COMPANY Screenings Are Extremely Limited- Page 5

[Haybe]

Posted: 6/16/11 at 11:54pm

broadwayjim, the exact same thing happened to me when I saw Memphis in theaters about a month ago...we missed most of the second act and they gave us the readmission tickets. I ended up calling the theater and they were able to work it out so that we could use them to see the show again.

[Wicked Fanatic]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 2:08am

Saw it tonight with 36 people (more than when I saw Memphis) and I loved it! It was better than I ever expected it to be. I enjoyed everyone especially Christina Hendricks who I was totally unfamiliar with since I don't watch Mad Men, Katie Finneran and NPH who choked me up with his Being Alive. Loved the Tick Tock Dance and Chryssie Whitehead's dancing was spectacular. Liked it so much that I think I'm going to see it again on Sunday and then pray that it comes out on DVD.
Updated On: 6/17/11 at 02:08 AM

[Mildred Plotka]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 2:49am

Eric, I also disliked how serious the Doyle revival was. I know it has many fans, but it just was too gloomy for my Company tastes. I'm seeing the film on Tuesday, as it's the only date that works for me, and very excited! I hope this makes its way to DVD. I'm sure it will, but I'd just like some official word soon to ease my troubled gay mind!

I just started Season One of Mad Men. I know I'm late to the party, but I have this fear shows I fall in love with are going to get cancelled. I tend to give things a couple seasons before digging in. Man I'm kicking myself for not watching earlier. It's brilliant, as is Hendricks. I can't wait to see her April.

[broadwayjim42]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 7:03am

Haybe, thanks for letting me know that but there's only one other showing here (Sunday at noon) and I can't make it. One of the other people got the web address of the company sponsoring it and said to write them and see what happens. In total, I probably only missed between five and ten minutes when all is said and done, but when you're paying $18, you don't expect stuff like this. Or an hour to sort out the problems and make a decision about what to do.

I'm a fan of the Doyle version...Esparza had me in tears with his "Being Alive," Harris didn't...but I really enjoyed this. I though the Bobby/April scene slowed the show to a crawl (despite Hendricks) but as I said previously, the cast (especially the women) was pretty awesome.
Updated On: 6/17/11 at 07:03 AM

[blueroses]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 8:59am

Loved it, loved it, loved it!

P.S. Mildred, you have three more new seasons of Mad Men to look forward to. Contracts were just renewed.

[ggersten]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 9:02am

Thursday evening in Central Illinois. 18$ ticket. 50 people or so.
I felt like I got my show back as the Doyle version really soured me with how flat and serious it felt. This one had more joy - a Bobby who really was struggling with his feelings. He works his way up to Being Alive. And the show was hilarious - I'd forgotten how funny the show can be.
There were some sound issues - particularly during Tick Tock - but it was great to see that dance! There were moments where you could hear the actor twice - into the mike and then back from the amplified voice out in the theatre. So, there were some sound mixing issues that maybe a DVD will fix.
I loved the staging - although you lost the idea that these people were all neighbors in the same building which the original set conveyed.
My daughter has been doing April's monolog for auditions so it was great for her to see it in context.

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 9:27am

My cinema was sold out

Going Sunday now.

Updated On: 6/17/11 at 09:27 AM

[NGeorgiaBwayFan]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 9:35am

We saw it last night in Canton, GA, north of Atlanta. Sad to say that we were the only two in the theater when the show started. Three others came in after it started. Eventhough there weren't many of us, it seemed that everyone enjoyed the performance. No applause, but everyone laughed or groaned at the appropriate moments.

I thought it was a very good concert. While I was familiar with most of the music, it was the first time I'd seen the piece as a whole. I really enjoyed it, too.

NPH's Bobby was very likable. Other standouts to me were Katie Finneran and her crazy Amy, and Christine Hendricks. Thought it was fun to see Stephen Colbert in such a different environment. He wasn't too bad, either. I've always loved Martha Plimpton, so whether anyone else liked her, I did.

Patti, in case no one noticed, seemed to get the biggest ovation of any of the cast from the audience at the Phil after Ladies that Lunch. I think that was the best I have ever heard her sing it -- way better than at any of her concerts.

Anyway, I so hope this comes on DVD as I won't be able to make it to a second screening. It's a two hour drive from my house to a theater that is showing it. Just glad that for a little while last night, Broadway didn't seem quite so far away. If a Broadway show is just a train ride away for you, be thankful.

[broadwaybaby77]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 9:42am

I saw it last night at a relatively large theater in Boston. By the time my friends and I arrived (half an hour before the start time), it was sold out! I had pre-ordered my ticket so I was fine but my friends were out of luck. In the theater it didn't look like they had sold out at all. I had a seat for myself, my handbag, and my coat. Stupid movie theater....

I had really mixed feelings about this production. I LOVED the NY Philharmonic; it was so nice to hear the score the way it's supposed to sound. While I appreciate Doyle's actors-as-musicians choice, I thought it changed the focus of the piece and jilted the audience from hearing the beautiful magnitude of the music.

I also loved Jennifer Laura Thompson and Jon Cryer. Their relationship and their scene's arc were so incredibly clear. I'm not a fan of Patti LuPone at all but I thought she was incredible. I would have paid the full ticket price just to see that scene/song. Her bit isn't that lengthy, but she really portrayed Joanne as multidimensional which I think is SO important.

I didn't really dislike anyone, but there were times when I felt bored and that I didn't care about what was happening. I don't know...I just felt like some of the voices didn't match the music. Many of these voices would have worked better in the Doyle production because they wouldn't have had such tremendous musical support.

At my school we've talked a lot about the difference between a concert production and a fully staged production. I feel like this production didn't really know what it wanted to be. I know it was thrown together at the last minute, but it seemed really cluttered.

After sleeping on it, I think I know what really bothered me: IMO, the scenes were far superior to the songs. Not all across the board, but for the most part. There isn't anything wrong with that but I usually identify with the music so it was tough for me to really get into it. Updated On: 6/17/11 at 09:42 AM

Posted: 6/17/11 at 11:08am

Not to quibble but I don't think you were ever supposed to feel the couples were all neighbors living in a single building. Perhaps you got that impression from the original set, but the couples only link is that they are friends with Bobby- that's why there are introductions in the "surprise party" scenes.

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 11:16am

I never thought they were supposed to be in the same building, either.

[Rumpelstiltskin]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 12:05pm

I live far from New York City, at the intersection of disappointment and joy. For every lackluster tour of a Broadway hit (Curtains), there are moments of greatness when everything just works (In the Heights). Our regional theater scene thrives with a rich and varied selection of high-quality choices, but nothing erases that nagging question of whether our productions rival what Broadway audiences enjoy.

So when we have the opportunity to see filmed versions of Broadway events, we know that we are sharing one experience with theater-lovers everywhere. Our collective experience makes us feel like some of the cool kids, at least for a couple of hours.

The Company experience was one such pocket of joy.

Sure there were missteps. The sound balance skews in favor of the magnificent orchestra; even Patti Lupone sounds at times as if she singing from another room. I would have preferred a more powerful rendition of Another Hundred People from the usually reliable Anika Noni Rose. And I got a little bored during the Tick Tock number; I suppose I missed the point. (Can someone please explain the sex/love-making transition that others wrote about on this thread?)

But these are mere quibbles. I thought the performances were uniformly excellent. The actors responsible for the supporting roles brought with them a level of nuance I've missed in other productions. I'm not going to single anyone out in fairness to the others (Ok - Christina Hendricks was luminous). And Neil Patrick Harris truly defined "star" . . . he never appeared to act or pander to the audience, he both owned and generously shared the spotlight, and he actually made me care for a character I'd written off years ago.

I'm not delusional; I know I wasn't sitting in Lincoln Center. But 12 hours later I'm still remembering, still analyzing, still working out plot details and filling in the gaps, still laughing, and suspect I'll still be doing so tomorrow and many tomorrows after that.

And that's what it's all about, isn't it?

Posted: 6/17/11 at 12:07pm

That's what it's really about. Isn't it? That's what it's really about.

Posted: 6/17/11 at 12:08pm

That's what it's really about. Isn't it? That's what it's really about.

[Mildred Plotka]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 12:33pm

Same building? They barely know each other. I think it's pretty clear in Furth's book that Bobby knows all these couples seperatly from different parts of his life.

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 12:37pm

Even if the original set gave the impression they were all in the building, I think it helps to remember that it's a concept musical - THE concept musical, if you will.

Posted: 6/17/11 at 1:06pm

In my pretentious director days, I always thought if I ever staged Company I'd ask the actors to think about how they met Bobby- He has that line about only meeting people like himself, but do he and Joanne have anything in common? Where did he pick up Marta? Did he know Paul who then met Amy or vice versa? How does that change why he'd propose to Amy? Did he ever date any of the women? One pal said he had always wondered if Bobby had slept with one of the men and that's why Peter hits on him. There is much to think about.

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 1:09pm

You know, as much as I hate the whole "homosexual experience" scene, I found it surprisingly uncreepy this time around.

[Kad]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 1:11pm

I haven't seen the screening yet, but I saw the concert itself. I think the scene wasn't as creepy because Craig Bierko came off as being more casual rather than predatory.

[mamaleh]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 1:17pm

Lonny Price answered, "Right" to "Will there be a Blu-Ray?" Hope that means yes; I think it does.

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/BWW-EXCLUSIVE-Lonny-Price-On-Sondheim-COMPANY-20110617_page2

[NYadgal]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 1:17pm

I see Chelsea has a screening on Monday, 6/20. Perfect! Tickets purchased. Now, let's hope I can get out of the office in time...

Kad, agree with you about Bierko.

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 1:32pm

Yep, Kad and Addy, that's exactly what I thought, too.

[Dollypop]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 5:05pm

I don't think I've enjoyed a thread as much as this one in a long, long time. People are sharing their opinions on something we've all shared in different locations. I'm genuinely enjoying the reports on the audience sizes in different places.

Posted: 6/17/11 at 6:24pm

Rumpelstiltskin, I share all your thoughts about how, oddly, exciting it is to see a show on screen when people are talking about it.

Re the sex/making love bit in Tick Tock--in the original choreography (which can be found from the 20th anniversary performance in part on youtube) there's a clear distinction between the exciting sex part and the more romantic second part.

[Barcelona]

Posted: 6/17/11 at 9:30pm

I saw this last night and absolutely LOVED it! I wasn't sure if I would, since I wasn't thrilled by the Tony performance, but I was pleasantly surprised. NPH did a great job with acting, but I thought that most of the "big" notes in the score (lots of Marry Me a Little, Being Alive) were pretty weak. I also was disappointed by Anika Noni Rose...Another Hundred People is one of my favorite MT songs and I don't feel as if it was a good fit for her.

Kate Finneran was fantastic...I've never laughed that hard at Getting Married Today, and Stephen Colbert was much better than I expected.

I'm hoping to go back again on Tuesday!