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| HAIR 50 benefit - last night | |
| Posted by: standingO 05:45 am EDT 10/26/17 | |
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| I attended the Hair 50th anniversary event last night, shelling out the $750 minimum. The venue was the beautiful Appel room at the Time Warner Jazz at Lincoln Center building which looks out on Columbus Circle. I wasn't sure what to expect -- a staged production, a concert or something in between (especially since social media posts indicated the rehearsal time was fairly brief). I was happily surprised to see it was the Paulus staging of the show adapted to the venue and condensed to be primarily the music numbers. (I assume this is how the cruise/casino versions of Broadway shows are condensed as well.) The selling point for me was the reunion of the Tribe from the 2008 Central Park/2009 Broadway production. Most have gone on to steady work in the theatre so a reunion of this scale seemed pretty remarkable to me. And the Tribe shined. By reducing the book scenes to the bare essentials, it changed the focus of the narrative to be as much about the group as the individuals. Some standouts: Swenson's opening monologue made reference to how the show used to be on 45th street and how 45 used to be a good number. The crowd took a couple beats to get the joke. He then referenced the Columbus circle backdrop and how it represented the best and worst of humanity. The racial politics of Hair seemed to stand out in a way that made 2009 seem like a distant age. Darius Nichols couldn't quite bring himself to sing the litany of racial slurs that is Hud's opening number. After several people (in the tribe and the audience) shouted he could do it, he did. But the number is thornier than ever before and I wonder what will happen to it in years to come. There were two truly electrifying moments of the night, ones that created actual transcendental moments: Saycon Sengbloh's Abie Baby (the production didn't allow for an appropriate applause but she killed it). And the real show stopper was Black Boys. I didn't recognize the woman playing Dionne and I don't have the program in front of me. But she was excellent in this number and Walking In Space. If anyone knows, what is her history with the show? Other moments: Jonathan Groff took someone's phone away from them during one of his early songs. Cassie Levy's mic was not working well during I BELIEVE IN LOVE and it was only slightly better in EASY TO BE HARD. Still, it made me want to see her in FROZEN. A few things I missed: Gavin Creel's Claude, the song GOING DOWN, Will Swenson's "speed freak" energy, the Swenson/Creel chemistry. But to see the original tribe back in action made up for a lot of this. Shout out to the male tribe members who still have "down to there" hair. It was great to see everyone again including Bernard Purdie on drums and James Rado in the crowd. It was a very groovy night and I am thankful I got to be there. |
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| re: HAIR 50 benefit - last night | |
| Posted by: showtunetrivia 03:56 pm EDT 10/26/17 | |
| In reply to: HAIR 50 benefit - last night - standingO 05:45 am EDT 10/26/17 | |
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| Thanks for sharing this. Laura |
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| Dionne was played by Jeanette Bayardelle. | |
| Posted by: footlight9 02:05 pm EDT 10/26/17 | |
| In reply to: HAIR 50 benefit - last night - standingO 05:45 am EDT 10/26/17 | |
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| Bayardelle replaced Sasha Allen in the Broadway production in 2010. I recall her going on for Allen a couple times while she was still in rehearsal because I remember seeing her once with the original cast just before they departed and then again later with the new company after she'd assumed the role full time. She is a phenomenal, phenomenal talent. She also replaced LaChanze as Celie in The Color Purple and went on to tour in that role as well. |
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| re: HAIR 50 benefit - last night | |
| Posted by: larry13 11:56 am EDT 10/26/17 | |
| In reply to: HAIR 50 benefit - last night - standingO 05:45 am EDT 10/26/17 | |
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| Thanks for the report. Nice to know Rado was "in the crowd." Was the composer--Galt MacDermott--there and/or acknowleged? | |
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| re: HAIR 50 benefit - last night | |
| Posted by: mikem 12:31 pm EDT 10/26/17 | |
| In reply to: re: HAIR 50 benefit - last night - larry13 11:56 am EDT 10/26/17 | |
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| Sounds like it was a great night! I loved that production of Hair. I guess Sasha Allen and Patina Miller couldn't make it, or they would have been Dionne. The pre-announcements of the cast didn't mention anyone in that role, so whoever played the part last night may have been a newcomer. | |
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