James Joyce's The Dead
James Joyce's The Dead
B-Way4Life
Understudy Joined: 7/11/04
#2re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 6:18pmWhat do you want to know?
#2re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 6:32pm
It's based on James Joyce's short story, The Dead. This is in the collection published under the title Dubliners. You can also rent the film version, the last film directed by John Huston. It stars Anjelica Huston and it's a lovely film indeed.
I don't think a cast recording was ever released, but I know that Samuel French handles the show.
#3re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 6:37pmDubliners is great.
The opposite of creation isn't war, it's stagnation.
#4re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 6:38pm
Yeah, DUBLINERS is brilliant.
The film is great, thought it's out of print now, I believe.
The show was great as well. The CD is available (not the Broadway recording) through some regional group, I believe. Do a google search, though it's very expensive.
Chloe
Broadway Legend Joined: 9/28/04
#5re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 6:39pmI highly, highly recommend the movie, if you like subtle, delicate, beautiful filmmaking.
#6re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 6:41pmAnd the fact that the film is so true to the story that I'd be surprised if Huston even changed a comma.
Unknown User
Joined: 12/31/69
#7re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 7:36pm
The film is glorious--I thought Houston would be too hammerheaded to work the story into a good film but it works (as opposed to his "subtle" take on Freud, for one infamous example)
How much music for the stage version did LaChiusa do?
#8re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 7:43pmI'm pretty sure Shaun Davey wrote the music.
#9re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 9:29pm
*yawn*
The show was more potent than ambien.
Gothampc
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/20/03
#10re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 9:36pm
"The show was more potent than ambien."
I agree with that. There was no spark to the show. Then I read the story and I understood why. The story ends at the moment the conflict starts to rise and get interesting.
misschung
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/18/07
#11re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 9:39pmAre you talking about the musical version? I absolutely hated the musical version - but the story is wonderful. Definetly get the film if you are interested, I got it as a Christmas gift. I love the scene when the carriage is going over O'Connell Bridge - that part in the story gives me chills.
#12re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 9:51pmis The Dead teh story about the boy from the country with the abusive father and the boy likes to jack off a lot and he goes to college but drops out?
#13re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 9:55pmNope.
Unknown User
Joined: 12/31/69
#14re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 10:02pmAh I was mixing it up in my head with Chronicle of a Death Foretold which did have additional music by LaChiusa
whatever2
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/25/06
#15re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 10:15pm
ive been out to dinner, so perhaps its just the wine talking, but:
if youre enquiring about the musical "james joyce's the dead" which starred christopher walken, then i personally thot it was absolutely sublime. and in a small (SMALL, theatre queens) way ground-breaking ...
definitely one of my more memorable evenings on the great white way.
of course, i descend from irish stock, so mebbe some lines just hit close to home.
Gothampc
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/20/03
#16re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 10:29pm
"is The Dead teh story about the boy from the country with the abusive father"
No, it's about the Christmas party given by two old ladies. Everyone comes to visit them and sit around and talk. Among them is a guest whose wife has a secret.
#17re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 10:31pmhmm. well that explains it. I kept on thinking how interesting it was that they managed to musicalize such an unmusical story
Gothampc
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/20/03
#18re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 10:34pm
"I kept on thinking how interesting it was that they managed to musicalize such an unmusical story"
Keep thinking it because The Dead was an unmusical story. And actually, I think the Broadway play is considered more of a "Play with music".
misschung
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/18/07
#19re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 10:47pmYeah, its not technically a musical. But I was disappointed in the play-with-music or whatever it's called. Joyce's work is all very musical, I think. I did like the "Don't Wake the Dead" song, but I thought that the amount of music in the play was distracting from the resonance of the words.
whatever2
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/25/06
#20re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 10:55pm
> but I thought that the amount of music in the play was distracting from the resonance of the words.
i thot PRECISELY the opposite. the music enhanced the dialogue. lovingly.
guess that's why they call it art ... 
misschung
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/18/07
#21re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 11:17pmI know, right. I mean it was only my opinion, I know lots of people who loved it. And if it turned more people on to Joyce's work, that's a happy day for me :)
whatever2
Broadway Legend Joined: 8/25/06
#22re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 11:21pmwell, it did only run for like three months -- are you sure you know LOTS of people who liked it? :)
misschung
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/18/07
#23re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/15/07 at 11:21pmOh, I wasn't talking only about the Broadway version, I was talking about other productions too. sorry!
Danielm
Broadway Star Joined: 3/17/05
#24re: James Joyce's The Dead
Posted: 4/16/07 at 3:00pmI quite liked it (though I was alone in that in my group). I saw it in a huge barn of a theatre in Los Angeles and the show got lost there. I still think if a small theatre in the round or thrust stage did it it would be quite good.
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