| GHOST: A MUSICAL - Tour at the Pantages Theater | |
| Posted by: | bicoastal 01:01 pm EDT 06/28/14 |
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| Pardon my rant, but in almost every way this show and this production is a disaster. The actors consistently confuse "shouting" with "acting". I understand this is a non-equity tour but I have to believe there are better non-equity actors out there. The music as a whole is dreadful, full of sound-alike pop ballads or disco-y upbeat numbers. The orchestra tracks sounded pre-recorded, and were numbingly loud which made it almost impossible to hear the lyrics. The sound design was terrible--we were center in the 10th row and heard maybe half the lyrics. Which were pretty crummy, anyway. There were fits of comedy here and there but overall this was just painful. IMHO, stage shows that rely on projections to establish location and fill out the threadbare chorus with LED projected dancers are cheating the essence of theatricality. On top of everything else, the program states the show is set in New York City today, yet phones have cords on them, a key moment centers on a radio and so on, so it's really stuck in 1991. It was a lazy piece of writing from the book writer (who also wrote the screenplay AND for some reason was allowed to write the lyrics, even though his bio doesn't list one other theatrical endeavor). I am surprised that Matthew Warchus directed this mess. I know the show has its fans but I cannot understand why. | |
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| re: GHOST: A MUSICAL - Tour at the Pantages Theater | |
| Posted by: | toddlin 06:18 pm EDT 07/06/14 |
| In reply to: | GHOST: A MUSICAL - Tour at the Pantages Theater - bicoastal 01:01 pm EDT 06/28/14 |
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| When this tour played Chicago in January most of the critics shredded it. "So bad it's almost scary" "I just can't take this" "Soulless and witless " Some if the worst reviews I've ever read. | |
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| re: GHOST: A MUSICAL - Tour at the Pantages Theater | |
| Posted by: | Kimmelhisway 10:10 pm EDT 06/28/14 |
| In reply to: | GHOST: A MUSICAL - Tour at the Pantages Theater - bicoastal 01:01 pm EDT 06/28/14 |
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| Are you really saying the use orchestra tracks, or is the orchestra augmented by tracks??? Every show has its fans, including the worst of the worst - it's in people's natures and there is no accounting for it other than they like what they like for reasons that are their own. | |
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| re: GHOST: A MUSICAL - Tour at the Pantages Theater | |
| Posted by: | bicoastal 03:44 pm EDT 06/30/14 |
| In reply to: | re: GHOST: A MUSICAL - Tour at the Pantages Theater - Kimmelhisway 10:10 pm EDT 06/28/14 |
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| I would guess the tracks are augmented, I did see a conductor but did not see how many musicians were in the pit. The music sounded canned but maybe that's what the live musicians produced. I don't know the ins and outs of union vs non-union tours; would a non-equity tour also use non-union musicians? I was surprised that an equity house could host a non-equity tour, but I don't know about that stuff. | |
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| Very well staged | |
| Posted by: | Jax 09:44 pm EDT 06/28/14 |
| In reply to: | GHOST: A MUSICAL - Tour at the Pantages Theater - bicoastal 01:01 pm EDT 06/28/14 |
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| For a touring show, Ghost boasts a very elaborate technical production. Certain scenes, i.e., the subway fight, played very cleverly with perspective and managed to equal what seemed like "screen magic" in the film. Agreed, however, that the score is poor. As for the non-equity cast, they're young and work hard. Beat up on 'em if it makes you feel better. This is no must see, but I've seen far worse this year, i.e. "Dog and Pony" in San Diego. | |
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| re: Very well staged | |
| Posted by: | bicoastal 03:50 pm EDT 06/30/14 |
| In reply to: | Very well staged - Jax 09:44 pm EDT 06/28/14 |
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| I'm sorry, I thought I had specified that for a national touring production of a Broadway show that it was the worse I'd ever seen. I have certainly seen worse regional and local productions and I'm sorry to hear about "Dog and Pony" which I almost went to S.D. to see this weekend. I guess I dodged that bullet. As for the staging and effects, well, that's the show. It didn't make the acting better or the singing better or the songs better or the book better and in fact it made the whole thing feel like a movie they were forcing to realize on stage. And yes, the cast worked hard but working hard does necessarily equate with good. I'm not trying to beat up on anyone but I am saying that for a national touring production charging top dollar (no discount for non-equity vs. equity shows) I expect a level of talent stronger than this. | |
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| re: Very well staged | |
| Posted by: | Jax 05:31 pm EDT 06/30/14 |
| In reply to: | re: Very well staged - bicoastal 03:50 pm EDT 06/30/14 |
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| It was really only the score -- loud, repetitive, and drowning out the lyrics -- that bothered me. (On the other hand, what is a musical BUT the score?) You're pretty tough on the three leads, at least one of who -- the black psychic -- stopped the show cold with her final number when I saw it. I'd say if Andrew Lloyd Webber (sp?) had done the score, the show might have gotten by. Like a loving puppy, it wants to do nothing but make the audience happy. As for charging top dollar, you need to get on some websites. I paid $25 (plus fees) for an aisle orchestra seat, mid way back. "Ghost," for me, was no "Oklahoma," but it sure was a bargain. | |
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| re: Very well staged | |
| Posted by: | bicoastal 08:18 pm EDT 06/30/14 |
| In reply to: | re: Very well staged - Jax 05:31 pm EDT 06/30/14 |
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| Ultimately we just have to settle for the fact that we have a difference of opinion. While I did like the actress very much who played Oda Mae--and she did a very good job on that big number--it was hardly enough to make the evening worthwhile. And I paid half-price but would have felt ripped off for free. And I have to disagree about the book--it's just a retread of the movie, and it assumes the audience has seen the movie. It gives nothing to the viewer who hasn't. I haven't seen the movie since it's original release, and I loved it when I saw it. So I was primed and ready to love this show (and would have seen it in London except it had closed by the time I made my last trip over there). I always want to have a good time at the theater and I sincerely wanted to like this show, and maybe that is why I am so annoyed by everything wrong with it. Anyhow, I am glad you got your $25 worth, and yes, to each his own! | |
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| Disagree. | |
| Posted by: | TourBoi 01:59 pm EDT 07/01/14 |
| In reply to: | re: Very well staged - bicoastal 08:18 pm EDT 06/30/14 |
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| Saw the show on Broadway, and thought it got a bad deal. I enjoyed it, most of it anyway. I loved the bits of music for Sam and Molly, but hated the material written for the "other ghosts." "With You" is a gorgeous song in the right performer's hands. I did think the Sam/Molly in the tour weren't at all right for their roles, and union status has nothing to do with that. Talent not judged by a card. I can tell you that several colleagues of mine work on the tour, and they use union musicians, to answer your question. I'm sure they use a few patches in some keyboards, but it is a live (union) band. Any issues you might have had with sound would probably be due to the sound design for the show (which does emphasize loudness), and the fact that the Pantages as a venue is a VERY hard venue to adjust sound designs for. Often it takes up to a week for the touring sound op to get it just right. | |
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| re: Disagree. | |
| Posted by: | bicoastal 08:27 pm EDT 07/01/14 |
| In reply to: | Disagree. - TourBoi 01:59 pm EDT 07/01/14 |
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| Thanks for the info re: musicians. I agree with you about the Pantages, I often think it's better to sit upstairs than downstairs for the best sound. Regarding other things, the point of a show is to communicate to its audience. This production failed to do that on any level for me. There may be a good song or two in that score but I am not motivated to find out, and that is a shame. Also, just to clarify, I did not say that the Sam and Molly were bad because they were non-union, I just find it hard to believe that among all the non-equity performers in this country, this is the best the producers could come up with. I'm sure we can all point to some equity performers whose cards we'd like to tear up! | |
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| re: Disagree. | |
| Posted by: | TourBoi 02:37 pm EDT 07/04/14 |
| In reply to: | re: Disagree. - bicoastal 08:27 pm EDT 07/01/14 |
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| Unfortunately sometimes an actor gives an astonishingly great audition, but then doesn't work out once the show is up. Not saying that's an excuse, but it does sometimes happen. | |
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