Follies OBC: What was Cut/Changed/Slowed Down/etc. — Page 2

I don't care that the OBC is incomplete--none of the others have the spark and mystique the Capitol recording has. It truly has a haunted sound.

I prefer the concert version to the Papermill for the same reason. The Papermill feels like it knows it is important, archival even, and lacks atmosphere.

I go back and forth on the London cast, but it's almost a different show completely.

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Ann Miller and Sondheim didn't battle. He let her do exactly what she wanted to do with it on stage, telling her not to change a thing. In the studio, though, he wanted it slowed down and indeed, the tempos on the Paper Mill recording were metered to exactly what Sondheim wanted them to be. Miller didn't like the slow tempo, but she did it, respecting Sondheim's wishes.

And yes, dialogue - including Sally's entrance speech and her "I remember him..." after "The Road You Didn't Take" - was recorded, but cut thanks to the Widow Goldman.

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And yes, dialogue - including Sally's entrance speech was recorded, but cut thanks to the Widow Goldman.

GRRRRRRRRR.

Edna, if you can afford it, get your hands on the Scrabble album. It’s a great supplement to any Sondheim recording, but especially Follies. Ethel Shutta gets to do a hilarious full length “Broadway Baby” and the original cast performs several songs, including the cut “Pleasant Little Kingdom.” My favorite “I’m Still Here” is Nancy Walker’s rendition from that album.

Temms, that was an awesome post. As much as we kvetch about the cast album, it is kind of a rite of passage seeking out those grainy videos and recordings, checking out yellowed librettos from the library and talking to those who were actually there.

Frontrowcentre, the audience’s excitement as Arthur Rubin’s voice fades and Carol Burnett comes down the stairs during “Beautiful Girls” is worth the price of the Concert recording alone. It too was my introduction to the (nearly) complete score. In fact, I owned it long before I owned the OBC. Yet, I always find myself skipping Patinkin’s tracks.

Twinbelters, I rarely listen to the Paper Mill either. It just lacks the excitement of the other recordings. And the tempos bother me.

And really, isn’t hating the Widow Goldman an essential part of loving Follies?

Updated On: 6/16/10 at 04:05 PM

God, I just love reading about Follies :)

and Temms- that was, of course, absolutely amazing.

But I think that Follies is one of a handful of reasons why I love theatre so much. It's what it's all about. But I have a confession to make; I own the '85 album, I own the Scrabble album, I've read the script and the Chapin book and listened to the faded bootlegs and some of the OBC on youtube... I do not own the OBC. I will go fix this immediately.

But thanks to all of you people who have worked to keep Follies and other worthy shows alive. Pieces of art like Follies are the reason I make theatre my life.

Thanks for everyone

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Once you hear one recording of Follies, you end up NEEDING the others, no matter how unsatisfactory or incomplete they may be.

Why would the widow withhold dialouge? Was it a money issue or did she just not think the dialouge was a good representation of her husband's work?

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I would even have taken a cast recording of the less than stellar 2001 cast, just because it would mean more Follies!

No, ljay, anything but that. The Roundabout Follies is what made me the bitter man I am today.

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"The Roundabout Follies is what made me the bitter man I am today."

Somehow I don't think that's it. Although I can see why you would think that. Blythe Danner's croaking voice was annoying. And Polly Bergen's Carlotta had all the sex appeal of a hot water bottle.

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Remember, it's 1971; the Follies were produced "between the wars," so Phyllis & Sally couldn't have done it any earlier than 1941, so these four are probably only 50-55 years old AT THE OLDEST, and most of the cast was from the nursing home.

At least in the original script, Sally and Phyllis are specifically mentioned as being 49. Ben is 53. Productions ALWAYS skew too old. Carlotta is supposed to be the same age as them, too, and she's usually cast waaaay too old, too.

Mazzie is too hoyden-ish (on my opinion) to be Sally; she should convey a sort of fragility, since her mind has, after all, completely fallen apart. I suppose I could see her as Phyllis, but a much more vulgar Phyllis than would be ideal.

I actually kind of like the Peters idea - she is still a little girl in an old woman's body - there will always be the aging kewpie thing about her, which could work in her favor as Sally (like the tragic character in Twigs who can't forget her brief stint as a flower in an old Hollywood musical).

Although they both have issues with mental stability, I don't see much in common - Diana is a much more vulgar, hard person than Sally. Sally is a marshmallow, a flower, much softer and of an entirely different era.

Diana is also more of a modern woman, i.e. a girl in an older body. Sally is a woman.

As for Phyllis, I'd like to see Michele Pawk. She plays those woman of another era exceptionally well, and the score would sit well in her (current) voice.

I think Sally has to break your heart, not make you hiss.