Encores’ THE LIFE - Performances & Reviews- Page 3

[BJR]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 10:01am

Uh that Artistic Director conceived and led Public Works. That's how she got that job.

And if you mean Porter, he's been directing for years now and is quite famous.

[pagereynolds]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 10:05am

austinyourface said: "Lear deBessonet is an accomplished director who led the Public’s very successful Public Works program and directed many acclaimed productions off-Broadway, so I’m not sure how she would count as someone hired solely for her “identity.”"

I don't think that Lear was hired for her identity. But what she was hired to do at Encores! clearly isn't working out. I would say maybe through no fault of her own, but it does seem to be all her idea.

 

[austinyourface]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 10:18am

I do agree that thus far, her tenure has gotten off to a rocky start. But there’s time to course correct. 

[UWS10023]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 10:27am

When you read the Porter article in the program it is evident that he was the driving force behind the changes and his plans which were very specific, were approved by the Coleman, Gasman and Newman estates. So to be fair one would have no idea how much the artistic director was involved in the process.  I imagine Billy is a hard person to say no to. But I guess at the end of the day she would have approved the changes.

Updated On: 3/17/22 at 10:27 AM

[pagereynolds]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 10:33am

UWS10023 said: "When you read the Porter article in the program it is evident that he was the driving force behind the changes and his plans which were very specific were approved by the Cy Coleman estate. So to be fair one would have no idea how much the artistic director was involved in the process. I imagine Billy is a hard person to say no to. But I guess at the end of the day she would have approved the changes."

The fact that it comes on the heels of another badly received show is the problem.

[DaveyG]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 10:42am

https://www.theatermania.com/new-york-city-theater/reviews/review-billy-porters-the-life-is-the-new-low-bar_93509.html

Ouch.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 10:47am

“Does it even sound like Coleman anymore? Also no.”

For Encores!, that is absolutely unforgivable.

[quizking101]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 10:50am

DaveyG said: "https://www.theatermania.com/new-york-city-theater/reviews/review-billy-porters-the-life-is-the-new-low-bar_93509.html

Ouch."

Ouch is an understatement. I felt myself physically recoiling in secondhand embarrassment from that article. A friend who saw it last night only could rave about Ledisi- but literally nothing else 

[VintageSnarker]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 11:15am

"I watched with envy as some of the audience left at intermission."

I'd expect that on a message board, but in a review? Ouch, indeed.

"Ultimately, it's obvious that Porter wanted to turn The Life into something that it's not, and the show itself, while not particularly well-built, is strong enough to resist it at every turn. The push-pull is particularly disastrous in the music department, where conductor James Sampliner has rearranged Coleman's big-band score with a more Funkadelic feel. Groovy? Certainly. Does it sound good? Hell no. Does it even sound like Coleman anymore? Also no.

The new orchestrations render the music unintelligible (the never-ending ballads suck the air right out of the room), and the band is so loud that it throws the cast off (Kai Harada and Megumi Katayama's sound design makes your ears ring). More than once, the ensemble had trouble keeping up with the tempo, and the leading actors often found themselves with a surprising amount of difficulty getting to the right notes. They literally can't hear themselves."

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 11:17am

Lear D. is one of the best directors working today.

My GUESS is that the mandate for popular shows (like Into the Woods) and slightly more modern shows (like The Life) came from the people she reports to. What once started as a way to keep the lights on during dark weeks at City Center is now a major source of income, with the potential of Broadway royalties if a show moves. Encores probably accounts for more than 50% of NYCC's earned income, even though it's only 3-4 weeks of the year.

Encores has had plenty of awful shows in the final years of Jack Viertel's tenure, too. The thrills and surprises became rarer as the years went on (Most Happy Fella, Superman, The New Yorkers, Grand Hotel) and some of the older, clunkier shows just couldn't translate well to modern eyes. And when you have 2 weeks of rehearsal, you're severely limited in what can be changed if it's not working in a studio run-through.

So I don't think Lear can be to blame entirely. They also have waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too many cooks in the leadership kitchen now. But hopefully she and the folks working for and above her will learn A LOT from this season and can be given the space to try again next season, with hopefully better shows and productions.

[pagereynolds]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 11:20am

ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "Lear D. is one of the best directors working today.

My GUESS is that the mandate for popular shows (like Into the Woods) and slightly more modern shows (like The Life) came from the people she reports to. What once started as a way to keep the lights on during dark weeks at City Center is now a major source of income, with the potential of Broadway royalties if a show moves. Encores probably accounts for more than 50% of NYCC's earned income, even though it's only 3-4 weeks of the year.

Encores has had plenty of awful shows in the final years of Jack Viertel's tenure, too. The thrills and surprises became rarer as the years went on (Most Happy Fella, Superman, The New Yorkers, Grand Hotel) and some of the older, clunkier shows just couldn't translate well to modern eyes. And when you have 2 weeks of rehearsal, you're severely limited in what can be changed if it's not working in a studio run-through.

So I don't think Lear can be to blame entirely. They also have waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too many cooks in the leadership kitchen now. But hopefully she and the folks working for and above her will learn A LOT from this season and can be given the space to try again next season, with hopefully better shows and productions."

Very good points. I will say, though, that she has been the sole person behind the mission creep. She's 100% content (if you believe the press and interviews she's done) completely changing orchestrations, saying that old shows don't work for audiences anymore, etc. 

And the fact that they only have 2-3 weeks to put something up isn't an excuse for the actors not being able to hear themselves over the music.

[jkcohen626]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 11:32am

Going to see this tonight. Sad to hear it's not being received well. I am not familiar at all with this show, so I have a feeling that I'm not going to mind it as much as others. I also didn't spend so much on my ticket, so it's less lost for me if it's a dudd.

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 11:36am

I mean, the data is there: the older shows Encores was doing did not appeal to mass audiences on the level that City Center brass wanted. Can't remember the last time I sat in a full house there, and a lot of tickets have been discounted to $25 or comped over the years. Unfortunately, the newer shows in the current season have not translated to sales either. The reality is probably that there just isn't an appetite for a 7-show run of a lot of these lesser-known titles in a house of that size. Fewer performances of each title means lower earnings potential.

Whether the opinions are organic to Lear or something that she has adopted from the leadership and is sticking to the "party line" is something we may not know until she's gone from there.

Also: Certain directors and actors work well within Encores. Other people just need more time. People who come out of summer stock generally fare well. If you want to be successful at Encores, it's almost as important to be able to "play the game" as it is to be talented and have a singular vision.

[Sauja]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 11:39am

ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "Encores has had plenty of awful shows in the final years of Jack Viertel's tenure, too. The thrills and surprises became rarer as the years went on (Most Happy Fella, Superman, The New Yorkers, Grand Hotel) and some of the older, clunkier shows just couldn't translate well to modern eyes. "

I 100% agree with this, buuuuuut: what every bad show Viertel put on had in common was that they presented the score as originally orchestrated and intended. I could forgive every single problem with this production if the score sounded good. This cast with this book singing these songs as originally orchestrated? Great.

The new arrangements and the horrific sound design are the unforgiveable sins of this iteration of The Life.

[pagereynolds]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 11:39am

Yeah, I agree with you. But there's no reason to screw around with the original orchestrations. There's no reason the sound should be at 42. And someone should have taken a look at what Billy Porter was writing.

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 11:45am

Sauja said: "what every bad show Viertel put on had in common was that they presented the score as originally orchestrated and intended. I could forgive every single problem with this production if the score sounded good. This cast with this book singing these songs as originally orchestrated? Great. The new arrangements and the horrific sound design are the unforgiveable sins of this iteration of The Life."

Those are fair points! I can't speak to any specifics of THE LIFE because I haven't seen it (and probably won't –– life's short).

[Peter2]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 11:53am

I'd like to see Encores! get back to putting on shows as they were originally made.

Updated On: 3/17/22 at 11:53 AM

[Ke3]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 12:07pm

It kinda seems like Encores have done most of the shows it makes sense for them to do, or that would make for viable "productions". As previously pointed out though, City Center needs the money. So, they can't exactly stop. 

To me, it would've made more sense to have Lear come in and start a new program that could help them offset their reliance on Encores. 

[DaveyG]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 12:13pm

Dear Encores,

No one wants new orchestrations. Hearing the original orchestrations is the WHOLE POINT of your existence. 

Love,

A grumpy old fan

 

 

[Ke3]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 12:19pm

I'm still disappointed they took Love Life out of the season

[sinister teashop]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 12:22pm

I could have seen this working had Lear deBessonet and Billy Porter had time to do actual community engagement with sex workers. It might have given this new take both an authenticity and a sense of humor. But that could never have been done in the short production and rehearsal time. This all feels like artists and artistic missions at painful cross purposes. Still, reading about the cultural warfare over this production is less painful than reading about actual warfare. 

[Huss417]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 12:47pm

Yikes for that TheaterManis review.

"James Sampliner has rearranged Coleman's big-band score with a more Funkadelic feel. Groovy? Certainly. Does it sound good? Hell no. Does it even sound like Coleman anymore? Also no."

There's a certain quality we've come to expect from Encores! Even if the show isn't good, you know it's going to at least have some merit. The Life is the most disappointingly sung and played Encores! production I've ever seen, and that doesn't feel very much like Encores! at all.

Not sure if I want to go or just give my tickets to family. I was quite fond of the original production.

Updated On: 3/17/22 at 12:47 PM

[KJisgroovy]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 12:53pm

When discussions about Encores! seasons crop up it's often claimed that they've run out of shows to do. While that's basically true in a sense, I don't understand why there isn't a willingness to revisit shows that they've done? Especially with this new approach? It's like like Fiorello! and Out of This World have been seen a bunch of times elsewhere since Encores! produced them. Why not cast them non-traditionally, write new books, but keep what's great about them the same? It seems like it would be a great place to put old shows in conversation with new ideas while keeping the majority of the score in tact? Would the core audience base really object to seeing One Touch of Venus again or would they argue 26 years is too soon? 

Anyway. I realize that they HAVE repeated a few titles but in those cases the casting and production was fairly traditional and not terribly interesting. 

[pagereynolds]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 12:57pm

KJisgroovy said: "When discussions about Encores! seasons crop up it's often claimed that they've run out of shows to do. While that's basically true in a sense, I don't understand why there isn't a willingness to revisit shows that they've done? Especially with this new approach? It's like like Fiorello! and Out of This World have been seen a bunch of times elsewhere since Encores! produced them. Why not cast them non-traditionally, write new books, but keep what's great about them the same? It seems like it would be a great place to put old shows in conversation with new ideas while keeping the majority of the score in tact? Would the core audience base really object to seeing One Touch of Venus again or would they argue 26 years is too soon?

Anyway. I realize that they HAVE repeated a few titles but in those cases the casting and production was fairly traditional and not terribly interesting."

I also wouldn't be upset if Encores! did more recent shows, even ones that had recent revivals that tanked. Do The Visit.

[austinyourface]

Posted: 3/17/22 at 1:09pm

I’m fine with Encores doing “recent” shows- hell, flops from the 90s and 00s are now 20-30 years old. Chicago was done at Encores about twenty years after it debuted.