WE WILL ROCK YOU. THE MUSICAL

This fantastic show was first premiered in the West End in 2002.  However, the idea for the show goes back to the 1990’s when Queen’s manager, Jim Beach approached comic Ben Elton with an idea for a ‘jukebox’ style musical.  Two members of Queen, Brian May and Roger Taylor then collaborated with Elton on this project.  However, when it comes to the rather unusual storyline then credit must go to Ben Elton who suggested putting together a frankly weird storyline to Queen’s music.
From its first beginnings, this show has grown to be one of the most popular musicals in the West End.  It features many of the greatest hits by Queen, in fact, more than 25 of their songs are used and these include such memorable hits as ‘Radio Ga Ga’, ‘I Want To Break Free’, ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and of course, ‘We Will Rock You’.
A look at a dystopian future with echoes of Orwell’s ‘Big Brother’, this musical will have you singing along to the fantastic tunes as well as cheering on the rebels in their fight to win back live music!
The setting for the musical is 300 years in the future.  Planet Earth has been renamed ‘Planet Mall’ and is ruled by the repressive Globalsoft Corporation.  The head of this totalitarian regime is the Killer Queen.  The regime has stifled personal freedom and individualism.  Conformity is the norm.  This is a planet in which there is no personal expression: every citizen looks the same, dresses the same and even thinks the same! 
All forms of creative expression are banned which includes live music.  Only the official music, available as a download via the Corporation’s computers is allowed.  This is an age of manufactured music which is then played by boy/girl bands.  Innovation is banned.  Invention is banned.  Music is programmed and then played.
Any attempt to produce original material is suppressed.  All acts of subversion are punished by Corporation brainwashing.
However, not everyone falls into line and a group of ‘freedom fighters’ have sworn to oppose the totalitarian regime and win back live music, free thought and personal freedom in general.
Named ‘The Bohemians’, this motley crew which includes two heroes, Scaramouche and Galileo, set out on a journey to bring back the good times, a golden age of music and creativity which they named ‘Rhapsody’.  A time when people wrote their own songs and formed their own bands.  A time of live music!
They are aided in their quest by a character called ‘Pop’, a former Bohemian, and together they search for the ‘Mighty Axe of The Hairy One’ which is a guitar hidden in a wall of the now derelict Wembley Stadium.  This guitar belonged to a great guitar god and if found will restore that golden age.
Who is that powerful god?  Is it one of the Bohemians?  Is it Galileo? 
Whoever it is, our intrepid explorers are pursued by the official ‘Ga Ga’ Cops who are determined to arrest Galileo before parading him in front of the notorious Killer Queen.  Her judgement will be a harsh one: condemned to oblivion across the Seven Seas of Rye. 
A fate worse than death! Do are heroes find the mighty axe?  Do they manage to thwart the evil Killer Queen and bring back live music and freedom to the citizens of Planet Mall?
This not to be missed musical will provide those answers and many more!

How to pronounce the final -ed in regular verbs.

3 Possible ways: /id/, /t/ or /d/

1. The /id/ sound

If the last letter of the word is spelled with D or T, the ED is pronounced as a separate syllable with an /id/ .

• wanted (sounds like "want-id")
• waited
• needed
• fold

2. The /t/ sound

If the last consonant of the word is voiceless (xorda), then the ED is pronounced as a T. Like in  “p”, “k”, “f”, “th”, “s”, “sh” and “ch”

• kissed (the S sound comes from the front of mouth so it would sound like "kisst")
• parked
• helped
• talked (sounds like "talkt")

NOTE: As an example, with the word "helped", if you say "help-id" as a two syllable word, then it is very likely that people will NOT understand the word or what you are saying. (It is pronounced like "helpt")

3. The /d/ sound

If the last letter of the words ends in a voiced (sonora) consonant b, g, v, z,  m, n, ŋ, l, r, s, w, y, z,and vowel sounds, then the ED is pronounced like a D

• played (sounds like "playd")
• closed (the S sounds like a vibrating Z so the word would sound like "clozd")
• opened
• lived

An easy way to remember how to pronounce ED words

The most important thing to remember is that there are two main divisions:

1. The words that end in T or D
   - the ED is pronounced as a syllable /id/
2. and the REST of the words
   - you can pronounce the ED as /t/ and people will understand.

In time you will learn when to pronounce the ED as /t/ or /d/.