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| I was the one who posted on Facebook. Here is my R.I.P to the Encores! that was. | |
| Posted by: ChattaMatta 04:28 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
| In reply to: re: Program notes. - JereNYC 03:13 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
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| Below is what I wrote, which has spurred much discussion. I tried to keep it short for Facebook (hahaha), because I could dive much deeper into their well-intentioned, but misguided new mission, and further unpack that article in the Playbill: --------------- R.I.P. Encores!, which used to be one of New York's greatest theatrical institutions. For those who don't know, the beautiful mission of Encores! for the past 28 years had been to recreate forgotten Broadway musicals so we today can get a glimpse into Broadway's glorious past. There was nothing in the world like it. It was as close to time travel as possible. For folks like me, it was sheer heaven three times a year, like living in a waking dream, with a full orchestra. No more. In a program note, the new leadership, who took over beginning with this season, refers to pre-2022 Encores! as an "archeological site." They believe "Almost zero shows written before the 21st Century have a worldview and politics that sit well with a contemporary viewer." Wow. Says who? Certainly not the loyal audience base that has stood by Encores! for the past 28 years happily soaking up numerous musical gems written well before the year 2000 A.D. Now, the new leadership plans to rewrite, often completely, the work of a century of writers into what they deem is suitable for audiences today. Case #1 is THE TAP DANCE KID, a perfect choice for pre-2022 Encores!. I saw this last night, and was excited because it was the rare Black show with a family that looked like mine. I also applauded that they brought on Black creators to mount this production. Despite a fantastic cast and stellar choreography, the production saddened me. The work of one of Broadway's few Black bookwriters, Charles Blackwell, was needlessly tampered with. The groundbreaking portrayal of an upper middle class Black family from the 1980s is erased. It was deemed more suitable set in the 1950s. (It isn't, and misses the point.) A rare powerhouse role for a plus-size Black actress has also been erased, presumably because someone decided the character's insecurities about her weight won't "sit well with a contemporary viewer." How is any of this progress in the name of representation? Bios for the original bookwriter, lyricist, and composer are NOT printed in the program. This speaks volumes. They don't matter, it appears. This would never pass with a playwright. It should not pass for musical theater writers. The next show, THE LIFE (one of my favorites, despite flaws), is being reconceived top-to-bottom. The premise sounds great . . . for a theater that's not Encores! It would have been great to see THE LIFE again as originally written, broken heels and all. Yes, some shows indeed have material around race and gender that feels queasy today. But these are the exceptions, not the rule. And sometimes much older shows, like those from the '20s to the '40s, have jokes that are better cut for concert presentations or that are simply no longer funny. No one can argue with some trimming. Hopefully, a new organization will arise that carries the torch of the previous mission of Encores!, one that understands the vital voice of Broadway to American history, and doesn't feel it needs to be tampered with. If not, it will be deeply missed. Please send condolences in the form of Broadway Cast Albums I don't yet own. At least those can't be changed willy-nilly! POSTSCRIPT: I, as a writer, have a few "problematic" Black shows I'd love to conscientiously revive and/or recreate. Among them, HALLELUJAH, BABY!, 1600 PENNSYLVANIA AVE., and the work of Micki Grant and Langston Hughes. I'd also love to rediscover the work of turn-of-the-last-century Black songwriters Paul Laurence Dunbar and Will Marion Cook. What is potentially uncomfortable about them can teach us so much about today. Just putting it out in the universe! |
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| re: I was the one who posted on Facebook. Here is my R.I.P to the Encores! that was. | |
| Posted by: den 07:16 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
| In reply to: I was the one who posted on Facebook. Here is my R.I.P to the Encores! that was. - ChattaMatta 04:28 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
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| Bravo, ChattaMatta. This RIP is excellent — heartfelt, astute and spot on. | |
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| yeah, all the shows worth doing were done, and if the people in NYC during the 7-performance run got to see it 20 years ago, there's no reason to do it again | |
| Posted by: Chazwaza 07:03 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
| In reply to: I was the one who posted on Facebook. Here is my R.I.P to the Encores! that was. - ChattaMatta 04:28 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
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| This insanely false premise that they've excavated all they need to for mounting relatively "as they were", and now it's time to reinvent for the future is really, well, false. Not only were many of the Encores revivals not the ideal production in terms of cast and direction and could be well served to be tried again, these runs are extremely short and seen by relatively few people. The could start over and produce paired down concert-staging revivals of every show they've already done with different casts/creative teams and there'd be no problem and many many new audiences who didn't get to see the show, never heard of it, or are happy to see it again in a new production, could have the chance to experience these shows. Re-conceiving and "fixing" shows from the past, specifically to please a current day audience's sensibilities, tailoring them to this audience, with most of the authors nor even alive to weigh in, is foolish. |
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| re: yeah, all the shows worth doing were done, and if the people in NYC during the 7-performance run got to see it 20 years ago, there's no reason to do it again | |
| Posted by: ChattaMatta 07:07 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
| In reply to: yeah, all the shows worth doing were done, and if the people in NYC during the 7-performance run got to see it 20 years ago, there's no reason to do it again - Chazwaza 07:03 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
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| Agreed on all counts. | |
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| re: I was the one who posted on Facebook. Here is my R.I.P to the Encores! that was. | |
| Posted by: AcidJazzHands 05:25 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
| In reply to: I was the one who posted on Facebook. Here is my R.I.P to the Encores! that was. - ChattaMatta 04:28 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
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| I am 27 years old and very upset by those awful comments made by the new Encores leadership. I only started being able to afford to see shows shortly before the pandemic happened, when I was 25 and finally got a decent job. I had never even heard of Encores pre-pandemic, but during the shutdown I listened to a ton of their cast albums and learned so much about 20th century musicals as a result. I was so excited to go to Encores shows post-shutdown. I really hope those comments by the leadership don't mean that they won't be doing older, less-well-known shows by the Gershwins, Berlin, Porter, Ellington, Weill, etc. I guess this is probably a stupid thing to be upset about, I just hope it doesn't mean I (and the rest of my age cohort) will NEVER be able to see all those shows. PS I was at the Tap Dance Kid last night and thought all the songs were bad except the 11 o'clock number, brilliantly performed by the amazing Joshua Henry. I'm a big fan of his and it was great to finally see him in person. Other than that it was a waste of time. |
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| re: I was the one who posted on Facebook. Here is my R.I.P to the Encores! that was. | |
| Posted by: ChattaMatta 05:40 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
| In reply to: re: I was the one who posted on Facebook. Here is my R.I.P to the Encores! that was. - AcidJazzHands 05:25 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
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| Thank you for this, 27andAngry. I suspect (I could be wrong) that the new leadership views the classic Encores! fanbase as old and needing to update their thinking. They do not understand that legions of young people from various backgrounds also love Broadway history, and wish to time travel back to different Broadway eras and experience shows as they may have originally felt. ENCORES! at its heart IS about preserving Broadway for the future. The history itself IS relevant. It's not about rewriting it to suit a small handful of people's expectations on what is socially acceptable in 2022. In the article in the playbill, Kenny Leon says, "We're not creating museum pieces." A rather flippant comment. Every time I go to The Met, I see stunning works of art I had never known before. There is extraordinary value in museum pieces. ENCORES! is (was) The Met of the Broadway musical. |
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| re: I was the one who posted on Facebook. Here is my R.I.P to the Encores! that was. | |
| Posted by: AcidJazzHands 05:46 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
| In reply to: re: I was the one who posted on Facebook. Here is my R.I.P to the Encores! that was. - ChattaMatta 05:40 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
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| Yeah, I think they are probably under the impression it's all old people who like the old shows. But while I am not super young (ie under 25) anymore, I am certainly not old and I really love older shows (AND a lot of newer ones...) I think there is this mistaken idea that young people are all offended by older materials. But I'm a millennial leftist and not some snowflake, I'm able to process dated ideas like an adult, and the same goes for my friends. | |
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| re: I was the one who posted on Facebook. Here is my R.I.P to the Encores! that was. | |
| Posted by: pagates 05:53 pm EST 02/08/22 | |
| In reply to: re: I was the one who posted on Facebook. Here is my R.I.P to the Encores! that was. - AcidJazzHands 05:46 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
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| Hah. This reminds me of something i heard on NPR this morning in re the culture at large: (an intro line for The Takeaway) “The real damaging thing that seems to be happening in the culture these days is that even young people seem to be listening to old music.” I was unable to listen to the program, so I don't know the actual context of the quotation, but the show's production extricated it from its context to draw in listeners pretty much as I quote it above. |
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| re: I was the one who posted on Facebook. Here is my R.I.P to the Encores! that was. | |
| Posted by: ChattaMatta 05:55 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
| In reply to: re: I was the one who posted on Facebook. Here is my R.I.P to the Encores! that was. - AcidJazzHands 05:46 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
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| YES!!! Well said! You are the future as it must be! An important voice! | |
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| re: I was the one who posted on Facebook. Here is my R.I.P to the Encores! that was. | |
| Posted by: AcidJazzHands 06:00 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
| In reply to: re: I was the one who posted on Facebook. Here is my R.I.P to the Encores! that was. - ChattaMatta 05:55 pm EST 02/07/22 | |
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| Aww thank you, that's very kind :) | |
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