My thought going into the re-opened Pasadena Playhouse was what will a musical set in 16th century Venice sound like? Answer - bland pop rock. Not terrible, some nice songs that could fit into just about any musical - just not one set in 16th century Venice.
What was there about the movie that someone thought needed musicalizing? I guess it's the empowerment of women theme which hangs heavily over every moment. We get the point in the first ten minutes but the point keeps being made anyway.
The cast has a lot of Broadway people in it including the desperately undangerous Jenny Powers who cannot muster any kind of charisma in the lead. James Snyder is likeable and does well as her swashbuckling beau while Michael Rupert does what he can as the windbag Voice of Reason. Megan McGinnis is in it but doesn't really have a part. Bryce Ryness, to his credit, gives his all as the drunken wastrel who turns bad guy in act two but his enthusiasm is, alas, not catching.
The unit set is efficient and eye-catching enough to garner applause at the opening curtain and there's a chorus of writhing courtesans wearing too many clothes. Oh, and there's a lot of poetry.
I saw this at Northwestern summer of 2008 with the American Musical Theatre Project. The 'bland pop' didn't work for me either. Another problem is that it wasn't funny enough to be a comedy or serious enough to be a drama. 'Limp' is about right.
It's a real pretty show to look at, but the songs were dull and the script was very confusing. I was told it would have made more sense if I had already seen the film, but I hate that excuse. It's lazy writing.
I left at intermission with a group.
"TheatreDiva90016 - another good reason to frequent these boards less."<<>>
“I hesitate to give this line of discussion the validation it so desperately craves by perpetuating it, but the light from logic is getting further and further away with your every successive post.” <<>>
-whatever2
Wow, I forgot Laila Robbins was in it. She plays the courtesan mother of courtesan Jenny Powers - it's a family business - and has an endless song which she sings very well. I didn't know she could sing!
I would not have called any of them singers. More like 'actors who could carry a tune'.
"TheatreDiva90016 - another good reason to frequent these boards less."<<>>
“I hesitate to give this line of discussion the validation it so desperately craves by perpetuating it, but the light from logic is getting further and further away with your every successive post.” <<>>
-whatever2
I've given Laila Robins vocal coachings. She hasn't sung publicly in years and really broke out of her musical shell last summer at the O'Neill when she was prepping for an audition for something and workshopping amusical. We were there working on 'Picnic at Hanging Rock', which she was masterful in as the headmistress. Laila has a really lovely voice, especially while singing Joni Mitchell. Here's hoping this musical gig gets her out there in the musical world some more!
Sad to hear it isn't that spectacular. It's got quite a wonderful cast -- especially the great Michael Rupert.
Laila is such an amazing actress. Still can't get her performance in 'Frozen' out of my head. Can't believe she didn't get a Tony nomination for that... I keep hoping she'll do her Jefferson Award-winning Blanche DuBois here (which people marveled at while she did it for Steppenwolf), but with the need for star-power these days, that seems sadly unlikely.
"I know now that theatre saved my life." - Susan Stroman
^ I agree with you about Laila Robins in Frozen. The other two actors got so much attention people tended to overlook the fact that she held the play together.
Sadly, in Dangerous Beauty she has a role unworthy of her talents. The same applies to pretty much the whole cast.
Laila Robins sounded just fine when she played Titania in A Midsummer Night's Dream in the park and had to sing a few songs. She's not Audra McDonald but her voice is pleasant and she's a committed performer.
"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe."
-John Guare, Landscape of the Body
I'm not a fan of the movie, but for some reason have been looking forward to seeing this. Were the costumes any good? Because that's what I came away from the movie thinking, "oh the stage costumes for this could be gorgeous" I hope the show gets better, as I do want to see it.
Just looked at the photos. The costumes and wigs for this show are hideous.
"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe."
-John Guare, Landscape of the Body
No. This is the first official production (aside from a few readings), and it just started previews.
"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe."
-John Guare, Landscape of the Body
I will say this about the costumes. I was impressed by the way the woman’s courtesan costumes changed onstage from look to look.
Although I wanted to scream out, "Zippers were not invented back then!"
"TheatreDiva90016 - another good reason to frequent these boards less."<<>>
“I hesitate to give this line of discussion the validation it so desperately craves by perpetuating it, but the light from logic is getting further and further away with your every successive post.” <<>>
-whatever2
Interesting, as the Pasadena Playhouse production is billed as the "world premiere production".
"You travel alone because other people are only there to remind you how much that hook hurts that we all bit down on. Wait for that one day we can bite free and get back out there in space where we belong, sail back over water, over skies, into space, the hook finally out of our mouths and we wander back out there in space spawning to other planets never to return hurrah to earth and we'll look back and can't even see these lives here anymore. Only the taste of blood to remind us we ever existed. The earth is small. We're gone. We're dead. We're safe."
-John Guare, Landscape of the Body