Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live At Daybreak
London's Great White Way
Aired November 07, 2003 - 05:56 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: And along London's great white way, at least its British talent is being honored.
CNN's Gaven Morris was there for the revival.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(VIDEO CLIP WITH MUSIC FROM "TONIGHT'S THE NIGHT")
GAVEN MORRIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Rod Stewart back on the stage. Well, his music, at least, resuscitated years after it left the charts. "Tonight's The Night" is the newest musical to hit London's theater precinct, The West End.
ROD STEWART, MUSICIAN: I went to see it the other night. I was absolutely knocked away, blown away by it. It was brilliant. It's got everything that you could want in a musical.
MORRIS: Everything you could want meaning lots of his hits. In fact, 22 songs and a plot just to string them all along.
(VIDEO CLIP WITH MUSIC FROM "TONIGHT'S THE NIGHT")
MORRIS: The content is hardly groundbreaking, but then neither is the concept. Old pop music is breathing new life into London's struggling West End. With 40 theaters competing for fewer patrons, revival muscles are managing to fill the seats.
(VIDEO CLIP WITH MUSIC FROM "MAMMA MIA!")
MORRIS: "Mamma Mia!" was first, raiding Abba's hit vault. It's been top of the box office for more than four years and now can be seen across the world. '70s legend Queen inspired another successful show. Now, Rod Stewart, perhaps stealing the stage from more original content.
STEWART: Nothing is brand new. Rap is the only new thing to come along that's pure. Otherwise, it's all been done before. That's why I really don't listen to a great deal of music nowadays, because I've seen it all before. It's all been rehashed.
MORRIS: Rehashed and, to many critics, partially responsible for a decline in the dramatic standard of London theater. But many also concede they're here to stay.
PETE CLARK, "LONDON EVENING STANDARD": Let's face it, these are hybrids. They are hybrids, these pop dramatic things. They are, you know, let's get some great pop songs which everyone loves and let's try and put them, you know, weave a story around it. Nevertheless, they're filling out some theaters which would probably be empty.
MORRIS (on camera): Filling up the theaters is what the producers are banking on and this formula of familiar music is certainly bringing the audiences in. It means around London now there's a new adage -- old pop stars never die, they just end up on The West End.
Gaven Morris, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired November 7, 2003 - 05:56 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: And along London's great white way, at least its British talent is being honored.
CNN's Gaven Morris was there for the revival.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(VIDEO CLIP WITH MUSIC FROM "TONIGHT'S THE NIGHT")
GAVEN MORRIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Rod Stewart back on the stage. Well, his music, at least, resuscitated years after it left the charts. "Tonight's The Night" is the newest musical to hit London's theater precinct, The West End.
ROD STEWART, MUSICIAN: I went to see it the other night. I was absolutely knocked away, blown away by it. It was brilliant. It's got everything that you could want in a musical.
MORRIS: Everything you could want meaning lots of his hits. In fact, 22 songs and a plot just to string them all along.
(VIDEO CLIP WITH MUSIC FROM "TONIGHT'S THE NIGHT")
MORRIS: The content is hardly groundbreaking, but then neither is the concept. Old pop music is breathing new life into London's struggling West End. With 40 theaters competing for fewer patrons, revival muscles are managing to fill the seats.
(VIDEO CLIP WITH MUSIC FROM "MAMMA MIA!")
MORRIS: "Mamma Mia!" was first, raiding Abba's hit vault. It's been top of the box office for more than four years and now can be seen across the world. '70s legend Queen inspired another successful show. Now, Rod Stewart, perhaps stealing the stage from more original content.
STEWART: Nothing is brand new. Rap is the only new thing to come along that's pure. Otherwise, it's all been done before. That's why I really don't listen to a great deal of music nowadays, because I've seen it all before. It's all been rehashed.
MORRIS: Rehashed and, to many critics, partially responsible for a decline in the dramatic standard of London theater. But many also concede they're here to stay.
PETE CLARK, "LONDON EVENING STANDARD": Let's face it, these are hybrids. They are hybrids, these pop dramatic things. They are, you know, let's get some great pop songs which everyone loves and let's try and put them, you know, weave a story around it. Nevertheless, they're filling out some theaters which would probably be empty.
MORRIS (on camera): Filling up the theaters is what the producers are banking on and this formula of familiar music is certainly bringing the audiences in. It means around London now there's a new adage -- old pop stars never die, they just end up on The West End.
Gaven Morris, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
