BEETLEJUICE - Pre-Broadway Tryout in DC- Page 8

[orangeskittles]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 1:35pm

This cast is too white. There is no reason why 8 out of 9 speaking roles should be cast with white actors in 2018. Especially glaring when every minority ensemble member is regulated to the R&B boy band bit.

Book needs to be funnier, but I guess that's what they're workshopping. Some jokes fell completely flat with no reaction. Beetlejuice as a character is very unevenly written. It's not Alex Brightman's fault, it's the material. Sometimes, the humor was great (One of my biggest laughs was the "F*CK Brigadoon" moment), but more often than not, it fell flat for me. It's like they're trying to figure out what type of humor to imitate, so they're just throwing it all in at once.

As others have said, score is an issue. Too many songs in Act 1. They could have cut the Maitlands' song in half; we already know they're going to die. I wasn't a fan of the song with Delia and Lydia singing about the universe. I didn't find the Netherworld boy band bit funny enough to justify the song.

All that said, design of the show is totally on point Burton-esque, Sophia Anne Caruso is great as Lydia and Dead Mom is a banger. If they fix the bad, it could be good.


There was a line toward the end where the audience groaned and Alex reacted to it like he didn’t expect it.

The "Now we both have dead moms" line? He did the same thing last night. I laughed.

Updated On: 10/24/18 at 01:35 PM

[darquegk]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 2:24pm

There's a weird racial undercurrent to the show that I'm not entirely sure works- but the original film "Beetlejuice" is VERY much a satire of whiteness, from the Americana hipster Maitlands to the cold, stylized and artificial "cultural" world of the Deetzes and their big-city ilk. Delia and her friends are perpetually dressing in stylized, chilly appropriations and revisions of ethnic clothes from around the world, complete with near-Kabuki makeup for the dinner party scene. It's the bottom-level bedrock of the "Day-O sequence:" stuffy white people lip-syncing and dancing to a faux-primitive black calypso. (Beetlejuice, in the film script, is written as a "shifty little Arabic guy," the better to emphasize his role as an outsider. Michael Keaton improvised an almost entirely different script for every scene Beetlejuice appears in.)

[freewilma]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 3:57pm

Book needs to be funnier, but I guess that's what they're workshopping. Some jokes fell completely flat with no reaction. Beetlejuice as a character is very unevenly written. It's not Alex Brightman's fault, it's the material. Sometimes, the humor was great (One of my biggest laughs was the "F*CK Brigadoon" moment), but more often than not, it fell flat for me. It's like they're trying to figure out what type of humor to imitate, so they're just throwing it all in at once.

Totally agree with this.  I'm all for crude humor if it's clever and actually funny.  There were many lines by Beetlejuice in the the opening song that felt rushed or I had difficulty hearing.  Alex is working hard to make the very most of the material...but it just needs some punching-up and polish.  The humor that worked the best for my group were the Broadway inside jokes...but those may not resonate quite as much with the tourist crowd.  

[orangeskittles]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 7:13pm

darquegk said: "There's a weird racial undercurrent to the show that I'm not entirely sure works- but the original film "Beetlejuice" is VERY much a satire of whiteness, from the Americana hipster Maitlands to the cold, stylized and artificial "cultural" world of the Deetzes and their big-city ilk. Delia and her friends are perpetually dressing in stylized, chilly appropriations and revisions of ethnic clothes from around the world, complete with near-Kabuki makeup for the dinner party scene. It's the bottom-level bedrock of the "Day-O sequence:" stuffy white people lip-syncing and dancing to a faux-primitive black calypso. (Beetlejuice, in the film script, is written as a "shifty little Arabic guy," the better to emphasize his role as an outsider. Michael Keaton improvised an almost entirely different script for every scene Beetlejuice appears in.)"

Yeah, none of that is in the musical.

The Maitlands are just squares who died before they accomplished anything. You could have the actor who plays Chidi on The Good Place play Adam Maitland and get the same effect. Their race is inconsequential to the story.

I don't recall anything being mentioned about the Deetzes as big city arts people. Delia is just a ditzy life coach who redecorates the house with modern art. Charles Deetz has a totally different vibe than his movie counterpart.

The Deans are the only speaking guests at the dinner party- both white actors- but the ensemble with minority actors is also there, so it's not just stuffy white people dancing. Otho isn't in this scene either.

No offense to any of the actors in these roles, they were fine, but I don't buy that casting notices went out and the best person for every role just happened to be white save the Asian guru.

[LightsOut90]

Posted: 10/24/18 at 11:01pm

seems the picture of the merch earlier in the thread was deleted, would anyone mind reposting with prices perhaps, just curious

[OKBroadwayFan]

Posted: 10/25/18 at 11:08am

LightsOut90 said: "seems the picture of the merch earlier in the thread was deleted, would anyone mind reposting with prices perhaps, just curious"

I don't have a picture.   

Prices:

Logo Tee $30.00

Strange and Unusual Tee $30.00

Zip Hoodie $60.00

Dad hat $30.00

Magnet $10

Keychain $10

Color Changing Mug $20

Recently Deceased Notebook $20

Tote Bag $20

Windowcard $20

The merchandise had "Washington DC" on it.  

[curel1]

Posted: 10/25/18 at 5:49pm

Kerry Butler on twitter said lots of changes going in tonight.

[taylortrensch]

Posted: 10/25/18 at 6:37pm

ok sorry for the repost but the person who offered to help backed out on me so...

i'm looking for someone to purchase some merch from the show for me! i'll paypal you in advance for the merch and the cost of shipping (should fit into a priority mail flate rate box). so if you think this is do-able for you please let me know !! if i could fly to the us and purchase it myself trust me i would 

Updated On: 10/25/18 at 06:37 PM

[WhiJo Bloom]

Posted: 10/25/18 at 6:43pm

I’ll be at the show tonight! First time seeing it as I happened to be in DC for work, so I won’t be able to tell if there are changes, but will report on how it goes!!!

I’ll take merchandise and show curtain pictures as well! SO EXCITED

[WhiJo Bloom]

Posted: 10/25/18 at 6:45pm

Btw, not sure if this has been mentioned, but I got my orchestra seat through TodayTix.

I just picked it up at the box office and got Orchestra Left Row P for $69 - same price as some of the balcony seats were going for

[Bwayfan292]

Posted: 10/25/18 at 6:59pm

Taylortrensch,

If you have ebay theres a windowcard/playbill bundle for $14.99, I saw when I looked it up!

[taylortrensch]

Posted: 10/25/18 at 7:02pm

Bwayfan292 said: "Taylortrensch,

If you have ebay theres a windowcard/playbill bundle for $14.99, I saw when I looked it up!"

thanks so much for letting me know!!! (:

[Sondheimite]

Posted: 10/26/18 at 7:40pm

Picture of the set/an article on the show

[Alex M]

Posted: 10/26/18 at 7:56pm

Has anyone seen the show multiple times since first preview? If so, Has anything big changed yet ?

Updated On: 10/26/18 at 07:56 PM

[YvanEhtNioj]

Posted: 10/26/18 at 8:24pm

Sondheimite said: "Picture of the set/an article on the show"

That set..oh my damn. It's very Tim Burton - looks straight out of a cartoon. I love it. I really want to see photos of the costumes. 

Updated On: 10/26/18 at 08:24 PM

[WhiJo Bloom]

Posted: 10/27/18 at 12:31pm

Okay finally got around to sitting down and writing my thoughts while traveling back home, sorry for the delay haha.

For starters I didn’t necessarily mind that Beetlejuice starts off the show - my bigger issue was that the opening number wasn’t all that interesting. It only served to give BJ some raunchy lines and literally say it’s a show about death, besides that it doesn’t add anything to the start of the show.

Alex was awesome as Beetlejuice, he had some really funny one-liners, but a lot fell flat. Maybe like 50/50? 75/25 max? He does a great job at milking it though when the audience is eating it up. A lot of his songs sound more or less the same, but standouts to me were the song where he teaches the Maitlands how to be scary, and the Act 2 opener.

Kerry Butler and Rob McClure were fantastic as Barbara and Adam but often times they’re underutilized. Especially when they’re trying to learn how to scare and they’re just making scary faces it’s a little underwhelming. But they were as cute and naive you’d expect Barbara and Adam to be, which I loved. They kind of reminded me of Brad and Janet from Rocky Horror.

Sophie as Lidia absolutely blew me away. Honestly she could sing to me all day and I’d be happy. She was a perfect Lidia, captured the “strange and unusual” goth perfectly but you still felt for her. She had a couple of great songs as well and I feel like she has the meatiest part to work with.

Leslie as Delia was the highlight for me - I thought she had the funniest material, always commanded attention to her in all of her scenes, and when she was on you knew she was going to deliver. I actually loved her duet song with Lidia (I know someone mentioned that they hadn’t), I thought their juxtaposition with each other was hilarious. And Otho’s scenes with her were genius.

Lidia’s father, whose name escapes me right now, I think is a little too unlikeable, which is one big deviation from the film. In the film he’s a lot more sweet, making Delia the bigger “villain” to Lidia but I feel like it was almost reversed in the show. Towards the end he grows and gets a little more sentimental but I’m not sure the character choice worked - he barely elicited any reactions from the audience.

I actually liked a lot of the songs but to be honest I can’t remember the melody to any of them. There are a lot of songs but I didn’t mind the quantity. Boy Inferno I found really funny and all the references to the netherworld waiting room from the film got huge applause. Of course the Banana Boat song was the funniest scene/song by far, it was genius. I’m glad they have Jump in the Line in there at the end (which also got a ton of applause) but agree with previous posters that it’s a bit of a weak ending. I think the films ending where Lidia is coming back from school works a lot better.

As others have mentioned, the set and costumes are gorgeous and I feel like they used the space very well. Lots of entrances from the orchestra seats, full of energy, a couple of really gorgeous William Ivey Long pieces like Delia’s black and white checkered dress towards the end of the second act.

I stage doored after and there were me and about 7 other people, which was refreshing to not have to push and shove. Literally every member of the cast came out and talked to us, signed playbills/posters and took pictures, but they really took their time in getting our opinions. Many of them said it was the first performance with a lot of new changes and they were genuinely interested in getting feedback which was really special. Since it was my first time seeing the show I’m not really sure what the changes were, but two girls who were stage dooring said it was their third or fourth time there and that it was a lot different and better than the first previews.

In all, I loved it - it was such a unique, quirky and fulfilling theatrical experience. Visually stunning, some moments of brilliance, and I was actually pleasantly surprised with the music. The book can be a little tighter, but that’s exactly what their out of town tryout is meant for. It thought it was a great balance between new material and the films material, and I loved the nods to Tim Burton. I’ll definitely be going again in New York and I feel like New York audiences will really fall in love with it!

[bmfc1]

Posted: 10/28/18 at 12:21am

I've never posted here before but appreciate the comments and insights. I saw "Beetlejuice" tonight and loved it. There wasn't a song list in the Playbill but from looking at Wikipedia https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beetlejuice_(musical)

I THINK that 

• "Ready, Set, Let's Go (Reprise)" - Adam and Barbara

was not performed.  I'm not 100% sure but there was a solo ballad by BJ ("Invisible" during that spot but it might not have been reprised as listed.  

There might have been one too many songs early in the second act but the Boy Inferno song was wonderful and lifted the second act.  The first act duet with Delia and Lydia was magical.  The actress that played Delia was fantastic.  I'm not sure why some of the previous posters didn't like the opening song because it was the right length and got the show off to a great start.  "Day-O" is incredible and perfect.

The audience loved the show--a standing ovation.  This will be a Broadway hit.

 

 

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 10/28/18 at 9:55am

The audience loved the show--a standing ovation.

Every show gets a standing ovation.  Even those that have flopped — had a standing ovation at curtain call at every performance.  Countless Broadway legends, including Chita Rivera, say the genuine standing ovation no longer exists.  One person stands up and the rest of the audience follows.   

[bmfc1]

Posted: 10/28/18 at 10:45am

This one was earned.  

Updated On: 10/28/18 at 10:45 AM

[darquegk]

Posted: 10/28/18 at 11:27am

If the pictures don’t lie, this (even more than King Kong) is the best spectacle show in ages. Kong has the amazing puppet and not much else to offer, but this one seems to pack punch after punch.

[morosco]

Posted: 10/28/18 at 12:24pm

[Sho-Tunes-R-Us]

Posted: 10/28/18 at 4:18pm

morosco said: ""

Nice to see the set in perspective.  I was in row C orchestra for the third preview and mos def would have preferred to be seated mid-orchestra or front mezzanine.  As stated before (and in more detail), the show was fun, but I think act one needs tightening.

[MadsonMelo]

Posted: 10/29/18 at 1:39am

How is the view from Rear Mezz?

[Broadway Bob*]

Posted: 10/29/18 at 1:47am

I had tickets for the Sunday evening performance on November 18th - aka the final DC performance - and got an email:

"A message from (The National Theatre Washington, DC):

Dear National Theatre Patron:

We are writing to let you know of a schedule change of our Pre-Broadway musical BEETLEJUICE.  Based on the technical size of the production, we need to allow for more time to move the show out of the National Theatre and on to Broadway. As a result, we are unable to present the final performance on Sunday, November 18, 2018 at 7:30 pm as originally scheduled.   We hope you understand and that you will be able to exchange into any of our remaining performances between now and then."

SUPER bummed as that was literally the ONLY performance I could attend. And I had front row seats, which made my excitement even more! A full refund is on the way, but still majorly disappointed.

[Christoph]

Posted: 10/29/18 at 12:33pm

I saw it over the weekend.  Not as good as the film, but it has promise if they work some kinks out of the book.  The audience was a good eclectic mix of the old to kids with many in between and most seemed pretty into it. 

The music is decent if not exactly memorable.  Truthfully, the only song I could hum coming out was Day-O.  The sets, design and effects are stellar.  There were no issues with any of the technical aspects of the show - and I do not think I will ever forget the roasted pig terrorizing Delia in the Day-O number and then stopping to sing a bar of the song.  The puppetry was fantastic.  I also liked the mood of the theater when you walk in - the dim lights, the bizarro background music, and the dark purple and black stage curtain with the neon Betelguese sign and arrow.  The sandworms were also great.

I appreciate that the writers are trying to keep the show fresh by making changes from the film, but not all of the changes work in my opinion.  A lot of the stuff in Act II is new.  Characters like Juno and Otho do not even appear until well into Act II.  The whole point of Beetlejuice in the film was that he was a bio-exorcist that ghosts call to exorcise the living.  In the play, who or what Beetlejuice is and what his goals are change every couple of pages in the script.  The opening number nicely sets the stage and Sophia Ann Caruso (as Lydia) knocked the "Dead Mom" number out of the park.  In the play, Charles is not married to Delia.  Delia is Lydia's ineffectual life coach and she and Charles are having a secret affair until he ultimately proposes.  Act I ends with the disastrous dinner with Maxie Dean and the Day-O number.  Act II opens with Lydia puzzlingly living alone in the house with Beetlejuice and the ghosts with her helping to terrorize stray visitors - including an hysterical girl scout selling cookies that gets chased down the aisles.  Act II seems a bit off and heavier to me, as Lydia's interest in her dead mom really starts to weigh the play down and, as much as Caruso rocks the score, her Lydia is never as likable as the movie Lydia.  Indeed, she seems a bit bratty and psychotic.  I also did not particularly like the addition of a dead boy band being the welcome wagon to the netherworld - I found their number really tiresome and too long.

The biggest change from the film is the treatment of the Maitlands.  In the film, they were our portal into the afterlife and we got to witness their reactions to everything.  In the show, they just seem like excess baggage.  They never have much of a relationship with Lydia and they just seem to take up space.  The fact that talents as big as Kerry Butler and Rob McClure are shoe-horned into these thankless parts is puzzling.  They really get to do nothing of worth - I remember Geena Davis and Alec Baldwin being far more better utilized.  They are not even necessary to introduce Lydia to Beetlejuice here because she meets him on her own.  And the sole characteristics of the characters is that they are perky and bland.  And boy do Butler and McClure project the perky to the rafters - exhaustingly so.  I think their roles really need to be beefed up and fleshed out a bit more.  I do not think McClure even gets his own number at any point.  I did love Leslie Kritzer as Delia.

Alex Brightman is the perfect choice for the title role.  Not all of his jokes land, although, like a previous poster mentioned, I did love the Brigadoon jokes, as well as the Dolly Levi and Kate Hepburn ones.  He brings the right energy level and off-color pizzazz to contrast Caruso's more morbid counterpoint.  The problem - and this is not Brightman's fault - is that the script does not seem to know whether he is a funny villain, a crazed mischief maker, or a deep down softie and tries to have its way on all of them.  Indeed by the climax, his character has had so many turnarounds, it is hard to know where he stands on anything.  They need to pick where they want it to go and settle on it (hint: Beetlejuice should not be a deep down softie!).  Yes, Act II needs some re-working.

Even with these issues, I would be lying if I said if it was not a fun and great-looking musical.  Some narrative tweaks on the road to Broadway should bolster it even further.  I can definitely see there being an audience for this.  Unfortunately, any high that I had from the show's successes were diminished immediately by walking out of the National Theater and straight into what appeared to be a Neo-Nazi Trump Rally directly across the street.  Talk about crashing back down to earth!

 

Updated On: 10/29/18 at 12:33 PM