Theatre Talk: In Our Own Little Corner

[aradia22]

I saw Titanic at NYCC. I don't see it transferring with the current cast (though City Center has had a lot of transfers lately so never say never) so I will keep my thoughts short because no one really needs my opinion on a musical from 1997.

Overall, I am glad I went. It was very well-cast and beautifully sung. It's probably going to be the best version of the show I see in my lifetime. But is it a great show? I didn't think so. The talent and charisma of the performers helped disguise it and the pace kept it chugging along but I could easily, EASILY see this show dragging, even if this production just had a bad day. It's more Grand Hotel than Nine. But not as good as Grand Hotel. 

The story feels very choppy. It's not just that it has a large scope or too many characters. It's that it isn't focused on the story it wants to tell. And it has flop energy. It's not as bad as any of these shows... but I was thinking of Doctor Zhivago, Paradise Square, and even Kelly while watching it. Some of the lyrics... ugh. And the way they chose to dramatize certain plot points. The tone was careening all over the place. I liked the romances and those parts were beautifully sung like everything else but they were ultimately rushed and pointless. Caroline and Charles running off to America to marry in spite of her disapproving father. Kate and Jim getting together because she wills it and needs a father for her baby. The actors tried to sell it but on paper, there's barely anything there. Frederick and the girl he's trying to propose to back home. The Straus relationship was much more grounded, but hot take... I didn't like that song. All the young actors (Chanler-Berat, Maliakel, Grayson, Salstone, Notartomaso) sell what feels like the heart of the show which is the crew dealing with the foreshadowing and then impending and then present disaster. I'd argue the trio of EJ, Ismay, and Andrews has some compelling material but it feels out of place. When the conflict and pathos come, they don't feel earned. The concert staging helps move things along rather than letting you dwell in how out of left field some of the beats feel. There aren't smooth transitions to this grab bag of ideas. 

It's also, you know, Titanic, so the show has to fight against the inevitability and the audience expectation. The weight of it hit me at the end only because I thought fewer people had died than the number they cited. I wasn't emotional though. It's too surface of a show for you to feel empathy. At best you can feel some sympathy as the show doesn't really ask you to care for individual characters so much as this group as a collective (which is tough because for most of the show they aren't acting as a collective so you ultimately only feel bad for them in the same way you feel bad for the victims of any large-scale disaster). 

Special shout-outs: Alex Joseph Grayson, Bonnie Milligan, Chuck Cooper, Adam Chanler-Berat, Jose Llana, Samantha Williams, Ari Notartomaso

[aradia22]

Taking the opportunity to post this 

 

[DisneyBoy]

On 1/12/2024 at 6:12 AM, Quof said:

I will never set foot in a Mirvish theatre, even if the tickets were free.  

Tell me why. I'm curious.

It's late for February recommendations, LOL, but I say check out Hadestown if you haven't. Great Gatsby is weak material but has a ton of pizazz and some great belting. Illinoise is absolutely beautiful, unless you hate dance. Merrily is super expensive, closing and they just filmed it, so...wait on that one.

I'm also curious to hear about the current Les Mis production. Cast? Set? Thoughts?

It's my understanding that this is the semi-recent Broadway staging without the turntable.

[aradia22]

I made one attempt to see The Who's Tommy and didn't win the lottery for either Saturday show. So far I haven't seen any of the Broadway musicals this season. I missed Lempicka because it closed so quickly and Suffs is the only one left I have any real interest in. But I will try for some of the others because nothing's really coming until Sunset Boulevard in October.

[ebk57]

We have tickets for Oh, Mary! and Hadestown (to see Stephanie Mills) in September.  We'll get tickets to see Stereophonic as soon as my friend lets me know if she's going with us or not. 

[choclatechip45]

I saw Oh Mary! this past weekend and it was hilarious! The show flew by. 

[PRgal]

I haven't even seen the show, but I absolutely CANNOT get through The Notebook cast recording without tearing up.  I mean, if I can't get through the movie, how can I possibly do it when it's live theatre?

Edited August 1 by PRgal

[Ohiopirate02]

I'm intrigued. This is either going to be excellent or bogus--

https://variety.com/2024/legit/news/keanu-reeves-alex-winter-broadway-waiting-for-godot-1236093044/

 

[ebk57]

31 minutes ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

I'm intrigued. This is either going to be excellent or bogus--

https://variety.com/2024/legit/news/keanu-reeves-alex-winter-broadway-waiting-for-godot-1236093044/

 

I saw this and was initially excited - then remembered that I hate Godot...  We'll see.  

I am really excited about Denzel and Jake Gyllenhaal in Othello! 

[MicheleinPhilly]

Saw Funny Girl with Katerina McCrimmon as Fanny Brice last weekend. She was absolutely sublime. What a voice! 

[ebk57]

I had a great theatre weekend on our trip last week.  Highlight was Oh, Mary!  The stupidest, funniest play I've seen in a looooong time.  See it if at all possible!! 

Next, we saw Hadestown with Stephanie Mills.  We saw the original cast, but love Stephanie, so wanted to see it again.  Thoroughly enjoyed it again.  The understudy for Orpheus was on (Brandon Cameron) and he was fantastic!!  I feel like he totally made the show, which I think might be emphasized for me because the weak link in the original cast IMO was Reeve Carney.  This time, the weak link was Yolo, but on the whole, the cast is great.

Lastly, Stereophonic.  I really liked it. My friend said he would have enjoyed more of a plot, but I think the character study was incredibly involving.  

And then we ate everything not nailed down 😄  Looking forward to the January trip to see Gypsy!!

[EtheltoTillie]

Anybody know anything about The Hills of California?