BYE BYE BIRDIE footage- Page 3
BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
#50re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 11:18amBye Bye Birdie is one of the most perfectly constructed shows out there, but yeah, it is easy to ruin when lazy directors don't pay attention to detail. I saw a production this summer that appeared as though the director had no idea it was supposed to be a comedy. Nearly everyone was miscast and there was not a single funny moment. At least not in the first act. We didn't stick around for the second.
#52re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 12:30pm
I was in a college production of BYE BYE BIRDIE back in 1962, playing Mr. MacAfee. We had six weeks to rehearse and the cast laughed their way throughout the entire rehearsal period. If BIRDIE isn't funny it is the fault of the director and the actors playing Mr. MacAfee and Mama. The song lyrics add tremendously to the humour of the musical. Gower Champion directed with a light touch, despite the often raucous goings on. The final song"Rosie" is a good example of this. Adding the title song to the ending will change the mood. I think the title song should be earlier in the show, as it was in the Tommy Tune touring production in the early 1990's.
#53re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 12:36pm
As far as I can recall the title song was performed as part of the overture but was never performed in the actual show in the Tune tour.
It was added and reworked for the ABC tele-film. I, much, prefer that version to the film version. The young actress playing Ursela was a highlight of the film and I was glad she was given something else to do. "I wear my Birdie training bra to keep him near my heart".
WiCkEDrOcKS
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/13/04
#54re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 12:43pm
http://ny1.com/content/ny1_living/on_stage/104813/-bye--bye-birdie--prepares-for-return-to-the-great-white-way/Default.aspx
Not quite sure why but Nolan Gerard Funk irritates me. The idea of Allie Trimm is growing on me though.
#55re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 12:48pmAllie Trimm is talented, but she comes off as such a brat to me.
#56re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 12:55pmEris0303: I think you are right about the title song being just inserted into the overture in the Tune tour, and not in the musical proper. It is a great song, though, and deserves to be included somewhere.
#59re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 8:04pm
Eris0303: I think you are right about the title song being just inserted into the overture in the Tune tour, and not in the musical proper. It is a great song, though, and deserves to be included somewhere.
I remember being quite confused as to why the song didn't appear in the show when it was in the Overture. At 12 I didn't quite get that things were changed from musical to film and such.
I just checked my playbill and the song is not listed. Any word on whether they're incorporating any of the new songs from the tour/TV movie into the revival. I did enjoy A Giant Step.
#60re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 8:07pm
Yes, the title song was incorporated into the overture for the tour.
The only song being added to the revival IS the title song. They are trying to keep it very faithful to the original.
#61re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 8:12pmI am so tired that I thought I clicked on the Night Music thread and thought you were talking about the title number. I was like-there's a title number? I had no idea!
#63re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 8:19pm
The only song being added to the revival IS the title song. They are trying to keep it very faithful to the original.
I can understand that though I'd love to see that song performed on stage again. The image of Tommy Tune dancing across stage to that number has been with me for 18 years.
Another question. Does anyone know if they are opening with the title song like the film or putting it into the story like the tele-film?
#64re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 8:20pmApparently it will only be heard during the finale. You can see them sing it in the clips posted in this thread.
#65re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 8:26pmYeah, I saw that. I was hoping it would appear during the show as well. Maybe they thought the thought of having a birdie bra was too risque! lol
yankees1253
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/21/07
#66re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 8:39pm
love the footage and i agree nolan is annoying me.
heres a video of allie singing the national anthem(she sounds wonderful):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2pLArfouZs
#67re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 8:47pmIs it just me or did the kinds sound kind of bad?
#68re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 9:10pmI didn't see Richard Kind there. You know, he could make a good Albert.
#69re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 10:30pm
Is it just me or did the kinds sound kind of bad?
If you listen to the OBCR, they actually sound VERY similar. The song is supposed to have an obnoxious teen kind of sound.
#71re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 10:36pm
It's too bad that the title song will only be heard in the finale as sung by the ensemble. I was hoping that Allie Trimm would start the show with the title song by herself, in front of the curtain, with a single spotlight on her and she is holding a handkerchief. Then the overture. Oh well...
I also wanted all of the 1995 movie songs added...and the Shriner's Ballet back in!
#72re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 10:40pm
" was hoping that Allie Trimm would start the show with the title song by herself, in front of the curtain, with a single spotlight on her and she is holding a handkerchief"
Why would they do that? No production of Birdie has ever used the title song like that. The original movie was written around Ann-Margret, hence why she opened and closed the movie with the title song. The revival won't revolve around the unknown Allie Trimm.
Updated On: 8/28/09 at 10:40 PM
#73re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 10:45pmMy middle school production did this and I thought it worked extremely well...plus I love Allie Trimm's voice.
#74re: BYE BYE BIRDIE footage
Posted: 8/28/09 at 10:54pm
My middle school production did this and I thought it worked extremely well
You realize that was illegal, right?
Why would the Broadway revival incorporate changes from a middle school production?
Updated On: 8/28/09 at 10:54 PM
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