“Two Shades of Blue’s comedic interpretation of Arthur Conan Doyle’s classic horror is fresh and entertaining.
“Miss Marple is aiming to break up the illustrious duo to prevent herself being demoted from the ranks of Britain’s foremost detectives and the pair must set out to prevent Watson being framed for the murder of one of the aristocratic Baskervilles.
“The absence of the traditional hound is hardly noticed, it being replaced by song, humour and some fantastic acting throughout. Watson flits seamlessly from narrator to participant, and the chemistry between him and Holmes is a constant source of entertainment.
“However, this show is far from being solely about the lead characters: the remainder of the cast play excellent roles, most notable the ingeniously conceived Miss Marple. A Women’s Institute member gone wrong, her mannerisms, scheming and terrific voice add flavour to the story.
“It is disappointing that this unique show in the restricted but intimate Vault is unlikely to be seen by a wider audience.”
Mark McKinlay.

Tickets available soon via the normal channels.

Aladdin: Two Shades of Blue 2010 from Cat Harris on Vimeo.

My darling wife Betty and I pose for you, my beautiful reader

Why hello there! Fancy seeing you in this part of town. My wife Betty and I were just exploring this here patch of the quaint city of Algiers, and thought you might like to see some of our photos! We’ve taken so many photos, but then there’s just so much to see!

I attempt to order a liquid refreshment, but the barkeep just cannot speak any English! Who'd have thought?

First we headed to the local den of iniquity, Fook’s Kasbar, the hottest spot in town! We met some great people, and the drinks were real cheap too! We sat down and tried our hand at some of the card games the locals were playing.

My lovely wife Betty shows me her "ace in the hole" for the card game the locals called "Snap"

Next our travels took us to the rustic paradise that is La Paz. The streets were bustling with traders and urchins, all with real bargains to be had for the knowledgeable consumer! (which I most certainly believe I am.)

One of the local traders with her wares

She even had an honest-to-God-himself authentic genuine real certainly-not-fake Monkey Fist, which would bestow three wishes upon the owner! Here’s Betty sporting the hand.

My stunning wife Betty with the wish-granting Monkey Fist

We even caught up with the guy we met in Fook’s Kasbar! He was wandering around with some great brute of a lady. What are the chances, eh?

Such friendly expressions they gave us! They must have really appreciated our company

Well, that’s where we’ve been to so far! Where should we head out to next? Hope to see you soon at any rate!

God Bless America,

Betty and Herb

I would be grumpy at this if I wasn’t so excited and looking forward to these next two weeks. This week begins the epic series of rehearsals where we will see the shows taking form; music, swordfighting and even puns are all coming together in what I can only anticipate to be a climax rivaling that of One Day More.

Of course, this does rely on the fact that nothing will go wrong; I realise already that there are going to have to be musical compromises here and there to cope with various issues that are bound to come up. I did rewrite the songs a little bit to make them optimal for those singing them, but having not met or being made aware of any of their vocal capabilities, I can only play it safe and hope; I know I’ve given poor Amy a slightly ambitious, but still safe (ish) part to sing which I hope will sound as epic as I have envisioned!

So, musical griping aside (I’ll never be happy with my music, but c’est la vie), I turn my attention to the din in my ears just slightly overpowering the hustle and bustle of the train station (which is quite loud actually…). Turns out I’m listening to Sweeney Todd; who’s have thought I could tolerate Johnny Depp and Helen Bonham Carter’s singing for this long? It’s not so bad, but I must admit, I much prefer Angela Laynsbury. All I hope is that this musical will keep me sane (ha) long enough to survive the wait!

Here’s another annoying thing in my ear; my hair. It does turn my attention to the fact that it is bright blue and unfortunately can’t be for Edinburgh… A wig isn’t a brilliant idea either, as I have to do a lot of bouncing around on stage. Anyone got any glue?

Another possibility I considered was redying it; I’ve always wanted to try mousey brown, but would my hair survive the transition from dark blue? It’s survived two bleaches and 4 dyes so far with very little degradation in quality, but is it possible that some horrible chemical reaction may occur and then I’d end up bald? That could be entertaining…

Well, I hope this rant is more entertaining to read that write; typing this much on a BlackBerry Storm is hard work!

Auf Wiedersehen imaginary friends, you’ll be hearing from me again soon probably!

Piano Panda x

Is “three and a half inches” manly enough?

Shiny! If anyone needs high resolution images for any purpose, please contact publicity@twoshadesofblue.org.uk.

Flyer front for Indiana Jones and the Pantomime Horse

Flyer Back for Indiana Jones and the Pantomime Horse

Sherlock Holmes and the Sound of the Baskervilles Flyer Front

Sherlock Holmes and the Sound of the Baskervilles Flyer Back