CityLife

Went to the show with an open mind,as the night before id met 4 alcohol fuelled lads whod just come back from the friday night show."nothing like the movie"they repeated,<br /> <br /> no dialogue??surely this cant work?....i was wrong,different this portrayal maybe,but no less exciting.any true "MOD"cant help but be moved by the live renditions of 515,love reign oer me etc.<br /> <br /> prepare yourself for a fantastic finale,and remember "WE ARE THE MODS,WE ARE THE MODS,WE ARE, WE ARE, WE ARE THE MODS!!"<br />

The first thing i want to say to anyone going to see this,is that the cast and band are fantastic.The second thing is that there are no talky bits and no story.Quadrophenia is my all time favourite film,its about growing up,relationships,identity.I felt that most of the audience who went last night wanted to watch a story.They didnt get it.The comments i kept hearing was "i didnt think it would be like this "and do you know whats going on?".It seemed all very confusing to people.I think sometimes when you watch a production of a play it can almost get too Arty.Directors love to concentrate on imagery,shape,symbolism,structure and they can easily forget their audience and easily forget basic themes.I really want to say i loved the show.....but i cant.I didnt think it worked.The music was great,but it lacked the heart and soul of the film.As all the guys and girls left on their scooters, im sure they showed a brave face,but deep down.......i sort of feel it promised so much but failed to deliver.<br />

Quadrophenia is my favourite Who album - yes, I prefer it to Who's Next - and the band's performance of it at the MEN in 1996 is still one of my all time favourite concerts.<br /> <br /> This performance started uncomfortably for me - stage school brats doing Lionel Blair routines to The Real Me and shouting the lyrics in cut-glass Mockney accents - it put me in mind, for some reason, of the Double Deckers. Plus as far as seats were concerned we were in the, heh heh, "High Numbers" and couldn't see most of the band at the rear of the stage. Added to that a couple of aging Mods beside us who insisted in talking throughout and sitting on the backs of their chairs because, well, it's abaht rebellion, innit?<br /> <br /> However, we found a couple of better seats at the interval and were able to appreciate the energy and imagination that has gone into this show. The climactic Love Reign O'er Me was pure shouting as opposed to the controlled passion of Daltrey on the album, but otherwise the songs were done justice. 5:15 in particular fared well, opening the second half with a blast of adrenalin, Sea and Sand and Doctor Jimmy, while never threatening to match the originals, fitted well into this medium and were excellently performed by a tight band.<br /> <br /> I've already booked tickets for later in the summer - this time a lot nearer the stage.<br />