Bat Out Of Hell – Preview Event

So I’ll confess now, I didn’t make it to The Coliseum to see Bat Out Of Hell, despite being hugely intrigued. Luckily I am now able to make amends due to the fact that it is now coming to the Dominion.  I was treated to a sneak peak as well as a chat to some of the creatives behind Bat Out Of Hell.

Ten Reasons to see Bat Out Of Hell….

1) With bloggers, press and fans alike descending on the American International Church we were saw several numbers from the show. Here is the full live feed from The Bat out of Hell facebook page.

https://www.facebook.com/BatTheMusical/videos/1203366459798824/

As you can hear from this live feed the casts vocals were insane… it made me want to check out Bat Out Of Hell even more! If that’s not a top reason to see the show I don’t know what is!

2)The next reason to see this show is there sheer enormity of the set! After seeing the cast perform we went onto the Dominion to see what was happening on stage. The set was being constructed as we spoke and the first thing that struck me was how huge it was! We heard from Jon Bausor the set designer. John said that it was 80’s music videos from Meatloaf and also B movies about a future New York that inspired him, in addition to a passing resemblance to Trump Tower on the set!

An interesting fact about the set to keep an eye out for you if you see it- there isn’t one 90 degree angle on the set!!! Jon told us that this helps create the impression of vastness and a sense of an entire world whilst not dwarfing the actors during intimate moments.

3) Talking of size it’s not just the set that has got bigger. Since the Coliseum and Manchester there are more costumes, more scenery, more underscoring and more cast. The cast now stands at 34 with 145 people on the payroll.

4)The costumes have an 80’s nod……now I adore the 80’s and this is soooo in at the moment. Just the mention of this means I need to clasp my eyes on them!

5) These are all iconic songs but adapted for musical theatre singers with amazing rock voices. The backing vocals have been adapted to make them part of the fabric of the band.  Mike Reed who has been responsible for the music, this included taking these iconic numbers, creating underscores for them and much more. Mike spoke of ‘Making Love Out of Nothing At All,’ which is a number in the second act. Originally this was just recorded as a demo but since the tempo has been adjusted for use in Bat Out Of Hell.

6) Throughout the show there is never a moment that is just quiet. There is a huge surround sound system (3 pantechnicon lorries full of sound equipment). There is always atmosphere, noises or strange synth sounds. Mike says you may not always notice it when it’s on but you’ll notice it when it’s off.

7) You’ll be watching it along with Jim Steinman. Jim doesn’t travel so every night there is a live feed to Jim’s home. He has watched every performance in all 3 cities and given ‘creative’ notes after each one.

8) Julian Stoneman, general manager, states that nobody is going to be able to turn around and wonder where their ticket money has gone…even just hearing about all the elements of it it’s clear that the budget sounds as huge as the set.

I am now hugely excited to see Bat Out Of Hell and to see this fabulous cast on stage and to see the all of these technical and musical aspects come to fruition. I’d love to hear from you if you have seen it before and planning on coming again, or if like me you missed it before but determined to make it this time!

Bat Out of Hell opens on 2nd April. Find out more about the show at the Bat out Of Hell website.

If you liked this preview you might also like my preview for Strictly Ballroom.