Hugh Jackman in The Music Man — Page 31

GiantsInTheSky2 said: "I just don’t get the hype around him in THIS - he has been on a world tour doing showtunes, standards, etc and IIRC, there was a whole thread on the tour and how sales weren’t as strong as they could be. In general I don’t think The Music Man is as good of a show as Hello Dolly, but I am looking forward to Sutton being back on Broadway."

The Music Man is a much better show than Hello Dolly.  It’s not even up for debate.  Better plot.  More conflict.  More romantic.  More detailed characters.  Better score.  Hello Dolly barely has a story and there are no ballads as good as Til There Was You.  The barbershop quartet music is better than anything on Hello Dolly.  There’s a reason The Music Man beat out West Side Story for the Tony.

Speed said: "GiantsInTheSky2 said: "I just don’t get the hype around him in THIS - he has been on a world tour doing showtunes, standards, etc and IIRC, there was a whole thread on the tour and how sales weren’t as strong as they could be. In general I don’t think The Music Man is as good of a show as Hello Dolly, but I am looking forward to Sutton being back on Broadway."

The Music Man is a much better show than Hello Dolly. It’s not even up for debate. Better plot. More conflict. More romantic. More detailed characters. Better score. Hello Dolly barely has a story and there are no ballads as good as Til There Was You. The barbershop quartet music is better than anything on Hello Dolly. There’s a reason The Music Man beat out West Side Story for the Tony."

it  was also 1958(ish) when it beat out WSS, just as Sound of Music had beaten Gypsy the season before.  I don't think that wins  your argument.  I will take a good production of HD over one of MM any day, which just illustrates once again that we all have our own tastes.

OlBlueEyes said: "Hello, Dolly and Music Man are not shows of the same genre and should not be compared head-on. Hello, Dolly is a farce. "Alight dramatic composition marked by broadly satirical comedy and improbable plot."

Music Man is a romantic comedy. You're supposed to care about the characters. Music Man induces tears in some people (like me) at the climax. No tears from Dolly except maybe of laughter.

Some people think that farce is a silly and foolish waste of time. Some people think that romantic comedy is sentimental treacle. There is room for both and what is important is that both are near the head of their genres."

I appreciate your post. Theatregoers are lucky to be seeing revivals, albeit in adjoining seasons, of very good examples of these two types of theatrical entertainment.

It is ironic that the theatre which housed the inaugural staging of West Side Story (Winter Garden) is now heavily speculated ( can't think of a more apt word) to house the 2020 revival of The Music Man.

 

 

Updated On: 9/19/19 at 10:53 PM

bryan2 said: "If you haven't seen Hugh live in a Broadway show you have no clue what he is like live.
He is beyond description. I never liked him very much until seeing him in Boy From Oz...and I could not believe the wonderful feeling he gave the entire audience..very similar to the way Bette made you feel like you were in the room with greatness. I do believe the Music Man is one of the best musicals ever written and with the right Harold Hill it is amazing. I do have reservations about Sutton Foster..her voice to me is not Marion and I cant really believe she would accept this part...." I loved her in Milly ..perfect part for her I thought...and in Chaperone she was good...but I want to be proven wrong.."

I agree with you - he is a different animal - live.  I saw him as an afterthought in The Boy from Oz because my mom and I liked Peter Allen and we were blown away.  We also saw his one-man show in 2011 - so we were not going to miss this. 

On Sutton - yeah - I hope they don't change the original keys to the score that much to accommodate her - I think some of those songs need to be in a certain register to really be effective.  But who knows - maybe she has a soprano voice that she rarely uses.  Personally when they announced Hugh Jackman in this show - I thought the casting was perfect for him - but I was hoping for Audra McDonald when they said it was an older actress - that would have been phenomenal.  But - Sutton has succeeded in everything else she has done so far - so I hope to be pleasantly surprised. 

On another random note on the score - I saw Shirley Jones in a concert at a casino in Mississippi around 15 years ago - and she could still sing her songs from The Music Man, Carousel, and Oklahoma in the original keys - at 70!  When I got to talk to her afterwards and remarked on it - she said she was glad someone finally noticed :)

SweetLips22 said: "LOVE the very short clip of Hugh in rehearsal--what a performance this will be."

https://www.instagram.com/p/B2eJZt1HSKW/

I did not notice the first time I saw the clip...but the  sound and rhythm of the tapdance seem like that of band music!  That was why Hugh referred to a band in his post 

Warren is probably testing some dance routines with Hugh - isn't there some kind of lab work they're supposed to be working on?

 

 

Updated On: 9/21/19 at 08:01 PM

I bought one of the $159 -Mezz Row E seats on the aisle and now I can't go! UGH. Almost every show I've had tickets for recently I've had to reschedule.

<smacks head>

ErmengardeStopSniveling:  That's a great idea --- I'll give it a try.  I didn't think this far out I would run into a scheduling conflict but I have.

I'd sell the ticket at face value but they haven't released them yet.

If it isn't the Winter Garden does anyone know how they will handle changing the tickets. Do they just assign you a new seat in the same section/price range, do they call to tell you or email or do you need to login and do something.

Asking because I want to buy tickets for my great aunt and her husband but they are not internet users and don't have a cell phone so I just want the change over to be as easy as possible for them if it comes to that. Maybe I should give my contact details. 

magictodo123 said: "I can't help but wonder...would this show have rush...and if so what time would people start lining up...or would it be like Springsteen with lottery-but a ridiculously high priced lottery. Hmmm."

Yo, maybe ask in a year when it starts previews. 

I believe this from a workshop that took place recently and it seems like Max Clayton filled in for Hugh. Max is primarily a dancer, which makes me wonder if they are really beefing up Harold Hills choreography for this production. I hope Max continues with the show in the ensemble.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B3kKYsajfQq/?igshid=4melakfgp2sm

 edit: here’s a picture of everyone involved in the latest workshop: https://www.instagram.com/p/B3iTZDuprPo/?igshid=1g5i1rpmmtz8b side note... is that Scott Rudin standing next to Sutton? He’s looking really thin, and I mean good for him!

Updated On: 10/27/19 at 02:55 PM

Call_me_jorge said: "I believe this from a workshop that took place recently and it seems like Max Clayton filled in for Hugh. Max is primarily a dancer, which makes me wonder if they are really beefing up Harold Hills choreography for this production. I hope Max continues with the show in the ensemble.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B3kKYsajfQq/?igshid=4melakfgp2sm

edit: here’s a picture of everyone involved in the latest workshop:https://www.instagram.com/p/B3iTZDuprPo/?igshid=1g5i1rpmmtz8bside note... is that Scott Rudin standing next to Sutton? He’s looking really thin, and I mean good for him!"

I wouldn't be surprised if they beefed up the choreography for the role of Harold Hill. Warren Carlyle's strong point is choreography and he has worked with Hugh since Oklahoma! days... down to his recently concluded Music Tour. If you had a chance to see the recent Hugh show, there is a lot of emphasis on dance (including a long tap dance sequence and a dance-filled tribute to NewYork/B'way). Same is true with Sutton who plays Marian -- it would be a pity if her dance prowess is not equally tapped.