Theatre Talk: In Our Own Little Corner

[unicorn23]

I always forget to post here after seeing a show. I saw Medea two weeks ago which is a modern-day interpretation of the Greek tragedy with Rose Byrne and Bobby Cannavale (a couple in real-life) and it was an excellent show.

Didn't realize my seat was that close to the stage (practically on the stage) and during the show, there were times where I could have reached out my hand and I could have touched the actors.

I’m a huge Rose Byrne fan (she has been excellent in everything I’ve seen her in especially Spy and Damages) and she was the reason I went to watch this and she blew me away. Such raw talent and very commanding stage presence. I have forgotten how the story of Medea ends so when THAT happened, I was shook to the core. My show was the last show, but if it wasn’t I would have recommended everyone to go and see this.

Up next is The Minutes with Jessie Mueller (I love her) and Arnie Hammer in two weeks. Seeing Jessie back on Broadway and not singing should be interesting.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

14 hours ago, bosawks said:

I know the appropriate response to the Coronavirus is not, “This better not eff up my theatre tickets”, but, nevertheless.....

I have “Assassins” tickets dammit!

The mayor of San Francisco has cancelled all gatherings of 50 people or more in any city run buildings which includes all performances of the San Francisco Ballet and the San Francisco Symphony.

For now, the theaters that have Broadway tours/shows haven't cancelled because the city doesn't own their buildings. I'm guessing that Hamilton and Harry Potter will only close when the mayor comes and padlocks the doors shut personally because people will be in an uproar if they don't get to see those two shows.

[ebk57]

2 hours ago, unicorn23 said:

Up next is The Minutes with Jessie Mueller (I love her) and Arnie Hammer in two weeks. Seeing Jessie back on Broadway and not singing should be interesting.

Also saw that last week.  I will be very interested in hearing what you think of it. 

[aradia22]

Casting for Once Upon A One More Time (Britney Spears fairytale musical)

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Briga-Heelan-Justin-Guarini-Simon-Callow-Emily-Skinner-and-More-to-Lead-ONCE-UPON-A-ONE-MORE-TIME-20200304

Even for the Broadway community, I wouldn't consider this star casting so it seems they're relying on the concept and Britney Spears to sell the show and not the cast. It'll be interesting to see how it pans out. I still find the plot cringey and I'm not confident in a male book writer.

[Was-MArsenault]

From Deadline:

https://deadline.com/2020/03/mart-crowley-dead-the-boys-in-the-band-playwright-obituary-1202877170/

[Silver Raven]

Broadway goes black through April 12.

https://www.broadway.com/buzz/198775/broadway-shuts-down-performances-canceled-through-april-12-due-to-covid-19-pandemic/

 

 

[Spartan Girl]

It's for the best. Maybe by next month things will be under control even if the virus is out there and we can go back to enjoying life again.

I'm supposed to be seeing Wicked at Wharton Center on April 5. It's only cancelled stuff for this month, so fingers crossed! Yes, I know its selfish but I'm sure I'm not the only one that's hoping next month will be better and have things under some measure of control where we can enjoy life again. This has to pass.

[unicorn23]

On 3/8/2020 at 12:32 PM, ebk57 said:

Also saw that last week.  I will be very interested in hearing what you think of it. 

Well, guess I’ll have to see this at a different date. Best to be safe so as long as I get my money back, can always get a ticket when shows resume.

What did you think of the play?

[ebk57]

1 hour ago, unicorn23 said:

Well, guess I’ll have to see this at a different date. Best to be safe so as long as I get my money back, can always get a ticket when shows resume.

What did you think of the play?

I'm pretty sure refunds will be automatic.  

Without spoiling it (because you really can't say much about this show without spoiling it), I thought it was funny/a bit silly at the start.  Then it got more serious and raised many good issues... quite interesting.  Then, it took a sharp turn and went off a cliff.  I'm still not sure what I thought of the play.  Which is why I'll be interested to hear what you think.  I hope the show is able to resume when the crisis has passed. 

[aradia22]

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Met-Opes-To-Launch-Free-Nightly-Streams-During-Coronavirus-Closure-20200313

[ElectricBoogaloo]

13 hours ago, unicorn23 said:

Well, guess I’ll have to see this at a different date. Best to be safe so as long as I get my money back, can always get a ticket when shows resume.

 

12 hours ago, ebk57 said:

I'm pretty sure refunds will be automatic. 

Not all shows are offering automatic refunds so be sure to contact the box office. Some theater companies are asking people to donate the cost of their tickets aka not get a refund. Others are offering credit for shows later this year or next season. A few are recording their show and making them available online to ticket holders.

In San Francisco, several shows closed once the mayor announced a ban on all gatherings of over 1000 people. But the Curran, where Harry Potter and the Cursed Child is playing, announced that they would reduce the seating in the theater from 1667 to 1000. They didn't explain how they were going to do that (have a lottery for every show and tell 667 people that they lost their seats? just close the mezzanine and balcony?). They only relented and closed once the governor banned gatherings of more than 250 people.

[theatremouse]

If you have theater tickets at a non-profit theater for a show within the month of March, you will most likely be contacted and given the option of donation, gift certificate/credit for tickets to a future show, refund  or exchange if possible to a much later date (depending on the theater you might be presented with all or only some of those options). If it's a for-profit theater, most are doing refunds. If your tickets are for soon - like in the next week, if you weren't contacted at least by email as soon as they announced the cancellations, it's worth calling the box office. However, some theaters (especially the non-profits who are giving a choice about what to do with the tickets) are contacting patrons individually, starting with those with tickets to the soonest performance. So if you didn't get an email asking you what you want done (or saying you don't have a choice) and you didn't get an email saying they'd call you, go ahead and call them. If they did say they'd contact you, but your tickets are for more than a week from now, don't stress yet. They're probably still dealing with the audiences for sooner performances.

[aradia22]

I watched Norma last night. I had it recorded on the DVR but I rarely have the opportunity to sit down for a 3 hour opera at home. The cast featured Joyce DiDonato and Sondra Radvanovsky. 

At first, I kind of hated it. I really needed time to warm up to this one and I think being able to take breaks helped. Even though I ended up really enjoying it, I still think there are way too many boring lulls in the opera. I would fully throw out most of the stuff with the chorus and the parts that were not sung during which there was not a lot of stage direction to keep things interesting. Also, even though I came to enjoy the music, I still think it doesn't sound anything like druids or Ancient Rome and it often wasn't directed tied to the emotion of the moment. It's very pretty but they could be singing about romance or anger or killing children and it all kind of sounds the same. 

I loved the high notes in this opera. There were wonderful musical moments for the women. Joyce is the better actress (Sondra makes weird faces) but Sondra has incredible vocal control. 

I don't know how much of it was the direction and how much of it was the story itself but I hated Pollione. Norma and Adalgisa were great. I don't know why they were so obsessed with this unfaithful man who in this production was directed to be an abusive asshole. So much of his interaction with Adalgisa is grabbing her and physically overpowering her. He's coercive when he's not outright physically abusive. I ended up loving the two women. The opera was only dragged down by the fact that the plot centers on how this terrible man affects their lives. I disliked the ending because I don't know that Norma and Pollione recommitting to each other in death was a great resolution. I prefer Norma and Adalgisa being priestesses together, especially with the way their voices gorgeously layer and harmonize in those duets. 

I do wonder how much is lost in translation or selectively translated to get across the point being made in this specific production. There were quite a few times when the actors were clearly saying more than was being translated. 

So good I'm keeping it on the DVR. 

[DisneyBoy]

I just read that the tour of Hello Dolly has been cancelled completely. Like, they played their last show and they didn't even know it. I'd heard such good things about Carolee Carmello. It would have been really nice to see this tour. I never saw the revival 😞

[Silver Raven]

5 minutes ago, DisneyBoy said:

I just read that the tour of Hello Dolly has been cancelled completely. Like, they played their last show and they didn't even know it. I'd heard such good things about Carolee Carmello. It would have been really nice to see this tour. I never saw the revival 😞

I saw her in Sacramento as Mama Rose and she was really good.

 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

9 hours ago, DisneyBoy said:

I just read that the tour of Hello Dolly has been cancelled completely. Like, they played their last show and they didn't even know it.

A similar thing happened to the San Francisco Ballet. They had opening night of A Midsummer Night's Dream which was the fourth program of the season. Shortly before the curtain went up, the mayor held a press conference banning gatherings of 50 or more people in city run buildings (which includes the War Memorial Opera House where the ballet performs) for the next three weeks. About half an hour after the show ended, the ballet announced that they were cancelling all the scheduled performances of A Midsummer Night's Dream but that they were going to continue rehearsals for the rest of the season. A few days later, the mayor announced further restrictions and the ballet had to cancel programs 5 and 6, which were to run in April. Over the weekend, the CDC recommended no gatherings of 50 people for the next eight weeks, which effectively ends the ballet's season (programs 7 and 8 were scheduled for May). No one suspected that opening night of program 4 would be the final performance of the entire season.

Many of the company members are not American citizens. They are here on work visas so the fear was that if the entire season was cancelled, they would have to go home for an indefinite amount of time. The ballet was continuing to rehearse in the hopes that they would get to do some of the later performances in the season, but they had their last rehearsal yesterday and they were told to take home all of their personal items because they don't know when they will be coming back.

So many actors and dancers are out of work now. I hope they'll all be okay financially.

 

 

[aradia22]

Quote

[A Chorus Line] A COSTCO LINE Featuring the hit: “ I Hope I Get It” (the toilet paper song)

[Avenue Q] Avenue Q-uarantine

[The King and I] The King and I Are Six Feet Apart featuring "Getting to Know You (Without Touching)"

[RENT] I Can't Pay My Rent featuring "I'm Not Going Out Tonight, or Any Night, for the Next 8 Weeks"

[Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812] Natasha, Pierre and the Great Virus of 2019 ft "Sonya Alone"

[South Pacific] ‘I’m Gonna Wash My Hands Right off of my Arms’

[Little Shop of Horrors] "Somewhere That's Clean"

Some fun from BWW. I pulled my favorite re-worked musical titles and songs. Honestly, some of these could make brilliant parody songs.

[Spartan Girl]

The first week of Wicked in Wharton Center, East Lansing, MI got cancelled but the other two weeks are still scheduled for right now. We moved our performance to April 17. I know about the CDC saying 8 weeks but maybe it will vary each state.

I KNOW I've seen the shoe before and I'll understand if it gets cancelled...its just dammit I really need this right now. I need some hope that things will be normal again soon. Plus the story of a woman trying to expose a fraud only to wind up being vilified as a witch because she tells people what they don't want to hear REALLY rings true right now.

Edited March 17, 2020 by Spartan Girl

[ElectricBoogaloo]

No Theater? No Problem. Plays and Musicals Switch to Streaming No Theater? No Problem. Plays and Musicals Switch to Streaming

FYI - ACT is allowing non-ticket holders to view their two canceled productions (Toni Stone and Gloria) by donating any amount you choose.

Quote

Susan Medak, the managing director of the Berkeley Repertory Theater in California, said the writing was on the wall over two weeks ago: Closings were coming.

“The sense of urgency around the potential for closings hit the West Coast before it hit the East Coast,” she said in a phone interview. So her company, along with the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, began hatching a plan to make their most recent stage productions available to their patrons on the streaming platform BroadwayHD.

Berkeley Rep will stream Jocelyn Bioh’s “School Girls; or, the African Mean Girls Play” and the Culture Clash group’s “Culture Clash (Still) in America.” And Jennifer Bielstein, who runs the A.C.T., said that the theater had made recordings of Lydia Diamond’s “Toni Stone” and Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’s “Gloria” “while they were still up and running.” (All shows will be available to ticketholders for about two weeks.)

“We didn’t have the time or resource to invest in a five-camera shoot that’s directed and designed,” Bielstein said. “So we recorded with one or two cameras in the house. It’s more about making sure the audience gets to see the work.”

Suddenly, the Bay Area institutions’s initiatives to use technology to bring theater to the people, instead of people to the theater, have begun to be emulated nationwide as bans on public gatherings proliferate. Organizations across the country are scrambling to find ways to stream productions, working through copyright issues and coming to agreements with unions, such as Actors’ Equity and United Scenic Artists, to ensure the show goes on.

Experiencing theater from home is not a new phenomenon, of course. But now, in addition to the catalog long available on platforms such as BroadwayHD or more niche services like On the Boards, which specializes in experimental performance (and offers free streaming through the end of April), companies are trying to preserve the shows that were playing, or about to start, when the industry shut down.

[...]

Shows and special programs are announcing streaming plans daily. The Alley Theater in Houston will make its production of “1984” available, for a limited time, to ticketholders and anybody interested in purchasing a viewing. In Chicago, Theater Wit will make its production of Mike Lew’s “Teenage Dick” available starting on March 20; customers will be able to buy access to a Vimeo link for the desired date and time. The Signature Theater in Arlington, Va., is looking to make its production of Dani Stoller’s “Easy Women Smoking Loose Cigarettes” available online to ticketholders.

[...]

Also in New York, Rattlestick Playwrights Theater obtained special permission from Actors’ Equity to record its production of “The Siblings Play” and should be able to stream it to ticket buyers starting this week.

We are also likely to see a booming number of individual initiatives like Young Jean Lee — who made a “low-fi” version of her show “We’re Gonna Die” (closed prematurely at Second Stage Theater) available on her website, and Broadway regulars Telly Leung and Alice Ripley, who teamed up for a live concert on the Stageit platform. On Friday, ACT of Connecticut and the Ridgefield Playhouse will stream a live concert that will include the composer Stephen Schwartz performing “Beautiful City,” from his musical “Godspell.”

But before a production can be live-streamed, it has to leap several hurdles.

Any group, professional or not, that wants to stream a play must get permission from its author — some of whom are more forthcoming with it than others. John Patrick Shanley — whose shows “Doubt” and “Welcome to the Moon” are popular licenses — said that he “just gave blanket permission for any and all request to live stream [my plays] to be granted, as opposed to case by case.”

[...]

The coronavirus pandemic, beyond its obvious human and financial toll, could have long-term effects on theater. Sean Cercone, the chief executive and president of Broadway Licensing, said that streaming initiatives could contribute to a new organizational, technical and legal framework for the industry.

“Work begets work,” he said in a phone interview. “The best way for us to market a play is for people to see it.”

New avenues for fund-raising are also popping up: Seth Rudetsky and James Wesley are promoting the Actors Fund’s efforts by hosting “Stars in the House,” a daily streaming show that is slated to feature Broadway marquee names including Kristin Chenoweth, Sara Bareilles and Jeremy Jordan.

 

[aradia22]

Quote

We are also likely to see a booming number of individual initiatives like Young Jean Lee — who made a “low-fi” version of her show “We’re Gonna Die” (closed prematurely at Second Stage Theater) available on her website

Oooh! brb 😉

ETA: I think they mean the version with the playwright performing the monologues and David Byrne singing. Disappointing...

Edited March 18, 2020 by aradia22

[aradia22]

https://people.com/parents/ruthie-ann-miles-expecting-third-child-after-losing-daughter-unborn-baby/

[Spartan Girl]

42 minutes ago, aradia22 said:

https://people.com/parents/ruthie-ann-miles-expecting-third-child-after-losing-daughter-unborn-baby/

That's just the kind of good news I needed right now!

[aradia22]

Watched Rosie O'Donnell's show to raise money for the Actor's Fund. Such awkward interviewing.

Favorite guests: Tituss Burgess, Patti Lupone, Idina Menzel, Chita Rivera, Audra McDonald, Kelli O'Hara, Adrienne Warren, Kristin Chenoweth, Harvey Fierstein, Billy Porter, Shoshana Bean, Jordan Fisher, Marisa Tomei, Lea Salonga

Stephen Sondheim washing his hands was iconic.

I know it's for charity, but Darren Criss thinking he can sing Being Alive was a big oof. I had flashbacks to his awful NY Pops Carnegie Hall concert. 

[aradia22]

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Breaking-Tony-Winning-Playwright-Terrence-McNally-Dies-from-Coronavirus-Related-Complications-at-81-20200324

[Dr.OO7]

The New York City Ballet's spring season has become the latest casualty of the pandemic. I'm guessing the American Ballet Theater's is next.

Was anyone else thrilled when they heard Broadway show tickets were going to be only $50 (I wanted to see West Side Story and To Kill A Mockingbird), then leery about going because of the outbreak, then laughed bitterly when Broadway was shut down not two seconds after the cheap tickets became available?

[ElectricBoogaloo]

8 hours ago, Camille said:

The New York City Ballet's spring season has become the latest casualty of the pandemic. I'm guessing the American Ballet Theater's is next.

SF Ballet cancelled one show, then two more shows, and then finally on 3/17 they officially cancelled the entire season. I know it's been really tough on the dancers because they only got to perform less than half of their season. Because of the city regulations, it was really sudden. All rehearsals and company classes were cancelled and they were given one afternoon to go clean out their dressing rooms and lockers before the shelter in place order went into effect.

Unfortunately ticket holders are not being offered the option of refunds. You can either donate the cost of your tickets or you can get credit for next year's season.

I'm not surprised that ABT still hasn't cancelled. I guess they're being optimistic that everything will be back to normal by May and they probably don't want to have to deal with everything that goes into cancelling (like people wanting their money back) unless they absolutely have to.

[angora]

London's National Theatre is putting up the filmed recording of one of their plays every week on YouTube. A new play will go up every Thursday and be available to watch for free for a week. Plays announced for April are One Man Two Guv'nors, Jane Eyre, Treasure Island, and Twelfth Night.

[Milburn Stone]

10 hours ago, angora said:

London's National Theatre is putting up the filmed recording of one of their plays every week on YouTube. A new play will go up every Thursday and be available to watch for free for a week. Plays announced for April are One Man Two Guv'nors, Jane Eyre, Treasure Island, and Twelfth Night.

This is great news. Thank you, @angora. Just in case anyone is as confused as I was when I went to the site, it appears that this has not started yet. (I didn't quite get that from your post, for whatever reason.) It begins this coming Thursday. 

[angora]

No worries, @Milburn Stone, thanks for clarifying my unclarity! Right, it's starting next Thursday, April 2nd, when One Man Two Guv'nors will be up for a week, and then a different play every week after that. I love National Theatre Live - I've seen a number of their recordings in cinemas. I think it's amazing that they're going to be doing this.

Edited March 28, 2020 by angora
Because even when I was trying to clarify myself, I put in the wrong date. D'oh!

[aradia22]

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Award-Winning-Songwriter-Adam-Schlesinger-Passes-Away-Due-to-COVID-19-Complications-20200401

That Thing You Do, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend... I can't even process this right now.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

All remaining performances of Hamilton in San Francisco have been cancelled. The show is permanently closed. No word yet on where the And Peggy tour will go next once the coronavirus uncertainty is over.

[Silver Raven]

Alfie Boe, Ramin Karimloo, and many other former Les Mis cast members sing "Bring Him Home".

 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Hamilton OBC reunion on John Krasinski’s Some Good News!

Everyone who participated (only one swing and one standby from the OBC were MIA):

Carleigh Bettiol
Jasmine Cephas Jones
Andrew Chapelle
Ariana DeBose
Daveed Diggs
Renee Elise Goldsberry
Jonathan Groff
Sydney Harcourt
Neil Haskell
Sasha Hutchings
Thayne Jasperson
Stephanie Klemons
Morgan Marcell
Lin-Manuel Miranda
Javier Muñoz
Leslie Odom, Jr.
Okieriete Onaodowan
Anthony Ramos
Emmy Raver-Lampman
Jon Rua
Austin Smith
Phillipa Soo
Seth Stewart
Betsy Struxness
Ephraim Sykes

 

Edited April 6, 2020 by ElectricBoogaloo

[aradia22]

I got 20 minutes into the NT recording of One Man, Two Guvnors before giving up. Actors with flat expressions shouting all their lines. The dialogue was so stilted. 

Did anyone see this on stage? Does it get better?

[angora]

I watched the whole thing. Not overly impressed on the whole, a lot of standard farce stuff and some audience interaction that I wasn't really expecting. I went into it figuring I'd like it more than I did. I also thought it was quite a bit longer than it needed to be.

The notable exception, for me, was Oliver Chris as Stanley, one of the two "guv'nors" of James Corden's character (he might not have appeared yet by the time you gave up.) IMHO, Stanley is a pretty hilarious portrayal of an ultra-posh man about town. I can't tell if he has better lines than a lot of the characters or if it's just how Chris delivers them, but he was the only part of the play that consistently made me laugh. I could tell I was going to enjoy him from his first scene, where he asks about accommodations and notes that, given his boarding school upbringing, he's content as long as he has "a bed, a chair, and no one pissing on [his] face."

[Dr.OO7]

The Broadway shutdown has been extended to June 7 and the American Ballet Theater has nixed its spring season, which was going to commemorate the company's 80th anniversary.

Has anyone seen To Kill A Mockingbird or the West Side Story revival? I was going to when they cut the ticket prices to $50, but then they closed the theaters.

[angora]

Andrew Lloyd-Webber is also putting up professional recordings of his shows on YouTube for free. For his, it's a different show each Friday that will only be available through the weekend, so if there's something you want to see, you'll need to be quicker on the draw than with National Theatre Live (although a lot of his shows are also available on DVD and certain streaming services, whereas National Theatre Live is pretty much cinema-or-bust, so maybe it evens out.) By the time I heard the news, I'd already missed the first show, which was Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, but this weekend, it's Jesus Christ Superstar.

[Silver Raven]

NBC is rerunning JCS on Easter Sunday.

 

[aradia22]

I don't know if this will stay up permanently so I'd watch it sooner rather than later.

Some thoughts... 

Hercules needs to come to Broadway. More specifically the Muses need to come to Broadway. Glorious. Favorite number of the show by far.

I've been sleeping on Ashley Brown. Did they really not record a Broadway cast album for Mary Poppins? Ashley and Christian Borle were great together in the Mary Poppins section of the show.

Mandy Gonzalez would have been a great Amneris.

I wonder if Kerry Butler auditioned for Ariel and Christian Borle auditioned for Bert in Mary Poppins. It would have depended on their jobs at the time but that feels like solid casting.

Gavin Creel singing Out There was lovely. Same for Norm Lewis singing If I Can't Love Her and James Monroe Iglehart singing Can You Feel the Love Tonight. 

Sherie Rene Scott and Adam Pascal singing Beauty and the Beast was a trip. It's like they were competing to sing it as weirdly as possible. I say this with love... how have these two starred in multiple musicals with their "unique" voices?

Ryan's rendition of Somewhere Over the Rainbow was very pretty.

[Spartan Girl]

I loved the Disney Broadway concert. I would totally go see Hunchback AND Hercules on Broadway.

Andrew Lloyd Webber streamed Phantom's 25th anniversary show yesterday. Mom watched it and she couldn't understand why Michael Crawford wasn't singing Music of the Night with the other past Phantoms at the end.

I hope Webber doesn't do Love Never Dies next week (or at all) though he probably will. BLECH!

Wharton Center moved announcing its new season lineup to May 18. I'm still holding out hope for seeing Dear Evan Hansen in June. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I have a soft spot for Phantom because it was one of the first musicals I loved (and there are some really beautiful lyrics), but every time I actually watch it I'm reminded of what a terrible love story it is. The Phantom is supposed to be a somewhat sympathetic character but he spends the entire show kidnapping Christine, murdering people, and bullying everyone else. Like did you ever consider that maybe she doesn't love you because you're a terrible person and not because of your face?

I know the 25th anniversary show was posted on YouTube (officially, not a bootleg) several years ago because I watched it there a few years after it aired on PBS but I guess they removed it at some point? I can't believe this was recorded almost ten years ago. It feels like it was just yesterday that people were debating whether Sarah Brightman used a click track for the reunion performance. I forgot how much I hated all the phantoms yelling, "Sing for me!" at the end of POTO. You guys are better than that

This performance reminded me that I don't like the new digital projections and the changes they made to the sets. I liked the updated costumes though.

I don't remember if I mentioned this the last time we discussed Phantom, but if you like the show I recommend reading Phantom by Susan Kay. It's a really interesting take on the Phantom character and follows his entire life. He still comes off as a cold blooded killer but he is also a lot more sympathetic because you get so much back story.

1 hour ago, Spartan Girl said:

I hope Webber doesn't do Love Never Dies next week (or at all) though he probably will. BLECH!

Hahaha, this comment made me laugh so hard because it's true.

Edited April 18, 2020 by ElectricBoogaloo

[aradia22]

Quote

Like did you ever consider that maybe she doesn't love you because you're a terrible person and not because of your face?

Lol. Let's not forget the pretending to be a friend of her dead father part or whatever that's supposed to be. 

I think you would like Lindsay Ellis's Phantom videos if you haven't seen them. She also devotes an episode of her podcast Musicalsplaining to Phantom. 

 

[Spartan Girl]

42 minutes ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

This performance reminded me that I don't like the new digital projections and the changes they made to the sets. I liked the updated costumes though

Yeah the boat on the lake effect, which was so cool when we saw it live in 2001, definitely lost something there.

I'm gonna see if that Phantom book is on my library's Overlook program. And I've been meaning to watch Lindsay Ellis's Phantom videos. Guess that's what I'll do today! Does she rip into LND too?! Because I would adore that.

My mom still loves the show if only because of the costumes and music. I do still have a soft spot for the songs. 

[shoregirl]

5 hours ago, Spartan Girl said:

I loved the Disney Broadway concert. I would totally go see Hunchback AND Hercules on Broadway.

Andrew Lloyd Webber streamed Phantom's 25th anniversary show yesterday. Mom watched it and she couldn't understand why Michael Crawford wasn't singing Music of the Night with the other past Phantoms at the end.

I hope Webber doesn't do Love Never Dies next week (or at all) though he probably will. BLECH!

 

Ive watched both the Disney show and Phantom today. I was a little disappointed that the chandelier didnt crash. I understand its a undertaking to set it up but it's the 25th anniversary crash that chandelier! 

  After Phantom was over YouTube started playing the 10th anniversary concert of Les Mis quick I remember watching in high school , possibly right after I saw it on Broadway and was a little obsessed at the time.  Colm Wilkinson singing Bring Him Home still gives me chills.

17 Valjeans!

 

Edited April 18, 2020 by shoregirl

[Silver Raven]

Nick Cordero, star of A Bronx Tale, Waitress, Bullets Over Broadway, and Rock of Ages, has had to have his leg amputated due to complications of Covid-19.

https://people.com/theater/nick-cordero-to-have-leg-amputated-due-to-coronavirus-complications/

 

[aradia22]

Settling in for Buyer and Cellar

 

[DisneyBoy]

On 4/18/2020 at 11:17 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I can't believe this was recorded almost ten years ago. It feels like it was just yesterday that people were debating whether Sarah Brightman used a click track for the reunion performance. I forgot how much I hated all the phantoms yelling, "Sing for me!" at the end of POTO. You guys are better than that

LOL - yeah that was mega cheesy, but so was Brightman. And yes, that was totally the track from the OLC recording. I don't think she's sung the end to POTO live without that track...like ever. At least it seems that way...

I am sad there isn't a really good official recording of the show. The movie with Gerard is a chore, and the 25th is poorly filmed and executed...and cheesy. I know people love Ramin and Sierra but I find them....meh. He's too young and "sexy" in a GQ way, not old or mysterious or intimidating. They didn't even paint his prosthetics properly for the 25th. It's all fleshtoned...like they were hesitant to make him "too ugly" or something.

And then there's Sierra, sobbing for ten minutes at the end, as if Christine should look more in love with the Phantom than he is with her.

And the reconfigured staging was weird too. Why not use the real candelabras and just roll them onto the stage from the wings, as was often done on tour? The video screens looked terrible, with the 20-foot candelabras.

It was nice see such a huge masquerade but...that's pretty much it for me.

[shoregirl]

On 4/18/2020 at 9:57 AM, Spartan Girl said:

 

I hope Webber doesn't do Love Never Dies next week (or at all) though he probably will. BLECH!

Love Never Dies is indeed this weekend's show. 

https://www.theatermania.com/new-york-city-theater/news/phantom-sequel-love-never-dies-to-air-for-free_90910.html?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=20apr2020

I have looked at the plot of this and there is no way I'm watching . BLECH is right !

[ElectricBoogaloo]

On 4/18/2020 at 6:57 AM, Spartan Girl said:

I hope Webber doesn't do Love Never Dies next week (or at all) though he probably will. BLECH!

I thought of you when I saw that LND was announced as the next show and I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry for you!

[Irlandesa]

I've never seen Love Never Dies but I absolutely adore a few of the songs.

But I'm not a Phantom fan so I doubt I'll be watching its sequel