Lippa's has a lot of "bops", a lot of standout sections of the score that are just a lot of pop-broadway fun...
But it not only lacks cohesion, it lacks depth. LaChiusa & Wolfe's is dripping in depth and poetry and intention. And brains. It's also dripping in desperation, but not just on a sexual level. It digs deep and reaches heights I don't think Lippa's ever intended to and certainly doesn't strive for, achieve, or seem to know how to get, or even why. Sorry to Lippa and the many fans of that show, but comparing the two versions is night and day for me as musical scores, as plays, as adaptations. |
