Not Plastic, Just Fantastic: Barbie The Movie: In Concert @ Royal Albert Hall, London
What a treat to watch a movie on an enormous screen with a live orchestra in the lavish setting of the Royal Albert Hall, London. And this was a live concert movie like no other. The impressive Barbie Land Sinfonietta were *pink* with some very glamourous and sparkly shoes going on. Not to mention some impressive guitar solos.
Conducted by Macy Schmidt, the orchestra mirrored the movie. Macy started off in a pink boiler suit like the rest of the musicians, in her case complete with pink headphones. During the ‘blowout pary that includes a choreographed dance number and a custom song’ Macy had a reveal into a sparkly pink number. During the beach scene, whilst no-one was beached off, there was imminent danger of being hit by a number of beach balls thrown out by the orchestra. When Kendom took over the dream houses, the musicians pulled down their pink ‘get stuff done’ boiler suits and displayed black t-shirts. Macy meanwhile had a fantastically bulky fur coat to don.
Movingly, when Stereotypical Barbie (Margot Robbie) began to pursue humanity and being among the makers who make the meaning, a small girl came onto the stage and took over conducting. Macy’s walking to the side of the stage mirrored Barbie walking with Ruth on screen. We’d also seen the small girl earlier on during the opening 2001 parody rocking a baby doll. (Thankfully this one was treated more gently than the ones in the movie — merely being replaced for a held aloft Barbie!)
On a huge screen, the genius of Greta Gerwig’s vision is even more impressive, as well as all the other creators working on it. The physicality of the Barbie Land world — the lack of green screening. The beauty of the Dream Sequence. The realness of the Battle of the Kens — I will never get over how much is going on here — with real props. The lines too, (we had subtitles) — I’d missed the joke about all of N’SYNC being Allans! Or how the music is integrated with the movie as call and response at points. Not to mention all the sublime Kenergy of Ryan Gosling — as ever we ended up applauding him more than the Barbie restoration of the constitution.
Disturbingly, the line about a man who tried to take control of her friends, her house and the government has never rung more true. Strangely mirroring the real life world!
Unlike previous movies I’ve been to at this venue, the sound was noticeably off at points or unsynched between picture and the orchestra. This was for very small amounts of time and soon rectified. The interval was a treat in itself because you could enjoy all the Barbies, some Kens and a very stripey Allan wandering about. There were some pink boiler suits, pink cowgirl Barbies, lots of sparkly glitter, a hint of pink Gingham, a full on casa mojo dojo house mink Ken and lots of diversity. Even a ‘Weird’ Barbie or two. And the sound crew joined in with pink boiler suits!
At the end we got to celebrate a terrific performance and dance a little of the night away. Clap Clap!
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