LESTAT - The New Carrie! — Page 9

I think one of the main problems with the show (and I can only speak for the NY production, but I can assume it was probably the same w/ SF, judging by what everyone's said) is that I don't think they spell things out well enough. They present these issues - Lestat having the fire in him to kill the wolves, Nicholas' reaction to being turned, Lestat's purpose, etc - but they don't explain them enough. Exposition and explanation are there, but there isn't ENOUGH there for the majority of the theatre to pick up on. I, like Walt, was able to pick up on what Lestat wanted and such over the course of the show, though I can most definitely see how other's couldn't...however, when Nicholas was turned, I had NO FREAKIN' CLUE what was going on, and my friend had to whisper a quick explanation between songs.

I'd like to think that with a bit more revision to the book, that's a fixable problem, but I honestly don't know.

I still want to know why the hell he had that fire in him to kill the wolves. Stop TELLING me, and start EXPLAINING it to me, dude!

Don't remember if it was in this thread, or in the thread about the first preview, but I believe someone asked if there is still the bit about Lestat scribbling Marius' name across walls in Europe in blood, and yes, that's still there, and very funny.

I really, really hope that all the problems I found with the show and the problems others have seen are fixable, because I really, genuinely enjoyed myself when I saw it Saturday night, and I'd like it to succeed at least a bit.

I was referring to InfiniteTheatreFrenzy's well-written review of the show, where SHE said, "What DID Lestat want?"

And again, that's the same question I had about the SF show.

I felt the SAME WAY when I saw the show in SF. It appears this aspect has still not been changed. And I think it was the major problem in SF and continues to be a major problem in NYC.

---

Be happy it only cost you $65 but I'm with you! There were no discounts in SF and the total was over $100 with service charges. I wanted my money and the three hours of my life back. This made "The Mambo Kings" look like the best show ever!

---

Hey Jimnysf, if your in the city at all when tickets are on sale, go to any of the 3 theatres when you buy tickets, avoids all the fees. I usually walk over to the Curran on my lunch break, or go down to the Orpheum on the weekend to get tickets to aa show. For Lestat, I had waited a little while before I got tickets, but was flexible on my dates, the person behind the counter was extremely helpful and helped me find front row center mezzanine. The great seats were the best thing about the evening, and I didn't have to pay Ticketmaster fees!

---

Well, You are all comparing this to carrie. I havent seen Lestat, but im gonna throw in an alternative to Carrie and its three words...


"In My Life".

Nuf said.

I'd have to agree that in SF I wasn't really confused as to WHAT was happening (and how could I be, when they'd talk about doing something, sing about doing something, and then have a voiceover saying they had actually done it) but WHY it was happening. (In Act I, anyway; Act II was pretty clear.)

If I had been confused on behalf of and with Lestat, that could have worked, but instead it just seemed like the endless bullet points of Lestat's life where I wasn't exactly clear why anyone was doing anything. Lestat would be angsting over killing someone one moment, and the next moment, not appear to care. If you are going to make the case that this is one man's journey through time, we need an actual journey and motivations that make sense, not just random events punctuated by songs.

The sad thing is that I think they were trying to do this, it just didn't work out. There were hints of it, but just not enough. It doesn't really sound like they have fixed this problem.

---

Updated On: 3/29/06 at 02:34 PM

Broadwaybaby81;

I think you pretty much nailed what the themes are; the problem is that all of that is SUBtext, and maybe what the show needs is, well...TEXT. Making it clearer to the audience that it's all a metaphor for something else. However, I'm really not sure how one does that without hitting you over the head with "This isn't REALLY about vampires, it's about being gay/addiction/loneliness/ WHATEVER." People need to bring their own ideas about what the metaphor means, and maybe you need something more straightforward to work on stage. I dunno.

oh, and dented146;

Don't be surprised about there being a Buffy musical on Broadway one day...Joss Whedon has made noises to that effect before in interviews. And I certainly think that would be more popular, as their is more tounge in cheek humor there.

I actually cannot wait to see this, I think it will improve before it officially opens

For those who saw it in NY: Is the play the vampires are putting on, still there? With Nikki Daniels as the damsel in distress and Joseph Dellger as the stereotypical Bram Stoker-type vampire?

I always figured that part was there to address the cheesiness that comes with the show (as you just said, ET), except in some ways, it was a highlight of Act 2.

---

Is the play the vampires are putting on, still there? With Nikki Daniels as the damsel in distress and Joseph Dellger as the stereotypical Bram Stoker-type vampire?

Yes, and its absolutely hysterical.

LOL Thriller on Crack...kinda true, but I actually really like that number; sadly, all I have is the Noseworthy version

I also really got a kick out of the Bram Stoker-esque play in the Theater of the Vampires in Act 2. I wish they had replaced "The Origin of the Species" with an 18th Century version of that play, or something really similar or equally funny. The whole "Morality Play" thing about Marius saving humanity sounds way lame. I still don't get why we need a long drawn out explanation of who Marius is aside from A: He's Armand's maker and B: He's the oldest and wisest ( as far as this show is concerned ). Maybe they'll change it.

Yeah, I've seen the Drew Sarich version..I thought he was great! That's why I'm bummed that all I have is the other version ( You know what I mean...that thing I'm pretty sure I'm not supposed to talk about on these boards..well, that's what I'm talkin' about. Ok, movin' on...