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| re: Des McAnuff | |
| Last Edit: Chazwaza 03:14 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
| Posted by: Chazwaza 03:07 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
| In reply to: re: Des McAnuff - WaymanWong 02:51 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
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| Des had two massive successes with Big River and Tommy (almost 10 years apart). But oh lordy have you seen what's happened since? -H2S, a ghastly revival of a great show terribly directed (though moderately successful... I'll give credit for trying to make it modern for a time when sexual politics in the work place was a key issue, but it didn't work in my opinion) -Dracula the musical, a ghastly new musical terribly directed (i would have walked out if it weren't free) (-The Wiz, a very disappointingly directed production that was intended to go to Broadway except that in closed in SD and didn't resurface... I'm throwing this in because I saw it, and it seemed tailor made for Des but he did a bad job with it in my opinion) -700 Sundays, a good solo play by a hugely famous and beloved comedian - nicely directed, but not much to speak of -Jersey Boys, a hit on all levels... a sharp, stylish production of a jukebox musical that tourists love -The Farnsworth Invention, a short lived production of a mediocre play -Guys & Dolls, another ghastly revival of a great show, terribly directed, and flopped -Jesus Christ Superstar, a bad or at least disappointing flop revival of a difficult show -Doctor Zhivago, a flopped new musical with bad reviews that I didn't end up seeing along with most people -Summer, another jukebox musical by Des... verdict is out on whether it's a hit yet, but it looks pretty mediocre, and most of what I've heard or read has confirmed. Suffice to say, this is not the resume of the great and visionary director who won Tonys for Big River and Tommy... that director seems to have faded away in 1995. This is the resume of a working and successful director who keeps getting jobs off of his original two Tonys and the memory of his work on Tommy, and/or off his monster hit jukebox musical Jersey Boys. He seems to recognize that that's where his strengths or paychecks come from now, because he has JB, Summer and Ain't Too Proud. |
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| re: Des McAnuff | |
| Posted by: KingSpeed 08:15 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
| In reply to: re: Des McAnuff - Chazwaza 03:07 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
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| No director hits every time or even most of the time. Most show flop on Broadway. Three hits for him is to his credit. | |
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| re: Des McAnuff | |
| Posted by: Chazwaza 01:39 am EDT 06/24/18 | |
| In reply to: re: Des McAnuff - KingSpeed 08:15 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
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| 3 hits out of how many... And I would say he has one of the worst track records. Name another director who is as known and oft-hired as he is who has an equally bad (since 1995, besides Jersey Boys) or worse track record... |
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| 'How to Succeed' with Des | |
| Last Edit: WaymanWong 05:51 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
| Posted by: WaymanWong 05:43 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
| In reply to: re: Des McAnuff - Chazwaza 03:07 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
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| ''H2S, a ghastly revival of a great show terribly directed (though moderately successful... I'll give credit for trying to make it modern for a time when sexual politics in the work place was a key issue, but it didn't work in my opinion)'' I gotta say that I really enjoyed McAnuff's 1995 revival of ''How to Succeed,'' starring Matthew Broderick and Megan Mullally (pre-''Will & Grace''). It won Broderick his second Tony and ran for 548 performances. … And its treatment of sexual politics in the workplace came to a head in ''The Brotherhood of Man.'' It put Miss Jones (Lillias White) at the center of the number, where she taught Finch and Womper to scat, and welcomed in all the secretaries (''sisters'') to join this ''Brotherhood.'' And Wayne Cilento choreographed it all (and was Tony-nominated, as was McAnuff). Perhaps the MeToo movement helped inspire the recent revival of ''How to Succeed'' at the Kennedy Center, directed by Marc Bruni and choreographed by Denis Jones, to do a variation of it. By the way, if this past Broadway season was skimpy, the 1995 one was even moreso. There were only 2 new musical nominees (''Sunset Boulevard''; ''Smokey Joe's Cafe'') and only 2 musical revivals (''Show Boat''; ''How to Succeed''). Though Best Actor in a Musical featured 4 nominees, the Tony nominators named only 2 Best Actress in a Musical nominees. But they easily could've fielded 2 more for a quartet. In addition to Glenn Close and Rebecca Luker, they could've included Elaine Stritch and Mullally. |
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| Link | 1995 Tonys: 'The Brotherhood of Man' from ''How to Succeed' |
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| re: 'How to Succeed' with Des | |
| Last Edit: JereNYC 03:31 pm EDT 06/25/18 | |
| Posted by: JereNYC (JereNYC@aol.com) 03:30 pm EDT 06/25/18 | |
| In reply to: 'How to Succeed' with Des - WaymanWong 05:43 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
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| Regarding the sexual politics in the 1995 revival of HOW TO SUCCEED, we should also remember that that production cut the Act II opener "Cinderella, Darling" and replaced it with a new version of "How To Succeed" with new lyrics that underlined the idea that the women were just as much sharks as the men, only with a different goal in mind. I never liked the change, although I do understand that some have issues with "Cinderella, Darling." (One production I saw years ago included "Cinderella, Darling," but the program had an asterisk next to the bio of every woman involved in the show that lead to a program note essentially saying that the ideas expressed in the song "Cinderella, Darling" were not endorsed or embraced in real life.) Another option I've seen done is simply to cut the first scene of Act II and the song with it. HOW TO SUCCEED is a long show and, to be honest, the show doesn't lose a whole lot with the loss of that material. In general, I really liked that production, especially the brilliant video scenic elements, which were pretty innovative at the time and were a McAnuff trademark. Megan Mullally took a role that's really colorless in the writing and played an actual character. In a show chock full of brilliantly drawn featured character roles, the leading lady is curiously underwritten, but Mullally obviously didn't care and filled in the blanks herself, just as any sharp character woman would. Cilento's choreography really served the piece well, but I really hate that he added a little dance break that allowed the production (and Mullally) to cheat on the famous "Paris Original" quick change. When that moment is done well, it always gets a reaction when the leading lady completely changes her costume, shoes, and hair in seconds. And, whatever issues and quibbles one may have had with the 1995 production, it was head and shoulders above the more recent revival starring Daniel Radcliffe. That one was just...dismal...in every department. That production was just completely wrong-headed at every turn and I found little, if anything, redeemable about it. |
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| re: 'How to Succeed' with Des | |
| Last Edit: Chromolume 11:49 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
| Posted by: Chromolume 11:37 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
| In reply to: 'How to Succeed' with Des - WaymanWong 05:43 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
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| I've always been a little put off by that version of "Brotherhood." I also wonder if the "white guys have to be taught to clap on the upbeats" joke would play well nowadays. As I see it, the 1992 revival of Guys And Dolls stole a moment from "Brotherhood" - namely, having the otherwise non-singing General Cartwright open up with a big high note in a newly-added musical section in "Sit Down," similar to what happens with Miss Jones (after her solo section) in the original "Brotherhood." So I surmise that the "H2$" team felt they needed to do something else. But IMO, the original construction of the number works so well, it didn't need "improvements." (Neither did the rest of the score, IMO - I have to admit I find that whole recording painful to listen to because it feels like a brutal deconstruction of a formerly brilliant score.) Broderick's feeble falsetto scat moment wasn't necessary either. To me, what once was a really perfect 11:00 number got a very weak rethinking. |
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| re: 'How to Succeed' with Des | |
| Posted by: Singapore/Fling 04:22 pm EDT 06/24/18 | |
| In reply to: re: 'How to Succeed' with Des - Chromolume 11:37 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
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| "I also wonder if the "white guys have to be taught to clap on the upbeats" joke would play well nowadays." That joke will stop playing well when white folks stop clapping on the downbeat, which will probably be never. I can recall recently watching a mixed crowd at "Marie and Rosetta", and seeing the black patrons begin clapping on one beat while the white patrons obviously clapped on the other beat. White Rhythm is real, y'all 😊 |
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| re: 'How to Succeed' with Des | |
| Posted by: Singapore/Fling 05:56 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
| In reply to: 'How to Succeed' with Des - WaymanWong 05:43 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
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| Were either Stritch or Mullally considered in Leading? They may have been put in the Featured category. | |
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| re: 'How to Succeed' with Des | |
| Last Edit: WaymanWong 07:12 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
| Posted by: WaymanWong 07:09 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
| In reply to: re: 'How to Succeed' with Des - Singapore/Fling 05:56 pm EDT 06/23/18 | |
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| The Tony nominators have had the discretion to bump performers up or down in a category, regardless of their billing. Stritch, of course, was nominated for Leading Actress in ''Company'' (though I consider Joanne a Featured role). And in 1995, the Drama Desk nominated Stritch in ''Show Boat'' for Leading Actress in a Musical. After she wasn't Tony-nominated, she said: ''I don't want to win a Tony for Support at my age. When I have billing on the same line as [John McMartin as] Cap'n Andy, I wanted to be nominated for Leading Lady. I don't give a [bleep] how many lines I have or how many songs I have. I don't want to be up for Support. Not that I have anything supporting players - the name itself is my idea of theater - but very much like 'Company,' everybody in 'Show Boat' is an ensemble player. There is no star in 'Show Boat.' '' [For the record, McMartin WAS nominated for Leading Actor in a Musical in ''Show Boat.''] |
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