tell me a bit more about what you've enjoyed the most about playing Mr. and Mrs. Brown. Being part of the family. A lot of families will come to watch it and see themselves on stage. I think that's across the board actually cast wise but for us yeah and as people we're really good friends so it's amazing to be able to work together and we have um lovely delilah um playing judy so yeah and there's a part in the show when we sort of set off on the adventure to to um to rescue paddington and we always look each other in the wings go we're on the adventure we're on it we made it we're there for us paddington is on stage with us every night sometimes twice a day and there's so really there's no acting required he is there um make no bones about it and i mean i always come home thinking i get to hug paddington there every night and i get that's my job i hate calling it a job because it's not as it's a vocation but it's it's just really special and to see the reaction like adi said the reaction of the audiences has just been so full of joy yeah so accepting and everybody just goes out like you say with the spring in this step absolutely can you explain more about how the character of Paddington is brought to life on stage.

5:42Artie and James have been working together as the creation on stage with James puppeteering Paddington, remotely puppeteering Paddington and voicing Paddington, and Artie in the suit on stage. But Artie knows all the script. They've both worked really hard to mutually express Paddington's feelings and they're sort of the most brilliant combination. And they've become one. It's like symbiotic. They've become one. And it's really extraordinary how they've worked together and created this singular Paddington. It's been really beautiful to watch. And we have like Tara. We've got Tara, Phil Woodfine and people that have actually brought Paddington to life along with Artie and James.

6:25And they've all worked on things like Harry Potter and Star Wars and all those sort of created many creatures over the years. And really all their expertise has been poured into and their love. and that's the thing everyone's got so much love for Paddington so it's quite easy to pour love into this project and pour your whole heart into it it's not a hardship it's been a joy yeah and you know the results we all care about it so much so so much so hopefully that comes across what's the message or moral of Paddington's story? that kindness isn't complicated it's not complicated yeah and accept differences and it's good to hear that from a bear and eat more marmalade do you have a favourite moment or scene from the musical?

7:01oh my gosh that's really difficult without giving too much away towards the end there's a moment towards the end yes there are so many magical moments in this show Charlie it's so difficult without giving any spoilers away people will have to come and see it but it is but also I love I love hearing Pattinson being revealed to the audience at the beginning I'm not in that scene but I'm standing in the wings listening we're both standing there on opposite sides of the stage yeah and you hear it and we sort of clock each other and it's just it's really exciting to hear that and Tom Pye's set is extraordinary extraordinary with ash woodward yeah his projection i mean you have to see it to believe it really tom fletcher's musical lyrics when you when you ask us what's what's you know how does it feel we just it's a privilege you get to yeah we get to bring these characters to life that remarkable material it's literally he's a gift it's a pure gift finally do you have anything else to add i think that it is is for everybody this show i know so many shows say that it's got such a wide-reaching demographic but it's really because it truly is a story for everyone everyone is represented on stage um hopefully people can relate to family dynamics to what is going on in the world and how important it is just to be spreading kindness yeah let's go to an ad break coming up find out what our critic made of the musical that everyone is talking about this festive season.

8:27We'll see you back here in just a moment. Welcome back. Joining us now is theatre critic Tim Banno. Tim, what were your expectations of this musical and did it live up to the hype? I'd say it's been one of the most anticipated shows of the year. I mean, since it was announced a while back, the weight of expectation on it has been huge, not least because when the films came out, the 2014 film was the first one, I think everyone was kind of a bit blown away by just how good they were. I think at one point, the first two films had like the highest ratings on Rotten Tomatoes of all time or something like that.

9:05They were so good. So turning that into a stage musical is a big deal. Also, the West End has seen a huge number of films and books and existing things being turned into musicals. And quite often, they're not very good. So there There was a big weight of expectation on it. And then we saw who the creative team was going to be. We saw it was going to be Tom Fletcher from McFly. We saw it was going to be Jessica Swale, fantastic playwright. And I was kind of thinking, OK, that's interesting. That's not the kind of usual people you might go to for a musical like this. So I was quite nervous. I thought it would be good.

9:39I didn't know if it would be really, really, really good. And it was. It was amazing. I absolutely adored it. So how have they managed to make it such a success? The big question that everyone had for a long time was how they were going to do the bear. And there were lots and lots of rumours going round. Was it going to be a puppet bear? Was it going to be a digital bear, like a hologram or a projection? Or was it going to be a person in a bear suit? And actually, what they've done is something very, very smart, which is to kind of combine a few elements. I won't give away how it's done, because I do think if you haven't managed to come across the bear by now, it's one of the great elements of surprise.

10:17it's a phenomenal moment in the show i mean i said in the review that it's got to be one of the great moments in theater of recent years up there with the warhorse puppets and defying gravity and wicked it really is extraordinary and that comes only a couple of minutes into the show so you enter mr gruber's shop of curiosities which is what the stage design is it's kind of all these weird and wonderful things hanging around the stage and this boy comes in and he picks up a little bear in the shop. And then there was kind of a big number and then a huge number of cast come on stage and then they all kind of step back and Paddington steps forward.

10:51And there were gasps in the audience. There were people crying. It was an amazing moment. And I think that is a huge amount of it. But there are definitely other elements as well that make it really good. The music by Tom Fletcher is really decent. Every song earns its place. The baddie's got a really nasty villainous song about how much he likes to kill animals and stuff them, you know. it's quite pantomime-esque you've got lovely sort of swooning ballads about how good it is to be kind to people and that kind of thing which is all very par for the course of Paddington but it's just made with kind of a sense of heart and integrity that I think really works it's directed by Luke Shepard who has done a huge number of really really successful musicals in recent years so he directed Anne Juliet which was one of his first really big successes and he also did Starlight Express which is running at the Troubadour in Wembley so he knows how to do these big big spectacles but he's also really good at injecting his shows with a massive sense of heart and love they feel just really warm this is a many many multi-million pound show that you're watching that feels really intimate and lovely it's pretty much the story of the the first film Paddington comes to London on a train and he's picked up by the Brown family and then he gets embroiled in a plot with the nasty woman who wants to kill him and stuff him and put him on display in the Natural History Museum it's the same plot but it's kind of expanded and enlarged and made a bit broader to suit kind of theatre.

12:11But there's just something about the heart and the ingenuity and the integrity with which it's made that really kind of sold it for me. Did you cry yourself, Tim? Being a hard-hearted critic, it takes a lot for me to shed a tear. But I did well up. I mean, the gin and tonic probably helped. It is really emotional. The bit that kind of moved me the most was that moment Paddington appeared in the third minute of the show. But it's got a lovely ending. How is this pitched as family entertainment? It doesn't shy away from being a bit naughty when it wants to. There's some not quite jokes for the parents, but there are some slightly naughty bits.

12:45And the villain comes on and pretty much the first thing she does is shoot this cute pigeon puppet with an arrow. It kind of sets the tone of like, it's going to have fun. But it's really well pitched as being a family show. I've known friends who've taken little kids to see it, and they've absolutely loved it. And they've been scared in the right moments, and they've been excited in the right moments. But I'm an adult. I absolutely loved it. There were people older than me who were sitting there. bawling their eyes out and laughing along. So I think they've really nailed the kind of tone to kind of hopefully suit all ages.

13:15Tim, you're a critic for a reason. So was there anything which didn't quite work for you in the show? It is a long show. It's getting close to three hours, which I think for maybe some of the younger kids is going to be quite tough. But I had to pick holes as well. Tom Fletcher's music absolutely serves the purpose. And some of the songs are great. Standalone songs, there's an amazing number, which is the start of act two, which is all about marmalade obviously there are a couple of them that just don't really work they're a little bit run-of-the-mill i think you could argue that it gets a little bit too sentimental in its message about kindness and love and that kind of stuff but i really do think that those flaws are really made up for by what's good about the show honestly if there are little moments where the show maybe gets a little bit boring or overdone or whatever and all i had to do was just look at the bear and sort of fall in love all over again.

14:03And we also have to mention that it's not cheap, is it? There's been a bit of a backlash against Paddington for very high ticket prices. Prices in the stalls were going up to about 350 quid. That's an eye-watering amount of money and most families are not going to be able to afford anywhere near that. What I would say is that there are some really decently priced tickets available. They're not£5, they're going to be towards£40 each and still that is a significant investment and there are some really decently priced tickets out there in really decent seats as well. Savoy Theatre is a nice theatre.

14:33There aren't many restrictive views. It's quite comfortable. Your knees aren't up in your nostrils. It's quite a nice place to be. So I would say, yes, that is a really valid and important criticism that 350 quid is eye watering, but there are some really decent ones. So just do a bit of work and have a look and try and pick one in an off-peak time, midweek, that kind of stuff. And you can get a pretty decent price for it.

14:58and that's the standard for all the latest news head to standard.co.uk if you'd like to get in touch please do drop us a line at podcasts at standard.co.uk we'll be back here tomorrow morning we'll see you then