Erivo, Graham, Gotay, and more to lead A LITTLE NIGHT MUSIC IN CONCERT — Page 4

Were the trio of leads as boring on as stage as they are on paper?

Jin Ha sang Silly People which was a nice surprise. Erivo, Miles, Tunick and the orchestra were highlights. For the prices they were charging I wish they were more rehearsed. This is definitely not an "all star cast" despite the fact that they keep repeating that in the press. Erivo singing The Miller's Son was delightful but it's also available for free on YouTube. I am glad the new orchestrations are being recorded per the times article.

musikman said: "Yes, full show was performed, including Silly People , which is wiselycut from the show normally.


"

They had to give Jin Ha something to do

musikman said: "the new orchestrations were ..unnecessary? They weren’t entirely different (though the French horns and trumpets were curiously missing at the end of weekend in the country). However,the tempi were SO slow. Songs were dragging like crazy."

I love Tunick and he's perhaps the greatest orchestrator in the history of Broadway, but maybe he at 86 shouldn't be the one conducting this. Obviously he's conducted plenty of shows and albums (including Company at the Kennedy Center and the Paper Mill Follies album), but orchestrating and conducting/music directing are two very different things and sometimes it helps to have different people doing those jobs.

Updated On: 6/28/24 at 12:05 AM

ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "musikman said: "the new orchestrations were ..unnecessary? They weren’t entirely different (though the French horns and trumpets were curiously missing at the end of weekend in the country). However,the tempi were SO slow. Songs were dragging like crazy."

I love Tunick and he's perhaps the greatest orchestratorin the history of Broadway, but maybe he at 86 shouldn't be the one conducting this. Obviously he's conducted plenty of shows and albums (including Company at the Kennedy Center andthe Paper Mill Follies album), but orchestrating and conducting/music directing are two very different things and sometimes it helps to have different people doing those jobs."


Completely agree with all the above. I’m listening to the OBCR right now and it’s such a stark difference in terms of the tempi, brightness, and driving force of each of the songs. The waltzes almost sounded dirge-like this evening.

Glad to hear good words on Kerstin Anderson - she was the best Eliza Doolittle among the four I saw in the LCT My Fair Lady revival!

and "the woman playing Desiree" as she is described here is Susan Graham, a superb Mezzo soprano and a star at the Metropolitan Opera. Perhaps she was miscast but next to Cynthia she is probably the biggest draw for the Lincoln Center audience.

binau said: "Does the show really work if the Desiree doesn't?"

Yes

My view on "Silly People" is I was grateful to hear it full. It was beautifully sung.

But there is this amusing running around on the grass quality to act two that only finally stops with "Send in the Clowns"

And I think the structure of Act Two is built around protecting Send in the Clowns's quiet contemplation and reflection.

To add a new wrinkle of dark cynicism before it did feel unnecessary.

You can bounce a quarter off A Little Night Music as it already is.

Jordan Catalano said: "I think they thought Erivo would be a MUCH bigger draw and justify those stupid ticket prices."

As I said to a friend when they sent Cynthia on TV to promote it, the only people interested in something like this already know the show and therefore know what kind of role Petra is. You can't trick them into turning out for something like this unless you just refuse to say who's playing what roles. And once a lot of people saw who was going to lead they immediately lost interest.

I think the answer to Josh Barone's question is that it IS a Broadway musical and that's where it will be best served where it can be well-acted alongside a great orchestra. Desiree and Mme A can still be effective as croakers, Fredrik and Charlotte don't require opera voices, and those thorny relationships do not work without incredibly strong musical actors. It is "a musical comedy with a lot of music" (to paraphrase Loesser talking about Most Happy Fella).

The 26-piece original orchestration is divine, but the 17-piece "chamber" orchestration for the Dench production is also excellent and I miss very little on that recording. Modern sound design can make a 6-person violin section sound more robust than it did in 1973.

I'd love to see a version where there was a grand orchestra AND a competent cast/director/non-abridged book/snappy staging.

But the happy medium would seemingly be a Broadway production (or similarly full-scale theatrical production), where 6 violins can sound like 12 and where character and music can live in harmony.