Victor/Victoria

We went to watch the Singapore production of Victor/Victoria today. It was the last day of the run, but the hall was, unfortunately, quite empty. They gave us a free upgrade - which was great! We didn't buy the most expensive seat in the house, because frankly, we weren't expecting much from the production.

Reasons? Well, the original was done by Julie Andrews, and can you imagine a remake of The Sound of Music without Julie Andrews? Also, I have not heard of the musical before this!

But we were pleasantly surprised. Enjoyed an evening of swinging jazz, entertaining dances, elaborate set, and great costumes. The storyline is about a poor soprano, Victoria, who disguised herself as a man called Victor, who entertains as a female impersonator. She, or rather he, became the toast of Paris, and a Chicago mobster found himself attracted to the star.

But I think it is the underlying story that is great. It talks about being true to yourself, and be who you are, regardless of what society thinks.

It is too bad that the production will not continue. I hope that it will start its run around Asia, and hopefully bring the music, the dance and the great story to more people. Here is a snippet from the TV ad.