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Death Takes a Holiday at MTG

Posted by: showtunetrivia 12:00 pm EST 02/10/14

MTG staged the west coast premiere of Maury Yeston's DEATH TAKES A HOLIDAY last night at the Moss Theatre in Santa Monica, their home this season while the Alex is renovated. Good performances of a flawed book, but marred by a horrible sound system. Erik McEwen, in the small role of Maj. Fenton, got one of the biggest hands of the night for "Roberto's Eyes."

Dan Callaway and Ashley Fox Linton were fine leads, though Death's shroud costume and reverb were more laughable than scary

Nice shout-out before the show to MTG alum Kevin Earley for his part in the original off-Broadway production.

I didn't attend their WONDERFUL TOWN earlier in the season, but it seemed attendance was down. Don't know if that's due to the change in locale or the less familiar material.

Laura


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re: Death Takes a Holiday at MTG

Posted by: tenor1350 03:35 pm EST 02/10/14
In reply to: Death Takes a Holiday at MTG - showtunetrivia 12:00 pm EST 02/10/14

I'm not sure I'd say attendance was down. The show was just about sold out. And as I recall, Wonderful Town was pretty full, too.

The Moss seats about 350, which is considerably fewer than the Alex. I'm not sure how many tickets MTG usually sells in Glendale, but I wouldn't be surprised if their average there is in the same ballpark.

I think I liked the show a little more than you. Callaway was in especially fine voice, and the supporting performances were uniformly strong. The book seemed to fall apart in the last five minutes (an issue that may have been helped at least a little by some special effects or staging magic that extends beyond the scope of a staged reading), but I thought the overall presentation of the material was very assured and polished.

I do wish the sound system were a little less echoey, though I do think it's better than the sound at the Alex.


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re: Death Takes a Holiday at MTG

Posted by: Pir8Jenny 02:56 pm EST 02/10/14
In reply to: Death Takes a Holiday at MTG - showtunetrivia 12:00 pm EST 02/10/14

Sound system at the Alex was always pretty crappy too. I'd hoped that the new digs would have been an improvement.


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re: Death Takes a Holiday at MTG

Posted by: showtunetrivia 04:07 pm EST 02/10/14
In reply to: re: Death Takes a Holiday at MTG - Pir8Jenny 02:56 pm EST 02/10/14

One simple improvement for the second act would be to move "December Time," the sweet little number for the old doctor and Evangelina, before Sirki's huge eleven o'clocker, "I Thought That I Could Live." All that angst, that power...followed by their delicate charmer. for us, it weakened the effect of both numbers.

Interesting philosophical discussion in the car on the way home (spoilers below)








Since Grazia willingly chooses to go with Sirki/Death, is she a suicide? Or is she really already dead, since she should have died in the car crash? Is she just on borrowed time? Death describes himself as a soldier, carrying out orders from above. Does he have to work overtime to catch up on the souls he should have gathered during his holiday? They made much of the old legend of the noble's daughter and the stone mason who died in the lake, still holding hands, yet Death zapped Grazie by touching her face, not her hand.

Yeah, we have fun on the drive back. Takes one's mind off the eternal destruction of the 405.

Laura


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