Threaded Order Chronological Order
| re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. | |
| Posted by: Ncassidine 08:20 am EDT 04/05/23 | |
| In reply to: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. - kieran 08:12 pm EDT 04/04/23 | |
|
|
|
| This seems largely to have been a case of false advertising. Of course people left if they didn't understand what they were seeing. | |
| reply to this message |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. | |
| Posted by: Fasslercom 10:00 am EDT 04/05/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. - Ncassidine 08:20 am EDT 04/05/23 | |
|
|
|
| Well written, fascinating and important account of how this "Oklahoma!" was received on its tour. As for advertising it, I'm sure it was billed as the Tony Award winning production for Best Revival, which it was. I'm sure many or most had no idea it had been tweaked (even though not a word of dialogue was changed), but in no way could this be construed as false advertising. | |
| reply to this message |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. | |
| Posted by: AlanScott 06:26 pm EDT 04/05/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. - Fasslercom 10:00 am EDT 04/05/23 | |
|
|
|
| I didn't see the production, but according to friends who did see it, several important lines were cut. So perhaps literally speaking on a word of dialogue was changed, but several lines were gone, and that is a change to the dialogue, if not literally a change of the dialogue. | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road (with Spoilers!) | |
| Last Edit: WaymanWong 07:29 pm EDT 04/05/23 | |
| Posted by: WaymanWong 07:26 pm EDT 04/05/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. - AlanScott 06:26 pm EDT 04/05/23 | |
|
|
|
| Fish's idiosyncratic direction goes beyond some changes in the dialogue. Spoilers ahead! ... Curly and Jud sing ''Poor Jud Is Daid'' in pitch darkness as a live camera shows giant closeups of their faces on the wall. Laurey's dream ballet has been turned into a solo where a dancer races around the stage, accompanied by a screaming rock guitar. And Jud comes to the wedding and gifts Curly a gun. Curly directly shoots him, and Curly and Laurey are splattered with Jud's blood. Needless to say, quite a departure from the original where Curly and Jud get into a knife fight, and Jud dies after falling on his knife. There's no way road audiences could've been prepared for this. ... Yup, this ain't your parents' ''Oklahoma!'' Nor mine. |
|
| reply to this message | reply to first message |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road (with Spoilers!) | |
| Posted by: AlanScott 07:38 pm EDT 04/05/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road (with Spoilers!) - WaymanWong 07:26 pm EDT 04/05/23 | |
|
|
|
| Thanks, Wayman. I know about all of those. I was just referring to the actual dialogue, not divergences from the stage directions in the published script that Hammerstein approved, since that is what Fasslercom mentioned. | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road (with Spoilers!) | |
| Posted by: WaymanWong 07:52 pm EDT 04/05/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road (with Spoilers!) - AlanScott 07:38 pm EDT 04/05/23 | |
|
|
|
| And for the record, I never voted for the guy who became the 45th President and was the co-producer of the 1970 flop play ''Paris Is Out.'' ;) | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road (with Spoilers!) | |
| Posted by: AlanScott 12:52 am EDT 04/06/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road (with Spoilers!) - WaymanWong 07:52 pm EDT 04/05/23 | |
|
|
|
| I would be shocked if you told me you did. :) | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: The best revival I've ever seen | |
| Posted by: WaymanWong 05:03 pm EDT 04/06/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road (with Spoilers!) - AlanScott 12:52 am EDT 04/06/23 | |
|
|
|
| In 2010, Arena Stage in D.C. did an amazing ''Oklahoma!'' in the round with a marvelous, multiracial cast, directed by Molly Smith. It starred a Latino Curly (Nicholas Rodriguez, who won the Helen Hayes Award) and an African-American Laurey (Eleasha Gamble). I wish that joyous revival had moved to Broadway and played the Circle in the Square (instead of the Daniel Fish version that did). |
|
| Link | 'Oklahoma!' at Arena Stage (trailer from 2010) |
| reply to this message | reply to first message | |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: The best revival I've ever seen | |
| Posted by: AlanScott 05:28 pm EDT 04/06/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: The best revival I've ever seen - WaymanWong 05:03 pm EDT 04/06/23 | |
|
|
|
| It would have been nice to see that. I have to admit to being a traditionalist where Rodgers and Hammerstein are concerned, but I would have been happy to see the Oregon Shakespeare Festival gay Oklahoma! come to New York. It looked like fun. Clearly, it was set in an alternate universe. The show is funny. It's meant to be funny. Serious, too, but there is so much comedy in the show. Personally, I would be happy if we got productions of the classic musicals regularly in New York. For a more fully traditional production, I would have been happy if New York could have seen the Lyric Opera of Chicago production, with a full orchestra and de Mille's choreography. There was a radio broadcast, and it's my second-favorite Oklahoma! recording, after the OBCR. Anyway, soon there will finally be a complete Oklahoma! recording (or so we are told). Let's hope it's good. |
|
| reply to this message | reply to first message |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: The best revival I've ever seen/ what new recording? | |
| Posted by: bmc 12:13 pm EDT 04/09/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: The best revival I've ever seen - AlanScott 05:28 pm EDT 04/06/23 | |
|
|
|
| what recording? WHO?When? | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. | |
| Last Edit: WaymanWong 01:46 pm EDT 04/05/23 | |
| Posted by: WaymanWong 01:45 pm EDT 04/05/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. - Fasslercom 10:00 am EDT 04/05/23 | |
|
|
|
| I saw this overrated revival on Broadway. I gave it a second try when it played S.F. Other than Sean Grandillo's Curly, it was disappointing all over. What Daniel Fish did went far beyond ''tweaking.'' Should've been billed ''Daniel Fish's 'Oklahoma!''' because it sure wasn't Rodgers & Hammerstein's. |
|
| reply to this message | reply to first message |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. | |
| Posted by: Singapore/Fling 10:41 am EDT 04/05/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. - Fasslercom 10:00 am EDT 04/05/23 | |
|
|
|
| Not false advertising, but misleading advertising. Presenters sold the show in the way that would sell the most tickets, even if that meant that a good deal of their audience would hate it (which is counterintuitive, because then the audiences turn against the presenter). Sending this show to giant road houses was always a bad idea, because it wasn't created to appeal to that large of an audience. | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. | |
| Posted by: Ncassidine 10:49 am EDT 04/05/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. - Singapore/Fling 10:41 am EDT 04/05/23 | |
|
|
|
| Agreed with this. Even advertising it as R&H's Oklahoma was a bad choice. | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. | |
| Posted by: Chromolume 11:52 am EDT 04/05/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. - Ncassidine 10:49 am EDT 04/05/23 | |
|
|
|
| Not as bad as "R + H 's Oklahoma" would have been. :-) | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. | |
| Posted by: Ann 02:52 pm EDT 04/05/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. - Chromolume 11:52 am EDT 04/05/23 | |
|
|
|
| Could be R + H - Oklahoma | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. | |
| Posted by: Chromolume 06:51 pm EDT 04/05/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. - Ann 02:52 pm EDT 04/05/23 | |
|
|
|
| Or, Oklahoma - R+H? | |
| reply to this message | reply to first message |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. | |
| Last Edit: Ann 09:29 am EDT 04/05/23 | |
| Posted by: Ann 09:27 am EDT 04/05/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. - Ncassidine 08:20 am EDT 04/05/23 | |
|
|
|
| I'm not really sure what they could say in advertising that could have fully prepared everyone, especially for the ending, which I think is the most shocking part. "Completely reimagined," (to me) would not prepare one for a lot of this production, especially the ending. Not to mention that tour promotion tends to be super "gloss over" already. It looks like what was on the website for the U.S. tour is gone now, but what remains for the West End production includes pull quotes like "Modern, Sexy and Invigorating!," "Best revival yet," "Punchy, playful, sexy and revelatory," "... stunningly reimagined..." And most (older, let's face it) people see the title, especially with the "Rodgers & Hamerstein's" in front of it, and think they know what they'll be getting. That's part of the intention of this production (to surprise and even shock), and that played better in New York - where, even with all the extra coverage, some people were shocked. I was kind of surprised it toured, for these reasons. I did really enjoy this article, to see the backstage reaction and thoughts. |
|
| reply to this message | reply to first message |
| re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. | |
| Posted by: sf 07:11 am EDT 04/07/23 | |
| In reply to: re: “Oklahoma!”: Audience Rejection On the Road. - Ann 09:27 am EDT 04/05/23 | |
|
|
|
| They are being very careful to promote it in London as a different take on the material. In terms of audience expectations, I doubt there was ever much of an issue at the Young Vic, but the audience there is self-selecting. The Young Vic itself is a strong brand, and they specialise in work that is a bit more challenging than the sort of thing you expect to find in the West End. I saw this production there three times over the course of the run, and don't remember seeing anyone have a strong negative reaction to it at any of those performances. When I saw it in the West End a few weeks ago, on the other hand, there were a few walkouts at the interval, and a few people who stayed until the end but clearly *really* did not enjoy it. I think the producers are doing a reasonable job of advertising it without being deceptive here - the posters etc have a look that strongly points towards something other than the usual R&H candy-wrapping - but of course there'll still be people who pick shows by title, who haven't read the reviews. And there are things in the production, like the very confrontational, blood-stained reprise of the title song at the end, that probably carry a lot less baggage here than they would in some midwestern cities. The production doesn't explicitly make the point that when they sing "we know we belong to the land", they're singing about *land they stole*, but the subtext is clear, and I suspect there are places in the US where some members of the audience will find that difficult to swallow; here, we get the point, but it isn't *our* history, so it isn't as personal. |
|
| reply to this message | reply to first message |
Time to render: 0.135983 seconds.