Encores! 2023: LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA with Ruthie Ann Miles, DEAR WORLD with Donna Murphy, and OLIVER!- Page 11

[JSquared2]

Posted: 5/8/23 at 2:26pm

chrishuyen said: 

The book is a bit of a mess, and I'm not sure how drastic the changes made for this production were as I haven't seen any other version of the show. But the beginning plods until we hit Consider Yourself, I still don't understand what Bill Sikes does or why everyone's afraid of him (is it just because he's violent?), and the second act speeds by without really any moment for us to understand why Mr. Brownlow cares so much for Oliver (or even Nancy or Fagin for that matter. Oliver was with them for what, a day?)
 

Regarding Mr. Brownlow, he notices how much Oliver looks like his long-lost daughter's (unseen) portrait on the wall -- and then when the Bumbles show up with her locket (that was stolen during childbirth by Old Sally), it is confirmed that he was her son (and Brownlow's grandson).  The movie smartly added in a courtroom scene in which an eyewitness tells the magistrate (a fun cameo by Hugh Griffith) that he saw a different boy pickpocket Brownlow and that Oliver is innocent.  Brownlow feels sorry for the boy and invites him to his home.  It's surprising that the scene was not part of the play.
 

 

[chrishuyen]

Posted: 5/9/23 at 12:35am

JSquared2 said: "chrishuyen said:
The book is a bit of a mess, and I'm not sure how drastic the changes made for this production were as I haven't seen any other version of the show. But the beginning plods until we hit Consider Yourself, I still don't understand what Bill Sikes does or why everyone's afraid of him (is it just because he's violent?), and the second act speeds by without really any moment for us to understand why Mr. Brownlow cares so much for Oliver (or even Nancy or Fagin for that matter. Oliver was with them for what, a day?)

Regarding Mr. Brownlow, he notices how much Oliver looks like his long-lost daughter's (unseen) portrait on the wall -- and then when the Bumbles show up with her locket (that was stolen during childbirth by Old Sally), it is confirmed that he was her son (and Brownlow's grandson). The movie smartly added in a courtroom scene in which an eyewitness tells the magistrate (a fun cameo by Hugh Griffith) that he saw a different boy pickpocket Brownlow and that Oliver is innocent. Brownlow feels sorry for the boy and invites him to his home. It's surprising that the scene was not part of the play."

Yeah I understand that that's what happened since Mr. Brownlow explains the circumstances around how Oliver came to be with them after we already see Oliver living there, but it was all very tell not show, and he had already seemed inclined to adopt Oliver before getting an inkling of his parentage.  We just don't see many scenes at all of them interacting together (something like Something There from BATB would've worked nicely).  And the big revelation felt like it should've been a song too, but the whole second act just rushes through all the emotional beats.

[starcatchers]

Posted: 5/9/23 at 12:43pm

Gavin Lee will be on again as Fagin tonight at 7pm. 

[Voter]

Posted: 5/13/23 at 6:21pm

Went to buy Light in the Piazza tickets today and asked when they are going to announce their next encores season and the worker said either in 2 weeks from Monday or a week before Piazza starts.

[EgyptianGardens]

Posted: 5/13/23 at 10:36pm

"ability".  It means the writers, the director and the producers made a commitment to casting and uplifting Disabled/Neurodivergent artists.  We are the butt of the jokes every day of our lives.  

This production of Light in the Piazza is all about Accessibility.     

[UWS10023]

Posted: 6/7/23 at 5:23am

Was Michael Hayden cast late in the game for Piazza? He is not listed in several articles about the casting. I am surprised he hasn’t been promoted more.

[TaffyDavenport]

Posted: 6/7/23 at 10:38am

Code TMPIAZZA for 20% off select seats.

[ljay889]

Posted: 6/13/23 at 6:57pm

They sound wonderful!

https://www.instagram.com/reel/CtcfvH0pbKO/?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

[henrike]

Posted: 6/13/23 at 8:20pm

Anna Zavelson sounds quite wonderful.  A little hesitant on Ruthie Ann Miles though. Her voice is beautiful and warm, but I've always found it somewhat lacking in power. Not sure if she'll deliver Fable the way Victoria Clark did.

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 6/13/23 at 9:45pm

UWS10023 said: "Was Michael Hayden cast late in the game for Piazza? He is not listed in several articles about the casting. I am surprised he hasn’t been promoted more."

He wasn’t on the website a few days ago, so I’m guessing that yes, he was. Having played Roy myself, I can say that it’s a really tiny, thankless role. If they were looking to get a “name” Broadway vet like Michael Hayden, they probably had a hard time finding someone.

Anna Zavelson has a really beautiful voice. Check out her Jimmy Awards finalist solo - she’s got an instrument that is strong and firm but also light and sweet. Perfect for Clara. 

[musikman]

Posted: 6/13/23 at 10:08pm

henrike said: "Anna Zavelson sounds quite wonderful. A little hesitant on Ruthie Ann Miles though. Her voice is beautiful and warm, but I've always found it somewhat lacking in power. Not sure if she'll deliver Fable the way Victoria Clark did."

Frankly, one of the only people who can deliver Fable the way Victoria Clark did is Kelli, but it remains to be seen if she’s up for doing the role.

I’m still so very excited for this production. How lucky we are to get this chance to see it again with what looks like a great cast.   

 

[JasonC3]

Posted: 6/14/23 at 4:02am

I have no doubt that Ruthie Ann Miles will deliver an excellent performance, but this is one of those rare shows where I am going to let Victoria Clark's work be the only Margaret in my mind.  I saw her four times and truly believed she was Margaret Johnson as she just embodied the character completely.  I'm thrilled someone as talented as Miles gets the chance to to be the Margaret of others' minds.

[QueenAlice]

Posted: 6/14/23 at 11:00am

From Playbill: 

"Without changing a word of the script, director Chay Yew is leaning into Miles' background—the character of Margaret is now a Korean immigrant, just like Miles. It adds even more depth to the character's existing journey of building walls around herself and her child to survive in the world. Says Miles in her recent interview with Playbill, “She’s proving herself, and proving her worth, and showing outwardly that she’s not so different, that she and her daughter belong. Maybe that’s something most people think about, but certainly somebody with an immigrant mentality such as our Margaret Johnson.”

Honestly, I don't understand how this idea could be successfully conveyed without changing the script. And honestly, I think this kind of added subtext is unnecessary.  Margaret and Clara are not from Italy.  That's really the only important detail when it comes to the show's issues of cultural misunderstanding. 

[RippedMan]

Posted: 6/14/23 at 11:07am

It sounds like the director is giving us the character's backstory, which, we the audience, aren't really privy to unless it's in the script, which it isn't. So it's kind of just whatever. Sounds like they just won't be doing bad southern accents? 

[QueenAlice]

Posted: 6/14/23 at 3:31pm

Or they will because Clara and Margaret are still living in NC? Again, it all seems like an irrelevant issue and needless defending of casting non traditional actors in these roles.

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 6/14/23 at 4:55pm

It’s not that big a deal. They’re just not ignoring the fact that she is Korean, and in subtle ways they’re justifying Margaret being Asian in the context of the story. It won’t mean much to white audiences but it will make a big impact for Asian/Korean/immigrant audiences. We haven’t heard them speak yet; maybe they won’t have Southern accents, maybe Ruthie will have a Korean accent when she speaks to her husband on the phone or in her private thoughts. Either way, I’m looking forward to seeing this wonderful cast and hearing this beautiful score live again.

[ColorTheHours048]

Posted: 6/14/23 at 5:31pm

Instagram: Anna Zavelson singing “The Beauty Is”
 

She sounds stunning.

Updated On: 6/14/23 at 05:31 PM

[musikman]

Posted: 6/14/23 at 5:35pm

ColorTheHours048 said: "Instagram: Anna Zavelson singing “The Beauty Is”


She sounds stunning."

Right?!?!  What an exciting find.  Can't wait to see it.

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 6/20/23 at 11:28pm

Any buzz out of the final dress?

Can't wait to see it.

[B212323]

Posted: 6/20/23 at 11:42pm

I hadn't heard he had been cast either but he just finished a run of A Little Night Music at Pasadena Playhouse and got good notices. 

[UWS10023]

Posted: 6/21/23 at 4:59pm

ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "Any buzz out of the final dress?

Can't wait to see it."

The daughter and the suitor both have lovely voices. The lighting and the set design work well. There are some lovely compositions that are enhanced under a structure upstage that supports the orchestra. Unfortunately people sitting in the balcony or some Mezzanine seats will be at a disadvantage when it comes to seeing the whole picture. The show with intermission runs about 2 hours and ten minutes. 

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 6/21/23 at 5:25pm

Such a shame this brilliant show is only playing for 5 days. Boo. 

[quizking101]

Posted: 6/21/23 at 9:40pm

How is the view from the balcony? Do they have rush?

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 6/21/23 at 10:08pm

There are no words in the English language to describe how perfect that was tonight. 

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 6/21/23 at 10:18pm

Looks like I’ll be the lone dissenter to say that was just an energy vampire of an evening.

Miles and Gish are both pushing themselves flat as a pancake. Let’s hope they make it through the week. 
Ivan Hernandez and the rest of the Italian family do provide a nice anchor of sorts despite an 80s robot dance interpretation of “Ayutami”. Andrea Burns wins the night with her characteristic zingers.

The audience, with a severe case of premature ovation, couldn’t bear to let the orchestra finish its last phrase and had to steal the moment for themselves rather than play their character and feel the timing. That was a shame.

<< comment removed by moderator >> 

The two and a half hours of boy and girl circling each other, will they/won’t they, is Mom okay?, the pony incident hovering like a phantom never defeated, wedding is on, wedding is off, Dad’s on his way, Oh look more cheating… like a beautiful bright terracotta black hole, took it all out of me and gave nothing back.

Updated On: 6/22/23 at 10:18 PM