Night of the Hunter Musical

[justme2]

Posted: 4/21/05 at 3:14pm

Last October, I saw a production of this musical at the Willows Theater in Concord, CA. I was always a fan of the movie with Robert Mitchum and was pleasantly surprised with the stage adaptation.

The musical was enjoyable, with some great orchestrations and lyrics. I especially enjoyed "Expect a Miracle" and "The Watch". The production itself was beautiful to look at, with wonderfully designed trees that were beautiful to look at until the lighting would change and then the creepiness factor would come in. Other than that, it was a spare set with a dock setting, a diner setting, and, if I remember correctly, the children's bed representing the home.

I didn't recognize any of the featured players, but I especially enjoyed the young boy playing John, Daniel Lachman (had to pull out the program to remind myself of the cast names). I believe he was aroud 10 or 11 years old, and his singing was very good.

The only complaint I had with the show was a slight, yet important, change in the young girl Ruby's characterization and the preacher came off in the beginning as "funny" and then seemed to "turn evil", when he should have come off immediatley as evil and maintained that characterization from beginning to end. My guess is that the creative team were trying to show how he could have fooled the town into believing he had only good intentions.

Stephen Cole wrote the book and lyrics. I have been rooting for him since seeing his wonderful production of Dodsworth (one of my favorite movies)in Texas in 1994.

I've heard nothing of this show since it left California. Anyone out there see it or know if it will be hitting NY soon?

[Ourtime992]

Posted: 4/21/05 at 3:50pm

I bought the CD a few years ago. "The Watch" got a few listens, but other than that I found the score pretty pedestrian and boring.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 4/21/05 at 4:05pm

I saw it; didn't think it was great, but I hope if it does move on elsewhere that Brian Noonan sticks with it, because he nearly saved the show for me. There are a lot of problems, though, and hopefully they can all be fixed before it makes the plunge.

[MusicMan]

Posted: 4/21/05 at 4:14pm

I agree with you, ourtime, and DODSWORTH ain't so hot, either.
Updated On: 4/21/05 at 04:14 PM

[Shawk]

Posted: 4/21/05 at 4:24pm

I heard they were shopping it out to various theatres on the East coast, but I would be surprised if any took them up on it. I think that Brian Noonan was really strong, but the songs were kind of weak and they took a lot of the creepiness out, which kind of defeats the purpose.

[justme2]

Posted: 4/21/05 at 8:43pm

That was one of the complaints I had..the preacher wasn't nearly as creepy as he is in the novel and movie. He came on in the beginning as almost friendly, and then "turns" when he figures out John and Pearl have the money. Brian Noonan didn't stand out for me; I felt he, as the Preacher, should have owned the show, and he didn't.

Although I thought the sets were the best part of the production, I didn't feel the score was pedestrian at all. I actually thought the score sounded a lot like MANY, MANY other shows, and that the show needed to find a more distinct musical voice before going any further.

[MusicMan]

Posted: 4/21/05 at 8:51pm

"I didn't feel the score sounded pedestrian...(it) sounded a lot like MANY, MANY other shows..."

Um, that's what makes it pedestrian.

[justme2]

Posted: 4/21/05 at 8:59pm

Let me try again and make my point a little clearer for you:

When a show ends up sounding a lot like other shows, it means that instead of having it's own musical voice, I feel as if I am listening to another show. Not another bad show, not another pedestrian show, just another show. Night of the Hunter Music reminded me of a little Wildhorn here, a little Sondheim there, etc. I didn't feel as if I was hearing the composer's own voice.

A pedestrian show, like, say, Blood Brothers (in my opinion), makes me feel like I am hearing music I cannot stand to listen to anymore. As if the songwriter didn't impress me and I felt the music was, well, pedestrian.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 4/21/05 at 9:30pm

I hadn't seen the movie before I saw the musical (and still haven't), but Brian Noonan always seemed creepy to me, even from the beginning. Sure, he was friendly and open to the townsfolk, but he had the extra "heebie jeebie" factor constantly.

"Night of the Hunter Music reminded me of a little Wildhorn here, a little Sondheim there, etc. I didn't feel as if I was hearing the composer's own voice."

I completely agree. There was no song that really stood out. The only melody I could remember when I left was the "L-O-V-E, H-A-T-E" one, and usually when I leave a musical I'm unfamiliar with, it's not that hard to recollect a melody.

[justme2]

Posted: 4/21/05 at 9:42pm

Yes...none of the music stands out as memorable. I certainly didn't leave the theater humming anything. When I listened to the CD again, "The Watch" was the only song I really enjoyed, and "Expect a Miracle" was nice to listen to.

That said, see the movie if you get a chance. It's a wonderful film, very, very moody and the Preacher (Robert Mitchum) gives off a very strong, evil vibe. Brian Noonan was indeed creepy, but evil? I didn't get that sense. The film was an exact replica of the book, but the stage adaptation took slight liberties with characterizations and neither I or my friend could figure out why the writers chose to do that.