Congratulations to A GENTLEMAN'S GUIDE on Its Best Musical Tony- Page 3

[tazber]

Posted: 5/3/14 at 6:00pm

I just adore this show so much. The score, the costumes, and most of all the performers.

Mays and Pinkham were both remarkable.

I loved Worsham, but I would chosen to recognize O'Hare between the two.

But they were both wonderful.

[MCfan2]

Posted: 5/12/14 at 2:31pm

I've only heard the cast album, but I too was surprised by Worsham being nominated over O'Hare. Maybe you have to see their performances to really get it . . . ?

[PapaGe]

Posted: 5/12/14 at 2:40pm

I have mixed feelings regarding Worsham vs. O'Hare because I loved them both in it. Worsham's part is harder to sing and she sings it better than O'Hare sings her part. However, on stage, though Worsham is absolutely charming as Phoebe, I think O'Hare has to display a lot more acting ability to get the audience to have sympathy for the conniving, money-hungry Sibella.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 5/12/14 at 2:43pm

But to be honest, I never found Sibella sympathetic. I just wanted Monte to ditch her and felt bad that he couldn't... Until, of coirse, the final scene.

[PapaGe]

Posted: 5/12/14 at 2:48pm

That's fair. I appreciated the moments of regret she exhibited, which added depth to what could have been a very boring archetypal character. In general I think that role requires more nuance than Phoebe's (but don't get me wrong, I adore almost everything about this show and in my ideal world both women would have been nominated).

[MCfan2]

Posted: 5/12/14 at 3:16pm

Thanks for the responses! Is one supposed to find Sibella sympathetic in this version? I adored the character as played by Joan Greenwood in "Kind Hearts" -- she was so wickedly funny. But I don't think "sympathetic" would be the word I'd use for her.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 5/12/14 at 3:33pm

No, you should not find Sibella sympathetic til the final scene. You should find her hard to resist. You should want Monte to give her the boot, but understand why he wants her.
If anything, you should pity Sibella. She had so many opportuniies for love and happiness, but her greed and social climbing ways keep winning out.
The final scenes should come as a surprise.

[wonderfulwizard11]

Posted: 5/12/14 at 4:10pm

I haven't seen the show, but I've been listening to the album on Spotify recently and have fallen in love with it. It's so charming and fun, and the voices are beautiful. And while I get the comparisons to Drood (and I love Drood), I actually think this score is on the whole stronger than Drood. I'd love to see it and hope it does well at the Tonys!

[PalJoey]

Posted: 5/29/14 at 11:20pm

Wonderful article on the inception of the musical in Variety.




VARIETY: Road to the Tonys: A Decade of Turning Skeptics into Believers in 'Gentleman's…

[NYadgal]

Posted: 5/29/14 at 11:29pm

That is wonderful!

Such an incredible journey for all involved. I hope they're savoring every moment!

[HorseTears]

Posted: 5/30/14 at 12:37am

Man, that is quite the story of perseverance and dedication! Even I - someone who did not care for this show at all - am kind of rooting for it. The little show that could.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 5/30/14 at 5:38am

I just caught this last week and absolutely fell in love with it....and totally regret not seeing it earlier so that I'd have the chance to see it multiple times by now! I tried to get tickets for next weekend (Saturday only, 6/ and it looks like it's sold out! Great news for them, not so great for me.

This is one of the few shows that I was downloading the cd on my way out of the theater.

So much fun. I'm hoping for many wins on Tony Day! I can't decide which leading man I'd vote for -- which makes it obvious that neither will win. (So congrats to NPH?)

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 5/30/14 at 7:26am

I saw it for the second time on Sunday, and the lack of a Tony nom for Lisa O'Hare is painful. Her work is exquisite.

[newintown]

Posted: 5/30/14 at 8:49am

I, too, am baffled as to what the nominating committee saw in Worsham that they didn't see in O'Hare - they really both are perfection, and I certainly couldn't say that one performance is superior to the other.

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 5/30/14 at 8:55am

I think, due to the structure of the show, Worsham has to fill in more blanks for her character than O'Hare does, making how fully defined her Phoebe is all the more impressive... though, for me, Sibella is still the more fleshed-out and complicated character. But Jesus Christ, by the time we get to the gloriousness of "That Horrible Woman," who cares?

I also, the second time around, really, really, really appreciated "Sibella," not only Bryce Pinkham's vocal performance and its beautiful staging, but just that it exists. Stop a musical comedy halfway through act 2 for the leading man to sing a serious, soaring love ballad?

Well played, Lutvak and Freedman and Tresnjak. Well played.

Updated On: 5/30/14 at 08:55 AM

[newintown]

Posted: 5/30/14 at 9:03am

I find myself listening to "Sibella" a lot lately. One of the better ballads to be written for a show in a long time.

I forget, growlie, have you seen "Kind Hearts and Coronets?" As terrific as O'Hare is, you have to hear young Joan Greenwood's unforgettable voice as Sibella in that. Just the way she says "Louis..."

Updated On: 5/30/14 at 09:03 AM

[givesmevoice]

Posted: 5/30/14 at 9:08am

I also wish O'Hare had been nominated for a Tony, but I think growl might be right about Worsham having to fill in more blanks for Phoebe than O'Hare did for Sibella.

So much fun. I'm hoping for many wins on Tony Day! I can't decide which leading man I'd vote for -- which makes it obvious that neither will win. (So congrats to NPH?)

When I first saw the show in December, my vote was for Mays, but after seeing it again the day Tony nominations were announced, and really thinking about the structure of the show, my vote changed to Pinkham. I would be so happy if either of them won, but I do think that Pinkham is doing exquisite work in a role that could easily wind up with the wrong tone.

I'm so happy the show is picking up steam, but I still feel like a lot of theater fans and experts are still overlooking it. I'm hopeful that they'll do well at the Tonys, and I hope that more people realize what a perfect little gem of a show this is.

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 5/30/14 at 9:37am

I forget, growlie, have you seen "Kind Hearts and Coronets?" As terrific as O'Hare is, you have to hear young Joan Greenwood's unforgettable voice as Sibella in that. Just the way she says "Louis..."

I have, but it's been a few years. I own it and really look forward to revisiting it. All of the Ealing comedies get better on repeated viewings. And as great as Alec Guinness is in it, I remember being mesmerized by the Dennis Price.

[newintown]

Posted: 5/30/14 at 9:50am

And if you read the novel (Israel Rank), you'll see that, despite the creatives' insistence that Gentleman's Guide is based on the novel and not the film, it really has much much more in common with the film than the novel. For one thing, Israel Rank is as much about anti-Semitism as murder, a story element entirely expunged from the movie and musical.

[NYadgal]

Posted: 5/30/14 at 10:02am

I was first introduced to Bryce Pinkham when my chorale group presented KNICKERBOCKER HOLIDAY, and he played the role of Washington Irving. He was brilliant in his performance and brought so much texture to the vocals that I found myself drawn most to his character on stage during the concerts. (And that's saying something, as the cast included Victor Garber, Kelli O'Hara, Ben Davis, Christopher Fitzgerald and others!)

I've followed his work since then, and was thrilled when I learned he had been cast in GENTLEMAN'S GUIDE. Once again, he was the focal point for me, and I think he and Jefferson Mays are paired together perfectly.

In my best of all possible worlds, Bryce Pinkham brings home the Tony. And, someday, I have no doubt, he will.

(In the meantime, a shameless plug for info about the KNICKERBOCKER HOLIDAY recording. Treat yourselves!)
Full Recording of Knickerbocker Holiday is available

Updated On: 5/30/14 at 10:02 AM

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 5/30/14 at 10:07am

We were talking after the show about how Monty is written and how there’s not much character there. So, weirdly, I think the triumph of Pinkham’s performance is that he lacks shading almost altogether, which allows the audience to impress themselves on him. Monty isn’t a three-dimensional human being; what makes him so eminently watchable is Pinkham’s exuberance and charisma.

Updated On: 5/30/14 at 10:07 AM

[wonkit]

Posted: 5/30/14 at 10:28am

growl - I agree. Pinkham makes a stock figure into someone interesting to watch and delightful to listen to.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 5/30/14 at 12:09pm

Agree 100% about Pinkham.. Not to mention that he is on stage the entire time, has to be a leading man AND character actor, make a man doing unspeakable things 100% likable and make you root for him and exist on a plane that has to riotously funny while grounded enough to play the straight man to Mays' clowning.

"That Horrible Woman" is a beautiful number... The ladies are perfection and the staging is delicious.

[Mr. Nowack]

Posted: 5/30/14 at 3:11pm

I adore that recording of KNICKERBOCKER HOLIDAY. Even just listening to him you can tell what a wonderful performance it was. I feel very much the same about GENTLEMAN's GUIDE, having unfortunately not seen it yet.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 5/30/14 at 8:10pm

A nice article about Jefferson Mays in the New York Times by Jacob Bernstein (Nora Ephron's son).



NY TIMES: For Jefferson Mays: After the Show, the Stairs Await A Night Out With Jefferson Mays of ‘A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder’