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re: ZORBA: is the show the problem?

Posted by: B_Rabbit 05:41 pm EDT 05/07/15
In reply to: re: ZORBA! Tonight - AlanScott 11:33 pm EDT 05/06/15

I confess to be just what your friend feared, Alan, someone who'd never seen Zorba before and now believes it to be a poorly-written show.

Those un-merry villagers do such hateful things. "The First Time," as a statement of one's life-view, is, to me, unimaginative and off-putting - and I usually love Fred Ebb lyrics. The Leader and her Greek chorus, loudly and somewhat desperately proclaiming that what we are seeing is terribly profound: I found the show never lived up to what she claimed it to be. Hortense's humor, also built on desperation, failed to tickle me.

Now, I suppose older-and-wiser fans will try to convince me that I can't judge the piece without seeing Prince's staging, Field's choreography, or more charismatic leads. But everything I didn't like about it was in the writing. Did John Weidman cut the meat and leave the fat?

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re: ZORBA: is the show the problem?

Posted by: AlanScott 01:05 pm EDT 05/08/15
In reply to: re: ZORBA: is the show the problem? - B_Rabbit 05:41 pm EDT 05/07/15

Yes, the villagers do hateful things. Worse than hateful. It's not a pretty show. It's not a pretty story.

I didn't see the original production. Personally, I question the use of the bouzouki circle. I find the "let's tell a story" setup generally pretty problematic, and I'm not wild about the opening section of "Life Is." But I like the rest of the song, and I think the score is mostly excellent.

The book is arguably underwritten. Lehman Engel certainly felt it was lacking, but he seemed to feel that characters in musicals should not be mysterious. I'm told that the second act of the book is very heavily cut at Encores! so that may be making matters worse.

Whatever is wrong with the piece, there are some lovely things in it and some really searing, thrilling things in it. It does sound like those strengths may not coming through very effectively at Encores!


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A shout out to Lorraine Serabian who's truly wonderful on the recording

Posted by: PlayWiz 03:59 pm EDT 05/08/15
In reply to: re: ZORBA: is the show the problem? - AlanScott 01:05 pm EDT 05/08/15

My friend who saw the show said her voice was still ringing in his ears several blocks away from his theater after the performance.


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re: ZORBA: is the show the problem?

Posted by: Chazwaza 09:19 pm EDT 05/07/15
In reply to: re: ZORBA: is the show the problem? - B_Rabbit 05:41 pm EDT 05/07/15

It depresses me to hear this, and to find out Weidman is doing the book work for the concert... I think he's a great book writer so I'm surprised that he's doing a poor job with this show.

But I think the score speaks for itself...
Life Is
The First Time
The Butterfly
Goodbye Canavaro
Only Love
Zorba's Dance
I Am Free

And others I'm forgetting or not highlighting... I think it's a great and unique score.


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