Amélie the musical

A few months ago I drew a couple of pictures of Amélie as part of my 100 day project, and one of the comments I got on Instagram clued me in to the fact there was a musical! Since Amélie is one of my favourite films, I immediately started following the musical on Instagram, and a few days later found out they were coming to Glasgow in a couple of weeks – I booked straight away!

I’d only actually been to two other musicals in my life that I can think of, even though I love watching film musicals. I went to see Annie when I was in the Guides, and Les Miserables about 10 years ago when my cousin couldn’t go and I bought her ticket from her. Both of those were at the Playhouse in Edinburgh. So it was an exciting experience to go somewhere different, the King’s Theatre in Glasgow, to see my third musical.

I arrived early, so it was a good chance to have a good look down towards the set, which was amazing, especially Amélie’s flat that is accessed by an ascending lampshade! There were also two pianos that could be moved about the stage and used in various ways as platforms. It was a nice touch that they had the music from the film playing before the performance (which I'd been listening to in the car on the way to catch my bus to Glasgow!).

Audrey Brisson was just amazing as Amélie. She seemed so petite and cute but a little fierce too! And I thought Danny Mac was even better looking as Nino than Mathieu Kassovitz who was in the film, so that was great! The music was beautiful, and I was actually in tears by the end of the first song because the sentiment of it was so right! I really hope that they release a UK cast recording.

The most hilarious part of the experience of going to Amélie was the two old dears sitting behind me. During the interval they were discussing how they didn’t have a clue what was going on! I explained to them that the last song had been a dream sequence, told them the whole plot, and lent them my programme. After all that (and considering they could have asked me, an Amélie expert, any more questions they liked about the plot!) they decided they still hadn’t a clue and they’d rather go for coffee at the Singl-end Café!

Pretty much all the elements from the film that I hoped they’d include in the musical were there, although there were one or two that came right at the end to keep me guessing! I also liked the changes they made, in terms of combining characters or changing characters’ story arcs, and I think one of my favourite additions was the fig nightmare! And there were enough sprinklings of French to satisfy this francophile, even though it was in English!

All in all, I loved Amélie the Musical, and I can’t wait to go again! Seeing it for the first time, I spent a lot of time wondering what elements of the story would be included or changed, but now that I know all that, and am familiar with the songs, I will be able to just relax and enjoy it even more the next time! And I'll know that it's worth spending that bit more on, to get a seat closer to the front.