Wicked Blooper- Page 2

[jezzebelle]

Posted: 5/2/04 at 9:29pm

Well, it's not the bloopers that are the problem, really, because it is live theatre and things will happen no matter the caliber of the show. What is disturbing sometimes is the breaking of character. I think if there is a blooper and it's handled in character, it's not a bad thing nesscarily. Some things have to be called attention to...the bed not coming out being one of them. :) It's really all how it's handled.

-Jess

[Sumofallthings]

Posted: 5/2/04 at 9:30pm

If they are on Broadway they should be able to handle something like a bed not coming on without letting the audience catch on. I am getting tired of the "live theatre" excuse.

[Plum]

Posted: 5/2/04 at 9:33pm

Wicked probably has more technical problems than most because it has a very complex set. The performers should try to keep things on track as much as possible, though.

[Sumofallthings]

Posted: 5/2/04 at 9:33pm

I completely agree.

[NYCbabe3789]

Posted: 5/2/04 at 9:38pm

Maybe, but what are the chances that the sets in that ONE scene malfunction practically every other performance? Not much I would say. Either the crew is doing it on purpose for laughs or they are not trying to get it fixed. I am seeing the show again soon and, much as I love the show, if I see a bed mishap one more time I'm gonna get pretty annoyed. NO show should have the right or the nerve to purposely "mess up" every night. There are people who have never seen the show before and want to see the show, not Kristin and Idina onstage laughing, even though those of us who have seen the show more than once may think it's funny. Updated On: 5/2/04 at 09:38 PM

[shira467]

Posted: 5/2/04 at 9:43pm

Once again, perspective. Not "every single performance".

[Sumofallthings]

Posted: 5/2/04 at 9:44pm

But a good number of them and probably a lot more at shows not attended by members of the board

[NYCbabe3789]

Posted: 5/2/04 at 9:46pm

I edited that. Still, while it may not be every single performance, it is way too many. I am not even bashing the amount of bloopers that Wicked has, more the fact that they have the same blooper VERY frequently, and it is something that is under their control and they are doing on purpose.

Posted: 5/2/04 at 9:47pm

Well when I saw it, I figured and hoped there would be a blooper in "Popular". There was and I laughed, so did my mom. Then, we saw it the next day with my grandparents. Again with the blooper in "Popular. My mom asked if this happens all the time. So yeah, it's not always great to see the same blooper in "Popular". Though I do love love love Wicked, these people back stage and on need to get there act together during "Popular". Updated On: 5/2/04 at 09:47 PM

[Type_A_Tiff]

Posted: 5/2/04 at 9:49pm

^ Yeah that! After reading the reports here, even going into the show for my first time, I saw the beds being wheeled out and knew this must be what everyone was talking about and kind of hoped there would be a blooper. Lo and behold, there was, the second night I was there.

[iflitifloat]

Posted: 5/2/04 at 10:53pm

I can't believe I've let myself get sucked back into this discussion again... But, it sounds to me like there is a running repertoire of "bloopers". Read the thread... if there is one "Ooooooh, I hope I get to see a blooper" post, there are ten more right behind it. This has got to be condoned by the management or it wouldn't still be happening. And that "the girls" ad lib seemingly every other show, but Norbert is "allowed to"? Yep, sounds pretty ::cough:: accidental ::cough:: to me. Sounds like someone is trying to create the same buzz that Nathan and Matthew had going in The Producers, except now it's "those wacky Wicked witches". Ad libbing worked in The Producers..it fit the context of the show. These quasi-screw-ups that cause the leads to break character on a regular basis are, for my money, bizarrely intentional. It makes people feel like they "saw something special" and then they go home and talk about it to their friends. The friends go to see the show, and hope they'll get to see a blooper, too. I don't know...seems like some of you might consider that, just maybe, you are being manipulated.

[Type_A_Tiff]

Posted: 5/2/04 at 11:57pm

"Read the thread... if there is one "Ooooooh, I hope I get to see a blooper" post, there are ten more right behind it."

So sue me.

And yeah, I did consider what you mentioned about this becoming repetitive and potentially problematic (see NYCBabe's thread). Nevertheless, after reading all of these reports and finally seeing the show for the first time, it was still amusing to actually see a screw-up after all of the discussion on them. Now I finally feel like part of the group! *Baaaa*

[tennis85]

Posted: 5/3/04 at 5:15pm

I saw it the other day, and at the end of "Loathing," Kristin stepped in Idina's mark, and Idina looked at her and said (under her breath), "You're on my mark." they they started laughing. I was on the front row and heard this :)

[iflitifloat]

Posted: 5/3/04 at 5:50pm

Let's just say that the Kristidina ad lib repartee isn't remotely near the caliber of Nathan's and Matthew's. It's not, um, witty or clever. All these anecdotes to me sound juvenile, giggly, and just plain silly. Which is one of the main reasons it will gaul me if Wicked wins the Tony for best musical. I'd like to think that a best musical exhibits a strong sense of professionalism and cares about the quality it delivers to the ticket buying public, not just pleasing the the coven of followers who find all this nonsense appealing.

Posted: 5/3/04 at 6:05pm

Well I guess I'm one of the "coven of followers" for Wicked, but like I said in my last post, no, I don't always find the nonsense appealing. But I do believe Wicked should win the Tony for best musical. But seeing that this is a Wicked Blooper thread I won't go into that.

[Plum]

Posted: 5/3/04 at 7:03pm

What Lane and Broderick were doing was more improvisation than "blooper," wasn't it? It wasn't really due to malfunctioning sets or anything, as far as I remember. So yes, I'd say that if you're going to go off-script, you might as well do it the "smart" way.

[Libractress]

Posted: 5/4/04 at 1:42am

I bet that a lot of people that see WICKED don't even notice the "blooper"... just psycho's like us notice because we are crazy about the show... OR because we are true "theatre people" (actors, writers, directors, whatever!) that have an eye for that kind of thing.
I know that Idina & Kristin became great friends throughout this process. When I saw the show it was very obvious that they enjoyed one another. We all know their actor's, on a stage, doing a live performance... give them a break!
I really loved them. And I love LIVE theatre. Otherwise I'd watch a movie.
BEST MUSICAL = WICKED
BEST ACTRESS = IDINA MENZEL
My opinion!

[Plum]

Posted: 5/4/04 at 2:13am

How can you not notice when the two leads are giggling their way through a scene?

[NYCbabe3789]

Posted: 5/4/04 at 6:42am

And I wouldn't say they've become "great friends" either, though they do respect each other, which is all that is truly necessary.

I agree, whether you like the bloopers or not, you HAVE to notice them, even if you've never seen the show before. Personally I like the bloopers that you notice if you've seen the show before but if you haven't then you don't notice and nothing is spoiled for you.

[iflitifloat]

Posted: 5/4/04 at 7:11am

One more time: Yes. Live theater is unpredictable. But the professionalism of those actors who have been fortunate enough to make it into the big leagues should preclude breaking character and giggling their way through scenes. If one didn't know this thread was about Wicked...a big budget Broadway musical and Tony contender....one would have to assume a Jr. High school production was the topic of discussion. The inability of the lead actresses to compensate and cover for the unexpected occurrences ("you're standing on my mark"...give me a break) is unprofessional and self indulgent.

The very idea that Broadway Blooper is creeping into our lexicon fills me with dread. It's as if the standards of Broadway are eroding before our very eyes. Can the "intentional blooper" as a marketing ploy (which arguably already exists) be far off?

Updated On: 5/4/04 at 07:11 AM

[redhotinnyc2]

Posted: 5/4/04 at 8:57am

My God Yes I agree with iflitifloat - bloopers which occur with this frequency are unpardonable when done by professionals of this level (0r any level, for that matter). One might be led to think that they simply have no respect for the material and so they just goof off whenever they feel like it (not to difficult to imagine, considering the source of the material).

[iflitifloat]

Posted: 5/4/04 at 9:47am

I found myself thinking about a Hairspray anecdote from quite a while ago. The specifics might be a little off, but the gist of the story was that there was some kind of major technical difficulty that brought the show to a standstill for quite a while (5 or 10 minutes, maybe?). Harvey and Marissa, consummate performers, sat on the edge of the stage and bantered about their day, keeping the audience entertained while the problem was fixed. And then they jumped up and went right back into character with no residual giggling and ballyhoo. To me, that's an extreme but perfect example of the professional handling of the unexpected in live theater.

Updated On: 5/4/04 at 09:47 AM

[kristadavies]

Posted: 5/4/04 at 5:36pm

iflitifloat- you need to take a chill pill. This thread was created so we could all have a good laugh at "mistakes" made in live theatre. I am not saying they should be made all the time, but things do happen. These actors have done how many performances of the same show? It's nice to see that they are still able to have fun on stage and laugh at the mishaps. When I saw Wicked the funniest thing that happened was when Kristin's wand broke in the middle of Poplular and she had to improvise.

[Sumofallthings]

Posted: 5/4/04 at 6:29pm

Krista, the actors have been laughing onstage at their mishaps from day one. The Wicked actresses shouldn't have to resort to giggles to keep a show fresh. My God, Yul Brynner didn't feel the need to giggle his way through his 4,525 performances of The King And I. And you know what, it got him a special Tony Award and a Best Actor in a musical award.

Maybe the Wicked girls should grow up and stop acting like little divas. Take an example from a legend. Have fun, have a ball but don't destroy the magic of the theatre for a paying audience because you think one of your easily avoidable mistakes are funny!

Step it up in NYC or go back to community theatre where they let stuff like that fly.

[marge2033]

Posted: 5/4/04 at 7:42pm

I feel when cell phones go off in any play an actor should be able to react any way he likes. It is rude and disrespectful to the actors and the audience. It's not like no one is told to shut it off at the beginning of the show. Kudos to Norbert!!