| You left out half his answer. | |
| Posted by: | TimDunleavy 10:26 pm EDT 05/09/15 |
| In reply to: | At the Zorba talkback, Walter Bobbie responds - wisebear 06:49 pm EDT 05/09/15 |
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| The other reason was that they were hiring actors, not actor/musicians - there was not enough time to audition actor/musicians, and nine days of rehearsal isn't enough time to teach all the actors instruments. Was that still not satisfying enough for you? | |
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| re: You left out half his answer. | |
| Posted by: | JAS 01:11 am EDT 05/10/15 |
| In reply to: | You left out half his answer. - TimDunleavy 10:26 pm EDT 05/09/15 |
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| Nothing in the libretto says that the performers have to be able to act and play instruments. But cutting all the recit lead-ins to "Life Is" made the opening very awkward: the show seemed to start in the middle of the song, which it kind of did. And Mazzie, in an odd role to begin with, was not helped at all by her awful wig and costume. She just kept popping up in various places. ("Look, Vrenios--there's that woman again! Who IS she?" "I don't know; I thought YOU invited her!") The serious shows Encores! presents are always tricky--you need to be careful trimming the book, or the balance stumbles. Act two of ZORBA at Encores! seemed rushed and felt unsatisfying. I'm guessing Bobbie would've had some say in casting, and the casting was often head-scratchingly odd: why cast John Turturro when he CAN'T SING or dance?? And Zoe Wanamaker, who created a fascinating, heartbreaking Mme. Hortense, had enough trouble with her singing to make her performance uncomfortable for me to watch. And the less said about the awkward choreography, the better! As happy as I was to hear the score again, this was, for me, one of the weaker Encores! productions. | |
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| re: You left out half his answer. | |
| Posted by: | AlanScott 02:40 am EDT 05/10/15 |
| In reply to: | re: You left out half his answer. - JAS 01:11 am EDT 05/10/15 |
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| The published script does suggest that a lot of them should play instruments in the opening number — "Everyone has some sort of instrument and they accompany the chorus, both with the instruments and vocal background." But I nonetheless agree with you. I think only a few people played instruments in the original production. In the Tonys clip, you see a bunch of people holding instruments, but my sense is that most of them never actually played the instruments. There were three bouzouki players onstage who sometimes played, and it does look like perhaps a couple of other people in the cast did genuinely play during the opening number (though possibly not). But there is absolutely no reason that you need to have people playing, especially for an Encores! production. I presume they did have some bouzouki players in the orchestra, and I can't see why they couldn't have been in the circle for the opening number and then joined the orchestra. I also agree that when they hire people with no experience in musicals for leads at Encores!, it's risky. There's a limited rehearsal period and no preview period. Just an invited dress. Someone with no experience in musicals might be able to get comfortable with a full rehearsal period and a few weeks of previews, but that doesn't happen at Encores! | |
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| re: You left out half his answer. | |
| Posted by: | Michael_Portantiere 11:58 am EDT 05/10/15 |
| In reply to: | re: You left out half his answer. - AlanScott 02:40 am EDT 05/10/15 |
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| "Someone with no experience in musicals might be able to get comfortable with a full rehearsal period and a few weeks of previews, but that doesn't happen at Encores!" Excellent point. And this has also been true of at least two musically disastrous performances by non-singers in productions of musicals by the New York Philharmonic: Gabriel Byrne in CAMELOT and Stephen Colbert in COMPANY. | |
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| re: You left out half his answer. | |
| Posted by: | wisebear 12:51 am EDT 05/10/15 |
| In reply to: | You left out half his answer. - TimDunleavy 10:26 pm EDT 05/09/15 |
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| No, it wasn't. It assumes that the actors must be the musicians. If that is the only possible staging he can conceive, then I'm surprised at his expressed eagerness to direct this production. I've seen several different approaches to the bouzouki circle, and none of them involved actors becoming expert musicians. And I thought his joke/dig about hiring Doyle was unnecessary. Don't get me wrong - I'm a Walter Bobbie fan. But I wonder if he would do everything the same again if he had another chance, from casting to directorial choices. | |
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| re: You left out half his answer. | |
| Posted by: | owk 12:01 am EDT 05/10/15 |
| In reply to: | You left out half his answer. - TimDunleavy 10:26 pm EDT 05/09/15 |
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| So many people on this site have referenced the power of the story circle at the beginning of the show (I didn't see the original, though I was in college at the time) that I finally looked at it on the Tony Awards. It was no doubt powerful in it's time, but by today's standards seemed very hippy-dippy to me and a little embarrassing. I'm not crazy about how the Encores version of Zorba opens, but I'm far from sure that a replication of this 1968 idea of new-and-now would have helped any. It's kind of like ethnic-dancing combined with the Newport Folk Festival. Not for me, anyhow. | |
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| re: You left out half his answer. | |
| Posted by: | Delvino 12:12 am EDT 05/10/15 |
| In reply to: | re: You left out half his answer. - owk 12:01 am EDT 05/10/15 |
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| I have no earthly idea what you mean by "hippy-dippy," in describing an opening devoid of pretense or preciousness. It was a naturalistic framework and to me the opposite of embarrassing. The Mt. Olympus drag on Mazzie alone is 180 from that concept, far more precious and arch. And kitsch. I'll take the original. Still. | |
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