Neddys Wiz Review *UPDATED* **SPOILERS**- Page 2

[best12bars]

Posted: 9/26/06 at 3:45pm

Toto cam = confusion.

What exactly is the point of this?

Just because?

Is it ever explained or justified?

The rest is...


*holds comments for now*

[alterego]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 2:26am

From the description I don't think you can expect to see this show anywhere near Broadway.

[Thespinoy]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 4:29am

"From the description I don't think you can expect to see this show anywhere near Broadway."


Why the hell not? Did you see Lestat or Good Vibrations? Let's not fool ourselves, today Broadway is a PRODUCER'S MEDIUM. A show doesn't have to be good, it has to be marketable.

Despite the laments from the WICKED fans, I think potential investors will find this show very marketable from the very fact that WICKED is doing so well. Face it, investors aren't that creative and the average joe or jane-ticket buyer is not going to care whether another Oz themed show is playing up the street. Most people today go to B-way knowing what they want to see (especially with tickets at $100+ a pop). If they want to see THE WIZ, they're going to see THE WIZ.

[SeanMartin]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 9:47am

>> A show doesn't have to be good, it has to be marketable.

But to be marketable, it has to be reasonably good -- there are simply too many avenues for word of mouth to kill something, no matter how brilliant the marketing might be. Look at your own examples: Lestat and Good Vibrations. Both of these were marketed pretty well, but they just werent good shows, and as a result, the investors lost big time. With Broadway more and more the home for overpriced productions, investors are going to be look much more deeply at the possible return -- and from what I've seen and read, I dont think this thing stands a chance. All a potential producer has to do is look at this board to get a sense of his market -- and this board aint seeing a whole lot it likes, save from the usual "Oh. My. God. It was FABULOUS!!!", which no one buys anymore, sorry.

And I dont think it has anything to do with being perceived as yet another WICKED. We survived the season of two WILD PARTY productions, remember? Both had more than respectable runs. A revival of THE WIZ would probably play pretty well *if* it had a good production to start with *and* it figures out how to ride the tails of WICKED for as long as possible. The only alternative, frankly, is getting the Disney name on it -- after all, look at TARZAN: why that's stumbled along so long completely mystifies me. It's a terrible show, and yet it's doing respectable business, and the only possible reason I can think of is because it has the Disney name attached, which apparently makes it golden. Other shows of the same level without the name disappear and sink like rocks.

So... THE WIZ on Broadway? Sure. It'd be nice, actually. But I dont think it's this one. Comparing them side by side, the Euro version stands a far better chance, TTTT.

[dented146]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 12:10pm

Actually, I'm still waiting for a review of the first preview. I agree that a new production has to be good to have a chance in NYC--actually it needs to be extremely good to make money, regardless of marketing.

We'll see soon.

[SeanMartin]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 1:32pm

Well, the first photos are up.

A scaffolding set.... big yawn there. I wish I owned a scaffolding company: I'd make a fortune selling to theatre companies these days.

The rest of it? Okay, the oddness of the scarecrow in a business suit aside, it just looks... weird. Very dark. Trying desperately to be "relevant" (check Toto's costume -- who was the tall, skinny boy with Fat Albert?). But it has the same visual feel as STARLIGHT EXPRESS somehow.

And it's such a mosh: the Munchkins in one style, Dorothy's companions in another... nothing's holding anything together stylistically. And it's all on a set that's as bland as WWRY.

From a purely *visual* POV, I aint giving this one a lot of hope.

[nmartin]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 1:38pm

The look of the is jarringly wrong.

[Thespinoy]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 2:26pm

"But to be marketable, it has to be reasonably good --
-- and from what I've seen and read, I dont think this thing stands a chance."


I agree with you that in order for a show to have a decent run, it's got to have good word of mouth. And so far, there hasn't been much love for this production...on this board, anyway.

I just find it funny that people are so ready to scrap this production based on a 15 year old's review of a free invited dress tech. The show just barely started previews. They're still rehearsing during the day and tweeking. Things are going to change and get tighter or trashed. The baby ain't even born yet!

[keatonbynumbers]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 2:40pm

Why the hell not? Did you see Lestat or Good Vibrations?

Well, I think the point is that -- no, not many people really did.

I'll reserve my real judgements on this "revisal" for later; I can't tell if it's delightfully campy or just sort of badly misplaced. I'm probably giving it a chance, though, since The Wiz has always been one of my favorites.

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 2:53pm

Is there a link to the photos?

[musicaltheater1]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 3:15pm

Photos of the first performance are up.
Photos

[BSoBW2]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 4:03pm

I don't know how much this will affect THE WIZ, but with The Color Purple and Oprah's surge I wonder how many African-Americans who never really though of seeing a Broadway show are beginning to follow race oriented shows. Especially something like THE WIZ, which was a big part of the civil rights movement.

Then again, it is just Oprah...



Wow, those are SOME costumes...I am not seeing TOTO cam though. Updated On: 9/27/06 at 04:03 PM

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 4:11pm

It definitely looks like a joyless production. I'm curious to hear more reports. I'm not sure why "modern" always has to translate into "urban." The original designs of the WIZ were warm and whimsical - thats not the vibe I'm getting here.

[keatonbynumbers]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 4:19pm

Ah. Some of the costumes are sort of cool looking, I guess, but the rest are just... very interesting. The Tinman is... well, it's very interesting.

Nikki M. James is adorable, though.

[SeanMartin]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 4:38pm

>> I just find it funny that people are so ready to scrap this production based on a 15 year old's review of a free invited dress tech.

Maybe because what the 15-year-old had to say made a lot of sense.

And the photos pretty well ocnfirmed it.

[SeanMartin]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 4:38pm

>> I just find it funny that people are so ready to scrap this production based on a 15 year old's review of a free invited dress tech.

Maybe because what the 15-year-old had to say made a lot of sense.

And the photos pretty well ocnfirmed it.

[HOUFlip04]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 6:53pm

OK, the important words are DRESS TECH. It hasn't even gone into previews yet and some people on this board are ready to dismiss it before it has a chance.

I know in all your high school and community theatre productions, it's already performance level from first rehearsal, but more professional productions usually require this time to tweak and fix problem areas in the show (which has already been brought up)before opening night.

I know you guys just want to put your 2 cents in - but please try to be more mature and use some common sense in your posts. Musical theatre is an acquired taste, liked by special kind of people - in my opinion. But it's sad when there such unnecessary internal bashing such as some of the posts on here.

[uncageg]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 7:06pm

I noticed that Dorothy is not wearing "ruby slippers". Michael Bennett, I agree with you regarding the original sets. And I hate that modern has to be Urban. I wonder how they do the Tornado? I thought the original tornado was the coolest thing! Very inventive and very cool visually.

[musicaltheater1]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 7:13pm

Actually, Nikki was wearing her ruby slippers in the tech pictures. Look at the top photo from this link. It's clearer than the La Jolla Playhouse picture.


Pictures from Broadway.com

[morosco]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 7:23pm

Dorothy's shoes look silverish to me. I wonder if they are going back to Baum's book where the shoes were silver? They weren't ruby red until the 1939 film in order to take advantage of color film.

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 7:26pm

The slippers were silver in both the Original stage and movie versions of THE WIZ, per Baum's book.

[BSoBW2]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 7:32pm

MB beat me to it, but the shoes only became red due to their prettiness in technicolor - I believe (that was an oversimplification, though).

And I just want to say I would love to see any production of THE WIZ in NY - if not for the staging, than for the material.

[musicaltheater1]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 7:36pm

Thanks, Michael Bennett, that is correct. Hate to throw this in but they were also silver in "Wicked."

[uncageg]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 7:39pm

Thanks for the explanation. I have not read the book.

[SeanMartin]

Posted: 9/27/06 at 9:46pm

>> OK, the important words are DRESS TECH. It hasn't even gone into previews yet and some people on this board are ready to dismiss it before it has a chance.

Dress tech or not, it's clearly an expensive production and they're certainly not going to wholesale change the look this close to opening.

And from what a lot of us can see, the look bites.