Anyone going to see Wonderland this week?- Page 13

[Anakela]

Posted: 4/15/11 at 12:02pm

Also naturally awkward - Kate Shindle got a bit of an applauded entrance today. Very bizarre for the musical's villian to get entrance applause.

I've been there before when that's happened (and no it wasn't just me :)) Cheering on villains is fun!

I absolutely adore the the scene where Alice dances with El Gato. That is just plain adorable!!!

Favorite! The dancing, plus also Janet's facial expressions in this scene are the best. I wish they would've done a promo photo of Janet in the lift from this scene, I love that part.

OMG I almost forgot to add...yes Allstate is still there!!! ;P

Hahaha. Is it wrong that I'm starting to like that line just because of how much everyone else hates it?


New interview w/ Darren Ritchie up on broadway.com:
What’s Up Darren Ritchie? Wonderland’s White Knight Talks Wearing Tights and the Wonders of Wildhorn

[kyle4]

Posted: 4/15/11 at 12:40pm

i thought it was soooo fun and cute...

i hope they organized act II better... i will see it again for sure...

darren ritchie is cuter than cute...HOTTER than HOT !!!

here is what i thought of the show after the FIRST PREVIEW !!!

http://thetheaterbuff.typepad.com/the-theater-buff/2011/03/wonderland-first-preview-thoughts.html


today is my day off from the GYM !!!!!

HURRAH !!!!!

[trentsketch]

Posted: 4/15/11 at 7:39pm

The awkward part last night wasn't the entrance applause for Kate Shindle, but Janet's superfans in the front row who lost their cool when she first came on stage. She got one foot through the door before they started hooting.

I know the book has changed since "Don't Wanna Fall In Love" was in the show, but how was that song actually used in the show? Was it more of a straightforward romance between Alice and The White Knight at that point?

[Testing1232]

Posted: 4/15/11 at 8:00pm

Anyone else going to the opening ?

Just got (2) tix to take my lil one-- (her 1st opening-- dad is so proud..LOL)

Had no idea they had a $35 tic discount code- (mezz) !!

[GatorNY]

Posted: 4/15/11 at 8:47pm

I'm going too, I think Mezz H 115 or something like that. Looking forward to it.

[Testing1232]

Posted: 4/15/11 at 8:56pm

We're in Mezz E--- Cant wait !!

[Anakela]

Posted: 4/15/11 at 9:29pm

I know the book has changed since "Don't Wanna Fall In Love" was in the show, but how was that song actually used in the show? Was it more of a straightforward romance between Alice and The White Knight at that point?

You used to meet Jack during Worst Day of My Life too, as a real person, (Alice's husband, he'd just signed the divorce papers), before meeting him as the White Knight in Wonderland.

Don't Wanna Fall in Love came before Love Begins, back to back in the second act, as the Alice/Jack 'falling back in love' segment, for lack of a better way to describe it- that was Tampa 2009.

Then in Houston 2010 they removed Don't Wanna, and kept Love Begins, but moved Love Begins up to Act I, so the Alice/Jack 'falling back in love' happened sooner. (My personal favorite.)

Then in Tampa 2011 they took out Love Begins, and put back in Don't Wanna, also now in Act I, but instead of a 'falling back in love' type segment it kind of became a 'yeah, this is why love sucks' number (it had some of the same lyrics, but was just so much *angrier* now, and ended with Alice and the WHite Knight going separate ways at the end of it.)

Sorry, convoluted answer, but hope that helped.

See y'all at opening, I guess!

[philly03]

Posted: 4/16/11 at 4:13pm

They still play "Don't Wanna Fall in Love" at the box office, which I thought was strange. (Good song, it's definitely the "fan favourite" cut song of the show)

As Anakela put it, and to build on it, the script was a bit loose in the first Tampa go around at this point - The White Knight says something like you're obviously falling in love with me like everyone else which sparked it. Then they say "I wish we could go back in time," and then "Love Begins" was supposed to be a type of flashback (which worked regardless if it was a flashback or hapenning in the present - something that was never clarified depending on who you asked). There was a projection of a clock going backwards on one of the doors or she had the watch - can't remember.

The other versions were very romantic, then Tampa '11 basically cut out the romance and made it a mother-daughter story about finding yourself and now on Broadway it's basically a finding yourself story.

I know I'm not alone in the missing the love aspect of the story, certainly added something more interesting going on (and two great numbers). I recently read an article with one of the producers from TBPAC who said "we added a kiss" as if they knew it was missing something.

Seems like they are finally saying in the interviews that (shocker) Darren & Janet are together and met during the show!

[goldenboy]

Posted: 4/16/11 at 4:36pm

Wildhorn has a hit on his hands.
Wonderland is not it.
The quicker this folds the better although admittedly, I have seen worse musicals: Marlowe, Doctor Jazz, Musical Chairs, Nefertiti, Titanic, In the Heights.

I am not a Wildhorn hater. Just a Wonderland hater.

Bonnie and Clyde will be Wildhorn's secret revenge.
Look out Broadway for Bonnie and Clyde.

[thismyshow]

Posted: 4/16/11 at 11:13pm

quick thoughts on Wonderland: having seen it in tampa 2 years ago i knew I was walking into a potential mess. you would have thought 2 years of working on it would have made it better, wrong. its an even more terrible cliche predictable mess of a pop culture joke landing flat ill advised character choice of a show. (avoid)

[jasonf]

Posted: 4/17/11 at 12:38pm

We saw it yesterday afternoon for the first time. I liked the music a lot, but I think the book is a mess. The overall story/concept is strong, but so much of the dialogue is cheesy, and parts of it just don't really make sense. For example, Off With His Head -- decent song, but it has NOTHING to do with anything - it's just kind of stuck in there. The whole thing with what I guess was Lewis Carroll was not clear at all.

I get that the whole thing is in Alice's head, but I think THAT concept could be made a lot clearer.

The dancing Alice's at the start make NO sense - they serve no purpose at all. Is Alice (as in our main character) the Alice from the book? On the concept she's related to Alice Liddell - not so any more.

It's very clear that this is in the tradition of The Wizard of Oz - hell, they even reference it - but if so, why not do it correctly and actually SHOW The White Knight as Jack early? The Queen of Hearts is supposed to be the villain because her mother in law is a pain in the ass, but the Queen hardly does anything in the show at all!

I also REALLY dislike the White Rabbit. The character is irritating. The clock thing is inconsistent -- it just seems to turn back whatever is convenient for the plot. The knights turned back, but nothing else? How did that work?

The March Hare suddenly "turns" good, and everyone trusts him? How does that make sense?

The Cat and Caterpillar, after their initial introductions, serve almost no purpose in the plot. Either make them relevant, or get rid of them.

I feel like the line between Alice and Hatter being opposites should have been made much more obvious to the audience right from the start and could have been done easily through costume choices or through some other means of behavior. As it is, it's like "oh, by the way, we're opposites."

Like I said, I did like a lot of the songs, and the performances, for what there is to work with, are pretty strong. I love the concept for the show, but the book needs another going over...

[philly03]

Posted: 4/17/11 at 1:17pm

Like I said - the Lewis Carroll bit makes no sense at this point. Previous incarnations Alice had writer's block and was RELATED to him (or Alice herself, I'm forgetting)... Now it's just a nice song (now with a huge ending on it - typical Wildhorn) that serves as a lazy plot device to make Alice meet her inner child.

Jack was shown early previously, but not anymore. I suppose these writers wanted it to be "surprise."


Glad you liked the tunes - some of Frank's best songs are in this score!

[jasonf]

Posted: 4/17/11 at 1:23pm

Problem is, anyone with a brain knows The White Knight is her husband. It's not a surprise, so why not make the story more cohesive by just making the link earlier?

The thing that's been driving me crazy since we saw it is that it really doesn't seem like it would be that hard to tighten this up with some tweaks. Maybe the writers have been at it too long and are too close - they need someone else to come in and fix it?

[philly03]

Posted: 4/17/11 at 2:28pm

Whose saying that someone didn't come in to fix it?

The first go around had Jack divorce Alice at the start of the show while she wasn't at home, at a rooftop party celebrating her "fabulous career" hosted by the boss Mrs. Everheart with her assistant Maddie provoking that Alice didn't have it anymore (Mason/Queen, and Snelson/Hatter). People didn't like it because the scene clocked in around 12 or 13 minutes before she even got to the elevator!

I also refuse to believe that Jack Murphy wrote the seemingly unlyrical new Mad Hatter lyrics. Murphy's lyrics may be questionable but they always atleast flow to the music!

"Off With Their Heads" used to be sung at the jail at the top of Act II, btw! I have no idea what's going on with where it is, is that her chamber or something? Bizarre! Updated On: 4/17/11 at 02:28 PM

[Testing1232]

Posted: 4/17/11 at 9:31pm

Just back from the opening-- had a blast !!

Linda Eder was standing right in front of us, waiting to go in (taller than I thought !)

[Anakela]

Posted: 4/28/11 at 4:51pm

For those wanting to get a Morgan James as Alice fix, she's singing "Finding Wonderland" at the Tribeca Family Festival Street Fair this Saturday-

Cast members from the Broadway musical Wonderland will perform on Saturday, April 30 at 11:30am. The event is part of the Tribeca Family Festival Street Fair, an all-day downtown celebration.

Two numbers from the show will be featured: Morgan James will perform "Finding Wonderland" and E. Clayton Cornelious, April Berry, Sae La Chin, Mallauri Esquibel, Lauren Lim Jackson, Heather Parcells and Tanairi Sade Vazquez will sing "Advice From a Caterpillar." The performance will be offered on the Festival's Main Stage on the corner of N. Moore and Greenwich Streets.
Wonderland Cast Members Set for April 30 Tribeca Family Festival Street Fair

[Testing1232]

Posted: 4/28/11 at 6:02pm

Her "Finding Wonderland" is beyond amazing !!!

[Anakela]

Posted: 4/29/11 at 12:25am

Excited! I don't think I'm going to be able to make her Birdland gig, so I am definitely going to try and least catch her "Finding Wonderland" on Saturday.

And, the most hilarious thing in my life right now- the boy band has their own website. The four fellow knights have names and everything. I am dying. (edit because it's The White Knightz, with a 'z'. Dying even more.)

The White Knightz Updated On: 5/1/11 at 12:25 AM

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 4/29/11 at 1:44am

^

That's brilliant.

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 4/29/11 at 3:09am

I have a question. I will be traveling to New York this summer, and I was wondering if anyone thinks this show is honestly worth seeing. I want to see the show, but after reading everything on here, I'm not sure. I have heard an audio of the first Broadway preview, and I like the music. I also want to go for the special effects and design elements (sounds weird, I know, but I'm majoring in theatre and design and I want to see a variety of set designs in the shows I see). If anyone who has seen the show could weigh in, I would greatly appreciate it!

[Testing1232]

Posted: 4/29/11 at 12:44pm

That is hysterical !!!!

My daughter runs around the house all day saying "resume"-

(her fave line from the song)

[philly03]

Posted: 4/29/11 at 1:43pm

bwayphreak:

The show is vastly different (& better) from the first preview. A lot of tightening and some scene changes were done that really benefits it. It's certainly a crowd pleaser, but you might as well go in thinking it's a concert with costumes with no story and you'll enjoy it.

The music remains the highlight of the show (including restoring the boy-band's Act II number "Together" as opposed to making it an awful production number), and the costumes by Susan Hilferty are a delight to look at. Marguerite Derricks will unfortunately probably be overlooked by the Tonys, but her choreography is also incredible.

The design seems to be 50/50 for most, but the way the projections infuse upon the set make it look full & rich. The elevator scene is particularly interesting to note!

[Anakela]

Posted: 4/29/11 at 4:27pm

BWW TV: You Asked...Kate Shindle Answers Fan Questions! (TV Content)

[DeCyberac]

Posted: 4/29/11 at 6:18pm

Morgan has her own show on May 9th at 7pm! Ain't No Way you should ever miss Morgan James. ;D http://www.birdlandjazz.com/event/35919/ www.morganjames.org
Morgan Live

[Anakela]

Posted: 5/1/11 at 12:04pm

Her "Finding Wonderland" is beyond amazing !!!

It truly is glorious-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzyK-Bqaa64

And, I try not to be one of those "omg her Twitter said..." types, but:
http://twitter.com/morganajames/status/64360640617259008