Big River @ Encores- Page 4
Big River @ Encores
#75Big River @ Encores
Posted: 2/13/17 at 11:10pm
South Fl Marc said: "Comden Green said: "Way to jump to conclusions. Railing against a reviewer Attacking her for being PC. Calling her a clown. After one review. (still not sure what's wrong with looking at the play with "new eyes" and noticing something the rest of us hadn't noticed )
She he made a point. Her point had some validity. A point that you happen to disagree with. That's fine isn't it? Doesn't make her a clown or a purveyor of PC You disagree. Sheesh. Why all the anger?"
Wow, I made a one sentence comment and that equals "railing" . I wonder what you take is of Jack Viertel's letter which is beautifully written. My favorite part "It comes down to whether the Times is willing to publish ill-informed, politically motivated nonsense based on social and cultural trendiness and consider it serious criticism. I certainly hope not."
https://www.facebook.com/frank.rich.315/posts/10154801399545485
"
Partial apology to you SFMarc. I certainly still disagree with your assessment of the review and think the vehemence of your objections is overdone but my post did indeed make it sound like you were the only one. The "railing" was meant to describe the several posters who were livid about his comments and what I see as just a (valid) perspective.
BakerWilliams
Leading Actor Joined: 2/1/16
#76Big River @ Encores
Posted: 2/14/17 at 1:14am
Times responded:
Dear Rocco [Landesman] and Jack [Viertel],
Thank you for reaching out about the Laura Collins-Hughes review of Big River.
As Dean Baquet has noted, we stand behind Laura’s take on the show, while we certainly understand there’s room for disagreement.
First, a word about Laura: She is an enormously conscientious critic; while she had seen the Deaf West revival, when she got this assignment, she quickly headed off to the Lincoln Center Performing Arts Library to watch the original Broadway production on videotape. She approached this version with an open mind, but also made sure to be familiar with the show’s stage history. That she knew Lear deBessonet’s earlier work as a director made her that much more well-suited to give readers an informed evaluation. To call her assessment “cringeworthy” is a disservice to the seriousness with which all Times critics take their responsibilities.
We do not hold art works to any sort of litmus test. But theater lives and breathes in the moment of its watching. Many of our critics—of theater and other genres—have found themselves seeing old works through new eyes in this cultural and political moment. Laura did not let that overwhelm her account of a "buoyant" show; she gave due credit to the “fine performances,” the “pleasingly old-school” score, the “clear” staging. But it’s incumbent upon our critics to think out loud about how a stage work might register with a 21st century audience. To do otherwise is to make theater nothing more than a scholastic enterprise.
Finally, as fans of the Encores! series, we appreciate the reminder that the program is not set up to launch shows into renewed commercial life. Our reference to the “whiff of hope” was more about how musical-theater fans approach the series as about how its creators do. It was a tribute to the passionate following you’ve generated, but, yes, we could have been more precise in making our point.
Nearly 40 people have commented on the review online, a healthy tally for a show with a brief run. Many agree with your complaint; others don’t. That’s good news to us -- a sign that the New York theater and The New York Times are engaged in the big issues of the day.
Sincerely,
Scott Heller, Theater Editor
Danielle Mattoon, Culture Editor
#77Big River @ Encores
Posted: 2/14/17 at 2:25am
Never take anyone who uses phrases like "PC crap" even slightly seriously.
Also, I find the letter to be extremely condescending in a racism-tinged manner.
" It’s true of Twain’s novel, but it’s worth noting that Jim is, in fact, the most important black character in all of American literature of the 19th and early 20th century. Isn’t that enough?"
I'm not sure anyone with a clear mind won't be offended by this.
Owen22
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/24/11
#78Big River @ Encores
Posted: 2/14/17 at 7:55am
"But it’s incumbent upon our critics to think out loud about how a stage work might register with a 21st century audience. To do otherwise is to make theater nothing more than a scholastic enterprise."
As the first to complain about the Hughes review on these boards (and notice I took offense to Green's review as well) I find this paragraph to be particularly specious. The complaint (Viertel and mine) is not about her "think[ing] out loud about how a stage work might register with a 21st century audience.". It's how ludicrous her opinion WAS regarding such. Plus, as I noted earlier, I'm sure the "Sunday in the Park" reviews will have no such "registering" comments. So the whole thing is bulls*it.
Oh, I'm sorry Dancingthrulife2, was that last sentence way too anti-PC for you?
Whateverjsays
Featured Actor Joined: 7/12/16
#79Big River @ Encores
Posted: 2/14/17 at 8:43am
I'm truly at a loss of words here. 'Huckleberry Finn' has always been considered a literary classic, and it invokes conversation. It doesn't need a 're write' or tweaks. Simple, if it 'offends' you, then don't go see it. Simple as that. I would love to see this possibly transfer to Broadway, but not with changing things to appease people in this 'political moment'. It's a piece of art, if you like it. Watch it. If not, find something else.
#80Big River @ Encores
Posted: 2/14/17 at 8:45am
It's never transferring to Broadway, so that isn't any part of this conversation.
astromiami
Understudy Joined: 7/12/12
#81Big River @ Encores
Posted: 2/14/17 at 8:56am
wonkit said: "I appreciate that the mission of Encores! is to do the full book, to understand what the show was like when it was fully produced. "
This quite the opposite of Encores' mission. They usually cut the book to shreds because the score is the organization's main interest.
VintageSnarker
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/30/15
#82Big River @ Encores
Posted: 2/14/17 at 9:36am
AC126748 said: "Viertel's letter is definitely a personal attack, and it's deeply mean-spirited in a way that Laura's review wasn't at all. He belittles her intelligence and asserts that she went into the production with an agenda and an axe to grind. I do find it hard to believe that he would come after a male critic in much the same way. There is a tone to Viertel's letter that should be instantly recognizable to any minority person who's had to endure a white man explaining to them why their perception of something is invalid and wrong."
Yes to this comment.
I'm glad the Times responded and yet it also feels a little uncomfortable that they had to shore up a defense of her background with the show. At least they held back on giving her credentials and the college she graduated from. Critics have subjective opinions all the time that can point to valid weaknesses of a show, though perhaps those critiques don't affect some other people's enjoyment. Not that this one is, but some reviews can also be reductive, vicious, meanspirited, etc. It doesn't mean you call for people to be fired over an opinion. And one NYT review doesn't mean they're burning all copies of Huck Finn and no one will ever read it again.
#83Big River @ Encores
Posted: 2/15/17 at 4:45pm
Just came upon this whole brew-haha. Wow.
I have never seen Big River, nor read Huckleberry Finn, but based on what I know of both I think that Viertel's letter was a bit...much. This Laura Collins-Hughes doesn't strike me as a particularly good writer, but the points she brings up are worth discussing. As someone who works mostly with classical plays and musicals, I am very well aware how even the greatest works stand the test of time better than others.
The first question a producer or director needs to ask before beginning a play is, "Why this story? Why now?" This particular story, based on what I know of it, may not be the story that audiences most need to be told right now.
#84Big River @ Encores
Posted: 2/22/17 at 7:41am
From across the pond:
Andrzej Lukowski: It took a Broadway tantrum to make me feel better about British theatre - The Stage
https://apple.news/AS4UjW6x2NPerqgbMpLTcQw
(I don't know how to turn the darn link into a hyperlink (is that the right word? Any help here?))
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