Will Great Comet Take Best Score This Year? - Page 2

[ijest22]

Posted: 5/8/17 at 10:46am

Mister Matt said: "... Dear Evan Hansen is my least favorite of the top four nominees ... I'm just curious as to why people are so crazy about it, other than for the its tragic teen appeal."

Ben Platt, Ben Platt, Ben Platt

 

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 5/8/17 at 12:17pm

Comet would win best theatre overhaul if that were a Tony. Most people leave the theatre talking about the theatre and Groban. I don't know what they will do when he leaves.

I don't care for the score at all. I think its certainly more complex and shows more muscle than DEH, but I still loathe it. I think Comet is a overstimulating mess for the ADD instagram generation.

I think Come From Away should win everything.

Also, I think Oscar voters had Lin fatigue by the time he was up for an Oscar. He was everywhere. Pasek and Paul aren't saturating media in the same cloying way Lin did.

[PaulWom]

Posted: 5/8/17 at 12:33pm

I'm sure Malloy was pandering to the "ADD/Instagram" audience when he wrote the piano line for "Pierre and Natasha." 

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 5/8/17 at 12:40pm

PaulWom said: "I'm sure Malloy was pandering to the "ADD/Instagram" audience when he wrote the piano line for "Pierre and Natasha." 

Honestly, who can pay attention to the music in that theatre? I think the Broadway staging has only hurt the show and hearing the score. It's completely, "look up here, look down here, look over here." It gave me a migraine. I liked and longed for the quiet numbers.

 

[froote]

Posted: 5/8/17 at 12:41pm

Bettyboy72 said: "Also, I think Oscar voters had Lin fatigue by the time he was up for an Oscar. He was everywhere. Pasek and Paul aren't saturating media in the same cloying way Lin did."

Maybe a few voters thought like that, but the Academy has 7000 members. It's more likely they just preferred City of Stars. Similarly, whichever score wins the Tony will be because it is preferable to the voters, not because they prefer Pasek and Paul or Dave Malloy as people and/or want to award anyone's 'moment'.

[PaulWom]

Posted: 5/8/17 at 12:47pm

Bettyboy72 said: "PaulWom said: "I'm sure Malloy was pandering to the "ADD/Instagram" audience when he wrote the piano line for "Pierre and Natasha." 

Honestly, who can pay attention to the music in that theatre? I think the Broadway staging has only hurt the show and hearing the score. It's completely, "look up here, look down here, look over here." It gave me a migraine. I liked and longed for the quiet numbers.

 

 

"

Well, I could. A lot of people I talked to did as well. It's a show that rewards repeated viewings. It asks that you keep up with it-- it doesn't spoon feed things to you.

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 5/8/17 at 12:53pm

PaulWom said: "Bettyboy72 said: "PaulWom said: "I'm sure Malloy was pandering to the "ADD/Instagram" audience when he wrote the piano line for "Pierre and Natasha." 

Honestly, who can pay attention to the music in that theatre? I think the Broadway staging has only hurt the show and hearing the score. It's completely, "look up here, look down here, look over here." It gave me a migraine. I liked and longed for the quiet numbers.

Well, I could. A lot of people I talked to did as well. It's a show that rewards repeated viewings. It asks that you keep up with it-- it doesn't spoon feed things to you.

Well most people aren't theatre aficianados and "reward" shows with repeated viewings. I should be able to go once, appreciate it and leave without a migraine. Im glad lots of people "you talked to" felt the same as you.

 

[PaulWom]

Posted: 5/8/17 at 12:59pm

 

 

"

Most theater lovers only get to listen to the cast album and never even get to see their favorite shows. Many of the people I spoke to at the Malloy performance talked about hearing the original cast album, which made them see the show. And how is my speaking to people and gathering their opinions different than you assuming that "everyone who leaves the show only talks about Groban and the theatre"?

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 5/8/17 at 1:06pm

It's not. It's all subjective. I was reading online reviews from audiences, not speaking to anyone.

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 5/8/17 at 1:07pm

I'd be very surprised if score doesn't go to Evan Hansen.

[Jeffrey Karasarides]

Posted: 5/8/17 at 1:53pm

froote said: "Bettyboy72 said: "Also, I think Oscar voters had Lin fatigue by the time he was up for an Oscar. He was everywhere. Pasek and Paul aren't saturating media in the same cloying way Lin did."

Maybe a few voters thought like that, but the Academy has 7000 members. It's more likely they just preferred City of Stars. Similarly, whichever score wins the Tony will be because it is preferable to the voters, not because they prefer Pasek and Paul or Dave Malloy as people and/or want to award anyone's 'moment'."

What's also worth noting that aside from the acting (and I believe directing) categories at the Oscars, the names of the creative individuals don't even appear on the voting ballots.

[froote]

Posted: 5/8/17 at 2:06pm

Very true Jeffrey, but I think Lin's involvement with Moana was very well known within the industry, especially considering he performed at the Oscars during the Moana performance. 

[BuddyStarr]

Posted: 5/8/17 at 3:09pm

Bettyboy72 said: "Comet would win best theatre overhaul if that were a Tony. Most people leave the theatre talking about the theatre and Groban. I don't know what they will do when he leaves.

I don't care for the score at all. I think its certainly more complex and shows more muscle than DEH, but I still loathe it. I think Comet is a overstimulating mess for the ADD instagram generation.

I think Come From Away should win everything.

Also, I think Oscar voters had Lin fatigue by the time he was up for an Oscar. He was everywhere. Pasek and Paul aren't saturating media in the same cloying way Lin did.

 

"

Wow, my thoughts exactly.  I saw Comet yesterday and while I'm glad I experienced it I didn't see what all the hype was about.  Out of everything I've been this year "Come From Away" has been the top of the list in everything.  I could see Comet winning for set design or lighting but as a whole I thought it was a mess and need to be cut severely.  All the interaction with the audience reminded me of my days doing Mystery Dinner Theatre and comes off as a gimmick more than anything.

 

[Steve C.]

Posted: 5/8/17 at 9:03pm

Very interesting background article on how "Dust and Ashes" fits into the Great Comet as a song and how it moves Pierre and the story much deeper (in more ways than one)

http://www.americantheatre.org/2017/03/30/how-one-song-changed-the-arc-of-great-comet/

[Soaring29]

Posted: 5/9/17 at 1:42am

I've listened to some of the songs from it- Several are great, some if it is a little weird, but it's better then Dear Evan Hansen that's for sure. 

[Fan123]

Posted: 5/9/17 at 5:31am

Steve C. said: "Very interesting background article on how "Dust and Ashes" fits into the Great Comet as a song and how it moves Pierre and the story much deeper (in more ways than one)"

Interesting analysis, although I don't think a more linear depiction of going through depression (and/or an existential crisis, or however we might describe Pierre's situation) would necessarily be less realistic. Different people are going to relate more to different depictions I suppose. I actually liked how, in the absence of 'Dust and Ashes', Pierre had no idea what he needed until he got it, and had to struggle against despair without even having a hypothetical idea of what might "save" him, if in fact he believed that anything could. But to each their own.

On topic: Who knows how Tony voters think, but I guess I'd predict Great Comet to win. Its score seems to be more 'look at me' than that of the other nominees. I don't mean that in a bad way, but rather that it's one of the selling points of the show - War and Peace done as electropop opera, use of Tolstoy's own (translated) words, etc. I find parts of the score boring at times, but taken as a whole I find it more interesting than the other nominated scores.

[Soaring29]

Posted: 5/9/17 at 6:22am

It's definitely interesting, that's for sure.  DEH seems poised to take Best Musical though. 

[Gensho]

Posted: 5/9/17 at 6:53am

I think people are living in a fantasy world if they think that any show other than DEH takes Best Musical and Best Score. I think CFA takes Best Book. And Great Comet takes Best Direction. 

[froote]

Posted: 5/9/17 at 7:01am

Gensho said: "I think people are living in a fantasy world if they think that any show other than DEH takes Best Musical and Best Score. I think CFA takes Best Book. And Great Comet takes Best Direction."

Silly statement, much stranger things have happened at award shows than any of those shows losing any of those awards.

[Gensho]

Posted: 5/9/17 at 7:13am

I don't understand all the Hansen hate on these boards. I found DEH to be one of the greatest musicals I've ever seen and I've been seeing Broadway musicals since 1984. I guess it's just the inevitable backlash of being the frontrunner for a while. The score of Great Comet is like nails on a chalkboard to me with a completely indecipherable book. DEH's only real competition for me is CFA. Although, I do think Comet will take Direction and some technical awards. 

Updated On: 5/9/17 at 07:13 AM

[froote]

Posted: 5/9/17 at 7:21am

https://forum.broadwayworld.com/readmessage.php?thread=1091297

https://forum.broadwayworld.com/readmessage.php?thread=1097319

DEH fans need to stop with this 'it's just backlash' narrative. Read the above threads and you'll see that people on this board have had issues with this show from day one. DEH gets no more hate than Comet. And all three shows are very much in competition with each other.

[haterobics]

Posted: 5/9/17 at 7:23am

Gensho said: "I don't understand all the Hansen hate on these boards. I found DEH to be one of the greatest musicals I've ever seen and I've been seeing Broadway musicals since 1984. I guess it's just the inevitable backlash of being the frontrunner for a while. The score of Great Comet is like nails on a chalkboard to me with a completely indecipherable book."

I think the problem is that the DEH loyalists see anything against their show as hatred, but you probably don't think your Comet critique was hateful, just your opinion, when they are the same thing.

[Gensho]

Posted: 5/9/17 at 7:26am

That's what I said, the people on this board. Not the general public or Tony voters. 

[froote]

Posted: 5/9/17 at 7:29am

Who knows what Tony voters are thinking? I doubt any of us have spoken to enough of them about their thoughts to gather any real information.

[icecreambenjamin]

Posted: 5/9/17 at 7:35am

I must say that I really found Dear Evan Hansen and The Great Comet both superb.  Dear Evan Hansen is a fantastic family drama that honestly is getting kind of savaged on here.  The Great Comet on the other hand is a beautiful and rich, surreal musical based on War and Peace that has also recieved a lot of hate from people who seem to, frankly, find it too difficult to listen to a score and simply follow a story.  I honestly think that The Great Comet deserves score, direction, and some tech awards, while Dear Evan Hansen deserves book, musical, actor, and featured actress.  I think that Come From Away and Groundhog Day are wonderful shows, but neither deserve to be awarded anything as a "consolation prize."  They will do just fine even without any wins and just the exposure on the Tonys.