Chess revival?- Page 3

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

Posted: 6/22/17 at 7:45pm

I mean, they did have to AutoTune her on the DVD, it was one of those nights where she (to paraphrase her own words) only hit 75% of the notes (if that) and called that succeeding. I'm just sayin'.

On topic, I think it's high time Chess got a reevaluation. Unlike many of its fans, I don't think the London version quite got it right; while better than Broadway, productions such as Broadway and Sydney did fix a key weakness of the London version that is not as readily apparent on the concept album because it was only added in a meaningful fashion once the show hit the stage: the split-match format. For their flaws (all of them have second-act problems), the later variations have a much greater coherency, which stems from the fact that the single chess match acts as a framing event for the dramatic action. The benefit of a single-match format is that the action is much more cohesive, with the match providing the outline for the drama.

If I were the one ruling the roost, I'd go back to the concept album song-stack, with light revisions here and there, and develop a book that culled the cream of the crop from Broadway, with some of the flavor of London and Sydney along the way. (Also, I'd restore it to the Cold War setting. Pretty much a no-brainer; Chess was conceived of as a very timely musical, dealing with east/west tensions and the odd phenomenon of chess celebrity in the West, and it's almost impossible to justify a time setting other than 1986 or a few years before it.)

[hork]

Posted: 6/22/17 at 10:04pm

I don't like the single-match format. Having Freddie win is one of the worst things about the Broadway version, and it doesn't make any sense that there's still a break of several weeks in between the two acts. Besides, without the two matches, there's no "The Soviet Machine," which is one of the best songs.

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

Posted: 6/22/17 at 10:27pm

1) Freddie doesn't have to win in a single-match format. (Case in point: the Sydney production, where Anatoly won.)

2) "The Soviet Machine" is a bad attempt at a "King Herod's Song" retread. I get the purpose it's supposed to serve, I just think it's unnecessarily long for coming where it does in the show, and the sudden "stereotypical Russian" vibe rubs me the wrong way. (Side note: they also included this in the single-match Sydney production, with the song's general purpose being reoriented toward bringing Anatoly home. Lyrics were revised to that end.)

Updated On: 6/22/17 at 10:27 PM

[broadwayjim42]

Posted: 6/23/17 at 11:11pm

Love the music, saw the Broadway incarnation (met Benny Andersson at the stage door) and a touring version in 1990 (with Carolee Carmello), but to me it's always been a great score in search of a decent book. I'm not sure if they'll ever find it, but if it came back to Broadway, I'd most definitely be interested depending on the cast. 

But Idina? No. Heinous perfectly describes her performance at the Royal Albert Hall. She's the reason the CD I bought without previewing the contents remains buried in a drawer, half listened to. Her voice is a million kinds of wrong for the material.

 

 

[10086Sundays]

Posted: 6/23/17 at 11:57pm

I'm also not a fan Idina Menzel from an acting or singing standpoint.  Yes to Josh Groban and Adam Pascal.

What about someone like Mandy Gonzalez for Florence?

In my dreams they get Raul to come in a for few months during SVU's hiatus.  I could deal with anyone else being cast for that.

[CT2NYC]

Posted: 6/24/17 at 12:29am

How about Cynthia Erivo as Florence?

https://youtu.be/ecAzOSeAbuU

[CallMeAl2]

Posted: 6/24/17 at 1:08am

How can you have a single match when the first act begins with a production number about Merano and the second opens with a number about Bangkok? 

This is why the show feels like a jukebox score - nothing is written for the place it actually appears in the show. 

[gypsy101]

Posted: 6/24/17 at 2:57am

y'all need to get your ears checked, Idina sounds fabulous on that live recording. i just think she's too old to play the character now. I actually think Anna Kendrick would be great for Florence in her long-awaited return to Broadway.

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

Posted: 6/24/17 at 8:03am

CallMeAl2 said: "How can you have a single match when the first act begins with a production number about Merano and the second opens with a number about Bangkok?"

How could they have a single match in the Broadway version when it started in Bangkok and wound up in Hungary? The circumstances of Anatoly's defection complicate things, and they have to regroup in another location. It's not that big a leap.

I swear, some of the people posting on this thread act like they've never even read about the damn thing...

Updated On: 6/24/17 at 08:03 AM

[chernjam]

Posted: 6/24/17 at 9:55am

I first saw Chess at the Papermill Playhouse - which did a pretty awesome revival in 1992 (can't believe it was that long ago... wow - here's a NY Times review: http://www.nytimes.com/1992/05/31/nyregion/theater-chess-a-musical-that-won-t-give-up.html?mcubz=2)

I saw that revival I think two or maybe three times that summer. Had very little familiarity with the score and less interest with the story just by the name, but I think my Mom had been a subscriber, had an extra ticket and I loved it. After that I started trying to figure out why I had never really heard of it before. And reading all the autopsies of every production, I started to see two problems:

1 - Some theater critics will say we shouldn't compare one work to another and then look at every production as whether it's on the par of "Carousel" (or something that is universally lauded) or not. Tim Rice was a major target for some who wanted to see how he would do post-ALW/ post- major successes of JCS, Joseph and Evita with new collaborators.

2 - That being said, Chess did want to be taken seriously as a theatrical work - and I think it's one of those things that was a good, noble effort, but doubt will work. The political aspects of the cold-war - what that tension was like - is forgotten/unknown to many current theatergoers. Particularly younger audiences. And that's really central to the story. Also the "Bobby Fischer"-esque character of Freddy (an over the top, American Chess player) is something that is not in the public consciousness as much as it was 25 years ago. So it's harder for people to walk in with some of the basic story elements you need for Chess to work. So the creative team has to try to give more and more background to it, which just belabors things.

3 - Reading some of your comments I didn't realize how true your critiques of the score are - underscored by the fact that songs have been interchangeable between characters with little to no lyric changes. And almost every production seems to have a completely different ending...

I enjoyed the score at the time, and enjoyed the concert (despite the noted problems that outing had as well) but it's hard to imagine a full-blown revival of this anytime soon. The only way I could imagine it taking off is with some notable casting that drums up interest...

[BroadwayNYC2]

Posted: 6/24/17 at 11:07am

No to Idina. I skip through "Nobody's Side" every time I listen to that album. 

[JBC3]

Posted: 7/5/17 at 9:22pm

Kennedy Center is doing an Encores-style production in Feb 2018.
http://www.kennedy-center.org/calendar/event/TSBCB

[Ahmy]

Posted: 7/6/17 at 12:35am

10086Sundays said: "I'm also not a fan Idina Menzel from an acting or singing standpoint.  Yes to Josh Groban and Adam Pascal.

What about someone like Mandy Gonzalez for Florence?

In my dreams they get Raul to come in a for few months during SVU's hiatus.  I could deal with anyone else being cast for that.

 

"
In my dreams they'll convince everyone from the 2003 Actors Fund benefit concert to appear in this revival. I prefer that cast to the one with Idina.

 

[BroadwayNYC2]

Posted: 7/6/17 at 9:07am

I would assume this is intended to be a vehicle for Groban. Yes to Julia Murney! 

[LYLS3637]

Posted: 7/6/17 at 9:16am

No thank you to Julia Murney. Saw her in concert and loved her. Cannot stomach her Florence. Whatever wail she chooses to do towards the end of Nobody's Side is cringe-worthy. Total minority opinion but give me Idina any day.

Yes to Raul as the Arbiter though!! 

Posted: 7/6/17 at 10:05am

LYLS3637 said: "No thank you to Julia Murney. Saw her in concert and loved her. Cannot stomach her Florence. Whatever wail she chooses to do towards the end of Nobody's Side is cringe-worthy. 

If I recall correctly, Grainne Renihan (who was Elaine Paige's understudy and replacement) was the one who did started with insane belt at the end of Nobody's Side.  It has been done on the Danish recording and Julia Murney followed suit.

 

"

 

[Jarethan]

Posted: 7/6/17 at 10:12am

I have seen 4 productions of this show over the years.  The score is probably my favorite ever, certainly if number of times played per year is a component of the determination.  The best one I saw was in DC 5 or 6 years ago.  Definition of best: totally entertaining from the second it began until it was over, no point where you questioned 'why did they do that', the casting seemed perfect, it was 'tight'.  That said, I remember thinking that somehow that production just did not seem like something that audiences would flock to.  It did great in a 300 seat theatre, but I just didn't think it would fill a theatre every night, even the Booth.  I cant put my finger on why, but maybe it is that there hasn't been a production to me that, despite the praise of the show, did not come across as underlyingly cold.  I think they need to do something more to the script to offset that coldness.

Either way, I will be there if it stays open long enough for either my April or May foray to the big apple.

PS -- I loved Idina Menzel in Wicked, but have gotten tired of her ever since.  To me she has become a 'shrieker' and that is not a complement.  So, she can hold a note; but if it detracts from the song, why bother. So, please do not put her in it if it is revived...although that may be the only was it succeeds: with big stars in at least two of the roles, and a big talent in the third.

[Owen22]

Posted: 7/7/17 at 2:07pm

I have to put in a good word for the semi-reviled Broadway Trevor production. I loved it. I actually go back every couple years to Lincoln Center to watch it. I found the book by Richard Nelson (!) to be more sophisticated than most musical theatre books (though that could be some people's problem with it...it's very dense.  But I love that). It is the only version I have ever seen where I actually cared about the characters, wondered about their backstories, bought the love story at its center. A magnificent cast as well. It's obviously political but puts the emphasis on the people. There is actual heart there. The "Heaven Help My Heart" scene between Florence and Molokov is beautiful. It had the audacity to cut favorite numbers from the black album because they didn't make any theatrical sense (somewhat like the new trend of giving "Someone Else's Story" to Svetlana--wha..huh?). I have seen many Chess's since (including the truly ridiculous S&M Chess Board Chorus/Orchestra Clive Revel UK touring production) but none have come close to the cohesion of the original Broadway production. I know I am in the minority, but I had hated the idea of the cuts to the black albums's score when I heard about it originally and vowed not to see it... and only went because I was literally just walking by the theatre and someone offered me a 10.00 ticket. But I fell in love with the show and saw it three more times, including the final performance. One of my absolute favorite theatre experiences of my lifetime.

Read more: http://theatreboard.co.uk/thread/730/chess?page=9#ixzz4mAdHk5RD

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 7/7/17 at 2:26pm

Anyone but Julia Murney.  Listening to her in that Actor's Fund concert makes me wonder what on earth they were all thinking.  Did they not have a full run-though of the score...ever?  She did not have the strength or stamina for the part and she was insanely off pitch during all her cringe-inducing power belting.  If she wasn't up to the task 15 years ago, she certainly won't be now.

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 7/7/17 at 2:41pm

I've seen 4 incarnations of Chess, including the original Broadway production.  My favorite was the national tour starring Carolee Carmello as Florence.

[MannPhan24601]

Posted: 1/30/19 at 1:03pm

What happened with this rumored revival of the Kennedy Center production? Guess it was halted from Ruthie Ann Miles' injury and Karen Olivio doing Moulin Rogue?