I don't care what you say, Stephen Schwartz is a God- Page 4
I don't care what you say, Stephen Schwartz is a God
#75re: I don't care what you say, Stephen Schwartz is a God
Posted: 12/9/08 at 6:17pm
And anyway, so what if WICKED the musical oversimplified
"Wicked" the novel? I'm sorry, I'm just sick of hearing that argument.
It's not really an argument, it's a pointing out. I'm not saying "OMG 'Wicked' SUX 'cos it's more simpler than da book!", I'm saying "remember the musical chose not to go as in depth on certain points as the book so it's pointless to talk as though it tried and failed".
I'm sure you're all "Camelot" fans. But have you ever read "The Once and Future King"?
Actually, quite a lot of people dislike 'Camelot'. I'm not one of them though, I love it. Nearly as much as I love 'The Once and Future King', all five parts of which I have read multiple times. Have you ever read Malory's 'Le Morte d'Arthur'?
#76re: I don't care what you say, Stephen Schwartz is a God
Posted: 12/9/08 at 6:22pmCount me in the anti-Camelot camp. A handful of good songs, but I just can't sit through it.
"What can you expect from a bunch of seitan worshippers?" - Reginald Tresilian
commasplice
Broadway Legend Joined: 11/29/04
#77re: I don't care what you say, Stephen Schwartz is a God
Posted: 12/9/08 at 7:31pm
Yeah, another one here who's not a fan of Camelot. Lovely songs, but the book scenes make me want to gouge my eyes out (and yet, I want to see the Ravinia concert next year).
"I don't understand...does Stacy just look for portions of lyrics that could be applicable to gay couples (basically any song of forbidden or unrequited love) or try to see something in a musical that doesn't exist?"
No, she's saying that with "What Is This Feeling?", Schwartz is preying on the expectations of the audience. When you hear those first few lines, you start to expect a love song, even though it's two women singing, because that's what songs that begin that way typically end up being in musicals. But then he surprises us by turning it into a song about how much they hate each other (which is why the song isn't called "Loathing" in the Playbill - it's giving the punchline away). And even then, it's arguably reminiscent of the "I-hate-you-but-really-I-love-you" songs so common in classic musicals (well, Wolf argues it. I'm not sure if I agree.).
Wolf's article isn't arguing that Elphaba and Glinda are lesbians; she's saying that the musical uses instances like the above to present them as a queer couple.
Wolf sometimes reaches for things, I think (for example, her chapter in "A Problem Life Maria" on the Lerner and Lowe musicals I just did not buy), but she presents interesting ideas.
#78re: I don't care what you say, Stephen Schwartz is a God
Posted: 12/9/08 at 8:01pmI sort of buy the "I-hate-you-but-really-I-love-you" concept. It's not only in Oklahoma, but it appears in shows like Carousel, The King and I, Kiss Me Kate, and Passion.
"In theater, the process of it is the experience. Everyone goes through the process, and everyone has the experience together. It doesn't last - only in people's memories and in their hearts. That's the beauty and sadness of it. But that's life - beauty and the sadness. And that is why theater is life." - Sherie Rene Scott
Mr Roxy
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/17/03
#79re: I don't care what you say, Stephen Schwartz is a God
Posted: 12/9/08 at 8:43pm
Stephen Schwartz a God?
This is really pushing the envelope.
Poster Emeritus
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/31/69
#80re: I don't care what you say, Stephen Schwartz is a God
Posted: 12/10/08 at 1:41am
His arrogance can be off putting, as can his changing of what he's said--in the 1989 Fosse book Razzle Dazzle he's still going off about how much they disagreed and how different his version is--by the point the remastered CD came out he's all about preserving the Fosse vision lol.
But I think musically especially he is underated sometimes. The way critics hated the Pippin score is one example--not were lukewarm--HATED.
