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June 27th, 2008
Time:
12:49 pm
Well, I saw Passing Strange again last night, and it is still holding up terrifically. And what I love about this show is that Stew and the actors (and maybe Annie Dorsen) are still experimenting with different things and finding stuff that works better, even this long after opening. I really respect that. This show would die if it got stale, and I really have to hand it to them that they are working so hard not only to keep things fresh but to make the show better for audiences still coming in.
The orchestra and the mezz were almost completely full, but I heard that there were only a few people in the balcony. We talked to Daniel Breaker and Stew afterwards, and Daniel was pretty concerned about the grosses, but Stew said that whatever happens, he'll be happy with - he said he'd love to keep doing the show, but he'd also love to take it on the road or let it lay fallow for a while and then revisit it a few years later. Anyway, I figured that I can't like a show this much and not try to get you guys to go see it one more time. Really, it's very similar to Sunday in the Park with George in its discussion of life, love, and the creation of art.
Ok, so as you all know, I went down to DC this past weekend and saw Chita in The Visit.
About the show first, I guess: it's kind of a "Why?" musical, I think. I'm not sure what Kander and Ebb (and McNally) hoped to accomplish by turning this play into a musical. As it stands, it's not a bad show, but not nearly as good as the original play. If one had never seen or read the play, it might be quite affecting. But mostly, it just touches on all the themes and plot points of Durrenmatt and is kind of a paint-by-numbers version of the play. The townspeople starting to buy things on credit is turned into the song "Yellow Shoes," for example. It's a fine song and it works pretty well as an ironic comment on the action. But it doesn't fill you with dread like the play does. I've never seen the play - I've only read the script.
Also, even without comparing it to the play, it's an odd score - half of it is sincere and even romantic, and the other half is that bitter irony that we're familiar with from Cabaret and Chicago. ("Yellow Shoes" would fall into the latter category.) Many of the songs are quite good, but they don't seem to cohere as a whole. I was never quite sure whether we were supposed to care about Anton (as he's called in this version) and Claire or whether the director (Frank Galati) was trying to keep us at a Brechtian arm's length.
Anyway, even with all these caveats, I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy myself. I didn't love the show, but I certainly didn't hate it. But I could probably watch Chita read the phone book and enjoy myself. She was wonderful, commanding the stage and creating a nuanced portrait of Claire. George Hearn was very impressive vocally, but even my aunt thought he was overacting. Mercifully, he kept the screaming down to a minimum, and was actually quite good during his quieter scenes, I though. Everyone in the ensemble was perfectly adequate, but there were no stand out performances. The guy who played the schoolteacher was also in The Glorious Ones as Arlecchino, and his voice still is unpleasant to me when he goes up into a higher register, but I thought his acting was very good.
I don't think we'll be seeing this in New York. Certainly not by a commercial producer. The show needs work that it probably can't get, because the authors really kind of have to go back almost all the way to the drawing board. But I'm glad I saw it.
Also, on Sunday, I saw a sneak preview of Mamma Mia for free with Dee and Viki and some new friends. Not much to say about the movie, other than it's Mamma Mia, and even gayer now than ever. If you go for such things, and I have been known to, you'll probably enjoy it.
I am writing this from a bus. Cool, I know. I took the Chinatown bus to DC this weekend and am currently heading home. I went to spend time with my aunt and my uncle. Also, my aunt and I saw The Visit yesterday.
But first things first. I promised infinitejoys I would write about the Side Show reading. That happened over a week ago now. I really should write about that, the Mufti Grind, and then the Visit. Let's see how far I get before my computer runs out of battery power. (I already watched The Signal, which I got from Netflix. Great horror/comedy, I really enjoyed it.)
My first thoughts on the Side Show reading is: they've gone a long way towards fixing it. The big numbers that are cut are "More Than We Bargained For" and "Tunnel of Love." All the performance songs were replaced with different earlier performance songs. Those of us who love Side Show have already heard these songs - "Ready to Play" and "Stuck With You" were both recorded by Emily and Alice, and on the demos (which I'm sure most of us have), you can hear "Typical Girls Next Door." Speaking of the demos, a lot of the Auntie material was put back in, but not nearly all of it. Not having done a detailed analysis, I would say that they took parts from each song and strung them together with a little new material. It's all done as a flashback when the girls are telling Terry and Buddy why they can't leave the circus. (An interesting new song was added - a trio for Harry Houdini and the girls called "All in the Mind," about how the girls can always be alone if they just create a compartment in their minds.) And then, you remember the long trial sequence from the demos. Well, it's not here, but there is a trial to determine whether or not Sir has legal guardianship over the girls. So they can't just up and leave the side show like they did in the original version. In the second act, instead of Buddy and Terry turning into jerks at the last second, Terry finds a doctor who can separate the girls without harming them. He then says to Daisy that he will marry her as soon as they have this operation. The girls are, at first, thrilled about this. But as Buddy's wedding draws closer, Buddy is getting cold feet for some unknown reason, and Jake is trying to convince the girls not to have the operation. It all comes to a head right before the wedding, as in the original show, but here we find out that Buddy is actually gay and just wanted to make Violet happy. Daisy says that Terry is already going to marry her, why not just do it here and now before the operation? Terry can't bring himself to do that, and Tod Browning, who entered the room, asks, "What operation?" When he is told, he says that he needs the girls for his film just the way they are. The girls realize that they do need to stay together, even if it will cost Daisy the love of her life.
So, I think this ending is an improvement. It raises the stakes for "I Will Never Leave You," for one. The girls have the choice to be "like everyone else" and they CHOOSE not to, valuing each other and themselves for their uniqueness.
The actors in it were terrific, although Aaron Lazar and Betsy Wolfe (as Terry and Daisy) were the standouts. Erin Davie was very good as Violet, belting better than I've ever heard her. Bobby Steggert and Jefferson Mays (as Sir) were slightly underwhelming, but I'm sure they'd be very good with more rehearsal time. Both just looked somewhat uncomfortable. And as much as I liked Bobby in 110 in the Shade and The Slug Bearers..., he's not really a great singer.
Anyway, it was a very special experience for me - Bill Condon sat right behind me, and I ran into Harvey Fierstein in the bathroom and had a little conversation with him. I'll definitely share the bootleg with you all as soon as it's tracked.
Ok, I have 10 minutes left. The Mufti Grind I saw on Saturday night. There was a new book, and Larry Grossman and Ellen Fitzhugh went back and added a bunch of cut numbers, especially "We All George," which Hal Prince said was vital to the show, and which Ben Vereen refused to sing. (It's all about how on the train, no white people can tell the black porters apart, so to the passengers, they're all "George.") Unfortunately, some great numbers were cut too. I couldn't understand why the authors would want to cut "The Line" unless they felt it was too "on-the-nose" for Leroy to be telling us exactly how he felt and what his problems were. But it's a terrific song, MUCH better than that first song for Romaine, about how she loves young men (and I couldn't figure out what that song was supposed to mirror in real life, either.)
But I LOVED "We All George" - I thought it was a pretty terrific song, musically and lyrically. It manages to be pretty funny all the way through. And they kind of had to cut "Why, Mama, Why?" cause the bike is no longer a part of the show. And Di, according to posts on castrecl, "Rabbity Stew" was in the show in tryouts. (Although it doesn't make a good act-closer at all.)
I'm not sure how I feel about the restructuring of the story. One of the things I liked about the original script is how Leroy doesn't get with Satin. This is much more conventional - Satin and Leroy go off together, and Doyle comes to peace with himself and goes back home to Ireland. And there's very little of the racial violence and tension that seems to be underneath the show constantly in the original script. It's much less about blacks and whites and much more about these burlesque girls being abused, both black and white. (This kind of undercut the power of "We All George," although Doyle makes a very interesting reference to it at the very end of the show.)
Also, in the original script, "These Eyes of Mine" was sung at Gus's funeral. Here, it's sung by Clementine when she is remembering her own father's funeral while talking to Doyle about how she came to work at this theatre.
Speaking of Gus, why did they not use "I Get Myself Out"? That song title was printed in the program, but the lyric was not in the song that was sung. According to that guy on castrecl, it's a song that was cut in tryouts and was replaced by "I Get Myself Out." I mean, the song they used at Mufti was fine but not as interesting, musically, as "I Get Myself Out," and both songs do exactly the same thing, so...
I have read the original script, and I can't say for certain if the prostitution angle is in it or not, but it's certainly not prominent or the driving plot of the show. Which makes me wonder how "A Century of Progress" fit into the show originally, since it basically exists to comment on the corruption of the judge and the city. (Although perhaps they tweaked it lyrically. It probably could've originally been used to comment on racial violence.) I don't know, maybe the show is unfixable. But I think the authors, if they continue to work on it, need a strong director (like Hal Prince) to tell them what works and what doesn't.
Ok, no time for love Dr. Jones. My battery's about to run out. Check out this lj next time for my thoughts on the final (?) Kander and Ebb musical, The Visit.
I thought I'd get on lj and see the whole interwebs buzzing about the new My Fair Lady film, to be made with Keira Knightley. But no one's posted about it! Am I the only person excited? Well, me, and a bunch of really old people?
Someone suggested Hugh Laurie for Higgins. THAT WOULD BE CRAMAZING. Seriously. He is perfect. I would probably die.
Also, I stepped on a nail yesterday and just got it out of my shoe. It didn't penetrate the inside and hurting me, it just was annoying. This was while walking around the LES at 2AM with a bunch of burlesque dancers and Miles. We got some pretty odd looks/questions/catcalls.
I always hoped this icon would be appropriate for some lj entry. And it finally is. Less satisfying than I would've hoped, actually.
So I'm still alive. I think. I'm not sure, check back tomorrow. After the most exhausting week I've had in a long time, I realized something. I want to move to the Welsh countryside and become a preacher.
So I saw No No Nanette at Encores this weekend. I've never really gotten into the 1971 CD, other than Helen Gallagher, whom I love. Before I saw this, I had expressed my wish that they would've done the 1925 version.
Well, I liked it far more than I like the CD, that's for sure. I think I prefer the original orchestrations in most of the numbers, but with a few exceptions, I don't hate the new ones. They just feel very Vegas-y and not period. But they are fun sometimes - I particularly like the new orchestration/arrangement of "You Can Dance With Any Girl At All," and the big "I Want To Be Happy" dance in the first act was nice too.
The best moment of the whole night came for me when Sandy Duncan came out after the "I Want to Be Happy" vocal, smiled at the audience, and just started dancing. That felt 1920s to me, and it also just captured the joy of musical theatre. I liked most of the cast, including Beth Leavel and Michael Berrese, and I loved their "You Can Dance..." duet. I have to say, I don't really get "Where Has My Hubby Gone Blues." The song just doesn't do anything for me. It was well-performed, though.
Charles Kimborough was a delight and Mara Davi was cute, although her belting was very not 1920s. (I actually prefer Susan Watson on the CD.) It's an entertaining show, and I can see why it went over so well in 1971 with that cast and that production. And I can see why Encores chose the 1971 version, and I don't begrudge them for it. Although it's still not my favorite show.
ETA: And my friend Joe Thalken was at one of the twin pianos! It was nice to see him tickling the ivories up there.
My favorite paragraph: "In another set of experiments, Dr. Dukas discovered that young male flies wasted a lot of time trying to court unreceptive females. It takes time to learn the signs of a receptive fly." - Just another way flies are EXACTLY LIKE HUMANS.
Also, here's a line that made me laugh. It's from a review of PS. I Love You, the Hillary Swank movie, but the line is referring to Nellie McKay, who apparently plays Swank's sister - "I'm not sure what movie she's acting in, but she apparently thinks it's the 1920s, or that she's 12, or that she's part of the Little Rascals."
Here's a short list of shows that need to be seen (by me) before the Tonys: A Catered Affair - student rush Glory Days - student rush Gypsy - student rush 39 Steps - I don't know if they have student rush, but they do have those 39$ rush seats Top Girls - student rush, but I'm going to see if I can get comps And maybe Little Mermaid and YF, if I get around to them. Little Mermaid is actually doing student rush now during the week, so I might try that before the summer comes and they get rid of that policy.
Annie and Randi are currently in my apartment! Yay!
So on my Facebook homepage, it says "You're engaged. Find everything for your new life together. For a limited time, register at Target and receive a free organizational clutch." What do you think, Claire? Should we register?
:)
In other news, my sister finally broke up with her loser boyfriend. This is good news. He was a huge loser and she deserves way better.
In still other news, congrats!!! To all the MSU Theatre graduates!!! I'm so proud of you guys!!! I wish I could be at your graduation.
Does anyone other than me and Jordon think of Anne Trulove's lullaby to Tom at the end of Stravinsky's Rake's Progress whenever you hear "Where are youuuuu" from Spamalot?? Cause seriously, I can not hear one without thinking of the other, and Jordon is like the only other person who has ever not looked at me blankly when I asked her that.
Friends-cut done. Of course I probably didn't cut you, but if I did just ask me and I'll add you back.
This icon is in honor of how great Kristen Bell was in Forgetting Sarah Marshall. Not a great movie, but I thought it was absolutely hilarious. I urge everyone who likes comedy to go see it! I also saw Harold and Kumar... and it wasn't nearly as good as FSM. If you liked the first one, you'll probably like the sequel as well, although it wasn't as funny and had quite a few dead spots. Still worth seeing if you liked the first one and you find Neil Patrick Harris saying things like "You think this is the first time I've ever transported fugitives across state lines??" hilarious.
In other news, I made out with a hot blonde last night. She was 34. It was HOT.
I need to do a friends-cut. If I post comments on your journal or I'm friends with you in real life, of course you won't be cut. If there's any doubt in your mind, and you want to stay, just comment!
:)
PS. Liz and I had a great time at Boeing-Boeing! More later.
So I saw Juno at Encores last night. Basically, my short review is that I loved it, and I urge anyone in the New York area who is interested in musical theatre at all to run to catch this before it closes on Sunday night. But for a more detailed, spoilerful review, click the lj-cut!
So in the past week I've seen In The Heights, Take Me Along at the Irish Rep, The Adding Machine for the second time, and Cry-Baby. I don't discuss The Adding Machine below, but I've seen it twice. Clearly I like it. :) My thoughts are long, cause I talk about three shows. You don't have to read them all. We can still be friends.
I know I have been neglecting lj lately. Sorry, lj. I still like you. I'll come back, I promise.
But I have a question for all NYCers: when I was growing up in Philly, I ate soft pretzels all the time, but ESPECIALLY on St. Patrick's Day. I live in New York now. There has to be someplace in Manhattan where you can get a good soft pretzel, right? Those ones that they sell on the street taste like they came out of the frozen foods section at Pathmark.
Help me, somebody! Where can I find a good soft pretzel??
Happy St. Patrick's Day too, even though technically the church moved it to Saturday.
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