This week, WGBH News’ Arts Editor Jared Bowen reviews the new Downton Abbey exhibition and gives us his take on the touring Broadway production of “Miss Saigon.”
“Downton Abbey: The Exhibition,” on view at The Castle at Park Plaza through Sept. 29
The Castle at Park Plaza is looking a lot like post-Edwardian England thanks to “Downton Abbey: The Exhibition.” Just ahead of the upcoming Downton film, which continues the award-winning TV series, this exhibit painstakingly recreates the sets, costumes, and props used on the show, giving visitors an inside look at Mrs. Patmore’s kitchen, the Downton dining room, and more than 50 official costumes worn by characters on the show.
“We set to standard when we first created the show that we wanted all the protocol to be correct,” said Downton Abbey’s executive producer, Gareth Neame. “We wanted the costumes to be authentic: The behavior, the mannerisms, the way they dined, the way they dressed, the way they spoke to one another.”
“It’s like having secret and unfettered access to the deepest recesses of the closet of an old friend,” says Jared.
“Miss Saigon,” presented by Broadway in Boston at the Citizens Bank Opera House through June 30
The heat is on in Saigon — and at the Citizens Bank Opera House for the touring anniversary production of “Miss Saigon.” The musical tells the story of Kim, a young Vietnamese woman in the waning days of the Vietnam War who falls in love with an American G.I. When the two are separated during the fall of Saigon, Kim embarks on a three-year journey to find her lover and escape Vietnam with their child. This musical epic features hit songs from the original 1989 production, including “Last Night of the World,” “The American Dream” and “The Heat is On in Saigon.” And yes, a massive helicopter is still one of Miss Saigon’s center-stage showpieces.
“Intense, gritty, and dark, this 'Miss Saigon' examines the waning days of the Vietnam War with emotional substance,” says Jared. “Even in the context of the lavish, boisterous and big-budget musical it is.”
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