HIGH BUTTON SHOES- Page 2

[raddersons]

Posted: 5/9/19 at 12:08am

I think the only real qualification is that the score needs to be written by an American composer.

[JAS]

Posted: 5/9/19 at 12:55am

raddersons said: "I think the only real qualification is that the score needs to be written by an American composer."

Not entirely true: I believe they need to have been done on Broadway. After all, IRMA LA DOUCE had a French composer and British adspter.

[SmoothLover]

Posted: 5/9/19 at 2:06am

I don't think there is any rule on how old a show is. They basically present works that had a few things going for them but were not hits. They did Grand Hotel last year and it was much newer than anything that was presented this year. The three shows they did this season were not exciting to say the least and the executions were uninspired. They really should try to pick at least one show a season that creates a buzz and people can get excited about. Sometimes I feel like they are picking shows for their own amusement.

[raddersons]

Posted: 5/9/19 at 9:15am

SmoothLover said: "They really should try to pick at least one show a season that creates a buzz and people can get excited about. Sometimes I feel like they are picking shows for their own amusement."

I agree, if it weren't for the cast I would completely skip this show. Honestly I think the trick with Encores shows is that they are meant to be shows that were overlooked -- which means by default, they're all going to be a little flawed. I think there is something to be said for seeing a show just for the sake of seeing it, to gain a little knowledge... but sometimes they're pretty painful. 

[dave1606]

Posted: 5/9/19 at 10:32am

Even with the cast I say skip this show. I am a big encores fan and never miss a show there, but this one was a doozy. 

I think this is the worst show they have done since Irma La douce. The show is a third rate music man plot but felt so shoddily put together. It seemed to amble from a book scene with random musical numbers thrown in. As the older lady next to me put, "the story is just odd." (She didn't stay for act 2)
 

On paper Michael Urie seemed a perfect fit for this show. I adored him in Torch Song and have always found him a charismatic performer. Here unfortunately it seemed like he just didn't know what to do with his character. I think he could actually mug more for this part than he is, and unfortunately his singing just isn't good. 

Meanwhile Betsy Wolfe seems to be having some fun but I found her miscast in her role. She sounded lovely but didn't have much to do. 

The one bright spot in this show is the opening sequence of Act 2 which is a lot of fun and was the first time I really smiled the whole evening.  I hope that encores bounces back next season!

 

 

[LimelightMike]

Posted: 5/9/19 at 11:00am

FWIW, I believe HIGH BUTTON SHOES was selected to cap-off the 75th Season due, in part, to it being a way to observe Jerome Robbins' centennial.

Plus, n a theater nerd perspective, this was Jule Styne's first Broadway score. The show, from what I gather, is the launching pad for the "musical comedy" - breaking from vaudeville and finding our book musical with belly laughs.

I am intrigued, tbh. From the casting alone. Will be there this weekend.

Updated On: 5/9/19 at 11:00 AM

[SmoothLover]

Posted: 5/9/19 at 12:05pm

I think Encores should have a sub series for musicals like the ones chosen for this season. It could be more of a staged reading without a full orchestra. There would not need to be 8 performances and musical theatre lovers would still have a chance to hear music from musicals that are rarely performed. Then for the main season Encores could put their money into shows with better scripts that were closer to being hits than failures. And then perhaps at least one of the three shows could feature a major star. 

A friend of mine commented that he thought the shows this season had looked cheaper than some of the previous years.

 

[undercoveractor]

Posted: 5/9/19 at 1:58pm

HBS has been a show that I’ve wanted to see since I saw Jerome Robbins’ Broadway in high school, so I was thrilled that Encores had it in their season. I’m glad that I went and I still love the score, but this was VERY miscast. A few thoughts.

1. The show can only be as good as the performance by the actor playing Floy...Michael Urie could not carry the show. He used that same Snagglepuss accent that annoyed me in TORCH SONG and he just isn’t a singer. I wanted to like him, but it just didn’t work for me.

2. It really did look cheap as someone else mentioned. Like, dirt cheap.

3. I think it is time for Encores! to change casting directors. I find it hard to believe that these were the most appropriate performers that they could find. Larger than life characters are essential to a show like this, and what we got was same old same old and bland. Jennifer Allen played her role very large and although it fell super flat, at least she tried. Which brings me to my next point...

4. I don’t think Broadway performers in general understand vaudeville anymore. Perhaps it is just a dead form of stage performance which is sad to me.

5. A specific observation. I find it dubious that football players in 1914 would chest bump. That annoyed me every time that they did it. 

My opinions only of course. Take it as you will.

[Skip23]

Posted: 5/9/19 at 9:51pm

4. I don’t think Broadway performers in general understand vaudeville anymore. Perhaps it is just a dead form of stage performance which is sad to me.

 

I totally agree.  "Vaudeville" is a very specific skill set that isn't taught now.  In fact, the current generation seems to look down on this style as being too "corny".  (I don't have figures...I've just heard from some younguns.)   I'd say Nathan Lane, the late Gary Beach, Harvey Fierstein, Michael McGrath, Beth Leavel, Sally Struthers all know how to do it.  How many others?  And shows of that type are head scratchers when they aren't performed properly.

 

 

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 5/9/19 at 10:03pm

undercoveractor said: "I don’t think Broadway performers in general understand vaudeville anymore. Perhaps it is just a dead form of stage performance which is sad to me."
 

I think it's a combination of factors: casting and direction, writing that doesn't hold up, and audiences whose sensibilities have changed. Vaudeville humor in a book musical doesn't translate in the way it did in the 40s/50s, especially if the book is as creaky as this. Modern audiences expect shows to be grounded in reality. There were similar complaints about Encores' Little Me (with Christian Borle), another show tailor-made for a specific star.

Some younger performers do understand vaudeville (Alex Brightman, Annaleigh Ashford) and of course the old pros mentioned above, but this type of humor plays differently now than it did then. Even SNL and other sketch-comedy shows are less schtick-driven and more situation-driven.

Brantley's not a fan. No Critics Picks this season for Encores.

[SmoothLover]

Posted: 5/10/19 at 2:07am

I agree about the football players bumping. It struck me as very contemporary,  Brantley's use of the word indefatigable was priceless.

Hopefully the summer series will be more exciting.

Updated On: 5/10/19 at 02:07 AM

[After Eight]

Posted: 5/10/19 at 7:38am

"Then for the main season Encores could put their money into shows with better scripts that were closer to being hits than failures."

 

All three of the shows presented at Encores this year had been hits.

No reason all three couldn't have worked had they been cast and performed properly.

And I thought that I Married an Angel, despite some less than ideal performances, was wonderful just the same.

And what's more, all three shows had scores a million times better than what we have to endure in theatres today.

So if Encores gives us shows with scores like these, that's more than fine by me.

[SmoothLover]

Posted: 5/10/19 at 1:24pm

After Eight said: ""Then for the main season Encores could put their money into shows with better scripts that were closer to being hits than failures."



All three of the shows presented at Encores this year had been hits.

No reason all three couldn't have workedhad they been cast and performed properly.

And I thought that I Married an Angel, despite some less than ideal performances, was wonderful just the same.

And what's more, all three shows had scores a million times better than what we have to endurein theatrestoday.

So if Encores gives us shows with scores like these, that's more than fine by me."

I cannot argue with you. The casting has been weak this year, I would also say that the directing has not been that great either. Part of what made the shows work in their day was the casting of famous personalities; Ethel Merman, Phil Silvers and Nanette Fabray..

 

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 5/11/19 at 9:09pm

This show is just a bunch of jokes between songs. The songs are definitely of their time but sounded just fine to me.

Urie was trying but he tried to be Phil Silvers and he's not. After it was a hit on Broadway many Actors played it successfully in Stock without trying to be Silvers.

Whoever cast Betsy Wolfe should be drowned in the Atlantic City Seashore, one of the worst performances I've seen at ENCORES. She just didn't fit.

And could they not afford a real (or semi-real) Model T,?

[goldenboy]

Posted: 5/12/19 at 1:04pm

I think with better casting choices, this might have worked.

Beth Leavel, Nancy Opel, Ana Leigh Ashford, Nathan Lane, Jason Alexander, Martin Short, James Corden,

to name a few.

and also a director with a sense of over the top. That is not John Rando.

 

What a huge disappointment (except for the Bathing Beauty Ballet)

[StageStruckLad]

Posted: 5/12/19 at 3:45pm

I actually liked Betsy Wolfe, but I thought the actor playing her husband had zero personality. She had to carry all of “I Still Get Jealous” herself.

Hopefully next season will be better. I’ve heard from a few people that “Love Life” is one of the shows next year. Hope that’s true!

[SmoothLover]

Posted: 5/13/19 at 3:02am

Here's to a great Summer Encores with smart casting.

[StageLEFT]

Posted: 5/14/19 at 12:27am

StageStruckLad said: "I actually liked Betsy Wolfe, but I thought the actor playing her husband had zero personality. She had to carry I Still Get Jealous all by herself.”

 

I actually enjoyed the show and like you I thought Betsy was wonderful as Mama Longstreet.  It was nice to see her dance the duet with charm.  I saw the last show (Sunday eve) and there was a stage mishap during the meeting of Ladies Walking Society.  When Betsy calls the meeting into order, she pounds the gavel on the back of the wooden chair, a piece of the back rest comes flying off and lands downstage.  There was a slight pause and you could hear the audience suddenly laugh and could tell the cast was trying to hold it together.  Then Betsy ad libs “It’s a good thing this is the last meeting.”  The whole audience completely looses it (with whoops and cheers) and it took a while quiet down for the cast to continue. The maid picks up the wooden piece.  It was a fun night.  

[SmoothLover]

Posted: 5/14/19 at 4:41pm

This thread never took off similar to the other Encores threads this season which seems to infer something.