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Aimie Atkinson and Rachael Wooding Talk PRETTY WOMAN!
11K views
Oct 26, 2022
Pretty Woman: The Musical resumed performances at its new West End home, the Savoy Theatre, on 8 July 2021 and so, we sent our very own @WestEndReporter Tom Hayden Millward down to meet Aimie Atkinson (who plays leading lady Vivian Ward) and Rachael Wooding (her BFF Kit De Luca) and find out how they are settling into life at the Savoy.
View Video Transcript
0:00
Hi, this is Rachel Wooding
0:01
And I'm Amy Atkinson, and you're watching Broadway World UK. Greetings and salutations, folks, from the Savoy Theatre in London's glittering West End
0:11
The new home, A Pretty Woman, the musical. And I'm here today to say welcome back and to meet returning cast members Rachel Wooding and Amy Atkinson
0:25
Welcome to Hollywood! What's your dream? Oh, it's amazing, isn't it? It's so good
0:32
It's like, even though it's not been that long, this feels like we've been here forever now
0:37
This really does feel like our home. Isn't that surreal? I know
0:41
Yeah, it is perfect here, though, I think, at the Savoy. Like, having the kind of Savoy Hotel
0:46
with the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in the movie. Yeah, the glam of it all. It's so glam. It's perfect, isn't it
0:51
Yeah, it's perfect. well we opened at the piccadilly uh how long ago well we started rehearsals last january yeah so
1:03
2020 january 2020 we start rehearsals like about the fourth or something of jan yeah full rehearsal
1:08
period into the piccadilly tech previews two weeks previews two weeks one week open fully open
1:15
harsh pandemic. Do you know what was so weird though? I had no idea it even existed
1:22
Like the pandemic. I didn't know what was happening. I was so consumed with the show. We're in tech, press
1:28
You were literally on that, weren't you? You were like, do-do-do-do. It was a pretty one, pretty woman
1:33
And then it happened and I went, what? And even when they called us on stage on that Monday we were all like ah we in two weeks Yeah see you in two weeks guys And certain people that were a bit more like you know probably in the know not pessimistic were like oh I think it in three months No no
1:47
16. Oh, they're both just a joy to play, aren't they? Yeah
1:54
We have such a laugh. The whole show is so much fun. So I think just, especially like our scenes and what we do together, we just have a blast
2:02
So that was, yeah, I missed that. I mean, we kind of, you know, without being like ridiculous, but we play two mates and then we become two mates
2:10
So like in the lockdown, we'd like video call, we just do video messages of each other
2:18
So it's like, it's just like, just crack on an American accent and off you go
2:22
Yeah, there we go. Riding a bike. Riding a bike. Like, I had not thought about it at all
2:27
I didn't even know when the script was, like, I literally still don't know to this day. It just came out. In fact, I do know it came within a box, came out of the quickie dilly, shoved in a box and brought it here into my dressing room
2:36
I was like, oh, that's where that bubble is. Oh, gosh
2:52
Well, we've got an amazing score by Jim Valance and Brian Adams, which you can just hear it probably in your head right now what it's going to sound like. Right
2:59
And it's all of those, yeah. It's almost like you think, oh, I've heard that one before
3:04
But you have them, but you kind of have. Yeah, and it's weird, isn't it
3:07
Because prior to coming into the show, because for me, because I'm a bit older
3:12
Pretty Woman was my time, and I watched it loads as a young girl whatever And that score or that soundtrack was really it almost like it like I rewritten it obviously I hear these songs every day but they fit that era so
3:29
well the script is pretty much this you know very similar to the film and we always had the script
3:35
writer here as well he was amazing to work with and he would tell you so much backstory he was
3:39
incredible in the room I was like I was I literally wanted to just like take him home and ask him all
3:43
the questions is amazing so because the script is so exactly as it is you feel
3:48
like you're just you know you're getting all those big moments from the movie that you expect to want and I think the cherry on the cake is you get Pretty Woman
3:57
I mean even just that riff it's just doing that riff you just want that don't you like yeah I've got it
4:05
Welcome to Hollywood They will openly say Like Jerry said to us
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Quite often because He works with American teams Because he's American and he lives in New York
4:19
They do a lot of their shows first there And then they come here
4:23
And like anything you learn more As you learn what works with the show
4:27
What doesn't work with the show And the second time round you get to do it You solidify what works
4:32
And anything that niggled you you get to change and you get a do-over
4:36
The West End's incredible and same as Broadway you can get what you want
4:42
from The West End like you can watch what you want to watch but that doesn't mean
4:45
just because Pretty Woman is what it is it's not you know it's not Chekhov
4:49
no or whatever but it's not but it does what you want and if you want Pretty Woman
4:53
you watch Pretty Woman if you don't want to watch that you can watch something else and there's something
4:57
for everybody and that the same as that There you go I on one ooh good question
5:10
I don't want to give too much away but there's a few little things that maybe aren't
5:16
in the movie that actually I think, I think we both think really clever
5:20
and just like we were saying add that little bit of sprinkle sparkle dust
5:26
on top something live yeah and obviously the live aspect as well just like live theater you know because it is it's
5:34
like a joyous thing it's because even though with it's theater as the fourth wall is there we
5:37
definitely don't play out front you know like a lot of it's a story but i feel like because it's
5:43
this movie that we all know and love and they do there are certain moments and there's that moment
5:48
where there's that joy between the you know you as an audience and us on stage that we know that
5:52
you're waiting for and if you get it then that builds us up and we just feel great about that as
5:56
Why not treat yourselves then to a big night out in the West End
6:11
And rest assured, it would be a big mistake to miss out on Pretty Woman the musical
6:15
Big mistake. Big. Huge. And I have to go shopping now, so I'll see you next time, folks, on Broadway World UK
6:26
So initially you were like, never mind what's going on in China, I've got my songs to learn
6:31
Basically. That's so ignorant. And that's only me, that's not this one
6:35
I was just so in my own little world. You know, your little show bubble, doing the tech, I'm really stressed, everything's so stressful
6:41
And yeah, I had no idea. You're a professional
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