"Oliver" casting competition...

I chanced in to the penultimate t.v. programme showing Lord Andrew Lloyd - Webber, Cameron MacIntosh - Barry Humphries - ('Dame Edna Everidge '- a shrewd judge of talent behind the Aussie dizzy dame act! ) and a host of distinguished Thespians, selecting the cast of "Oliver". There was mass hysteria whipped up amongst the live audience, and with viewers able to vote - thereby ensuring capacity audiences when the show takes to the stage in a few months time - clever marketing....... The girls auditioning for Nancy, the final four selected, were all very good; in this competition the participants are virtually unknown in London professional music theatre circles, that's the point of the operation. The boys aspiring to the role of Oliver were just breathtaking - really. They had been whittled down to the final seven and quite "spookily", I chose the final three selected. 'spose that's not really surprising as I'm credited with being able to "suss" talent and potential..... What I found most interesting was the widely varying comments of the judges - it would be good for all auditionees to look up the series and discover some of the vaguaries of opinion. It might give them some idea as to why they are not successful in their own endeavours ...... maybe ? At one audition I remember the best performer being turned down because she wouldn't fit the costumes of her predecessor ..... tut, tut..! That's what can happen when the costumes are astronomically expensive.....a sad reality....Had a nice chat with my Dear Kiwi friend Kiri (te K) yesterday, to request permission to write about her in my long awaited booook - she's very happy to agree, but you'll have to wait a bit longer for the finished product..... (We met as students at The London Opera Centre in 1967, and I lived at her place when I retired in the 1990's - but left to pursue my international breathing "crusade" (!!), just in case you wonder what the connection is...) and we are, like Anna (Larsson), passionate about passing on our knowledge of the profession, especially phonation and air support, to young singers, and integrating them in to the European scene. Kiri has set up a Foundation, rather Like Birgit Nilssons', and funds students from New Zealand and the Pacific region - she always puts on a fantaaaastic meal at her lovely house on our "breathing" days - she's a great cook ! Next Friday I'm going down to Glyndebourne to research my contribution for their productions since 1968 - so it could need more than one trip. Trouble with me is that I quite forget much of my artistic output and am pleasantly surprised when some of it turns up -"Did I really make that ?" often pops in to my ancient brain....."Yeeees - I did ..!!" Well, there's a thing......k..p b.......g