#1
Posted: 12/28/05 at 9:30pm
When it came time to find the “family gathering place” for the holidays I made a push to spend it with my aunt and uncle in San Francisco, mainly because I wanted to come to CA and see Lestat, and boy am I glad that I did.
First and foremost I should say that I have never read any Anne Rice novels, never seen Queen of the Damned or Interview with the Vampire, and above all I think the vampire genre is rather silly. So what brought me halfway across the country to see this? Elton John’s music and two words; Hugh. Panaro.
Overall I had a blast seeing this show; it was worth every penny. Something I loved was that the “vampire” aspect was not rammed down your throat. The actors do not wear fangs and their problems are very real and tangible from Lestat’s loneliness and Gabrielle’s lost dreams.
Lestat is visually one of the most stunning shows that I have ever seen. It had a wonderful and equal mixture of projection and 3D set pieces; I loved the use of both. Although there were a couple parts of the show which relied a little too heavily on the projection aspect (the song about Paris with Lestat and Nicolas is a good example); the small set piece that rolled on was fantastic, but the projections in that scene were mundane and not very exciting. My favorite set piece was the house that belonged to Lestat, Louis and Claudia; also the set used during “Crimson Kiss” with the giant stone head. I was certain that it was going to start talking or that it’s eye would open, but alas, no luck.
The costumes were top notch (to be expected from Susan Hilferty). I loved how everything was period and yet in fabrics and colors that would never have been worn in those times; which helped throw the fact that this was a fantasy piece yet still set in a particular time period. My favorite costume was Armand’s second act black long-coat ensemble (Drew looked quite attractive in it) and my least favorite costume was Gabrielle’s “Crimson Kiss” costume (or as I call it; her Gandalf the White knockoff). That outfit actually looks better in the picture (with Hugh and Carolee in that scene) than from the audience. Carolee is a gorgeous lady and her character is such a free spirit but that costume is both unattractive and also ages her considerably (IMO). But that was my only gripe costume wise.
Hugh Panaro (Lestat): I saw him in Phantom and he absolutely blew me away. In this show he has the opportunity to show off his fantastic facial expressions and acting chops; a great character to sink his teeth into. Hugh takes the role and runs with it and he has a fantastic handle on the character for being so early on in previews. Panaro is a joy to watch and generates energy unmatched by so many Broadway performers today; my only complaint is that he does not have a show stopper to truly show off his singing with. He’s also got a very deep and beautiful talking voice, but I’m stumped by his accent. Where is he from?
Carolee Carmello (Gabrielle): I will be truly surprised if Ms. Carmello does not earn a Tony nom for this performance. It is a great role and she seems the most comfortable in her role than any of the other performers. She adds some great comedic moments as well as some of the most heartbreaking; a beautiful performance.
Drew Sarich (Armand, understudy): To anyone reading this who has a say in the casting of the new Armand, give Drew the role! I had the pleasure of seeing Drew perform on his very first performance in this role, he was incredible. Drew has a fantastic voice and stage presence matched by this great brooding darkness that was very forceful and quite sexy as well. He seemed a tad nervous at first (as can be expected) but that didn’t hinder his performance at all and he got much well deserved cheering from the audience during bows.
Jim Stanek (Louis): He does a lovely job in this role as the “gentler” of Claudia’s fathers. Definitely a well cast role and he gave a strong supporting performance. One of my favorite characters in the show.
Alison Fischer (Claudia): She brought down the house in her song “I Want More” and then followed it up by the beautiful “I’ll Never Have That Chance.” I usually hate child actors, but I greatly warmed up to her and her fantastic performance. She also had great chemistry with the adult actors especially Hugh and Jim.
Roderick Hill (Nicolas): He added to the top notch cast in this small supporting role as the troubled and talented Nicolas. He has a lovely voice and great acting abilities, especially after the major change in Nicolas’s character halfway through.
Michael Genet (Marius): You can tell that Genet is a fine actor and has many credits to his name (not to mention just about the coolest entrance I have ever seen in a Broadway show) but the story line following the character of Marius and the scenes containing the character left me confused and kind of bored; it is also a non-singing role. My prediction is that most of Marius’s scenes are going to be the ones that get revised before the leap to Broadway.
The Ensemble: The one thing about this particular performance is that the ensemble gave away the scenes that had just been fixed and changed. It was pretty evident during “The Origin of the Species” that it had been recently altered; that was certainly a scene and song that I had trouble following and was the weakest number in the show. They were however, in top shape during other numbers such as “To Kill Your Kind” and the finale “From the Dead” (which brought the house down).
Overall the major problems in the show were in the plot. Apart from not knowing anything about Rice’s books I also made the point of not reading the synopsis in the souvenir program before seeing the show (I wanted everything to be a surprise). I therefore found myself confused in many spots regarding Marius, the wolf killer stuff, the creation of all vampires and especially the ending (not to mention what has to be done to kill or severely damage a vampire). I was able to overlook much of this though because all the other aspects of the show were so strong; also most of these problems will likely be fixed or altered during previews anyway. The major thing is the obvious lack of showstopper; there needs to be one there and it needs to go to Lestat (Panaro). SPOILERS: My final suggestion regards the ending of act one, it doesn’t feel right having “Crimson Kiss,” a scene, and then Marius’s entrance be the end of act one. My thought is instead to have Lestat reprise “Crimson Kiss” or sing something else and have Marius join in the song THEN make his entrance in the climax of the music rather than there be talking and then Marius’s entrance. There needs to be very powerful singing involved in that entrance. END SPOILERS.
All in all the music IS better than Aida (and I’m a die hard fan); I don’t know Billy Elliot’s score so I can’t comment on that. The current problems are very fixable, and the state that I saw the show in is actually better than many shows that made it to Broadway in their final state. Aka: Lestat is in better shape now than Little Women was in its final state.
Go see this show if you have the chance. The performances are incredible, the visual aspect is cutting edge and the music is Elton at his best. This is a vampire show that deserves the chance to score big on Broadway, and I sincerely hope it does.
First and foremost I should say that I have never read any Anne Rice novels, never seen Queen of the Damned or Interview with the Vampire, and above all I think the vampire genre is rather silly. So what brought me halfway across the country to see this? Elton John’s music and two words; Hugh. Panaro.
Overall I had a blast seeing this show; it was worth every penny. Something I loved was that the “vampire” aspect was not rammed down your throat. The actors do not wear fangs and their problems are very real and tangible from Lestat’s loneliness and Gabrielle’s lost dreams.
Lestat is visually one of the most stunning shows that I have ever seen. It had a wonderful and equal mixture of projection and 3D set pieces; I loved the use of both. Although there were a couple parts of the show which relied a little too heavily on the projection aspect (the song about Paris with Lestat and Nicolas is a good example); the small set piece that rolled on was fantastic, but the projections in that scene were mundane and not very exciting. My favorite set piece was the house that belonged to Lestat, Louis and Claudia; also the set used during “Crimson Kiss” with the giant stone head. I was certain that it was going to start talking or that it’s eye would open, but alas, no luck.
The costumes were top notch (to be expected from Susan Hilferty). I loved how everything was period and yet in fabrics and colors that would never have been worn in those times; which helped throw the fact that this was a fantasy piece yet still set in a particular time period. My favorite costume was Armand’s second act black long-coat ensemble (Drew looked quite attractive in it) and my least favorite costume was Gabrielle’s “Crimson Kiss” costume (or as I call it; her Gandalf the White knockoff). That outfit actually looks better in the picture (with Hugh and Carolee in that scene) than from the audience. Carolee is a gorgeous lady and her character is such a free spirit but that costume is both unattractive and also ages her considerably (IMO). But that was my only gripe costume wise.
Hugh Panaro (Lestat): I saw him in Phantom and he absolutely blew me away. In this show he has the opportunity to show off his fantastic facial expressions and acting chops; a great character to sink his teeth into. Hugh takes the role and runs with it and he has a fantastic handle on the character for being so early on in previews. Panaro is a joy to watch and generates energy unmatched by so many Broadway performers today; my only complaint is that he does not have a show stopper to truly show off his singing with. He’s also got a very deep and beautiful talking voice, but I’m stumped by his accent. Where is he from?
Carolee Carmello (Gabrielle): I will be truly surprised if Ms. Carmello does not earn a Tony nom for this performance. It is a great role and she seems the most comfortable in her role than any of the other performers. She adds some great comedic moments as well as some of the most heartbreaking; a beautiful performance.
Drew Sarich (Armand, understudy): To anyone reading this who has a say in the casting of the new Armand, give Drew the role! I had the pleasure of seeing Drew perform on his very first performance in this role, he was incredible. Drew has a fantastic voice and stage presence matched by this great brooding darkness that was very forceful and quite sexy as well. He seemed a tad nervous at first (as can be expected) but that didn’t hinder his performance at all and he got much well deserved cheering from the audience during bows.
Jim Stanek (Louis): He does a lovely job in this role as the “gentler” of Claudia’s fathers. Definitely a well cast role and he gave a strong supporting performance. One of my favorite characters in the show.
Alison Fischer (Claudia): She brought down the house in her song “I Want More” and then followed it up by the beautiful “I’ll Never Have That Chance.” I usually hate child actors, but I greatly warmed up to her and her fantastic performance. She also had great chemistry with the adult actors especially Hugh and Jim.
Roderick Hill (Nicolas): He added to the top notch cast in this small supporting role as the troubled and talented Nicolas. He has a lovely voice and great acting abilities, especially after the major change in Nicolas’s character halfway through.
Michael Genet (Marius): You can tell that Genet is a fine actor and has many credits to his name (not to mention just about the coolest entrance I have ever seen in a Broadway show) but the story line following the character of Marius and the scenes containing the character left me confused and kind of bored; it is also a non-singing role. My prediction is that most of Marius’s scenes are going to be the ones that get revised before the leap to Broadway.
The Ensemble: The one thing about this particular performance is that the ensemble gave away the scenes that had just been fixed and changed. It was pretty evident during “The Origin of the Species” that it had been recently altered; that was certainly a scene and song that I had trouble following and was the weakest number in the show. They were however, in top shape during other numbers such as “To Kill Your Kind” and the finale “From the Dead” (which brought the house down).
Overall the major problems in the show were in the plot. Apart from not knowing anything about Rice’s books I also made the point of not reading the synopsis in the souvenir program before seeing the show (I wanted everything to be a surprise). I therefore found myself confused in many spots regarding Marius, the wolf killer stuff, the creation of all vampires and especially the ending (not to mention what has to be done to kill or severely damage a vampire). I was able to overlook much of this though because all the other aspects of the show were so strong; also most of these problems will likely be fixed or altered during previews anyway. The major thing is the obvious lack of showstopper; there needs to be one there and it needs to go to Lestat (Panaro). SPOILERS: My final suggestion regards the ending of act one, it doesn’t feel right having “Crimson Kiss,” a scene, and then Marius’s entrance be the end of act one. My thought is instead to have Lestat reprise “Crimson Kiss” or sing something else and have Marius join in the song THEN make his entrance in the climax of the music rather than there be talking and then Marius’s entrance. There needs to be very powerful singing involved in that entrance. END SPOILERS.
All in all the music IS better than Aida (and I’m a die hard fan); I don’t know Billy Elliot’s score so I can’t comment on that. The current problems are very fixable, and the state that I saw the show in is actually better than many shows that made it to Broadway in their final state. Aka: Lestat is in better shape now than Little Women was in its final state.
Go see this show if you have the chance. The performances are incredible, the visual aspect is cutting edge and the music is Elton at his best. This is a vampire show that deserves the chance to score big on Broadway, and I sincerely hope it does.
Updated On: 12/28/05 at 09:30 PM
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