1776- Page 5

[musicalsFan]

Posted: 5/3/09 at 6:45pm

It's pretty much a 1 hour wait if you see the Saturday night performance.

If you see the Sunday night performance, the wait is only about 30 minutes.

[bwaybabe2]

Posted: 5/19/09 at 5:14am

Did anyone get to go to the last performance for the show? Just wondering if they did something special that day.

[ShbrtAlley44]

Posted: 5/19/09 at 8:56am

I saw the show twice - the matinee on the 17th and the Saturday matinee the week before. Loved it for the most part, except for Stephenson and Kennedy. As I said on ATC, I was under the impression Kennedy could sing. She sounded awful both times - cracking and screeching - and did absolutely nothing with the acting. But she looked fabulous in the dress. I also didn't like lowering the key of "Compliments" so Kerry O'Malley could belt it, but her performance, with the exception of her rather contemporary-sounding speech, was good. And why did they give two of Franklin's lines to other people?

Loved Schuck, Barbour (my God, on Sunday he was absolutely unbelievable), Wyman, and Cuccioli, as well as the gentleman who played Read. I loved the choice to make him foppish. Thomson was also very good. Overall, a very strong cast. The show is so good on its own that it didn't suffer much from having a weak Adams. Yes, it is a shame Barbour's "Molasses to Rum" won't be recorded, as well as this production's "Cool, Cool, Considerate Men."

[p.s.]

Posted: 5/19/09 at 11:11am

Yes, it is a shame Barbour's "Molasses to Rum" won't be recorded

He has recorded it, on his CD. Doesn't that count?


p.s.

CD includes Molasses to Rum [to Slayaves]

[sfdann]

Posted: 5/19/09 at 11:53am

On why Roger Sherman says he should not be writing the Declaration of Independence..

"I don't know a participle from a predicate, I am just a simple cobbler from Connecticut..."

HOLY GOODNESS - Sondheim would be proud of this one.

Not only are the lyrics way above average but the plot line is quite gripping - even as we all know the ending, we are kept on the edge of our seats. And it still extraordinarily relevant - it should be mandatory viewing for EVERY member of the 2009 Congress. Our Founding Fathers would be so disheartened by the direction the leaders of our country have driven us in just 333 short years. Where are the educated, brave heroes today - the men and women who have been elected to follow in the footsteps of those fearless, human individuals? Today's congressional debates sound like sandbox fights in kindergarten. This show makes me aware of who we once were as a nation and I come away feeling shockingly patriotic and alive.

[bwayguy22089]

Posted: 5/19/09 at 1:21pm

I must agree. After seeing this show, you can't help but feel very patriotic. I love how this musical makes these men look like human beings and not mythical creatures. They all have feelings, loved ones, ambitions... it's a brilliant, brilliant musical.

[ShbrtAlley44]

Posted: 5/19/09 at 1:23pm

Oh, thanks, p.s., but it'd be even better in context :) I didn't see that he'd recorded it.

Exactly, sfdann and bwayguy :) And sfdann, don't forget the beginning of that lyric - "I cannot write with any style or proper etiquette." Etiquette/predicate/Connecticut = awesome.

[amoni]

Posted: 5/19/09 at 1:36pm

The entire "But, Mr. Adams" is amazing...

Franklin:

Mr. Adams, but, Mr. Adams

The things I write are only light extemporania

I won't put politics on paper; it's a mania

So I refuse to use the pen in Pennsylvania


Livingston:

Mr. Adams, dear Mr. Adams

I've been presented with a new son by the noble stork

So I am going home to celebrate and pop the cork

With all the Livingstons together back in old New York

[sparrman]

Posted: 5/19/09 at 9:12pm

I don't suppose anyone here will know, but did Barbour sing the song in E minor (as he does on his CD) or in the show key of F minor?
Updated On: 5/19/09 at 09:12 PM

[bwaybabe2]

Posted: 5/21/09 at 1:28am

"You have to go! Seeing James Barbour sing "Molasses to Rum" would be the chance of a lifetime!"
...I agree! His performance, when I saw him, was nothing short of spectacular...like it will never (sorry for all others Who have played this role) be sung or performed by another.

ShbrtAlley44...how do you mean about Sunday's performance , as opposed when you saw him the previous Saturday...? (since you have something to compare).
p.s....I have his CD, but, as someone mentioned on here (?) maybe this should have been "video" recorded as well, such a strong performance. Hope the whole show was recorded at some point.
Updated On: 5/22/09 at 01:28 AM

[ShbrtAlley44]

Posted: 5/21/09 at 8:48am

He was good on Saturday, but I didn't get that punch in the gut I really wanted, that I remembered getting when I saw Gregg Edelman do it (I was in 7th grade). On Sunday, however, I got it and then some. He was absolutely incredible on Sunday; his diction was clearer, his objective stronger, and the vocals even better. It may have had something to do with the fact that I was sitting closer, but honestly, I doubt it. For my grandmother to remember him afterwards means he was something very special. :)

Oh, and on another note, I was on the verge of hunting down a man who got up and went to the bathroom in the middle of "Momma Look Sharp." Thank you so much for killing the moment for everyone, good sir.
Updated On: 5/21/09 at 08:48 AM

[Renart]

Posted: 5/21/09 at 10:29pm

I saw 1776 at the Guthrie in Minneapolis a few years ago and I wanted to wring the director's neck because he insisted on elaborate sets moving constantly. During "Momma Look Sharp" all we could hear was the grinding of gears and pulleys while the set moved back. It ruined the moment for everyone. Luckily I had the memory of seeing a community theater production several years earlier with minimal sets. The only sound you could hear other than the singer was the sniffles of people pretending they weren't crying. It was beautiful. Sometimes less is much, much more.

[LayerBoy4]

Posted: 5/22/09 at 12:45am

I caught the 2PM show last Sunday and Lauren Kennedy stole the show for me. Her vocal placement was gorgeous, she lit up the stage and she looked beautiful in that dress!

She has a concert at the Beechman on the 29th and I am so excited to see what she cooks up.

[bwaybabe2]

Posted: 5/22/09 at 2:58am

LayerBoy4, I also thought Kennedy was great for the role. When I saw her, she was fine in vocals, and, save for that awful hairdo, she looked as pretty as expected for the part. At least she had this enthusiasm that was very engaging :)

"For my grandmother to remember him afterwards means he was something very special. :)"
...hee, hee...that was funny I guess because it was the last performance, maybe...?