Curtains in LA- Page 5

[jwsel]

Posted: 7/30/06 at 11:32am

City of Angels, but it isn't exactly a typical musical mystery.

[theonlyone]

Posted: 7/30/06 at 2:07pm

Ahh, City of Angels. Love that one.

Anyways, question about the HOT TIX, since it seems that there are still some that are available...are they only for specific dates/seats or do we get to pick the dates and the seats are just up for grabs?

[PersonofInterest]

Posted: 7/30/06 at 6:41pm

The hot tix are really great actually. We ended up in a box, which was really quite fun. In all my theater going I had never been in a box. When you call they give you a choice of seats. I think there are a lot throughout the run. There were a lot of empty seats last night. Single seats are obviously gonna be better than going with someone.

[madophelia]

Posted: 7/30/06 at 10:49pm

An interestng and fairly indepth review, commenting on numbers I don't believe I've seen anybody else mention, here:

http://thevioletvixen.blogspot.com/

Have no fear, it is not the top item on the page.

[4cygnets]

Posted: 7/31/06 at 2:08am

So, I saw it and had a lot of fun. Not as much fun as "Drowsy" but its still a lot of fun. It will be interesting to see how they work on it over the next week or so leading to press night. That blog post above got it pretty well down.

Here's the deal with the Ahmanson's $20 HOT TIX:

1. In advance - Small quantities are available in advance by phone. Just call up and check for the date you want to go. Usually they're far side orchestra (last two seats in the row), or the boxes. It's not so bad if you get row K or L in the orchestra, but as you get closer of course the view gets more extreme. ANd it depends on the show - for a play, side seats really don't matter, but if the view is important than you get what you pay for. (And despite what the post on page 1 says, there are no aisles in the Ahmanson so it's not possible to have a center aisle HOTTIX)

2. Day of - Best available in the balcony, on sale starting when the box office opens. You can call on the day of to check availibility, but usually you can at least get something. Some find the balcony a bit high at the Ahmanson, but IMO its not that bad - especially for the $20 price.

I think HOTTIX will be great for this show (I sat in rear orchestra with a discount, but it looks big enough to be able to see a lot from upstairs). I wouldn't get advance tix unless you were in K or L - boxes could be fun too, though!

[JoMarch]

Posted: 7/31/06 at 2:40am

I saw it this weekend and it was much ado about nothing imo. I really wanted to like this show and had such high hopes after reading some really encouraging comments on this board. I couldn't believe how disappointed I was when I left the Ahmanson Friday night. The show I saw was completely different from what everone else seems to have seen.
I liked Show People and Monk's big number, but every other song was utterly forgetable. I couldn't have cared less about the mystery plot or the characters..with the exception of Pierce who was very, very good. I have never understood the Ziemba love, and after seeing her in this show, I still don't. The show just dragged and dragged as well, I couldn't wait for it to end, and I rarely feel that way about any musical, even those I don't like. Ugh. Sooo disappointed. And why the heck is Darcie Roberts wasted in the chorus?
Updated On: 7/31/06 at 02:40 AM

[latheatrelover]

Posted: 7/31/06 at 5:35am

Article about Pierce and the show in Sunday's L.A. Times"

http://www.calendarlive.com/stage/cl-ca-curtains30jul30,0,5337051.story?coll=cl-lat-homepage

and photos:

http://www.calendarlive.com/galleriesandmuseums/cl-curtains-pg,0,2379172.photogallery?coll=cl-lat-homepage&index=1

[BroadwayBaby6]

Posted: 7/31/06 at 12:57pm

I saw the show last night 7/30. The theatre looked 95%+ full. The show is absolutely wonderful. It may not be a masterpiece like Cabaret or Chicago but it's a fun show with songs that range from good to wonderful (including one song about Show People that is sure to become a new standard). Debra Monk's performance is a revelation and is sure to win her a Tony nomination when the show goes to Broadway. While David Hyde Pierce is not a great singer, his singing is adequate and his acting and comic timing are impeccable. Karen Ziemba is also wonderful. Rest of the cast is excellent. Direction and Choreography were, for the most part, spot on. Sets, costumes and production values were top-notch.

Those people who criticize the show for not being suspenseful enough, simply don't understand the premise of the show. Like Drowsy, this show is a valentine to musical theatre and even more specifically a love letter to the hard working "show people" who put on musical theatre- the backers, the crazy producers, the hard-working often underpaid cast, the egomanical directors, the stage mothers, the tortured songwriters,etc..

When taken into proper context, the show works brilliantly. Is it Broadway-ready? No, it's about 80% Broadway ready. About 15 minutes of trimming would tighten the show. There is some choreography that needs to be tweaked and some plot points that need to be better explained. I have no doubts that the creative team can perfect the show before it goes to Broadway. This is going to be a very expensive show to mount- but I think it will be a big hit.

[JoMarch]

Posted: 7/31/06 at 2:45pm

Were you sitting in the orchestra BroadwayBaby6? I sat in the balcony on Friday night and up there it was 15% full at best. I'm not sure I could sit through the show again, but it'd be interesting to see how much the show improves with some major trimming.

[theonlyone]

Posted: 7/31/06 at 2:46pm

Thanks for that, 4cygnets!

[latheatrelover]

Posted: 7/31/06 at 5:13pm

I saw the show on Friday and it looked full to me. I paid full price for a great ticket in Row L, almost dead center to the stage.

I sometimes wonder if a show affects people the farther you sit from the stage? I was up close and loved it, you were up in the balcony and didn't like it. I remember sitting in the upper balcony at the Pantages for a revival of Fiddler on the Roof and was bored silly, yet others reviewed it well. I think sometimes the distance does create alienation from the actors on stage, especially when one has to see them through opera glasses.

I would apply that theory to this but I know there was a couple sitting next to me in the orchestra and they never came back from intermission. So I guess they hated it. Either that or I can bring bring another speculation to light: lol, is it possible that there are some idiots out there who think the intermission curtain is the end of the show? lol, I can just imagine them telling their friends, "We hate theatre. So many times we have seen shows start out great but then it is all over an hour later and leaving a lot of questions unanswered." LOL!
Updated On: 7/31/06 at 05:13 PM

[JoMarch]

Posted: 7/31/06 at 7:04pm

hehehe Well I have never left a show during intermission, although I was tempted to when I saw Little Women. I know someone who actually thought Into the Woods was over after the first act though. LOL
I doubt where I sat had anything to do with my enjoyment of the show since I always get cheap seats for every single show I see and usually love most of them since I'm a musical junkie. LOL We could have moved down the front of the balcony since it was so empty but I'm used to sitting so far back I just stayed put!

[TicketMediaGuy]

Posted: 7/31/06 at 8:21pm

"I also heard that you can often show up to "Opening Night" and get it free if the media has not already filled the place. "

I've frequently have done the whole Opening Night Standby for alot of shows in Los Angeles... and I have to admit, I've never been turned away except for once... and that was because it was a pretty small theatre.

Anyway, When I've done the Ahmanson Theatre for their Opening Night standby line I've gotten there around 6pm or so, gotten my number, and hung out until they were ready to hand out tickets. I'm usually closer to the end of the line, but without fail I've gotten in... and the best seat I ever got was for their opening of La Boheme - 5th row center!

If you decide to do the Opening Night performance of Curtains it is coming up pretty quickly - Wednesday - August 9th at 8pm.

There's an $8.00 charge for parking, but it's well worth it since you get to see a show for free. I've also had some great "A" list celebrity sightings at Openings - I sat next to Jake Gyllenhall once!!!

The staff is pretty cool, too... if you ask the employees that are working the stand by line they will tell you how it all works so you're not wondering what to do next - Just don't ask them what you're chances of getting in are... they always say 50/50 (but I always get into the show that night).

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 8/1/06 at 1:14pm

Some more great pics!
Playbill

[madophelia]

Posted: 8/1/06 at 3:59pm

The Ahmanson has put up a bunch of production photos, some of which Playbill used in today's article. Check them out:

Ahmanson at myspace

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 8/1/06 at 8:08pm

Gorgeous! Thank you!

[Jon]

Posted: 8/1/06 at 9:45pm

Question: Has there ever been a show in which KZ appeared that did NOT send out a publicity shot of her leg up in the air?

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 8/1/06 at 9:56pm

Ya gotta use what sells, baby!

Updated On: 8/1/06 at 09:56 PM

[4cygnets]

Posted: 8/2/06 at 1:58pm

Ooh - thanks for posting the pictures from the Ahmanson's site. "Tough Act to Follow" was such a fun number, with David's overexcited (on purpose) dancing.

[shesamarshmallow]

Posted: 8/5/06 at 3:44am

I think Edward Hibbert will win a Tony next year.

[phantomCA26]

Posted: 8/5/06 at 9:45am

Yesterday evening my friend and I took in a performance of Curtains. Overall I wasn't pleased with it at all. There were two stand-out numbers and a few laughs scattered throughout but overall it's a dud. I would never recommened it or pay to see it again.

[ErinDillyFan]

Posted: 8/5/06 at 9:34pm

I just happened to be in LA for business friday and saw Curtains friday night. Overall it I thought it was a great show. There were a few rough spots, Debra Monk was having trouble holding her notes, she couldn't sustain a note for more than 2-3 seconds. David Hyde Pierce played his part to perfection, plays the same personality that he did on Fraser, stoic and reserved then sudden outbursts of enthusiasm it really carried the show. The worst part of the show was a song he sings to explain his life. I don't have the playbill with me, but it is "Breakfast in the cafe, lunch in the diner" something to that a effect which I found to be very forced and corny. There are some very effective songs in this show that harken back to the 50s-60s show stopping numbers. I thought the choreography was interesting and fresh for the most part, but there were a couple times it was gratuitously sexually suggestive (with dancers putting their faces in each others groin) when it had no reason to be in the show. I found the humor somehow both familiar and fresh at the same time. Like it was just enough of a new twist on an old joke that it struck me as funny or it been long enough she I had heard it that it caught me off guard. Everyone around me said they enjoyed it.

EDIT: By the way, I couldn't see the upper balcony, but the mezzanine and everything I could see of the main floor was >95% full with only single seats empty. This show is the first that I ever remember seeing where the conductor gets to sing! Updated On: 8/5/06 at 09:34 PM

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/6/06 at 10:48am

I saw “Curtains” yesterday, and I will do my best to “review” the show… although I should warn you. I’m not a trained professional when it comes to being a critic, and I don’t claim to be! But I’ll do my best to give you the lowdown, as I see it…

I will start with the “good.” It’s a fun, pleasing show overall, with a winning and talented cast. (I’m sure they’ll have plenty of quotes like that for the ads!) The best part about the show IS the cast. Debra Monk (as theatrical producer Carmen Bernstein) owns the stage, and more than her fair share of the musical’s laughs, from the moment we see her cantankerous face pop up from behind a newspaper bearing a rotten review of her latest effort. And David Hyde Pierce, as the charming and bumbling theatre-lover Lieutenant Frank Cioffi comes off here as a "musical theatre" answer to Jimmy Stewart. I didn’t see his performance in Spamalot, so I was surprised to learn how comfortable he is in this genre. He sings and dances (okay “moves”) quite well here, and slips from dialogue to song to dance with his own equal and uniform gee-golly-gosh style. About the worst thing I can say for him is that his Boston accent slips in and out. Something not terribly important in the scheme of things. Both Monk and Pierce are the anchors of this show, but it’s really an ensemble piece. There are around a dozen principle roles, and everyone gives a good, solid performance.

Now for the bad… unfortunately (perhaps because there are so many principle roles) none of them are very fleshed-out, even within the expected limitations of an old-fashioned musical format like this. Throughout the evening, we learn who everyone is, what their relationship is to everyone else while working on the show-within-a-show, and what they want out of life. But we don’t learn anything about who they are as “people.” So, the result for me was that I felt very removed from this story and these likeable characters. I wasn’t really pulling for anyone.

The show's real problem is the writing. The book, music and lyrics are good, but never great. They are “serviceable” but never memorable. Bouncy tunes, standard choreography and funny jokes that are all quickly forgotten. I would go into the plot a bit here, but I always HATE when the real critics do that, so I won’t. This is, after all, a murder mystery set behind the scenes of a musical during its out-of-town tryout. I will only add that it’s a murder mystery where the stakes never seem very high, and we don’t much care "whodunnit."

There is one number that “stops the show,” and it definitely merits mentioning. It’s the sweet duet that evolves into a large, fluffy, romantic production number with Pierce and the darling, willowy ingénue Jill Paice, called, “A Tough Act To Follow.” It’s not the material itself that works this “magic.” The song is good (not great) and the staging is straightforward and well executed… but it’s the chemistry of these two winning performers that shoots it into the stratosphere. The audience clapped for nearly a full minute afterwards, at the performance I attended. If I tried to describe it to you on paper, you wouldn’t get it, or begin to understand why it works. No hydraulic lifts, super special effects, or shrieking divas belting. For those of you who saw Hairspray with Harvey and Dick’s rendition of “You’re Timeless To Me,” you’ll understand what I mean. It’s a sweet, charming song that (due to the chemistry of the performers) manages to stop the show.

I think “Curtains” will do well when it gets to NYC. I predict it will receive mixed to positive notices and have a good, respectable run. It isn’t a mega-hit in the making. It’s not going to win every Tony Award conceivable. Or necessarily ANY, for that matter. But it has enough good things going for it to keep both the locals and the tourists entertained for a season or possibly two.

One final thought… when all was said and done… as the lights came up for the last time, I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of finality and regret. This was the last original Kander & Ebb show I’ll ever see, and I kept thinking about that on the way home. It represents the end of a golden partnership in musical theatre history. And although “Curtains” is far from their finest effort, I was glad to be there to enjoy it, and say a fond goodbye to two “old friends.”

Updated On: 8/7/06 at 10:48 AM

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/6/06 at 11:18am

I'm compelled to add a little more about the cast. I praised them as being the best thing about this show, but I didn't go into enough detail, I guess.

The problem (as I said) is that these are not "killer" roles (no pun intended). Karen Ziemba does the best that any performer could with the role of the songwriter-turned-leading-lady, as written. The material doesn't rise anywhere close to her level of ability... particularly in the area of dance. She has the big Act I finale with the ensemble, but the choreography was so predictably "adequate" and uninspired that it didn't raise the roof, despite her own, marvelous stage presence and energy. That was a real shame. She was in excellent voice at the performance I saw. She has improved quite a bit in the "singing department," with age.

Jason Danielly has an unusual voice, but a good one. His rapid-fire vibrato works better on stage than it does on a recording, but his ballad was bland and ordinary. He reminds me of Jack Cassidy in this show. His mannerisms, his acting, and his delivery. He gives an earnest performance that, like the others, ultimately gets lost in the crowd a bit.

The one real standout among the "ensemble of principles" is Edward Hibbart as the pompous British director Christopher Belling. His comic timing is delicious, and he walks away with the remainder of the laughs. I wouldn't be surprised to see him land a featured Tony nomination for his work in this.

Updated On: 8/6/06 at 11:18 AM

[Chitty]

Posted: 8/6/06 at 2:23pm

This sounds really exciting of a show!