CHESS at the Kennedy Center- Page 4

[HSky]

Posted: 2/16/18 at 11:51am

It wasn't just Freddie, the CIA agent rarely had a swear-free interaction.

[irishgator1]

Posted: 2/16/18 at 12:59pm

HSky said: "It wasn't just Freddie, the CIA agent rarely had a swear-free interaction."

Yes, Freddie’s language didn’t bother me. It was more the CIA agent- as you said, it seemed gratuitous at times. 

Two other quibbles- I think they cut short You and I.  Also, the dancing during Endgame was beautiful but I found myself watching the dancing more than the leads. Just my own personal observation 

[CallMeAl2]

Posted: 2/17/18 at 1:38am

Mister Matt said: "...Seriously, Chess has never had a Broadway or West End revival. And it keeps getting produced in concert form because of its score, which has had a strong following since its original recording..."

Can someone explain to me how Chess works as a piece of musical theater? I mean, I saw the original London production and enjoyed it, but not really as drama. Is Florence the protagonist?  She is mismatched with Freddie, and Anatoly is nicer, but married. These are her choices? Such a dismal love triangle; what are we supposed to care about? And what does she actually want? Just a better guy? It always seemed to be a theme and setting in search of concrete reason to exist.

Again, I enjoy the album but the entire concept seems flawed as a romantic musical. Tinkering around the edges isn't going to fix the unlikeable triangle at the core.

Updated On: 2/17/18 at 01:38 AM

Posted: 2/17/18 at 10:47am

I went to see the show on the 15th and wanted to add my two cents. What a thrilling night of theater! The score is wonderful, like it always is, and the plot is awful, like it always is. Here's a list of my thoughts:

1) Highlights: Of the four main characters, Karimloo and Olivo were the standouts with the most cohesive characters. (Bradley Dean and Sean Allen Krill were also phenomenal). Karimloo killed every single song, every single facial expression. Bravo. Karen Olivo's vocals brought down the house-- Nobody's Side got two minutes of applause!

2) Raul Esparza rocked as hard as he possibly could. I wish his diction was as electrifying as his belting. During "Pity the Child" I legitimately thought, "This is so good! It's too bad I can't understand what he's saying." Regardless, the energy he brings to a role is phenomenal. Seeing him live was an experience I'll never forget.

3) I heard a gentleman behind me saying he thought Raul was too old for the role. "Look at the name Freddy," he said. "That should be someone... not in their twenties, but younger." It's something to think about. I watched Raul and thought, "This is a great performance, but it wouldn't win him a Tony." Whether it's the fault of the actor or the fault of the script, I couldn't see a cohesive character who was a paranoid schizophrenic, a chess prodigy, and a jilted lover. They felt like disjointed components of a character that came out to play when the scene dictated, and hid when it was convenient.

4) When you've got a musical like Chess, where lots of the plot and necessary information is in the form of song (see anything the chorus sings), those songs must be understandable. And alas, from where I was sitting (row F in the orchestra), I couldn't understand a word the entire show. I found myself wishing I knew the score better so I could predict what was being sung.

5) I also found myself a little confused by some of the choreography choices. The lyrical, modern dancing was beautiful, sure, but it also felt out of place in a cold-war era rock musical. The only bit of choreography that felt truly relevant to the show was during the Russian-inspired number (I've forgotten the title) with Bradley Dean. Also!!!!!!! I hated One Night in Bangkok! Raul somehow misdelivered some of the best lines ("the queens we use would not excite you" didn't get a single laugh). I hate seeing gratuitous objectification, and the song was full of it. I was not watching Thai sex workers-- I was watching chorus girls in lingerie, and I felt incredibly uncomfortable. The show had the balls to make one chorus boy a worker as well, and even though he poured his goddamn heart into that dancing, he still looked out of place. There was even a moment where all the girls were in line at the front of the stage and he was standing behind them. It might have been a little more fun to have an equal number of men and women in the dashing lingerie.

6) Ruthie Ann Miles, god bless her, did not blow me away at all. I had forgotten she played Svetlana, and when I watched her on stage for the first time, I thought, "Is this a local actor who's nervous on stage?". She sang primarily in her head voice, which was fine, but appeared incredibly weak against Esparza, Karimloo and Olivo, who were belting their asses off. This was especially true in "I Know Him So Well", which is a shame, because it's such a beautiful song!!! She was a great actress, but the vocals seemed weak.

7) When Florence's father appeared at the end, I was blown away that there was an actor who was waiting backstage for two hours only to appear for two minutes of stage time. What the heck was with that??

8) Finally, and most importantly, the show needs to figure out it's thesis before it can ever go anywhere. Is the show about love and self-sacrifice? Is it about the fact that despite our best efforts, people will always be puppets in their government regimes? When the thesis is made clear, the order of the songs will become clear, and so will the final number that keeps changing.

Did I enjoy every second? YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Is the show ready for a Broadway transfer? Dear God, not at all.

(additionally, shoutout to Bryce Pinkham who gave it his all in a weird, nonsensical role).

[Boysdontcry66]

Posted: 2/17/18 at 12:32pm

Just a heads up that tickets were released for the rest of the run. 

[Mpkenny99]

Posted: 2/17/18 at 3:38pm

Saw this last night from the second row center orchestra and Wow!!!

The Good Wow:
- This Score continues to thrill! There is a reason it has been recorded so many times. Sad this cast won’t be preserved. If you want to hear them, PM me... I might know a way

- Raoul Esparza... I have been a fan since I saw him in the Evita tour many moons ago. The last time I saw him live was in Sunday in the Park at The Kennedy Center years ago. He did not disappoint at all!! There was a lot thrown at him to navigate as an actor, and he truly handled it well. Knowing people suffering from mental illness, he played it real. Vocally his voice was perfection for the role. Could he do it 8 shows a week? Not without some better vocal pacing, but for me, he stole the show.

- Karen Olivo brought the right balance of sass and heart to the role and her vocals blew the roof off of the theare. Her voice is limitless in its colors and control.
- The ensemble did some of the heaviest lifting and were phenomenal. The vocal power and effective choreography performed effortlessly throughout was not only impressive, but kept the pulse of the show constant throughout.

The Bad Wow:
- I am going to be in the minority here, but Ramin’s Lack of musicianship bugged me through the show. He has been vocal about having no formal training and not reading music. Many of his harmonies were fudged and he was pitchy and unsupported often between money notes.

- Ruthie... as others have said, this sat in a very strange part of her voice. Maybe with more time she would figure out the placement better, but she belted herself into a little coughing fit mid phrase during Someone Else’s story. In a way it was good her voice was so different from Karen’s for I know him so well, but her energy, both vocally and acting wise was so neutral that I barely noticed her there.

The Weird Wow:
- Bryce Pinkham is incredibly engaging and brings a great energy to the stage, but his sudden physical possession by the spirit of Elvis during the Arbiter song is... a choice...

-The first couple of rows should get ponchos. I had enough spit on me from Ramin and Raoul for a quality SVU dna sample

-Local DC Helen Hayes Award nominated actor, Thomas Adrian Simpson, appears as papa for the last 90 seconds for two lines and a hug... seems an aweful waste. And he got his own bow after the ensemble who had worked their tails off.

Again... pm me for more details

[GeorgeandDot]

Posted: 2/17/18 at 4:15pm

I heard from a friend that Miles is indeed very sick. Her voice is sublime when it's in good shape. Also, I think she might be pregnant (hope I'm not saying anything that isn't supposed to be public yet), but that will effect the voice quite a lot.

[irishgator1]

Posted: 2/17/18 at 4:18pm

GeorgeandDot said: "I heard from a friend that Miles is indeed very sick. Her voice is sublime when it's in good shape. Also, I think she might be pregnant (hope I'm not saying anything that isn't supposed to be public yet), but that will effect the voice quite a lot."

She is indeed pregnant.  She mentioned at the stage door that they put her in a shift dress to cover the pregnancy. 

[Pasunepomme]

Posted: 2/17/18 at 8:47pm

irishgator1 said: "She is indeed pregnant. She mentioned at the stage door that they put her in a shift dress to cover the pregnancy."

Where is the stage door, irishgator1? Seeing some mixed reports online as to whether it's indoors or outside.

[irishgator1]

Posted: 2/17/18 at 8:52pm

Pasunepomme said: "irishgator1 said: "She is indeed pregnant. She mentioned at the stage door that they put her in a shift dress to cover the pregnancy."

Where is the stage door, irishgator1? Seeing some mixed reports online as to whether it's indoors or outside."

It’s outside for the Eisenhower Theater. So go outside to the front of the building where the taxi line is, then take a left, then another left.  You’ll see the stage door. It’s marked with the names of the theaters that it services. 

[GrecoGambit]

Posted: 2/17/18 at 9:25pm

                                      CHESS AS FAN FICTION/SITCOM/MacGYVER

 

SPOILERS ABOUND- BEWARE!!!!!!

 

There is much (unnecessary) talk of bombs/nukes in Danny Strong’s new libretto for CHESS- the biggest bomb is the one onstage due, in large part, to said new libretto.

I take no joy in this. I love CHESS- beautiful, flawed work that it is. I have enjoyed Mr. Strong as an actor, notably in BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER. It’s a shame Joss Whedon did not take a crack at fixing this show.

I was starting high school when the concept cd came out. I was obsessed with the music- the story was always muddy at best. I saw the show in London- which was still a bit muddled but had the magic of Elaine Paige and company. I saw the disappointing, John leCarre-esque Broadway version. What? Too much book, not enough singing. I saw it at Paper Mill with a stunning Judy MacLean. I collected audios of productions all over the world.

How on earth would/could you take a show that was always somewhat convoluted and make it ever more so?

What makes CHESS linger is the score. The new book makes Richard Nelson’s look like a Hugh Wheeler masterpiece. It’s WAR GAMES meets LES MIS! There might be a nuclear war because of the chess match outcome! Why not strap a puppy and refugee with an illness to the warhead? Seriously, all I could think as I watched the horror unraveling before me was “What is Tim Rice thinking? This is going to ruin the last chance he has to see it succeed on Broadway in his lifetime.”

The sound design is unforgivable. If you are doing a musical at the Kenney Center with celebrated Broadway names, get your sh*t together. It was embarrassingly bad- like a sub-par community theatre.

Chorus? Very little legit sound- like really good kids from Burch Gardens. Projections? Meh. Choreography? Meh.

I had such high hopes. To paraphrase ALL ABOUT EVE: “I live for the theatre as a Trappist monk lives in his faith. In it I toil not, neither do I spin.” I wanted this production to at long last allow CHESS to triumph and flourish.

The Good:

Karen sings well and is charismatic. “Nobody’s Side” was the only thing worth the cost of the ticket and the trip to DC. She ALMOST made some of the Hallmark Channel dialogue work- only instead of ending up with her ex- from high school, she ends up with her father – which came from nowhere and was laughably written and only saved from utter fiasco by Karen’s fierce acting chops. Her soprano was not the strongest in the Quartet but that was a minor complaint.

The Mediocre:

Bryce is a wonderful performer. He was given some of the worst narration ever written to hit the stage: “Where Anatoly Sergievsky, a sad and lonely chess player”- seriously, that line, by Danny Strong- was used to introduce Ramin. Paging Corky St Clair. “It's like in the olden days, in the days of France, when men would slap each other with their gloves say, y'know..."D'Artagnan!"... y'know, "how dare you talk to me like that, you!," and smack 'em.”

Bryce sang well- but Elvis moves? I guess we should be grateful he wasn’t in drag- because, men as women is funny in bad sitcom land, which is the level of “the humor” inserted by Mr. Strong.

And why did they truncate the Quartet?

Songs are reordered will-nilly for no reason and to poor effect.

Bradley Dean is a solid performer- but he’s not a true bass. For better or worse, the characters’ vocal parts identify them- the brash player is rock and roll, the noble chess player is legit, the bad guy’s a bass. “Soviet Machine” ALMOST worked.

I don’t understand the hysterical adulation of Ramin. I realize I am in the minority, but I just don’t get it. He was pitchy, one note acting-wise and had zero chemistry and seemingly little interest in Florence. “Mountain Duet” was not a song of discovering unexpected mutual attraction- it was an AMERICAN IDOL duet night/elimination contest to see who could sing the loudest/highest. He may be a handsome man but to call him two dimensional is an insult to the depth that Disney brought to two dimensional characters during their renaissance.

The bad:

Raul. Just. No. It’s like Danny Strong watched VALLEY OF THE DOLLS and decided to merge Neely O’Hara and Tony Polar. Seriously? If this were a film, there would be a drinking game every time someone said “take the/your pills.” He’s not Rain Man. He’s not Francis Farmer. In Raul’s hands, Freddie becomes the character you want to be strapped with the orphan and dog to the nuclear warhead. He has always been a smug, self-indulgent performer in the Kevin Spacey vein. If he’s so repellent, why would Florence give a crap about him? And yes, now we have the CIA telling her if she doesn’t control him and “MAKE HIM TAKE HIS PILLS”, they’ll deport her. Seriously. That’s in there, too. The only pill in evidence was Raul. His diction made Patti LuPone at her worst sound like Kenneth Branagh at his best. If he can talk by the end of this short run, it will be a miracle.

Ruthie Ann Miles. No. She’s a lovely woman and performer but miscast vocally and type wise. She wasn’t offensive- just done no favors by anything in this production.

The horrific:
The book. Seriously. This may be the worst book for a musical ever- and I saw SENATOR JOE.

Please, please, please do NOT bring this travesty into New York. CHESS has a remarkable score. It may be that like BAKER’S WIFE and MERRILY, it’s best enjoyed as a recording. I am hoping the ENO production with the rumored cast will erase all the horrid memories of this misguided, poorly directed, shoddily produced/mixed, horror of a “rework”. It is the equivalent of Meg Ryan post-plastic surgeries- someone you have loved for years who in unrecognizable for the worst.

 

“Didn’t I know how it would? If I knew  from the start, why is it breaking my heart?”

 

[pdjennings]

Posted: 2/17/18 at 9:46pm

Couldn’t disagree more. Unnecessary nuke talk? Kinda the whole point of the Cold War ....

[Mpkenny99]

Posted: 2/17/18 at 9:57pm

I have to disagree too... the book could definately be trimmed but was not horrible. The biggest shift was from being more of a love story to a political musical drama... instead of the focus being the love triangle, they focus is the negotiations between the CIA and KGB and how they use the emotions of the leads as pawns in their negotiations. I thought it was clever.

Bryce’s narration, I believe, was meant to be more tongue in cheek and conversational, so I was not bothered by it.

And I will say it again, the ensemble was amazing.

But judge for yourself...

[Owen22]

Posted: 2/17/18 at 10:52pm

If you like the Tim Rice-original-version-British-plot of "Chess" this is a very good take on that. The best easily (but after seeing the Royal Albert Hall and the semi-recent English tour version I caught in Northampton...it wasn't hard). Freddy's character was the best reconstruction.  The new book made him (a little too melodramatically) actually bi-polar (the first time we see him he is off his meds).  He's a bit of an amalgamation of Murry Head's and Philip Catnoff's Freddy, rock-god-as-chess-champ.  He and Florence are in a sexual relationship at the beginning, but, as "Nobody's Side" shows, she's getting a little sick of the abuse. So Freddy's mother issues come to the front in the second act because he desperately wants her back.  What I like is that "Pity the Child" is now actually dramatic. It makes Freddy think and realize and he now helps Anatoly win and ends up somewhat redeemed (Esparza walks off in the middle of that long, long guitar riff after the song that most actors and directors don't know how to deal with...it confuses the audiences cause they don't know exactly when to applaud and after his performance of that song the audience really wanted to applaud. Esparza would have sung the role better ten years ago, but for a man of 47 he never missed a rock and roll note, but his diction suffered. If I didn't know the songs I wouldn't have understood a lot of what he sang in his higher register. Ramin was gorgeous both in voice and presence, he's never been a great actor but still comes off very well. Again, I'm not in love with this version of the character, the same with Florence. Karen Olivio was good, her "Nobody's Side" probably was the hit of the evening (not for me, but it got the most extended applause) but I never bought the love story. I love my Ruthie Anne Miles, but she wasn't very good as Svetlana. Doesn't anyone realize "Someone Else's Story" makes no sense coming from that character???  ("Sadly she realize she's left him behind..." THAT IS THE EXACT OPPOSITE OF WHAT HAPPENED!!)

The new book does some other smart thing. It sets Act One against the SALT II peace talks (and Anatoly's defection is the secret cause why the talks failed) and Act Two is set against that, only recently discovered moment when NATO was doing nuke drills and the Russian's thought Reagan was readying an invasion and we came very close to nuclear war. The world is saved by Anatoly returning the the USSR.  Now, this might sound stupid, but it grounding the story in actual events saves it from becoming a random spy story with real-world stakes. After throwing every number at the opening using "The US vs USSR" makes some sense. The book is written as a concert version of the show, with The Arbiter acting as a self acknowledged narrator. Every song from the original black album is there (minus the Merchandisers and Embassy Lament).  Added are songs from the original London production (mostly stuff I hate). Unlike a lot of people, I love the Broadway original. I love the Richard Nelson book and I am always very invested in the Florence/Anatoly love story.  So I'm not of the opinion that the show needs to change. And there are so many songs that are superfluous to action and character (smartly jettisoned for the Broadway production). Songs I love to hear on the recording, but Trevor Nunn was smart to streamline.

Michael Mayer's direction was adequate but the choreography (the Chess Hymn actually has a dream ballet that retells the story of the three leads) was horrible.

But its always a thrill to hear this score and it was nice not be insulted by the stupidity of the Brit version.

Updated On: 2/17/18 at 10:52 PM

[Ravenclaw]

Posted: 2/18/18 at 3:12am

For me, this book creates as many problems as it solves. The whole chess game saving the world from destruction thing raises the stakes, gives the audience a reason to care, and creates a strong through-line... if you are willing to make that jump. I wasn't able to. And I think the tone of the book is confused--it wants the audience to believe that the safety of the entire world will be determined by a single game of chess, yet the dialogue given to the CIA agent simultaneously asks the audience not to take the story too seriously. 

I always thought that the whole Chess/cold war thing was supposed to be about how even in a seemingly trivial board game we see a microcosm of the tension between nations, not that moves in a chess game were secretly controlling an almost-war. This new book transforms synecdoche into conspiracy theory. And I just couldn't go there with them.

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

Posted: 2/18/18 at 3:25am

@Owen22: "Someone Else's Story" would make more sense coming from Svetlana if they'd given it more thought and assigned her the lyrics from the 1990 Sydney production, where they, y'know, actually put in the effort to make the song fit her.

[rosscoe(au)]

Posted: 2/18/18 at 7:49am

While the Sydney production wasn’t perfect , that staging of Someone else’s story was. 

[Owen22]

Posted: 2/18/18 at 3:33pm

g.d.e.l.g.i. said: "@Owen22: "Someone Else's Story" would make more sense coming from Svetlana if they'd given it more thought and assigned her the lyrics from the 1990 Sydney production, where they, y'know, actually put in the effort to makethe song fit her."

I agree, but wan't the problem that these lyrics weren't written by Tim Rice? I don't know who did write them, but I think he gave permission for someone else to do it only for that production.

[P-E]

Posted: 2/18/18 at 3:39pm

At intermission of today’s matinee. They announced at the beginning (actually 15 minutes past 2:00) that “Raul Esparza has a throat infection ... but he has agreed to perform”. It sounds like it. He is still acting well though and the rest of cast is brilliant.

[Mpkenny99]

Posted: 2/18/18 at 4:13pm

This is not surprising. Having performed vocally challenging roles, you have to find where you can preserve your voice and where to go full throttle. He was running a marathon like a sprinter, if you smell what I’m cooking. He has a great, powerful voice, but even on Friday, he had blown it out by Pity the Child. The two show day yesterday must have done him in.

[Mpkenny99]

Posted: 2/18/18 at 4:13pm

This is not surprising. Having performed vocally challenging roles, you have to find where you can preserve your voice and where to go full throttle. He was running a marathon like a sprinter, if you smell what I’m cooking. He has a great, powerful voice, but even on Friday, he had blown it out by Pity the Child. The two show day yesterday must have done him in.

[brotherhoodofman]

Posted: 2/18/18 at 8:51pm

I saw this Friday night. Disclaimer -- I'd never heard the albums before, but I knew it was considered a great score with a problematic book. I also knew it was about a chess tournament/love triangle during the Cold War. That's it.

I enjoyed it a lot, thought the performances were very engaging. I found the late appearance of Svetlana very confusing and thought she should have been worked into the first act if they were going to keep her as a character. I thought the amount of time she got in the second act drug it down.

One Night in Bangkok. I did not expect the dancers to end up in lingerie gyrating on each other and Raul. All while Bryce, Ramin and other cast members sat fully clothed on stage. Frankly I was just kinda embarrassed for the dancers, though they gave it their all. Raul's performance of the song was great; it had this tired sleaziness to it that showed that living a life of vice isn't a fun life after all. I'd like a recording of his version of this song.

LOVED Bryce Pinkham as the Arbiter. I absolutely adored him in Gentleman's Guide so he was one of the main reasons I wanted to see this. He brought a lot of good sarcastic delivery that undercut some of the more awkward transitions between scenes.

The sound -- I COULD HARDLY UNDERSTAND ANYONE. At intermission, the woman in front of me turned around and asked if I could understand the songs. I said no, not all of them! She was relieved and thought it was just her. Couple behind me was saying the same things. I didn't have trouble following the plot, but especially Karen Olivo's songs I could not understand (though she sounded great and put in a ton of emotion!) I see a lot of shows at the Kennedy Center and the sound is always a muddled mess, but this was way worse than normal.

I didn't listen to the original album before the show because I didn't want to be spoiled, but I definitely wish I had so I would have understood more of the lyrics.

Raul also had a fan club in attendance wearing matching L&O: SVU shirts. Who knew that was a thing.

Updated On: 2/18/18 at 08:51 PM

[jewishboy]

Posted: 2/18/18 at 9:05pm

Ooo boy, that was a wild show this afternoon. God bless Esparza. Such a passionate and inhabited performance. His inability to sing almost all of the score added 100% to Freddie’s desperation. Although he couldn’t really sing the score he might have pulled me in the most to the story and dramatic telling. Also, he ****ing nailed Pity the Child. I don’t know what happened, but it was as if his voice was somewhat healed for 4ish minutes. The whole cast cheered for him after that number as well.

Karen Olivo supplies enough thrilling vocals to cover for anybody, anytime. She needs to do Evita (actually they should just bring this whole cast back to do Evita). I haven’t heard her sing that well since In The Heights. Her and Ramin sounded great together on their duets, though I will say they lacked chemistry. Also, I don’t know if she got over her cold, or I just have a blind spot for her, but I ****ing loved Ruthie. She was spine tingling in the reprise of, forgive me cause I actually don’t know which song it is, but it sounded like a reprise of Where I Want To Be (sensual and thrilling). I also thought she hit great notes throughout. I do agree that her performance of Someone Else’s Story didn’t quite work. I think they should have changed the orchestration since she sang it super soprano/ingenuey. Pinkham was everything and more, total standout.

I’m so glad I finally had the opportunity to see the show live. I’ve only listened to it, and didn’t realize how dark, yet playful it is. It’s like if Martin Scorsese directed Mamma Mia! There were some truly laugh out loud moments sprinkled throughout which I loved. Especially one of the early interactions with the CIA and KGB agents (lines about Talmud and such, so cheesy, or chessy?).

The cast gave it their all, especially Raul, and I think it paid off. I hope he’s able to get though tonight!

Also I was in the back of the balcony and didn’t mind the sound, though I was listening to the recordings today to refamiliarize myself.

Pleas excuse grammar and typos, I’m on my phone!

[smidge]

Posted: 2/18/18 at 11:16pm

Really unfortunate that Raul has a throat infection and Ruthie has bronchitis. I admire their commitment, even though it must be difficult to power through.

[scripps]

Posted: 2/18/18 at 11:30pm

I have nothing to contribute except that the original concept album is so great to work out to. I honestly I have no idea what the plot is, and I've been riding my bike around Brooklyn to it for years