Alan Menken and Tim Rice's KING DAVID!- Page 2

[DramaTeach]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 9:19am

I remember seeing this at the New Amsterdam before it officially opened after renovations. I thought it was nice, but definitely too long. Some great talent in that show, though.

[bobs3]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 9:37am

There was a funny line in the show about King David's daughter being "the first Jewish Princess."

[Brian07663NJ]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 9:45am

Wow - blast from the past. I remember going too! Not only was I there for this but the week (or so) prior to King David castmembers of The Disney Store (my part time job in college) were invited to visit the New Amsterdam. They provided snacks from the concession, asked us to spend 15 minutes flushing the toilets (not kidding), etc just so that the theater staff could see what that massive crowd would be like when paying visitors showed up.

Yes, the show was long! I know I enjoyed the concert at the time but I am certain the CD has washed over really remembering how tedious it was at the original length.

What was really exciting was that it was recorded at the New Amsterdam. I got to meet Alan Menken and Tim Rice!

BTW - listened to the CD this morning and although I still enjoy it I was trying to think about the general appeal. Lots of songs are beautiful but is it captivating enough for Joe Public?

[tazber]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 9:48am

They left a lot off the cd too.

The score is 400 pages.

[Brian07663NJ]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 9:53am

I know it is a highlights CD and...well...I am completely fine with that!

[tazber]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 10:39am

I'm fine with it too. It's a highlights cd that runs something like an hour and 15 minutes!

The excised material is mostly reprises and longer versions of various scenes.

[finebydesign]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 11:49am

I have the CD, know a bit about the production and saw the NYU production a few years back. I'm not aware if the NYU production was complete but it was a 2-act sung-through performance with Menken in attendance. My friends were bored to tears.

I guess the biggest problem with the show is the story/plot/content/characters and tone (anything left?). I'm gonna say maybe it sounded ok on paper, but let's not fool ourselves here. It's a really corny bible story and even with two of musical theatre's most prolific writers it still plays as such. There are some really nice songs, and some really oddball ones. With the exception of "Saul has Slain His Thousands" most of the songs are mature (and this one is about slaying people by the hundreds), but most of the story and plot are not. It plays very much like a Disney film with villains, silly-side kicks and Disney-film plotting. You get this very cartoony show interjected with adult themes with religious trappings. It's an odd duck.

There was talk about taking this show apart and fleshing out the first act. I'm not sure sure what would make the most sense. There is a lot of neat stuff here, some of the ballads are great. Some of Tim Rice's work is just exceptional, this guy knows how to cram a lot of details into song. Boy does he know how to write for women.

I can't help but compare it to Joseph and Evita. It's a weird mix of the two. In Joseph you have this fantastical biblical tale that Tim Rice had fun with, and why not, it's pretty far out! Those songs, the plotting, the characters work to create a very entertaining piece of theatre. It's a riot. In Evita you actually get depth, history and emotion, character development. I'm assuming you would want more of that Evita business here, but you get a blend of the cartoony Joseph stuff.

Oh one last thing. When it comes to music, unlike Joseph which does religously-themed well, this show doesn't. What do I mean? In Joseph and even Jesus Christ Superstar you have these wonderful songs that don't make you feel like your in church or watching Veggietales. Too often this show goes down that road of church pageantry. It's not bad if that's what you're going for, but it wont work really anywhere but at a church.

[tazber]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 12:22pm

This was written more as an oratorio than a staged musical. It was commissioned for the 3,000th anniversary of Jerusalem.

That never panned out due to various factors (I don't know the details).

Disney decided to produce it as an inaugural event for the new (at the time) Amsterdam Theater. Of course Menken at the time was still Disney's go-to guy for music.

I enjoyed the production very much, but I am a staunch Menken fan. In all honesty though it is overly serious and very long.

Having said all that, I do recommend tracking down the cd for a listen (it's up on youtube). Divorced from the stage restrictions it plays very well.

And, I'll say it again, Sheer Perfection is my favorite Menken song.

Updated On: 2/19/14 at 12:22 PM

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 12:29pm

"That never panned out due to various factors (I don't know the details). "

Yitzhak Rabin's assassination was a big factor.

I absolutely adore this score! I think it is Menken's richest and most mature score to date!

But much like Tazber, I admit to being a staunch Menken fan! I even liked his score for Leap of Faith…yeah, I said it.

[Pammylicious]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 12:44pm

A couple of years ago I saw and heard Tim Rice at a NYT Talk and he obsessively talked about this show. I thought at the time they might be reworking it for another try.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 12:50pm

Sheer Perfection is a gorgeous song.

Wow, this is an old thread. I like the CD more now than apparently I did five years back, and wouldn't call it good background music now. But I do agree that it's overly serious.

I'm glad Tazzy pointed out that it was written and staged as an oratorio, not an actual acted out musical -- that's an important thing to consider.

[tazber]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 1:03pm

Quick aside:

I also met Menken and Rice at the time and they couldn't have been friendlier. Menken even chatted with me for awhile about composition and musicals in general.

Some time later I received a copy of the cd in the mail with a personal note from Menken.

The fact that he remembered our conversation, or even me at all, has stayed with me to this day.

A few months later when The Lion King opened Rice sent me a special tea mug they had made for the opening night gala (it has the date of the opening and the logo) on which Rice wrote by hand: "Tea Prepared".

Two of the nicest gentlemen I have ever met.

[finebydesign]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 1:41pm

Taz, I too have met them and found them very friendly and eager to talk about their work (together and individually). They are also wonderfully supportive of their collaborators and other talent. It's unfortunate they don't collaborate together anymore. Heck I wish Rice and Elton John would try some more projects together. Are there Tim Rice reviews? It's baffling someone with that much good work isn't lauded more.

I hate to deride their work, especially as you say it was intended for an oratorio presentation and it was unfinished when it premiered. I can't recall exactly but I think the NYU version had been updated though I'm not sure how. I should say I thought it was an impressive piece. To get through that much allegory in that time frame with that much style is a feat.

It's possible with the right creative director, the piece could be shaped into something more viable.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 1:51pm

I'm far from the biggest Rice fan, but it does seem odd that Don Black just had a massive tribute concert/tv special in the UK and Rice hasn't had something similar. (Then again, I guess when you add things like the Bond themes, etc, Black maybe has had more pop success.)

Cool to hear how nice they were, Taz. I'd like to see Schwartz do that

[Borstalboy]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 2:20pm

It's gotta be better than this

[Pammylicious]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 2:50pm

OMG, I never saw Ten Commandments the Musical, just ordered a copy of the DVD for 99 cents

[finebydesign]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 2:53pm

Well Borstalboy what I saw plays like a Masterclass of that. There is no mistaking it, a lot of the music is VERY good. It just falls victim to those sword and sandal things meets Hill Cumorah Pageants.

You know I really wonder what the show would be like stripped down without the period costumes etc. It's interesting because Aida was originally produced as something it wasn't and works better as an abstract take on Egypt rather so literal. Maybe that's what I'm getting at, the show is too literal.

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 2/19/14 at 2:57pm

Borstal…it is LEAGUES better than that!