Falsettos to Return to Bway Fall 2016 — Page 4

The best person to direct FALSETTOS is Sam Gold, but I understand after FUN HOME why he wouldn't want to do it. 

 

INTO THE WOODS winning revival, in my opinion had more to do with wanting to honor Stephen Sondheim and the work itself (which lost best musical to PHANTOM, to the embarrassment of many). There was also a big backlash that year against the megahyped Trevor Nunn OKLAHOMA! which had been so wonderful in the UK but didn't transfer well to Broadway.

 

But I (and many others at the time) thought that revival of INTO THE WOODS was terrible and a missed opportunity. It had none of the magic or inspiration of the original production, and I think James Lapine just had no second vision for the material (why didn't he just revive his perfect original staging?).  I think in particular, he was haunted by the brilliance of the original cast, and perhaps not wanting to 'duplicate' their unique quirkiness  - he ended up instead with what I considered to be a really mediocre ensemble. 

 

My concern - sight unseen, of course - is that Lapine will have similar problems with FALSETTOS.  It's a simpler show - so maybe he won't feel the burden of re-invention; but I think its very hard not to be haunted by the perfect work you've already done once before (with the perfect cast).

 

I don't think FALSETTOS is dated, but I do think it needs a strong perspective that understand the context of the piece and how it now fits into contemporary perspective. I am not at all convinced Lapine is the man to best do that. I just worry we will get a production that is 'fine' and the material deserves better than that. But of course I will be more than happy to be proven wrong because I love the show and want it to succeed.

 

I did not see THE NEW BRAIN. That is closer to FALSETTOS in tone and size, so if that was extremely well done, there might be hope.

Updated On: 3/27/16 at 12:10 PM

The best person to direct FALSETTOS is Sam Gold, but I understand after FUN HOME why he wouldn't want to do it.

Plus, as it has been discussed before, Sam Gold really does not have a great track record when it comes to revivals.

Did anyone notice Jonathan Groff has a few mysterious months open now, before and after shooting the new Netflix show? ^_^

http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/03/31/falsettos-revival-casts-its-leads-christian-borle-andrew-rannells-and-stephanie-j-block/?smid=tw-share

THIS. CAST.

LizzieCurry said: "http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2016/03/31/falsettos-revival-casts-its-leads-christian-borle-andrew-rannells-and-stephanie-j-block/?smid=tw-share"

I apologize in advance to everyone who sees this production the same day that I do. Bring kayaks and life jackets or risk drowning in my tears.

sorry I didn't see the previous post.

Updated On: 3/31/16 at 03:31 PM

I'm a great admirer of all three performers--especially Block & Borle--and love to see them in anything and everything.  But one thought struck me on seeing the casting news:  This show deals heavily with Jewish and other themes; I associate it with Mandy Patinkin, Chip Zien, Randi Graff, etc.  Ethnic-blind casting?   Or is every M.O.T. actor tied up in FIDDLER? 

mamaleh said: "I'm a great admirer of all three performers--especially Block & Borle--and love to see them in anything and everything.  But one thought struck me on seeing the casting news:  This show deals heavily with Jewish and other themes; I associate it with Mandy Patinkin, Chip Zien, Randi Graff, etc.  Ethnic-blind casting?   Or is every M.O.T. actor tied up in FIDDLER? "

I'm surprised by the enthusiasm for the casting. My initial reaction was that it was uninspired, and you are of course right that it is also off.

 

Stephanie J. Block, Christian Borle, and Andrew Rannells. 

Wow.

 

Dear God, YESSSSSSSSSS

I guess I'm a little taken aback by the comment about the casting not being "Jewish enough."  What would "Jewish enough" look like? I've never thought about the Jewishness in the play as an ethnic issue; and I'm sure if you went to a Manhattan synogogue you would see plenty of people who look "as Jewish" as Stephanie and Christian.

Surely, we aren't at a point where we have to stereotype what someone of a particular religious belief looks like (and what they don't look like).

 

And isn't the character of Whizzer a gentile? Or am I remembering the text wrong?

Whizzer is half Jewish- otherwise it would be Three Jews in a Room Bitching instead of four!

 

I really like all three of these performers. I'll admit that they're not the first three names that sprung to my mind when the show was announced, but I imagine they will give great performances nonetheless.