Theatre Talk: In Our Own Little Corner

[Rinaldo]

The bit of the "Company original cast recording" documentary involving "Getting Married Today" is instructive -- and reassuring. It tells us that Sondheim (and his music director) can be just as trapped as anyone by a truth well known to those conduct musicals (as I have... once): if you haven't insisted on accuracy from the first day, you'll never be able to undo burned-in bad habits and approximations at a later time.

 

Christine Pedi is the best. Her "Rose's Turn" as delivered by a succession of ladies gets me every time. (I suspect that one reason for the non-helpful titles on YouTube was to escape the wrath of Arthur Laurents, who had a way of shutting things down that irked him.)

 

[DisneyBoy]

I rather liked the concert version of Not Getting Married, even though apparently the woman dropped some lyrics after "I'm not well...!"

I tried with Caroline, or Change but am struggling. That whole first scene in the laundry room goes on and on and I can't quite make out the lyrics. Ahh bootlegs. Not quite the easy viewing experience Producers fear.

Of course I also have a cold and am falling asleep at the drop of a dime as soon as I lay down.

I'll see how I do in the days ahead. Don't want to read a summary of the show unless I absolutely have to ...

[aradia22]

DisneyBoy, maybe try listening to the album so you know the score before watching the bootleg.

[aradia22]

 

Goddess

[Rick Kitchen]

Just now watching Audra in a Law & Order episode.

[DisneyBoy]

Anyone else watching grease live? Is this Carly Rae Jepsen's song actually from the original show? I'm thinking.... not. This sounds like something from the 90s.

Aaron is in tremendous shape and is certainly giving the part his all but I don't know if I actually like his performance much.

I think Julianne might be my favorite. Vanessa is doing pretty well though and I like a lot of the supporting cast members.

How are they doing the songs during this broadcast? Everything sounds kind of processed but it also sounds live but there's some sort of weird delay...

[Charlie Baker]

Watched it and really enjoyed it.  CRJ's song was a new one written for this.  Of course they had to give her a solo.  And I thought it was fine.  The sound had its problems, but staging and tech-wise, it was pretty amazing.

[aradia22]

I'm not in the mood for Grease. I also skipped The Wiz. I'm catching up on Empire. My dad's watching though so I've seen bits of it. The singing is average. Mario Lopez cannot act. The camera work is a bit much for me. Too many cuts back and forth but it's impressive how smooth it is. It looks good. Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey wrote the Frenchy song. I didn't think it fit well either. It sounded very much like them but, you know, without high belting. The Joe Jonas band sounded OK but I thought Boyz II Men oversang Beauty School Dropout. The costumes and the visuals look pretty good though and I'll probably watch it later. It's going on the DVR.

[DisneyBoy]

Ha! So it WAS boyz II men...

Joe Jonas was a WTF for me. As were the gang signs people were flashing to seem 'tough'. Guys, there were no such gang signs in 1959.

Still, I kinda fell under its spell...fun show.

Edited February 1, 2016 by DisneyBoy

[aradia22]

I went to the movies to watch the Live in HD transmission of Turandot this afternoon. Side note: Oh my God, I know we're at the movies but can you stop talking? So rude. People were so rude this afternoon. OK... back on point. I'd watched Les Pecheurs de Perles a little while ago but I don't think I posted about it here. It was also a very whitewashed production but I got over it because the singing was so beautiful and the Nadir could actually act and aside from mentioning Brahma a lot it so was so whitewashed and nonspecific that you could kind of forget where it was taking place. Not so with Turandot. My feelings definitely evolved throughout the three acts. Act 1 was a struggle with the only Asian actor being the barbaric executioner who didn't talk and maybe less than 5 ensemble members. The yellowface was making me physically uncomfortable and I seriously considered leaving but I thought to myself... because I'm unlikely to ever see an accurately cast version of this opera I might as well stick it out because I don't know if I can make myself sit through a whitewashed production a second time. The second act was an improvement. The less said about Ping, Pong, and Pang the better but Nina Stemme sang Turandot so beautifully in the riddle scene and that palace set and the costumes were gorgeous. Also, small mercies, they gave a lot of the ensemble masks so at least the whitewashing was a little less jarring. Aside from the racial politics of casting, I also just loved this section storywise. There was such a depth of characterization that's been lacking in many of the operas I've been seeing. Yes, the ice princess thing is a little sexist but I feel like Puccini was aware of that and worked with it. I love that her feelings are somewhat justified even if she takes it to extremes. I love that he doesn't want to force her to marry him and that two times he gives her a choice and puts the power in her hands. Liu was also a beautifully sung part. Very Eponine. Now I finally know what Nessum Dorma is all about. By the third act this had become one of my favorite operas that I've seen but sadly I don't think I'm going to be seeing it again anytime soon. The whitewashing is just so distracting for me. I thought about it and at the very least I would want Turandot and Liu cast correctly. Preferably we could also have Ping, Pang, and Pong cast with Asian actors and more of the ensemble. I can deal with the rest of the cast not being Asian. 

[aradia22]

Playing catch up on the TNR. Highlights 1/15-1/9

• Les Misérables digital lottery
• The School of Rock digital lottery
• "Bette Midler has announced that she will play Dolly Gallagher Levi in a Broadway revival of the blockbuster 1964 musical, Hello, Dolly! Previews are scheduled to begin March 13, 2017 with an opening date of April 20."
• A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder played its final performance on Broadway Jan. 17 at the Walter Kerr Theatre.
• The world premiere of Miss Atomic Bomb, a new musical comedy starring Catherine Tate will open in March
• "A host of theatre actors can be seen in the six-part series Mercy Street"
• A feature-length documentary titled "Hamilton's America," will be broadcast as part of PBS' "Great Performances" series in fall 2016.
• A new exhibition, Curtain Up: Celebrating 40 Years of Theatre in London and New York, will be presented in both cities, transferring to New York's Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center (Oct. 19, 2016-June 2017).

[aradia22]

 

I think I was right this score might be too low for LaChanze but Carly sounds great and I'm real into that chorus. Hmn...

[aradia22]

Almost there. TNR highlights 1/20-1/25

• The Alving Estate, a new immersive theatre experience inspired by Henrik Ibsen's classic play Ghosts, officially opens in New York Jan. 21. The Alving Estate is scheduled to continue through Feb. 26. Each show admits a limit of 35 audience members per performance. (I'm curious about this. I've never gone to an immersive theatre event. But this is a out of the way for me.)
• The box office at the Cort Theatre (138 W. 48th St.) opens Jan. 25 for the Broadway premiere of the new musical Bright Star, which will begin previews Feb. 25 prior to an official opening March 24.
• Casting and plot for Spongebob musical
• The Public Theater has announced complete casting for the world premiere of Sarah Burgess' comedy drama Dry Powder. The complete cast now includes Claire Danes, Hank Azaria, Sanjit De Silva, and John Krasinski.
• "Ken Watanabe will return to the role of the King of Siam in the Broadway revival of the King and I, for seven weeks starting March 1. Jose Llana, who succeeded Watanabe in the role last fall, will succeed him again for two weeks, April 19-May 1. Daniel Dae Kim will assume the role next from May 3-June 26." (Will I go back to see The King and I a third time? Maybe...)
• Denée Benton will make her Broadway debut as Natasha in Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 (No guarantee than Philippa will stay with Hamilton but I'm happy she's at least not leaving to go back to Natasha, Pierre)
• "Jenna Leigh Green and Sally Schwab have joined the cast of the forthcoming The Marvelous Wonderettes revival. They join the previously announced Christina Bianco and Kathy Brier. Performances of the 1950's-set high school comedy are set to begin March 23 at New York’s Theatre Row. The show opens April 28." (Very curious about this. It seems like it could be fun.)
• Darren Criss replaces Jeremy Jordan in a New York Pops concert March 11 at Carnegie Hall. (Really not happy about this. My subscription  has been fairly disappointing this year. This was my one bright spot.)
• Cats has booked the Neil Simon Theatre, with previews beginning July 14 and an official opening set for Aug. 2. (I don't like ALW that much. Should I see Cats? I've never even listened to the album.)
• "Lincoln Center Festival has announced its 2016 line-up. The festival is scheduled to run July 13-31 and will feature artists and ensembles from seven countries."
• Roundabout's revival of Noises Off has been extended one week. Originally scheduled to continue through March 6, the production will now end its run March 13.

[DisneyBoy]

Decided to put Caroline or Change on hold and watch Jekyll & Hyde instead, since I finally found a bootleg of the original production from 97. Hoo boy, the show is really bad. It just has no tension or plot for the first hour... and the lyrics are so pedestrian with painfully predictable Rhymes left right and center...

..but it does have Linda Eder! This is my first time seeing her in a role, so I will tough it out for her and her alone.

I've only ever seen the official London video recording of Cats with Elaine Paige I believe it was, and I found it a really bizarre show. I'll be curious to hear how they stage this new version, but if you aren't interested in the songs I don't think there's going to be much else to draw you in. I would definitely suggest listening to the album and going from there.

Edited February 3, 2016 by DisneyBoy

[aradia22]

I decided to listen to Carmelina. It's Time For A Love Song is a beautiful romantic ballad. I mean, some of the plot-related lyrics towards the end are a bit iffy but the bones of it are good. Why Him also has some dumb rhymes or otherwise questionable lines but it's still a fun character song. This would be a great audition or cabaret song. I Must Have Her is hard to take seriously. Even as a quasi-comedic song it's too goofy. It reminds me of The Seven Deadly Virtues in a bad way. Someone in April feels familiar too. I think it has a vague Cabaret vibe. I think it sounds a bit like What Would You Do? I'm not sure about the show but this part, I mean Carmelina/Signora Campbell, is growing on me. Because of Georgia Brown's voice I'm leaning towards someone like Eartha Kitt or Chita Rivera or Zoe Wanamaker but it could work for so many other actresses. Signora Campbell is a bit dumb too. Love Before Breakfast is fine. It's filler. Yankee Doodles Are Coming To Town is not great. One More Walk Around The Garden is pleasant but more dreary than romantic. It feels like more filler. The harmony is nice. All That He Wants Me To Be is an odd melody with the uptick at the end. I have some issues with the sentiments in Carmelina but it's a pretty good song. I like both halves. Or really the first fourth and the last 3/4ths. It's so strange for me to imagine this is Paul Sorvino. The Image of Me also has iffy lyrics but again I'm liking the three part harmony as an approach to depicting these characters. I'm a Woman is quite silly but I love it. If you haven't heard Molly Pope sing it, go look it up on youtube.

 

Look, I'm not saying it's ripe for a revival. It needs a lot of work. But an Encores staging? I'd totally be down for that.

[DisneyBoy]

I just finished watching the 1997 production of Jekyll and Hyde. Wow. I can see now why this composer gets so much crap.

To be fair the radio worthy power ballads with mundane lyrics are hardly the biggest problem in the show. The book is just a mess, with only a passing resemblance to the original story. The relationships are so devoid of tension that I feel shocked none of the producers put time into fixing that during any of the out of town tryouts. And I really couldn't wrap my head around the theme of the piece either... Are we supposed to feel badly for the doctor who turned himself into a murderer? Is he supposed to be some kind of hero because he took down the hypocritical two-faced members of society? Jekyll's mission was so poorly defined that I can't even tell where it went wrong because it seems like the dumbest thing in the world to begin with. What was the serum actually supposed to do? Why exactly had his father become so ill? Did it have anything to do with his morality, even?!

I actually found myself sort of giving in and laughing at the show, which I never do even with really bad material. Or perhaps I should say "not since Carrie" have I been so amused by a show for all the wrong reasons. The thing is at least Carrie had kind of a concrete theme to it, and was actually scary at times thanks to the dynamic between Margaret White and her daughter. I couldn't get behind a single relationship in this show and other than repeating the words good and bad and evil and murder over and over, I couldn't see what the heck this piece was trying to get at, if anything.

Linda Eder however is amazing. Her performance wasn't the best from an acting standpoint, but everyone seemed to be acting in a different style anyways so I'm going to give her a pass. Especially with that voice.

I've been reading that people seem to prefer the song "Bring On The Men" to the "Good and Evil" number that replaced it during the Broadway run. As much fun as "Bring On..." is, I think "Good and Evil" actually works really well and I have to admit it's gotten stuck in my head. Lucy's character arc may be half-baked but she seems to have the best songs in the production.

"This Is The Moment", however, is the most laughable piece in the whole show. He is about to inject himself with chemicals for the sake of a vaguely defined science experiment to reverse some condition he isn't even afflicted with, all in the name of helping his presumably dying father, and yet he's belting out how "this is the sweetest moment of them all"? What the what...!?!!?

Did any of you see the revival with Constantine and Deborah Cox?

[bosawks]

At least there was Christiane Noll.  I love Christiane Noll.

[Charlie Baker]

Didn't see Constantine/Deborah, but I saw the commercial video with David Hasselhoff--yikes! Makes the material look even worse.

[JustaPerson]

I was probably the one who posted a few pages back, but it's way more relevant now:

[DisneyBoy]

LOL, yes that was my first introduction to the song thanks to your post! I was watching it thinking "What the heck was this from?"

I watched a 1 minute 30 second clip of Deborah singing "A New Life" and frankly it sounds like she was straining a bit. She's a terrific singer but these songs are absolute hell on the vocal cords. They just keep raising the keys up to force the singers to belt out and sustain notes to create drama. Such a cheap cover for the fact that the songs aren't actually that interesting. I'm even wondering how on earth the great Linda Eder managed to belt eight times a week...

...what Broadway singers have to put up with, am I right?

Edited February 5, 2016 by DisneyBoy

[methodwriter85]

I'm going to admit I have a soft spot for Jekyll and Hyde because I saw it at dinner theater back when I was a teenager, but I get that there's a reason why it's not a perennial classic. I do really like "Behind the Facade" and "If Someone Like You."

 

Anyway...

 

 

I completely get having bouts of obsession with Aaron Tveit.

Edited February 6, 2016 by methodwriter85

[aradia22]

Still undecided about Cabin in the Sky. It's not in the budget right now and I don't want to shell out the money only to be disappointed again. Regardless, please report back, Rinaldo!

 

Speaking of Encores, it seems like the Off-Center season is set. As previously reported, we've got Runaways and God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater and something called the Off-Center Jamboree with Sutton Foster and Jonathan Groff. I'm only a little curious about the two productions but if the subscription isn't too much, I think I'll see all three. 

 

"Tickets will go on sale to City Center Members on Feb 8 at 12pm, and will go on sale to Peer-to-Peer members and Encores! subscribers on Feb 15 at 12pm. Tickets will be available for the general public on Feb 22 at 12pm."

[aradia22]

I had recorded First You Dream on the DVR and finally got a chance to watch it tonight. It took me a while to warm up to it but by Not Every Day of the Week I was pretty much with it. A lot of smart decisions made putting it together, not the least of which was assembling that cast. Basically any song with Julia Murney or Kate Baldwin was a winner. I have a lot more Kander and Ebb to get through, notably The Rink and Kiss of the Spider Woman but also shows I've never heard of like The Happy Time and All About Us. All in good time.

 

Given my budget constraints, I think this sold me on not wanting to see Cabin in the Sky. I just don't think Norm Lewis is going to sing it in the range I want him to, especially if they're doing new orchestrations to fit the performers.

[DisneyBoy]

I have never heard of First You Dream... What is the show about, in a nutshell?

So, I just watched Heathers and was really really thrown by the change in tone over the course of the piece. There was one reviewer who said he was irritated with the way the show ended given how it began, and I think that's rather fair. I still haven't seen the movie, so I don't know how closely it sticks to the plot - nor do I want to, at least until I've seen it for myself - but I found the start of the musical rather enjoyable and then it got dark, depressing, and a little too simple.

And the ending was definitely a bit hollow, with everyone jumping around saying "let's make it better!" After all the death and suicide and illegal activity they just showed us, are we really supposed to feel uplifted?

I liked the cast though and some of the songs were good.

[aradia22]

PM me about the Heathers bootleg.

 

First You Dream was a Kander and Ebb concert special filmed for TV.

[aradia22]

I've been putting off Parade the way I was putting off Light in the Piazza until I was in the mood to be receptive to it and had the time to listen to the whole thing. It was still difficult. It was difficult in a way that was different from Piazza. It was a little too chaotic for me. A bit too much overlaying of discordant melodies, etc. Maybe I need to see it on stage. I liked all the genres of music mixed up in the score but it was hard to find that consistent through line of plot and the tonal shifts didn't work for me at first. It's too easy to get swept up in the reporter's numbers, not just in a way that makes sense because he's charismatic and the lying characters are supposed to be compelling but because I don't think the music in the first half is that great. I did not like the parade numbers or Frankie's song or Leo or Lucille's songs. I'm not completely sold on the contemporary musical theatre way of establishing characters where they just spill out all their feelings and I feel like I didn't even get a good sense of what they were going on about. In general, I'm not sure I liked the lyrics throughout much of the album. But as it went on I liked what it was doing trying to manipulate your sympathies. It felt a bit like Chicago, but darker in tone and with more depth because of the more complicated moral questions. I mean, I did still find some of the slower numbers a bit tedious. "Leo's Statement" was one of the few that worked for me. I like the sentiments of "Do It Alone." I'm not sure why that song doesn't move me. "This Is Not Over Yet" also left me cold.

[DisneyBoy]

I really liked Piazza, but the show seems to have vanished from YT, so I haven't rewatched it in a while. Never saw Parade.

[aradia22]

I moved on to Man of La Mancha next. I'm working through all the albums with yellow covers. Brian Stokes Mitchell's voice is just stupid beautiful. I had to listen to Dulcinea three times. I hear the precursor of so many scores in this music. But it's just a great score in its own right. But, you know, I'm still not crazy about The Impossible Dream. I think I would have listened to this album a lot sooner had I known the show was this comedic. It has its share of songs that get quite silly but not in a way that's tiresome or insulting. I followed the story within the story but I'm not sure what's going on with the framing device.

[Kris223]

I also admit to a soft spot for Jeckyll and Hyde and it's multiple cast recordings. Can't remember why I bought the first one but it was Colm Wilkinson & Linda Eder. Ok, that's probably why I bought it. But I love This Is The Moment, even though I associate more with Paul Wylie skating to it after winning the silver medal in '92.

 

I saw it on Broadway when Sebastian Bach (from Skid Row) played Jeckyll/Hyde. What can I say, I'm of the hair band generation.

[aradia22]

I listened to Big River the other day. Aside from Muddy Water it didn't really make an impression on me.

 

I decided to listen to The Scottsboro Boys today. Woo boy. I definitely see how this one wasn't everyone's cup of tea. I think I'd like to read a book about the way Broadway composers have used African American traditions of music (jazz, blues, gospel, etc.) and to a lesser extent African (e.g. Once On This Island). It's on my mind because of the subject of this show but also because of the albums I've been listening to lately (Ragtime, Caroline or Change, Big River, Cabin in the Sky, Violet... this is not even counting the scores that use these influences without employing black actors). I can hear a bit of The Visit in some of the "bouncier" melodies. Some Chicago and Cabaret too. Alabama Ladies was... yeah, problematic. I'm probably not in the best mood for it after starting to read "Men Explain Things To Me" last night. I definitely like it more than The Visit and Curtains but for me it's still not up there with Chicago and Cabaret. Beautiful singing though. In that respect it's probably my favorite Kander/Ebb album I've listened to so far.

 

I'm curious about how the book put this all together. There was some good social commentary throughout but I almost wanted it to be more biting. "Financial Advice" was stronger than "That's Not the Way We Do Things" or the bit at the end of "Make Friends With the Truth." I think the minstrel show aspect would have been compelling but I'm not sure there's as much in the score itself compared to say, Cabaret. "Southern Days" was the song that really packed a punch. From "It's Gonna Take Time" things got stronger. I just wish all of the impact wasn't focused towards the end of the show.

[Charlie Baker]

There were a lot of people who liked Scottsboro Boys more than I did.  The score was fine, Susan Stroman's staging was strong, it was great to see John Cullum, and Joshua Henry made a big this-man-should-be-a-star impression.  The minstrel concept worked pretty well. But what left me non-plussed was the framing device reaching ahead into history. Not that it was a bad concept, but it didn't have the desired effect on me. On the whole, the show didn't ignite for me. 

 

Big River is a show much better to see than just listen to the score.  Though I've always found the score pleasant.

 

They raised the J&H keys for Sebastian Bach, IIRC.

[Rinaldo]

Big River never meant much to me (what I'd heard and seen of it) until I saw the Deaf West Production around 2003. This was, I think, the first of their productions to hit Broadway, with a cast of both hearing and hearing-impaired actors mixed together, mingling and separating, with everyone signing. And somehow it exploded it into memorability for me. I was especially delighted that it gave me a chance to see Dan Jenkins return to his original role as Huck (he spoke/sang while Tyrone Giordano acted and signed) while serving as narrator Mark Twain as well. I'm very glad to have experienced it.

 

Encores! has posted a preview medley of Cabin in the Sky. I will of course be there as usual Saturday evening. (I'm seeing An American in Paris in the afternoon.)

[DisneyBoy]

I also admit to a soft spot for Jeckyll and Hyde and it's multiple cast recordings. Can't remember why I bought the first one but it was Colm Wilkinson & Linda Eder. Ok, that's probably why I bought it. But I love This Is The Moment, even though I associate more with Paul Wylie skating to it after winning the silver medal in '92.

I saw it on Broadway when Sebastian Bach (from Skid Row) played Jeckyll/Hyde. What can I say, I'm of the hair band generation.

Ok, I definitely need to hear Colm Wilkinson singing this score. Maybe he is the only person with the ability to make me forget the content of the lyrics.

And Sebastian Bach...the one who played on Gilmore Girls...was in the show too?!! Ok, sorry...maybe THAT was the production I needed to see. He seems like such a fun guy that I probably could have dealt with my issues and just laughed and smiled and soaked it up. Though I suppose I would need a time machine because he obviously wasn't on Gilmore Girls in the mid nineties...

Now that I think about it, I've never actually heard him sing. And they had to raise the keys!?? That's just mental.

Also mental? That Linda Eder worked on this thing for 12 years of her life. I think I would have lost it.

[Charlie Baker]

The Deaf West production of Big River was beautiful.  The original worked very well. It was beautifully staged and designed and the cast was excellent, including John Goodman not long before Roseanne.

Drat it, but in all probability I won't be making Cabin in the Sky. I hope you'll share your thoughts here, Rinaldo, on it and American in Paris.

[Lexxy]

My stupid teenaged self loved Jekyll & Hyde.  I blame hormones.  But I've worked with Bob Cuccioli a lot in my career and he's just the best person ever.  

[JustaPerson]

I saw like half of the stage recording of Company (the Raul Esparza one) when it was on netflix. The material was great, but the production itself wasn't areally grabbing me so i didn't finish it. It's not on netflix anymore so I never got to finish it, though I've seen RE's Being Alive on youtube a ton of times. I found the cast recording on Amazon music today so I figure I'd listen to it. I suspect it was this particular production, but everything felt very bleak and sad with not much optimism in it. I recognized that the music and lyrics I was hearing was genius and intelligent and wonderful but I felt like it was being delivered to me in a sad, gray carcass. Except when RE came on. But even then everything felt so dreary. I knew what the ending was, but it didn't feel happy or optimistic like it had felt when I had read about it (not that I expect happy endings, but I just wasn't feeling this spin on the story at all.) So he has an epiphany that he wants to share his life with someone. He might not ever find her. Just realizing it isn't going to do anything. Usually I'd be okay with that as an ending, but again I just wasn't feeling it. Then Being Alive come on -- though I'd seen the video of him singing it many times, his rendition still blew me away. The epiphany still hit me the way it was hitting Robert. I felt like it was all worth trudging through just for that pay off of Being Alive. Only after that did I feel any kind of hopefulness or optimism or any real life to it. Is it just this production? I read some bad reviews of it. Or is that the way I'm supposed to feel about the show? 

Edited February 11, 2016 by JustaPerson

[Milburn Stone]

Encores! has posted a preview medley of Cabin in the Sky. I will of course be there as usual Saturday evening. (I'm seeing An American in Paris in the afternoon.)

 

I hope "Honey in the Honeycomb" is performed "straighter" in the production than the short clip indicates. It's such an exhilarating song as written; trying to make it more exciting makes it less so.

[aradia22]

Theatermania has their own clip from Cabin in the Sky. Not feeling LaChanze and Norm Lewis but Carly Hughes seems fantastic. LaChanze's acting looks good but I still don't think her voice naturally fits this role. I feel like Norm Lewis has these reserves he rarely taps into. The staging with Chuck Cooper made me smile. Carly looks exactly as I thought she would having seen her as Velma in Chicago but with that gorgeous bright high note too. Busy for the next few days and I probably won't spend $65 to see this on the 14th. Looking forward to your review, Rinaldo!

[Charlie Baker]

That Company production was on the glum side for a show that for me is in musical comedy territory, with some serious undertones.  The Neil Patrick Harris staged concert performance with the NY Philharmonic might work better for you, Just a Person.  I think it's still out there somewhere on video.  (And I will say I liked the John Doyle production with RE more than I thought I would. Some people I know did not at all.)

[Kris223]

Ok, I definitely need to hear Colm Wilkinson singing this score. Maybe he is the only person with the ability to make me forget the content of the lyrics.

 

That's the Highlights From Jeckyll and Hyde CD - I think it's only 8-10 songs. Anthony Warlow sings on the full version from 1994. That version also has Linda Eder and Carolee Carmello - their duet of In His Eyes is terrific and so is the Linda Eder/Anthony Warlow duet of It's a Dangerous Game.

[Rinaldo]

That Company production was on the glum side for a show that for me is in musical comedy territory, with some serious undertones.  The Neil Patrick Harris staged concert performance with the NY Philharmonic might work better for you, Just a Person.  I think it's still out there somewhere on video.  (And I will say I liked the John Doyle production with RE more than I thought I would. Some people I know did not at all.)

I saw the John Doyle revival with Raul Esparza. I hated the production (though I could tell it was probably the sort of thing actors love to work on, because it presents them with acting-exercise "challenges"), but it might have been designed (though I know it wasn't) specifically for Raul E to save -- and he did, each of the three times he got a solo, he brought it to a level that burst forth into some kind of reality, and was immensely affecting.

 

There were occasional problems with the NY Philharmonic staging and filming, but it's wonderful to have because it reverses the recent trend (in the Sam Mendes production in London too) to emphasize the seamy undercurrents. Director Lonny Price and his cast remembered that Company is designed to be (among other things) fun. Its energy and high spirits were present, and (as with many other shows) those basic entertainment values have to be there before the deeper values can work. Company changed my life in 1970, but sometimes in recent decades it had become hard to recall why.

[JustaPerson]

I've seen clips from NPH's version of the show as well as his version of Being Alive which I didn't particularly like. I did find the production a lot more palatable. Too bad we couldn't take RE and combine it with the tone of the NY Phil production! 

 

Another version of the song I really like: 

Edited February 11, 2016 by JustaPerson

[Rinaldo]

Too bad we couldn't take RE and combine it with the tone of the NY Phil production! 

I'd sign that petition.

 

(I do agree that NPH, engaging performer though he is, in the end has his "elfin man-child" thing going, vocally too, that doesn't really embody Bobby.)

[aradia22]

Can anyone offer an opinion on "Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope" or "Starting Here, Starting Now"? I'm deciding if I want to take a chance on these concerts.

[Julia]

That Company production was on the glum side for a show that for me is in musical comedy territory, with some serious undertones. The Neil Patrick Harris staged concert performance with the NY Philharmonic might work better for you, Just a Person. I think it's still out there somewhere on video. (And I will say I liked the John Doyle production with RE more than I thought I would. Some people I know did not at all.)

I'm excited. I practically never have anything to contribute to this topic. The full NPH version is available as Stephen Sondheim's Company on iTunes.

I enjoyed it, although I'm not as expert as you folks.

Edited February 11, 2016 by Julia

[Rick Kitchen]

I love the little hop Ovenden does at the end, but, outside of the Dean Jones version, which is the most perfect version there is, my favorite is Raul Esparza's.

[Sara2009]

I'd sign that petition.

(I do agree that NPH, engaging performer though he is, in the end has his "elfin man-child"

thing going, vocally too, that doesn't really

embody Bobby.)

Tbh, I've never thought NPH had a great voice. His gift is acting and being very entertaining. JMO

[Rinaldo]

The voice is just right for some roles -- Toby in Sweeney Todd (on DVD), Balladeer/Oswald in Assassins (on CD). For an emotional leading role like Bobby, less so.

[aradia22]

I attended Company XIV's Snow White tonight. I think it was the most glamorous and least risque of all three productions. The costumes seemed a little nicer (though there were some recycled elements) and there were some nice props. It was a bit self-indulgent with the videocamera projections and so it started slow because it was so self-serious and where they shine is with their camp and comedy. But eventually it was fun. I liked the two tango numbers, one with actual castanets and the queen's final dance. There were some other good moments and the singing from Marcy was great as always but it just felt apparent that this was lacking in technical difficulty compared to Cinderella and even to Nutcracker Rouge. I would still recommend seeing it. The smell of the smoke/incense was a little distracting in act 2 but that might have been because I was near the front so I got the full impact of it.

[aradia22]

I got some very bad news before I left the house today and it was making me feel anxious and depressed and lots of other bad things. And none of that is resolved. But then I actually saw Allegiance. And it's not perfect. And I'll have more to say about that some other time. But it did what theatre is supposed to it. And took me away from my problems and let me focus on empathizing with someone else. And yeah, I teared up a lot, but I left feeling lighter, like something had been exorcised. And now I've finally "met" Lea Salonga. It was a great night. I hope you're all doing well wherever you are right now and whatever might be going on in your lives.