LEMPICKA Reviews- Page 13

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 4/21/24 at 6:23pm

I think it’s somewhat unfair to negatively compare Eden’s performance to Mariand’s in regards to pitch etc. since Eden clearly has vocal fatigue from a role that makes singing Elphaba eight times a week look like a walk in the park. Also, in the bootleg I heard of Mariand’s “Woman Is,” she actually does go painfully flat on one of the big screaming high notes - not that I can blame her, since the song is just insanely (and unnecessarily) high.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/21/24 at 6:33pm

I wish the daughter would just go full Bad Seed and start killing people. I mean, it wouldn’t be any farther from the truth than the rest of the script. End it with “I’ve Written a Letter to Daddy” and bring the curtain down. 

[MsPiety&Rectitude]

Posted: 4/21/24 at 6:37pm

yyys said: "Cut that creepy child character and give the husband some depth and maybe another song or two."

In previous iterations, the husband Tadeusz had a song called “The Exchange” that was exciting and dramatic - it took place at his bank teller window where he laments the menial work he’s taken on and continues to agonize over how Tamara got him out of the revolutionaries’ prison. His new song, “Wake Up,” is, unfortunately, a total slog and takes up time without adding anything to his character :/

[TimeToDither]

Posted: 4/21/24 at 6:58pm

The Distinctive Baritone said: "I think it’s somewhat unfair to negatively compare Eden’s performance to Mariand’s in regards to pitch etc. since Eden clearly has vocal fatigue from a role that makes singing Elphaba eight times a week look like a walk in the park. Also, in the bootleg I heard of Mariand’s “Woman Is,” she actually does gopainfully flaton one of the big screaming high notes - not that I can blame her, since the song is just insanely (and unnecessarily) high."

It *is* unfair, the producers should have been reasonable in scheduling Eden's alternates regularly if the authors aren't reasonable enough to write a score that performers can sing in a healthy way. However, Eden has been having vocal issues for some time now and that's not about this show in particular ... her vocal performance in the recent Gardens of Anuncia was insufferable. Maybe she should sing lower roles because her alto register is still gorgeous and rarely this consistently flat.

[Melissa25]

Posted: 4/21/24 at 7:15pm

ColorTheHours048: why does the overture sound like we’re about to watch Riverdance on molly?

I just loved the clicking at the opening with the purple lights that move from left to right as if we are about to get launched into new dimension. I found that opening so exciting especially on my second viewing.  It felt like the start of an old MTV music video.  Anyway, I love your description. When I head back for my third viewing in May, I'll be smiling as I think of your Riverdance reference. 

[Robbie2]

Posted: 4/21/24 at 8:17pm

The Distinctive Baritone said: "I think it’s somewhat unfair to negatively compare Eden’s performance to Mariand’s in regards to pitch etc. since Eden clearly has vocal fatigue from a role that makes singing Elphaba eight times a week look like a walk in the park. Also, in the bootleg I heard of Mariand’s “Woman Is,” she actually does gopainfully flaton one of the big screaming high notes - not that I can blame her, since the song is just insanely (and unnecessarily) high."

Not the evening we attended. Mariand's voice was far more gorgeous and thrilling than Eden's! Show is still a mess!

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 2:29pm

They’re recording the OBCR today so i guess Eden is better. 

[RubyLee]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 2:59pm

I'm pretty sure they recorded it April 7, but maybe they are doing edits today.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 3:11pm

Oh, I saw on Instagram someone from the cast post a pic today so I assumed it was now. 

[TheatreFan4]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 9:16pm

Eden did say in her Insta stories that there was a lot of Press and Recording coming up this week that she had to be prepared for and why she didn't want go back on before her voice allowed her. 

Amber's stories also confirm that they were recording today as well. 

Updated On: 4/23/24 at 09:16 PM

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 4/22/24 at 9:28pm

Robbie2 said: "The Distinctive Baritone said: "I think it’s somewhat unfair to negatively compare Eden’s performance to Mariand’s in regards to pitch etc. since Eden clearly has vocal fatigue from a role that makes singing Elphaba eight times a week look like a walk in the park. Also, in the bootleg I heard of Mariand’s “Woman Is,” she actually does gopainfully flaton one of the big screaming high notes - not that I can blame her, since the song is just insanely (and unnecessarily) high."

Not the evening we attended. Mariand's voice was far more gorgeous and thrilling than Eden's! Show is still a mess!"


well, either way, I have listened to “Woman’s Is” three different times today – one by Eden at her best in the music video, one by Eden at first preview (at least a couple of flat notes, and her voice just sounded really tired), and one performed live by the composer (who has a surprisingly nice voice). I really like the song, but there is just no reason for it to be that high. I think it would actually be a better song if the entire thing was lowered a full step. The high notes are so high that they are simply unpleasant to listen to when belted IMO.

[ACL2006]

Posted: 4/25/24 at 7:44am

Eden has now been out for a week. Kudos to Mariand for holding her own in this dumpster fire of a show.

[AlmostFamous3]

Posted: 4/25/24 at 8:32am

ACL2006 said: "Eden has now been out for a week. Kudos to Mariand for holding her own in this dumpster fire of a show."

Eden was on when I was at the show Tuesday night. And she was great but clearly suffering. LOVED every minute of this "dumpster fire"

[TheatreFan4]

Posted: 4/25/24 at 9:25am

ACL2006 said: "Eden has now been out for a week. Kudos to Mariand for holding her own in this dumpster fire of a show."

She's actually been in and out of the show since last week. They also recorded the OBCR this week...

[mridley2]

Posted: 4/26/24 at 3:05am

hi Lempicka fans - Anyone know if Ms Espinoza went on Thurs evening? I stopped by the box office about 5pm and the friendly BO lady said she was scheduled to GO ON.  DID SHE?  How was she?  I ask because I have a friend in town and we have one slot left for Friday.  They only want to see this show on FRI 4/26 IF Ms. Espinoza is on.  NO understudies, THANKS for your info.

-mridley2

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 4/26/24 at 7:30am

Eden was on and in good voice Thurs evening, per friends who saw the show.

Updated On: 4/26/24 at 07:30 AM

[gleek4114]

Posted: 4/26/24 at 1:49pm

Forgive me if this has been asked or addressed, has anyone used audience rewards to get a ticket for this? Where have the seats been Located?

[carolinaguy]

Posted: 4/27/24 at 12:06am

Eden was also in tonight (Friday) and sounded healthy. She went raspy and lost her tone for a brief passage in “I Will Paint Her,” but otherwise all the notes were there. 

[HatchKat]

Posted: 4/27/24 at 11:44pm

Eden was in tonight (Saturday, 4/27) but she was STRUGGLING. Honestly, the whole cast (except the gal who played Suzy, who was the highlight for me) was pitchy, but Eden was definitely captain of the struggle bus. (Could it be other cast mates were trying not to overshadow her so much?) Such a bummer because I know what a powerhouse she can be, but the girl needs more vocal rest. 

Like others, I found this show a bit messy. I’m glad I saw it, and I actually did enjoy the choreography, but it won’t be a repeat for me.

PS. I had lottery seats and they weren’t great - Balcony Row C. Saw everything, but I prefer to be closer. 

[WldKingdomHM]

Posted: 4/28/24 at 7:26am

Ouch just went to look up tickets for Wednesday. The matinee…Time to close up shop 

[forfivemoreminutes]

Posted: 4/29/24 at 5:59pm

I got an audience rewards ticket for early June. The seat is N-1, which should be perfect.

[Robbie2]

Posted: 4/29/24 at 9:25pm

forfivemoreminutes said: "I got an audience rewards ticketfor early June. The seat is N-1, which should be perfect."

 

Show won't be open in June as I heard a closing notice is coming. Go see it this week!

 

[forfivemoreminutes]

Posted: 4/29/24 at 10:00pm

Robbie2 said: "forfivemoreminutes said: "I got an audience rewards ticketfor early June. The seat is N-1, which should be perfect."



Show won't be open in June as I heard a closing notice is coming. Go see it this week!

"

Oh no, I won't be in NYC until June 3! When will closing be?

[Phillyguy]

Posted: 4/29/24 at 11:17pm

HatchKat said: "Eden was in tonight (Saturday, 4/27) but she was STRUGGLING. Honestly, the whole cast (except the gal who played Suzy, who was the highlight for me) was pitchy, but Eden was definitely captain of the struggle bus. (Could it be other cast mates were trying not to overshadow her so much?) Such a bummer because I know what a powerhouse she can be, but the girl needs more vocal rest.

Like others, I found this show a bit messy. I’m glad I saw it, and I actually did enjoy the choreography, but it won’t be a repeat for me.

PS. I had lottery seats and they weren’t great - Balcony Row C. Saw everything, but I prefer to be closer."

I saw her on Sunday and thought she was really good. The entire cast was excellent. Much better than I expected based on the review. However, afterwards I read Jesse Green’s review and became more aware of the historical inaccuracies. That did affect how I thought of the show. It’s a shame. 

[Charley Kringas Inc]

Posted: 4/30/24 at 2:06pm

This is one of those shows that's frustrating precisely because you can see the parts of it that are really great, and how they're muffled by the parts that aren't.

First off, I loved the score, even if the melody is often let down by pedestrian lyrics. These are just fun songs to listen to - Don't Bet Your Heart, Perfection, The Most Beautiful Bracelet, Pari Will Always Be Pari, Women, Stay, What She Sees, and Just This Way are all going to get heavy spotify rotation from me. There's so much bounce and creativity in every single song, and the whole score feels surprisingly unified in how it sits on the border of 20s jazz and pop-fascism, while still being purely theatrical.

Also, Amber Iman absolutely dominates the stage every second she's on it and I'll be there for whatever she does after this. The way she handles all those smoky jazz runs and ornaments, stretching the notes without breaking the melody or veering into raspiness is just amazing.

The plotting is hit or miss but I really dug how they tied the connection between futurism and fascism to Lempicka's desire for control and power. Of all the plot threads, this was the most successful and the one I wish they'd laser-focused on, because it's just so darn interesting. Marinetti is fun, catty, and viscious, and I loved how they leveraged the power he has over the audience against what he represents and becomes.

The futurism-fascism thing is also something I wasn't very familiar with, and I think they do a great job of investigating that here, and I really REALLY love it when a musical can dive into something so specific like that. The score made me feel the impact of futurism, and how that would be totally bewitching following the calamity of the first great war. It's a perfect example of how to use the medium to communicate something abstract like that.

Unfortuantely, the love triangle totally stumbles. I think there are two reasons for this. One is simply that Tadeusz is a terrible character. He's boring and stupid and when I realized he was about to get a front-of-the-curtain solo in the first act I couldn't help laughing because...why? Who is this man? His numbers aren't bad at all, but there's so little to the character itself that they just fall flat, which is a shame because What She Sees is such a great idea for a song.

The other reason is that there's just no time to expand on it, mostly because the show takes forever getting going. First there's the park bench number, then the wedding dress scene, then that painfully long Russian Revolution sequence, and then the even longer Paris sequence (three madelines...two madelines...one madeline...). It takes like thirty minutes for things to start actually happening for real, and, to be honest, the revolution and the Paris sequence both have some of the show's worst music. Our Time (can we stop with this? nobody can top sondheim's setting of those two words) and City Of Light are bland, meandering numbers that wildly overstay their welcome and absolutely pale next to the rest of the score.

Along with the script issues is the staging. The big unit set is nifty-looking, especially when it lights up with the racing LED strips, but it a: hems the action in to a little triangle downstage and b: leaves a huge amount of distracting empty space that never gets filled. This issue is compounded by the small size of the chorus/dancer cast. It looks goofy when they're all clumped together downstage with this huge empty set looming over them, like a failed flash mob, and it looks goofy when they're scattered around the set in ones and twos, like half the dancers got stuck in an elevator on the way to the show.

It doesn't help that most of the choreo is underbaked and often distracting, and a lot of it looks like the dancers were told to just do whatever. I couldn't take my eyes off the two on the upper platform during the first Paris sequence who were just kind of wiggling around aimlessly. Tighter movements with clearer intent would've done a lot to help, because that looseness hobbles the energy of the score. Don't Bet Your Heart is one of the most electrifying songs I've heard in the theatre in a minute but why is it staged like a talent-show version of Greased Lightnin'?

There are so many moments in this show that knocked me over and I love to see that kind of reach onstage - the ambition is wild and when it lands it's so, so thrilling! But the fact that they've been working on it for a decade tells me (much like with Harmony) that they don't know how to tell their story, or even what their story is, but it's like they're afraid of going too far in any one direction, so they get muddled in the middle.

If they do go back to the drawing board, I hope they find a way to hone in on the connection between Lempicka's craving for security at all costs with the futurism-fascism connection. Every time those two things merged the show came to life, and focusing on those two things would do a lot to bolster the show. They need to embrace Lempicka's monsterhood in the second act, because the potential tragedy of it is so potent and so unexplored. The seduction of futurism and fascism being overruled ten minutes too late by the plaintive desire for human connection in Just This Way could be an all-timer climax in a better version of this show, but as it is it's kind of like hearing the distorted echo of beautiful music across the valley. Maybe the most beautiful musical is the one that doesn't quite work.

Also, if they do continue working on this, can we have a bitchy duet between Suzy and Marinetti? Please please please? It'll never happen because this show is probably just going to go crawl off and die in a corner, which makes me sad, but my gay little heart can dream.

edit: oh my god I didn’t realize this would be so long SORRY

Updated On: 4/30/24 at 02:06 PM