Fiddler on the Roof Previews- Page 19

[BIG BALONEY]

Posted: 12/3/15 at 11:49pm

SmokeyLady said: "I saw this Tuesday night and was underwhelmed.    Danny has his charm but I found his Tevye to be dull.  The rest of the cast is serviceable.  I particularly disliked the Golde.   The set is so ugly and simple that it didn't register with me one way or the other.  I found the framing device odd.  Shall we create a new Tony Award category for the stage hands?  I have always found Fiddler to be one of those surefire shows.  Not this production.  It all felt so diluted.  The theater is gorgeous.   The Wiz was the first show I ever saw at The Broadway Theater.  

 

"

 

[BIG BALONEY]

Posted: 12/4/15 at 12:03am

I was disappointed and totally agree with Smokey Lady. I hated the set and why aren't  Golde and Tevye sharing a bed during the nightmare dream, they have twin beds. That red coat has to go in the opening and closing scene. It looks like it just came off the rack at Macy's. I was annoyed at seeing stage hands moving the sparce scenery too. These last two revivals have done nothing to add the origins. This show will have a mediocre run. I for one will not go back.

[BIG BALONEY]

Posted: 12/4/15 at 12:09am

SKIMBLESHANKS2  I felt the same as you did about this musical. A new revival that looked tired already.

[Skimbleshanks2]

Posted: 12/4/15 at 12:11am

The set was a real miss; the entire production (actors included) got swallowed whole by the size and scope of the Broadway Theater. This is not the theater to house this kind of interpretation.

Updated On: 12/4/15 at 12:11 AM

[OlBlueEyes]

Posted: 12/4/15 at 1:10am

JayG 2 said: "just "When I returned (to 20th Century) about six weeks after the opening all was different. It was a total joy and the audience was so into it that they sang along during the "I have written a play" scenes and at curtain call all (well, 90%) of the audience leaped to its feet not just applauding but cheering."

 

Of course, it was different. The reviews were out and they were generally wonderful. Therefore, the audience had to concur. Lemmings!!!

 

If you're going to be cynical, at least try to be original. Lemmings has been done to death.

 

I don't understand the thinking that because the last production of the show 30 years ago was total perfection, it does not need to be revived again. Since we can't see the thirty year old production, or even a recording of it, those who were unable to see the 30 year old production would never be able to see the show at all.

 

No course but to revive it and hope that lightning strikes twice.

 

 

 

 

[SmokeyLady]

Posted: 12/4/15 at 12:14pm

haterobics said:  You put your life at risk for that?! "

 

 

All for the love of theater.  My only regret is the waste of evening.  

[haterobics]

Posted: 12/4/15 at 12:19pm

SmokeyLady said: "All for the love of theater.  My only regret is the waste of evening."

 

Oh well, too bad it didn't land for you. I'm still torn on using a big Audience Rewards redemption on this or Color Purple. Both seem very mixed as far as reaction so far...

[SmokeyLady]

Posted: 12/4/15 at 12:21pm

Funny.  I keep thinking of going and keep talking myself out of it.  Sort of like those programs one records on their DVR and can't quite bring themselves to watch.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 12/4/15 at 3:01pm

 

I'm still torn on using a big Audience Rewards redemption on this or Color Purple. Both seem very mixed as far as reaction so far...

 

I loved them both. Both are well worth your time and Audience Rewards.

 

[haterobics]

Posted: 12/4/15 at 3:29pm

PalJoey said: "I loved them both. Both are well worth your time and Audience Rewards."

 

I should probably just see which I can see cheaper from good seats, and then use my points on the other.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 12/4/15 at 3:40pm

Hey Big Baloney

 

You told the Mrs  when you spoke to her this morning about the set and how underwhelmed you were by the show. Looks like many are agreeing with you. Had no intention of seeing it anyway so it looks like no big deal. When Burstein does not get universal raves, you know there is trouble in River City. This may be a case of another old musical being done once to often.

 

The theater is indeed to big for a show like Fiddler.

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 12/4/15 at 4:16pm

The Broadway is too big for Fiddler, despite the original production finishing out its run there for over a y at and a half.  

[Stage Door Sally]

Posted: 12/4/15 at 5:27pm

Got tickets for Row N, thanks for tip about the overhang (it starts at Row O for anyone interested).

As they say, let the games begin.

[matineeidol2591]

Posted: 12/6/15 at 1:29am

Caught it this evening.  As a huge admirer of Bart Shers work, this was an unfortunate misstep.  His revivals of South Pacific and The King and I were far superior. The design was baffling and looked tragically cheap.  Shers magic touch' lost its power on this material.  The staging was quite boring and one dimensional, although glimmers of brilliance would occur every now and then (loved the more melancholy 'Matchmaker', HATED the framing device. The choreography is the sole saving grace. Without it, what a dull evening this would have been.

I saw Kay Walbye and Lauren Worsham play Yente and Hodel in a production a few summers ago.  They were both so much stronger than their counterparts in this revival.

On a final note, I found Tevye and Golde very affectionate, alot more embracing than I ever recall seeing in past productions.  It completely strengthens their relationship. 

[RippedMan]

Posted: 12/6/15 at 1:43am

Does this solidify that Sher only works within the frames of a non-profit? 

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 12/6/15 at 8:15am

I saw this again last night. I loved it just as much the second time. I know people are kind of divided on this production, but I think it so touching and brilliantly done. There have been some changes made since I saw the show last week. There is no longer the bus stop bench on stage when you walk into the theatre. It has been cut from the opening of the show all together. The biggest change is that the stage hands now wear caps and do not have their headsets on during scene changes. They are much less obvious, and I feel like they weren't used as much for scene changes as they were before. 

[PalJoey]

Posted: 12/6/15 at 8:32am

I liked the bus stop.

[Hamilton22]

Posted: 12/6/15 at 9:07am

Dang. People really don't like this show. I guess this will be more in tuned with women on the verge, as opposed to King and I and South Pacific. Shame.

[Jeffrey Karasarides]

Posted: 12/6/15 at 9:09am

Let's just wait and see what the critics think.

[Hamilton22]

Posted: 12/6/15 at 9:28am

I'm predicting mixed reviews.

[Someone in a Tree2]

Posted: 12/6/15 at 9:29am

Pity they cut the depot bench and signal post from the pre show-- I liked that set piece just as much as when I saw it in the movie 45 years ago. God forbid the audience has to stare at that ugly white brick wall by itself now.

[Broadwaystar2]

Posted: 12/6/15 at 10:18am

Jeffrey Karasarides said: "Let's just wait and see what the critics think.

 

"

It seems as if the critics are already speaking.

[Jeffrey Karasarides]

Posted: 12/6/15 at 10:34am

Broadwaystar2 said: "Jeffrey Karasarides said: "Let's just wait and see what the critics think."

 

It seems as if the critics are already speaking."

 

Please keep in mind that the critics can sometimes outsmart the posters here (Aladdin, Les Miserables, An American in Paris, etc.)

[Someone in a Tree2]

Posted: 12/6/15 at 10:39am

^ Sorry, Jeffrey, I'm confused by your post.

Do you mean that if posters here dislike a show that critics like, and the public makes the show a hit, that means the critics are smarter than the posters? 

[Copperfield2]

Posted: 12/6/15 at 10:42am

I saw a lovely production of Fiddler up at Stratford Ontario a few years ago directed and choreographed by Donna Feore. (She also did a fine job with Crazy for You and The Sound of Music.) Fiddler up there worked perfectly in their Festival Theater and you felt very close to the actors and could get wrapped up in the story.
The whole cast was strong in terms of dancing and singing.

I don't know why I can't excited about this new production. Partly because I'm not exactly the biggest Burstein fan and I don't think Hecht is cast well as Golde. I'm going to wait until January when theater goers lessen after the holdiay.