12TH NIGHT- could there be any future at all?

[thtrbear]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 1:05pm

I'm ONLY speculating- but I wouldn't be that surprised if the Public Thtr would like to bring this back in some way if they could- maybe for a week's run after THE BACCHAE or seeing if they could bring it back for another run next summer, whose shows don't have to be announced till next year anyway. I remember that they broght back HAIR after its original 3 nights for a regular run the following year, and that they did STUFF HAPPENS for 1 night in the Park after its run downtown.

[timote316]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 1:11pm

I'd imagine it'd hinge on the schedules of the cast.... and given the actors and actresses involved, I'd say the odds are EXTREMELY slim, if existent at all.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 1:23pm

I really wish they could transfer it -- and it would, given the response, probably at least be considered if not for scheduling conflicts with the cast. But it's not worth doing if they can't keep this cast, and I would assume the powers that be know this. They are its entire strength. I would love to see it pop back up some day. I'm going to miss it a lot.

Updated On: 7/12/09 at 01:23 PM

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 1:33pm

Eustis told the Times that there were no current plans for, say, a transfer. But, he didn't rule out the possibility.

[Mrfreeze]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 3:17pm

I really hope that even if it's not transferred, it is at least filmed. So many great productions disappeared because nobody filmed them.

I wonder though if it would work that well in a somewhat closed environment.

I think the set goes so well with the open space, wonder what would happen on a regular stage.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 3:22pm

I think it would lose some of its magic indoors. It's a perfect intermingling of set and space; the set blends so perfectly into the expanse of the park behind it and the night sky. But, I felt that way about Hair, too, before the transfer, and in the end, I think what Hair gained far outweighs what it lost. And I think I'd prefer to see it have a future over none at all even if it lost a little something.

[insertclevernamehere]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 3:29pm

Most of the cast has other jobs lined up. Audra has private practice, Raul has his "possible Sondheim thing" and I'm pretty sure that Anne Hathaway is in high demand. Also, I think there are a few Shakespeare plays that will be on Broadway this season, so I doubt they would transfer 12th Night.

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 3:30pm

George C. Wolfe wasted away so much of The Public's A Chorus Line money on things like a failed and necessary transfer of On the Town and things like The Wild Party that the theatre must now rely on commercial producers.

And McDonald, Esparza, White, and Hathaway all have commitments outside of this production.

And, from all word, as Emcee said, the magic of the production in its setting (even more-so than Hair).

A film would be nice but that doesn't seem to have happened. Count yourself lucky to have seen it if you did. It is the price to pay as a theatre lover. Knowing that 9 times out of 10 you're going to have to rely on your memory (or the memory of those who saw it) to keep the magic alive.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 3:39pm

Audra and Anne definitely have conflicts in the immediate future, yes.

It is the price to pay as a theatre lover. Knowing that 9 times out of 10 you're going to have to rely on your memory (or the memory of those who saw it) to keep the magic alive.

I think that's the biggest thing I'm taking away from this. I've loved many things more than this, but the stunning shortness of four weeks really drives that home in a completely new way. It's hard to see yourself fall for things that, by definition, are fleeting, and to know that you'll have to rely only on how much you remember. But it is absolutely the price we pay. And we do it over and over and over again. This production has gone from something that I knew would be a lot of fun to an experience that I am certain I will remember forever. But it's still sad not to have it extant anymore.

Updated On: 7/12/09 at 03:39 PM

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 3:42pm

Is Raul not doing Night Music?

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 3:44pm

People here are claiming he's a done deal, but I don't have it in me to believe anything until it's set in stone, officially announced, etc.

Updated On: 7/12/09 at 03:44 PM

[Kad]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 11:31pm

I thought the "possible Sondheim thing" was ANYONE CAN WHISTLE.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 7/12/09 at 11:57pm

Heh, well, people are claiming that for fact, too.

[mina3]

Posted: 7/13/09 at 10:25am

Don't discount the possibility of a transfer just yet. I don't think anyone knows how the performers' schedules will work out, but there is definitely interest from some major producers.

My guess would be that a transfer won't happen without Anne, and the rest of the cast would probably remain intact with the possible exception of Audra because of Private Practice (and maybe Raul? I know nothing about his plans), depending on when the production happens. I'm betting a lot of people would be willing to rearrange their schedules after the reactions this show has gotten.

[somethingwicked]

Posted: 7/13/09 at 10:47am

Almost none of the cast are available.

Audra McDonald and Hamish Linklater both have television shows that shoot in Los Angeles (she's on Private Practice and he's on The New Adventures of Old Christine,) Julie White has Theresa Rebeck's THE UNDERSTUDY for Roundabout in the fall, Raul Esparza is in high demand, and Anne Hathaway has about a million film projects in development.

While the experience in the park was a magical one, it was also the end of this production's life.

[Yero my Hero]

Posted: 7/13/09 at 2:34pm

I think it would lose some of its magic indoors.

People said that about Hair, including me, and I actually think it works even better indoors. It's like the hippies actually took over an empty theater in protest rather than just met on a hill in the park.

The Theatrical Index lists LEAP OF FAITH as expected for the current Broadway season, so if it's true and Raúl is still attached to it, that's what he's doing.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 7/13/09 at 2:55pm

Did you read the rest of the passage you quoted? I'm not disagreeing with you.

Is that a current theatrical index? I don't think that's correct information about Leap of Faith. It's not dead, but not definitively set for this season as of now.

The thing is, there could be a ton of interest from producers, but that's not all it takes. (I'd be surprised if there wasn't interest.) There are immediate conflicts for some of the cast members that might not be so simple to just rearrange. I think part of the reason they managed to line this cast up is because it was such a short run. But hopefully, if there's significant interest, they'll find a way to make it work somehow. That being said, though, strange things happen, and I think it's a little bit unwise to so definitively state that this is the end. It's silly to completely discount it, because anyone would be stupid not to have their eyes on this production, but it's also kind of silly to suggest that interest means it's going to happen. It's every reason not to discount the idea, as mina said, but neither does that make it, logistically, all that much more likely.

Updated On: 7/13/09 at 02:55 PM

[Yero my Hero]

Posted: 7/13/09 at 2:58pm

I agree that it probably won't happen due to scheduling, just pointing out that it might work just well indoors.

It is the most recent Index. There are no specific dates, but it is listed as the 2009-2010 season. I'm not sure how reliable that is, though (i.e., whether they've confirmed with anybody that it is definitely happening this season).

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 7/13/09 at 3:01pm

That's weird. I don't know too much about how accurate those are, or whether they just rely on bad games of telephone.

It would certainly work indoors, but I maintain that it would lose something. Maybe subtle and difficult to pinpoint, but something you nonetheless sense. Even though I think Hair is even better now than it was in the park, it did, too, lose a little something. It just gained, IMO, way more than it lost.

Updated On: 7/13/09 at 03:01 PM

[Yero my Hero]

Posted: 7/13/09 at 3:22pm

The only thing that Hair lost, in my opinion, was Caren Lyn Manuel. Sheila is the only thing that I thought worked better in the park production.

This is the wrong thread for this discussion, though. Especially since I think we're mainly in agreement.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 7/13/09 at 3:28pm

I totally disagree. I didn't even know Shelia was a character in HAIR when I saw it in the park. I totally forgot about her and didn't care about her one bit.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 7/13/09 at 6:09pm

I think Karen Olivo would still have been a strong Tony contender (though perhaps not a Tony-winner) had she played Sheila on Broadway like she was originally intended to before WEST SIDE STORY came along. She gave a committed, passionate, sweet portrayal as Sheila in the original incarnation of the revival. Having said that, I think Cassie Levy does a great job with the part.

Onto the actual topic, this is the kind of magical cast like the 2004 production of THE SEAGULL that I think is extremely unlikely to do a Broadway transfer which is what makes these Central Park productions so unique and exciting for both actors and audiences alike.

[ChristopherDurangFan]

Posted: 7/13/09 at 11:10pm

She and Lin-Manuel Miranda should get married, he should take her last name, making him Lin-Manuel Lyn-Manuel