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| re: Merrily We Roll Along November 23 NYTW--thinking about that opening scene | |
| Posted by: Showtunegal 07:05 pm EST 11/26/22 | |
| In reply to: Merrily We Roll Along November 23 NYTW - toros 12:00 pm EST 11/25/22 | |
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| I saw the Menier production (i.e. this production, but in London) and the reviews were the best ever for a Sondheim production. Yet during the first number I thought, "Oh my god, this is so over the top, I'm going to hate it. Is this a British thing where they have to telegraph everything so loudly?" But then, as the poster above points out, it got stronger and stronger. I decided that a decision was made to make the opening number very "big" so that everything could get across to the audience--then they could follow the rest of the show. As an aside, when I saw Hamilton in London, the actors were pronouncing the opening number so carefully I, again, thought "oh no, have they dumbed this down for the UK?" But the show really picked up. I also thought then they were just being careful for it to be understood--and of course, the actors were British so while their accents were good, they didn't really have the casual street sound of the New York cast. | |
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| re: Merrily We Roll Along November 23 NYTW--thinking about that opening scene | |
| Last Edit: Chazwaza 10:03 pm EST 11/26/22 | |
| Posted by: Chazwaza 10:00 pm EST 11/26/22 | |
| In reply to: re: Merrily We Roll Along November 23 NYTW--thinking about that opening scene - Showtunegal 07:05 pm EST 11/26/22 | |
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| Except Hamilton is written to slowly bring the audience in with a slower, more old-school pace and type of hip-hop/rap... and then it picks up the pace after letting the audience get accustomed to the kind of music, kind of storytelling, and speed... Merrily was not written to start over the top and broad and grating. This revised script has become enough of a tricky soap opera as it is... it doesn't need this, and I'd say it can't bear the weight of this kind of amateur directorial decision. It also doesn't help that the show now starts with a neutered version of the once dynamic, exciting and engrossing title number, and then goes into a lame and unexciting talky song of annoying people being shallow but also musically and lyrically meh. Say what you will about the strength or dramatic worth of "Rich & Happy", at least I was having a good time watching the show that that song was in when it was happening. To couple that new aspect of the first 10 minutes of the show with performing the scene over the top and led by an aggresively grating version of Mary is not help anything, despite what Maria Friedman seems to think. |
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