If you think "Stronger" didn't work then you saw a completely different show. That number is so solid and it left the audience applauding louder than I've heard in any Broadway show in the last few years. Now, I agree that the book needs to make a better connection with what Barrie is going through and his creation of the Hook character but I think much of this is that they separate the scenes with the manager, Sylvia's mother and then the date and "Stronger" with that ridiculous circus number so the connection between the scenes and the song were not as strong.
As for the score, I do think there were some lovely numbers. I liked the first number with Barrie and "Tinkerbell" very much but that charm was lost with the scenes and songs that followed. Sylvia's songs were lovely and so was "Neverland" . I especially liked the Barrie/Peter duet but felt that connection needed to happen sooner. So, again, I agree with your assessment that the meeting between Barrie and the Llewelyn-Davies family needs to be worked on - a lot. Partly it's the very bland child actors. Mostly it's the book that simply doesn't credibly build a case for why Barrie and Peter and the family fill needs in each other. I feel that instead of pushing the cliche musical comedy bits, the show needs to spend more time working on the Barrie/Peter and his relationship with the other boys because that's the emotional core of the story and it will give the stronger last few scenes more resonance.
I think you're very astute to point to Marsha Norman's work on THE SECRET GARDEN. I also think her work on BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY was great too. She has a good understanding of getting to an emotional core and mining relationships in a book. She might be a very good script doctor here.
But overall, I think the show worked far more than you are giving it credit. I, like you, found many faults but that is based more on my tastes than on whether the show is currently working with audiences. It most definitely is a crowd-pleasing show right now and I predict it will be a commercial success even if nothing is changed (although it needs pruning.) But like you, I hope they do more work to capture the charm of Barrie's work and give depth and build heart to the Barrie/Llewelyn-Davies family relationship.)
|