| Thoughts on CAROUSEL | |
| Last Edit: lordofspeech 02:03 pm EDT 05/03/18 | |
| Posted by: lordofspeech 02:00 pm EDT 05/03/18 | |
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| The Tony nominations overlooked the set and direction. And I’m just confessing once again that I loved both. Maybe O’Brien’s point-of-view was not perfect. Maybe I was just overwhelmed with the brilliance of the material. Maybe he chose an unpopular perspective on Billy’s « domestic violence. ». (What I got from the vehemence and purity of Billy’s denials was that he was NOT an « abuser. ». He lost his temper and hit Julie once or maybe a few times, as he said. And I think both O’Brien and Hammerstein were making the point that this is not unusual or unforgiveable in marriages, from either partner. But it’s painful.). (If I fault O’Brien anywhere, it’s in finding no way into Julie Jordan. I came away from the production with no further insight into her queerness. Is she too forward? Too unbound by convention (which would make sense in contradistinction from Carrie but we’d need to see something of that carried into her later years)? Is she ruled by her senses like Stella Kowalski (suggested in Hilton Als’ New Yorker essay—but this was not apparent from my upstairs vantage point)? Is she seriously shut-down emotionally (Mueller’s rote « goodbye » over Billy’s corpse suggested that possibility to me, especially in contrast to the huge breakdown she has when she is then conjoined to not be afraid of the dark.)? So—maybe O’Brien did leave me behind with regards to the inner life of Julie Jordan, but I thought his insistent focus on it being Billy’s story and the story of his redemption from his self-centeredness and suicide as well as his relation (and the entire world’s relation) to the divine and to destiny was so moving. And, maybe I’m missing something, but the opening waltz direction-and-choreography was so beautiful, and the sailboats on the horizon scene, and the backdrop for « If I Loved You, » these were, for me, jaw-dropping examples of theatrical gorgeousness and true director-designer-choreographer working excellently together. I am interested in having it explained to me why people took exception to this production. But..I know...ultimately it’s chacun a son goût. |
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