Has Anyone Seen Side Show- Page 2

[Auggie27]

Posted: 7/26/05 at 8:45pm

"I Will Never Leave You" never, ever came close to kitsch in performance. Ask anyone who saw the show at the 46th Street -- laughter at that point did not ring out. The ending had people in tears. As posted above, BECAUSE the twins were conjoined the song's irony was poignant. After being rejected by men, exploited by show business, the song was a spiritual affirmation that their "connection" was Fate's or Natue's ultimate gift. (And by the way, "For Good" in WICKED owes a heavy debt to the plight of SIDESHOW's symbiotic heroines.) Alice and Emily were equisite, and truly one unified performance. They lost the Tony to Natasha for CABARET. I loved Richardson, but I would've given it to the girls.

"I Will Never Leave You" in early workshops, was sung by children versions of the twins. They were later cut. It was reprised to show that the travails of life/the adult world hadn't changed the loving bond that got them through a painful childhood. SIDE SHOW, to my thinking, was ahead of its time. Intimate, spare in design, yet wildly theatrical, it might've taken off if done in this era of juke box shows and overtly cynical material. Or not. But it's a cult show that worked for a lot of people. In his 2nd book, Neil Simon even talks about his shock and upset that it failed.

Updated On: 7/26/05 at 08:45 PM

[AuditioningWaitress]

Posted: 7/26/05 at 8:52pm

I really like SIDE SHOW. It totally should have lasted longer than it did.