Posted: 6/25/19 at 1:42pm
Hi,
this is my first post here, so, hello everyone!
I was fortunate enough to see the revised version of "Amélie" in Germany and thought some of you might be interested in the changes they made. So here is a link to the trailer:
- A list of the biggest and most notable changes from the Broadway production:
- New orchestrations: Piano, clarinet, cello, upright-bass, accordion, drums/percussions; so the music has more of a french flair to it
- Music from the movie soundtrack incorporated into the underscore music
- 3 completely new songs, 1 re-used song from a previous production, 3 songs got cut
- Young Amélie is portrayed by a puppet instead of a child actor
- More insight in Nino's backstory and his emotional life
- Quotes from the movie incorporated into the script
- Everything associated with Zeno’s paradox is cut
- The addition of an intermission
- New set and staging
Here is the song list:
- Act 1
1. Ouverture (“J’y suis jamais allé” by Yann Tiersen)
2. “3rd Of August, 1975” (re-used from a previous production)
3. “World’s Best Dad”
4. “World’s Best Friend”
5. “World’s Best Mom”
6. “Live Your Dream” (“Times Are Hard for Dreamers" )
7. “The Ladies from The Café” (“A Better Haircut" )
8. “The Crossover” (“The Commute" )
9. “The Secret Compartment” (“The Bottle Drops" )
10. “Leek for Lucien” (“Three Figs" )
11. A Hint of Fate 1 (“Comptine d’un autre été, l’après-midi” by Yann Tiersen)
12. “The previous tenant of Amélie’s apartment”
13. Bredoteau Montage (“J’y suis jamais allé” by Yann Tiersen)
14. “The Girl with the Glass”
15. “Where Did Time Go?” (“How to Tell Time" )
16. “Tour de France”
17. “When the Flashlight Touches Us” (“When the Booth Goes Bright" )
18. “Goodbye, Amélie”
- Act 2
19. “Who Is Searching Me?” (New song)
20. “World’s Best Gnome”
21. A Hint of Fate 2
22. “A Nun in Need/Live Your Dream Reprise” (“Sister’s Pickle" )
23. “At home with me” (“There’s no Place like Gnome" )
24. Leek Nightmare
25. “Yawning void” (“Thin Air" )
26. “The Graffiti” (“The Writing on the Wall" )
27. “4 Zorros” (New song)
28. “Scavenger hunt” (New song based on a re-used music theme from a previous production)
29. Phone Call (“Comptine d’un autre été, l’après-midi” by Yann Tiersen)
29. “Waste Of Time” (“The Late Nino Quincampoix" )
30. A Hint of Fate 3
31. “Cross-Examination” (“A Better Haircut” Reprise)
32. The Dispute (“Comptine d’un autre été, l’après-midi” by Yann Tiersen)
33. “Stay”
34. “Finale” (“3rd Of August, 1975” Reprise)
I also wrote down more information on some of the songs to show what exactly is new:
- “3rd Of August, 1975”
The ensemble sings about what happened on the day of Amélie’s birth and how all those stories are intertwined. We get a first glimpse at the people who will play a part in the story later on (like the young Bretodeau, Suzanne, Dufayel, Hipolito). This song was also at the beginning of the show in the 2015 Berkeley Repertory Theatre production and the 2016 Ahmanson Theatre production but was cut for Broadway.
- “The Ladies from The Café” (“A Better Haircut" )
Amélie introduces us to her co-workers, Suzanne, Gina and Georgette. They all tell their story (or each other’s story) in song. The first verse is about Suzanne being dumped by her boyfriend which led to her being trampled by a horse (in the Broadway version, she fell from a trapeze). The second verse is about Gina and her stalking ex, Joseph. They come to the conclusion that being in a relationship with a man can be difficult. The last part is sung by Georgette, warning the air hostess Philomene about dangerous viruses and bacteria. They close the song with the conclusion that the ladies who work in the café stick together, no matter what. In the Broadway version, this song was much later in the show and had different lyrics because it served a different purpose.
- A Hint of Fate 1 – Comptine d’un autre été, l’après-midi” (by Yann Tiersen)
At the train station, we see Nino lying on the floor to look under the photo booth and get some exposition on his backstory: As a child, he was bullied and wished for a companion. (This is a quote from the movie.) As Amélie bumps into Nino, the music goes from the “racing heart theme” (“bah-ba-dah, bah-ba-dah, bah-ba-dah…" ) over into music from the movie soundtrack: “Comptine d’un autre été, l’après-midi”. There is a little scene of inner monologue:
Amélie: Why is he staring at me?
Nino: Why doesn’t she walk on by?
Amélie: Why don’t I walk on by?
Both: What’s the matter with my heart?
Nino: I should stop drinking coffee.
Amélie: I’m gonna be late. – Oh, dammit. (runs off)
So, the first encounter of Amélie and Nino is really a moment. (There was a shorter version of this in the 2016 Ahmanson Theatre production but of course set to different underscore music.)
- Bredoteau Montage (“J’y suis jamais allé” by Yann Tiersen)
After the second encounter of Amélie and Nino at the train station, Amélie rings at several doors in search of the right Mr. Bredoteau. The actor who is also playing Hipolito is portraying all the wrong Bredoteaus in a quick-change marathon. (This part borrows from the movie).
- “The Girl with the Glass”
In the verse leading into the last refrain (when Amélie sings “Maybe this whole soirée is a party she’s thrown..." ), Dufayel joins her in making assumptions about the girl with the glass. This shows that she opened his mind and made him think about the painting in a way he never did before.
- “Tour de France”
There have been some changes to this song. For example, when Amélie tells the blind man about the people surrounding them, she calls them by their names (Monsieur Collignon, the priest Jacques and so on). This makes this part a little bit more personal. Also, the second verse is cut and instead, there’s a scene added while the music plays on: Monsieur Collignon is rude to Lucien and Amélie wishes she knew a witty remark. She comes up with “At least you will never be a vegetable. Even artichokes have hearts.” (Another quote from the movie.) This leads into the last part of the song where Amélie brings the blind man to the metro and says goodbye to him.
- “When the Flashlight Touches Us” (“When the Booth Goes Bright" )
The second verse is now about the mysterious guy who is on so many photos but tears them apart and throws the pieces away. Other than that, this scene is pretty close to the Broadway version.
- “Goodbye, Amélie”
The actor portraying Elton John has a different costume than in the Broadway version and also another costume reveal near the end of the song. The ensemble is wearing blue church choir robes, they go down the aisles and occasionally hand out tea light candles in little glasses to audience members.
- “Who Is Searching Me?” (no information about the composer)
Act 2 opens with a new song, a duet between Amélie and Nino. Each for themselves question why they hide from other people and who will search for them if they never let anyone into their lives. In the background, the ensemble moves puppets portraying the young Amélie and the young Nino, looking for someone to interact with.
I found no information about the origin of this song. It might have been a song that was cut even before the 2015 Berkeley Repertory Theatre production or it might be written especially for this German production. So, I’m not sure if it’s really written by Daniel Messé and Nathan Tysen or if it was written by the German music supervisor (who also did the new arrangements). The sound of it is very melancholic and more similar to the movie soundtrack than some other songs in the show.
- Leek Nightmare
Monsieur Collignon and Lucien enter the café and Amélie serves them a soup made of leek (without telling Monsieur Collignon what’s in it as we were told earlier in the show that he has a phobia of leek). When he realizes he just ate leek, Collignon freaks out and a nightmare sequence follows in which the ensemble is dressed in green clown costumes. After he has calmed down, he confesses to Lucien that he dislikes vegetables and has no fun at work and that he actually admires his enthusiasm for vegetables. The two men bond over this experience and the conflict between them is solved.
- “4 Zorros” (no information about the composer)
After Nino gets Amélie’s message “5 pm, Montmartre carrousel, bring 5 francs”, there’s a new song. Four of the ensemble members (those who play Gina, Georgette, Philomene and Lucien) show up in that same Zorro costume that Amélie was wearing. They are like different possible versions of that mysterious girl that he doesn’t really know anything about and it’s kind of an inner monologue in which he wonders what she might be like. The song ends with the “5 pm, Montmartre carrousel” theme.
- “Scavenger hunt”
Instead of the “Blue Arrow Suite”, there is this new song. It’s based on an underscore music that was used in the sex shop scene in the 2015 Berkeley Repertory Theatre production (later replaced by “Sister’s Pickle" ). Amélie is laying out all the clues and blue arrows for Nino (and walks through the audience doing it). While she wonders what she will do if he actually finds her, he asks himself how far he will go for her. Both of them admit to themselves that they want to know who the other one really is. The song ends with the reprise of “Sister’s Pickle” with Amélie running away like in the Broadway version.
- “Stay”
The start of the song is acapella and then it slowly builds up to the climax which is much more effective and intense than in the Broadway version. (Also, this whole scene is played without an actual door on stage but it still works!) The reprise of “Halfway” is cut. Instead, the part from her opening the door till they finally kiss is all silent and there’s a tension in the air in this moment.
- “Finale” (“3rd Of August, 1975” Reprise)
Instead of “Where do we go from here”, there’s a reprise of the first song, similar to the finale in the 2016 Ahmanson Theatre production. The only moment that is reminiscent of the melancholic Broadway ending is the sentence “Nobody knows if Nino and Amélie will be happy forever but right now, they are.” We get little glimpses of what happened with the other characters as each of them steps into an implied photo booth: Dufayel started painting his own subjects instead of copying Renoir; Georgette and Joseph are a happy couple; Amélie’s father and Gina go to the international airport to travel the world; Philomene will always have the nickname “Snow White” among her flight attendant colleagues (because she travelled with a gnome) and Hipolito’s work will be published. The show ends with a short reprise of “J’y suis jamais allé”, played on the accordion.
- My personal opinion:
I think this show works better in this new version than it did on Broadway. Since almost all parts of the story are set to music, it has a better flow. The music from the movie by Yann Tiersen really adds that special extra that was missing before, connecting the musical with the movie and highlighting important scenes. Also, I think it was a good idea to put the song "3rd of August, 1975" back in since it is a better opening than the "Times are hard for dreamers" pre-prise sung by the young Amélie.
Concerning the new songs, in my opinion, they are good and fit in nicely with the others. Especially "Who is searching me?" is a beautiful duet for Amélie and Nino. I'm not sure if I really needed the "4 Zorro's" song but I didn't mind it, it was fun and gave more insight in Nino's feelings about Amélie. Also, to put "A better haircut" more to the beginning of the show was a brilliant idea! With the slightly changed lyrics and little acting scenes in between it's a great introduction to the ladies from the café and the people Amélie meets everyday.
The only scene I'm still not sure about is the leek nightmare but the reason might just be that this scene came as a total surprise to me. I like the fact that they solved the conflict between Monsieur Collignon and Lucien but I think there could have been a more subtle approach.
For anyone interested in the new songs, I recommend to listen to the live recording of the German production. It's on spotify:
I hope my little essay was somewhat interesting to read and if there are any questions, I can go more into detail on certain parts if you want to.
Updated On: 6/25/19 at 01:42 PM
