Horrid FORUM at Papermill

[adamgreer]

Posted: 3/30/11 at 10:56pm

Yikes.

In a season that has included a good (if uninteresting) production of Hairspray, a spectacular production of Les Miserables, and an enjoyable production of Spelling Bee, Papermill's FORUM will stand out as being the "we didn't give a sh*t" production of the season.

I don't even know where to begin other than to say it was the longest 2 hours and 15 minutes I've spent in the theater in a while. The pacing was horrendous- none of the jokes were landing because everything was paced so slooooooooowly. The cast looked like they'd rather be anywhere else, and seemed to know what a turkey this was. The "choreography" consisted of nothing more than repeated variations of jazz hands. The costumes were ugly, and included the Proteans wearing Converse All-Star sneakers. Speaking of the Proteans, they were directed, for whatever reason, to run around making monkey noises. The set was cardboard and looked like something the kids in art class threw together.

Paul Vogt did his best Nathan Lane impression. Problem is, he's not funny like Nathan Lane is. His ad-libs garnered no laughs at all, including a really horrible Harry Potter reference, and a completely random rendition of Old Man River for no apparent reason whatsoever. The fellow playing Hero was incredibly effeminate and his character came across as far more interested in the Proteans than in Philia. Chelsea Krombach appeared lost. Beth McVey's weird voice modulations, randomly switching from head to chest voice, made her big solo go nowhere. She couldn't hit the last note and had to stop and re-start it. Even the usually reliable Stephen Buntrock looked miserable and embarrassed to be in this production, and I can't say I blame him.

They also cut the overture. Why, I don't know. FORUM is one of the finest musical comedies ever written, and yet during this entire dreary affair, I didn't laugh once. Avoid this one, folks.



Two Papermill notes...

-They announced that the leads for Curtains would be Robert Newman and Kim Zimmer, who apparently star on The Guiding Light soap opera. I don't watch soap operas, so their names mean nothing to me and I have no idea if they're talented, but there you go.

-When the Associate Artistic Director came out before the show to plug the new season and try to get people to subscribe, he referred to their production of Newsies as "the pre-Broadway production." I have no idea if it actually is a pre-Broadway production or if he's just trying to drum up business, but this is the first time I've heard it referred to that way by anyone officially involved.
Updated On: 3/30/11 at 10:56 PM

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 3/30/11 at 11:06pm

Well you just sold me a ticket to Curtains! Yay Kim Zimmer. This clip says it all...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=366qDdlKZsE

[Eris0303]

Posted: 3/30/11 at 11:10pm

I just saw Kim Zimmer in Love, Loss, & What I Wore earlier this month. I didn't really know who she was but I enjoyed her performance in the play

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 3/30/11 at 11:18pm

I saw her in Love Loss too and thought she was terrific. I'm a little biased, but I'm a huge fan. She has won 4 daytime Emmys and continues to be amazing on One Life to Live now that Guiding Light ended. I guess this means her character will be taking a 3 month vacation somewhere...

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 12:20am

Or she'll get stranded on an island, abducted by aliens, get kidnapped, sold into white slavery, go on an undercover government mission, fall into a coma, go missing while hiking or get amnesia and wander the streets for three months as a crazy homeless woman who knows deep down she has a secret.

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 12:32am

Ha Jordan! That does remind me of the title of Kim's upcoming memoir, "I'm Just Sayin'!: Three Deaths, Seven Husbands and a clone! My Life as a Daytime Diva." It's available August 2nd, and available for amazon pre-order.

http://www.amazon.com/Im-Just-Sayin-Husbands-Daytime/dp/0451233433/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1301545586&sr=1-1

I'd actually wait to buy it though in town as she may do a Barnes & Nobles book signing or something. On Tuesday I went to the Susan Lucci book signing and got her to personalize her new memoir for me. The book is a total hoot so far and worth the read.

[Overkill]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 3:09am

Just the rehearsal video of this production made it look horrible.

Posted: 3/31/11 at 5:05am

Forum is such a perfectly written show, yet it seems so easy to **** up. Too bad...

And Kim and Robert will be great in Curtains (I believe Robert has a lot of stage background as well...

Actors have done Broadway and soaps at the same time so she doesn't have to leave One Life--Marcie B was the lead in Haisrpay and on enarly every day on One Life the year or so she did it, etc, though she found it tiring. That said I have a feeling she'll be off One Life by then

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 7:38am

Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck.

I'm seeing this next Thursday afternoon.


Thanks for the review, adam

[Kalimba]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 7:52am

I adore the show, but I'm with Overkill. Those rehearsal clips did nothing to make me want to see this production. Yuck!

[adamgreer]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 9:01am

Honestly, I saw a community theatre production of Forum that was leagues better than this. At least that troupe had energy and appeared to be enjoying themselves.

There was NO laughter last night in the audience. It was extremely uncomfortable.

And as wonderful as a good Forum is, a bad Forum is DREADFUL.

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 9:15am

Good Lord. The reviews have been not overwhelmingly stellar, but kind enough that I thought it might at least be passable. In your estimation, adam, is it even worth it to make the train trip out to NJ to see it? I've already bought tickets and everything, but if it's truly that horrible, mayhaps I'll just take the afternoon to be in the city :-/

[adamgreer]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 9:34am

If you already have tickets, you should go.

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 9:57am

I just looked at the production photos on their Facebook page, and the sets are literally cardboard. I didn't see how they could be that cheap when reading your review, but wow. You were right!

[TonyVincent]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 11:04am

I love Sondheim's work but have never seen a production of Forum, so I went in wanted to enjoy it, and I did. Does Vogt suck? Yes. Are there times where it feels amateurish? Kinda. It wasn't magical. But Buntrock was powerful, and the actor playing Hero had a phenomenal voice. Is he imposing? No, but he was far from effeminate.

I guess if I went in expecting it to suck after reading this, I probably wouldn't have like it. As is, I'm glad I went.

I've come to the realization that Papermill isn't Broadway, and I shouldn't expect it to be. If it's a show you want to see anyway, and you go in with tempered expectations, you'll have a good time.

[Patash]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 11:32am

Forum is a cartoon -- a burlesque. Am I the only one who thinks those set pictures look perfect for the show?

[adamgreer]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 11:57am

I've come to the realization that Papermill isn't Broadway, and I shouldn't expect it to be. If it's a show you want to see anyway, and you go in with tempered expectations, you'll have a good time.

There was a time not that long ago when the quality of shows at Papermill was at, and in many times, exceeded, what you saw on Broadway.

As I said, the first three shows of this season were all successes. Hairspray was essentially the Broadway staging, but it was still fun. Les Mis was admittedly not a Papermill production, but it's the best production they've had on their stage in years. Spelling Bee was a solid production and well-cast. Forum was just a disaster. And what makes it stand out is that Papermill usually does good work. This Forum was far below their usual standard of quality (which has admittedly dipped in recent years).

[TxTwoStep]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 12:02pm

saw this opening night, the costumes and scenery fit the concept of this version, not crazy about Hero either, but he COULD sing, and i thought the variety of comedic styles worked fine. Loved the Senex very much and was unfamiliar with his work heretofore. Loved Philia's take on the character. My audience laughed a lot...strange to hear yours might not have. Naturally there were things i'd have done differently, that's human nature, but overall not sure this particular production deserves such a pan. Let's just say "reactions varied." Go see it and judge for yourself. As a non-profit that DOES try to do the best work possible, Paper Mill deserves your support whether you adore each show or not.

[Jon]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 12:13pm

Greg Vinkler (Senex) is a former Chicago actor known for doing Shakespeare and other "serious" work. He played Iago at our theate in the late 1980's. He NEVER did musicals while here in Chicago. He was cast as Doc in the recent West Side Story revival and decided to stay in New York permanently.

[broadwaydanwi]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 1:17pm

Jon: Do you know if Greg Vinkler is still working for the Peninsula Players in Fish Creek, Wisconsin? I didn't find his name on their website. I'm curious if he will return there this summer.

[TxTwoStep]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 1:27pm

Well, Vinkler was great...and i for one enjoyed the hell out of Vogt, and thought the take on Hysterium as the love child of Charles Nelson Reilly and Paul Lynde worked great.

[TxTwoStep]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 1:28pm

PS i thought the Proteans were comely and funny, and ditto for the Courtesans.

[p.s.]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 1:41pm

Paul Vogt did his best Nathan Lane impression.

Saw it Sunday afternoon, and enjoyed it. I don't think Paul Vogt's performance was hotdogging like Nathan's (Whoopi!). We were thinking back, rather, to Zero Mostel. Not saying that he tried to copy any or all of Zero's shtick; but in his own way he was funny and entertaining (certainly more than -0-).


p.s. Our attitude was Let them entertain us! and they did.

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 1:59pm

Wouldn't the reason for singing "Old Man River" be because he's a slave?

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 3/31/11 at 2:46pm

Forum is so expertly crafted, you'd think it is idiot-proof, but it's a farce. Once you sort out the blocking, it's all about the pacing and timing. You have to rehearse this show like you're training for hurdles in the Summer Olympics (I played Hysterium and there was not one performance I wasn't completely soaked with sweat by the finale). Once you got the pace and timing down, you can finesse it with more comedic articulation and ornamentation, but the show won't work rehearsed any other way. The book is funny enough without a lot of finesse. Sounds like Papermill took a more standard musical comedy approach to the direction and I can only imagine what a chore it would be to watch.