So many of the things I love about the original show were rather sabotaged in the 1999 revision. Alan and I have talked about the revival extensively out here before.
As for the show "never having made much sense" - I tend to disagree overall - I think it plays beautifully when done well. yes, there are moments that seem to defy reality (like, what the hell is going on onstage in the Shrew show for a good deal of Act II, as so much of the action is offstage?). But then again, one can probably find major holes in most of the classics. (One of my big questions concerns Emile's actions in Act II of South Pacific, for instance.)
One of Guare's revisions I have always objected to (besides the gross miscalculation of reversing the order of book/song in the opening scene) is changing the senator to a general, which results in that rather awkward and musically off-the-mark arrangement of "From This Moment On." I actually tend to think that changing Howell back to a senator could play quite well in our age...
Also, a few years ago, a brand new "critical edition" of the score was developed, going back to source materials with the attempt to present the score as close as possible to what Porter and his orchestrators (Robert Russell Bennett primarily) actually wrote. (The new vocal score is commerically available.) It would be wonderful to hear that newly edited score on Broadway where it truly belongs. Unfortunately, the Roundabout doesn't have the space or budget to present it as is - which does lead me to think that they might be eyeing the revival, with Don Sebesky's smaller orchestration. |
