Anybody seen 'Memphis' yet?- Page 2

[BigMamaSangTenor]

Posted: 6/25/12 at 6:33pm

I meant with Pascal as lead. However, I have heard so many mixed reviews of whether or not he improved it. I wasn't actually very interested in it when it debuted, not to mention when I saw the reviews bashing Kimball's performance...

[luvcaroline]

Posted: 6/25/12 at 7:20pm

We saw this shortly after it opened on Broadway with the original cast and thought that it was OK, but something about it just left us feeling a bit empty. We saw the touring production about a month ago and had a MUCH better experience: it seemed more vibrant, grittier, and the cast seemed to be much more committed to the material. One of our more satisfying theatre-going experiences of late, actually.

[kikki327]

Posted: 6/26/12 at 10:43am

When Memphis opened, I had no desire to see it. After watching their 2010 Tony performance, I really had no desire to see it. Last year I was in the city with my friends and had run out of options for a matinee, and ended up with front row rush tickets to Memphis. I had no idea what to expect, and frankly, was not expecting much. 2 hours later, I had found one of my favorite musicals I had ever seen, and went back to see it 5 more times. I enjoyed the show tremendously, (I LOVE the choreography) and I honestly think it had a lot to do with Chad Kimball's performance. I consider myself lucky to have seen Chad perform 5 out my 6 Memphis trips in the midst of his injury. Chad's understudy was good, but my heart did not break for his Huey as it does for Chad's. His choices, though a bit strange, showed me how deep his character transformation really was. Chad put so much heart into his Huey that I did not get from Kevin or the videos I have seen of Adam. Adam may be fantastic, but as much as I love Memphis, I can not see myself returning to the Shubert, as I want my final Memphis memory to be of Huey himself, Chad Kimball. I usually love seeing new cast members' take on a role, but there is just something so special about this show to me.

But, to each his own :)

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 6/26/12 at 11:02am

The 'special needs' references really bother me. It's so disrespectful, especially since Chad's characterization was not developmentally disabled, but rather emotionally stunted, introverted and rebellious. I thought his work was very good.

He was an outcast-poor, uneducated and lived at home with his mom. He didn't have friends and lost himself in music. He understood oppression. Felicia was a woman of color with a gift she though no one would ever experience outside of a black club. They "got" each other.

Pascal plays the role too cool and it hurts the story.

[kikki327]

Posted: 6/26/12 at 11:16am

Bettyboy, that is a perfect description of the difference between Chad's Huey and Adams.

[Pauly3]

Posted: 6/29/12 at 8:25pm

Saw the recording of Memphis (with Chad Kimball) on Netflix and thought it was decent, even worth watching again at some point. I didn't dislike the way Huey was portrayed.....even thought maybe the guy the role is somewhat based on (Dewey Phillips) might have had some of the same mannerisms. I haven't found anything to suggest Dewey Phillips was anything like that, and if not, I don't care - doesn't matter.

Saw the tour with Bryan Fenkart and really enjoyed the show. Everyone in the cast was excellent - and the music, storyline and staging were all completely and thoroughly enjoyable. Will see it again if able. Bryan's portrayal is very different, but it was excellent without any too-peculiar mannerisms.

I liked the tour so much and wanted to recapture the sound of the experience, something Netflix couldn't do, so I purchased the Blu-ray of Memphis. I was not disappointed in the least. The picture and sound are top notch. Although I don't love some of the seemingly annoying quirks, I loved Chad Kimball's portrayal overall. He portrays the illiterate, pathetic, stuborn, empathetic, funny and likeable Huey Calhoun exactly these ways. He sings well too. I can't fathom why anyone would hate him.

The show is good entertainment. It doesn't have to be classy or classic or whatever to be entertaining. It's a very good time, and I would love to have had the chance to see Adam Pascal on Broadway. If you get the chance and are remotely interested, go.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 6/29/12 at 8:37pm

It's worth saying that Huey is only loosely loosely loosely based on Dewey Phillips (and a little bit on Alan Freed). The show's a pretty far cry from being biographical. I agree -- doesn't matter as far as my feelings on the show (or the characterization, for that matter), but felt it worth mentioning since it came up. If you Google around there are some interesting audio recordings of Phillips on the radio.

[yankeefan7]

Posted: 6/30/12 at 8:23am

BigMamaSangTenor- I saw it last summer with original cast. Montgomery Glover's performance is worth the price of admission, ensemble cast is quite good also. I don't get the Chad Kimball bashing, thought he did a good job potraying a eccentric charachter. I love Adam Pascal and sure he will be fantastic vocally in this role. Is it the best musical I ever saw, the answer is no but it still was entertaining and think you will have a good time.

[Jon]

Posted: 6/30/12 at 9:00am

I've decided that Kimball must have based his performance on Ernest T. Bass fromt he Andy Griffith Show. See the link below:
Ernest T. Bass

[CockeyedOptimist2]

Posted: 6/30/12 at 9:03am

Have nothing to add to this discussion as I haven't seen Memphis, but I do love anybody how can make an Ernest T. Bass reference!

[ThatShortBlondeChick]

Posted: 7/1/12 at 9:01pm

I've just recently seen Memphis with Pascal as the lead. I thought his acting was phenomenal and the choreography was amazing. It's a good musical if your looking for something with a blues/rock score and a feel-good vibe throughout the performance.

[BigMamaSangTenor]

Posted: 7/4/12 at 10:18pm

Thanks for the feedback! :)

[JRybka]

Posted: 7/5/12 at 12:10pm

I had no desire to see it any of the times I have been to NY. Then, I saw it on netflix and really enjoyed it. I actually liked it much more then I thought I would. I have actually watched it a couple more times sense then.

[GilmoreGirlO2]

Posted: 1/8/13 at 12:45pm

Forgive me for resurrecting an older thread, but I recently watched “Memphis” on Netflix and was reading old discussion threads on it and thought it would be better to revive one than start another, as some of the issues I had with it are discussed in this thread.

Overall, the show was bland, all the songs sounded the same, and the flow was extremely odd (especially the transition into the ending song). It should not have a Tony to its name, but I understand that there was not much competition that year. It is clear they were trying to say something important, but I think they could have achieved this better if they took themselves a little lighter and just let the story say what it needed to, instead of the entire show making it clear what we were supposed to take away from it.

My biggest, issue, however, was Chad Kimball. While I don’t think he was making fun of the mentally disabled, I went through the show actually thinking the character was supposed to be mentally disabled and, at some point, it would be revealed. When that didn’t happen and I realized this was just an acting choice, it angered me, as it was extremely distracting (particularly his speaking).

I was completely surprised by the article that says Chad had a “sneaky charm” and, therefore, good sexual tension with Montego Glover, because while I was watching the show I also genuinely thought that Felicia was using him to get on the radio (or, if it wasn’t a conscious choice, that was the main thing that attracted her to Huey), due to the fact that I could not fathom why Felicia would ever find Huey (in the way that Chad portrayed it) attractive. He came off as a slow, 13 year old boy and I didn’t believe Felicia would see anything in him. From the reviews I have read of Adam’s portrayal, it seems like it would make much more sense why Felicia is drawn to him.

Bettyboy, further up this thread, says that Chad’s portrayal “was not developmentally disabled, but rather emotionally stunted, introverted and rebellious.” I agree that Huey is emotionally stunted (which, perhaps, Pascal’s Huey may have not been emotionally stunted enough), but I do think what Chad was doing was more on the mentally disabled side. I missed the “eccentricity” of the character (it didn’t come off quirky to me) because of this. And, if what he was doing was emotionally stunted, then I don’t think the writing supports Huey being stunted to that degree.

Perhaps what upsets me the most is that it is clear that Chad is a great actor, I just could not get on board with this acting choice (and it was such an extreme acting choice that it made it extremely hard to look past). He had some great, genuine moments, but I was unable to fully appreciate them, as while those moments made sense for the written character, they made no sense for the character that Chad was portraying.

I’m intrigued if this choice began with Chad or if he was directed toward it.

[Pauly3]

Posted: 1/8/13 at 3:40pm

As stated previously, I wasn't all too impressed by my first viewing of Memphis on Netflix, but I didn't think it was bland. After several more viewings (mostly on Blu-ray) and now two instances of seeing the live show (not with Chad), I have found Memphis to be anything but bland. Watching the Blu-ray, on a big screen with a decent sound system, is often very different than watching on Netflix. Seeing it live is completely different.

Regarding Chad Kimball's choices in portraying a fictional character, why must Huey be mentally disabled (or revealed to be) to prevent you from being angry? If it was written in to reveal a mental disability, would that make it better for you?

I work with some very quirky people, and they are people many of us like and get along with very much. The fact you're angry because of an acting choice to be quirky is, if not completely offensive, bordering on it. I'm offended for the friends I have that are quirky. They are good hearted honest people, much like Huey was portrayed by Chad Kimball.

Don't like the show and feel free to disagree with the way Huey is played, fine. But being angered by it? Perhaps you used the wrong term?

[GilmoreGirlO2]

Posted: 1/9/13 at 9:19am

I am sure I would be able to appreciate the singing and dancing more in the theatre, but the basic written story I think is weak and flawed.

And, regarding Chad’s portrayal of Huey, I think you misunderstood me.

What made me angry was that the way he played the character was extremely distracting. When I thought the character had a mental disability, I thought this distraction played a purpose. When I realized this was not the case, it angered me that someone who has the talent Chad clearly has choose such an extreme to play (that I do not think is supported by the book) that I was distracted the whole show and unable to accept or believe the events of the show due to that one choice. It angers me that I think Chad could have been really great in the show had he not taken this choice to such an extreme (an extreme to where I honestly was not able to even understand the character).

Please understand, being “quirky” is not the issue here at all. (If we didn’t love quirky people, I don’t think any of us would be interested in or doing theatre!) If I got the impression that what Chad was playing as Huey was quirky, I would have had no issue (as I said in my previous post, it didn’t come off quirky to me) – obviously, Huey is written to be quirky. That is his charm, that is a reason Felicia is attracted to him, that’s how got to be where he got to be. And, therein lies my issue with Chad’s portrayal: to me, his portrayal did not come off quirky, it came off as though there was something mentally off with him.

I’m sorry if my review made you think I was damning anyone who is quirky or tries to play a character outside the box – this was not my intention or thoughts at all. I appreciate both, but just did not get that from Chad’s performance. And, like I said, he is such a talent, it did anger me that that talent wasn’t put to good use, in my opinion (he had some really excellent moments, but where he excelled seemed to be in such contrast with the character he was playing, I didn’t believe it for his portrayal of Huey. Had he toned it down, those moments would have gelled extremely well and what I would have taken away from the character would have been much different).

Obviously, to each his own, this was just my experience with Chad’s Huey.

[Roscoe]

Posted: 1/9/13 at 9:42am

I saw the show fairly late in previews, and can say that Kimball's performance was, at that stage, at least somewhat connected to something approaching actual human behavior: the guy was a bit of a cartoon, but he was supposed to be a bit larger than life anyway. It kind of worked, even if I never for a minute understood what on earth Montego Glover's character saw in him.

The video on Netflix was made toward the end of Kimball's Broadway run, when he'd just gone completely over the top, coming off like some brain-damaged version of George W. Bush. I found it just plain unwatchable.

[beautywickedlover]

Posted: 1/9/13 at 11:27am

I say the national tour in May 2012 and I really enjoyed it. The performances were excellent and so was the music. I also thought the book was very well-done.

[Becky]

Posted: 1/9/13 at 8:21pm

My distraction in Chad's performance was his addition of this hum/moan sound at the end of words and phrases. "Memphis-uh"

Otherwise I could have really liked him.

[Pauly3]

Posted: 1/9/13 at 9:45pm

Understood. Well, sort of. To each his own, absolutely. But I don't understand some of the hatred aimed at Chad (by more than just one or two) or really the simple dislike - or reasons for it. To me, Chad was very clearly simply quirky. Yes, he was illiterate and may lack social skills - and he had some pretty strange mannerisms. I can see why that can be distracting. I don't find it difficult to get past it though. I also don't see it as a poor choice from an acting or directional perspective. But that's just another opinion.

For those who like the degree of quirkyness portrayed - or at least aren't bothered by it, I don't think it unreasonable to find it endearing at times. Those nice genuine momements that don't include so much quirk seem to work really well....but maybe that's because he is, outwardly, somewhat pathetic. It turns out he isn't so pathetic when he becomes impassioned, such as when he evolves into something more than an uneducated "picked on" type when he talks (sings) about music or when he becomes so attentive to Felicia. He's kind and passionate and doesn't understand (fully) issues with race. Kind of endearing....and what I think Felicia sees in him.

[zamedy]

Posted: 1/9/13 at 10:41pm

Saw the tour last year and absolutely fell in love with the show. I went back the following night to see it again before it closed. Bryan Fenkart and Felicia Boswell were amazing in their roles, and I absolutely loved the actress who played Huey's mother. I later saw the show on Netflix. And for me, I enjoyed the performance of the tour cast much more.

[ggersten]

Posted: 1/10/13 at 11:19am

Memphis is the Illinois High School Theatrefest "all state" production this year and opens today at the University of Illinois campus.

[kikki327]

Posted: 1/10/13 at 6:54pm

I think the fact that the Huey Chad created was so different and strange was what made it so much better. He was nominated for a Tony for this role....so he obviously did it well.

Chad is at the theatrefest in Illinois right now! He visited the kids during their rehearsals a few months ago too. That must be so cool for them to experience.

[JohnyBroadway]

Posted: 1/11/13 at 9:52am

I saw the tour and loved it! The cast was top notch. Watched the taped production of Netflix did not love it. I preferred ben's more controlled performance of dewie much more, and Felicia a much stronger singer than montego. The tour cast executed the material much better. Strange, the show's, always seem much more fresher than their Broadway counterparts.