Camelot LCT Benefit

[ElphabaGoodman]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 4:13pm

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Breaking-Lin-Manuel-Miranda-Solea-Pfeiffer-Jordan-Donica-Ruthie-Ann-Miles-More-Will-Lead-CAMELOT-Benefit-Concert-20190131

Surprised no one has posted about this yet. Looks like a pretty fantastic cast for what should be a lovely concert version of the show! Pfeiffer will sing Guenevere beautifully

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 4:36pm

I've been wishing for a Bartlett Sher Camelot at Lincoln Center but not a benefit concert! I wanted a full revival. Perhaps if this goes well we may see it again in the future.

[Jeffrey Karasarides]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 9:09pm

I wonder if Camelot could be Lincoln Center’s next musical revival after My Fair Lady. I remember André Bishop talked about exploring the Rodgers & Hammerstein catalogue with South Pacific and The King & I. Could they be exploring the Lerner & Loewe catalogue next?

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 9:13pm

My love of CAMEOT is overridden by my feeling that I need Lin to go away for at least 10 years and just give us all a break from him.

[BenElliott]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 9:38pm

Lin's a talented guy, definitely, but he's kind of an odd choice for that part right? I feel like Matthew Rhys would be perfect for this or really any great English actor. Lin's accent (which I know was intentional) in Mary Poppins certainly didn't leave me longing to see him in roles with English accents.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 9:50pm

They’re probably letting Lin rewrite it to suit him.

[NYadgal]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 10:19pm

It’s a benefit.
They want to raise $.

LMM brings in the big $$.

Plus, I think it will be great. I’ve longed for a Lincoln Center revival of Camelot. May this be the first step toward that.

[JBC3]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 11:10pm

Jordan Catalano said: "My love of CAMEOT is overridden by my feeling that I need Lin to go away for at least 10 years and just give us all a break from him."

yep

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 11:20pm

NYadgal said: "It’s a benefit.
They want to raise $.

LMM brings in the big $$.

Plus, I think it will be great. I’ve longed for a Lincoln Center revival of Camelot. May this be the first step toward that.
 

So much this ^^^^^^^^

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 1/31/19 at 11:20pm

NYadgal said: "It’s a benefit.
They want to raise $.

LMM brings in the big $$.

Plus, I think it will be great. I’ve longed for a Lincoln Center revival of Camelot. May this be the first step toward that.
 

So much this ^^^^^^^^

[A Director]

Posted: 2/1/19 at 2:17am

The Camelot score is pretty good, but the book is so-so.  It isn't any interesting show. LCT should take a risk and do a new musical on their big stage.

[jayinchelsea]

Posted: 2/1/19 at 2:28am

A Director said: "The Camelot score is pretty good, but the book is so-so. It isn't any interesting show. LCT should take a risk and do a new musical on their big stage."

Thanks for mentioning this. CAMELOT has a great role in Arthur, some wonderful songs, and a very labored book. I love and respect LMM, but he is not versatile enough to make this elephant fly.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 2/1/19 at 3:19am

I love the book for Camelot. I think it’s perfectly fine.

[EdEval]

Posted: 2/1/19 at 8:20am

Growing up Lin Miranda would constantly listen to the original cast album of Camelot and became enamored of the show and musical theatre.  I was hoping that he would reimagine Camelot in his own way as a new and fresh approach to the story.  It would be interesting.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 2/1/19 at 8:49am

Growing up, I would constantly listen to the original cast album of Gypsy and became enamored of the show and musical theatre.

Doesn’t mean I’m right for Rose.

[RoyiG]

Posted: 2/1/19 at 9:08am

Jordan Catalano said: "Growing up, I would constantly listen to the original cast album of Gypsy and became enamored of the show and musical theatre.

Doesn’t mean I’m right for Rose."

^Oh man I needed that laugh REAL bad this morning. Thank you.

[bwayobsessed]

Posted: 2/1/19 at 9:14am

A Director said: "The Camelot score is pretty good, but the book is so-so. It isn't any interesting show. LCT should take a risk and do a new musical on their big stage."

Frankly I think the book should be completely rewritten. Give Guinevere some more agency, either make Mordred interesting or completely delete him, Merlin is also useless as far as I am concerned in the current book. 

[jv92]

Posted: 2/1/19 at 9:24am

Leave well enough alone-- no rewrites. Lerner's dead. We don't need some too-obvious dramaturgy "fixing" CAMELOT. What the show needs is a good cast. I'm really curious about Miranda playing Arthur. I may eat my words, but I think he has that youthful idealistic quality needed for the part. Everyone seems to forget that that's a huge part of Arthur. Even Burton had that twinkle in his eye. Then Richard Harris did the movie and over emoted like he was passing a very difficult stool, and grimaced and preened through the whole ugly thing. 

 

 

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 2/1/19 at 9:41am

This is a nice thing that Lin is doing to raise money for LCT, and it will be interesting to see him take on another "classic" musical theatre role (after Merrily and Tick Tick Boom). I cannot see Lin ever doing this in a full production, but it's great for a concert version.

I think Camelot is a tricky show (and an overly long one), and would definitely need some reshaping for a full Broadway production. Even the Richard Harris revivals tweaked the book. The new David Lee chamber musical adaptation cuts both Merlyn and Pellinore.

Frankly, this casting is a heck of a lot more interesting than what LCT could have very easily done: asked the cast of My Fair Lady to do Camelot for a night (Harry as Arthur, Laura as Jenny, Christian as Lance, Corduner as Pellinore, Danny as Merlyn).

[MrsSallyAdams]

Posted: 2/1/19 at 9:54am

I love the original recording but find Camelot dull on stage. There's no reason to invest in Lancelot or his romance with Guenevere and Arthur's treatment of Mordred is foolish enough for me to lose sympathy for him.

In addition three of the comedy numbers (Take Me to the Fair, The Persuasion, Fie on Goodness) get cut for time in every full production I see, while all the dour moments are left in tact.

EDIT: Also the plot requires keeping the unintentionally campy choral numbers (The Jousts, Guenevere) to tie up the plot.

Updated On: 2/1/19 at 09:54 AM

[ABitOnTheSide]

Posted: 2/1/19 at 10:55am

Camelot will always have a special place in my heart. I played Mordred years ago (perhaps the most underwritten principle character in musical theater history), and have always loved the score. The book SUCKS. Well, it can suck if directed poorly. This show needs more fantasy and magic and less soap opera. I'd love for this to be recorded, since there's never been a full recording of the score.

As much as I am exhausted with Miranda, I don't think he's a bad choice for Arthur. It's not really a singing role anyway. 

[Kad]

Posted: 2/1/19 at 11:01am

I love the off-beat and diverse casting choices here, even if the show is a bore onstage. 

[natashalost]

Posted: 2/1/19 at 11:20am

The casting is the only part of this that interests me. I love the idea of Solea Pfeiffer as Guenevere and Jordan Donia, too.

[Skip23]

Posted: 2/1/19 at 2:24pm

Camilton?

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 2/1/19 at 4:02pm

Jordan Catalano said: "Growing up, I would constantly listen to the original cast album of Gypsy and became enamored of the show and musical theatre.

Doesn’t mean I’m right for Rose."

LOL!!! This post just gave me life!