Posted: 7/27/18 at 10:29am
I'm surprised Brantley didn't follow the example of the loathsome Terry Teachout and trot out the actual most overused words of the decade: identity politics.
Posted: 7/27/18 at 11:02am
I'm really enjoying this conversation actually, but to venture a bit OT, what struck out at me was that he wrote, "an ingratiatingly incompetent Andrew Durand". That must be the harshest review of a performance I've read in a very long time much less about a performance in a professional production like this. Some times critics, including Brantley, couch these sorts of comments but in this one he just went for the kill.
Posted: 7/27/18 at 11:05am
That one I don't think is cruel- I had read it as describing Durand's character as incompetent (I'm not sure how anyone could describe Durand's performance itself as incompetent).
Posted: 7/27/18 at 11:07am
One more review:
https://www.zealnyc.com/head-over-heels-stumbles-on-broadway/
Posted: 7/27/18 at 11:08am
I definitely read that as the actor being "ingratiatingly incompetent" since those adjectives were used to describe the actor not the character he was playing based on the plain meaning of the sentence and how it was intentionally structured.
Updated On: 7/27/18 at 11:08 AM
Posted: 7/27/18 at 11:09am
ScottyDoesn'tKnow2 said: "I definitely read that as the actor being "ingratiatingly incompetent" since those adjectives were used to describe the actor not the character he was playing."
I'm seeing it along the lines of something like "charmingly daffy" or "hilariously bumbling."
Posted: 7/27/18 at 11:15am
That's true. I didn't think about it that way. I really thought Brantley was saying he was charming but incompetent.
Updated On: 7/27/18 at 11:15 AM
Posted: 7/27/18 at 11:17am
But the fact that it can be interpreted any other way is not a sign of good writing.
Posted: 7/27/18 at 11:17am
ColorTheHours048 said: "Except the difference, Whizzer, is that Peppermint IS trans and uses they/them pronouns."
Her Playbill bio uses female pronouns- "she regularly performs to sold out crowds"
http://www.playbill.com/playbillpagegallery/inside-playbill?asset=00000161-47f6-d15f-aded-c7fee5430000&type=InsidePlaybill&slide=5
Posted: 7/27/18 at 11:19am
I rewrote my response. I realized that Brantley was trying to say Durand was purposely playing his character as incompetent. I thought he literally was saying Durand was charming or something positive but incompetent in his performance since the rest of the review seemed take on that sort of weird tone.
Posted: 7/27/18 at 11:31am
Review has been updated, and Brantley apologized
https://twitter.com/NYTimesPR/status/1022864714525749248
Posted: 7/27/18 at 11:34am
Posted: 7/27/18 at 1:18pm
Posted: 7/27/18 at 1:31pm
ScottyDoesn'tKnow2 said: "I rewrote my response. I realized that Brantley was trying to say Durand was purposely playing his character as incompetent. I thought he literally was saying Durand was charming or something positive but incompetent in his performance since the rest of the review seemed take on that sort of weird tone."
It's easy to understand the confusion, given Brantley's surprising criticism of the cast, with one exception. I had to go back and read the review again just to grasp Brantley's point, which is never a good sign. Most other reviews, both published and on this site, have praised the cast - often singling out Durand in particular - even if they didn't like the show.
Posted: 7/29/18 at 12:57am
Jeff Whitty, who wrote the original Head Over Heels before parting ways with the production under murky circumstances, is decidedly unhappy with Sara Holdren's rave review of the show in Vulture for what he says are "ugly sneers" in her portrayal of his hypothetical pitch (clearly written as a joke), an allegedly inaccurate characterization of the original show's lack of iambic pentameter (Whitty says his opening night script of the show was written in iambic pentameter; Holdren relies on an interview with Bonnie Milligan, who has played Pamela since the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, who says it originally wasn't). He also commented on Holdren's Twitter account, expressing annoyance with what he views as a disrespectful description of Avenue Q.
https://twitter.com/jeffwhitty/status/1023376342836903937
Whitty has been silent about the show, presumably for contractual reasons, but he's made it clear that he has nothing to do with the its current incarnation.
None of this probably matters now. I just haven't read much from Whitty, who spit venom tonight at a critic who liked the revised version of the show.
Updated On: 7/29/18 at 12:57 AM
Posted: 7/29/18 at 6:55am
Posted: 7/29/18 at 12:40pm
I saw this on a last second stubhub decision last night and it was the most fun I've had in a theater in a long time. I'm sad to see that it isn't grossing well, but most of the people around me had a great time too, so I'm hoping it'll pick up a bit, but not optimistic. I think if this had opened off broadway in a smaller theater, it would be doing incredibly well and would have found more of its audience - not sure broadway was ready for it, unfortunately. I thought Andrew Durand was notably incredible, and the show itself really charming, fun, and funny. A lighthearted show done right, with wonderful representation - female queer characters aren't seen too often and rarely given a happy ending, let alone the same for trans characters. As an (obvious) fan of groundhog day it was nice to see Taylor Jones in the spotlight too! I didn't feel any of the music was particularly shoe-horned in, but it might help that I really only knew the hits. The cast was very kind and many said things along the lines of "spread the word" etc on the way out which was bittersweet. See it if you get a chance while it's still around!
Posted: 7/31/18 at 10:02pm
Posted: 7/31/18 at 10:14pm
Posted: 7/31/18 at 10:30pm
Posted: 7/31/18 at 11:19pm
WhizzerMarvin said: "I went back to Head Over Heels tonight to see what (if anything) was changed during previews and if my opinions might have differed on a second viewing. As is usually the case these days, the show was essentially note for note and word for word the same as when previews began, although the pace had greatly picked up and the timing was snappier.
The audience was not large tonight and I could feel them wanting to like the show, but everytime a gust of energy would infuse the show, a painful book scene would come along and quiet the sails. Bonnie Milligan would recite a poem and the audience was roaring, but then Jeremy Kushnier would come out with a dreadful monologue (not his fault), and it would nullify the goodwill built up from the previous scene.
Head Over Heels is like riding in the back of a van being driven by someone who has never seen stick shift before.
Just like in previews, I felt that Andrew Durand stole the show and things really are sluggish until Mad About You/his transformation. That’s A LOT of the first act to get through until you reach that point!!
I still don’t think they made a compelling case for combining Arcadia with the Go-Go’s. I hope I see the cast working again soon in material more befitting of their talents."
WhizzerMarvin, I am accustomed to reading your thoughts on shows long before I've seen them. This is the first time I saw a show before you did. Your pans of Head Over Heels the sharpest I've read (including all the professional reviews). I liked the musical a lot more than you did, and the cast allowed me to overlook its flaws. Durand is terrific. He's the de facto star of the show, and a lot of what works depends on his delivery and charm. The book was quite uneven in previews, veering wildly from gleefully silly (helped along by performances by Milligan, Rachel York, et cetera) to a bit embarrassing. I remember writing something on the preview thread suggesting that the creatives just listen to the audience laugh (or not) and make adjustments accordingly. It sounds like they didn't make enough changes, although I do think the combination of a Go-Go's jukebox show and Arcadia, without a star, was just something that would never appeal to enough people on Broadway.
Updated On: 7/31/18 at 11:19 PM
Posted: 8/1/18 at 12:27am
WhizzerMarvin said: "That’s what I thought too...
Reports here of it being 2hr5min were a little off. It got out at 9:20 tonight, so things have been tighten quite a bit, but he song list is exactly the same (just compared in case I was forgetting something) and I can’t think of a book scene/line of dialogue that was missing. "
I saw this three time during previews - each about a week apart (paying a grand total of 100 bucks if that says anything about ticket sales...).
I too didn’t notice any difference from preview 1 to 3. As much as I loved it, it needed a lot more cutting.
Posted: 8/1/18 at 12:05pm
