I have a feeling that Lestat will bomb...

[bigrab1018]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 10:06pm

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 10:15pm

Profound thoughts.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 10:19pm

Carswell predicts

[musicaldude57]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 10:21pm

I, for one, am looking extremely forward to it :) I saw Hugh Panaro as the Phantom, and I'm sure he will be an excellent Lestat. Elton John doesn't write bad stuff, so the music should be great, too.
As for whether or not it will actually be successful, I think it's too early to tell. I'm sure I'll like it. But, then again, I like Dracula The Musical, too...

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 10:22pm

Elton John doesn't write bad stuff, so the music should be great, too.

BWAHAHAHA!!!

Tell me another one!

[Katurian2]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 10:26pm

lol- that was hilarious Lizzie!

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 10:30pm

So what's going into the Palace next?

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 10:30pm

So what's going into the Palace next?

[musicaldude57]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 10:34pm

Hey, Lizzie, have you heard Billy Elliot?
And, btw, Lion King has been running for, what is it, 9 years?
And Aida ran for...4 years, was it?
And Billy Elliot is becoming a huge success, right?
Hmm...I think those are all right.
(end of sarcasm)
Whether or not you like him really doesn't determine whether or not he writes crap.
Btw, Show People magazine just did an article on Sir Elton, so if any of you are interested, pick up a copy! It was an excellent article :)

Updated On: 1/16/06 at 10:34 PM

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 10:53pm

Hey, Lizzie, have you heard Billy Elliot?

No, but I've seen Lestat -- twice.

[alwy15]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 11:11pm

okay havent they gotten a clue yet? overblown vampire musicals dont work. we've seen two of them crash and burn now. even if lestat is wonderful, this is certainly not an ideal time to bring it to broadway. i think there's a general distaste for this right now.

[Roninjoey]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 11:11pm

How could you bear it? Unless you liked it.

BTW, Broadwaydude, The Lion King has been running forever because it's based on the most popular Disney movie ever made, is Disney, and has Julie Taymour's innovative direction. Billy Elliot I have not seen but apparently the choreography and stage craft are the best part (as well as the talented kids) and Sir Elton's music the weakest part (same goes for The Lion King. I like the songs he DIDN'T write). The greatest mystery of my life is why people like Aida, but I'm afraid I'll never be able to solve it (although you really can't knock the power and appeal of chicks who can sing really loud).

Elton John is a very big name, and he has written some great music, but it doesn't mean he's doing much of that for the stage : Not going to lie, I think he's lazy. Do you think Sondheim craps great scores? No, he puts in tons of work on it. I don't know if Sir Elton thinks he's THAT amazing, but maybe he should put some more imagination into his scores. I haven't seen Lestat yet so I don't want to jump the gun, but what I've heard from it I'm afraid I did not like much!

Now for my part I do not think Lestat will bomb. I think it will somehow make it to Broadway and people will inexplicably love it. It'll have a respectable run for a commercial venture, and then disappear into the world of regional theater, and in a year people will be listing "The Crimson Kiss" and "I Want More" as favorite songs and gushing over Elton's lyrical music on this website and people like me will write snarky posts in reply :P

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 11:22pm

How could you bear it? Unless you liked it.

That's the funny thing. I hardly liked it. But I wanted to see what had changed, plus the cast is enjoyable. And it was a cheap seat.

Did I mention I'm going again? Oy.

[kasim]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 11:31pm

god negative before you have even seen teh show, thats pretty bad.

I am excited to see it .... and its way tooo early to tell.

[jimmycurry01]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 11:32pm

First let me say I am a huge fan of the first two Rice novels and I think Elton John is quite talanted. I have been looking forward to this musical. It has become quite obvious through reviews from both critics and audiences alike that in its current form, this show is a stinker. This however is not the time to decide whether or not it will fail on broadway because it was simply an out of town try out and could undergo massive changes in the coming months. Aida changed significantly from its first try out in Atlanta, this may do the same, I hope.it is not yet a finished work, so i'm willing to give it some time to work its problems out. As for wondering why people like Aida, it has less to do with the score and more to do with a good love story and stellar performances than anything else.

[Roninjoey]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 11:36pm

Note my comment about loud female singers. As for a good love story, Aida isn't one, but it's a schmaltzy obvious love story with nothing new to say, so people love it.

[orangeskittles]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 11:38pm

Roninjoey, when did Elton John say he was trying to become Stephan Sondheim? And why is Sondheim always held up as the standard to which all other composers much reach, regardless of their intentions? If every composer aspired to write music exactly like Sondheim, musical theater would be bland and pretentious. Not everyone always wants to see a Sondheim-esque show every time they go to the theater- some of us want *shock* a variety. Elton John is a pop singer, he writes pop music for musicals. Why should he be criticized for choosing not to imitate someone else?

Updated On: 1/17/06 at 11:38 PM

[iluvtheatertrash]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 11:43pm

Sadly, so do I.

[iluvtheatertrash]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 11:43pm

And I must agree with Orange.

John has NEVER claimed to be in the league of Sondheim. They are two VASTLY different composers who write for VASTLY different worlds of musical theater. Marc Shaiman writes nothing like Michael John LaChiusa (we ALL remember that one...). But that doesn't make Marc worse than Michael John or vice versa.

They are two very different styles. VERY different styles.

Updated On: 1/16/06 at 11:43 PM

[Unmasked05]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 11:47pm

AIDA was the VERY first musical Cast Recording I ever HAD....and was my very first time I ever really experience Elton John outside of "The Lion King"...I never listened to his music before then. I think he does a good job in my opinion.

How can you even dare compare him to Sondhiem....HELL NO..you just can't do that. There both in a league of there own. They both have GREAT music on there own terms. But to compare them is way not cool cause I personally respect them both.

I like Sir Elton's style of Musical heatre....its different...and I like different. Sondhiem...is classic..and I like him as well.

I think LESTAT will do well, I have never had the chance to see a Vampire musical and I really think this one would work if people would quit basing it on other vampire musicals.

DOTV..should still be around but thats probably just me on that one.

[dotvmike]

Posted: 1/16/06 at 11:59pm

Don't worry Unmasked05, I agree with you...DOTV should still be on Broadway
Updated On: 1/16/06 at 11:59 PM

[Unmasked05]

Posted: 1/17/06 at 12:03am

DOTV.....is my guilty plessure and I never got to see it.

[dotvmike]

Posted: 1/17/06 at 1:03am

I never got to see either but the first time I heard Steinman's music I was mesmorized. I don't care what other people say, it might not have had such a great story/script but it has some of the most amazing music ever.

[justme2]

Posted: 1/17/06 at 1:51am

I saw it on the 10th, and plan to go back at the end of the out of town run to see what, if anything, the team changed. It was an ok effort at the point I saw it, and it was very obvious it was a show still in progress.

I sat through the show very comfortably; while it wasn't the best thing I'd seen, it was FAR from the worst I've ever seen. I felt no need to run from the theater screaming and trying to find gasoline to burn the theater to the ground. My biggest complaint with the show was the lack of sets and a cohesive story. As for the sets, I found it distracting. Instead of concentrating my attention on the actor singing at the time, I found myself imagining what I thought should be there. That's not something a show wants it's audience to do.

I hope the team tightens the story line and brings a little more set design to the show before it hits New York. The Projections were not enough to make up for lack of actual set pieces. There was the occasional chaise lounge, mountain piece and curtain, but that was about it.

I'd never read the Vampire books, and didn't have a problem following the story being presented. However, there were just too many story lines. It made it difficult for the audience (IMO) to "root" for anyone in the show. I was also unclear as to the "problem" Lestat had. Was it finding companionship? Or was it getting to Marius and learning from him? Was it getting over his arrogance? Or was I supposed to be hoping that he and Armand would get along?

As for the music? The entire first act was devoid of anything that sounded like Elton John's theaterical music. It was a mix mash of what I describe as "dialogue singing", something I don't enjoy. Talk or sing. Make up your mind. It wasn't until the opening of ACT II that I heard anything that sounded remotely like Elton John's influence. I think the song was called "Welcome to the New World". The only song I enjoyed in the show is the same one other's have mentioned..."Crimson Kiss". Carolee delivered that song beautifully. She was the hit of the show, actually.

I don't know about how it will do in New York, and I definitely won't wish it an early demise. After seeing shows like "Titanic" and "Blood Brothers" make it Broadway, I'm not gonna guess about Lestat. I wish it the best of luck and hope it can overcome it's weak spots. I'm happy we in SF were able to watch the show evolve. It's not something we get to see often here, and I hope to see more pre-Broadway shows here every year.

Posted: 1/17/06 at 2:05am

I think the fact that is coming to Broadway so soon could spell its early demise. They would have to work near round the clock making significant changes to pull this one out of the hat in time for it's March 11 previews. Good night and good luck.