I'm still on something a high after Saturday's WWRY outing at the Esplanade in Singapore, so perhaps it's best to get my thoughts down on the overall experience before (hopefully) getting to do that detailed post on the actual show, i.e. "Changes Wot Were Made From London".
First of all, mad props to Lil for putting the idea in my head, and to Jean for really making it happen, because if she hadn't been mad enough to FLY OVER from Perth just for the show, I wouldn't have taken the idea seriously. I mean, c'mon. We're insane, but not that insane.... are we?
Apparently we are.
The London 2007 crew were stuck together once again after Hani, Nina and Cindy ended up being unable to come along, which is a pity. All of us made our move on Friday, Jean flying over while Lil and I took the overnight train from KL, and the berths were actually much nicer than I expected them to be.
After getting together, Jean and I spent a brief moment acknowledging that there was the chance that we would not get MiG for the Saturday matinee. It was in our favour, what with it being the final weekend of the tour, but there was still a chance. We agreed that if we didn't get MiG, we'd still enjoy the show. Lil and I were holding out to get Neels as Khashoggi as well. Previously all three of us had angsted and doubted the wisdom of the trip, but little did we know that it would turn out to be a Very Awesome Day.
We got MiG, Annie and Neels (yesssss!) and an insane audience. Lil and I exchanged thrilled glances during Radio Ga Ga, because WOW, what a difference it was from the opening weekend. Later Lil mentioned that it was likely that there were returning viewers in the audience, like us, so the energy was higher. And boy, did it translate to the stage.
Another point we'd angsted over was the fact that I'd got us seats 4 rows from the stage. Jean was okay with it but Lil was nervous at the idea of the cast being able to see us, and until about an hour before the show, she vehemently refused to buy a lightsabre* to wave during the finale along with Jean and I.
*Not really a lightsabre. They were those battery-operated glo-sticks, but it's funnier to think of them as lightsabres.
Lil did end up buying the lightsabre and all three of us waved them during We are the Champions. Of course, at the end of the show the three of us agreed that the seats were perfect. I'd forgotten that sitting so close to the stage makes you forget the hordes of other people sitting behind you -- the show feels more intimate, like they're only performing for you. Other bonuses included being able to better appreciate their facial expressions, costumes and (in some cases) scarily fit bodies. ^^
I ended up screaming so much I got a sore throat by the final curtain calls, and I was a weeeeetle bit embarrassed for waving Jean's WWRY scarf during the finale, because dude, talk about obvious. Jean, of course, appreciated differentiating ourselves like that, because when we saw that there were crazier people in the first row, it was like we had competition. I did sink into my seat more than once after cheering. At one point during I Want It All the three of us starting clapping as soon as prompted by Vic & Oz, and I panicked when one of the stage spotlights dropped on us, eek.
The show itself was already so awesome, and we were running on adrenaline, so we had to find the Stage Door, by hook or by crook. Jean, brilliant as she is, found the door by following the screams. (Seriously. That's what she did.)
Also, I love you, Jean, but no matter what you say to the contrary, you DID freeze as soon as you saw MiG. It was rather like her brain shut down and was going OUT OF CHEESE ERROR ++ REDO FROM START. She kept looking at me anxiously, urging me to go up front and approach him first. I will never ever forget the expression on her face, just as the rest of my mates keep reminding me about my embarrassing wafting episode with, um, another musical actor.
Backtracking a bit, the first time I'd ever gone to a stage door was to meet Gavin Lee of Mary Poppins, and in preparing for that, I did my homework. I was terrified of coming across rude, or worse, like an rabid tween fangirl, so I read up on what was stage door etiquette. You do feel guilty when you realise that you're effectively cutting into the actors' free time by badgering them for autographs/photos. It's even worse when the cast doesn't have much time between the matinee and the night show. I knew we had to be focused and not waffle about.
I don't know what I was expecting, but I wasn't that surprised to see that MiG was already at the stage door, talking to other fans who'd arrived to meet him. We waited for our turn, and strangely enough, I did not at all feel mortified when he said he recognized us from the audience, because we had been waving Jean's WWRY scarf. (Thanks for bringing it again, Jean!) It's that polite and gracious vibe he has about himself that made it so easy to approach him. I mean, it's not that I was expecting him to be curt, but I really hadn't expected him to be that welcoming.
I took a moment to let tell him that we'd seen WWRY before, which I think surprised him a little. I got the date wrong though, the first time I'd seen WWRY was in 2004, in which he'd performed opposite Hannah Jane Fox. But I did tell him that I loved what he did with Under Pressure (which is all the more awesome if you know the original song), plus the changes. It's true, I was very apprehensive about the tour because of my previous bad experiences with touring musicals, which is why when I got blown away, I really got blown away.
Poor darling Jean got so shy when he spoke to her, which boggled my MIND, because of how bad-ass Jean usually is. (See: The David Duchovny Wallet Incident and The Terry Pratchett Signing Incident.) I ended up telling him on her behalf that she'd seen the Australian WWRY tour production in Perth with Annie Crummer, another thing which took him by surprise. He also sang a ditty to Jean's real name, which would have made her giggle had she any breath left in her lungs. (You know I jest, hon.)
But what really sealed it was when he noticed that I hadn't given him anything to sign. I'd asked him to sign three brochures: one for Jean, one for Lil, and one for Lil's colleague, but I didn't have one of my own because I'd left it in KL. (I'd decided beforehand that I'd only get a photo, so not to take up too much of his time.) But he was insistent that I get something. That's when Lil whipped out a flyer and he happily signed it for me.
Then, hugs! This was another thing that took me by surprise, since I know some people can get nervous around me because of (cough) what I wear, but I love hugs. Also, picture!
We then bowed out so he could attend to the other waiting girls, though we did ask whether Annie Crummer and Neels Clasen were still around. Unfortunately the (security?) guy behind the counter said that they were gone, so we decided to go get some coffee and then come back. I hope that MiG got the break he needed before the night show.
Anyway, after some iced tea in which we'd saluted ourselves for accomplishing part 1 of 3 of our mission, we headed back to stakeout the stage door. I think about five minutes in I realised I'd left my stuff at the tea place, so I had to rush back to collect it, and luckily arrived back at the stage door to find Lil had indeed stopped Neels Clasen for his autograph. He looks even more boyish without his Snooty Little Booty In A Not-Armani Suity, so it's even more amazing that he such a powerful set of pipes on him. He was much taller than I expected, towering a good full head over the rest of us.
Poor guy was really in a rush though, can't blame him, so we got a photo and Lil just managed to tell him that she loved his Khashoggi before he had to scoot. (Both of us wish we had a moment to chat with him, but schedules and whatnot.) We did notice that he had a camera around his neck, meaning that he'd used his break time to take photos, making him even more oddly adorable.
Afterward, Lil told me that the other fangirls who'd been staking out the stage door only approached him to ask about Annie, and it was only after Lil asked him for his autograph that they, too, asked for it, which is kinda strange.
We had to wait around a little longer as ensemble members arrived and/or peeked their heads out of the stage door at the news that there were fans out there waiting for autographs/photos. Unfortunately, we did not see Malcolm Terry, whom we would've loved to talk to. :(
MiG did return to the stage door at one point from his break, though for some weird reason the other girls who had been waiting around asked for even more pictures, each girl (there were five or six of them, I think) wanting a solo photo with him despite the fact that they'd met him earlier. Poor guy was trying to head for the door to go in, but each time he would almost get there (at one point he even managed to open the door), the girls would screech: "Wait!" and pull him out for another photo. Uh... okay then. He did manage to get away in the end.
While waiting around, Jean and I entertained ourselves by singing "Omigod You Guys" from Legally Blonde: The Musical. One of the other girls gave us a dirty look, I think she thought we were mocking them, whoops.
After a while, lo and behold, the stage door opened and a small lady with big hair peeked out cautiously. In contrast to Jean's meek behaviour in front of MiG, Jean practically steamrolled over towards Annie, and I didn't fully realise until that moment just how much Jean admires Annie as an artiste. I have to say, Annie Crummer is so frickin' adorable I cannot believe that they saw that she had the ability to become such a bad-ass Killer Queen.
Annie herself was so excited that people had actually been waiting around to see her, and practically glomped Jean when she told her that she'd seen Annie in the WWRY tour production in Perth. Annie's excitement was infectious and she grabbed me and Lil into hugs as well, it was like a moment of pure, unadulterated SQUEE.
Happily, our excitement translated really well into the photo we took with her, with her arms around all three of us, and all three of us looking like we're bursting with the giggles. She was so sporting, taking repeated pictures with the other girls despite the fact that she had to prepare for the night show (only her eyeshadow was on). I hope that we made her day just as she made it for us.
Mission accomplished! We travelled the high and headed back to Marina Square for dinner, where we capped off the Awesome Day by giving Jean her Super Secret Birthday Present that made her wibble. Jean should just consider herself lucky that we forgot to tell MiG and Annie that it was her birthday, heh heh.
