Marie: Dancing Still

[ScottK]

Posted: 5/27/19 at 9:21pm

On a recent post for shows we'd like to see transfer, someone had mentioned MARIE: Dancing Still

Did any others see it? It has quite a bit of pedigree (Ahrens/Flaherty/Stroman)--and I just googled some of the reviews which were over the moon for it, so was wondering what us "regular" folk thought!

[stlrod]

Posted: 5/27/19 at 10:06pm

I saw it in Seattle and enjoyed it. Tiler Peck was amazing! There was a scene in Act 2 where I thought Terrance Mann got a little too physical with Tiler Peck, but the story was interesting and a couple of songs were quite good. I’ve definitely seen worse on a NY stage.

[Emmaloucbway]

Posted: 5/27/19 at 11:07pm

Are there any rumors of a Broadway transfer? I would love to see this musical!

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 5/27/19 at 11:10pm

Still hoping they come up with a better title.

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 5/27/19 at 11:21pm

CATSNYrevival said: "Still hoping they come up with a better title."

AGREE. Feels like something generated by an advertising agency algorithm.

What's it about?  "A girl named Marie!"  What's her occupation?  "She's a dancer!"  Anything else we need to know?  "Oh, the girl inspires a statue...and statues don't move. They're, what's the word, still."
 

There was Broadway money behind the show in Seattle. But this is a big show and would be a big risk, and Susan Stroman hasn't had a hit since The Producers in 2001.

[fashionguru_23]

Posted: 5/28/19 at 8:42am

CATSNYrevival said: "Still hoping they come up with a better title."

I liked "Little Dancer".

[Miles2Go2]

Posted: 5/28/19 at 8:57am

I saw this in D.C. when it was still called “Tiny Dancer.” It wasn’t a horrible time, but definitely not Broadway-ready then. Book needed work and music was unmemorable. Some nice performances and cool reveal at the end. Hopefully, they’ve retooled more than just the name.

[Charley Kringas Inc]

Posted: 5/28/19 at 9:16am

Marie: The Statue That Came To Life And Danced All Over The Place

[MCfan2]

Posted: 5/28/19 at 12:39pm

Saw it in D.C. I loved everything about it: music, performances, story. (It was called "Little Dancer" then, btw. I don't think it's ever been called "Tiny Dancer." I too am feeling a little dubious about the new title. 

[Miles2Go2]

Posted: 5/28/19 at 12:45pm

Haha! You’re correct about the original title. Even while I was typing that I thought about how I used to keep accidentally calling it Tiny Dancer. LOL. And then I did it again. LOL. I suppose that’s one reason (I heard others kept accidentally calling it “Tiny Dancer” too) why the original title needed to change and if the final title is this then I do think that’s probably an improvement.

[Valentina3]

Posted: 5/28/19 at 3:15pm

I was one of the people who suggested transferring this musical in another thread. I saw it in Seattle and while I have some constructive thoughts about the show, I think it's overall a much better musical than either Tootsie or Beetlejuice (and from what I hear, Moulin Rouge) so it should do well on Broadway, considering the current crop of new musicals only have Hadestown as an entertaining as well as sophisticated musical.

Karen Ziemba is has the best part, she really chews the scenery and nails her numbers (her signature number is about doing laundry, which should tell you how good she is to make that work flawlessly). Apart from her, adult Marie (played by an excellent Louise Pitre), Degas' friend Mary Cassat (Dee Hoty) and obviously Marie + Degas are the super well written characters. There are some great songs, and some forgettable ones - but no clunkers. I think the dramatic tension in Degas' "I am a tortured artist" songs could use some help from better orchestrations, and potentially a better motif for the character himself, but it's still a good score.

As for the book - Marie's love interest (Kyle Harris as Christian) is a completely unnecessary character. Literally the only justification to keep it is so Marie can plead near the end of the play to "not make her chose (between him and dancing)", where Peck really delivered with her acting. Her sister (played by Jenny Powers, I believe) is yet another completely wasted character - she could have good moments, but her voice is criminally underused and her big moment in the show fell flat for me because her clown-like costumes took away from whatever she was saying. I'd rather they find a way to remove Christian's character and beef up Antoinette instead (yes, the girls are named "Marie" and "Antoinette". Terrence Mann's voice cracked a good 6-10 times I saw the show. It was really awkward, honestly.

The one thing this show reallly could use is better lighting design. After seeing some really gorgeous work on broadway of late, this show's rather conservative approach with both the set and lighting design left me wanting more.

PS - the title of the show is fineee.

[Kad]

Posted: 5/28/19 at 3:43pm

When I saw this in DC back in 2014 (!!!), I thought it was a lovely concept that needed a great deal of re-focusing. Based on what you've said, Valentina, it seems like that's still the case. The fact they've largely retained the pretty lousy design from 2014 isn't a great sign that they're invested in making the changes it needs. 

[Wildcard]

Posted: 5/28/19 at 3:47pm

I enjoyed this musical though it did have its flaws. The story was very captivating but unfortunately, the music was not. The songs are pleasant but none of them are particularly memorable. Tiler Peck was great in the lead role although I wish the authors had given her a solo song. I know she's not particularly a singer but she can carry a tune. Flaherty and Ahrens should write something that suits her abilities. I agree with Valentina about the unnecessary characters. In addition, even though this was called "Marie" in Seattle, I still referred to it as Little Dancer whenever I spoke of it. 

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 5/28/19 at 3:48pm

Valentina3 said: "I think it's overall a much better musical than either Tootsie or Beetlejuice (and from what I hear, Moulin Rouge) so it should do well on Broadway, considering the current crop of new musicals only have Hadestown as an entertaining as well as sophisticated musical."


Good material does not a hit show make. It could end up like Bridges of Madison County, or Amelie, or Shuffle Along. (There's also a "cool" factor about Hadestown.) I've been interested in it since the Kennedy Center, but I don't know if there's a commercial Broadway audience for the show, unless it got rapturous Broadway reviews that proclaimed it as the show to see.

This seems like such an LCT show: a dance-heavy musical about art, with a creative team of their past collaborators (Stroman, Ahrens & Flaherty). But there were commercial producers behind it out-of-town, and LCT hasn't done a new Broadway musical since Women on the Verge. They probably want to keep the Beaumont available for plays, after having it occupied by musical revivals 2 out of the past 4 years.

[QueenAlice]

Posted: 5/28/19 at 4:11pm

Every time I see the title "Marie: Dancing Still" it makes me think of "Gelsey Kirkland: Dancing on my Grave"

[Valentina3]

Posted: 5/28/19 at 5:30pm

Kad said: "When I saw thisin DC back in 2014 (!!!), I thought it was a lovely concept that needed a great deal of re-focusing. Based on what you've said, Valentina, it seems like that's still the case. The fact they've largely retained the pretty lousy design from 2014 isn't a great sign that they're invested in making the changes it needs."

I think the central plot was very clean, actually. I was sitting next to someone who had seen earlier iterations and they said they liked the changes in storyline. The tension towards the final buildup was done quite well, and jumps between future and past didn't feel hokey. What the show needs is some money to improve design, and potentially a dramaturg.

And SomethingPeculiar - Amelie didn't have good material, sorry. Unlike Bridges, this show is much more marketable and family friendly. Shuffle Along was an almost excellent show which, from all accounts, suffered from bungled production choices. I think this show has a better chance with the masses, both because of the material, and name recognition. To improve that even more - I'd personally love to see Mandy Patinkin replace Mann (please don't hate me); playing another legendary painter & artist could be a great return to stage. His voice is better suited for material written for Degas, although admittedly I don't know how his voice has aged. I also love the idea of LCT doing this, Beaumont would be a beautiful venue for this show.

Updated On: 5/28/19 at 05:30 PM

[Robbie2]

Posted: 5/28/19 at 6:58pm

Emmaloucbway said: "Are there any rumors of a Broadway transfer? I would love to see this musical!"

 

I asked my musical theater agent friend and he said nothing has been discussed for a BWAY transfer (he has a client in the show) as of now and he also said he's not so sure it will land on BWAY ( the score is terrible per him)  even though that was the plan so we shall see?

[RippedMan]

Posted: 5/29/19 at 12:30am

Maybe an off-Broadway run at a non-profit

[Kad]

Posted: 5/29/19 at 10:37am

RippedMan said: "Maybe an off-Broadway run at a non-profit"

It's frankly too large for any of the off-Broadway non-profits, save for maybe the Newman at the Public. 

[fashionguru_23]

Posted: 5/29/19 at 11:33am

Kad said: "RippedMan said: "Maybe an off-Broadway run at a non-profit"

It's frankly too large for any of the off-Broadway non-profits, save for maybe the Newman at the Public."

I have no idea how big the show is, but I would think that Roundabout's American Airlines, or Studio 54 would be too small. Maybe if Beautiful closes, a run at the Sondheim would work out? Doubtful, probably.

Also, I don't think Andre Bishop would let them take the Vivan Beamount. 

[Valentina3]

Posted: 5/29/19 at 12:01pm

Kad said: "RippedMan said: "Maybe an off-Broadway run at a non-profit"


It's frankly too large for any of the off-Broadway non-profits, save for maybe the Newman at the Public."

Agreed. It played at 5th Avenue in Seattle, which seats over 2000, and that venue seemed appropriate for the show.

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 5/29/19 at 12:58pm

Valentina3 said: "Amelie didn't have good material, sorry. Unlike Bridges, this show is much more marketable and family friendly. Shuffle Along was an almost excellent show which, from all accounts, suffered from bungled production choices. I think this show has a better chance with the masses, both because of the material, and name recognition."
 

What those shows do have in common with Marie is they're "legit" musicals that didn't get major Tony recognition and didn't recoup. You could add War Paint, Bandstand, Bright Star, It Shoulda Been You, If/Then, The Last Ship, Amazing Grace, Tuck Everlasting, and Dr. Zhivago to that list, too. "Ballet-heavy musical about art in 19th century France" sounds great to me, but homework-y to most tourist audiences.

Name recognition didn't help Ahrens & Flaherty with Island, Rocky, and Ragtime, and it didn't help Stroman with Big Fish, Bullets Over Broadway, Prince of Broadway, Scottsboro Boys, and Thou Shalt Not. The loyal traditional theatergoers are a finite group of people that mostly attend early in the run and can't sustain a multimillion dollar musical (in this case, probably at least $12m) to recoupment.

Not saying commercial success is impossible, but it would be an uphill battle. As you suggest, Mandy Patinkin might mean a bit at the box office, similar to Kevin Kline, Kelsey Grammer, or John Lithgow, but none of those guys are Bette Midler or Hugh Jackman or Jake Gyllenhaal or Adam Driver.

[ScottK]

Posted: 5/30/19 at 9:27pm

Thank you to all who replied!

Thru "my" grapevine--there is interest to moving it to Bway.

As for the show being about art, is it more about DANCE/BALLET? Will all the dance kids (particularly young girls) want to go see it? See Tyler Peck?

Sorry to hear about some of the neg reviews of the score--anyone have an idea on how to hear any of it? I wasnt the biggest Rocky/Ragtime fan, tho I did adore Island.

[Kad]

Posted: 5/31/19 at 10:08am

It is very much a show with a major focus on ballet. When I saw it at the Kennedy Center, the audience was full of little girls. 

I don't think it's particularly a show that will hold the attention of a child, though. 

[SomethingPeculiar]

Posted: 5/31/19 at 10:45am

ScottK said: "Will all the dance kids (particularly young girls) want to go see it? See Tyler Peck?
Sorry to hear about some of the neg reviews of the score--anyone have an idea on how to hear any of it? I wasnt the biggest Rocky/Ragtime fan, tho I did adore Island."

I don't think dance kids or ticketbuyers care about who Tiler Peck is? At least not enough to make a substantial impact on the box office. We're not talking about Emma Stone or Glenn Close...

If you dislike Ragtime (one of the great scores of the past 25 years), I think you'll be sorely disappointed in Marie.