Jekyll & Hyde

[musicman_17082]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 2:29am

What are the chances of this going on tour again?

I just barely got the CD and am TOTALLY 100% in love with everything about it. I would DIE to see it live.

Any chance I'll get such an opportunity?

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 2:34am

Don't wait for a tour; wait for the latest mess* of a regional production!

======
* it is not possible for this show not to be a mess

[JRybka]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 9:07am

Now Now I have to disagree with you on that one. I saw the original tour when sacramento was the 2nd city it played after Houston and it was very good then. Back when it really was a darker show. I still recall Bring on the Men being like a very nasty Cabaret-esque style number. I also loved when Jekyll killed Lucy -- they did it without a word and the stage was all white and when he stabbed her it just shot red all over. The audience literally was agape with awe. I love Frank and I love his music alot but he tinkers with shows too much...

[Katurian2]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 10:07am

haha, I recently saw a community theatre production of it where the entire thing was played up for camp, with Hyde mutilating a teddy bear at one point in the show. No lines were changed, the actors were just playing up the dumb parts, which sort of worked. (But I do personally prefer the darker version)

[tazber]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 10:42am

It's on dvd. You can watch The Hoff do hid thang!

[wishinguweresomehow]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 12:54pm

The darker version is the only truly Jekyll and Hyde in my opinion. The way it has beeen tinkered with over the years is just disappointing.

[uncageg]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:05pm

I am glad I also saw the original tour. They ruined it when it got to Broadway. And it is ashame what happened with the confrontation scene. It got great applause when it was over. The mirror effect was really cool.

[musicman_17082]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:09pm

" It's on dvd. You can watch The Hoff do hid thang! "

There is a DVD recording of the show? Is it the Broadway version, tour, or what?

If this is true you just made my day!

[C is for Company]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:12pm

It is Broadway with the final cast I believe. It is quite a viewing!

[musicman_17082]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:13pm

oh my!

*runs frantically to amazon and ebay to see if i can find a copy of this!*

[fossemoves]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:14pm

I unfortunately never saw that first tour... Did see the Broadway tour and of course got drunk and watched David Hasselhofff on dvd...so excuse this question...

Can someone explain the "CONFRONATAION" mirror effect to me?

[Songsstresss]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:17pm

Lol It's true. The Broadway show woth David Hasselhoff was recorded and sold on dvd. It is campy and he is horrible, but his Lucy and Emma are great and you will be able to see what the show looked like on Broadway. The amount of laughing you will do is worth the price of the dvd!

[bwayfan4life]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:21pm

In the original production which toured before it wen't to broadway, of which I saw both, it was a longer version that really took adavantage of a larger theater than the plymouth. One of the effects was a confrontation between Jekyll & Hyde.

Since Robert Cucolli couldn't literally argue with himself he, as jekyll, had the confrontation with an image of Hyde that was in the mirror. If you listen to the words in the song you here him make reference to the man in the mirror. The touring version was spectacular and built to an emotional and very satisfying climax. The above referenced death scene was something that I will never forget it literally took your breath away. The broadway version was missing a lot of these elements.

Updated On: 3/22/07 at 01:21 PM

[musicman_17082]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:32pm

Okay... so is the DVD version the "darker" one you speak of or the alterred one that many seem to not like?

[im guessing the latter]

[bwayfan4life]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:35pm

Unfortunatley the DVD version is of the final performances at the plymonth theatre right before the show closed. It is the very cut and very scaled down version and was only made so that it could be sold in germany to the many hasslehoff fans. It was only later released here in the u.s.

[uncageg]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:35pm

It is the latter.

And does anyone remember the details on why the mirror was removed from the confrontation scene. If I remember correctly, there was a problem between the creator of the effect itself and the shows creators. I seem to remember there was some riff between the two and the creator of the effect itself took away the rights for the show to use the effect.

[Carl Magnum]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:37pm

Trust me Musicman, if you can actually get through the cd then you'll love the DVD. That being said, it is impossible to watch that dvd sober, it's not quite 10 Comandments bad but it's right up there. It sucks to see a wonderful ensemble cast trying to support Hasslehoff and his goat noises. Worst 20 bucks I ever spent was seeing Sebastian Bach "act" in this. And to think I missed out on Bernadette in Annie Get Your..., ugh the follys of youth.

[bwayfan4life]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:39pm

I beleive that a lot of the elements were removed due to the space at the plymonth theatre. The touring version played in mostly big houses that held several thousand people The plymonth is very small, mainly designed for plays, not musicals. The orchestra was in a box on the side of the theatre and not in a pit. This was probably why the technical director was so frustrated. They should really have held out for a bigger theatre.

[musicman_17082]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:42pm

eeka....

well im ordering the dvd and watching with caution!

...altho if the jekyll/hyde is as bad as you say he is... well... there may be tears (or just laughs... hmm...)

[uncageg]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:46pm

I am pretty sure that the mirror was taken out not because of space, but because of the problem I talked about in my previous post. I am trying to find the article on it that I read. I am sure someone here knows what happened exactly.

[Carl Magnum]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:47pm

Honestly, when he sings his Vibrato is so out of control that he sounds like a goat. And his facial expressions as Hyde make him look goofy, not like a vicious killer. I'm taking it you have no idea who David Hasselhoff is?

[bwayfan4life]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:48pm

If you like the music and didn't see the original touring version it isn't as bad as it sounds. It was just a disappointment after seeing what the show was and how it had changed. It is frustrating that they filmed probably the worst version of the show. Having said all of that, sometimes having a glimpse of something is better than nothing at all. The female leads, are good and they have some of the strongest songs, so if you like listening to the music, go ahead and get it you will enjoy seeing some of the elements performed live. I was at the show the week they filmed the DVD and later saw it. I still have it and occasionally watch it, it does bring back great memories of being in New York and of the first time I saw the show on tour. I am glad to at least have that.

Updated On: 3/22/07 at 01:48 PM

[musicman_17082]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:52pm

thx bwayfan4life... i think i will most def still enjoy many aspects of it.

and, carl magnum, is that bad if i have no idea who David Hasselhoff is???

:)

[bwayfan4life]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 1:55pm

Hey uncageg, that would be great if you could find that article, I have always wondered why a lot of the elements and effects were removed. It made no sense artistically, so I knew that there had to be another reason. I know that a lot of the staging was changed becuase of the size of the theatre so that was the only thing that I could think of that would make sense. The effects that were removed rival that of a lot of really good shows.

[frontrowcentre2]

Posted: 3/22/07 at 2:02pm

I saw J&H on Broadway about a month after it opened. Robert Cucioli and Linda Eder were fantastic...but the script and score are a mess. Nothing works textually, the lyrics are hilariously awful, and the direction was lacklustre. Frank Wildhorn tries to hard to copy ALW, and one Webber is bad enough. We don't need two!

I wondered why J&H was not nominated for the 4th spot on the list of Best Muscals for the Tony Awards. They nominated JUAN DARIAN, a production that had long since closed instead. After seeing J&H, I could understand why they went out of their way to ignore it. Easily the worst new musical of the 97/98 season ... and it was the one that achieved the longest run.

Something just not right about that.