Musicals & Stage

• Grease | DVD | (23/09/2002) from £3.40  |  Saving you £16.59 (83.00%)  |  RRP £19.99

  Grease was a phenomenal hit with its target teenage audience when it was released in 1977. The songs dominated the pop charts and brought heady success for its lead actors, John Travolta (Danny) and Olivia Newton-John (Sandy) despite the fact that--as with their energetic co-stars--their own teenage years were some way behind them. As they seize the chance to relive their schooldays, their verve and enthusiasm explodes from the screen. The real class, though, comes from Stockard Channing as feisty Rizzo and, in a couple of cameos, wisecracking silver screen actresses from yesteryear Eve Arden and Joan Blondel. Based on the 1972 stage show and adding several new numbers, Grease is at heart a rites-of-passage movie with plenty of feel-good moments and a euphoric buzz. "You're the One That I Want", "Hopelessly Devoted to You" and "Summer Nights" became the soundtrack for a generation of high-school students on the cusp of adulthood. Today, it looks like a pastiche of those 1950s Connie Francis rock & roll beach films. But the steady stream of double entendres and knowing body language render it more accessible to the less innocent late 1970s. It's overwhelming nostalgia for anyone in the vicinity of 40. On the DVD: The 25th anniversary special edition of Grease rolls back the years: the 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen presentation transports you instantly back to fifth-form heaven in the local fleapit. The Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound ensures that the songs--ever the staple of MOR radio--complete the nostalgia trip with real zip. The main extra is a short series of fond reminiscences from the actors and director Randal Kleiser, actually filmed for the 20th anniversary. --Piers Ford

• Chitty Chitty Bang Bang | DVD | (27/09/1999) from £4.55  |  Saving you £11.44 (71.50%)  |  RRP £15.99

  This re-mastered, pan-and-scan 30th-anniversary edition of that kiddie-car caper is flawed but solid family fare. It retains a quaint charm while some of the songs--including the title tune--are quite hummable. A huge plus is Dick Van Dyke, who is extremely appealing as an eccentric inventor around the turn of the century. With nimble fingers and a unique way of looking at the world, he invents for his children a magic car that floats and flies. Or does he? The special effects are tame by today's standards, and the film is about 20 minutes too long--but its enthusiasm charms. The script was cowritten by Roald Dahl and based on the novel by Ian Fleming, best known for his James Bond adventures. --Rochelle O'Gorman

• Les Miserables -- Two Disc Collector's Edition | DVD | (14/11/2005) from £4.99  |  Saving you £15.00 (75.00%)  |  RRP £19.99

  Boublil and Schonberg's legendary musical! 'Les Miserables' is widely recognised as the world's most popular musical; now enjoy the full magnificence of the score played by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra on DVD at the spectacular 10th Anniversary Gala Concert performed live at the Royal Albert Hall. This Collectors Edition DVD also includes a bonus disc of the making of 'Les Miserables' a fascinating insight into how the masterpiece was born and became a global phenomenon!

• Mamma Mia! | DVD | (24/11/2008) from £3.19  |  Saving you £18.80 (85.50%)  |  RRP £21.99

  The delirious sight of Meryl Streep leading a river of multigenerational women singing "Dancing Queen" is one of the high points of Mamma Mia!, the musical built around the songs of the hugely popular pop group ABBA. The plot sets in motion when Sophie (Amanda Seyfried, Mean Girls), daughter of Donna (Streep), sends a letter to three men, inviting them to her wedding--because after reading her mother's diary, she suspects that one of them is her father. When all three arrive at the Greek island where Donna runs a hotel, Donna flips out and finds that passions she thought she'd laid aside are coming back to life. But let's face it, the plot is not the point--it's a ridiculous contrivance that provides an excuse for the characters to sing the massive hits of ABBA. Regrettably, first-time film director Phyllida Lloyd (who directed the original stage production) has drawn over-the-top performances from everyone involved, even Streep; every production number hammers its exuberance into your eyeballs. Which is too bad, because Mamma Mia! is a rarity: A middle-aged love story. The kids start things off, but the story is really about Streep and the three guys (former James Bond Pierce Brosnan, former Mr. Darcy Colin Firth, and Swedish star Stellan Skarsgard), as well as Donna's best friends (Christine Baranski, best known from the TV show Cybill, and Julie Walters, Calendar Girls). It's a romantic comedy aimed at the people who were around when all these songs were new, and that's an age group Hollywood largely ignores. For that alone, Mamma Mia! deserves to find an audience. --Bret Fetzer

• The Sound Of Music | DVD | (13/11/2006) from £3.75  |  Saving you £11.00 (68.80%)  |  RRP £15.99

  Share the magical heartwarming true-life story that has become the most popular family film of all time - Rodgers and Hammerstein's The Sound Of Music. Julie Andrews lights up the screen as Maria the spirited young woman who leaves the convent to become governess to the seven children of Captain von Trapp an autocratic widower whose strict household rules leave no room for music or merriment. Winner of five Academy Awards including Best Picture this timeless cla

• The Phantom Of The Opera | DVD | (02/05/2005) from £4.00  |  Saving you £15.99 (80.00%)  |  RRP £19.99

  Although it's not as bold as Oscar darling Chicago, The Phantom of the Opera continues the resuscitation of the movie musical with a faithful adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's blockbuster stage musical. Emmy Rossum glows in a breakout role as opera ingénue Christine Daae, and if phantom Gerard Butler isn't Rossum's match vocally, he does convey menace and sensuality in such numbers as "The Music of the Night." The most experienced musical theater veteran in the cast, romantic lead Patrick Wilson, sings sweetly but seems wooden. The biggest name in the cast, Minnie Driver, hams it up as diva Carlotta, and she's the only principal whose voice was dubbed (though she does sing the closing-credit number, "Learn to Be Lonely," which is also the only new song). Director Joel Schumacher, no stranger to visual spectacle, seems to have found a good match in Lloyd Webber's larger-than-life vision of Gaston LeRoux's Gothic horror-romance. His weakness is cuing too many audience-reaction shots and showing too much of the lurking Phantom, but when he calms down and lets Rossum sings "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again" alone in a silent graveyard, it's exquisite. Those who consider the stage musical shallow and overblown probably won't have their minds changed by the movie, and devotees will forever rue that the movie took the better part of two decades to develop, which prevented the casting of original principals Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman. Still, The Phantom of the Opera is a welcome exception to the long line of ill-conceived Broadway-to-movie travesties. DVD Features The two-disc edition of The Phantom of the Opera has two major extras. "Behind the Mask: The Story of The Phantom of the Opera" is an hourlong documentary tracing the genesis of the stage show, with interviews by composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, director Harold Prince, producer Cameron Macintosh, lyricists Richard Stilgoe and Charles Hart, choreographer Gillian Lynne, and others. Conspicuously absent are stars Sarah Brightman and Michael Crawford. Both do appear in video clips, including Brightman performing with Colm Wilkinson at an early workshop, and Crawford is the subject of a casting segment. Other brief scenes from the show are represented by a 2001 production. The other major feature is the 45-minute making-of focusing on the movie, including casting and the selection of director Joel Schumacher Both are well-done productions by Lloyd Webber's Really Useful Group. The deleted scene is a new song written by Lloyd Webber and Charles Hart, "No One Would Listen," sung by the Phantom toward the end of the movie. It's a beautiful song that, along with Madame Giry's story, makes him a more sympathetic character. But because that bit of backstory already slowed down the ending, it was probably a good move to cut the song. --David Horiuchi Important note: Initial playback of this DVD defaults to the DTS (Digital Theatre System) soundtrack, therefore customers without such equipment will not hear any sound. Please note that this is NOT a fault with the DVD. If you are not in possession of a DTS compatible sound amplifier, you need to change the film's soundtrack type from the main menu. In order to do this, please follow the instructions below: 1. Click the "set-up" option. 2. Select either Dolby Digital Surround Sound or Dolby Digital Stereo as appropriate. 3. Select "Play Movie". The film will now play with a universal audible soundtrack.

• Bugsy Malone - Sing-Along Edition | DVD | (26/03/2007) from £7.62  |  Saving you £8.37 (52.30%)  |  RRP £15.99

  Written and directed by Alan Parker Bugsy Malone is a gangster musical set in New York a world of would-be hoodlums showgirls and dreamers. A world where you never see an adult - kids play the entire film including Scott Biao as Bugsy and Jodie Foster as Tallulah. Bugsy Malone is totally unique: quite simply there has never ever been a movie like it!

• The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall | DVD | (14/11/2011) from £4.85  |  Saving you £15.14 (75.70%)  |  RRP £19.99

  Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom Of The Opera is a worldwide entertainment phenomenon. It has been staged in 145 cities across 27 countries and its box office sales eclipse Avatar, Titanic and Star Wars. Seen by over 130 million people, the stage show has never been available to own on DVD or Blu-ray. Until now. To celebrate its 25th Anniversary year, Cameron Mackintosh presents The Phantom Of The Opera in a fully-staged, lavish production, set in the sumptuous Victorian splendour of the Royal Albert Hall. Phantom Of The Opera At The Albert Hall stars Ramin Karimloo as 'The Phantom' and Sierra Boggess as 'Christine'. They are joined by Barry James as 'Monsieur Firmin', Gareth Snook as 'Monsieur Andr', Liz Robertson as 'Madame Giry', Wynne Evans as 'Piangi' and a supporting cast and orchestra of over 200, plus some very special guest appearances.This is a spectacular, once-in-a-lifetime staging of the world's biggest musical, and a must-have on DVD and Blu-ray for fans everywhere.

• West Side Story SE | DVD | (17/11/2003) from £4.45  |  Saving you £15.54 (77.70%)  |  RRP £19.99

  Garnering a total of ten Academy Awards - including Best Picture of 1961 - West Side Story set a brilliant standard for movie musicals that remains unsurpassed to this day. Directed by Robert Wise and Jerome Robbins from Ernest Lehman's spectacular screenplay the film combines the unforgettable score of Leonard Bernstein and Stephen Sondheim with Robbins' exuberant choreography to create a transcendent fusion of realism and fantasy that will forever be a feast for the eye the ear a

• The Sapphires | DVD | (04/03/2013) from £7.00  |  Saving you £8.99 (56.20%)  |  RRP £15.99

  For four young Aboriginal sisters from a remote town, 1968 was the year that would change their lives forever. Around the world there was revolutions and drugs. And there was Vietnam. The sisters, Cynthia, Gail, Julie and Kay are discovered by Dave, a talent scout with a kind heart, very little rhythm but a great love of soul music. Billed as Australia's answer to 'The Supremes', Dave secures their first gig, and then takes them to Vietnam to sing for the troops. Based on a true story, The Sapphires is a triumphant celebration of love, family and music.

• Les Miserables - 25th Anniversary | DVD | (29/11/2010) from £7.69  |  Saving you £10.09 (50.50%)  |  RRP £19.99

  Les Miserables: 25th Anniversary Edition

• Annie | DVD | (19/04/2004) from £4.00  |  Saving you £8.10 (62.40%)  |  RRP £12.99

  Annie is the story of a plucky red-haired girl who dreams of a life away outside her orphanage and its gin-soaked tyrant Miss Hannigan (played to perfection by Carol Burnett). One day Annie meets the famous billionaire ""Daddy"" Warbucks and the pair share spectacular times in 1930's New York City. But Miss Hannigan and her zany villainous colleagues are determined to spoil the fun for America's favourite orphan...

• Les Miserables - 25th Anniversary | Blu Ray | (29/11/2010) from £7.00  |  Saving you £17.99 (72.00%)  |  RRP £24.99

  Les Miserables: 25th Anniversary Edition

• The Rocky Horror Picture Show - Single Disc Edition | DVD | (22/05/2006) from £3.47  |  Saving you £14.52 (80.70%)  |  RRP £17.99

  Celebrate 25 years of midnight movie madness! The Rocky Horror Picture Show is an ""erotic nightmare beyond any measure."" Relive Richard O'Brien's sinfully twisted salute to horror sci-fi B-movies and rock music - a ""sensual daydream to treasure forever"" - starring Tim Curry (in his classic gender-bending performance) Barry Bostwick and Oscar winner Susan Sarandon. Do the ""Time Warp"" and sing ""Hot Patootie"" with Meatloaf again...and again...and again...at home or in a movie theater

• Moulin Rouge - Single Disc Edition | DVD | (23/01/2006) from £3.00  |  Saving you £14.99 (83.30%)  |  RRP £17.99

  A spectacle beyond anything you've ever witnessed. An experience beyond everything you've ever imagined. Behind the red velvet curtain the ultimate seduction of your senses is about to begin. Welcome to the Moulin Rouge! Nicole Kidman and Ewan McGregor sing dance and scale the heights of passionate abandon in this most talked-about movie from visionary director Baz Luhrmann (William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet Strictly Ballroom). Enter a tantalizing world that celebrates truth be

• Seven Brides For Seven Brothers | DVD | (23/04/2001) from £3.13  |  Saving you £10.86 (77.60%)  |  RRP £13.99

  Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, starring MGM soprano Jane Powell and handsome baritone Howard Keel, has retained a remarkably loyal following among fans of the musical film ever since its release in 1954. Although it was filmed in state-of-the-art CinemaScope, Stanley Donen was obliged to direct much of the film on Metro's sound stages, where the artificial sets and painted backdrops don't inevitably live up to the scenes shot on location in Oregon. Viewers coming fresh to the picture may find this visual discrepancy jarring and some too may find Miss Powell's singing a shade plummy. The screenplay, by husband and wife team Albert Hackett and Frances Goodrich with Dorothy Kingsley, tells the story of seven brothers living in the Oregon hills and their adventures to find themselves wives. The casting of each brother with his rugged, masculine looks and ability to dance with grace and athleticism, presided over by an authoritative Howard Keel, gives the film a dynamic impetus second to none in an MGM musical. The lengthy barn-raising episode under choreographer Michael Kidd's intrepid direction, where the music and the incredibly agile and energetic male and female dance ensemble unite as one, produces a square dance without parallel. The music and lyrics by Gene De Paul and Johnny Mercer--including the mating chorus, "Spring, Spring, Spring", the rollicking "Bless You're Beautiful Hide", the rousing "Sobbin' Women" and the visually enchanting "June Bride"--are both tuneful and mindful of the plot's exposition. Adolph Deutsch and Saul Chaplin won the Academy Award in 1954 for their arrangements and conducting. On the DVD: The digital remastering has created a clearer picture of what had been a faintly muddy Ansco colour system on the original print while the polish and attack with which the MGM Studio Orchestra play the music on this full-bodied stereophonic soundtrack remains a thing of wonder. Howard Keel, standing tall and erect in his 80s, hosts the "making of" documentary. Director Donen, choreographer Kidd, Jane Powell and several of the dancers recall how the film was considered a "sleeper" during production and wasn't expected to do as well as Brigadoon, in production at the same time. The documentary also highlights the care taken over the casting of the brothers, two of whom including Keel were not dancers and their often brave and brilliant feats of acrobatic dancing executed on precarious planks and other props. When Howard Keel takes his farewell walk down the main street lot at MGM, breaking into a few brief dance steps, it's impossible not to feel a moment of regret that the curtain had to come down on MGM's most treasured possession. --Adrian Edwards

• Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat | DVD | (23/04/2007) from £3.89  |  Saving you £16.10 (80.50%)  |  RRP £19.99

  Following the successful video release of Cats comes another Andrew Lloyd Webber blockbuster musical, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and it's a savvy choice. It hasn't been represented on film before, it's short enough (78 minutes) to present without cuts and it has the star-power of former teen icon Donny Osmond, who played over 1,800 performances across North America. Rather than record a live performance, Cats director David Mallet conceived Joseph as a film, though one that is based strongly on co-director Steven Pimlott's 1991 London revival and relies more on camerawork than venturing beyond its stagelike sets.Lloyd Webber's first project with lyricist Tim Rice was originally written in 1968 as a school cantata; accordingly, this film uses a framing sequence of a school recital, with an audience of clapping, singing kids and members of the faculty playing the roles. The Old Testament tale of Joseph and his coat of many colours gets a splashy, vigorous treatment with an energetic cast, Las Vegas-style glitz and catchy, eclectic songs, including "Any Dream Will Do", "Close Every Door", the peppy "Go, Go, Go Joseph" and various bits of country, calypso and Elvis. Osmond is perfect in the title role, with a strong voice and winning persona, while London stage veteran Maria Friedman performs well in the central role of the narrator. Richard Attenborough appears (and sings a little) as Jacob, and Joan Collins makes a brief, non-singing cameo.Joseph certainly isn't revolutionary musical theatre, but if you view it as a kids' show, it's a silly good time (though there are poignant moments too). Parents should note, however, that this production might warrant a little discretion due to one suggestive scene and some risqu&ecute; costumes. --David Horiuchi, Amazon.com

• Glee - Complete Season 1-3 | DVD | (17/09/2012) from £21.25  |  Saving you £63.74 (75.00%)  |  RRP £84.99

• Little Shop Of Horrors | DVD | (26/05/2003) from £2.99  |  Saving you £11.00 (78.60%)  |  RRP £13.99

  A nerdy florist finds his chance for success and romance with the help of a giant man-eating plant...

• South Pacific/Oklahoma/The King And I | DVD | (27/04/2009) from £6.04  |  Saving you £3.95 (39.50%)  |  RRP £9.99

  South Pacific (Dir. Joshua Logan 1958): Blessed with a treasure of timeless songs South Pacific combines the passionate heartwarming romance of a naive young Navy nurse (Mitzi Gaynor) and an older French plantation owner (Rossano Brazzi) with South Seas splendour and a world at war while the breathtaking score is highlighted by some of the most romantic songs ever written. Oklahoma (Dir. Fred Zimmermann 1955): Rodgers and Hammerstein's charming and vigorous tale of romance and adventure set in the Wild West. Songs include 'People Will Say We're In Love' 'Oh What A Beautiful Morning' and the title song 'Oklahoma!' The King And I (Dir. Walter Lang 1956): This visual and musical masterpiece features Yul Brynner's Academy Award winning performance an unforgettable Rodgers and Hammerstein score and brilliant choreography by Jerome Robbins. This masterful musical celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2006! It tells the true story of an English woman Anna Leonowens (Kerr) who comes to Siam as schoolteacher to the royal court in the 1860s. Though she soon finds herself at odds with the stubborn monarch (Brynner) over time Anna and the King stop trying to change each other and begin to understand one another. Winner of six Academy Awards The King And I contains some of the most lavish sets in Hollywood and some of the world's best-loved songs including ''Getting To Know You'' ''I Whistle A Happy Tune'' ''Hello Young Lovers'' and ''Shall We Dance?''