Live From Lincoln Center: Camelot, airs this Thursday on PBS- Page 12

[bwaybabe2]

Posted: 5/11/08 at 1:09am

Lovesclasssics, I saw the 2007 tour of Camelot (with Micheal York), and agree that if anyone can rival Julie Andrews, it has to be Rachel York. What a performance! And her voice was perfect for the role. Too bad this was not done in Broadway also, as she would have been nominated for a Tony.
I had never seen Camelot before, so I had nothing to compare it to, so I enjoyed and liked it very much. Granted that Michael might have been a little too old for Genevieve, but you forgot about it halfway through the play, as he really exerted this boyishness and exuberance in his role--even his weak point, the singing, was acceptable.
And, then there was James Barbour. His acting (at least when I saw it), was not quite up there with the performances he has given in the past;I think this due to what we all know he was going through then. However, when he sang, no Lancelot could have been better suited--he rocked the house, and they all received standing ovations at the end. I have to say that in some of the scenes, he did a pretty convincing job. It is too bad that he seemed so down trodden (I imagine he was on and off like this throughout the tour...if anyone saw him, maybe they can commnent on this).
That said, I think this Lerner and Loewes' revival is really a charming take on Camelot.
BTW, sorry to hear Gabriel was not all there--from the reviews, it seems he still charmed the pants off the critics, though (?)

[Mistress_Spouzic]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 12:30am

I see that most people here disliked what they saw but if any of you taped it, I would love to see it. I managed to miss it both times it aired. Id be happy to pay for the shipping to borrow it and/or the vhs/dvd if you can make me a copy.

I wanted to see it live but by the time I went to Lincoln Center they only had $140 tickets left!

[rosscoe(au)]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 3:25am

So the broadway transfer should be announced soon?

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 3:48am

I really wouldn't mind a revival if it was done right. I only had a few quips with the Lou Diamond Phillis tour. If they need a name he was worlds better than Bryne. The perfect cast for the tour would have been Lou, Rachel and Matt Bogart. Matt was amazing. It seems like it would be the perfect time for a revival with the show's anti-war sentiments. Plus we haven't gotten a new Camelot cast recording in almost thirty years. It would be nice to have a complete recording of the show with all the songs, dance music and reprises that have never been recorded.

[lovesclassics]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 12:10pm

I think it would take an Arthur of Hugh Jackman's magnitude to make a B'way revival work. Now a cast with Hugh, Rachel York and Nathan Gunn - yes, yes, yes! That would be a revival album worth putting next to the original.

[InfiniteGirl]

Posted: 5/13/08 at 10:08am

Just watched this on Tivo, and I specifically heard Arthur say there was "one brief, shining moment". Did I miss it?
Updated On: 5/13/08 at 10:08 AM

[redhotinnyc2]

Posted: 5/15/08 at 8:02am

InfiniteGirl - I guess I missed it also. I finally had a chance to watch it on DVR this week and OY, was I shocked. Where was The Joust? Why that awful, choreographed balletish fight scene instead of the fun joust song sang by the chorus(a la Ascot in My Fair Lady)? I've seen a lot of productions of this show and been in a couple, myself, and never saw or heard that Morgan Le Fey scene - and I think I know why.
I feel sorry for everyone connected with this production - it happens to be one of the most beautiful shows written, even if it IS a bit long, and they butchered it. Why the various attempts (or NON attempts) at accents? Why the black costumes for the May scene? WTF???
Someone needs to do a truly remarkable staging of the show so that all of the folks who've never seen it done right would finally get the chance.
*Just had a chance to look back over this thread and I must agree - Mazzie was flat on almost every song. And I personally never thought Lance and Guenevere should touch. They love each other from afar, and I saw a production where they actually kissed, once and that really spoiled it for me. Again, this Lincoln Centre production was a bloody mess.*

Updated On: 5/15/08 at 08:02 AM

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 5/15/08 at 10:00am

I started watching this, but I simply could not get through it. I've never been a fan of the show, but I thought in concert, it might force me to focus on the score and I would enjoy it more. I was wrong. Awful choreography and performances aside, it just bores me to tears. And one of the only energetic moments, the joust, was cut. It's like they were actually trying to make it as bad as possible.

I'm just not sure if there is any production that could make me enjoy this show. I've tried and tried and I think I'm throwing in the towel on Camelot.

[TimesSquareRegular]

Posted: 5/15/08 at 10:34am

Well, glad to see I'm not the only one that found this tedious and a total diservice to the material. Every time the camera went to Byrne, he looked like a deer caught in the headlights. Mazzie looked like she could whack more knights than any of those jousting. Fran Drescher was - well, Fran Drescher. And Mordred looked as if he wandered in from a bus-and-truck company of ROCKY HORROR. Only Nathan Gunn gave a solid performance.

[allofmylife]

Posted: 5/15/08 at 10:38am

Do not abandon Camelot. It was very much of its time and that time is, actually back again. The show coincided with the arrival of a new American president, who brought hope and faith to a people dulled almost to torpor by a dull administration and a decade of fear and paranoia.

That time is with us again, folks. Camelot can be a very powerful statement, when done correctly. This production was a sack of dead weasels, but given a first rate production, it can sparkle. It will sparkle.

There are many actors who can handle the role of Arthur (and let's face it, Arthur is 90% of the show, get a good Arthur and the rest is pretty simple). The folks at Lincoln Center chose poorly and once that bad decision had been made, the compounded it with a cheapass production and a raft of other questionable decisions.

If you are going to do Camelot, eith do a big-ass spot on uberproduction or bring in a visionary as R&H O did with "South Pacific."

[South Fl Marc]

Posted: 5/15/08 at 11:53am

I wonder if there is a copy of the original script available - and by the original script, I mean the one that was done at the first night of out of town previews. The show ran way over four hours long. They almost immediately cut one and half hours out and did further cuts as the show went through previews. I would be really curious to see how much character development got cut out due to time.
Does anyone know if such a script exists?

Posted: 5/26/08 at 10:38pm

Lou Diamond Phillips better than Gabriel Byrne? I think it's debatable. I realize that there's no love for Byrne's Arthur on this board, but Lou Diamond Phillips was awful. Perhaps he was more tuneful than Mr. Byrne, but he reminded me of a high school senior just giddy at the prospect of carrying a sword and soaking up applause. He was hammy and inconsistent. Byrne is five times the actor Phillips is.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 5/27/08 at 1:40am

I thought Lou Diamond Phillips was WORLDS better than Bryne. They both had their flaws, but Phillips can carry a tune much better than Bryne and even if you want to argue that Arthur is an actors role and not a singers I still thought Bryne was too one dimensional. I know they didn't have much rehearsal time but I guess I just expected an actor of his caliber to do better or at least for someone to recognize that he simply wasn't up to the task and get him the hell out of there. It was utterly embarrassing.