Moulin Rouge Colonial Theatre Previews- Page 11

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 6:56pm

Dolly80 said: "They still have quite a bit of time between this Boston run and Broadway in March to rearrange and work on it ."

Have they confirmed that NY previews begin in March?

[Dolly80]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 6:58pm

No but it’s aboit to be announced soon.

They also have their London theatre booked for late 2019 so they must be confident it will be a hit!

[Solipsist234]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 7:01pm

Dolly80 said: "No but it’s aboit to be announced soon.

They also have their London theatre booked for late 2019 so they must be confident it will be a hit!"

Okay, this is ridiculous! Why are they already thinking about a London transfer when they haven't even played two performances? Something about this reeks of treachery on your part!

[Dolly80]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 7:08pm

Hardly!

Just repeating what I’ve been told.

It’s not unusual. Frozen had already booked the Theatre Royal Drury Lane before opening on broadway.

[schubox]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 7:13pm

They have time to change things, but do you really see them making wholesale changes to this? Adding or cutting songs?

[Dolly80]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 7:16pm

Well it’s a huge deal to change things structurally- but let’s hope they listen to feedback in Boston and improve things...

Let’s hope they glance at the reviews on here too as they are all saying the same thing!

[HenryTDobson]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 7:28pm

I caught this last night and left very disappointed. While I’m a huge fan of the movie, I wouldn’t have minded book changes if they bettered the story - this was not the case. It ultimately is 3 hours of silly pop music and very good dancing.

The book is a mess. Like so many jukebox musicals before it, the music never furthers the plot, and because this is a hodgepodge of random pop songs, the tone from song to song shifts so awkwardly that the audience laughed several times in what should have been emotional moments. Satine singing “Firework” instead of “Fly Away” is such a disservice to the character. “Come What May” feels like an afterthought and “Chandelier,” “Shut Up and Dance,” and “Only Girl in the World” absolutely need to be cut. The only added song I enjoyed was “Royals/We are Young.”

The foundation of the movie is there, but so much of the character development is not. We barely see Christian and Santine together! The framing device that worked so well in the movie is abandoned - or half abandoned, really, because it sortof comes back and is inconsistently used throughout the show. I was hoping Zidler would pull an Emcee and lead us through the evening’s proceedings.

Karen is working hard to make her terribly developed character work. She sounded great, but I could have used a song where her full, beautiful voice really sang out. It was fun to watch her work through several costume flubs - what a pro! Aaron was super bland and also never got to showcase his voice properly. His performance was similar to his Frank Abagnale, which, for me, is not a good thing.

Danny Burstein is, of course, a treasure. But whoever made this SIX TIME TONY NOMINEE sing Florence and the Machine’s “Shake it Out” should be shot. What a waste of his talents! Sahr Ngaujah was the highlight of the night for me, and if this does transfer, I believe he will be the one walking away with the Tony.

The ensemble is killing it, especially in the act one and act two openers. The ladies who sang, “Lady Marmalade,” were superb and I hoped they would be more prominently featured. Technically the show is a marvel.

I’d been excited for this one for a while and I’m super sad to have not enjoyed it all. It felt so long and overstuffed, and with the miserable service of the theater itself (long lines, concession people talking throughout the show, security guards yelling at old women), it’s not a night I’ll care to remember. I hope they are working hard on improving the disastrous book before transferring - Me thinks this will be ripped to shreds by the critics.

Updated On: 7/11/18 at 07:28 PM

[oncemorewithfeeling2]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 7:28pm

Some things are able to sell on name alone. We learned with Spongebob that name isn’t always the case, but it could be here for one reason—teenage girls. Do not doubt the power of teenage girls.  This pas spring, some of my 8th graders asked me if I had seen the movie, which one girl’s mom had told them to watch recently. They fell in love with it and young Ewan McGregor. If we didn’t live in the middle of the Midwest, these girls would be spending quite a bit of mom and dad’s money to see the show and buy the merch.

While it’s hard to predict a hit after one performance, the name is recognizable to non-theater goers and that always helps. Unless the critics tear it pieces and absolutely annihilate this, it’s moving forward and we’ll see in the spring. That has been the plan since day 1. They’ve had theaters in mind since the winter and a short list for a while now. From what I understand, they know what theater they’re going into. The hype that resulted yesterday from the release out of the set picture is exactly what the production team has hoped for for from the start. All shows do. They’re some of the lucky ones that will probably see their dreams pan out.

I’m seeing this next week as a birthday present to myself. I’m excited about the changes we’ve heard about so far and I want to see the stunning set and Catherine Zuber’s costumes.

[Broadwaybound22]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 7:36pm

I think adapting any film to the stage requires some serious reimaginging, but based on the reports above -- it sounds like they've really lost the thread on what made the original film so compelling. Not only did they use some of the greatest pop songs of the 20th century to tell a story about the Belle Epoque, but they took those songs and deconstructed and rearranged them into dramatic pieces of music. The mash-up of the Police's 'Roxanne' and 'Tanguera', as performed by Christian, the Argentinian and chorus is an incredible feat of musical storytelling.  It's familiar, but also otherworldly and specific to the world Baz and Co created. 

From what the early reports on here are saying, they've simply taken snippets of more current pop hits (Gaga, Adele, Katy Perry) and haven't taken the time to properly re-orchestrate/rearrange them into something specific to Baz Luhrmann's Montmartre of 1900.  Now whether or not this is Baz's production -- the expectation that's been set for audiences is that it'll be a relatively faithful adaptation of his beloved film.  

Killing 'Come What May' as the central motif (replacing it with 'Your Song'  and relegating Zidler to the periphery (and killing 'The Show Must Go On' and 'Like A Virgin'...and perhaps even his Rap??) are huge mistakes. That song -- banalities and all -- is the heartbeat of the show.  I don't know if Craig Armstrong is involved at all with the arrangements, but his brilliant use of it (and Your Song) in the film's score really does connect the dots.  Baz himself actually brought Craig on to become the 'glue' to link all those disperate pop songs together and provide the emotional thruline.

The upside, is they have plenty of time to fix things before Broadway -- but there are going to be a lot of disappointed audience members in the interim.  And not just because they've removed or added songs -- but because the romance (!) is missing.  And make no mistake, 'Moulin Rouge' works because it IS high romance. But it sounds like the creative team is hedging their bets a bit, playing to the lowest common denominator with the inclusion of some questionable songs... 

I'm rooting for it -- but they really need to go back to the film and reassess these unnecessary plot deviations from the core love story.  It's the reason why (love it or hate it) Phantom is still running...Hal Prince knew it would live or die by its grand romance. 

Updated On: 7/11/18 at 07:36 PM

[Elizabeth Moore]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 8:16pm

"Danny Burstein is, of course, a treasure. But whoever made this SIX TIME TONY NOMINEE sing Florence and the Machine’s “Shake it Out” should be shot. What a waste of his talents! Sahr Ngaujah was the highlight of the night for me, and if this does transfer, I believe he will be the one walking away with the Tony."

I was there as well and THIS. ALL OF THIS.

[And Peggy]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 8:23pm

KatVer said: "bdboston said: "Question re. the poster for sale at the merchandise booths: is it generic, or does it mention the Emerson Colonial Theater?"

"

I can't tell from the photos that have been posted. Is the poster 14x22 on cardstock or 11x17 on paper? I'll be travelling by bus to see this and I'm trying to anticipate the logistics involved in getting it home without it getting mangled. 

[getatme]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 8:25pm

Could someone who was there last night possibly give a breakdown of which ensemble girl sings which part of Lady Marmalade?

Updated On: 7/11/18 at 08:25 PM

[robskynyc]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 8:31pm

mcsquared said: "robskynyc said: "jacobsnchz14 said: "Are the windmill or elephant utilized in any way, staging-wise?"

i would hope to god they perform the elephant love medley on/around the elephant otherwise what would be the point of the elephant?"

The elephant on the side of the stage was just a hugeadornment that wasn’t used or moved as far as I could tell. Her dressing room which is described as under elephant was center stage not near the big elephant"

 

ugh wow. that sounds like a colossal wasteeeee!!! from the pics it looked like there was scaffolding/platforms around the elephant.

 

[Elizabeth Moore]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 9:00pm

The poster is a thick poster paper but not as thick as card stock. I bought mine before the show because there was no way I was waiting in that awful line after the show to stage door in time. It was bent up a little from sitting in the tiny seats but once I frame it it will look fine. :) 

The center stage "elephant room" was very well-done. If the scene had actually happened in the Elephant stage left, a good third of the audience wouldn't have been able to see a thing. 

Lady Marmalade was sung by the characters of Nini (Robyn Hunter), La Chocolate (Jacqueline B. Arnold), Baby Doll (Jeigh Madjus) and I'm going to assume the role of Arabia (Holly James) since that is the only other named Moulin Rouge character. I don't remember who sings which part - sorry about that!

[And Peggy]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 9:13pm

Elizabeth Moore said: "The poster is a thick poster paper but not as thick as card stock. I bought mine before the show because there was no way I was waiting in that awful line after the show to stage door in time. It was bent up a little from sitting in the tiny seats but once I frame it it will look fine. :)

Thanks for that! Was it 14x22 or 11x17? I only ask because if it's 11x17 I have a small poster tube that I can fit in my (gasp) BACKPACK, but if it's 14x22 I'll have to figure something out. 

 

[Elizabeth Moore]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 9:23pm

It was definitely bigger than 17x11. I would say probably 14x22. I can double check for you in the morning. :)

[VintageSnarker]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 9:23pm

JustaguyHjkasdf763 said: "



For the Duke, he’s too sexy to be evil.You don’t despise him and quite honestly don’t understand why Satine wouldn’t choose him.Either he needs to become a creepy type or become overly arrogant that you don’t want to be around him.



For now, this is all I can remember a day later."

I feel like Tam Mutu could be more interesting as a villain than a romantic hero based on his past performances so this is disappointing to hear. If they wanted to cast a different type than the movie, they still could have made him more like Gaston than just part of another boring love triangle. I get why they might want to avoid depicting the more rape-y/abusive parts of the movie and downplaying the prostitution but that's the story. And there are better ways of still having him be a villain even if you did want to downplay those elements.

I really hope they work out "Come What May." It was such a special part of the movie. I actually don't know how you could watch the movie and not realize that it should be preserved. If you're using existing IP to have a built in audience, then you have to provide what that audience wants to see.

Elizabeth Moore said: "unlike in the original movie, the songs are basically sung as recorded by the pop artist and not reimagined to meld into the story being told."

Oh, that's hugely disappointing. I was trying to be optimistic about the new songs because I thought they would change up the arrangements like the movie did.

[gray_area]

Posted: 7/11/18 at 9:38pm

Elizabeth Moore said: "It was definitely bigger than 17x11. I would say probably 14x22. I can double check for you in the morning. :)"

Poster is 14x22.

Also, I just want to say you hit the nail on how I felt about the first preview in your earlier post. I really hope they fix the book, cut some songs and give Danny Burstein a really good solo worthy of his talents.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 7/12/18 at 12:23am

Tveit is a bland, bland performer. 

And the fact that they aren't 'reochrestrating' these pop songs is silly. 

[KateAM2]

Posted: 7/12/18 at 12:40am

Saw the first preview on Tuesday night! Here’s my best memory of what songs happened when, and some context for them. Spoilers, obviously, including some biggies. It was really special to watch the show without knowing what was coming next, so I’d really strongly recommend skipping this if you plan to see it:

 

Click Here To Toggle Spoiler Content

 

Opens with Lady Marmalade (then a medley of other songs)

 

(I need to mention this awkwardness: Zidler does this big build-up before introducing Satine, but right before he says her name, Christian stands up and yells, "Wait! I'm not ready to meet her!". We all laughed, but then he monologues to the audience about how he fell in love with Satine and it becomes clear(ish) that he's remembering the moment he first saw her and we're supposed to be taking this seriously. Whoops.

The problem is that Zidler and co. react to his interruption; if it's just in his head, they shouldn't be hearing it and reacting to it. They need to freeze the action or dim the lights onstage or something to make it clearer.

After Christian's interruption, we flashback to when he first met Toulouse and Santiago (the Argentinian).)

 

Royals by Lorde/We Are Young by Fun - Sung by Toulouse, Santiago, and Christian when they first meet. On the roof of their apartment. Company joins in.

 

IIRC the boys sing a medley while writing their musical (including "The Hills are Alive" :) )

 

Diamonds are Forever/Sparkling Diamonds/Single Ladies - Satine's intro. Descends from the ceiling on the swing.

 

Shut Up and Dance by Walk the Moon/Raise Your Glass by Pink/(and maybe I Wanna Dance with Somebody by Whitney?) - Sung by Christian and Satine when they first meet at the Moulin Rouge. Company joins in.

 

Firework by Katy Perry - Sung by Satine after meeting Christian but before their scenes in the elephant. Alone on stage.

 

Your Song by Elton - Christian to Satine. In the elephant.

 

Spectacular Spectacular - Tooootally different from the movie. Medley. I remember that some bits had the melody of "La Vie En Rose" but with different lyrics; the rest is a blur.

 

Sympathy for the Devil by the Rolling Stones - Sung by the Duke at some point. This song should be cut.

 

Nature Boy - Sung by Toulouse to Christian. Sitting at tables on a street in Montmartre. Toulouse explains that he's known Satine since he was young and he was in love with her but never told her and basically urges Christian not to make the same mistake.  

 

Elephant Love Medley - Quite different. This was the most disappointing change for me. So many songs shoved into it. "Never Gonna Give You Up" is sung by Christian here, iirc, but it's literally just that line. Satine sings a bit of “Don’t Speak” by No Doubt. Both sing bits of “Fidelity” by Regina Spektor. I think Christian sings part of “I Don’t Wanna Wait” by Paula Cole here, too.

 

Act 2

(my memory is fuzzier on the song order here, so I'm going with the order mentioned in a previous post):

 

Bad Romance by Lady Gaga/Toxic by Britney Spears/(I think a brief bit of a third song--a previous post said Sweet Dreams by Eurythmics) - Big dance number after intermission; it got the biggest applause of the night.

 

Come What May at some point in act 2...

 

Only Girl in the World by Rihanna - The Duke and his guys sing while dressing up Satine in fancy clothes to make her more respectable. Another song that could easily be cut.

 

Shake It Out by Florence and the Machine - Zidler, the main female dancers, and eventually Satine.

 

Chandelier by Sia - Sung by Toulouse, Santiago, Christian, and others while on absinthe. Takes place in their apartment (with the "L'Amour" sign out their window). Satine descends in the swing again as the green fairy but is only onstage briefly.

 

Roxanne - Not as intense as the movie but I thought Aaron killed it. Sings the repetitive “put on the red light!” part from Roxanne that isn’t in the movie. Argentinian doesn’t sing. After this song, we cut to the Duke threatening Satine. One of the girls told Satine earlier in the show that the Duke had hurt his former lover (acid in her face!) and her partner (dead in a river), and he confirms here that he will hurt Christian and close the Moulin Rouge if she doesn't leave Christian. Drunk Christian crashes in and Satine breaks up with him to protect him from the Duke.

 

Crazy by Gnarls Barkley/Rolling in the Deep by Adele - Sung first by Christian, then Satine, after Satine breaks up with Christian to protect him from the Duke. Christian is loading the prop gun with real bullets and planning to use it during the performance that night.

 

Your Song - Sung by Satine to Christian to keep him from killing himself during the performance. (another awkward moment before this song: while Satine is performing in the show, there was a huge, obnoxious sneeze from the audience. Karen completely froze, and I thought, “Oh crap, some jerk just completely threw her off her game.” Turns out it was Christian announcing his presence; he enters from the back of the theater and runs up the aisle to the stage to interrupt the show. There has to be a better noise. Literally any other noise.)

 

Come What May - Christian to Satine after she, you know.

 

Encore medley - Includes Hey Ya by OutKast and some other songs. This number is SPECTACULAR but weirdly comes immediately after CWM, so it's a bit jarring. The boys come out in tuxedo jackets with long tutus.

 

Bows - Christian and Satine come down from the ceiling in the swing; Satine's legs are in Christian's lap. Super cute.

 

Awkward added backstories: Toulouse knew Satine when they were young and he was in love with her; Zidler awkwardly explains to Satine what consumption is by telling her about his male lover who died from it; just too much time on the Duke in general.

 

Christian is from Lima, Ohio in this version, which must be a Glee shoutout :)

 

 

[mailhandler777]

Posted: 7/12/18 at 4:56am

EllieRose2 said: "Metal detectors? That's insanely annoying and will slow the entire process down. They should tell people to come at least 45 minutes early or always expect to start the show late. It's very odd that Boston would have more security than Midtown NYC."

My theatre here in Hershey,PA has had metal detectors for years. Also why is it odd? You forget about the Boston Marathon a few agos?

[mailhandler777]

Posted: 7/12/18 at 5:24am

JustaguyHjkasdf763 said: "They wouldn’t even let the person in front of us bring their leftovers from dinner in. "


Why would someone even expect to bring leftovers to any show??? 


 

[rosscoe(au)]

Posted: 7/12/18 at 6:05am

Thank Jebus we got the poster issue sorted 

[Ladybug101]

Posted: 7/12/18 at 7:47am

I am confused about a few things.  PLUS Honor Bright --  I actually heard today an audio bootleg of the entire 7/10 show that someone had found on line (Sorry, it has now gone MIA).  So I have missed the visual beauty of Moulin Rouge but I heard the dialogue, singing, music and audience response so here go my questions. Also, apologies -- this is going to be too long.

1.  I don't think any attendees from this forum mentioned what I consider a very excited audience--apologies if I missed it.  From Danny Burstein's instagram a fan said:  "The audience was as lit as the action on stage. Incredible energy in the theater! That was a thrilling evening."  Listening to the audio I thought this was a VERY, VERY appreciative audience throughout the staging -- I did hear a few titters as mentioned here and it sounded like giggling girls or whatever.  

2. I found the Duke pretty reprehensible.  I had quoted a Timbers post (pre hearing the audio) saying they didn't want a mustache-twirling villain but His Grace was described in dialogue as throwing acid in a woman's face, someone else found dead in the river and Satine agreeing to his cruelty.  But someone wondered on this board why Satine wouldn't go with this wealthy guy -- he was too sexy to be evil-maybe that was just a sardonic quip.  Somewhere else someone said they shouldn't have cast someone as attractive as Tveit. Oh, well -- I guess I don't find sexy attractiveness an anecdote to  a malevolent spirit. But he was attractive enough to bed Satine on the first night with no coercion but forcing a plot change. Also, the way he threatens Zidler saying he owns him and also Satine with Christian's death.  This royal is not a good guy.

Since I didn't love the film, I am not wedded to specific things.  Guess I'm lucky -- it makes things less complicated.  I appreciated the much better voices in the stage version plus I got a headache in the first 15 minutes of the movie though that evened out as it went on and I'm not a Nicole Kidman fan (with that Tom Cruise marriage to help her career or so I was told by someone who worked in her management many years ago,)

And again, I did hear a bootleg (and I want it back -- I enjoyed it lots even without the terrific sights that I missed.)  This forum is home to cynicism.  But I went to college near Lima, Ohio -- obviously the home of innocence (the persona of Christian) and GLEE. 

FYI (if this is new to you) - Aaron Tveit wasn't chosen for Glee after his audition back at its beginning because Ryan Murphy felt he was too attractive -- an Abercrobie and Fitch model type--kids in Ohio weren't that attractive but excuse me Ryan Murphy, Paul Newman was born and raised in Ohio and went to my college decades earlier.  This is on video with Murphy holding AT's headshot. 

 

 

 

 

Updated On: 7/12/18 at 07:47 AM

[disneybroadwayfan22]

Posted: 7/12/18 at 9:14am

So, Roxanne is NOT a tango and a attack scene anymore, Elephant Love Medley is completely changed, Like a Virgin is gone, and Your Song is the finale and not Come What May? Eek. Why can't adaptions stop fixing things that aren't broken?