Mary Poppins Broadway - Alterations?

[AngusN]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 7:26am

When it was announced that Mary Poppins would be making its way over the Atlantic to Broadway there were suggestions that it was going to be modified slightly, after taking on board criticisms of the West End production and also making the show more suitable to an American audience (not as dark, focusing on the more fun nature of the piece). Does anyone know if this has happened?

[KChenowethfan]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 9:26am

I hope not. I saw the West End production a few weeks ago and its fine the way it is. If they make it "happier" and "more like the movie" for American audiences, its going to be simply another one of the "screen to stage" adaptations.

[GYPSY1527]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 9:28am

I'm sure some of the darker scenes (Temper Temper) have been significantly altered. I also heard some complaints about how Mary is portrayed as a more strict and cold person which I can also assume would be altered. The production in London was so fantastic, I can only hope for the same here, just different.

[Smaxie]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 9:42am

I've heard there are just mininmal changes for New York. One new scene and a few new lines here and there.

[leefowler]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 9:57am

I worry that the show will seem "wrong" to American audiences who saw the movie hundreds of times as children. I saw the show in London, and when people ask me how it was, I always say, "It's sort of like a stage production of "The Wizard Of Oz" where the Cowardly Lion is the one who sings "Over The Rainbow."

[ruthiefan_felix]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 10:51am

leefowler, I don't get what u meant with the WoZ thing...
Anyway, I found the Westend production amazing and yes there are some boring bits with the Banks family but overall, it's more than fantastic as a production. I duno whether they cut away the character of Ms Andrews! And 'Temper Temper' is one of my fav. scenes!

[clarkstallings]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 10:59am

Ms. Andrew was not cut. Prepare to be surprised in a good way.
Updated On: 9/1/06 at 10:59 AM

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 11:43am

Temper, Temper is being cut. Hopefully, Disney will do the smart thing and not change too much. They didn't try to change the end of Aida.

[mrkringas]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 12:07pm

I love how Disney feel the need to patronise their domestic audience.

You cant handle Temper, Temper or the Menken Hunchback but its quite alright to murder 100,000+ Iraqis

*sigh*

[Smaxie]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 12:31pm

Again, I've heard that none of the songs have been cut.

[firescape]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 12:45pm

who killed a 100,000 plus Iraqi's? Hmmmm......someone needs to get their facts straight.

[WeddedBliss22]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 12:54pm

Sorry Mary Poppins, but I fell asleep when we saw it in London!
Glad to hear that Temper Temper is being cut, it was BAD!

[theatrewolf]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 1:06pm

Isn't the musical based on the book, which was darker in tone?

[WeddedBliss22]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 1:08pm

Mary Poppins was so dark and stern she seemed like Scar from The Lion King!

[WalkOn]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 2:00pm

My problem with the show was that is was boring. Every now and then there was a glimpse of potenitally magical moments.. but not often. I hope the Broadway version is an improvement.

[HOUFlip04]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 2:20pm

I love Cass Morgan (Ms. Andrews) when she was in the pre-broadway Annie Warbucks tour. Can't wait to see her in Mary Poppins.

[Conor]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 2:28pm

oh I'm heard from an usher at Tarzan that Julie Andrews was going to do a limited stint as Ms. Andrews, bummer that she isn't. i'm so gullible.

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 2:58pm

Cass Morgan, I believe, is the bird woman. Ruth Gottschall is Ms. Andrews.

[Jilani]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 4:32pm

(It's Miss Andrew, not Ms. Andrews.)

This topic has been discussed many times, but I definitely liked that the London version of the show was able to incorporate some of the darker tone that was present in the original books. The Mary Poppins of the books is cold and stern, not to mention extremely vain, but the paradox is that she is still universally revered and beloved because of the magic that follows her everywhere. I hope the indications that they won't change much for the Broadway run are true.

As an aside, I hope Ashley Brown (whom I really like) can do a convincing British accent.

[OnMyWay]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 5:02pm

Ashley Brown was shipped over to London for a 3 month vacation, paid by Disney. The purpose was to improve her accent and immerse her in British culture.

[mrkringas]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 6:02pm

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A7967-2004Oct28.html

The Lancet is among the most respected peer reviewed academic journals in the world. I have the full report on my pc at uni if you care to read.

So there are my facts. Straight and the nearest as can be correct as nobody bothered to keep count. Also an article in the NY Times today about more current death counts.

But sure go ahead and make Mary Poppins lighter cause god knows the great American public cant take it

[clarkstallings]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 6:47pm

I've also been given the indication that no songs will be cut. For some reason, people on this board don't have an understanding of what Disney entertainment is. While it is often times light, Disney has created some pretty frightening imagery in its films, musicals, and park attractions. They aren't a company that's scared to scare the hell out of kids. They've been doing a rather good job of it since 1928 and have made quite a bit of money with it to boot! Disney realizes that people are not necessarily looking for exact translations of of their films, if so, they certainly wouldn't have hired Julie Taymor to reinvent The Lion King. Disney knows that their material has more substance than many screen to stage translations so they don't have to "Keep it light, keep it bright, keep it gay" in order to make money. I think tourists will be more inclined to see this show as a dark Mary Poppins because they will feel more sophisticated that they aren't seeing a dopey movie on stage.

[Smaxie]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 6:51pm

When I was a tyke, a movie theatre in my hometown used to screen the Disney animated movies on Saturday afternoons. And the "Night on Bald Mountain" section of Fantasia gave me nightmares for months. Bambi, Pinocchio and Dumbo all did some damage as well.

[EganFan2]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 8:12pm

>>But sure go ahead and make Mary Poppins lighter cause god knows the great American public cant take it

I think my main objection to lightening it up to match the film would simply be because it's like saying Americans are too closed minded to see a new take on an old classic. "Too British", they would say. WTF. I'm sick of having things dumbed down for American audiences. It's embarassing as hell.

[TheHumanTorch]

Posted: 9/1/06 at 9:04pm

i just really didn't understand the West-End production of Mary Poppins... i thought the show was completely half-assed... i would fully understand if they wanted to represent the book and not the movie... but then don't try and force light and frothy Disney songs into the show! And also, if they wanted to have the giant audience that a purely Disney production would bring in... then why not have the story make sense in relation to the songs? I just did not understand the production... hopefully for the Broadway debut, they will choose one polar end or the other