#51
Posted: 12/10/04 at 4:40pm
I ran across this today and decided I had to leave the land of the lurker. (Note to Grinch: Avenue Q has costume changes! Lucy alone has THREE costumes! But to each his own). I'm the bookwriter for Q, and I just wanted to note a few things we found while developing the show.
Christmas Eve's consonant mixups aren't used for humor so much, except in "Racist" where the PC implications are directly addressed. The precision of her language is what gets the laughs, not the fact that she speaks in a dialect. During the writing process with Bobby and Jeff, I always thought about my sister-in-law, who is from Finland. She speaks beautiful English, but not being a native speaker, she uses turns of phrase that are often refreshingly blunt. Her intentions are always good, but the disconnect can be very hilarious and human.
Bobby, Jeff, Jason, and I wanted Christmas Eve to be a fully-rounded character. In early drafts of the libretto, I'd try an occasional joke that resulted from the mixture of her consonants ("What the matter, Rod? Feeling a little low?"), and the audience just wouldn't have it. They wanted Christmas Eve to be fully-rounded, and not discounted as a stereotype. A credit to the wisdom of audiences.
I am frankly not especially amused by the stereotype used in Sixteen Candles. The character is there for comic relief, solely, and we wanted to do better. Christmas Eve's status in the world of the show is very high -- she has power because of who she is, and isn't a low clown of any sort. She's nobody's retiring geisha (especially as played by the wonderful Anns, Harada and Sanders).
As for Gary -- yes, he sold his stuff on eBay. And he has the perspective of someone who feels his best years are behind him, which is the greatest fear of Princeton, the protagonist. So in my mind, Gary offers a severe shorthand to the primary theme of Avenue Q.
Okay, back to lurking. But I hope the original poster can see the show!
Christmas Eve's consonant mixups aren't used for humor so much, except in "Racist" where the PC implications are directly addressed. The precision of her language is what gets the laughs, not the fact that she speaks in a dialect. During the writing process with Bobby and Jeff, I always thought about my sister-in-law, who is from Finland. She speaks beautiful English, but not being a native speaker, she uses turns of phrase that are often refreshingly blunt. Her intentions are always good, but the disconnect can be very hilarious and human.
Bobby, Jeff, Jason, and I wanted Christmas Eve to be a fully-rounded character. In early drafts of the libretto, I'd try an occasional joke that resulted from the mixture of her consonants ("What the matter, Rod? Feeling a little low?"), and the audience just wouldn't have it. They wanted Christmas Eve to be fully-rounded, and not discounted as a stereotype. A credit to the wisdom of audiences.
I am frankly not especially amused by the stereotype used in Sixteen Candles. The character is there for comic relief, solely, and we wanted to do better. Christmas Eve's status in the world of the show is very high -- she has power because of who she is, and isn't a low clown of any sort. She's nobody's retiring geisha (especially as played by the wonderful Anns, Harada and Sanders).
As for Gary -- yes, he sold his stuff on eBay. And he has the perspective of someone who feels his best years are behind him, which is the greatest fear of Princeton, the protagonist. So in my mind, Gary offers a severe shorthand to the primary theme of Avenue Q.
Okay, back to lurking. But I hope the original poster can see the show!
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