Anyone seeing the first preview of FENCES tonight?

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 3:50pm

I'll be there tomorrow and am very excited!

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 3:52pm

I'll be there tonight. I love this play so much and I'm really looking forward to seeing it.

[Broadwaygal5]

Posted: 4/14/10 at 4:15pm

Please report back....I won't be seeing this until next Friday and I've been waiting years for Fences to resurface. I'm especially looking forward to seeing Viola Davis again!

[somethingwicked]

Posted: 4/15/10 at 1:00am

Any reports?

If Viola Davis is as incredible as she has been in her last two August Wilson plays on Broadway, we're in for one hell of a performance.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/15/10 at 9:20am

If anyone saw it, what was the running time?

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 4/15/10 at 11:24am

Was there last night. I think we got out around 10:20 or 10:30, but it started maybe 10 minutes late. The line to get in was CRAZY. It was around the block and it moved fairly slowly. I'm sure they'll figure out how to move people in quickly as the run goes on.

As for this production I found it to be pretty uneven. Denzel is doing a pretty good job, but he hasn't put many levels into the character (yet). He definitely is high-spirited and full of energy, but everything is delivered on the same plane, and during the big showdown with Rose he starts at such a fevered pitch that he doesn't have anywhere to go.

Viola Davis is a little too understated in act 1, but she really performs nicely in act 2. Her side of the argument was great, even if at odds with Denzel. The supporting cast is fine, but this is clearly the Denzel show and not an ensemble piece.

I LOVED Joe Turner's last year so much, and thought the acting and direction were superb. Fences isn't a cohesive production quite yet, mostly importantly because the actors don't seem to be on the same page.

The audience certainly didn't help my concentration either. At times I felt like I was at a taping of Jerry Springer, like when ***SPOILER*** Troy says I'm going to be a daddy ***end SPOILER*** and people in the audience are saying "Uh-Uh!!" and "That's not right!". I don't think people should have to sit on their hands when they're at the theater, but I don't understand the talking back to the stage.

Overall I thought it was alright to good, but the production never moved into the greatness catagory. The audience seemed pleased at the end, but I think they were ready to love whatever Denzel was in before the lights went down.

[somethingwicked]

Posted: 4/15/10 at 11:28am

Whizzer, do you think this could be a Tony for Davis?

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 4/15/10 at 11:46am

Right now I think the Featured Actress in a Play Tony is pretty wide open, so I definitely think Davis has a good shot. She surely will be nominated.

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 4/15/10 at 11:48am

FENCES is my favorite August Wilson play by far, so I was very excited to see this production. It is not perfect, but it is definitely a crowd pleaser...and the performances will definitely improve.

I quite liked Denzel. He is not giving a "brilliant" performance, but he is playing to his audience, who totally ate him up. He had tons of energy and he knew all the lines perfectly...he has definitely been working on this for a while. It appeared to me that he has also gained some weight for this role. At age 55 though, he looks incredible. The people going to see this for the sole reason of seeing Denzel on stage will not be disappointed.

Viola Davis was kind of bland in Act 1, but really came alive in Act 2. You could tell that she was bottling up all her emotions for this huge outburst in Act 2 (so I assume her subdued performance in Act 1 was a character choice). Do I think she will win the Tony? She will probably be nominated, but my vote would probably go to Jessica Hecht for A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE. Viola's possible Tony Award will probably depend on the reviews - the fact that her show will still be running come Tony time, does put her at an advantage.

Of the supporting cast, Stephen McKinley Henderson probably fared best (he has redeemed himself from his horrendous performance in DRACULA). I also liked Chris Chalk as Cory. Russell Hornsby as Lyons was just OK, but Mykelti Williamson as Gabriel was way too over-the-top. I actually thought he was awful, and his performance ruined the end of the play for me.

The production itself was fine. It was a bit long, but as the performances go on, I'm sure it will tighten up. The absolute worst part of last night, though, was the audience. The texting and the cell phones going off is bad enough, but talking back to the actors and commenting out loud is just not appropriate. It was very distracting and took me out of the moment for some parts of the play. We are at the theater, not in someone's living room. However, I fear that this type of audience behavior will be going on the entire run of this show...so beware.

One thing is certain though - this show will be the third hit in a row for the Cort Theater. This should be the new "celebrity theater." All the shows here would do very well. If Cynthia Nixon's PRIVATE LIVES comes to Broadway, it should take the Cort.

[bjh2114]

Posted: 4/15/10 at 11:51am

If Cynthia Nixon's PRIVATE LIVES comes to Broadway, it should take the Cort.

I assume you mean Kim Cattrall...?

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 4/15/10 at 11:52am

Sorry Kim Cattrall. I knew it was one of the SATC girls...she is probably a big enough star to sell out 12 weeks at the Cort.
Updated On: 4/15/10 at 11:52 AM

[theatreguy]

Posted: 4/15/10 at 12:06pm

"The audience certainly didn't help my concentration either. At times I felt like I was at a taping of Jerry Springer, like when ***SPOILER*** Troy says I'm going to be a daddy ***end SPOILER*** and people in the audience are saying "Uh-Uh!!" and "That's not right!". I don't think people should have to sit on their hands when they're at the theater, but I don't understand the talking back to the stage."

"The absolute worst part of last night, though, was the audience. The texting and the cell phones going off is bad enough, but talking back to the actors and commenting out loud is just not appropriate. It was very distracting and took me out of the moment for some parts of the play. We are at the theater, not in someone's living room. However, I fear that this type of audience behavior will be going on the entire run of this show...so beware."

Here we go again . . . Don't we go through this every time there's a show with a predominantly black cast on Broadway? It's a cultural thing - not unlike attending a church service.

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 4/15/10 at 12:15pm

theatreguy, talking back to the actors, texting in the theater, and making comments out loud are not appropriate behavior for any theatrical performance, regardless of what race you are. the fact is that we are not in church, we are not in someone's living room, we are not at a sporting event - we are watching a live Broadway performance. yes, we can laugh, we can gasp, we can react, but the audience last night was very distracting...just stating my honest opinion.

[chenothegood]

Posted: 4/15/10 at 12:24pm

I hope this doesnt come out wrong... but when i saw The Color Purple the same thing happened there. There were some women who got up and were like "you tell 'em girl" and stuff like that! It was kind of funny but definitely took something away from the production!

[Smaxie]

Posted: 4/15/10 at 12:33pm

The same thing happened at the original Fences in 1987 - just without cell phones added to the mix.

[Brick]

Posted: 4/15/10 at 12:57pm

Good to know, Smaxie.

And I'm a bleeding heart liberal, and I'll tell you it was a noticeably different experience at the recent CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF revival. Each intermission seemed 25 minutes long and it was the only show i've ever seen where the loud-speaker had to tell everyone to take their seats 2 or 3 times each intermission. My date was appalled.

That's what happens when people succeed at the perceived holy grail, "getting people in that don't usually go to the theatre".

[Gypsy9]

Posted: 4/15/10 at 7:39pm

At the performance of THE COLOR PURPLE that I attended, there was none of the talking out loud by the audience that has been mentioned above. I am seeing FENCES in three weeks and hope that my fellow 2nd Balcony patrons remain quiet. But I am aware that I have been forewarned. I wonder how the actors feel about this!

[Cape Twirl of Doom]

Posted: 4/16/10 at 12:42am

It's not simply a "Black thing." It's a "people coming to the theatre for the first time who don't know how to behave themselves thing." I've never seen this obnoxious audience talk-back crap at any Off-Broadway show I've seen that featured Black casts and related storylines, because the people that go to those are predominately theatre fans. But open a show on Broadway starring a hugely famous Black celebrity, or a show that tourists come to see by the busload, and you get the people who only come to see the stars and who think they can behave the same way they do in their living room.

[actionjaxson91]

Posted: 4/16/10 at 12:43am

"At the performance of THE COLOR PURPLE that I attended, there was none of the talking out loud by the audience that has been mentioned above."


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OP122JqapE8

[hpeabody930]

Posted: 4/16/10 at 12:56am

That is actually appalling. Wow.

[uncageg]

Posted: 4/16/10 at 8:38am

Action, it was Fantasia. I hear it happened a lot while she was in the show. I saw The Color Purple with the original cast and there was none of that. Not to say it may not have happened but that video, which is a bootleg and probably should not have been posted here, doesn't mean it happened at every performance.

[Elke]

Posted: 4/18/10 at 2:43pm

Didn't want to start another Fences topic, so I'll just ask here... How are the sightlines? I prefer to be up close and I'm being offered seats BB6 (front row) and B9 (third row).

Would these be ok or should I check for a seat a bit further back? Thanks

[wdwfreak]

Posted: 4/27/10 at 6:35am

Does anyone know if Denzel comes out to the stagedoor?