Miss Saigon National Tour. Is it a disappointment compared to the BWay production?

[julia_84]

Posted: 1/8/05 at 4:30pm

I am thinking of seeing it in Melbourne Fla this February. But I saw it on Broadway three times and I was wondering if anyone who's seen both productions can give a comparison. Besides the real helicopter, what else is missing? Is it still a full sized cast? What about the stretched Cadillac, is that in there? And all those sleazy Bankok strip joints that light up? And hows the cast and musical quality?

Lots of questions, would love to have some input. Updated On: 1/8/05 at 04:30 PM

[son_of_a_gunn_25]

Posted: 1/8/05 at 4:43pm

I never got to see the broadway production so I can't help you there. As a college student who has seen a TON of non-equity shows because my college is cheap, I can say this is the best of the non-equity shows currently out there. It is an enjoyable evening and the video thing is not that bad in my opinion. The question is do you really want to pay all that money for a non-equity production? Many shows that come through my school are free to students as part of our tuition so it is stupid to not go see it as you've already paid for it. Miss Saigon has the distinction of being the only non-equity show that I thoroughly enjoyed. I tend to avoid the shows if they are non-equity unless I've heard good things on here about them.

[broadwaystar2b]

Posted: 1/8/05 at 4:51pm

I saw the tour recently and it was FANTASTIC!
Miss Saigon Tour Rave

[julia_84]

Posted: 1/8/05 at 4:56pm

Thanks :)

Is the score the exact same as the original London Cast recording (outside of minor libretto changes of courses)

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 1/8/05 at 5:42pm

I saw the tour about a year ago, and I thought it measured up very well to the Broadway production. It's a completely new staging, although when I saw it Kim and The Engineer were veterans of the original production. The entire cast, a mix of Equity and non-Equity performers was very good, except for Chris who wasn't bad but not particularly good either. However, I don't know who's doing it now.

The main differences that I could decipher were the completely new, tour-friendly set, a different opening sequence with a pantomime of Kim meeting the Engineer (that may have been in the Broadway production, but I don't think so), and a toning down of sexuality in the begining. The lyrics are a little "cleaner," the choreography more family friendly, and during the sex scene between Kim and Chris, she doesn't take her top off and go on the bed, but instead the lights fade out with them standing up, fully clothed and kissing.

Also, during the "American Dream" sequence, there's no car. And as you've heard, the helicopter is an animated effect. Some people have complained about it, but I thought it looked pretty good.

[brdwaybaby17]

Posted: 1/8/05 at 5:47pm

I loved it... it was the first time I ever saw the show, and at the time I didn't know it was non-equity. They all seemed like really great performers who had had a lot of experience. It was wonderful.

[Type_A_Tiff]

Posted: 1/8/05 at 5:47pm

Gunn - If you liked the current MS tour cast, you'll LOVE the current Rent tour cast - they're probably the best non-eq cast I've seen in the last 2-3 years.

I was actually very impressed with the set design, costumes, etc when I saw the tour last year. The helicopter isn't too shabby (you can tell it's a video, but it's not too bad and they had flashy lights and fans to make it seem more realistic). My only real gripe is I found the music just meh (which obviously isn't an equity/non-eq issue) and I found the performers to be just mediocre. ALan Gillespie isw pretty wooden, Jen Hubilla (is she still Kim?) has a very thin voice - I haven't seen the new Engineer (JonJon Briones was GREAT though). The people playing John and Ellen were very good.

[ShuQ]

Posted: 1/8/05 at 10:23pm

Well I didn't see the Broadway production so I can't compare the two, but I did LOVE the tour. However, the guy who played John was HORRIBLE. He was so off-key the entire time, even my tone-deaf mom could tell. Fine acting, but the casting directors obviously weren't listening to his voice audition. Other than that, the other leads are VERY strong. The only thing that was a little different is that the helicopter is a projection on a screen instead of a real helicopter, but you can't blame them...how are they supposed to get a helicopter from city to city?

So YES, you should see this, but did anyone else who saw it think what I did about John?

[eatlasagna]

Posted: 1/8/05 at 11:23pm

ahhh... miss saigon... here i go again... ha

i saw this national tour about 7 times... and i absolutely loved it... and i'd seen the broadway tours (both the 1 and 2 national tours)... what i loved most about this new tour is that it basically proves (in my opinion) why the show was excellent to begin with... the original productions were pretty much about spectacle and i think for most people watching it... something was lost when watching it... this new tour proves that you can stage this musical very intimately and that the central love story and the music is what makes this show so powerful and beautiful... my only grip is that the orchestra with this show SUCKS! i truly, deeply despise that symphonia crap... sick!

[kenmarksnj]

Posted: 1/9/05 at 10:59am

hey you know what go see it because you can't see it on broadway so if u're going to go see any high-quality production of the tuner, the best thing is going to be the tour.

[MusicLvr]

Posted: 1/15/05 at 3:37am

eatlasagna --perhaps we saw different tours? the orchestra itself was absolutely fantastic when i saw this in jacksonville just recently. it's true that you can tell some of the cheesier synth sounds from the live musicians, but the musicians in the pit were playing their cute little asses off!

[Type_A_Tiff]

Posted: 1/15/05 at 3:48am

^
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Example of good use of the Search function. Newbie Wicked fans take notice.

I actually agree with eatlasagna regarding the orchestra too. I didn't find it to be as "grand" as it could have and should have been. The synth sounds were pretty obvious, but nothing CLOSE to how the current Les mis tour abuses the synthesizer!

[MusicLvr]

Posted: 1/15/05 at 3:53am

[QUOTE]I actually agree with eatlasagna regarding the orchestra too. I didn't find it to be as "grand" as it could have and should have been.[/QUOTE]

No argument there... i wish they had more live musicians and no machine. but i didn't think they 'suck' as eatlasagna suggests. there was some really fine moments, in spite of the poorly written score.

[MusicLvr]

Posted: 1/15/05 at 3:55am

oh, and thanks for the compliment on the search thing, Tiff.

[Type_A_Tiff]

Posted: 1/15/05 at 4:03am

No, I don't think they sucked either, by any means.

What did you think of the cast when you saw it? How's the new Engineer? (I only say new because I saw it with Jon Jon Briones last spring.)

And btw, welcome to the boards.

[MusicLvr]

Posted: 1/15/05 at 4:14am

Johann Camat is very good as the Engineer, if a bit on the young side for the role. Nevertheless, he's got a nice mix of likability and evil going on. The ensemble is very good, particularly when they sing ensemble. The guy playing John was a decent actor, but it is true that he didn't sing very well in tune the night I saw him. Overall, I enjoyed this version of the show

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 1/15/05 at 11:38am

Is Mel Maghyuop still with the tour? He was the understudy for the Engineer and he's a personal friend. I saw him last year, but I don't know if he's still touring with the show.

[eatlasagna]

Posted: 1/15/05 at 1:28pm

i agree with msclvr... i saw Johann Camat as the Engineer when he first started with the tour... and he does seem kinda year for the role... he also flubbed a few of his lines and his voice cracked... but he was actually quite good... i enjoyed his performance the second time around... one this that i did notice is that he's probably the most hyper engineer i've ever seen... he's always moving or doing something onstage... like he needs ridalin or something... and yes, he's a very likeable engineer but does have this bit of mischieviousness going on about him...