COMPANY (Not Just One Singular Sensation)

I read the following in today's NY Post and wondered if the producers of "Company" have just given up on the show:

Raul Esparza, the star of "Company," will sing "Being Alive" on the Tony telecast. But he'll be performing without the rest of the cast members, who, in the revival, play all the musical instruments. Apparently, the producers of "Company" don't want to have to pay the other actors to appear on the Tonys. So they've asked Jonathan Tunick if they can use his original 1970 orchestrations for "Being Alive," which will be performed by the orchestra at Radio City Music Hall.

Wasn't the point of the revival to have given a fresh take on this dated show and to showcase the actor/musican talents of this wonderful ensemble? I know that Raul deserves the nomination but it would have been fair to have paid the rest of the cast so that they could appear on the TONY Awards also.

This news really saddens me.

I understand that the producers are banking on Raul winning the Tony and want to market him as their star attraction, but this cast is too good to leave out from the performance.

I'd hoped they would perform the title number featuring everyone (and Raul at the forefront) but am saddened to see they have other plans.

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Updated On: 5/18/07 at 04:28 PM

On one hand, I'm thrilled that Raul will be singing "Being Alive". On the other hand, why do it this way? Lame.

Using the original 70's orchestrations makes no sense in respect to the production; the revival updated the sound of the piece, and going back to the original makes no sense. Still, I can't wait to see Esparza's performance.

hearing this news makes me wish another show wins best revival now.

I would think that the cast would want to perform at the Tonys. It is a good amount of the cast's Broadway debuts; the idea of performing at the Tonys for best revival should be high enough of a gift. I never expected that they would have to be paid for that performance.

If this is true, I suggest that we petition the producers to rethink their decision.

Updated On: 5/18/07 at 04:56 PM

Hmm, I really can't wait to see this now. I doubt they'll use primal rage scream either, it will be SO interesting to see Raul take it away and hopefully the Tony as well.

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To put it bluntly, I don't give a damn how he sings it - I just want him to win.



Since this is a rumor [?], I'm not going to get too upset. Either way, Raul will do an amazing job, because he is an amazing performer.

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Either way, I don't care how the hell he sings it. He's going to be fabulous and really, what matters most is that he wins the award. Right? Right. I'm not going to get my panties in a twist if they use the original orchestrations.

I mean, yes, it sucks that they basically screwing the show out of any feeble chance it may have. But the fact of the matter is that there's nothing that we can really do about it.

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Updated On: 5/18/07 at 05:27 PM

I don't like this. It's unfair not only to the rest of the cast, but to Mary-Mitchell, who did the orchestrations. I can sort of understand not being able to pay all of the actors, since the show isn't doing well and all of that, but why can't the Tony orchestra at least perform the revival orchestrations to accompany Raul? That doesn't make any sense. The original orchestrations are beautiful, and he's going to bring down the house singing with them, but this seems like it defeats the purpose of even performing at all. The point of the Tony performances is to get people interested in seeing the show; it's supposed to give people a taste of what they would see if they came to the show. If Raul is literally just going to stand there and sing, that's not going to get anyone interested. They're throwing away an opportunity to help the show, and this makes them look like they don't really care what happens to it. It's really sad, and upsets me very much, because it does feel like they've somewhat given up on the show.

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Updated On: 5/18/07 at 05:29 PM

Dead God, what a stupid idea.

And that's all that can be said about that.

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I find it ironic that one of the definitions in the Merriam-Webster dictionary for the noun "company" is "an organization of performing artists". I always thought of this emsemble as a company of actors/musicians and to think that their only chance to shine on national television will not happen makes me mad. Mad to think that the real essence of this show will not be properly represented on the TONY telecast. Although I love Raul's performance, I really don't care to hear him sing along with a 27 year-old orchrestration arrangement. This is John Doyle's production of Company.

Updated On: 5/18/07 at 05:56 PM