it was so much better in chicago. the show was so tight.
never once did i question the book. when i saw it in new york i kept thinking to myself...what am i watching?
to me it almost seems like the two productions had different directors.
i think the MAJOR thing that made the changes, is the casting. kelli and matt do NOT have what it takes to pull off these characters. i have talked to others who have seen it in chicago and new york and they all agree with me.
the performances of celia keenan-bolger and wayne wilcox were beautiful and pure. all you could think about was the first time you fell in love. the awkwardness. the innocence. the scariness.
in the chicago production clara didnt take off fabrizios shirt at the end of the song say it somehow. a cheap move made to show off matts upper body.
and im sorry but matts solo number at the top of act one and the scene with his father is totally unnecessary. does not need to be in the show at all. pointless in my opinion. they added it to show off matts voice and give michael a chance to dance for 2 seconds im guessing. whatever the reason is- it dosent need to be in there.
matt and kelli give much more sexually charged, less innocent performances. maybe its what they were directed to do. maybe not. but no matter what the show lost something huge when it lost celia and wayne.
i must say my favorite scene in the new york production is after clara finds her mother talking about her problem on the phone with her father. she runs across the stage, falls on her knees and sings out in desperation and confusion. then walks to the church, and does the scene with fabrizio that goes into the song love to me. everything about those scenes and that song is so pure and beautiful and loving. that is how everything was in the chicago production.
i cried all 12 times i saw it in chicago. i didnt cry once the 3 1/2 times i saw it in new york. and i think the majority of the people on this board can agree they didnt really see anything on that stage that evoked a crying reaction.
when i saw piazza in chicago i thought to myself- oh my god. this is the most beautiful thing. this NEEDS to move to new york. more people need to see this. we need more theatre like this being created. if i had seen the show only in new york i would have thought, amazing score but the story sucked.
i know everything in this post is all mixed and crazy, but i really dont know how to sum this up into words. this show means so much to me, and to see it so changed was really disappointing.
its really not that i saw it in chicago a bunch of times so anything thats different i automatically hate. i love some of the changes in the songs. i love that the secret is told in act one instead of act two, i love a lot of the changes that have taken place. but the overall tone of the show is much different. the two romantic leads dont have what it takes to pull of the show. are they great vocally? yes. but thats not all that it takes to pull of a show. especially a tricky show like this.
the thing thats keeping my faith is that the last day i was in new york i second acted the show (ooops! but i was out of money!) and what i saw really looked more like what i saw in chicago. it really really did. i dont know what had changed- but something had. it made me more optimistic.
who knows what the critics will say. all i know is that my dream is to one day direct this show at a regional theatre, and it will be a lot closer to the chicago production then the new york production.
Updated On: 4/18/05 at 12:06 AM
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