King Kong to take the Broadway?- Page 2

[binau]

Posted: 1/28/14 at 4:12pm

Well I suppose we agree to disagree (I also have seen both live). Has he seen War Horse? I had never seen people flying over the audience during a musical (Spider-man), but I have seen a bunch of people controlling a very large puppet (War Horse).

Updated On: 1/28/14 at 04:12 PM

[blaxx]

Posted: 1/28/14 at 10:26pm

What does the flop say?

[alterego]

Posted: 1/28/14 at 11:47pm

It will have an all new book for Broadway.

Updated On: 1/28/14 at 11:47 PM

[RippedMan]

Posted: 1/29/14 at 1:06am

I love the underscoring in the preview video, so that intrigues me, and I oddly think it could work as a musical.

It just has to eschew the cheese-factor.

[Lousy]

Posted: 1/29/14 at 2:25am

"It got decent reviews in Australia"

What reviews were you reading? It got 3/5 from a paper that rarely gives out anything less than a 4 to even the most brutal of a production.

[LittleEdieFan]

Posted: 1/29/14 at 3:03am

At the performance I saw the audience politely clapped at the end and there was a general sense of being underwhelmed.
No book, not a single memorable song. Go if you like giant puppets, because Kong himself is pretty amazing, but keep your expectations low. And even then prepare to be disappointed.

[frazer]

Posted: 1/29/14 at 5:18am

I saw this in melbourne a couple of times.
The puppet is impressive. Its not like anything thats been done before. the puppeteers, or 'kings men' as they are called, are all over the puppet, jumping off the top of it to act as counterweights etc. and the combination of puppet and projection used to bring it to life is remarkable. There is a particularly strong chase scene where kong is on stage alone with some very impressive projections that react live to the puppet's movement.

However, this is where it stops being good. The music is just bizarre. It goes from a seemingly pointless schwartz-esque number about people falling from bridges into a dubstep reworking of 'get happy'. Music stops and starts in very odd places. The marketing is very great gatsby. There is lots of 1920/30s music used in the foyer of the theatre, and the first song seems to set the show up to follow in this vein, but that is quickly dispensed of. It would have worked far better as a piece of musical theatre had there just been a consistent style throughout! The song 'full moon' works in its own right, but just doesnt fit into this show! And once we hear it, it is flogged to death.

The book is horrible. Really atrocious. The (Scottish? I mean he was wearing a kilt...) captain character was meant to be funny I think. I was also confused as to why the beggar woman from sweeney todd was around. She was also dressed as madame morrible. She then sang a song called 'Rise' which sounded as if it was ripped straight from the spiderman score. A lot of people were also very confused as to whether the show had actually ended.

Having said that, I should say that my take on the show may have been hampered by a horrible production. The sound design in the echoey regent was atrocious. also, projections are used. They're quite fun to start off with, but then they bang you over the head with them and don't stop for 2 hours. They are so distracting, along with the lighting design which hurt my head. So many strobes. The principal cast was also pretty poor. Aside from jack driscoll, the accents were appalling across the board. Ann Darrow had a killer voice, but aside from that she was very average. the acting was pretty shoddy, but im not sure what there was to work with really!

However, this show is so easy to market. In melbourne they teamed up with the eureka skydeck, which is the tallest building in the southern hemisphere. Its got a big tourist viewing area attraction much like the empire state building. promotional photos with kong and ann darrow at the top are everywhere, and you can get your photo taken in kong's hand at the top etc. Half the show is 'the eighth wonder of the world on broadway'. It is gold, and should get the tourists in.

I just cant help think that this could be a decent show if it had a complete reworking. The puppet is spot on, and the source material is certainly there. As it is, it will flop. horrendously.

[jbroadway4]

Posted: 1/29/14 at 12:32pm

My choices for Ann Darrow:
.Laura Osnes
.Megan Hilty

[theatregoer3]

Posted: 1/29/14 at 2:32pm

If they're smart, they'll cast all unknowns and keep their weekly budget down. The puppet is the star of the show. There's no need for a Broadway or Hollywood name to share the spotlight.

[frazer]

Posted: 5/31/14 at 12:41pm

is this still on the cards?

[blaxx]

Posted: 5/31/14 at 7:22pm

Please don't put Rocky in with those, Rocky is actually very good and I feel sorry for the ones who won't watch it because they are Pre judging it, your missing a really good show.

[Starship]

Posted: 5/31/14 at 8:06pm

I would imagine the show is still in the process of moving to the New York. Maybe a late 2015 Broadway bow? I also second Megan Hilty or Laura Osnes as Ann Darrow.

[rosscoe(au)]

Posted: 5/31/14 at 9:06pm

Neither of those girls are going to touch this piece of mess with a ten foot pole. It was a train wreck of a show, it would need a new book, score, director, design nothing worked ( yes the puppet was impressive )

New York critics would kill this, well word of mouth would do it before the critics had a chance.

[uncageg]

Posted: 5/31/14 at 9:20pm

I suspect that Miss Saigon will take The Broadway.

[James885]

Posted: 5/31/14 at 9:26pm

Going by the word of mouth from down under, I would be very surprised if King Kong managed to make it to NYC.

Considering that likely possibility that Miss Saigon will take the Broadway, it seems like if this show actually does open stateside the only suitable theater left would be the Lyric.

Updated On: 5/31/14 at 09:26 PM

[ACL2006]

Posted: 5/31/14 at 9:39pm

yeah, Miss Saigon has a 99% chance it'll open at The Broadway next spring. There's still the Lyric(Foxwoods) come the spring, but after that, there's really no other Broadway house that could take in King Kong.

[Starship]

Posted: 5/31/14 at 9:44pm

Now that I think about it, wouldn't it be interesting to see King Kong take the Dolby Theater in Hollywood, CA? That way it could stay away from New York's theater critics and focus more on being the tourist spectacle that it is as opposed to redoing the entire show so it is Broadway-critic worthy.
Updated On: 5/31/14 at 09:44 PM

[jemjeb2]

Posted: 5/31/14 at 11:30pm

Great idea actually, but even better move it to Universal Studios in Burbank. They already have a King Kong ride at the studio tour, just add this as another high ticket evening attraction after the tours end for the day. (I think I'm only partially kidding!)

[ggersten]

Posted: 9/17/15 at 12:42pm

So now Jason Robert Brown is on board.  I should refrain from snarkily suggesting that the producers do not anticipate a lengthy run.  I mean, someday, JRB will have a hit.  

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 9/17/15 at 1:01pm

Any musical that goes through this many creative team changes does not have a good outlook. Not even to mention the fact that JRB does not seem like the right choice for this material. Is the gorilla going to sing love ballads?

I would wager that they are cycling through writers and directors because it's just not good source material for a successful musical.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 9/17/15 at 2:05pm

Starship, that is what they thought about Spiderman.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 9/17/15 at 3:30pm

Ann Darrow - Kelli O'hara

[RippedMan]

Posted: 9/17/15 at 11:23pm

I think it's kind of an awesome idea for a musical? I mean it's basically Beauty and the Beast just in a different incarnation. I just don't think JRB is the right choice. He doesn't write these big, bombastic type songs. This show needs to be huge and loud. And I love JRB, but I don't see that happening. 

[c0113g3b0y]

Posted: 9/18/15 at 1:07am

why is that producers who know that their shows is utter horse**** always open in Australia first? Do they think Australians have no taste or have lower expectations?

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 9/18/15 at 9:37am

^ Clearly!