| re: what are the "true head scratchers" in score of The Life? | |
| Last Edit: DanielVincent 01:23 pm EDT 03/14/22 | |
| Posted by: DanielVincent 01:13 pm EDT 03/14/22 | |
| In reply to: what are the "true head scratchers" in score of The Life? - Chazwaza 08:05 pm EST 03/12/22 | |
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| Firstly, I want to say, Chazwaza, I always love reading your posts, even when we disagree--they're always thoughtful and detailed! I would place both "He's No Good" and "I'm Leaving You" in my loosely defined category of "my man don't love me" songs, along with "We Had a Dream" from Act Two. I think, taken separately, each song is beautiful and effective, but, taken together, they start to feel redundant and slow the show's momentum. I was thinking of "head scratcher" as a similarly amorphous category, basically consisting of any number that, for one reason or another, made me think, "How did they let that happen?" "Hooker's Ball" is certainly the most egregious example. Although I find out it thoroughly entertaining in the theater--thanks, in large part, to Martin Pakledinaz's eye-popping costumes; the catchy Cy Coleman melody; Joey McKneely's smooth choreography; and the panache of Vernel Bagneris's delivery--narratively and tonally, it was a puzzlement. Other songs I'd put in the head scratcher category, but for different reasons: My Way or the Highway, which benefitted from Chuck Cooper's damn near perfect performance, but has some of the score's most cringeworthy lyrics; Oh Daddy, which is somehow both extended recit with more embarrassing lyrics and, I guess, our protagonist's "I Want" song (?); Hey Daddy and Go Home, for the same reason; Why Don't They Leave Us Alone, which feels like the inferior, male-led version of My Body with a weaker POV and extremely excisable in the very long first act; and Someday Is for Suckers, which, melodically, I like and, thematically, seems like a somewhat necessary counterpoint to My Body, but somehow felt, at least in the original production, that it was condescending to its characters. There are a few songs that I actually love on the recording that, in the context of the show, didn't quite land for me. "A Lovely Day To Be Out of Jail" is catchy and features great singing, but, dramaturgically, doesn't strike me as a strong enough introduction for Queen. I'd be more okay with it if she later had a strong "I Want" song, but she never really gets one. With "A Piece of the Action," Fleetwood certainly does, and it provides valuable insight into his character, but I can't help but feel, "Why am I spending time hearing about what he wants when I really want to know more about what she wants?" "You Can't Get to Heaven" is a SENSATIONAL song that I probably couldn't bring myself to cut, but, again, in a LONG first act, it's not that relevant to the plot or characters, and so, for me, it's "head scratcher adjacent." "Mr. Greed" is another one that I think has a fantastic melody with lyrics that speak well to the world of the musical and Jojo's POV; in the original production, it also had some delightful choreography. However, its placement always struck me as questionable. It's another example of the momentum of the main action of the story being hampered by an unnecessary aside. I wouldn't want to lose it, but I'm unsure that it sits where it belongs. |
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