Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?- Page 2
Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
joshdog2014
Stand-by Joined: 2/9/18
#25Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/4/23 at 2:07pm
Play Esq. said: "Everything I’ve read about this production isPaul Mescal. If it comes over, it needs to be with him. You throw in a different and, perhaps, better known star then you have a different production. "
The advertising and hype of this production have definitely been focused a lot around Paul Mescal, but as someone who saw it at the Almeida (not knowing who Paul Mescal was ahead of time) I think it would be hard to argue that he’s essential to the show itself. He was undeniably great in the role, but it didn’t feel singular in any way. Granted this is the only production of Streetcar I’ve seen, but I think it would be perfectly worthwhile to see even without him. If anything, name recognition aside, I’d be more insistent on Patsy Ferran transferring (ironically since she’s the only of the 3 leads not to win this years Olivier award, and she was a last minute replacement).
#26Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/4/23 at 7:57pm
So if Paul can't come to New York with this production, if it transfers, who could play this role? I suggested two VERY unlikely names. Realistically though, who could play this role and sell out houses?
The idea is to work and to experiment. Some things will be creatively successful, some things will succeed at the box office, and some things will only - which is the biggest only - teach you things that see the future. And they're probably as valuable as any of your successes. -Harold Prince
#27Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/4/23 at 9:31pm
Dylan Smith4 said: "So if Paul can't come to New York with this production, if it transfers, who could play this role? I suggested two VERY unlikely names. Realistically though, who could play this role and sell out houses?"
Highly doubt this will be coming as Paul's film career is busy.
https://deadline.com/2023/05/jessie-buckley-paul-mescal-hamnet-adaptation-amblin-partners-chloe-zhao-1235352146/
"Anything you do, let it it come from you--then it will be new."
Sunday in the Park with George
#28Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/4/23 at 10:37pm
Please no more British revivals of American plays on Broadway.
blaxx
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/28/05
#29Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/4/23 at 11:06pm
Synecdoche2 said: "Please no more British revivals of American plays on Broadway."
Narrow minded much?
Listen, I don't take my clothes off for anyone, even if it is "artistic". - JANICE
RippedMan
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/14/05
#30Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/5/23 at 12:05am
I don't think this would make much of a dent here.
#31Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/5/23 at 2:22am
Dylan Smith4 said: "So if Paul can't come to New York with this production, if it transfers, who could play this role? I suggested two VERY unlikely names. Realistically though, who could play this role and sell out houses?"
If it was 20 years ago I'd suggest Hugh Jackman, Christian Bale (not that he does stage work). Who is a bit younger and can come across as a scary aggressive dumb alpha? Robert Pattinson maybe if he can find that darkness. idk.
"You can't overrate Bernadette Peters. She is such a genius. There's a moment in "Too Many Mornings" and Bernadette doing 'I wore green the last time' - It's a voice that is just already given up - it is so sorrowful. Tragic. You can see from that moment the show is going to be headed into such dark territory and it hinges on this tiny throwaway moment of the voice." - Ben Brantley (2022)
"Bernadette's whole, stunning performance [as Rose in Gypsy] galvanized the actors capable of letting loose with her. Bernadette's Rose did take its rightful place, but too late, and unseen by too many who should have seen it" Arthur Laurents (2009)
"Sondheim's own favorite star performances? [Bernadette] Peters in ''Sunday in the Park,'' Lansbury in ''Sweeney Todd'' and ''obviously, Ethel was thrilling in 'Gypsy.'' Nytimes, 2000
#32Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/5/23 at 5:57am
Look, I know it’s obvious for me to suggest him but…Jake Gyllenhaal.
#33Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/5/23 at 6:18am
OMG YES. Obviously. He would be perfect.
"You can't overrate Bernadette Peters. She is such a genius. There's a moment in "Too Many Mornings" and Bernadette doing 'I wore green the last time' - It's a voice that is just already given up - it is so sorrowful. Tragic. You can see from that moment the show is going to be headed into such dark territory and it hinges on this tiny throwaway moment of the voice." - Ben Brantley (2022)
"Bernadette's whole, stunning performance [as Rose in Gypsy] galvanized the actors capable of letting loose with her. Bernadette's Rose did take its rightful place, but too late, and unseen by too many who should have seen it" Arthur Laurents (2009)
"Sondheim's own favorite star performances? [Bernadette] Peters in ''Sunday in the Park,'' Lansbury in ''Sweeney Todd'' and ''obviously, Ethel was thrilling in 'Gypsy.'' Nytimes, 2000
#34Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/5/23 at 6:24am
Hell yes Jordan! I completely forgot about him!
The idea is to work and to experiment. Some things will be creatively successful, some things will succeed at the box office, and some things will only - which is the biggest only - teach you things that see the future. And they're probably as valuable as any of your successes. -Harold Prince
Dollypop
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/15/03
#35Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/5/23 at 9:07pm
I thought the transfer was taking place without Mescal but Jake Gylenhaal was being courted to replace him in NY.
"Long live God!" (GODSPELL)
#36Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/5/23 at 10:15pm
Ooh! Robert Pattinson is a great pick! He'd fit right into this production, too, I think.
#37Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/6/23 at 7:26pm
I saw the final performance tonight. First off, I wasn't able to get any insight into the future of the show, sorry.
That said, I'm hard pressed to imagine why this would need to transfer anywhere. I'm of such mixed minds about what I saw tonight. Obviously I'm speaking only for myself but this production is all about Mescal. Nothing else really worked for me. I'd go as far as give this 4 stars but based SOLELY on him (more on him in a minute). The production reminded me of "A Doll's House", but with a few props. No set, just a bare stage with some chairs that are sometimes used for different things and a suitcase with some props inside. And I've said before that I'm getting pretty tired of these bare bones stagings of plays. I truly find they hardly ever add anything to the text or enhance anything in a play whatsoever and I truly do believe that.
Anjana Vasan and Dwane Walcott were fine as Stella and Mitch but it was Patsy Ferran who, to me, gave one of the most confusing and miscast performances I think I've ever seen. Her accent was completely schizophrenic, skipping back and forth between standard American, Texan, some Georgia and maybe up near West Virginia in points but I don't think ever once did she come close to anywhere near Louisiana, Mississippi or Alabama - anywhere around there. In fact she spent most of the play dropping a "southern" accent all together and just sounded like she was from Anytown USA. Is Patsy American? Because if she isn't then she got that accent down very well. A friend described her portrayal as a school marm which I'd agree with but a very young school marm - too young for Blanche. Just really nothing about her worked for me tonight which shocked me after everything I'd heard. Because I never believed her Blanche for one second and I feel like even though she's crazy you have to buy into her delusions in order for her to work and with Patsy, I just never did.
As for Mescal. Holy hell. I have a feeling since this was the last show he kind of went all-out because he was absolutely TERRIFYING at times. Stanley is, undoubtedly, one of the hardest characters in theater to get right. There's so many things you have to have and do for him to work. You have to be sexy (I've seen it done with a plain Stanley and it doesn't work) but that early Brando sexy where you walk in a room and it lights on fire because you're so hot. He's also got to be cruel and mean and all the while, loving to Stella and make you understand why they're together and she loves him. And Mescal just nails it. He is to Stanley as Cate Blanchett was to Blanche, the best I've ever seen and I can't imagine seeing anyone better than him in the role anytime soon - God, what I'd give to see the two of them do this together. Automatic placement in best acting performances I've ever seen on a stage.
But yeah, I'd love a transfer of this play. It is and will always be one of my top 3 favorite plays ever written. But this specific production doesn't need to come to Broadway. Bring Mescal over in a different production of it and then it would be worth having.
#38Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/6/23 at 9:43pm
Excellent review, Jordan! My intention for this discussion was just plainly out of curiosity. You pretty much answered any questions I had regarding this. I like what you said about the "bare stage" tactic. As a director, I can understand that interpretation to a point. I think the purpose of these bare-stage revivals is to focus more on the acting and movement and not the set. I recently watched the NT's capture of Jamie Lloyd's Seagull by Chekov. Normally, I cannot stand Chekov, but I was amazed at how Lloyd interpreted that piece with a minimal set. Focusing on the story and acting while having a minimal set definitely works. I think it just depends on the show itself.
Back to Streetcar, I guess Mescal is indeed the moving force of this revival. Good to know. I hope one day, he could make his Broadway debut. If not with Streetcar, then maybe with another show that involves a dark character, similar to Stanley. I am glad you enjoyed it, Jordan. Can't wait to catch some great theatre in London this summer!
The idea is to work and to experiment. Some things will be creatively successful, some things will succeed at the box office, and some things will only - which is the biggest only - teach you things that see the future. And they're probably as valuable as any of your successes. -Harold Prince
Updated On: 5/6/23 at 09:43 PM
#39Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/7/23 at 12:21am
I haven't seen another production (shamefully) so I don't really know how it works otherwise, but the other thing that I thought really added to the tension of the whole thing was the music and the drummer...I'm having flashbacks to Mescal kind of menacingly and threateningly running around the stage with that drum roll and it's giving me shivers. Would it really work as well without the music? (i.e. is the production at least adding SOMETHING to his performance)?
"You can't overrate Bernadette Peters. She is such a genius. There's a moment in "Too Many Mornings" and Bernadette doing 'I wore green the last time' - It's a voice that is just already given up - it is so sorrowful. Tragic. You can see from that moment the show is going to be headed into such dark territory and it hinges on this tiny throwaway moment of the voice." - Ben Brantley (2022)
"Bernadette's whole, stunning performance [as Rose in Gypsy] galvanized the actors capable of letting loose with her. Bernadette's Rose did take its rightful place, but too late, and unseen by too many who should have seen it" Arthur Laurents (2009)
"Sondheim's own favorite star performances? [Bernadette] Peters in ''Sunday in the Park,'' Lansbury in ''Sweeney Todd'' and ''obviously, Ethel was thrilling in 'Gypsy.'' Nytimes, 2000
Chuck Lawrence
Swing Joined: 10/9/10
#40Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/7/23 at 12:22am
I thought this production was terrific. Great performances and yes - Paul Mescal Paul Mescal Paul Mescal. But the real standout for me was Patsy Ferran. I thought her Blanche was original and mesmerizing. Whereas I’ve seen quite a few actors tackle the role, from Jessica Lange to Gillian Anderson, a common problem is that they enter at such a high pitch of hysteria they have nowhere to go for the duration. Patsy Ferran’s performance was beautifully modulated throughout. Some of her monologues were breathtaking. I would love to see her on Broadway.
blaxx
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/28/05
#41Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/7/23 at 12:47am
To me Ferran was the best part too. I've seen so many approach Blanche as entitled and deluded that I really felt for her.
Mescal was ok.
Listen, I don't take my clothes off for anyone, even if it is "artistic". - JANICE
#42Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/7/23 at 12:53am
Isn’t that amazing how people can see the same thing and walk away with such drastically different opinions. One of the things I love so much about theater.
blasvader
Chorus Member Joined: 8/22/22
#43Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/7/23 at 5:27am
For me Ferran was the star of the thing. Absolutely astonishing, she performs it with a sensitivity that others before her too often abandon (only Rachel Weisz had not). Mescal was as expected. Felt like one of those performances where the only way it has grown throughout the run is by adding more shouting. Also believe that Stanley is not that hard a part to play, absolutely nothing when compared to the challenge of Blanche. I'm thinking of Johnny Flynn, he popped into my head because of Motive and the Cue, and he can essentially take 85% was doing in him film Beast and make an excellent Stanley. If like Ferran, there's an obvious type of casting that is not looked for, there are a lot of actors I'd like to see take on the role.
Updated On: 5/7/23 at 05:27 AM
JasonC3
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/22/21
#44Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/7/23 at 6:19am
I sat next to two "purists" who lamented everything about this production. As we were waiting to exit our row I asked them if there had been anything they appreciated. "The rain was a nice touch." LOL.
Like others, Ferran was a highlight for me, but I can certainly understand and appreciate others who feel differently. I've often wondered whether she would be more appealing or less in a more traditional staging of the piece. Obviously, she might play the role differently depending on what that staging would entail.
#45Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/7/23 at 6:21am
Patsy's performance kind of reminds me a little bit of how I felt about Jessie Buckley in Cabaret (same Director) - I'm not sure if they are the right choices, and I don't know if it always works - but I was never bored and I couldn't keep my eyes off her the whole time. I thought there was a lot more complexity under the surface of her character than Paul Mescal's character.
"You can't overrate Bernadette Peters. She is such a genius. There's a moment in "Too Many Mornings" and Bernadette doing 'I wore green the last time' - It's a voice that is just already given up - it is so sorrowful. Tragic. You can see from that moment the show is going to be headed into such dark territory and it hinges on this tiny throwaway moment of the voice." - Ben Brantley (2022)
"Bernadette's whole, stunning performance [as Rose in Gypsy] galvanized the actors capable of letting loose with her. Bernadette's Rose did take its rightful place, but too late, and unseen by too many who should have seen it" Arthur Laurents (2009)
"Sondheim's own favorite star performances? [Bernadette] Peters in ''Sunday in the Park,'' Lansbury in ''Sweeney Todd'' and ''obviously, Ethel was thrilling in 'Gypsy.'' Nytimes, 2000
#46Will Almedia Streetcar Transfer to Broadway?
Posted: 5/7/23 at 10:07am
After sleeping on it, I just can't stop thinking how differently I would have felt about Patsy, if she got the accent (just one) down. It was so distracting, moreso than anything else she could have done that it just kept taking me out of any believability of the character. The constant On/Off, Back/Forth of "Southern" and "standard American" was so bizarre and confusing to me it's all I could focus on a lot of times.
But that's in the past now. Gotta get ready to see Ramin in a few hours :)
