I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?- Page 2
I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
LostLeander
Broadway Star Joined: 3/18/05
#25re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:06amI don't think it was a prepared speech - I just think he's very well spoken.
Personally, I think I have too much bloom.
#26re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:08amAnd even if it was prepared, does that mean he's not allowed to be surprised. Any smart person who was nominated should prepare a speech even if they think they aren't going to win. If some fluke happens, you don't want to look like an idiot. Your logic is just childish.
#27re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:08am
seriously?
no, seriously?
really? I thought it reeked of the same "aw, shucks" mugging his performance does.
It's just a message board. Let's not take it too seriously.
robbiej
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/20/03
#27re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:08am
'Anyone who doesn't think so has no understanding of subtlety in a performance'
That's EXACTLY what I think of anyone who can begin to think the revival recording of COMPANY even comes close to touching the absolutely electrifying OCR.
"I'm so looking forward to a time when all the Reagan Democrats are dead."
misschung
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/18/07
#29re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:09am
I like the original orchestrations, I just think they sound a bit more dated than Mary Mitchell Campbell's. I feel like this production freshened the whole thing up, but its the kind of show where you either understand and like Doyle's changes or you dont. I can understand why someone would prefer the original, but I don't.
The look on Raul's face was heartbreaking
The morning star always gets wonderful bright the minute before it has to go --doesn't it?
VIETgrlTerifa
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/18/04
#30re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:10amI rather have Pierce's "aw shucks" than having to sit through another self-important, self-indulgent speech that we've been getting all night thanks to Spring Awakening.
"I've got to get me out of here
This place is full of dirty old men
And the navigators and their mappy maps
And moldy heads and pissing on sugar cubes
While you stare at your books."
#31re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:11amSorry, the OBCR sounds hopelessly dated. The new recording has a more timeless, less synthesized feel to me. I also think the vocal performances are just better. The original just doesn't "electrify" me the same way.
It's just a message board. Let's not take it too seriously.
BroadwayGirl107
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/26/03
#32re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:11amWow, Blue-Eyed, you have no conception of his contribution to the material at all. To say he just stood there and pretending to drink from an empty glass is hilariously absurd. Are you really lacking the perception to understand what he was doing there besides "pretending to drink," perhaps you might want to consider the character's need for always having that defensive drink in hand?
#33re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:13amBut with such an abstract show like Company, the actors and the diretor have to be so specific so that the audience can follow Bobby's journey. With this production, none of the side stories of the couples were specific enough. I know thhe show really well, I've seen the video of the original production and Hal Prince makes every scene so clear that you can follow everything, but with this production I was even getting confused. I can't imagine somebody seeing it if they don't know the show and being able to follow everything.
First you're another sloe-eyed vamp, then someone's mother, then you're camp...
#34re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:16am
I knew absolutely nothing about the show before I went in. Had a passing knowledge of Being Alive existing as a popular cabaret song but that's it.
I followed it perfectly. I don't need everything spelled out for me, I like to be forced to put the pieces together and interpret it my own way.
It's just a message board. Let's not take it too seriously.
BroadwayGirl107
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/26/03
#35re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:17am
"With this production, none of the side stories of the couples were specific enough."
Okay, if that's you're issue, please explain why that means Raúl's work is not worthy of the recognition because of that, because I'm not getting it.
Also, I'm not sure what was so hard to follow about this production. I hadn't seen the show before I saw this revival, and there was nothing about it that was even remotely hard to follow.
#36re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:19amBorn to Reign: On behalf of other people who wish that Raul had gotten the award, please stop. You're not representing yourself (and by association, others) well. There's no need to irrationally demonize David Hyde Pierce for existing and drawing more votes.
misschung
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/18/07
#36re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:19am
The only thing that confused me at first - and this was in reading Furth's book, not only by this production - were the birthday party scenes and whether or not they were supposed to be in "real time." But I think thats something that is left intentionally ambiguous by the director
I love Doyle's choice to have Bobby holding the empty glass the entire time.
The morning star always gets wonderful bright the minute before it has to go --doesn't it?
Updated On: 6/11/07 at 11:19 AM
#38re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:23am
The show has much deeper elements to it that neither the director nor the actors managed to get into. Maybe I feel that way because I've seen the original and Hal Prince manages to get into aspects of the characters that John Doyle doesn't even touch, but the fact is that the show was not nearly as strong as it could and should have been.
As for the orchestrations, I like the fact that they removed the synthesized, 70s sound, but at times I wish the instrumentals were stronger, to help build the momentum of the music.
First you're another sloe-eyed vamp, then someone's mother, then you're camp...
#39re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:23am
siren - I apologize.
I have a short fuse, and just can't stand to see people feel so "vindicated" and attack Raul baselessly.
That being said, I will stop. Wasn't trying to demonize, just disappointed.
It's just a message board. Let's not take it too seriously.
#40re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:26am
"I have a short fuse, and just can't stand to see people feel so "vindicated" and attack Raul baselessly."
Um, the way you have been attacking DHP baselessly? That makes sense.
Broadwaygirl, I think you were just as tricked as everyone else. Blue-Eyed was right, that is literally all Raul ACTUALLY does. His portrayal of Bobby is just poor. But because of the way the production is structured, people read too much into it and think that Raul is giving the performance of a lifetime, when in reality he is doing absolutely nothing. You're seeing something that you want to see because of the production.
#41re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:29amDon't think I was baseless, but that's beside the point. Time to move on for me, though. Feel free to keep attacking me if it makes you feel good, though.
It's just a message board. Let's not take it too seriously.
BroadwayGirl107
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/26/03
#42re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:30am
"Blue-Eyed was right, that is literally all Raul ACTUALLY does."
And I would say you really have no conception of the actor's contribution to the work. To say that is to say everything he did went right over your head. You couldn't have possibly been in tune with his interpretation with the role and say that. That's just looking at the outside, when acting is more about everything you don't see.
#43re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:32amword up, broadwaygirl
It's just a message board. Let's not take it too seriously.
misschung
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/18/07
#44re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:32am
But because of the way the production is structured, people read too much into it and think that Raul is giving the performance of a lifetime, when in reality he is doing absolutely nothing. You're seeing something that you want to see because of the production.
Well isnt the point of a successful production supposed to be to set up an environment for these performers to really soar? I mean by that logic, I could stand up there and play Bobby and because of the way the production is set up, audiences would be moved to tears by me.
I understand what you're saying but I think that Raul contributes more than people give him credit for.
No amount of debate is going to give Raul the Tony, so this is pretty much a moot point anyway
The morning star always gets wonderful bright the minute before it has to go --doesn't it?
Updated On: 6/11/07 at 11:32 AM
mejusthavingfun
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/12/06
#45re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:35amIt's not like this would have helped his career. These awards are meaningless.
#46re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:38amTotally disagree - Raul should have won.
#47re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:39amI saw both performance and I gave the edge to Raul. Raul's performance was flawless.
"I wish the stage were as narrow as the wire of a tightrope dancer, so that no incompetent would dare step upon it." Goethe
#48re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:48am
I was hoping someone would start a thread on this topic. No one seems to want to discuss it.
"I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?"
No. And it's ok.
"What can you expect from a bunch of seitan worshippers?" - Reginald Tresilian
iluvtheatertrash
Broadway Legend Joined: 11/9/04
#49re: I did NOT think Raul deserved the tony...am I alone?
Posted: 6/11/07 at 11:54am
Sublety is NOT overrated.
Esparza is doing remarkable, phenomenal work. The 12 times I've seen the show, each performance is equal to the last or even stronger than it. How he hasn't exhausted himself physically and emotionally beyond belief seems impossible to me. This was a terrible upset and the Tony voters really missed the boat here...
However, I do believe that they gave it to DHP because they had to give CURTAINS something.
"I know now that theatre saved my life." - Susan Stroman
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