ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.
ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/10/04
ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#1
Posted: 12/7/09 at 2:57am
I mean sure there are spots where they could speed it up a bit here and there (pacing is a killer) but seeing it this weekend I was semi-entertained.
Erin Davie once again is almost a total bore (just like in GG and Curtains) but Aaron Lazar is trying to pull her into the show which seems an impossible task but he might be up for it. DHP and Christine Ebersole couldn't do it but maybe Mr. Lazar can pull magic out of a hat.
Anne seems flittery in that wonderful innocent 18 yr old way and henrik, though the high B is horribly sung, has something there..I wish they all had more time before reviews come out but so it goes. The leibisleders (sp?) don't know what they are doing up there. Maybe someone should tell them that they are the moral majority commenting on an absurist..nahh never mind just watch Angela some more.
I think they would be better off if they re-cast Frederik. He is a massive detriment, as he doesn't seem scared of Carl Magnus whatsoever. Which is an odd choice. He is a petty city-dwelling lawyer and there is a man asking him if he likes duels. And he seems none the wary concerning this statement. It would help Mr. Lazar be more intimidating if he actually had a foil on the stage. No matter. KZJ is gorgeous, just watch her stand there.
Again, Speed the pace up and they might have something.
Oh, the set is horrible by the way. But with Angela and KZJ on stage do you even need a set?
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#2
Posted: 12/7/09 at 3:02am
You want Alexander Hanson recast, but think Hunter has 'something there'? hmmm...
And it's CJZ with a C :P.
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#2
Posted: 12/7/09 at 3:24amIs Hunter really as bad as I'm hearing? He seems to be the one constant negative review I get from people who have seen the show. I hope this isn't the case.
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#3
Posted: 12/7/09 at 7:07am
No, he is not that bad. I think he's quite good, and Sondheim and Nunn agree. It's a very over the top character, at least I think so. It's not the actor's fault.
Updated On: 12/7/09 at 07:07 AM
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#4
Posted: 12/7/09 at 7:43am
Marc Kudisch was flawless in the role in the benefit with Natasha.
Laurence Guittard was hysterically funny AND a little scary in the original.
There's nothing wrong with the writing of the role, as long as the director has a good sense of the comedy of the show and the casting is right.
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#5
Posted: 12/7/09 at 8:01amWe are discussing the role of Henrik, not Carl-Magnus.
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#6
Posted: 12/7/09 at 9:14amUpdated On: 3/16/10 at 09:14 AM
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/10/04
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#7
Posted: 12/7/09 at 9:38am
perfection huh?
weird when the start cannot sing at all for starters. But i am sure you know more than me.
Usually Desiree's cannot sing, but frederik? With "You must meet my wife" he cannot even hit his notes. And "now" sounds like a dying cow.
Enjoy your "perfect" star, i will take almost anyone else.
Oh and he also has no idea what to do with his hands while he is "acting". I love all his "fake" laughs with desiree that seem so forced and pathetic.
But you are right, "perfection". Good call.
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#8
Posted: 12/7/09 at 10:34amI've heard nothing but fantastic things about Alexander Hanson. I just can't wait to see the show for myself so I can finally form my own opinions on it.
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#9
Posted: 12/7/09 at 12:18pmHe was pitch perfect the night I saw him. Best one in the cast vocally to be perfectly honest.
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#10
Posted: 12/7/09 at 12:20pm
Kudisch should be in this show. It's almost not fair he's done every single production of the show for the past 10 years it seems and than isn't able to do it on Broadway.
Oh and the set is horrible. This is true.
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/10/04
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#11
Posted: 12/7/09 at 2:56pm
LOL wait wait. you are saying that Alexander hanson, who could BARELY hit the notes in "you must meet my wife" has a better voice then Aaron Lazar. Fabrizio, Enjrolas, Charles Darnay Aaron Lazar.
Thats what you are saying. I just wanna read that. Please write that down so i can read that and laugh. I am ready.
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#12
Posted: 12/7/09 at 3:18pm
You're literally the first person I've heard who's thought that Alex Hanson can't sing, in this or any other show. I'm not going to argue about whether or not he's the best singer in the cast but I think you must have seen him on a really off night because whether you like his voice or not, he absolutely can sing. 
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#13
Posted: 12/7/09 at 3:32pm
Producers,
Please put Ron Raines in as Frederik! He was absolutely INCREDIBLE!! I wouldn't mind Leslie Uggams taking over for CZJ after she leaves and PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE put Marc Kudisch in as Carl-Magus!
Thanks!
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#14
Posted: 12/7/09 at 3:36pm
LOL wait wait. you are saying that Alexander hanson, who could BARELY hit the notes in "you must meet my wife" has a better voice then Aaron Lazar. Fabrizio, Enjrolas, Charles Darnay Aaron Lazar.
Laugh away then. I am a HUGE fan of Aaron's. I will be the first to sing his praises. He was wonderful in Piazza, and he was one of two good things about the Les Miz revival. He is also splendid in this, as I expected him to be. But he impressed me more on an acting front than a singing front. I thought he nailed the character, but left a little to be desired vocally.
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/10/04
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#15
Posted: 12/7/09 at 3:46pm
ha ha ha
oh how i love this board and the neophytes that peruse it.
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#16
Posted: 12/7/09 at 3:55pm
Hanson really can't sing very well, it's truly a Rex-Harrison-does-Sondheim take on Frederick.
Lazar's beautiful voice is showcased well.
Davie is a mess. Lansbury is the complete opposite, a delight.
I must say CZJ surprised me with her plaintive and remotely moving "Clowns" but the half-Dench/half-Streisand take on the song isn't the best possible presentation, I don't think.
The atrocious orchestrations for this production ALMOST kill the score, btw. It sounds like some turn-of-the-century Nordic William Finn chamber piece or something and while that would usually be a good thing, it's not when we're speaking of the positively perfumed (Sondheim's word) and perfect Tunick original orchestrations. Not good.
P
Updated On: 12/7/09 at 03:55 PM
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#17
Posted: 12/7/09 at 4:32pmP, you decided to see the production? I remember you were deciding whether you wanted to or not.
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#18
Posted: 12/7/09 at 4:51pm
Hanson really can't sing very well, it's truly a Rex-Harrison-does-Sondheim take on Frederick.
You are both deaf. He didn't speak sing a word when I saw the show Saturday (except for You Must Meet My Wife, which was clearly a choice). Every melody was sung beautifully. "Now" was actually one of the highlights of the show vocally.
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#19
Posted: 12/7/09 at 4:53pm
Let's just say I've heard enough, 
P
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#20
Posted: 12/7/09 at 4:55pmI'm so glad that's all it takes to have a full opinion on a production now.
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#21
Posted: 12/7/09 at 5:12pm
I criticized nothing but the sounds I heard, thank you very much.
Today is jumping to conclusions day on BWW, it seems.
P
Broadway Star Joined: 10/8/07
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#22
Posted: 12/7/09 at 5:47pmIt's not that the Liebeslieder Singers don't know what they're doing up there, it's that their creative team doesn't know. They asked many times in rehearsal and were never given an answer. You don't have to believe me, but that is what happened.
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#23
Posted: 12/7/09 at 6:15pm
massofmen: you can't spell, you can't punctuate and your use of the English language is poor.
Thus, I'm hardly likely to pay much attention to your opinion on a musical such as this.
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/8/05
re: ALNM. not too bad! Not too good either.#24
Posted: 12/7/09 at 6:43pm
Scripps2 is like the Henry Higgins of BroadwayWorld.
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