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| re: Could the original have run longer with bigger star replacements? | |
| Posted by: Michael_Portantiere 12:35 pm EDT 06/22/18 | |
| In reply to: re: Could the original have run longer with bigger star replacements? - Chazwaza 11:55 am EDT 06/22/18 | |
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| "I think Sondheim saying he'd originally envision it small has made many think that is how he wrote it. It seems to be that he adapted his writing to Prince's vision early on because musically and lyrically it is not written that way - small or simple, or focused on just being scary or about revenge." Yes, I think you may be right about that, and I agree 100 percent with everything else you wrote. When people do smaller productions of shows that were originally presented "big" on Broadway, they almost always tend to insist that the show will work much better in an intimate space with a much smaller cast and orchestra. I tend to find such comments very annoying and disingenuous. Again, I think SWEENEY works phenomenally well in large productions in large theaters with large ensemble and orchestra, and also in much smaller productions like the current one at the Barrow Street Theater. But I have loved all of the more grand-scale productions of the show that I've seen -- the Broadway original, L.A. Reprise!, New York City Opera, New York Philharmonic/San Francisco Symphony -- and I would hate to think that all future productions of this magnificent show/score will be "intimate." |
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| re: Could the original have run longer with bigger star replacements? | |
| Posted by: Chazwaza 01:07 pm EDT 06/22/18 | |
| In reply to: re: Could the original have run longer with bigger star replacements? - Michael_Portantiere 12:35 pm EDT 06/22/18 | |
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| Couldn't agree more about the comments about a small "intimate" version working better... and never did it annoy me as much as the Ragtime revival, which claiming that stripping away the sets would help us focus on the text, as if the magnificent original staging did anything but compliment and emphasis and showcase the text. It's such a cop-out. Especially for Ragtime which is not at all written to be a small intimate show. I don't know where people think that a set dwarfs a musical to the point of distracting from characters and scenes and story... it makes no sense. The original Ragtime didn't close (after over two years) because the show was lost in the "spectacle" it closed because its producer was a crook. If you want to or need to do a small, more intimately conceived production that's great, but don't make excuses for it as if you're doing the show and audience a favor by finally "trusting" the material. Great shows will be great stripped down or not because the material is strong ... but the smaller productions won't work BECAUSE they are small only. And if there were any shows written to be epic they are Ragtime and Sweeney Todd. Also wanted to add that if Sondheim had meant to write the small intimate scary revenge tale people now claim the show is meant to be, it would have been 90 minutes without an intermission, rather than the 2 and a half hour epic with an intermission. Sondheim knows as well as anyone how an intermission can kill momentum and tension. If he really intended to create that kind of work, that is what he'd have done. To me, nothing about this piece as its written says he meant it that way. Including all of the comedy and commentary on society and religion. |
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| re: Could the original have run longer with bigger star replacements? | |
| Posted by: Michael_Portantiere 04:03 pm EDT 06/22/18 | |
| In reply to: re: Could the original have run longer with bigger star replacements? - Chazwaza 01:07 pm EDT 06/22/18 | |
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| "Couldn't agree more about the comments about a small "intimate" version working better... and never did it annoy me as much as the Ragtime revival, which claiming that stripping away the sets would help us focus on the text, as if the magnificent original staging did anything but compliment and emphasis and showcase the text. It's such a cop-out. Especially for Ragtime which is not at all written to be a small intimate show. I don't know where people think that a set dwarfs a musical to the point of distracting from characters and scenes and story... it makes no sense. The original Ragtime didn't close (after over two years) because the show was lost in the "spectacle" it closed because its producer was a crook. If you want to or need to do a small, more intimately conceived production that's great, but don't make excuses for it as if you're doing the show and audience a favor by finally "trusting" the material. Great shows will be great stripped down or not because the material is strong ... but the smaller productions won't work BECAUSE they are small only." Again, I agree with every word. Although I would point out that, in my opinion, the Ford Center in its original design was too large for even a grand scale musical like RAGTIME. It seems lots of people have that same feeling, because the choice of theater was largely blamed for the failure of YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN and other shows, and of course, the theater was recently redesigned and actually made somewhat smaller and more intimate for HARRY POTTER. "Also wanted to add that if Sondheim had meant to write the small intimate scary revenge tale people now claim the show is meant to be, it would have been 90 minutes without an intermission, rather than the 2 and a half hour epic with an intermission. Sondheim knows as well as anyone how an intermission can kill momentum and tension. If he really intended to create that kind of work, that is what he'd have done. To me, nothing about this piece as its written says he meant it that way. Including all of the comedy and commentary on society and religion." I don't remember Sondheim's exact quote(s) about this, but I think maybe his point was not so much that he wanted the show to be really small and intimate by Broadway standards, but that he didn't envision it being presented in the largest theater on Broadway in a huge production with an actual stage-length iron catwalk, etc. But as I've always said, the brilliant orchestrations and choral work in SWEENEY were obviously written on a grand scale, so at some point it seems that Sondheim and Tunick got to the same page as Prince. |
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