H2$ opinion

[jasonf]

Posted: 11/29/05 at 5:23pm

So, the MIDDLE SCHOOL I teach at is doing H2$ as our musical. I am not in charge, or indeed involved at all with the musical due to A)lack of seniority, and B)disagreements with the way the person who does run them handles it. Anyway, my question -- H2$ - is there a version they are doing of this that wipes out the character of Hedy? I mean, the ENTIRE character is a walking sex joke -- completely inapporpriate for a school that won't do Grease...right?

[rose&lark]

Posted: 11/29/05 at 5:29pm

Especially since during a scene she only wears a towel, having stepped out of the shower...I'd say it was inappropriate. As to a version being available, no idea.

That having been said, I think "Heart of Gold" is such a cute duet.

[misto625]

Posted: 11/29/05 at 5:29pm

It does seem odd if they won't do Grease but will do How to Succeed. The administration must be quite chauvenistic, since the whole time period/tone of the musical makes women more or less submissive.

[Pippin]

Posted: 11/29/05 at 5:29pm

Hedy LaRue is an integral part of the show, and all of her jokes of course are sexual. you can do it without the jokes, but not without the character.

is the problem that they will not do Grease becuase of Morality issues, but they have no problem doing H2$?

[paradox_error]

Posted: 11/29/05 at 5:31pm

Hedy is a walking sex joke, but I've never had a real problem with it, and I know plenty of schools that have done the show, with a toned-down but still funny Hedy.

Grease, however, is different. The WHOLE message of Grease! is that, hey, if you can't get the guy, CHANGE! Let him be a chauvanist, because you can be popular!

I think that makes it fairly inappropriate for a school. And besides, the movie rocks, but the source material really bites... Updated On: 11/29/05 at 05:31 PM

[jacobtsf]

Posted: 11/29/05 at 6:13pm

I directed this show last year for a school that was grades 6-12. It is illegal to make any changes to the script (character, lines, etc.) but the director can make choices that make it somewhat more tasteful.

[jv92]

Posted: 11/29/05 at 6:33pm

Make sure you tell MTI, no such version exists.

[jasonf]

Posted: 11/29/05 at 8:08pm

From stories I've heard from older staff, a teacher tried to do Grease seven or eight years ago - after the show the administration told him they got complaints and he was "asked" not to direct any more musicals. I think he may have been tenured, so his job was safe. Apparently, though, it caused some problems.

How about ADDING material to shows? Last year the school did Guys and Dolls and for some completely inexplicable reason added an entire scene with the color guard coming on and doing their thing right in the middle of the show!

I can't imagine how they're going to pull off H2$ without changing the script or toning down the role of Hedy -- a lot. The submissive female issue won't be one - the director and vocal teacher are both women.

Maybe it's my own bias against the director -- I can't stand the fact that she insists on putting EVERY KID who tries out on stage no matter how awful or unnecessary or unsafe it is to put 200 kids on the stage at once, or that she REFUSES to allow anyone to stand still when singing EVER (she tells them to do this weird pacing thing that looks ridiculous) or that she somehow manages to coach every girl to sound like Annie on helium OR that she only casts kids in the leads who she works with regardless of talent OR that she's not really a full staff member getting paid a full teacher's pay for the job...

Sorry for the vent. Back to the issue -- my guess is administration has no idea what the play is really like. This is going to be interesting...

[BrendanStryker]

Posted: 11/29/05 at 9:02pm

Not sure about how appropriate it is (although I see nothing wrong with it), but HOW TO SUCCEED... is only a trillion times more creative and intelligent than GREASE. A far better choice for any school. GREASE is just empty calories.

[InfiniteTheaterFrenzy]

Posted: 11/29/05 at 9:48pm

Yes, H2$ does push women into submissive roles, but if cleverly directed, I'm sure the show could seem to be mocking such things instead of reinforcing them...

[buffyactsing]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 1:46am

There was just a production at Smith College of which the entire cast was composed of women. I though that was a bit clever.

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/30/05 at 10:06am

A couple of things...

1) When I saw the H2$ revival on Broadway, Luba Mason played Hedy with an empowered sexuality, and it worked very well. She "owned" her sexual charisma and the men in the office were all intimidated by it and reduced to babbling idiots. Not one word of dialogue was changed. It was all in how it was directed and staged. Instead of being oblivious to it, she got the "joke" herself. She came off as ANYTHING but submissive or a "toy." It was very funny.

2) Grease has a teenage pregnancy in it, a drop out, and lyrics like "You know that ain't no sh*t, we'll be gettin' lotsa tit, Greased Lightnin'." As cute and nostalgic as we all think it is, this is what's actually written in the musical. While I love Grease, it's easy to see why a high school would have issues with producing it.

EDIT: Oh, yeah, did I mention that How to Succeed is brilliant satire and is one of only a handful of musicals ever to win the Pulitzer Prize? Grease isn't one of those (not that I don't like Grease or anything... but it is what it is).

Satire is the key with H2$. Even in the '60s OBC, these sexual roles were played satirically. Today, they're even more of an outrageous hoot if approached the right way.

Updated On: 11/30/05 at 10:06 AM