| 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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