Posted: 5/26/18 at 11:59am
ActorGuyIL said: "Is the CD being sold at the theatre yet? Seeing it tomorrow!!"
Yes it is. I bought it last night for $25.
Posted: 5/26/18 at 12:05pm
Someone in a Tree2 said: "I would strongly suggest NOT watching the movie before seeing the Lincoln Center production. As lovely as the new sets and costumes onstage are, they still pale beside the splendors of Cecil Beaton and Gene Allen's designs for the film. Some may argue about the relative merits of theperformances in the film, but no-one can doubt that the designs for that film represent the apogee of period movie musical work at its most luxe, by which all other musicals are compared.
By all means, soak up the new CD, thrill to the stage show, and only then should you treat yourself to the magnificent Warners Bros film. Great as the stage show is, the visuals in the film will makeyour hair stand on end."
Will take your advice. Like I said before, I’m still a novice at all this with less than two dozen musicals under my belt. That’ll change by the end of August after I’ve seen “Hello, Dolly!” (twice), “The Band’s Visit”, “Hamilton”, and “My Fair Lady”. It’s going to be a great summer! Wooohooo! :)
Posted: 5/26/18 at 1:26pm
dmwnc1959 said: "Someone in a Tree2 said: "I would strongly suggest NOT watching the movie before seeing the Lincoln Center production. As lovely as the new sets and costumes onstage are, they still pale beside the splendors of Cecil Beaton and Gene Allen's designs for the film. Some may argue about the relative merits of theperformances in the film, but no-one can doubt that the designs for that film represent the apogee of period movie musical work at its most luxe, by which all other musicals are compared.
By all means, soak up the new CD, thrill to the stage show, and only then should you treat yourself to the magnificent Warners Bros film. Great as the stage show is, the visuals in the film will makeyour hair stand on end."
Will take your advice. Like I said before, I’m still a novice at all this with less than two dozen musicals under my belt. That’ll change by the end of Augustafter I’ve seen “Hello, Dolly!” (twice), “The Band’s Visit”, “Hamilton”, and “My Fair Lady”. It’s going to be a great summer! Wooohooo! :)"
Enjoy your summer! You're really seeing some excellent shows. You say you're a novice, but you're displaying some excellent tastes already.
Posted: 5/26/18 at 2:18pm
ScottyDoesn'tKnow2 said: "Enjoy your summer! You're really seeing some excellent shows. You say you're a novice, but you're displaying some excellent tastes already."
Thanks! It’s been an off-and-on process. I started off slow with the Broadway National Tours of "A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder", "Cabaret" , "The Bridges of Madison County" , and “The Sound of Music” in 2015/2016. So far in 2018 it’s been “Love Never Dies”, “Wicked”, “Waitress” and “Rent”. Last year it was all of these:
Updated On: 5/26/18 at 02:18 PM
Posted: 5/26/18 at 8:56pm
Posted: 5/26/18 at 11:16pm
Posted: 5/26/18 at 11:34pm
NYadgal said: "Mine arrived on Thursday. I’ve been listening ever since.
Love it."
Oh good to hear! Mine shipped this past tuesday but didn’t arrive today, so Im
crossing my fingers for Tuesday after the holiday weekend.
Posted: 5/27/18 at 11:25am
The Original Broadway Cast album of My Fair Lady was the most popular of all time and represented the peak of influence of Broadway on popular culture.
“The album became a massive seller, topping the charts on the US Billboard 200 for fifteen weeks at different times in 1956 (eight consecutive weeks), 1957, 1958 and 1959.[1] In the UK, upon its release in 1958, the album reached No.1 for 19 consecutive weeks and became the biggest-selling album of the year.”
I don’t understand how the story can upset a person of 21st century mindset. Shaw was depicting class and gender distinctions in England at the time that he wrote Pygmalion, and Higgins is lampooned throughout. Lerner for the most part was faithful to Shaw, lifting large portions of dialog from the play.
As Ambrose said in an interview, there was no need to reinterpret the musical for the present time. Shaw has always been on Eliza’s side.
Posted: 5/28/18 at 12:54pm
Posted: 5/28/18 at 1:06pm
I know Ambrose has been a pop/jazz singer for quite a while. I wonder if what comes across as hesitance is actually the habit of singing behind the beat. One of the reasons that I struggle with [and I fully acknowledge the greatness of] Billie Holiday is exactly this. I always want to giver her voice a push.
Posted: 5/28/18 at 2:14pm
Posted: 5/29/18 at 8:44am
Now having listened to the album, I'm absolutely mesmerized by Ambrose's voice. The only problem I have with the cast recording is the finale. It doesn't reflect how the production handles the ending. At all.
Posted: 5/29/18 at 1:38pm
I've been listening all day and I am absolutely in love. It took me forever to get through the whole thing because I kept repeating each song multiple times.
Such a great reminder of how wonderful I think Harry Hadden-Paton was.
And those last 30 seconds... wow... I remember exactly how I felt when I saw it the first time and the orchestra swelled for that last bit.
Posted: 5/29/18 at 6:28pm
The problem is, the orchestra starts right after Higgins finishes his last line in the cast recording, leaving an impression that nothing happens after that.
Posted: 5/29/18 at 6:41pm
Dancingthrulife2 said: "The problem is, the orchestra startsright after Higgins finisheshis last line in the cast recording, leaving an impression that nothing happens after that."
I don't mind that too much - I think it's okay for some things to be left to when you are actually there. And once you've seen that moment, you're not likely to forget it.
Posted: 5/29/18 at 7:03pm
GeorgeandDot said: "Perhaps, she's not really behind the beat, but just missing a bit of the fiery passion that Julie Andrews, Marni Nixon, and Audrey Hepburn brought to the part. She sings beautifully, but she sounds almost like an opera singer singing the role as opposed to a singing actress."
Definitely agree with this. I couldn’t find the words to describe it, but she almost sounded quiet, even though I had no trouble hearing her. It just seemed like her voice didn’t have that strong quality to it. Thought she was great though
Posted: 5/29/18 at 8:34pm
I’m on the road for the next three weeks with one day between each trip (this week Richmond, VA) prior to my NYC trip (which includes MFL). I’d like to order the cast recording to be waiting for me when I get home late Friday night. I note that direct orders from Broadway Records ship now. What about Amazon orders? Do they ship early too? I have Amazon Prime so that would be preferred. Sorry if this was answered in a previous post I missed. Thanks sincerely from the Hilton.
Also, I’m only vaguely familiar with the show, having never before seen a staged or filmed production (I know, I know. I’m a bad, bad gay). Will I ruin any major plot points by listening to the cast recording beforehand? Reason is I ask is I regret listening to the Dear Evan Hansen OBCR obsessively before I saw it in November. I also believe I have spoiled the ending of Once on This Island (seeing it in June too) for me by listening to the OBCR (plus accidentally reading about it in the recent Laura Benanti thread).
Updated On: 5/29/18 at 08:34 PM
Posted: 5/29/18 at 8:43pm
I wouldn't listen to it, Miles. Certainly not the finale. That would give away the ending but also probably confuse you without having seen the rest of the show. You could listen to a few songs though. "Wouldn't it Be Loverly," "A Little Bit of Luck," "I Could Have Danced All Night," and "On the Street Where You Live" don't contain any major spoilers.
Posted: 5/29/18 at 9:08pm
I received my copy in the mail today and I am in love with it! My only qualm is that I wish there was more on the album--the reprise of Little Bit of Luck, the full Poor Professor Higgins, and the playoff of Get Me to the Church on Time are notable absences, and I also wish we could hear the music underscoring Eliza's entrance at the finale of act 1. And it's a shame that since Mrs. Higgins is a non-singing role, nothing from Dame Diana Rigg is preserved on this recording. In my ideal world, we would get a two-disc set reminiscent of the 1993 Complete Studio Recording, but I'll take what we've got here.
What I particularly love about this recording so much is that the way it all is mixed you can hear all of the details in the orchestration so clearly. The next most recent recording of this score is from 2001, and that one has a pitiful Eliza and different arrangements and orchestrations. You just can't do better than the Bennett/Lang orchestrations and the Rittman arrangements (though the new Get Me to the Church On Time arrangement makes some smart choices and suits this production's staging and choreography well). And Ted Sperling and his orchestra just do that score all the justice it deserves.
Regarding Ambrose's hesitancy, I thought that was a layer of her performance. In her portrayal, Eliza goes on a journey of gaining confidence, and early in the show, she has difficulty holding her ground and standing up for herself, which makes the moments when she blossoms all the more beautiful. The carefulness in her singing (I assume that's what you mean when saying she sounds like a singer trying to act) felt absolutely a choice to show how Eliza is constantly working on her diction and choosing her words carefully.
Posted: 5/29/18 at 9:47pm
@Miles2Go2 - no, Amazon won't ship until release date. Only our website (broadwayrecords.com) ships early.
Posted: 5/29/18 at 10:38pm
CATSNYrevival said: "I wouldn't listen to it, Miles. Certainly not the finale. That would give away the ending but also probably confuse you without having seen the rest of the show.You could listen to a few songs though. "Wouldn't it Be Loverly," "A Little Bit of Luck," "I Could Have Danced All Night," and "On the Street Where You Live" don't contain any major spoilers."
From being on here and reading some reviews, I already know:
That traditionally Eliza returns to Higgins, but in the revival she only returns to tell him she is leaving.
It was kinda impossible to avoid this spoiler as much as I’m on here and as much as I tried to skim over parts of reviews with spoilers. Do you think there are other plot developments that I might be exposed to by listening to the OBCR? I’ll probably buy it beforehand anyway as it’ll be cheaper than buying at the theater and I’m hoping the cast would sign the CD insert at the stagedoor. But if there are other major plot points easily divulged by listening to the OBCR, I’ll wait to listen until after.
For reference, I inadvertently figured out major plot points for Dear Evan Hansen and Once on This Island by listening to the OBCRs, but remained clueless about The King & I and Hamilton’s plot points despite having heard the OBCRs beforehand. It might have helped that the recordings didn’t come alive for me until after I saw the shows so I didn’t listen to them much pre-show. I still remember waking through the West Village the morning after seeing Hamilton in 2015, the Hamilton OBCR booming in my headphones. It truly felt like a miracle I also didn’t know:
the King dies in The King & I. I bawled like a baby.
Updated On: 5/29/18 at 10:38 PM
Posted: 5/29/18 at 11:57pm
Now you can focus on the journey of Eliza’s transformation. Plot wise, nothing special or miraculous happens. That beauty of the show is the whole journey of the main characters, especially Eliza, not just where it ends.
Updated On: 5/29/18 at 11:57 PM
Posted: 5/30/18 at 12:01am
Dancingthrulife2 said: "Now you can focus on the journey of Eliza’s transformation. Plot wise, nothing special or miraculous happens. That beauty of the show is the journey of the main characters, especially Eliza, not where it ends."
Awesome. I ordered the OBCR from Broadway Records late tonight. Here’s hoping it is either delivered and waiting for me when I get home late Friday night or on Saturday before I leave again on Sunday.
Posted: 5/30/18 at 2:04am
WOW what a beautiful recording. That overture is one of the most sumptuous things put to a cast album in many a year. It has an openness that so few modern recordings have, whether the reverberation is natural or synthetic it sounds great.
Where was it recorded?
Posted: 5/30/18 at 7:18am
WOW. Just WOW. This is one the *best* best recordings we have had in quite a few seasons. It sounds lush, sumptuous, and flawless. The orchestra sounds like it is being conducted by God himself, the vocals are superb, and I LOVE the inclusion of some of the dialogue. I will be playing this on repeat for a long time,
