THEATRE GOSSIP #537: The "I LOVE LUCIE (Even if the TONYS Don't)" Edition.

link to old thread....

Two great tastes that taste strange together...

The only thing I saw at La Mama was the Carmilla reunion that was like 20 years ago.

Apparently Faith Prince and Harvey were not besties during a Catered Affair. I don’t think he’s always the loves or bear his rep would make u think he is

R4, I can only imagine he was insufferable to everyone involved in that show, seeing how he played a large part in the debacle by completely distorting the piece in order to make it an acting vehicle for himself.

John Doyle also apparently tortured Faith into a dowdier and dowdier look as the show moved from tryouts to previews to openings.

I never saw the musical but I assume they reverted back to the original Paddy Chayefsky teleplay and made the family Jewish instead of Irish as they are in the film? Is that correct?

From the last thread, my own little No No Nanette remembrance: I saw the show in its first preview when I was a college student (yes, I'm ancient) and it tried out in Boston.

Can you imagine seeing that fabulous show and those performances when you had no idea what you were about to see? As great as Follies IMHO, which I also saw in its Boston tryout (those were the days!). My boyfriend, who worked tech on Broadway, came up to see it and as he knew one of the stage managers we went out with him to the local gay bar Sporter's (on Beacon Hill IIRC) after the show, where all of the chorus kids (gay and straight) were celebrating. What an unforgettable night!

I waited another year or so before seeing it on Broadway and the show seemed very tired by then, except for Helen Gallagher and Bobby Van, Joy Hodges (who?) had replaced Ruby and Lillian Hayman was in that night understudying Patsy Kelly. It looked like they just bought her an ordinary maid's uniform at the local uniform shop. Sad. But it taught me to never return to a show you adore and expect to have the same orgiastic experience.

[quote]As great as Follies IMHO, which I also saw in its Boston tryout (those were the days!).

Nanette and FOLLIES were bookend shows regarding the nostalgia craze at the time.

And yet they couldn't be more different in every way.

[quote] Apparently Faith Prince and Harvey were not besties during a Catered Affair. I don’t think he’s always the loves or bear his rep would make u think he is

I don't think there's anyone in the world left who thinks this. By now, everyone knows what a first class insufferable cunt Harvey Fierstein is.

[quote]I never saw the musical but I assume they reverted back to the original Paddy Chayefsky teleplay and made the family Jewish instead of Irish as they are in the film? Is that correct?

Incorrect, they were Irish in the musical as well. One more reason why Harvey Fierstein shouldn't have played the uncle. He's about as Irish as matzoh.

Leslie Kritzer just screams Irish!

[quote]And yet they couldn't be more different in every way.

That's what makes them bookends, r9. One was pro-nostalgia, the other anti-nostalgia.

OP? You got no dignity.

R5, I hope Harvey didn’t sexually harass Matt Cavenaugh, fresh from his bad experience with Arthur Laurents.

I love the film The Catered Affair and think Faith Prince, Tom Wopat, Leslie Kritzer, and Matt Cavenaugh all gave creditable performances, but I’ve never seen a drearier show or heard a less interesting score. And Fierstein destroyed the core of this simple, touching story. (And as a gay man, I resented his terrible and self-indulgent fantasy of being a gay working class man in that era.)

Now I'm curious about the genesis of The Catered Affair as a musical. Does anyone know if it began with Harvey and thus his idea of making the uncle gay? Or was there an earlier version with a different writer that never went anywhere before he was involved?

The big problem is when a person writes a story that they act in. It ALWAYS leads to ruin

Michael Berresse and his partner Jeff Bowen.

what was the huge story that was supposed to hit today?

R20-Some crap about a has-been and Scientologists.

R18, it does?

I'm hoping that eventually Scientology falls to a RICO charge

Something new!

Anyone got any inside knowledge on LEMPICKA?

I'm intrigued, I'll admit.

Telecharge jumped the gun tonight and started selling tix to "Water For Elephants" at the Imperial starting February 24th and opening on March 21st. Directed by Jessica Stone.Book by Rick Elice.

[quote] what was the huge story that was supposed to hit today?

Do mean the James Barbour affair?

[quote]A casting notice has been released for the Broadway production of Lempicka, which notes that the musical will go into rehearsals in January and open in New York in March. Per the notice, the entire creative team from the La Jolla production is sticking with the show, along with producer Seaview Productions. While no casting has been announced (or even formally, Broadway dates) at this time, the casting calls are only seeking ensemble roles - so it's likely most of the principals are sticking with the show.

And yet, the article doesn't bother to mention who the principals of the La Jolla production are. Great job, Broadway World, right up to your usual standards.

[quote] Matt Cavenaugh, fresh from his bad experience with Arthur Laurents.

it's been quite a while since "fresh" and "Matt Cavenaugh" were in the same sentence

A Catered Affair was shite.

How the fuck does Jessica Stone get a gig directing a big budget Broadway musical? She was a failed actress ten minutes ago.

Lempicka does look good in that trailer. She's also a great subject for a show.

When I saw "Lempicka," i thought for a second it was "Lypsinka." No such luck.

I enjoyed a lot of "A Catered Affair," particularly the score. I had gotten tired of Faith Prince's shtick by then, but it was some of the best work she had ever done. What killed the show for me was the whole subplot of the gay uncle, as if "special guest star, Harvey Fierstein, had showed up in a time machine from the present to teach those pesky people back in the 50s about the merits of homosexuality. It and he were pretty awful. Also, vocally, he killed every song he "sang."

[quote]How the fuck does Jessica Stone get a gig directing a big budget Broadway musical? She was a failed actress ten minutes ago.

She has been directing for a while. And though you may not have noticed, she directed KIMBERLY AKIMBO, which won this year's Tony Award for Best Musical, and for which Jessica herself was nominated. You really should get out more.

According to Prince, things really went south when Harvey wasn’t nominated for acting and the other cast was. It goes to show, you can win for Best Actor in a Play and Best Actor in a Musical, but if you aren’t nominated…it can turn ugly really quick.

Harv!

Water for Elephants and Lempicka! 2 new Broadway musicals the ticket buying public might actually be interested in.

Will it start a trend?

Lempicka yer nose!

[quote] She has been directing for a while. And though you may not have noticed, she directed KIMBERLY AKIMBO, which won this year's Tony Award for Best Musical, and for which Jessica herself was nominated. You really should get out more.

Oh, I had no idea. Mea culpa! Good for her. I actually haven't been out much, as I was diagnosed with cancer a little over a year ago and have pretty much been a shut in on the west coast, in treatment for it. I didn't watch the Tonys this year because I wasn't really familiar with any of the shows and it's never interesting if you don't know any of the work (for me, at least).

I know how Michael Arden started directing and how his first Broadway directing gig came about, but I had no idea about Jessica.

LimpDicka!

WHOOP UP!

Thursday matinees may catch on

Why not? They've been doing them for years in London.

If you want to know why theater is failing look no further: MTC is presenting two plays named POOR YELLA REDNECKS and JAJA’S AFRICAN HAIR BRAIDING. They may end up being good plays but talk about titles that are off-putting to the broader population.

Here Lies Love weekly gross drops to $604,271.

Damn, R46, that is NOT good. The mind boggles in trying to imagine how much money will be lost on the show itself and the reconfiguration of the theater.

Imelda was no Evita.

I feel bad for them, because I'm sure they thought they had a slam dunk. I've gotta think the non-normative seating plays a small part. I can imagine tourists at TKTS asking about it and having the ticket seller try to explain the seating. "Uhhhh okay, we will actually take 4 ticket to & Juliet."

Interesting thought, R49. But the ticket setup is not THAT complicated. Basically, you can sit in the mezzanine or along the sides, or you can stand in the orchestra section.

I'm not standing for 2 hours

Oh wow you're not kidding. Here Lies Love at the ginormous Broadway barely outgrossed Kimberly Akimbo at the teeny Booth.

And Shucked out-grossed them both

[quote]But the ticket setup is not THAT complicated.

It's not—but people often opt for the path of least resistance.

I can imagine tourists who don't want to stand for HLL but also think they'd be missing out on something if they sat. Totally overwhelming to them. Especially when it's a show they know nothing about and don't care about Filipino politics. Easier to just choose another show.

The Bridge's Guys & Dolls would be crazy not to be eyeing The Broadway Theatre right now for a transfer by late spring. I realize there'd still be a lot of work installing the rising platforms but at least the demo is done.

I'm glad to hear SHUCKED is now doing well. I found it hilarious and tremendously entertaining overall.

HERE LIES LOVE just sent out a press release announcing a new rush ticket policy for any card-carrying union member. Maybe that will help....

HERE LIES LOVE is fun. But a lot of the staging simply doesn't work very well for people sitting up in the mezzanine. At least, it didn't work for me.

Can someone explain how it is that Harvey F became involved in The Catered Affair? His re-working of the original story... wouldn't that have required approval from the Chayefsky estate or another group/person who had legal authority over the original script or movie script?

Someone or someones had to tell Harvey that he was just perfect for a role played at one time by Barry Fitzgerald (an actual Irishman).

Really, R58. I sat in the front of the mezzanine and I felt like it was a great seat and I didn't miss anything in terms of staging or sight lines. But I can imagine that the worst seats in the house would be the rear mezzanine.

Purlie Victorious starts off with 60% capacity—grossing $227,928 over 6 performances.

Anyone seen it yet?

R61 is that good?

The revenue made from rush tickets is not going to save HLL's box office. And I don't think it's exactly right for Thursday matinees either.

[quote]I'm not standing for 2 hours

Turn down any invitations to Russian Orthodox weddings.

The autumn into New Year's cull is going to be BRUTAL ...

I just read Charles Busch’s memoir and it was delightful. He writes about feuding with friend Julie Halston and it seems they are always in a fragile state.

Are he and she on the outs again? I notice she isn’t plugging his book on socials

I made a drunken phone call to Charles Busch *many* years ago.

I love Charles Busch. I will read his book.

I am sorry that Charles Ludlam and his plays predate my theatregoing in NYC. (I've read Ludlam's plays, and seen 1-2 revivals.)

They both represent a kind of gay genius--original, insane, inspired, fearless, hilarious--that you almost never see in NYC theatre anymore. It's like we've forgotten how to laugh.

I think about that whenever I see what passes as "comedy" these days. Or "queer theatre." Ughh.

Was it Busch who started the My Friend Julie threads?

r68, it was...Theatre of the Ridiculous. It began with Ronald Tavel.

The main issue with HLL is inexperienced producers who didn't realize that "all Filipino cast" is not the flex they think it is. They should have moved mountains to get Ruthie Ann Miles who would have added some legitimacy to their show, at least in the minds of traditional theatergoers who might have regarded it as a legit musical rather than a loud, overpriced dance party. Also, trying to minimize David Byrne's involvement seemed rather foolish since his last Broadway show sold out. He's a rock star with an enormous fan base and they didn't use that to maket the show. They are finally putting out some ads with DB in them but it might be too late to save the show.

R68, I feel the same way. I also long for the day when drag queens were more like him and less like the ones on RuPaul's Drag Race.

3 Actors, 1 Unshakable Bond:

R73 poor Katie Rose Clarke. I know Beth is a smaller role, but the character sings the best known song in the show, “Not a Day Goes By.” Marin Mazzie played her to great effect twice.

But it does look like the press will ignore her for this revival and focus instead on just the 3 of them.

Busch in his memoir relates his early life as a stripper and a rent boy. That was a surprise!

HLL is in serious trouble. The in-fighting from the producers (2 ad agencies so far) destroyed the launch, and it appears Byrne has walked away, because he knows its doa. They never should have opened in the summer, particularly this one. It will cost millions to keep the show running until Tony nominations, and they don't have it.

I always thought it was a song about a pizzeria - Not a Dago's pie

Hmmmm. Do they dare move Annie Baker's play to Broadway? There are no off-Broadway houses left. I don't think Jesse's review will cause a stampede.

Days of Wine and Roses at Studio 54. I love everyone involved, but this is a mistake. But I also felt that way about Kimberly Akimbo, so what do I know?

R79-Supremely dumb move.

HLL would have been a mistake no matter what season it opened in. Imelda who??

Hmmm.

WATER FOR ELEPHANTS

LEMPICKA

DAYS OF WINE AND ROSES

HERE WE ARE

At least these are some adult titles not aimed at a teenaged girl audience or the bridge and tunnel juke box crowds.

R6 The family was Irish in the TV version as well. Thelma Ritter played "Aggie Hurley" same as Bette Davis did. (Look at Thelma's Wikipedia page). J. Pat O'Malley played Uncle Jack.

Yup, read all about it.

I loved the two of them in this show. But this will lose $$$ for all involved.

And the venue couldn't be a worse fit for this material.

Does Devil Wears Prada mean that Jerry Mitchell is putting Betty Boop on hold for now? Personally, I couldn't care less about either show.

No TOMMY revival?

I'd rather see a potentially good Betty Boop than the Prada show. Cause we already know it stinks.

Have there been any London transfers announced for Broadway this season? I mean besides MERRILY. Now, that's rare.

And The Notebook will sink like a stone.

But don't be surprised of Hell's Kitchen moves in time for the Tonys.

I wonder if they'll try and get Hannah Waddingham for Miranda.

[quote]Thelma Ritter played "Aggie Hurley" same as Bette Davis did.

Nope. Thelma played her like Thelma, which worked. Bette played her like Bette, which wasn't as successful.

R85, I thought they were magnificent. It should have gone to Lincoln Center for a Limited Run where the two of them could earn Tony Noms and Lincoln Center could have a prestige hit (if not a box office one) following the two flops Flying Over Sunset and Camelot. Instead, this delicate little show will wither and die on Broadway.

Ben Rimalower’s newest episode of the Into the Woods podcast dropped. He really is interviewing everyone EXCEPT the two people that everyone wants

1) Betty Buckley -First witch, fired

2) Bernadette - hoping she closes the series…but she seems unlikely to speak to him.

Cabaret, r89.

[Quote] trying to minimize David Byrne's involvement seemed rather foolish since his last Broadway show sold out. He's a rock star with an enormous fan base and they didn't use that to maket the show.

Big difference. He’s not [italic] in [/italic] HLL.

No one is talking about Second Stage bringing Branden Jacobs-Jenkins' play "Appropriate" to Broadway? Another terrible show that's played NYC twice and set no box office fires. What is going on with producers lately? They keep recycling these shows that have played to death Off-Broadway and then they're shocked when no one comes to see them on Broadway. You've used up your audience already!!!

The producers are 'woke,' which means they anti-capitalists, which means they really shouldn't be in the BUSINESS of show.

In short, nobody ever accused a socialist of being a good businessperson.

Yawn. You're like a broken record, r98. Do you have anything else to offer?

[quote]Big difference. He’s not in HLL.

Yeah, having a rock star write the score isn't a guaranteed way to sell tickets. Just ask Sting or Dolly Parton or Paul Simon.

Dolly Parton is a rock star?

R101. According to the Rock and Roll of Fame, yes.

Hannah Waddingham is the only choice that makes sense for Miranda.

If Lea had remained with HLL do you think the attendance/interest would be higher?

I've only seen the filmed version (several times), but I would LOVE to see David Byrne's American Utopia live. Music, lighting, staging, all fantastic, and I'm not even a huge Talking Heads fan. Still, nice to have the film -- thanks, Spike Lee! (Although the few shots of the Boomer audience dancing at their seats are hilari-cringe.)

Lea Salonga, like Patti LuPone is NOT a star!

I love Lea but her role in HERE LIES LOVE is quite small, almost a cameo. (She's wonderful, regardless.)

I wonder if some of her die-hard fans are actually disappointed with her role when they do see her.

Highlights of THE 12.

Thoughts?

Saw Groban's US Nicholas Christoper today and he is mesmerizing, especially considering he has performed the role only a few times before a large audience. His voice is stupendous, more operatic than Groban's, and he is far more demented. (He received a semi-SO after Epiphany.) Groban is more sympathetic, but Christopher delivers more chills. Annaleigh is serving up more of what some adore, and what others deplore. Jeanna deWaal was on as the Beggar Woman, and it's by far my favorite take on the role. Audience went mad, even without Joshie, and it's still the best production of a musical in town, IMO.

At this point I think Nicholas Christopher has been on for Groban around 12-14 times and I've heard nothing but raves from his first performance. Is he our new Julie Benko?

There are two different understudies on this week

I saw Ja Ja's African Hair Braiding tonight, an early preview, and it started out so SO promising with very witty sets and costumes but as the play progressed and more characters were introduced, it became increasingly difficult to hear the words as the African accents were so heavy and voice projection was lacking. Maybe it was just me and my companion, we are old and white after all. There was hearty laughter from the audience that just went over our heads. I wonder if they will eventually mic the actors.

But it was encouraging to see so many people of color of all ages in the audience enjoying themselves. Still, I found the play rather trivial, a lot of it is just bitchy comic bickering between the workers and customers in the salon, but not even as funny or deep as Steel Magnolias, and the inevitable melodramatic developments finally in the last 15 minutes seemed unearned....though it's heart is in the right place. The critics will probably love it. Sit close if you go.

I wish he'd go on for Lovett so we could see the role performed without schtick.

[quote]Maybe it was just me and my companion, we are old and white after all.

You sound almost apologetic about that.

de Waal is AA's understudy, and she tones down the flourishes, but she's also not as much fun.

P.S. Watching deWaal's Beggar Woman makes it hard to believe she was Princess DI in that campiest of roles.

Uncle Vanya at the Beaumont in April? Seriously? LCT is done.

To be fair to deWall, she has to follow AA's template of comic business and movement so as not to throw off her co-stars. Would be interested to see her taking on the role on her own. Even with these restrictions, I thought she was excellent.

Bernie, when all we knew her for was "Dames at Sea" and "On the Town" (according to Carol, anyway).

I see that someone else (NOT ME) posted that same clip in its own thread, for some strange reason.

"Golden Rainbow" will be staged off-Broadway. I can't wait to see what they do with the freewheeling patio number.

[quote]I can't wait to see what they do with the freewheeling patio number.

IF that was EVER funny -- and that's a big IF -- it no longer is. Really and truly. So PLEASE STOP.

I recently got to see some clips of SWEENEY TODD in performance, having seen the show live around the time of the opening. Most of the supporting cast is terrific, especially the Judge and Tobias, but you know who is really awful in it? The guy who plays the Beadle. Not only does he talk several lines that should be sung, he also sings a lot of incorrect note values. Plus he has a terrible wobble on his high notes, which is excruciating to hear precisely because those notes are so high. I sure hope they did whatever was necessary to make him sound okay on the cast album. (I haven't heard it yet.)

Good luck with that, r122.

If there ever was a post where it belonged, r122, it would be r121's. You're showing your ignorance.

[quote]You're showing your ignorance.

r122 is showing his taste.

[quote]—Datalounge memes must DIE!

The meme was used 100% appropriately, r126. Surprise.

Stupidity is never appropriate.

GOLDEN RAINBOW includes DL fave Max von Essen.

I don't recall how big the young kid's part is, but Benjamin Pasak just slayed as OLIVER at Encores. The kid was astonishingly good.

I may need to see this.

[quote]Stupidity is never appropriate.

Then stop being stupid, r128. *The* freewheeling patio number is *from* Golden Rainbow.

We're supposed to care r130?

[quote]If there ever was a post where it belonged, [R122], it would be [R121]'s. You're showing your ignorance.

So, there's a "patio number" in GOLDEN RAINBOW? I don't know the show well -- how many people do? -- but I know it's set in Las Vegas, so I'm thinking there's probably no "patio number," freewheeling or otherwise.

oh, for fuck's sake. Repeating this tired trope over and over again will not make it funny.

It was never really funny.

Please move on.

r132...

It's funny cuz it's camp, r133. If you don't see that, well...continue being irritated over silly, trivial things.

The freewheeling patio number...

Gay people quarrel over the strangest things.

You don't know Opera queens, r137.

Thank, R136. Now I get it -- there's a scene at the Patio Restaurant! So I guess that otherwise incredibly tired joke IS apt and funny ONLY in this particular context :-)

What comes before a Golden Rainbow? Golden Showers, of course.

Will there ever be another show for DL fave, Betty Buckley?

I can't imagine one.

Big Brother Australia?

Ethel was 62 when she said BuhBYYYYYYE!!! to the Broadway stage.

Betty seems very happy home in Texas near her mom and family. Occasionally appearing on Law and Order is probably enough for her.

R132 & R139 jfc, ultraliberal wokesters (which is pretty much most people in musical theater these days) are a humorless bunch. 🙄

Blessings upon you, r146.

More like drive-by cunt.

Andreas Wijk, a hot, out gay pop singer made his theatrical debut tonight as Christian in the first performance of the Swedish premiere of Moulin Rouge in Stockholm. He’s posting a lot about it on his Insta.

Does Andrew Burnap keep getting cast in various shows because people think he's THAT good, or just because he's really pretty? I ask because, in my opinion, his acting talent is no better than average.

So this Uncle Vanya production at the Vivian Beaumont next spring isn’t a transfer of the Off Broadway production which recently opened to raves? I wonder who will be playing Yelena. I think it should be Sarah Snook (Shiv on Succession) but she’ll be performing a one woman play Dorian Gray in London at that time.

There's some terrible irony in DAYS OF WINE AND ROSES transferring to, of all places, Studio 54, a space hardly renowned for its sobriety or seriousness.

Transferring DAYS to Broadway is an exercise in moronic indulgence. Not that it's bad. It's not. Kelly O'Hara and Brian d'Arcy James gave fantastic performances at the Atlantic, and the Atlantic was the right venue for this work, which actually feels much more like a chamber opera than a musical.

But the show feels very, very small, and has zero commercial possibilities. And I mean zero. It's an intense, grim experience with an arty score that never soars. And though the often dissonant score may be appropriate for the story being told, it makes for a mostly unpleasant evening that made me wonder: Who exactly is this show for? And, more importantly, why is this a musical?

As much as I appreciate the ambition of the show's creators, several of whom have had well-known struggles with addiction, the truth is that this show isn't even very theatrical and will be a financial black hole for all who invest in it.

[quote]r94 [bold]Betty Buckley -First Witch, fired[/bold]

Title for an autobiography?

Michael McGrath has died.

[quote]Michael McGrath has died.

Devastating. One of the nicest guys in show business.

Yes he was.

Had he been ill?

His died at home and his death was described as "sudden."

He pronounced his name "McGraw" didn't he?

Variety obituary.

He died in his sleep. Most likely a heart attack.

Did you pay full price?

Andrew Burnap is a solid, dependable, versatile actor whose work in INHERITANCE was markedly different from his King Arthur. He played gay very well and straight impressively. Not sure what his own sexuality is. (He was also excellent in that Andrew Garfield Mormon movie.) And he's attractive. Not surprised at all he keeps getting cast.

Saw the London staging of Next to Normal a couple of nights ago.

Probably one of the most uniformly excellently-acted production of a musical I’ve ever seen, especially the younger trio.

I was a fully paid up member of the fandom circa 2010, but thought maybe perhaps it would have dated or be too American for London in 2023. But it’s a really terrific production, and I was struck anew by how well it is written and how smart its dramatic construction is.

[quote]Andrew Burnap is a solid, dependable, versatile actor whose work in INHERITANCE was markedly different from his King Arthur.

I agree with solid and dependable, but again, I don't think his acting is so special should have been cast in some roles he really wasn't right for. THE INHERITANCE, sure, but Arthur in CAMELOT? Troilus in TROILUS AND CRESSIDA?

R152, I agree with everything you wrote, and I can only assume the primary reason for the transfer of DAYS OF WINE AND ROSES is that the producers are looking at it as a prestige project that will garner lots of Tony noms and maybe a win or two. Which, of course, still doesn't make the show a viable Broadway project, especially not in that theater.

If it had to be in that theater, it would have been better if the producers could have worked a deal to make it either a production or co-production of the Roundabout. But maybe the Roundabout will offer the show to its subscribers anyway, even though it's not one of theirs?

I hadn't realized until now that GUTENBERG was, in fact, another wacky irreverent musical about.... making a musical.

Count me out. I thought we were done with what Sondheim once referred to as "college shows." At least on Bway.

I'm fully prepared to hate this, no matter how good people tell me it is. (It won't be.)

Cute Andrew Burnap has a new gig.

Hopefully he'll steer clear of musicals going forward.

r164, did Burnap steal those roles from you? Why should you care?

GUTENBERG looks painfully bad.

Theater Camp is now on Hulu. Watched it this morning. It's pretty dreadful, and I would say the team behind the film Camp, which came out 20 years ago, should be asking where they got their inspiration from.

Ben is not the worst thing in it. That would be his fellow nepo baby co-star, co-writer/co-director Molly Gordon.

Haven't seen Theater Camp, but Molly is just fine in The Bear.

Any buzz on The Great Gatsby with Jeremy Jordan?

I can't believe I'm going to say this, but I didn't hate Noah Galvin in it.

[quote]Did Burnap steal those roles from you? Why should you care?

What a mature, intelligent response. Right up there with, "Do you think YOU could have done better????"

The Crucible Jr. (in the lobby…)

Well, COULD you have done it better?

Noah Galvin can be fun in the right role…but a little of him goes a long way.

[quote]In my opinion, Noah Galvin's role in THEATER CAMP was very right for him.

The comment above that "the team behind the film CAMP, which came out 20 years ago, should be asking where they got their inspiration from" is dumb, seeing as how both movies are based on the goings-on at actual theater camps, which do exist. CAMP obviously got there first, but I would say the two movies are very different, and THEATER CAMP is far superior. (I thought CAMP had its moments and pluses but it was a pretty bad film overall.)

Sorry, "In my opinion, Noah Galvin's role in THEATER CAMP was very right for him" was my statement, not a quote.

Hugh and Deb divorcing!!!!!!!!

Link

If those two kids can't make a go of it, what hope is there for the rest of us?

Someone has been patiently waiting in the wings for this day...

Hugh, call me.

And they just took a new apartment!

At this point, why bother divorcing? They can easily lead separate lives (and have been). She's pushing 70. What does she think is out there for her? And he's never coming out.

Sorry, but Theater Camp makes Camp look like Citizen Kane. Gave up after 20 minutes. Dreadful.

Penny dreadful? Dollar dreadful? Benjamins dreadful?

[quote]Hugh and Deb divorcing!!!!!!!!

Thank god. Now maybe they'll both shut up about how madly in love with each other they are, which they kept reminding us about for years.

I can't say it ever crossed my mind.

OMG-Did she have some major plaster surgery? Lose a ton of weight? She looks younger than him now and the grey beard does him no favors

Who's the twink looking adoringly at Hugh in R183?

And I agree with R186-he'll never come out. His career is too based on his supposedly "macho" image.

The twink is Taron Egerton, R191.

LCT is doing Vanya? Jesus...

All the tsk-tsking about DAYS OF WINE AND ROSES' having no commercial appeal just gets an eye-roll from me. Do you really think that anyone involved imagines that this is going to be the runaway smash of the spring? I for one am thrilled any time someone gets behind putting something sophisticated and ambitious before the public, and I'd like to think that there are people out there who want to support work of this kind -- especially given how long it tends to be between new Guettel scores.

In any case, what do you care if it loses every penny? It's not your money.

Theater Camp is entirely unfunny.

Andrew Burnap is Zzzzzz.

Deb, call me!

Theater Camp was awful. It had no idea what tone it wanted to play and was all over the place. Is it satire? Is it sincere? Mockumentary? Coming of age? Definitely made by people who never had anyone tell them "no" growing up.

Nothing wrong w serious musicals but Wine n Roses is bleak, one-note doggerel.

Is it worse than Far From Heaven?

Far From Heaven and Sunset Blvd are purely cinematic and there's no reason to put them on the stage.

[quote]Sorry, but Theater Camp makes Camp look like Citizen Kane.

I would say the opposite. Again, CAMP had a great concept and a few really good moments that everyone remembers -- "Turkey Lurkey Time," the "Everybody rise!" moment -- but overall it was quite a mess in terms of the script and the direction. THEATER CAMP stumbled occasionally but I thought it was quite hilarious overall, and I had no problem with the shifting tone in it. There's nothing wrong with shifting tone if it's well done.

Yes, you've already told us this once, R201. We get it.

Also, you thought Shucked was "hilarious and tremendously entertaining," so I'd say you're firmly on your own about the superiority of Theater Camp over Camp.

Camp had Stephen Sondheim!

So what happened at SWEENEY tonight?

[quote] Camp had Stephen Sondheim!

And Theater Camp had.... Priscilla Lopez.

Awwwwww...Priscilla Lopez.

R202, everyone I know who has seen SHUCKED said they had a great time -- and I'm talking theater-savvy people, not general-public people. I also hear the box office numbers have been rising as the show has continued its run, which indicates great word of mouth. So it's fine if you don't like the show, but please don't try to make me seem like an outlier for my positive opinion of it.

Good for you.

This will probably be the most pedantic post in DL "theatre gossip" history, so please bear with me. The other day I was quite struck hearing this Wagner theme on the radio (see link) and how it is nearly identical to the main chorus of "I Have a Love" from WEST SIDE STORY. Do we suppose Bernstein did this on purpose–Maria's love does seem to redeem her in Anita's eyes–or is it just a funny coincidence?

They're reviving Washing Garbage?

R209 I’m always intrigued by theatre music being “lifted” from other sources

R209, I wouldn't be at all surprised if Bernstein did that on purpose. The melody is only the same for a few notes, but it's striking once you've heard it. And get a load of this.

Hard to imagine Bernstein not being aware of the motif. His musical knowledge was encyclopedic.

Bernstein was definitely aware of the motif. He recorded the Immolation Scene -- after composing WSS, of course, but I find it impossible to believe that a conductor of his vast knowledge hadn't already heard DIE WALKÜRE and/or GÖTTERDÄMMERUNG at the very least well before he wrote a note of WSS.

R209, I had lectures once on musical theatre from a professor who was also a classical music critic and a Wagner maniac. He said there were several little riffs in WSS that alluded to classical works. Not sure they were all Wagner. I have a vague recollection there was a Beethoven one underlying the introductory music before the Jets Song.

R212 that was a really good explanation to the layperson. Thanks.

Good artists borrow.

GREAT ARTISTS STEAL.

WHET Jonny Orsini?

R217, I don't WEHT him (I refuse to use the idiotic WHET), but I do know he changed his professional name from Jonny to Jon AFTER he had gained a certain amount of fame, which I've always thought is a foolish thing to do.

Jon (or Jonny) Orsini and Micah Stock - did they just run off with each other as no one knows their whereabouts? Maybe they're hiding out in FL with Malcolm Gets.

[quote](I refuse to use the idiotic WHET)

Of course you do, r219. You don't believe in DL traditions. You're above that.

R221, I truly don't understand people who come here then complain about the running gags, most are silly, harmless, and quite easy to not engage with. Reddit is 10 times worse than DL when it comes to that sort of thing, but I suppose we have a setting called "asbestos eyeballs" for a reason.

R222, I wouldn't have mentioned "WHET" except that I was responding to someone who used that "gag," which I find silly and tired. But I agree with you, there's really no point in complaining about such things, so I will avoid doing so in future :-)

All is forgiven, R223. Pointless bitchery is the soul of DL, but let's have the decency to make our bitching amusing!

Every theater person I know thought SHUCKED was a B- musical

So you did a survey? Considering much of the competition, B- is pretty much a rave.

If B- is a rave, that says more about someone's shitty taste than the quality of a show.

Haha.

I finally caught up with the TV series Fleishman is in Trouble. Jenny Powers has a recurring role on it. (It shoots in NYC.) Does this mean Matt Cavenaugh has given up selling cars in the midwest and is back at the acting game or did Jenny get bored and they're spending time apart?

[quote]Every theater person I know thought SHUCKED was a B- musical

Are you grading on the curve?

R220, there's a little thing on the internet called "google" - you should learn about it. An amazing creation. Just type in something you're curious about - like the name Jon Orsini - and voila! up pops a list with hyperlinks about your subject.

Incredible really. I didn't know who Jon Orsini was until I searched his name through google ("oh, he was in The Nance with Nathan Lane - I remember him"). Now I know we live in the same state, where he works and what he does!

This concludes my DL-bitchy post for the day.

Bitchy, yes. Clever, [italic] meh [/italic] .

It's too bad Matt Cavenaugh didn't drive Arthur Laurents to selling cars.

r231 did your google search tell you if Jon Orsini and MIcah Stock ran off together?

It's Google NOT Giggle.

Pity, that.

I did not see - I didn't look either - for a Micah when I googled Jon Orsini R234... so I don't know.

I wonder if Matt will ever do an interview where he talks in depth about what happened with Arthur from his point of view. Michael Reidel had written his thoughts. I’m surprised in the era of me too, that Matt didn’t discuss his side.

Micah and his penis appeared in the Netflix revival of Tales of the City in 2019 and his IMDB has some credits since.

As I recall, DL came to the conclusion that Orsini was/is straight.

It's not Jon Orsini that Micah Stock is fucking, it's Chris Perfetti.

And Micah is loving all that Abbott Elementary money so they can redecorate.

Micah Stock was showing his big dick off in that Tales of the City finale a couple of years ago.

Here's the Micah Stock nude link where he shows off R243's alleged "big dick"

Micah's dick looks delicious.

Otherwise: I so miss the beautiful tunes from early Broadway. Arlen, Gershwin, Kern, Porter, and Rodgers were all brilliant composers who clearly valued aesthetic beauty over being as socially conscious as possible. That said, many people seem to forget how "woke" lyricists like Oscar Hammerstein and Yip Harburg were in their own day.

You have to be taught, r245.

Stop with idiot use of woke to describe 90 year old showtunes.

Yes, R245--but did anyone want to see Yip Harburg's dick?

[Quote] Stop with idiot use of woke to describe 90 year old showtunes.

r247— How dense can you be? r245 put it in quotes and that was [italic] exactly [/italic] their point: that being socially conscious and progressive wasn’t invented by the current 20-somethings who think no one was smart or just before them.

And your use of “idiotic” was facile and, well, idiotic.

[quote]that being socially conscious and progressive wasn’t invented by the current 20-somethings who think no one was smart or just before them

Is this why you lot are always whining about 'woke'? Because it hurts your little ego that no-one's giving you credit? Or is that just another desperate reach to moan about 20-somethings, because absolutely no-one above 29 ever thinks that way?

R250, I have no idea what you are trying to say, and I can't tell if you agree with me or not.

R249, thank you for understanding my point.

That was so gorgeous, I was weeping listening to it, r245. Didn't even need a context for emotional effect.

If you love that number you must hear the 2 CD THE LAND WHERE THE GOOD SONGS GO, a compilation of 30 Jerome Kern songs sung by Rebecca Luker, Kate Baldwin, Heidi Blickenstaff, Philip Chaffin, Matthew Scott and Graham Rowat. Just glorious! Among the gems is the best version I've ever heard of "Bill" sung by Baldwin.

Don’t use woke. With quotes. Without quotes. No.

The end.

I'm breaking my promise just for you, R252. Kate Baldwin's "Bill" is brilliant. Speaking of Kate Baldwin, I think she would have been a far more intriguing choice for Mrs. Lovett than Annaleigh Ashford.

I've never seen Kate Baldwin be funny. Much as I love her voice.

I'll be surprised if Baldwin's version of Bill could better Constance Towers'.

Constance Towers played her as a bald whore.

Constance Towers was super hot.

John Gavin wasn't so bad himself.

Always loved Constance Towers' "Bill" but Kate Baldwin's is superior.

Someone cleverer than me can probably post links to both.

Your wish is my command, R260.

Here's Towers:

And here's Baldwin, I think she might being singing the original Wodehouse lyric:

THis is how you sing Bill. The original...

Cleo . . .

Towers had to sing hers 8x a week for several months.

So did Cleo and Helen sang it a lot longer than that, r265.

I love (and prefer) the original Wodehouse lyrics to Bill. Did he collaborate with Hammerstein on them?

Polly Bergen won an Emmy for the television version of “The Helen Morgan Story”.

[quote]I love (and prefer) the original Wodehouse lyrics to Bill. Did he collaborate with Hammerstein on them?

My understanding is that Hammerstein worked alone in adapting Wodehouse's lyrics, presumably with Wodehouse's approval.

Cleo's rendition has always been my favorite.

[quote]Towers had to sing hers 8x a week for several months.

Julie isn't Evita.

When Towers sang it on Broadway, she received encore after encore of the song.

How nice for Connie. How nice for us *all*.

I think the best was Lonette McKee

Lonette McKee. Now there's a talent that should have had a much bigger career. What a sublime voice. And a very good actress.

Sister!

R245 How did you leave out Berlin? As good as the rest of them. Whenever I hear one of their songs I think that composer was the best of them.

Bill was a trunk song. I wonder if it was written for somebody.

THIS DAY IN BROADWAY HISTORY: In 1985, "Song and Dance" opened at the Royale Theatre.

The new complete OKLAHOMA! recording is very good - if you like that sort of thing.

Although I always thought one of the cute farmers should sing that line that Ado Annie sings in "The Farmer and the Cowman" with new lyrics - "I shore am feelin' jealous of that pony!"

Which shows will post closing notices tomorrow?

Will they say Here Lies Here Lies Love?

Sorry to go back to the tired old Mary Testa story, but I just watched that video of her introducing "That Dirty Old Man." Her story is obnoxious, sure, but her last sentence about telling him off: "Most people wouldn't have done that with Stephen Sondheim, but I did" is really hateful.

Chita tests positive for Covid.

Chita we love you get up

[quote]Sorry to go back

No you're not

Wow, just looked. Cleo Laine is alive at 96.

Alive-alive, r286?

CHICAGO

I can't believe this isn't at a non-profit...it doesn't stand a commercial chance in hell of financial success.

I kinda agree with the posters here on the Mary Testa story. I think she misjudged her audience. I don’t think she realized how beloved Sondheim is by theatre people.

It would be like someone telling a cunty story about Betty White

Ado Annie was not an eldergay.

[quote]I kinda agree with the posters here on the Mary Testa story. I think she misjudged her audience. I don’t think she realized how beloved Sondheim is by theatre people.

Apparently not. And that makes her seem incredibly stupid, an impression of her that I had not previously held.

R289, isn't that at the Roundabout???

I think she revels in being a rebel and thinks she should be rewarded for it.

[quote] [R289], isn't that at the Roundabout???

No, it's at the Music Box Theater.

R293, if only there were some very quick, extremely easy way you could find out where a show is playing, and who's producing it. Maybe someday, someone will invent such a method.

[quote]It would be like someone telling a cunty story about Betty White

Don't get me started ...

I'm watching an episode from Season 1 of St. Elsewhere. Janis Paige plays a recently turned 50 year old woman (Paige was 60 at the time, but very believable as 50) who visits sick men in the hospital, strangers, wearing only a trenchcoat and flashes them. She's a hoot!

Pay attention, r297. R290 already us4d that joke.

[quote]I'm watching an episode from Season 1 of St. Elsewhere. Janis Paige plays a recently turned 50 year old woman (Paige was 60 at the time, but very believable as 50)

Janis Paige turned 101 last Saturday. I wonder whether she can pass for 91.

She flashes the sick men then stabs them multiple times. The episode is called “Maim.”

[quote]Janis Paige turned 101 last Saturday

So young, so very young…

I thought I'd wake up to lots of photos on FB and Insta of Broadway and Biden or whatever the fundraising event was called. But I'm not seeing anything.

Sean Young to Star in Off-Broadway’s Ode to the Wasp Woman

What could possibly go wrong?

New revival of Night of the Iguana coming this season. Lea Delaria?

Lea undoubtedly playing Maxine, the role Sylvia Miles played in the production with Richard Chamberlain. The only sensible casting here is Daly and Pendleton.

Uh, I played her first! It was MY part FIRST!

But I got out quick when I realized that Maggie Leighton's part was much better than mine!

No, I would think Daphne is playing Maxine. Lea is probably playing Hank the bus driver. Or maybe the bus.

What's unfortunate is they don't have a big name for Hannah (the Leighton/Deborah Kerr role).

I know Tim Daly looks good for his age but at 60-something, he's a bit old for Shannon.

Daphne is playing Maxine in the upcoming IGUANA. Lea is playing Judith. And the role of Hannah is being played by.... the virtually unknown Jean Lichty, who is nowhere near the same league as Daly, Rubin-Vega, DeLaria, and Pendleton, but guess what? She's the artistic director of the theater company that's producing this show :-)

[quote]What's unfortunate is they don't have a big name for Hannah (the Leighton/Deborah Kerr role).

See my post above at R310 for an explanation.

Hmmmmm.....Judith is a repressed lesbian in Night of the Iguana. How will Lea de Laria manage that aspect of the character?

Are you sure DeLaria is playing Judith? I cannot see her in the role of a prim, proper, repressed lesbian. I happen to think Lea is very talented, but she's not what we'd call versatile. Hell, even in the last Broadway revival they didn't cast Cherry Jones in the lesbian role (she played Hannah instead, and wonderfully) and she could have handled it.

Yes, R313, that's what I was told. Maybe she will offer a new take on the character :-)

Jane Alexander said she was miscast as Maxine in the 1988 revival, and wished she had played Hannah (who was played by Maria Tucci).

I wouldn't have even considered her for Maxine, r315. What odd casting.

The bigger problem is that Emily Mann is directing. She's a fucking hack. I still shudder at the memory of her "Glass Menageries" at the McCarter, which she massacred with a cast that included Dylan McDermott, Shirley Knight, and Judy Kuhn. The absolute worst production of the play I've ever seen, and that includes the Sally Field debacle.

I could see Jane Alexander being able to pull off Maxine, but who would want to? It's the least interesting role in the show (of the leads). I saw Marsha Mason play her in the '96 revival and she was definitely miscast.

Twenty years ago, Bernadette Peters would have been a wild Maxine.

In the1976 Chamberlain revival, William Roderick, who was playing Nonno, had Sylvia Miles brought up on charges by the Dramatists Guild for changing Tennessee's dialogue "to make it dirtier". Sylvia was fucked.

I saw Mason as well, r318, and she was a lot earthier than I imagine Alexander was. Marsha's less patrician than Jane.

Sean was *born* to play Susan Cabot, r304!

Eileen Brennan was Maxine in a doomed production starring Jeanne Moreau (Hannah) and Michael Moriarty; it never made it to Broadway, but Brennan got decent out of town reviews.

Eileen Brennan would’ve been a great Maxine.

I can't believe what passes for "stars" at Broadway for Biden. Aaron Tveit?! Alex Edelman?!

Coming soon: Lea DeLaria, Lea Salonga, and Lea Michele in a musical version of "Avonlea."

I overheard Lea a month ago at The Club in Provincetown tell someone that she’d been cast in Night of the Iguana and that Jon Hamm would be the star. I wonder what happened.

[quote]I can't believe what passes for "stars" at Broadway for Biden. Aaron Tveit?! Alex Edelman?!

Considering the benefit is for Biden, shouldn't the stars be Chita, Glynis Johns, and Joel Grey?

Don't forget 101-year-old Janis Paige, R328.

This has been playing on the MOVIES! channel...

Anyone old enough to see Bette Davis and Margaret Leighton in the original? Would be hard to beat that for star power.

Anyone? Most everyone here…👀 R331

R325, Funny, I would have bet Aaron Tveit is a Republican.

[quote]Anyone old enough to see Bette Davis and Margaret Leighton in the original?

Janis Paige, Joel Grey, Glynis Johns and Chita Rivera.

[quote]I overheard Lea a month ago at The Club in Provincetown tell someone that she’d been cast in Night of the Iguana and that Jon Hamm would be the star. I wonder what happened.

Interesting! I would have been surprised if they'd gotten Jon Hamm. But on the other hand, Tim Daly is pretty starry casting as well, and I'm guessing he wouldn't have done this production for this company if the SAG/AFTRA/WGA strikes weren't continuing.

R334, Don’t forget me!

Keep moving, Eva Marie...

Not a great first full week for Purlie Victorious—$331,700. Hopefully for them, there is nowhere to go but up.

Here Lies Love and Kimberly Akimbo staying steady at $634,406 and $588,851, respectively.

[quote]Here Lies Love and Kimberly Akimbo staying steady at $634,406 and $588,851, respectively.

But I can only assume that the nut for HLL must be a vastly greater amount of money than that for KA.

I am willing to bet my condo that Lea will be playing one of the men's roles in IGUANA.

Agree about the woefully inept Emily Mann. She only ever worked because she ran a theater. This IGUANA sounds like a vanity production if the artistic director is playing Hannah, which is essentially, the lead.

[quote]is playing Hannah, which is essentially, the lead.

Good ol' handjob Hannah.

Hannah is also the most difficult role. I’m sure de Laria is playing Miss Fellowes, who is supposed to be a repressed (Ethan’s even to herself) lesbian. Casting de Laria seems too obvious and may portend a heavy hand (typical Mann), unless de Laria plays the character as written as opposed to her bulldyke persona. I thought de Laria was robbed of a Tony nomination for her Hildy in On the Town (they went for Mary Testa instead—really?) —she brought a verve to the role and a kind of comic masculinity to her man-hunter (which balanced Ferguson’s girly Chip), so she may surprise us. She WAS trained in the Theatre program at Illinois Wesleyan, after all! ;)

HLL sent out an email to their co-pros asking them to urge their friends to see the show NOW! Tic, Tic...

Which is the role played by DL fav Grayson Hall—her near Oscar win ;)

^^ just got it —the Fellowes lesbian

I'll confess, I was in high school when IGUANA tried out in Detroit. I wasn't enough of a queen to appreciate Bette Davis, and not sophisticated enough to know appreciate Margaret Leighton. And I suspect I thought the play sounded dull (which it kind of is). One of those missed opportunities we regret.

[quote]And I suspect I thought the play sounded dull (which it kind of is)

It definitely is.

R346, Didn’t Bette not get along with Patrick O’Neal and Margaret Leighton?

r346, perhaps the oiled up shirtlessness of houseboys Pedro and Paco shaking their maracas might have tempted you to attend had you known of their existence?

The story seems to be that Bette was promised rewrites by Tennessee, beefing up her role, which never happened. Or happened....but not enough. In any case, she realized once the audiences showed up that Maxine was definitely not by any means the focus of the play. She also didn't enjoy the grind of 8 performances a week reiterating that realization. She was replaced by Shelley Winters, who was also, reportedly, unhappy in the role.

I think Ava Gardner's performance in the film somehow convinced everyone that the Maxine is a great role and stars are still attracted to it. But it's simply not.

According to Bette, r348, they were unprofessional and kept doing business to upstage her.

The role wasn't beyond Ava, r350, and she still had enough of her Movie Star beauty to definitely balance out the trio.

[quote]I am willing to bet my condo that Lea will be playing one of the men's roles in IGUANA.

That was my first guess as well, but I have it on reliable authority that she is playing Judith Fellowes. So you might want to hold off on betting your condo....

I'm still alive too, bitches!

When I think of Lane Bradbury, I think of her looking sullen for some reason.

That Richard Chamberlain at the Roundabout was very enjoyable. Though he himself was not very good he still was in the full flower of his handsomeness. Though never my type the girl I was with was sighing throughout.

And yes Ava in the movie makes Maxine seem a terrific role. Even the most banal of big movie stars gains some acting chops with age. Except for Lana Turner.

The most important thing "The Night of the Iguana" did for gays is put Puerto Vallarta (where the movie was filmed) on the map.

I saw Iguana on TCM a few weeks ago. I thought it was the best work I’ve ever seen Gardner do—she didn’t have a high opinion of herself as an actress. Kerr was, of course, wonderful but the role was perfect for her and she was extraordinary even in dreck (her era’s Glenn Close-ironically, IIRC, Close presented Kerr with the Honorary Oscar)—you knew she would be great. But I was struck by how nuanced and deep Gardner’s Maxine was—tough and vulnerable, even when given some of the play’s worst dialogue—the stuff about Miss Fellowes and the “dike” is cringey). Burton’s performance doesn’t hold up that well—he gets hammy at times.

[quote](her era’s Glenn Close-ironically, IIRC, Close presented Kerr with the Honorary Oscar)

Let that be a lesson to whoever hands Glenn hers.

Why didn't that regional revival a few years back with James Earl Jones (as Nonno), Amanda Plummer (as Hannah), Dana Delaney (as Maxine), and Elizabeth Ashley (as Miss Fellowes) come in? There was a one night benefit reading as a consolation prize but that was it, when it was so clearly intended to be New York bound.

Michael Wilson directed it. It didn't have a star of equivalent wattage or theatrical lineage as Shannon though, and ultimately, even with Davis and Leighton, the play is Shannon's story: Richard Burton got top billing as Shannon in the film.

Elizabeth Ashley played the repressed lesbian? If ever an actress was made for Maxine, it's Liz Ashley.

Isn't Iguana the play wherein Miss Davis walked onstage to such an extended ovation that she broke character and took a bow?

The very idea of preppie Dana Delany as the earthy over-the-hill Maxine is absurd. Who played Shannon? Tom Hanks?

Michael Wilson is just another hack.

[quote]Even the most banal of big movie stars gains some acting chops with age. Except for Lana Turner.

Thieves never prosper...

Jon Hamm as Shannon in NOTI? As DL fave Helen Lawson said "Broadway don't go for booze and dope". Don't know if he's ever done live theatre, but I just don't see him doing 8 performances a week. It's a little hard performing in a play with no "retakes" or "teleprompter/cue cards" while stone cold drunk/hung over.

R346-I imagine the play might have been a little "sophisticated" for a high schooler back then. I saw the Chamberlain revival, and yes, it was a little on the "dull" side. Chamberlain was just ok-Don't remember Miles "dirtying" up any lines. Dorothy Mcguire as Hannah was absolutely incandescent-gave a beautiful, sensitive, touching performance.

Any DL's remember TV talk show hosts of long ago Virginia Graham? She was holding court in the lobby at intermission; a few of us approached her for autographs. I'll never forget how she quipped "I can't wait to meet the iguana".

I think I read in one of the Williams bios that Better was jealous of all the adulation that Leighton got; I think the director pointed out to her that Hannah was the "Williams woman-not Maxine". Not sure if I'm remembering correctly or making this up, but I think I remember reading that Bette had a serious crush on O'Neal and propositioned him; she took an intense dislike to him after he turned her down.

I don't think it's an earth shattering revelation to hear that Bette didn't get along with her costars, or for that matter, just about anyone. I am probably one of the biggest Bette fans in the universe, but it does seem from all accounts that she thrived on tension and was almost impossible to get along with, both on and offstage/set.

Her daughter is a real born again lunatic, and it was beyond horrible and greedy of her to write that book when her mother was practically on her deathbed. That being said, I'm pretty sure that most of what she writes is true-Bette was extremely difficult, argumentative, possessive, and a terrible alcoholic in her later years. Again, it was terribly disloyal of BD to write that book, considering how Bette supported her and her family all those years. But I do believe most of it is true; as opposed to DL fave "Mommie Dearest". Not to get too far off topic, but IMHO, a large percentage of the stories in MD were exaggerations or outright fabrications.

Lea is playing the iguana.

[quote] Jon Hamm as Shannon in NOTI? As DL fave Helen Lawson said "Broadway don't go for booze and dope". Don't know if he's ever done live theatre, but I just don't see him doing 8 performances a week. It's a little hard performing in a play with no "retakes" or "teleprompter/cue cards" while stone cold drunk/hung over.

They said Jon Hamm, not Don Draper.

I have to disagree about Ava as Maxine. It's odd to me that two of her most respected performances, in this and Magombo, were playing characters so like herself. And yet, I find her "acting" them rather than being them. Kerr practically wipes her off the screen. She always did better playing mysertious characters, who did little but being beautiful.

r365, you had me until your takedown of Mommie Dearest.

I would pay good money to see JON HAMM'S HAMM: A NEW PLAY.

Hamm will strip naked and jerk himself to orgasm 8 shows a week. Ivo Van Hove can direct it, because we'll want closeups.

[quote]but it does seem from all accounts that she thrived on tension and was almost impossible to get along with, both on and offstage/set.

"All" accounts, r365? Hardly. Bette wouldn't have had the lengthy career she had if that were true. Did you read My Mother's Keeper? There's *nothing* wire hanger-level in it. BD is ridiculous, criticizing Bette for things as minor as jazzing up a Stouffer's macaroni and cheese entree. You sound like you read too much Daily Mail...."Mother practiced witchcraft!"

I saw William Peterson and Cherry Jones the Robert Falls’ production at the Goodman in 1994. Jones played Hannah. What a dull play.

It's funny but Joan Crawford comes off worse in BD's book than Bette.

[quote]Hamm will strip naked and jerk himself to orgasm 8 shows a week. Ivo Van Hove can direct it, because we'll want closeups.

Would they charge a premium to sit in the Splash Zone?

Isn't that the format of the old Gaitey Theater on 46th street?

[quote]Hamm will strip naked and jerk himself to orgasm 8 shows a week. Ivo Van Hove can direct it, because we'll want closeups.

Years ago in London, my BF and I attended a production of a one-man play at a space above the Maison Bertaux bakery in Soho. The "theatre" space consisted of two rows of seats, all on the same level as the "stage". The set was just a single chair placed just a few feet from the first row of seats.

The lights went down, the actor entered and sat in the chair. When the lights came back up, we saw an ordinary-looking chap (probably in his 40s) sitting nude on the chair with a single spotlight highlighting his face.

The entire one-act "play" consisted of the man jerking himself off while reciting a monologue about how he arrived at the moment. BF and I were sitting in the front row. About 10 minutes into the show, I leaned over and said to my BF in a stage whisper, "I suspect this is not going to end well for us." The rest of the audience laughed.

R376 I love you Billy Boy.

[quote]As DL fave Helen Lawson said "Broadway don't go for booze and dope".

Helen was many things but she wasn't illiterate. She said that "Broadway doesn't go for booze and dope."

I think Hamm is too old to jerk off 8 times a week. And forget it on matinee days.

I'll happily fluff the Hammaconda 8 times a week.

Jesse Williams for matinee Hamm!

Carole Rothman, Artistic Director of Second Stage for 45 years has announced her retirement via her own publicist though nothing has been announced by the theater itself. Is that weird or what? It screams of discord, no? Was she forced out?

In any case, with the death of Roundabout's Todd Haimes last year, the ancient leaders of non-profit NYC theaters are finally caving in, one way or another, though we still have Lynne Meadow at MTC, Andre Bishop at LCT and Oskar Eustis at NYSF to contend with.

[Quote] with the death of Roundabout's Todd Haimes last year, the ancient leaders of non-profit NYC theaters are finally caving in, one way or anther

Delightful

Oregon Shakespeare Festival just announced its nine-show 2024 season: Macbeth and Much Ado again some more (yeah, I know, School Groups) and four one-person shows (two Bard-adjacent). I knew they were having budget problems (among other ones), but maybe they should change their name if they’re not going to focus largely on Shakespeare as they have for decades.

Did anyone go to the first preview of Old Friends tonight in London?

R382 - incredibly bizarre. Wonder if she purposely beat them to the announcement. Rumors of her management style have been floating around for ages so perhaps this isn't surprising to those in the know.

[quote] Did anyone go to the first preview of Old Friends tonight in London?

First preview for both "Stephen Sondheim's Old Friends" and "Sunset Boulevard" are tonight, Thurs. 9/21.

R370 do you suppose Jon Hamm masturbates?

WE ALL masturbate.

Tell me, r389!

A profile of DL Fave Jeremy O. Harris in the latest issue of The New Yorker—

Only ultra-liberal New Yorkers enjoyed " Slave Play."

[quote] Only ultra-liberal New Yorkers enjoyed "Slave Play."

Only ultra-liberal New Yorkers claimed to enjoy "Slave Play."

Clearly it hit some nerve in you, to still be whining about it years later.

Hitting a nerve and enjoying are two different things, as I'm sure all your acquaintances are well aware.

Is it Sunset Blvd or Carrie???

Joe ran into her knife. He ran into her knife...ten times.

She may not be a Jew but she sure can sing.

A regulah Eydie Gorme, that one.

Attend the tale of Norma Desmond.....

WE DIDN'T NEED CHEAP THEATRICS! WE HAD FACES!

Jeremy O. Harris is exhausting and gross

One of the comments from r396's link

[quote]Disgusting. Horrible stuff. Andrew Lloyd Webber has become Norma Desmond and Sunset Blvd is his Salomé. I smell another noisy flop. Without Cameron, Tim and Trevor and since he,s married to Madeleine, ALW's career has been a complete disaster. It's time to do the Curtain fall and help him say goodbye with dignity. As in a line from Aspects of Love: "This is terrible! So in fact he couldn't do it!".

The mention of the marriage to Madeleine intrigued me - is she rumoured to have played a part in Lloyd Webber splitting from Cameron, Tim, Trevor, etc?

Mind you, not exactly like they've had mega-hits themselves since the ALW shows.

The Chamberlain Iguana transfered to Circle in the Square from LA where Miss Eleanor Parker played Maxine. This was a few years after her Pal Joey debacle at CITS so maybe that's why she didn't transfer with it.

Yes, that is a terrific voice, very powerful and clear diction (looking at you Ms. Lupone). But... something's not quite right. She sounds like she's singing in a Vegas showroom, not a musical comedy. Whatever we may think of Lea, and even though most of the time she sounded like she was trying to imitate Barbra, she does possess that "musical theatre voice". Perhaps Kit needs more coaching from the musical director as to how to properly modulate her voice correctly for the musical theatre stage.

My Aunt Yetta can also knock those Funny Girls songs outta the park but is anyone gonna pay 100 bucks to hear her do it?

Funny Girl needs a star. It once made someone a star but now it needs....a star.

I assume part of the reason they didn't get a star is that if the understudy has to go on, nobody will care.

Stars cost money and this production is cheap cheap cheap. I saw photos from the curtain call and the ensemble looks very small and they're wearing drab costumes instead of the colorful ones worn on Broadway. Clearly they're counting on Funny Girl itself being the draw plus they're playing mostly one week engagements so anyone who wants to see it has 8 chances to do so.

I'm watching an old episode of St. Elsewhere and Blythe Danner is a patient in an episode from 1984. She's doing her damnedest to play every one of Tennessee Williams' heroines while waiting to get a nose job. I'm sorry, but I think she's a fucking horrible actress.

It sounds so...so...bus & truck.

I'll always be annoyed with Barbra for adding all those melodic distortions to "Don't Rain On My Parade," in the movie version. 60s year later people still don't sing it as written.

I didn't realize until recently that Lainie Kazan did Funny Girl in stock after the show closed on Broadway.

Jule Styne said that Funny Girl was the best film version of one of his shows. Except he hated the ending with My Man. Saying that it turned Fanny Brice into a self pitying victim. But it was just because it wasn't his song. Brice in real life allowed herself to be abused and exploited by Arnstein for a very long time to the point where you think what the fuck is wrong with this lady and My Man was one of her signature songs. So it was pure jealousy that he didn't get the last word. It certainly is one of the most stunning numbers in a movie musical. The crime of the movie is they didn't include his wonderful The Music that Makes Me Dance. And then there is Who Are You Now. That score is an embarrassment of riches. More so than Gypsy though Gypsy has the book which makes it a great musical. And Styne didn't even write Rose's Turn that apotheosis of the Broadway musical according to Sondheim. Despite its magnificent score Funny Girl is not a great musical.

I wonder if it was ever considered to have Fanny reprise Don't Rain on My Parade after singing My Man in the film? In the show she reprised it after The Music That Makes Me Dance so it did give her a "winning" ending but perhaps they realized nothing could top My Man. Have outtakes of a reprise ever surfaced?

[Quote] I saw photos from the curtain call

Links are always nice

[quote]Is it Sunset Blvd or Carrie???

They're all going to laugh at it!!

r414, Google is your friend, bitch!

R416, at least I [italic] have [/Italic] a friend, cunt!

I liked that they gave Fanny "My Man" to sing at the end, but can understand why Styne didn't. A critic once wondered what "The Sound of Music" would have been like if the Von Trapp Family singers had sung Bach's "Jesu Meine Freude," from their actual repertoire, at the Salzburg Festival instead of "So Long, Farewell."

R396 & R402 How does Norma get all that blood on herself? She shoots Joe multiple times but from afar and then he falls into the swimming pool.

Max finally snaps and throws a bucket of pig's blood at her, r419.

R419 They cut the pool. It is set on a a patio now.

R419, It was Norma’s heavy flow day.

When I saw the first photos, I thought it was a revival of American Psycho.

And they've added Jessica Chasten spinning on a chair, gagging.

That Funny Girl has more great songs than Gypsy is highly debatable. FG has certainly more disposable songs: Henry Street, Find Yourself a Man, etc. And Gypsy has more songs that have become standards. Only Little Lamb has been debated as to whether it's necessary. (I vote yes.)

As for Jule Styne not writing Rose's Turn? Come now. It's made up of fragments from songs from the show. Sondheim and Robbins stitched them together, but they were definitely Styne's tunes.

Gerg! Best of both worlds. Or trolls

Kenny Leon has directed Purlie Victorious as if it were an old Warner Brothers cartoon, complete with Jay O. Sanders as Foghorn Leghorn. And damn, if it doesn't work perfectly. Kara Young steals the show out from under Leslie Odom, Jr., who unfortunately races through all his lines, so half of what he's saying is unintelligible. But the rest of the cast more than makes up for it. Even the music puts you in mind of those beloved cartoons. This is going to make Kara Young a Tony-winning star. She deserves the added bow Odom graciously gives her at curtain.

R427 - glad you liked it, but from your description it sounds awful.

R428-You had to be there.

Andre Bishop stepping down! Finally.

Over at BroadwayWorld, a London poster called imeldasturn had this to say about the recent SUNSET revival:

[quote]As the overture starts playing, Young Norma, who has been standing behind the curtain for a good ten minutes, does a little interpretative dance. The stage is bare, except for Nicole sitting at the back of the stage with her back to the audience, and a body bag in the middle. As the music goes on Joe opens and crawls out of the body bag. The whole "Let's Have Lunch" sequence is staged with characters coming on front stage, delivering their lines, and moving back: it's a very young cast, modernly dressed in black and white and looking like a zara advert. During the car chase, Joe holds a wheel-cum-camera as he sits in front stage while his face is projected on the LED screen and credits start appearing on it too, culminating with the title/logo as the Sunset Boulevard motif starts playing.

[quote]Nicole looks like a star, and she's never more regal than when she stands there doing nothing. Her voice is brilliant, and the acting is very Real Housewifes of Beverly Hills. A lot of fingers snapping, hair flipping, and looking into the camera as if she were in The Office. Eg, when Joe warns her that he is very expensive she replies something like "Don't worry about money, HON–EYYY". Some lines are delivered directly into the camera and she got a lot of laughs, not sure if they were intentional. When Joe suggests that the audience doesn't want to see her in every scene of Salome, she replies "Of course they do" and then to the camera “What else would they have come for?” *wink wink*

[quote]You couldn't drop her in Trevor Nunn's production and expect her to be great, but it's a performance that works in this context, although you never get the sense that she used to be a movie star. She acts and talks like every woman in reality tv shows, and even when a more organic character emerges as act two goes on, I think we never really come to appreciate she used to be a Hollywood star – let alone wonder why someone looking so young and sexy and acting like everyone in showbusiness is not working in showbusiness anymore. "Nothing's wrong with being forty" (the line has been updated) "unless you're acting twenty" etc etc

[quote]The only bit that really doesn't work – imo – is Salome, in which she does a whole püssycat routine with even the split and sultrily rolling around the stage with spread legs like Velma in All That Jazz. It's a performance that works because it builds on NS' persona and career, I'd be curious to see if Rachel Tucker is directed to do the same or has a different approach, because some of the lines make sense only if NS delivers her. Young Norma is quite charming, works better than the Lonny Price's version of a few years ago, although she is not fully necessary.

[quote]I liked the use of the screen and the way the conversations at Paramount – Sheldrake telling Max they want the car, Joe meeting Betty again, Max telling Joe the truth – only appear on screen, while Norma remains center stage. She never leaves the stage for the whole of act 2. DeMille never appears, his face is just a gigantic silhouette on the screen, and it works.

[quote]Jamie Lloyd makes a lot of bold choices, and most of them work. The entr'acte and title song, as discussed, is entirely done on screen, starting with Joe chilling in his dressing room and watching the scene in which Gloria Swanson engulfs William Holden in her arms (the equivalent of act 1 ending) before meeting his fellow cast members as he walks through the backstage and sings the title song while he exits the stage door, goes around the block, enters the Savoy, goes down the endless stairs and finally enters the stalls and climbs on stage for the final note. It's trashy, it's gimmicky, I loved it, it was fantastic, and the audience ate it up. Biggest ovation till curtain call, got a full standing ovation, unlike "As If We Never Said Goodbye", which was partial.

[quote]Again, a lot of the choices sound ridiculous when described (and even when you see them), but most of them actually work. In the whole orchestral section between "The Phone Call" and Betty's arrival at the house Max, Joe and Norma run endlessly around the stage. When Joe tells Betty "That's Norma Desmond, That's Norma Desmond, That's Norma Desmon" the whole cast appears on stage, dressed in NS' black négligée. As the confrontation between Joe and Betty climaxes, all characters start running in a circle. Again, makes no sense, but it's fantastic. I think it kinda works only if you're willing to buy into it. I was ironically puzzled for most of act 1, but really engrossed in act 2.

[quote]For some reasons, they really try to make you feel for Artie, which is odd because I doubt anyone has ever spent a single thought on him. He dramatically walks around the stage as Joe and Betty sing Too Much in Love To Care. When they kiss, the huge LED screen on the back – think about the mirror in A Chorus Line or the original production of Cabaret – shows a close-up of Artie with a single tear rolling down his cheek. You can't make stuff like this up.

[quote]The script and score have been trimmed, although it's not always done consistently. In the "Salome" reprise in the final scene, Norma says "Mad about the boy", but it makes no sense since she never presented Joe with the cigarette case before The Perfect Year – in which she really does tango.

[quote]David Thaxton is usually brilliant at making boring characters shine (eg Giorgio in Passion), but he's not quite there yet, it was a lot of looking dour into the camera and not much else, but he's a fantastic actor and I'm surely he'll be great eventually.

[quote]Tom Francis is great. He looks and acts a bit like Jeremy Allen White, wonderful voice, and charismatic stage presence. He is a bit young to be so disillusioned, but again everyone in the cast is too young. Grace Hodgett Young is a very good Betty too.

[quote]The orchestra is wonderful and it's very well sung.

[quote]It's not quite camp, but it has a minimalist sort of camp that makes it work. The purists will hate it – which is very fair, it's doesn't always work, and NS is not a Norma Desmond (or rather, she's a Norma Desmond for the ig reels generation – but I had a blast.

Andre Bishop OUT

^ About time, no?

Song from THE NOTEBOOK musical.

What say we?

[quote]You couldn't drop her in Trevor Nunn's production and expect her to be great, but it's a performance that works in this context, although you never get the sense that she used to be a movie star. She acts and talks like every woman in reality tv shows, and even when a more organic character emerges as act two goes on, I think we never really come to appreciate she used to be a Hollywood star.

Whoever wrote this should not consider seeking a job as a professional theater critic. If a huge point of the character you're playing is that she used to be a great movie star, yet the audience never gets a sense of that, then I would say the performance definitely does not "work" in any context.

[quote]Again, a lot of the choices sound ridiculous when described (and even when you see them), but most of them actually work.

Umm, okay.....

" Purlie" had the best opening number ever.

Sunset sounds intolerable. Happy it won't come here.

[quote] Robyn Hurder and Kerry Butler as Ivy and Karen in Smash

Thoughts?

Not a single one in anybody's profit-minded head.

I give The Notebook until TONY time and then, GONE.

We're always focuses on age here. So, Marilyn died at 36. Robyn Hurder is 41. Kerry Butler is 52.

Kerry Butler is talented, but not even in Bizarro World is she eligible to play Marilyn.

Should I even know who Robyn Hurder is?

This casting is... odd.

Robyn Hurder is forced to sing / dance that execrable “Forever in Blue Jeans” dross in the Neil Diamond show.

Robyn Harder was the best Cassie I've ever seen.

Better than Donna?

ABSOLUTELY!!

The best of the Cassies that I saw. The first one I saw was Wanda Richert. I did not see Donna, but obviously she is Cassie.

r431/r432 Somehow I'm not buying the "it sounds terrible but it works" line

How the hell is Kerry Butler going to get away with playing the young ingenue in Smash at 52 years old???

The Purlie opening number was so great, everything after it was a letdown.

[quote]How the hell is Kerry Butler going to get away with playing the young ingenue in Smash at 52 years old???

V-e-r-y carefully.

Maybe Kerry can play Angelica Huston.

Dancing chorine Robyn Hurder’s clit is strong as a steel girder.

R448 yeah, that BWW poster sounds like they're really trying to convince themselves that they truly enjoyed it. 😂

[quote] The Purlie opening number was so great, everything after it was a letdown.

Not really. There are several other numbers in that show that really make an impact: "Purlie," "I Got Love," "First Thing Monday Morning," "Down Home," and especially, "He Can Do It." Plus, it had young, hot Cleavon Little.

THIS DAY IN BROADWAY HISTORY: In 1966, "A Delicate Balance" opened at the Martin Beck Theatre.

Goodbye and good riddance André!

Maybe new blood will reinvigorate LCT.

So the writing team in SMASH are now married. The Kerry Butler casting is odd unless Karen is now 52 and a character actress. I can see Robyn Harder as Ivy.

R451, Ingrid Bergman said that one advantage to acting on stage as opposed to acting in films is that women, especially, can get away with playing parts they are twenty years too old for.

R459. Amen to that!

Purlie has a number of great moments. I'd also add Down Home, by Little and the great great Novella Nelson. It makes for a very entertaining cast album.

Does Leslie Odom have a smooth scrotum?

[quote]Maybe Kerry can play Angelica Huston.

It's ANJELICA.

Or she could play Deb Messing.

Smooth but ashy

Why is everyone shitting on Andre Bishop? The man did amazing work at both Playwrights Horizons and LCT for decades. You really think "new blood" will help Lincoln Center? No, it's only going to bring more stuff no one wants to see like Jaja's Hair Braiding Salon and Chicken n Biscuits. If Lincoln Center got shitty the past few seasons it was because they were put in the same position every theater company has been put in- to produce shows no one wants to see because a small faction were whining about representation while ignorantly ignoring the fact that theater has been the most inclusive to all minorities of any art form.

Nice try, R465, but you can't blame woke-ism (or whatever term you might use) for these recent misfires:

BECKY NURSE OF SALEM

FLYING OVER SUNSET

CAMELOT (the abortion of a revival)

NANTUCKET SLEIGH RIDE

IN THE GREEN

Just some top-of-mind titles.

Andre produced great work for many years, at LCT and elsewhere. No doubt about that. I guess people are judging him on his track record over the past several seasons (including quite a few seasons before the pandemic), which has been poor indeed. And it seems like maybe CAMELOT was the last straw, but if that's the case, we can only hope Bartlett Sher will be phased out (or forced out) as well.

It does seem it's time for Andre to retire, or maybe a little past time for him to retire -- BUT that certainly doesn't negate all the good he did for decades.

Broadway Production Assistants Seek Recognition As Equity Union Members:

r465 and r467 are 1000% correct. It’s just fashionable and facile to say get the old hack out. And r466 proves nothing by citing some fails. Andre has a long (true, maybe too long) record of great work.

Also we beg for risk especially at non profits and then a-holes like r466 come along.

Another Sunset Boulevard curtain call pic, this one might be more to DL's taste

Let's try that again

[quote]Another Sunset Boulevard curtain call pic, this one might be more to DL's taste

What blood?

Well if any musical could use a reinvention it's Sunset. They just plopped the movie down on stage verbatim.

Melba Moore - "I Got Love" from PURLIE (1970 Tony Awards)

When I worked as a musical director in the theater (many years ago), we often asked talent if they could do a "Melba Moore Run." Vocally hard to demonstrate, but you just had to listen to a recording of "I've Got Love" to understand what we were looking for.

FYI, I had worked with Melba Moore when she was in the original pre-Broadway cast of HAIR at the Public Theater. Actress Susan Batson always said to me of Melba, "Now that girl can SING!"

Term limits for Artistic Directors!

^^ the poor schmuck who started the London/Paris trip thread is gonna freak out when he sees that production of Sunset Blvd…he gave up a chance to see more of Paris for that shite?

For anyone who's interested, the Sydney Opera House now has a streaming app. As it approaches its 50th birthday in October, it is putting up 50 shows from over the years, which are free and most of which are available worldwide. There is opera, ballet and modern dance, plus some more contemporary concerts of the indie rock type.

In early October they are putting up Peter Allen's 1977 concert at the House--he was at his absolute peak at that time.

Most of these things are only up for a month from the date they start. There are other shows that are up all the time, most of which you have to rent for a small amount.

She's back where she was born to be...

[quote]Well if any musical could use a reinvention it's Sunset.

But not if the reinvention makes it even worse. It looks from these photos like anything that was good about the show has been obliterated. There are no words to describe how ridiculous that curtain call photo looks. And I'm sorry, that guy who plays Joe has a body that's average at best, and a face that's -- shall we say, not pretty.

[quote]anything that was good about the show

Two arias and the mansion going up and down

[Quote] that guy who plays Joe has a body that's average at best

r480 if that is average at best, please post your underwear shot ASAP

R480, Tom Francis is playing Joe Gillis.

^Tom Francis

Meh face

Am I the *only* one looking at the bulge?

R471 Golly. Does Nicole still menstruat?

Who the fuck is this Soutra Gilmour who designed that abominable Sunset Boulevard and the current revival of Merrily on Broadway as well as the awful sets for &Juliet? What has happened to the brilliant generation of British designers that gave us Bob Crowley, Richard Hudson and Mark Thompson?

A production insider just sent me an excellent quality audio recording of the Sunset Blvd. first preview performance, listening to Act I as I type.

The singing by the leads is outstanding and the orchestra sounds full and lush.

I'm always amazed at how picky DLers are about "our" men.

[quote]What has happened to the brilliant generation of British designers that gave us Bob Crowley, Richard Hudson and Mark Thompson?

R488 They were men.

[quote]They were men.

White men, currently being re-imagined for a contemporary audience.

What am I, chopped liver?

Yeah Maria, I would say so.

The visually stunning Sammi Cannold Evita is now at the Shakespeare Theatre in DC, and really shows the limitations of the current batch of artists. The production digs deep into showing how Eva was abused by men from her teens. It’s not an insane interpretation, except the show as written does not support it. If you are expected to feel sorry for her, which is counter to the Hal Prince Brechtian take, there is no story at all. She just gets cancer.

What Prince understood is that the most compelling part of the story is her ruthless instinct for taking advantage of any situation. She even tries to use her illness and premature death to garner sympathy. She wants power, not pity.

But that is not a message that is comfortable today. In fact, Cannold strengthens gender constructs by painting Eva as delicate rather than savvy.

Lemme guess—Sammi Cannold is yet another nepo baby?

R495, I would say the first step towards this foolish reinterpretation of the Evita character happened when the song "Another Suitcase in Another Hall" was taken away from Peron's mistress and handed to Madonna to sing in the movie. That was a huge mistake, and it was done for all the wrong reasons.

[quote]If that is average at best, please post your underwear shot ASAP

Umm, I'm not comparing him to me, I'm comparing him to other young actors who are likely to be cast as Joe Gillis in SUNSET BLVD. This current guy's body isn't bad, but to me it looks lacking in definition. And to paraphrase Mrs. Strakosh in FUNNY GIRL: If you're going to put your leading man onstage in only a skimpy swim suit, people want something special to look at!

Tom Francis resembles a young Michael Ball in that curtain call clip.

A friend just saw Purlie Victorious knowing nothing about it. Comps. She loved it. Thought it was wonderful. Still I wonder if it will have any kind of run.

Was there ever a young Michael Ball?

Interesting you mention that, R499. Frank Rich, in reviewing ASPECTS OF LOVE on Broadway, wrote that Michael Ball "bares his chest for no worthwhile esthetic or prurient reason." While this new SUNSET guy's body is certainly better than that, I still say it's nothing special. If you want to see not one but two spectacular male bodies on stage, head over to DRACULA: A COMEDY OF TERRORS at New World Stages in NYC.

By the time I saw Aspects of Love Ball must have done some serious working out. I must be the only person on the planet but I didn't think it was nearly as bad as everyone was saying and I enjoyed it and I am not a Weber fan. The Nunn production was excellent.

I saw Sunset twice with Buckley and Paige. Except for the two beautiful big numbers the rest of the show is a bore. I can't imagine sitting through it again.

I dunno, I remember the summer of 1990 playing on a Broadway Show League team opposite Aspects of Love one afternoon and Michael Ball hit on me. (I was 19 at the time.) He definitely had a bit of a gut then.

[quote]By the time I saw Aspects of Love Ball must have done some serious working out.

Well, after that review, I wouldn't be surprised!

Michael Ball looked like he was in great shape (Prince Edward doesn't like pudgies) when Aspects opened but went back to his doughie look during the run.

R507, I guess you're referring to the London run. I saw the show right around the time it opened on Broadway, and his body was very much as indicated by Frank Rich in that review.

Lea DeLaria is playing Judith in Night of the Iguana. She mentioned it at her show last night in Provincetown.

Yes, R509. As I had reported, despite other people doubting that she could be playing that role.

[quote] Yes, [R509]. As I had reported, despite other people doubting that she could be playing that role.

We believed you, dear. We still doubt she can play it.

Ha! I meant that they doubted she had been cast in that role :-) Whether or not she can play it well is another matter :-)

I think Lea could surprise people if she tones down her schtick and has a good director. And I hope she does.

Anyone seen DL TG fave Charlie Williams lately?

I thought she was an actress.

[quote]I think Lea could surprise people if she tones down her schtick and has a good director. And I hope she does.

That was certainly true once upon a time, r513. I'm not sure that it's possible any more. There is no question that she has talent .

R516, your feelings about Lea are very similar to mine.

R514 He recently had an injury.

Where's Imelda?

Thanks for the capsule review, R427. I was on the fence, but now I definitely see it.

Welcome back, Follies! It's been far too long!!

I love Lea as Eddie/Dr. Scott

[quote] Was there ever a young Michael Ball?

Ask Prince Edward. He’ll tell you.

But Lea does not have a good director.

London "Sunset Bvld" carrying the ridiculous, no set, no costumes, no props of "A Doll's House" but full price tickets.

Well Sunset Boulevard has such a strong book and score it doesn't need expensive trappings said no one ever. How boring. And lazy. At least John Doyle would have had Norma play the harmonica.

R514-Has he really split from Ryan? Was it Ryan's idea?

[quote]Well Sunset Boulevard has such a strong book and score it doesn't need expensive trappings said no one ever.

Seriously. The only three things that show ever had going for it in any production were (1) star power, (2) that amazing set for the mansion, and (3) literally two or three good songs at most. NOT the kind of show that can stand on its own in a minimalist staging with no major star in the lead.

How about with a Pussy Cat Doll in the lead?

If only Nadine's tits & Bob's pot belly were worth their weight in gold bars...

Imagine him laying on top of her.

Sorry, wrong thread. But maybe Nadine could play Norma at Circus Maximus in Atlantic City.

We've found our Mame.

How much do you think Andrew paid Jamie Lloyd to drag Sunset into the 21st century

Sondheim was smart enough to let it go. All of the great musicals have *some* element of heart.

[quote]Imagine him laying on top of her.

Laying what on top of her?

Laying his belly *right* below her boobs and then they'd lie flat.

R533. LOL. That comment made my night.

R518, that footage looks like it's the return engagement, where Joanna Riding replaced Imelda. I'm enough of a theatre queen that I can tell the difference just by the wig.

Gang!

I just had a whirlwind theatre trip to London.

I saw:

SUNSET Boulevard.

Okay…I actually loved it. Now I am a huge fan of the recordings but I never saw Glenn, or Patti or Betty, so I have no reference from what was…but I loved this interpretation. The video/lighting was exciting and Nicole has an amazing voice. She really nails the songs. Joe Gillis ends the show stripped to his underwear.

Old Friends

Bernadette and Lea are amazing and it’s an entertaining show. I was also impressed with Clare Burt and Joanna Riding. Gavin Lee keeps the gender bent Could I Leave You. Bernadette’s big numbers are Send in the Clowns and Losing My Mind. Lea’s are Everything’s Coming Up Roses, Loving You and the Sweeney Todd Segment.

Cabaret

I know Maude Apatow is a Nepo baby…but she was really good. Probably not to the level of Jessie Buckley, but the show is directed and staged in a way that I don’t think anyone would be awful in the role. The Emcee was very good. I missed the end reveal of the concentration camp outfit from the Mendes revival. It was always so striking. The audience still gasps when the Nazi arm band is revealed. I don’t know that London audiences really appreciate how Nazism is rising in the US. This added a very upsetting element. I’m sure when the revival opens in the US in April…right around the election, it’s going to be very upsetting to witness the parallels.

Yes we know—get back to your London/Paris trip thread stat…

Blisters?!

R495 do these people not realize that Eva Perón is the villain in the musical -- and in real life? The show is rightly critical of her:

♪ Instead of government, we had a stage ♫

♪ Instead of ideas, a prima donna's rage ♫

♪ Instead of help, we were given a crowd ♫

♪ She didn't say much, but she said it loud! ♫

The fact is, Eva Perón was BAD for Argentina. When she rose to power upon Juan's election in 1946, the country was very rich and a world power. By the time Eva died during Juan's second term in 1952, after years of her excessive spending and mismanagement, Argentina was bankrupt and irrelevant and has never recovered seventy years later.

It's funny how feminists will latch onto any powerful woman and try to justify their actions, but EVITA is a cautionary about how a resentful, lower class woman in power -- hellbent on revenge -- can destroy an entire country, particularly the middle class.

No person in their right mind would sympathize with that.

Well, good morning, sunshine, r541!

Who pissed in your cornflakes?

ELDERGAY ALERT: all DL show queens will definitely want to see Golden Rainbow at the York. It's well done, with an orchestra of five, which is practically symphonic by Mufti standards. It's well cast and directed by Stuart Ross, who knows exactly what to do with this sort of material. There are projections and well chosen costume pieces added to give production value. The choral singing at the York is much more polished than the rushed tempo and ragged vocals in the Tonys clip below.

Most interesting is how different the score is from the cast album eldergays know and love. Nearly every song has some lyric changes. Not sure if these changes were made for Mufti by the still-living composer Walter Marks, or made along the way during the troubled Broadway run, but after the cast album was recorded, or post-Broadway for licensing. It's fascinating to theatre people who enjoy this kind of show. There's an entire subplot not represented on the album with two songs that sound like they could be sung by the Eydie character, but aren't. Danielle Lee Greaves sings the heck out of them. "Matter of Time" and a cute duet with the kid, "You Put in Good."

The Lawrence character has a song not on the album, "Same Old Song and Dance" (not the song by that title that Sinatra recorded). The song on the album as "Kid" here is sung by the Lawrence character, but first sung as "Mom" by the boy. The whole Nelson and Jeanette "Desert Moon" sequence in the second act is gone, in its place is a hilariously trashy extended James Bond spoof, Vegas style, "Dr. Thunderfinger" that gives a much-needed rest from the Lawrence/Gorme characters squabbling and lets some of the rest of the cast take stage. Right after that "All in Fun" and "It's You Again" are both gone, replaced by "Suddenly You."

Max Von Essen, Mara Davi, Nick Cearley, Bob Cuccioli, Danielle Lee Greaves, Benjamin Pajak are all entertaining and excellent. This version of the show does what Mufti does when it's working best: it features the score to the utmost, gives the sensation of movement (technically a reading, they're not allowed to do full out dancing), and brings out what comedy there is the book while downplaying its weaknesses. The book might have been touched up too, not just cut, it doesn't say in the program notes, though press releases said that songwriter Marks revised the book, so who knows what changes were made when? Some of what happens doesn't fully match Mort Goode's extensive synopsis from the original vocal selections. The main issue with the book is inconsistent tone and there being little suspense about how it's all going to turn out. Still, everyone's talented and it's breezy and enjoyable.

You'll never get to see Golden Rainbow, in NYC, with this level of talent again. Like many of these imperfect shows, there are some dull spots in the writing, but overall it's a blast. Only in New York. Go!

Thanks for that excellent report, R544.

That looked dreadful…

Thanks, r544. I have a ticket, but have considered eating it because of the nasty weather. Now I'll think twice. You sound like a less pedantic AlanScott from ATC.

I'll miss All in Fun.

When Michael Ball looked best.

[quote] (technically a reading, they're not allowed to do full out dancing)

So no freewheeling patio number then?

he looks good here

R548. I read that as Marcia Wallace….and thought well then, this is what that show has come to.

No patio number R549, "For Once In Your Life" stays strictly an argument duet between Steve & Eydie's characters. It doesn't open up into the part on the album with the chorus where (according to Mort Goode's notes) they show her Vegas. I was waiting there wracked with suspense to see if Equity's rules about no dance in a reading would bend enough to let them recreate the massive box step pattern in the notorious-on-DL patio number photo. What was the matter with Ron Field? WHET Tommy Panko?

So you don't get "meal incredible/meal inedible" or "pervasiveness/persuasiveness" or "Aw it's gettin' to me now!" but again I repeat it's so much fun. The opening number, the ballads for Eydie's character, the title song and I've Gotta Be Me all really hit the target in a socko way that musical theatre today reaches for but rarely achieves.

It's very 60s, with characters appearing in other character's minds a time or two, or the chorus popping in extraneously. Every number sounds like it's made to be a pop cover or part of someone's act. It's gloriously retro and you don't get to see a musical that's just made to be sheer entertainment of the moment (1968) anymore. You wouldn't get anything as wild and wonderful and glitzy and shameless and high-voltage as Golden Rainbow in its best moments after a myriad of readings, labs, workshops, and ten years of non-profit development

[quote] All of the great musicals have *some* element of heart.

Seriously?

Seriously?

Alright now you’ve gone overboard…put away that last Adderall

R544, did you also get to see The Lieutenant?

Pacific Overtures has heart, r553.

[Quote] WHET Tommy Panko?

Made a killing in breadcrumbs

I much prefer grade school teacher Tom Ball to Michael Ball.

[quote]WHET Tommy Panko?

MARCH 15, 2002

Tom Panko, a Broadway chorus dancer who would become choreographer for Broadway's Golden Rainbow and the film, "They Shoot Horses, Don't They?," died Feb. 18 of complications following heart surgery, according to friends.

Mr. Panko was 74 and will be remembered by friends and family 1 PM March 16 in the Ellington Room at Manhattan Plaza, 400 W. 43rd Street. He was a resident there. Up until the time of his death he took dance classes in the building and was an active part of the showfolk community on that block near the theatre district.

Cole Porter, it ain’t.

I knew Tommy Panko when I lived at Manhattan Plaza, though I had no idea of his history. The day after I saw the revival of The Music Man, he stopped me and went into a long and detailed critique of the show. It was fascinating. Till then, I had no idea that he was Onna White's assistant on her shows - including Music Man.

But what did he think about Jan Maxwell's long time residency there?

R562, What did he think of Craig Bierko?

Although I pretty much hate the musical SUNSET BOULEVARD, I would say there's some heart in the story, obviously inherited from the original screenplay. I think there are moments when Norma's desperation and delusion are moving, and also her love for Joe, possessive and destructive though it may be.

I don't find any heart in the screenplay, r565. It's very cynical.

R566, That was Billy Wilder’s intention.

I know, r567.

Seeing WIZ in Baltimore tonight. Will report. But in SUNSET talk, I remember seeing some other "stripped down" SUNSET with actors playing instruments in the West End. Does anyone remember that production?

[quote]All of the great musicals have *some* element of heart.

Well ...

I guess Max could be called an enabler, but I thought his loyalty to Norma (in the movie) was very touching.

[quote]I don't find any heart in the screenplay, [R565]. It's very cynical.

Those two things aren't mutually exclusive. The screenplay is indeed quite cynical overall, but that doesn't mean there aren't some moments of heart in it. A story that was cynical through and through, without a few moments of heart and sincerity, would be badly written. Think of even the broadest farces and satires, and you can almost certainly find SOME moments of sincerity in them.

Another moment of heart in SUNSET BLVD. that I didn't mention is the way that DeMille allows Norma to believe he wanted her for a comeback, when it was a miscommunication and he was only interested in using her car in one of his films. He lets her live in her delusion because he can't bear to break her heart by explaining the truth.

So I'm sorry you feel there's no heart in the screenplay because it's cynical overall, but maybe you can only think in black-and-white terms and you can't understand or appreciate nuance.

[quote]I guess Max could be called an enabler, but I thought his loyalty to Norma (in the movie) was very touching.

Yes, that's yet another example of heart in the original story.

You call it heart, I call it pity regarding DeMille and devotion regarding Max. Wait, I *will* give you that Norma gets a moment of charm when she does her Chaplin imitation.

[quote]but maybe you can only think in black-and-white terms and you can't understand or appreciate nuance.

Or maybe (just maybe) I have my own opinion.

[quote]You call it heart, I call it pity regarding DeMille and devotion regarding Max.

Pity and devotion are emotions that require empathy and love, i.e. heart.

[quote]Or maybe (just maybe) I have my own opinion.

Sure. But in my opinion, your opinion is based on a misunderstanding of what the word "heart" means.

I love the Sinatra film A HOLE IN THE HEAD which I think was the source material for GOLDEN RAINBOW but I guess the musical strayed pretty far from the film....is that the case? Probably to build up Eydie's role?

"There Is No Other Way" from PO is all heart.

Holden died a couple of years before Swanson. Jesus how does such a beautiful talented man fuck up his life so thoroughly.

Golden Rainbow can go fuck itself. They cancelled today's performance with no explanation. Didn't inform us until 40 minutes before curtain. I should have followed my first instinct and stayed home.

One thing that I found really effective about the revival was that even though Nicole is still a knockout…it was still commentary on society that women, even when still gorgeous, are still treated differently after 45.

I also appreciated that her face moves. She didn’t look like a real housewife

R579

Welcome to NYC—now go home

[quote]Probably to build up Eydie's role?

Yes, r576.

John Simon quite accurately described Michael Ball as looking like the Pillsbury Doughboy in Aspects of Love.

Ball actually had man boobs which required a man bra. The preview audience I attended gasped in disdain when he removed his shirt. My fellow theatergoer whispered to me “Don’t they have gyms in England?”

R573, They were once married.

Norma’s age has been altered for the London revival.

Joe now says, “There’s nothing wrong with being 40 unless you act like you’re 20”.

Isn’t 40 a bit young to be considered a has been?

But she had other husbands after Max. It was more than love on his part. I took it as he felt responsible for her.

Well, r585, who wants to see an old bag up there yodeling those arias?

R587, Indeed.

Isn’t 40 a bit young to be considered a has been?

Not in show business

[quote]I love the Sinatra film A HOLE IN THE HEAD which I think was the source material for GOLDEN RAINBOW but I guess the musical strayed pretty far from the film....is that the case? Probably to build up Eydie's role?

In A HOLE IN THE HEAD, the other family member who becomes involved in the situation of the ne'er-do-well father and his young son is the father's brother. In the musical, it's the boy's aunt, the sister of the father's now-deceased wife. That was the part that was created for Eydie.

I received an email that both of today's performances of GOLDEN RAINBOW were canceled due to illness, with no further details. If it was on such short notice that the cancellation didn't happen until 40 minutes before curtain time of the matinee, I certainly hope it's nothing very serious.

Covid?

R590 is that a material, detrimental change?

In Goldman's The Season Golden Rainbow gets its own chapter. It's one of the best in the book. Anyone into musicals will really enjoy it. So it's kind of amazing to me so many people are enjoying this revival.

I think they're enjoying it by keeping it in context, r594.

[quote]Isn’t 40 a bit young to be considered a has been?

You must be joking.

[quote]Isn’t 40 a bit young to be considered a has been?

Couldn't she have gone from sloe-eyed vamp, to someone's mother, to camp?

[quote]Covid?

R592, how brilliant of you to come up with that as a possible reason for the cancellation! I'm sure NO ONE else thought of it. Thanks!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, R593, that's a matter of opinion, isn't it? But I should note further that the aunt character in the musical was at one time romantically involved with the boy's father, before he married her sister, and that plot point does strike me as an unwise and unnecessary complication.

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