Love and despair in war-torn Vietnam – BBC Bristol

Review by Caron Parsons 

This much-anticipated musical exploded onto the Bristol stage with the force of a well-aimed hand grenade and the subtlety of a Scud missile.

In a recent interview producer Cameron Mackintosh said the show wasn’t as much a look at war as ‘about ordinary people being caught up in extraordinary events’ – but to the casual onlooker the two are irreparably intertwined. 

Set during the last days of the Vietnam War, the story begins with a shock look at the life of Vietnamese women, forced to sell their bodies to American GIs in seedy bars to earn enough money to live. 

The show is full of such shocking images, made even more jarring by the music and dancing that often goes with them. 

Comedy moments 

Yes there are comedy moments, mostly provided by Leo Favarro Valdez as the Engineer, a Svengali figure who runs one of the most popular nighttime venues for the battle-worn soldiers. 

His over-the-top and extremely charismatic performance was highly entertaining. 

But even as he brought brief laughter to the show, there was the uneasy knowledge that this character was an unscrupulous brothel -keeper, driven by an overwhelming desire to emigrate to America and willing to do anything and use anybody to achieve it.

Meanwhile the relationship side of the story focuses on the love between American GI Chris, played to great effect and with a lovely voice by David Shannon, and innocent Kim (Ima Castro), a village girl forced to turn tricks after the death of her family. 

Victims 

Here is a real victim of war. 

Courageously carrying on with her life she finds hope in the presence of Chris – but he too is a victim. 

He struggles to keep her with him when he is suddenly returned to the US, but then pushes memories of her aside, along with the war, in order to return to real life. 

The young lovers’ passion for each other may have been real, but Chris is just not strong enough to fight for it. 

Kim meanwhile carries on with her life as best she can, keeping her love for Chris alive even when all hope should surely be gone.

Ensemble 

Miss Saigon is a great ensemble piece, with fine performances from the entire cast. 

With special mention for Robert Vicencio as Kim’s former sweetheart Thuy and a remarkable performance from Ima Castro as Kim, who convincingly portrays an innocent who keeps alive her faith in love despite all she has to endure.

Direction by Matthew Ryan is tight and lighting by David Hersey helps give an intimate, cameo feel to what might otherwise by a distracting muddle in some of the chorus numbers. 

The set, designed by John Napier, is stunning and used to maximum effect. 

The brilliant reds of the Dragon Guards contrasting with the poverty of the streets and the use of the bamboo blinds keeping the Oriental image to the fore. 

Then of course there is the grand scale of the full-size helicopter, 12ft statue of Ho Chi Min and full sized Cadillac.

War 

But entertaining as it is, Miss Saigon also gives a timely and poignant reminder that those fighting the battles are not the only casualties of war. 

The second act opens with a conference looking at the huge number of Vietnamese children conceived during the war and now abandoned by their American fathers. 

Gutsy singing by Hugh Maynard as Chris’s friend John and a gospel chorus gives a real sense of sorrow as the screen behind projects images of the forgotten children. 

A reminder, as the threat of conflict looms over our own heads that in war there can be no real victors, only an infinite number of losers.

The Heat Is On In Saigon – Nowt2do.com

Review by Chris Cox

‘The Heat Is On In Saigon’, and the Hippodrome is certainly heating up for the lengthy run of the legendary Miss Saigon, and boy is it good!’ 

Cameron Mackintosh’s restaging of the West End version of Miss Saigon has been one hell of an undertaking, and it certainly doesn’t disappoint. The humongous sets from the original show, along with everything else you might expect are here in Bristol and help to create what is possibly the best show to ever grace the stage at The Hippodrome.’ 

Loosely telling a story based on Madame Butterfly Miss Saigon is s et in 1975 during the final days leading up to the American evacuation of Saigon. Miss Saigon is an epic love story about the relationship between an American G.I and a young Vietnamese woman. It’s an emotional, thought-provoking (especially with the current political climate) highly charged, and beautifully created piece of musical theatre. 

This being a musical, I suppose we must look at the music to start. Written by Claude-Michel Schonberg with lyrics from, Richard Maltby Jnr and Alain Boubil, Miss Saigon is a musical feast, with the atmosphere of the far east being crafted through the musical style and the huge range of emotions which form the show have been successfully transferred to music to form an immersing and overwhelming experience. The music may not be as memorable to Boubil and Schonberg’s other epic Les Miserables, but it comes pretty darn close! ‘The Heat Is On In Saigon’ has been stuck in my head for days since first hearing it, and ‘The American Dream’, ‘Sun and Moon’ and ‘Why God Why?’ are all truly exquisite pieces of music which manage to stir all the emotions that lie deep inside you and relate them to the story in a way that very few musical songs have ever managed.

Now music would be nothing without a cast which are capable of holding their own on stage and performing each song effortlessly, however Miss Saigon doesn’t have that cast, they’ve got an even better one! Leo Tavarro Valdez plays the Engineer with such graceful precision and excellence; he has made this a tremendous character, which will delight the whole audience. Ima Castro’s performance as Kim was moving and exceptional. She has been playing the role for three years and that experience shows without any kind of glimmer of boredom in the character or as if she was just going through the motions. Her on stage romance with David Shannon who plays Chris was as natural as it could be, believable and lovable. David Shannon’s voice is mind-blowing and plays a character which is a pleasure to watch and Hugh Maynard’s voice in the powerful Act 2 opening number ‘Bui-Doi’ can’t help but get the hairs on the back of your neck up. 

The wonderful choreography means that there is always something on stage to grab your interest, be it the dancing go-go girls in Bangkok or the truly miraculous Ho Chi Minh City spectacle complete with a 12 foot high statue, flats, banners, back flips and marching. 

Now that 12 foot high statue is not the only part of the set, which will have you lifting your jaw up off the floor. Miss Saigon uses every inch of the incredibly large Hippodrome stage to their advantage to craft a view of grandeur and amazement. The vast stage is stunningly surrounded be blinds and plays host to some astounding costumes and sets which all fluently move on and off stage without a stagehand in sight! This is all picked up and enhanced by lighting that is so good, no words would do it justice! 

Then there is of course the infamous helicopter, which really takes the breath away when it hovers and swerves over the set and then lands. However, it does look a bit dated to the regular theatre-goer who may have been fortunate enough to see something like Chitty Chitty Bang Bang where the flying car really does put this to shame, that said it is still a real sight and for those which haven’t seen anything which is more modern and features better technology, well they’ll be blown away. 

The sound was just too quite at times which meant you had to listen intently to understand what was going on, and you missed out on the overwhelming factor which takes you to that next emotional stage, but with any show that can have the majority of the audience crying and then on their feet applauding you have to nit pick tiny things like this to use as problems within the production! 

Whatever you do over the next few months do not Miss Saigon. Its epic story, delicate music, electric emotions, graceful chorography, gifted cast, and awesome sets make for a show you’ll never forget..and I’ll pre-warn you, once is not enough!

This Miss is a Massive Hit – Bristol Evening Post

Miss Saigon arriving in Bristol has been a very big deal – not only in terms of the press coverage and marketing, but also the sheer number of people who’ve bought tickets for the musical spectacular. 

And make no mistake, Miss Saigon is spectacular in every sense of the word. 

The huge set, massive cast and, of course, the show’s famous computerised helicopter, are on a scale the Hippodrome has rarely seen.

The high calibre of performers – this could quite easily be a West End production – also add to the general buzz about the show. Certainly, this isn’t an average piece of touring theatre; when Cameron Mackintosh puts a production out on the road he makes sure it’s of the highest quality. 

But for all the scale and grand vision, what is most marked is how well this Miss Saigon sits on the Hippodrome stage. It is at once both massive and incredibly intimate; the best possible combination for a show of this nature.

Written by the duo behind Les Miserables, Miss Saigon tells the story of Kim, a Vietnamese girl, who has lost her parents in the war ravaging the country, and has turned to prostitution as her only means of survival. 

But she is saved from the clutches of strip-club owner the Engineer by Chris, an American soldier with whom she falls in love and who promises Kim he will take her out of Vietnam when the US evacuates. 

But the plan goes wrong.

Miss Saigon may not have tunes you instantly recognise and can immediately hum along with, but the musical numbers are there; soulful duets, big brassy chorus numbers and some beautiful solos from Kim. 

Ima Castro gives a lovely performance as the girl Chris (David Shannon) leaves behind, particularly in the tender, loving moments she shares with him before he leaves Saigon. Both actors have strong voices and the pair’s duets are among the highlights of the show. 

However, they’re pipped at the post by Leo Tavarro Valdez as the Engineer, who pushes the show forwards with his sheer exuberance in the role. It’s quite a strange part; effectively the main lead, although not actually a very nice man, but it’s safe in the hands of Valdez here. 

Did last night’s production need a standing ovation? I don’t really think so. But certainly Miss Saigon does deserve credit for its place as a great spectacular night out and it’s wonderful to see nothing’s been held back in this production. You’ll get your money’s worth and plenty more besides.

Star rating: 4/5