Just watched the HOW TO SUCCEED preview video, and ... — Page 3

I agree with all that has been said here and have a further comment.

Daniel Radcliff is the money. He's the star, the name, the potential profits. He is the franchise.

Daniel Radcliff is also a newbie to musical theater.

Why wasn't he musically directed? He has no idea how to hit the beat of his songs and he therefore slaughters some of the clever lines. He blurts out lines like a first table reading ("Webothhavegottaeat") before the orchestra plays the matching notes. He does this all over the place. "I Believe in You" is most notable for the fact that he doesn't.

Why wasn't he stage directed? He seems to have no stage business or real presence. He just stands there, like a deer in the headlights (it's most obvious in the opening number) and I'm sure that nobody else who has ever played the role on Broadway tried that radical approach. This is the role of a conman and I don't detect one wit of a sly fox here. Morse and Broderick both realized they had the audience in the palms of their hands and they milked it for all it was worth (Tonys, if I'm not mistaken.)

Why wasn't he choreographically directed? Sure he can do the dance steps but again he's the friggin' star. He doesn't stand out, he blends in and FINCH DOES NOT BLEND IN. He's a shooting star who takes over the whole place in one week.

Finally, I wonder if Daniel ever watched Robert Morse's film version of the role. It is, bar none, one of the greatest reproductions of a Broadway musical on film, with the original cast intact. If he did, why didn't he say "Oh crikey, I have to up my game here."

They should have assigned a musical stager to do nothing but work with Radcliff while Rob Ashford did.... whatever the hell he does.

At $100.00 plus a ticket, this is the very serious major leagues. I suppose the rationale of the producers is "audiences will come if he does well or stinks."

That's a sad situation for Broadway.


(and Egghumor, a comment on Tammy Blanchard. She has the sad distinction of being in a show with problems far larger than hers.)

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Updated On: 3/26/11 at 11:21 PM

Thanks allofmylife for the comment on Ms. Blanchard. That's what I was afraid of. What a shame.

BTW, while I was far too young to see DO RE MI at the time (although I was alive), I had a tech theater boss/professor who said it was his favorite Broadway show of all time (and saw it numerous times). I think Phil Silvers and Nancy Walker are brilliant on the cast album! And the many photos I've seen of Boris Aronson's set designs are amazing. But I'm boased. I think he was the single greatest scenic designer for the theater.

JayG, I agree. As I said, it looks like Ashford choreographed the show before he heard the songs or read the libretto. He could/would probably assign such moves to SWEET CHARITY, MAME, MERRILY WE ROLL ALONG, the possibilties for this stock, vacuous stuff are endless. No rhyme or reason to his work.

I posted this same thing in another thread somewhere. That is some of the worst choreography I've ever seen. He is the emperor with no clothes. And Wayman, we can hear perfectly fine all those screaming Harry Potter youngsters - you can hear them on the video. If the cast was up there doing the box step they'd be screaming. Sorry, this guy is the worst "director" and "choreopgrapher" working today. Leap of Faith was embarrassing and so is this footage and it's thirteen minutes of it which is all I ever need to see of his work on this show.

I was fortunate enough to witness the work of a few generations of Broadway director-choregraphers. So many greats: Fosse, Champion, Tune, Stroman, but for me, Michael Bennett's work was in a class by itself. Watching Donna McKechnie perform "Tick Tock" in the orginal COMPANY was thrilling, as was "Who's That Woman" in FOLLIES, and I consider his work on DREAMGIRLS to be the pinnacle of musical theater genius.

It really bothers me when choreographers go so crazy that their ensemble can no longer sustain notes. Anyone defending Ashford also needs to come up with a reasonable justification as to why the closing section of "Brotherhood of Man" sounds so terrible. It sounded bad live in the theatre, it sounds equally bad in the video, and it's all because the poor ensemble has been made to bounce around like the stage is made out of Flubber. This is the final moment in the final song of the show -- the song that most people will have heard before, and the song that should send them out into the streets humming -- and it SOUNDS like COMPLETE POOP!

The original "Promises, Promises" was wonderful. I had the time of my life and the audience agreed with me. Turkey Lurkey was one of the highlights of my experiences in New York. Those male dancers were so tall and so thin, like basketball players in their stovepipe pants. Jerry Orbach was SO New York. He seemed to ooze traffic sounds and the smell of overcooked oil from the pretzel vendors. The new version was like The New Times Square: to clean, corporate and uselessly busy.

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Updated On: 3/27/11 at 08:37 AM

Stop bashing Ashford. Bash Sister Act instead.

Start a Sister Act thread and I'm sure you'll find what you're looking for.

This is a How to Succeed thread and we're discussing How to Succeed.

Try to pay closer attention.

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And that tie is driving me nuts.

I know when I posted pictures of the Goodspeed production, someone claimed the guys looked like they were going to a funeral. Goodspeed actually had the guys in muted colors. The guys in this production don't come off any more colorful, as they are all in greys.

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I'm sorry. I did not realize that I was only to have the
viewpoint of the original poster and not my own. I guess I did not get that memo.

I also did not get the memo about not mentioning other shows
on here when I bashed Sister Act. So I take back bashing Sister Act and will start another thread bashing Sister Act. i did not know the Broadway World Rules.

Forgive me for not aggreeing with you.

Love the How to Succeed video. It makes me want to go see the show. And I do love Broadway Musicals that dance. And I like Rob Ashford's work because it dances and is exciting.

I do get your point about it possibly distracting from the song but I don't know if that is the case not having seen the show.
I have only seen the video. And isn't that sticking to the original post?

We are all entitled to our opinion. So grow up and have respect for other people's opinions.

Asford has managed to over choreograph yet another musical. I wish he would have a little faith if not respect for material that he is working with and not staging masturbatory dance that takes away from the story in whole.

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"The guys in this production don't come off any more colorful, as they are all in greys."

Ummm. Is now the time to point out what SHOULD be obvious. The show is corporate offices. What did you want, pink and lavendar suits? Plaids and florescent stripes? This ain't Guys and Dolls!

Some of you are sure reaching to find things to criticize, but the fact that the gray suit crowd wears gray suits? Shocking!!!

And to answer the original question of this thread, who likes the choreography -- well from the looks of the first four reviews I've read -- the critics.