How Feasible is a Caroline, or Change Transfer??- Page 3

[binau]

Posted: 2/2/19 at 2:25pm

The show is closing early now, I thought I'd revisit and it was AMAZING, even more so than I remember it being at the Hampstead. Is this the most complex musical ever written? Of course I never saw Tonya, but I really think Sharon is giving one of those rare iconic performances like Alice Ripley in N2N, Ebersole in Grey Gardens etc.

I almost broke down when she sung these lyrics (copied/pasted from online so can't vouch for accuracy):

Murder me God down in that basement,
murder my dreams so I stop wantin,
murder my hope of him returnin,
strangle the pride that make me crazy!
Make me forget so I stop grievin.
Scour my skin till I stop feelin.
Take Caroline away cause I cain't be her,
take her away I cain't afford her.
Tear out my heart
Strangle my soul

 

 

 

 

[C4b2a3b]

Posted: 2/2/19 at 4:22pm

qolbinau said: "The show is closing early now, I thought I'd revisit and it was AMAZING, even more so than I remember it being at the Hampstead. Is this the most complex musical ever written? Of course I never saw Tonya, but I really think Sharon is giving one of those rare iconic performances like Alice Ripley in N2N, Ebersole in Grey Gardensetc.

I almost broke down when she sung these lyrics (copied/pasted from online so can't vouch for accuracy):

Murder me God down in that basement,
murder my dreams so I stop wantin,
murder my hope of him returnin,
strangle the pride that make me crazy!
Make me forget so I stop grievin.
Scour my skin till I stop feelin.
Take Caroline away cause I cain't be her,
take her away I cain't afford her.
Tear out my heart
Strangle my soul
"

I love how the refrain from "I Hate the Bus" plays here too. It's one of the most brilliant moments (amongst so many!) in the musical: a tender and sad moment when Caroline rejects hope and asks God to turn her to salt. But those notes from "I Hate the Bus" remind us that she was Emmie 20ish years ago. She must move past her dreams and provide for her family. 

It's too bad to hear that this current production isn't a hit in the UK. I'm envious you were able to catch Sharon's performance! I was hopeful that it would make a transfer to New York. 

I saw this on Broadway in college, and it remains an incredibly cherished theatrical memory. While I didn't grow up poor and black in the South, it still resonated with me as a child of immigrants. I would love to revisit it again, especially in the current political environment.

[JBC3]

Posted: 2/2/19 at 4:56pm

It was a hit before it transferred to the West End. They just overestimated its appeal and put it in too large a venue for it to sustain a longer run.

[Robbie2]

Posted: 2/2/19 at 4:58pm

Not feasible

[lemiz1862]

Posted: 2/2/19 at 7:09pm

It is actually being very openly talked about, look out for more news later in the year if it comes together. Expect the Hudson (ATG) or a not for profit late 2020. No one wants to bring another revival in next season with Company, WSS, and Dreamgirls.

[uncageg]

Posted: 2/27/19 at 1:13am

On a side note...

The students at the Professional Performing Arts School (PPAS) are doing it in March. I pass by there often and honestly didn't know much about the school until recently. I bought a ticket. Looking forward to it.

[devonian.t]

Posted: 2/27/19 at 4:50am

The physical production in London looks very cheap and does a poor job at locating the action.

The cast works hard but the material never really takes flight.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 2/27/19 at 10:21am

I disagree about it looking cheap. The original productions design wasn’t anything spectacular and I’d say this new set is more elaborate than that one was.

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 2/27/19 at 11:03am

I think it would be a VERY tough sell on Broadway, unless it's a limited run at a non-profit. If Color Purple, La Cage, Once On This Island, Porgy & Bess, and Spring Awakening couldn't recoup, why would this?

[mcsquared]

Posted: 2/27/19 at 5:59pm

It’s playing in Denver, Boston and Raleigh among other places in the next few months so seems to be doing well in regional productions

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 2/27/19 at 6:18pm

mcsquared said: "It’s playing in Denver, Boston and Raleigh among other places in the next few months so seems to be doing well in regional productions"

MTI lists 8 stock/amateur productions in the next year, which is nothing compared to shows like Once On This Island or Fiddler or Spring Awakening. Could it sustain 7,000 tickets a week at an average price of $100 for a year without a star? Not saying it couldn't be done, but it would have to get insanely high critical praise, genuine audience interest that wasn't there 15 years ago, and maybe a few Tonys.

Updated On: 2/27/19 at 06:18 PM

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 2/27/19 at 6:46pm

Astoria Performing Arts is doing the show in a few months, so it’s def not coming in anytime soon, or else they wouldn’t let a nyc production happen.

[uncageg]

Posted: 2/27/19 at 11:16pm

Aurora Fox is doing it in Denver. They do really good work. Would love to see it.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 2/27/19 at 11:25pm

The show deserves to come back to broadway and have a successful run, which is very realistic with one or two A-List actors. Without that though, I can’t see it succeeding.

[uncageg]

Posted: 2/27/19 at 11:41pm

Jordan Catalano said: "The show deserves to come back to broadway and have a successful run, which is very realistic with one or two A-List actors. Without that though, I can’t see it succeeding. "

 

I'll buzz Audra tomorrow.

 

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 2/28/19 at 12:48am

Jordan Catalano said: "The show deserves to come back to broadway and have a successful run, which is very realistic with one or two A-List actors. Without that though, I can’t see it succeeding."

The problem is, Brantley's London review was as much of a rave for Sharon D. Clarke as it was for the production. And it's not a show like La Cage and Color Purple where they had an acclaimed London actor (Doug Hodge and Cynthia Erivo) and could put a box office name alongside them (Kelsey Grammer and JHud). If they're catering to a critic (let's face it, some productions do), it could be risky to mess with a show that he likes now but disliked in the past.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 2/28/19 at 1:00am

Wasn’t his review for the Broadway Caroline a rave?

[binau]

Posted: 4/7/19 at 4:07pm

qolbinau said: "The show is closing early now, I thought I'd revisit and it was AMAZING, even more so than I remember it being at the Hampstead. Is this the most complex musical ever written? Of course I never saw Tonya, but I really think Sharon is giving one of those rare iconic performances like Alice Ripley in N2N, Ebersole in Grey Gardensetc.

I almost broke down when she sung these lyrics (copied/pasted from online so can't vouch for accuracy):

Murder me God down in that basement,
murder my dreams so I stop wantin,
murder my hope of him returnin,
strangle the pride that make me crazy!
Make me forget so I stop grievin.
Scour my skin till I stop feelin.
Take Caroline away cause I cain't be her,
take her away I cain't afford her.
Tear out my heart
Strangle my soul







"

In a shock upset, it was Sharon who won the Olivier Award and not Rosalie Craig (Company) or Adrienne Warren (Tina) or Kelli (King & I). Very very well deserved I think. 

[Wick3]

Posted: 4/7/19 at 4:43pm

Sooo happy for Sharon!!!!!!!!! I saw the original on broadwag and saw this revival back in December and thought Sharon was great.

I believe she is going to be in a death of a salesman starting next month!

[Impossible2]

Posted: 4/7/19 at 4:57pm

I thought she was very average I have to say.

Her acting was great, but the night I saw her vocals were average at best. She hit a ton of bung notes and was very pitchy.

Craig was totally robbed IMO.

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 4/7/19 at 5:59pm

CATSNYrevival said: "Wasn’t his review for the Broadway Caroline a rave?"

His review off-Broadway was definitely mixed-leaning-positive, but he wrote a strange, short, dismissive review of the Broadway transfer. Now, as then, it's a star vehicle for a great musical theatre actress. Sharon D. Clarke may be talented, but she wouldn't sell many tickets over here, and the show hasn't exactly become a "beloved classic" since its premiere.

Updated On: 4/7/19 at 05:59 PM

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 4/7/19 at 8:30pm

Brantley’s review for the Broadway production was bizarre. It is just such a brilliant show, and the cast of that production was so special. It’s a shame the NYT was so strange about it.
I just want to see this show back on Broadway. Get Audra, get Jane Krakowski, just make it happen. I think it’s one of the greatest musicals ever written.

[AADA81]

Posted: 4/8/19 at 3:48pm

I don't think Brantley "got" the show first time around.  I'm sure it helped that I was thoroughly familiar with the score before seeing the original BW production, but even without that I would have known I was seeing something powerful and complex.  I think the show requires some work on the part of the audience to take in the layers and nuance, but that's a good thing as far as I'm concerned.  It was very thought-provoking and stayed with me after it was over.

[raddersons]

Posted: 4/8/19 at 6:43pm

AADA81 said: "I don't think Brantley "got" the show first time around. I'm sure it helped that I was thoroughly familiar with the score before seeing the original BW production, but even without that I would have known I was seeing something powerful and complex. I think the show requires some work on the part of the audience to take in the layers and nuance, but that's a good thing as far as I'm concerned. It was very thought-provoking and stayed with me after it was over."

I also think in 2004, lots of white people thought racism was "solved" and didn't quite understand the show. In 2019....... we're learning that's not quite true.