Posted: 3/2/16 at 2:52pm
Agreed, but I guess it's a minor quibble. Maybe they could have taken the train together, the train breaks down and she stays the night or something.
And Cusack sells the **** out of her big number, and I think the sentiment is right, it's just the melody and tune that aren't that great.
Posted: 3/3/16 at 10:13am
Yeah, why don't they just give Hamiton special Tonys in every category and then have a competition with the rest of the field. It seems silly having anyone compete with the ordained winner. And really - yawn - won't the show be a big bore.
Posted: 3/3/16 at 11:12am
"it's just the melody and tune that aren't that great."
God I disagree. I thought At Long Last was stunning from start to finish. Loved. It.
Posted: 3/4/16 at 9:51am
Caught this last night, and god that second act is rough. The show has the exact same problems it had when I saw the workshop/reading three years ago. I'm disappointed they didn't do much work on it. (Well they did some work, just not in the right places.)
Carmen is doing amazing work though. Love her.
Posted: 3/4/16 at 9:52am
little_sally said: "RippedMan, I also thought the whole "hey, wanna come visit my hometown" thing was very forced. There's got to be a better way to get from point A to point B."
It's a disaster.
Posted: 3/4/16 at 1:45pm
Neonlights- perhaps you can comment on this since you saw readings of the show, but looking at the press footage from the run in San Diego, it looks like they have cut characters along the way. Did Alice at one time have a sister? What was her purpose?
Posted: 3/4/16 at 1:48pm
She did have a sister, but I honestly don't remember what her purpose was.
Posted: 3/4/16 at 2:30pm
I've heard Cusack say in an interview that Alice is supposed to feel a connection to Billy that she can't explain and somehow feels drawn to him even though she doesn't know why. Though this would be a perfectly good explanation for why she agrees to visit his hometown, that exact sentiment isn't expressed in the show. Perhaps a one or two-sentence rewrite or quote coming from her character would be all the audience would need to understand her mindset in that situation.
Posted: 3/4/16 at 2:52pm
SLSigafoos said: "I've heard Cusack say in an interview that Alice is supposed to feel a connection to Billy that she can't explain and somehow feels drawn to him even though she doesn't know why. Though this would be a perfectly good explanation for why she agrees to visit his hometown, that exact sentiment isn't expressed in the show. Perhaps a one or two-sentence rewrite or quote coming from her character would be all the audience would need to understand her mindset in that situation.
"
I suppose that could work, but it could definitely play far too on-the-nose, especially if they're trying to keep the big reveal as surprising as possible (for those in the audience who didn't see it coming). I agree, though, that the line they have in right now - something to the effect of "Well, I've done if for other authors, so why not!" - is not nearly convincing enough and feels like a plot contrivance.
Posted: 3/4/16 at 3:02pm
"I agree, though, that the line they have in right now - something to the effect of "Well, I've done if for other authors, so why not!" - is not nearly convincing enough and feels like a plot contrivance"
Yeah that line that is currently there is nonsense. I'm sure it's too late now to come up with a better reason, but they really really need a better reason/a better line. Another motivator for her to go to his town. As of now, we know it's because the show is about to end and they have to tie this all up in a nice reveal.
Was anyone surprised by that reveal?
Posted: 3/4/16 at 3:13pm
neonlightsxo said: "Was anyone surprised by that reveal?"
At the show I was at last Saturday, we were just about center stage 2nd row, and I swear I heard nearly everyone around me gasp at the reveal. I looked around and people genuinely looked shocked. In a way, I think that's good because even though WE think that the show is fairly easy to predict, the average theatregoing audience probably appreciates a good turn of events and something that isn't so predictable. I know I've seen a few people say on twitter that the reveal surprised them, too. Maybe those of us who see a LOT of theatre are a little harder to please?
Posted: 3/4/16 at 3:20pm
Interesting, I'm glad to hear it wasn't so obvious to everyone. Oh, and we DEFINITELY are harder to please.
Posted: 3/4/16 at 3:23pm
I think they definitely try to set up the surprise well, if you haven't seen one too many of these types of plots on TV, in movies, and in novels, especially since...
many people probably think that the baby definitely does die at the end of Act 1 when thrown off of the train. I bet much of the audience takes that at face value and thinks the show will then address how the characters will find out and deal with it in Act 2, and not assume that the baby actually survived.
I think the strengths of the show are clearly the score, the acting and singing, much of the direction, and occasionally the lyrics. For me, the plot, however predictable to some or many, is merely the mechanism for delivering all of those great elements and I think at this point the creative team is approaching it in the same way.
Updated On: 3/4/16 at 03:23 PM
Posted: 3/4/16 at 3:33pm
The direction is quite beautiful for a story and a plot that just didn't engage me. It's very old fashioned and not in a good way, which goes back to the comment I made earlier about the racial issue. It's 2016, why are we telling such boring white people stories?
I'm not sold on about 50% of the lyrics, but overall, the score is quite nice, and Carmen Cusack is fantastic.
Posted: 3/4/16 at 6:53pm
Well, do you want an old white man - Steve Martin - telling a black story? C'mon. You write what you know. And I found the story quite simple and interesting.
Posted: 3/4/16 at 7:43pm
Wasn't he raised by poor black sharecroppers? Sorry, I couldn't resist.
Posted: 3/6/16 at 2:25am
jbird5 said: "Wasn't he raised by poor black sharecroppers? Sorry, I couldn't resist."
THANK YOU!
Posted: 3/6/16 at 3:17am
Went again and they haven't fixed the ending yet. Sigh...
Posted: 3/6/16 at 11:46am
Well it's been slightly over a week since seeing Bright Star and I am still waking up singing the songs. I have been humming "I Had a Vision" since six this morning.
The last time a score has haunted me like this was Bridges. I really can't wait to see this again.
Posted: 3/6/16 at 12:02pm
"Well, do you want an old white man - Steve Martin - telling a black story? C'mon."
I didn't mind the old white guys who wrote Dreamgirls, Porgy and Bess, Show Boat and countless other Afro-centric shows.
Posted: 3/7/16 at 9:21am
Dancingthrulife2 said: "Went again and they haven't fixed the ending yet. Sigh... "
It's clear they aren't going to at this point. They've had TWO out of town tryouts and they didn't fix it.
Posted: 3/8/16 at 7:20pm
I saw Bright Star last night, and I enjoyed it immensely. It is a beautiful show with a lot of heart and soul. Did I see the "twist" ending coming from five miles away? Yes. Did that make the show any less beautiful and poignant, though? Definitely not.
Bright Star has elements of what made Bonnie and Clyde, Once, and Bridges such interesting and stylized shows (okay, I didn't like Once, but I digress...). The actors swiftly and gracefully move the scenery around the stage in a way that makes even the scene changes a joy to watch. The movement and choreography in this show are on point and just stunning. I loved the onstage cabin with the band inside. The direction is really the show's biggest strength.I am typically not a fan of bluegrass music, but I loved the score for the most part. Some of the father's songs could have been cut IMO, but there were no glaringly bad songs.
The cast is absolutely a joy to watch. Carmen Cussack... we have waited for this woman to come to Broadway for years now (at least I have!), and by God has she arrived in all her glory. Cussack's portrayal of Alice is absolutely stunning and captivating. I don't remember the last time I have been held THIS captive by a performance and so invested in a character's journey at a show. Paul Nolan is outstanding and has the voice of an angel. The two of them together up on that stage is something very special. The chemistry between the two of them is radiant.
Bright Star is a joyous musical and is definitely one of the biggest surprises of the season for me! I would highly recommend it. The book is far from perfect, but the direction, cast, and score make this piece soar.
Posted: 3/9/16 at 12:14am
WIlmington: Touche.
Was just responding to why there wasn't a more diverse cast. Which I can't speak on.
Posted: 3/9/16 at 3:50pm
Posted: 3/9/16 at 4:14pm
Nabucco said: "http://gregory-g-allen.blogspot.com/2016/03/bright-star-shines-bright.html?m=1"
Thank you for sharing this! I really admire anyone who can say they really enjoyed a show and the performers in it, and then also talk about the flaws of the book in a constructive way. One thing I wholeheartedly agree on is that Cusack and Nolan share a very believable chemistry, and that's so important to a show that's selling itself as an unknown. The characters in Bright Star are (mostly) inherently likable, and well cast. This went a long way in making me overlook any confusion I had through Act 1. The actors made me want to see how their characters' journeys ended.
