No Mary Mitchell Campbell nom for COMPANY

#1

No Mary Mitchell Campbell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/15/07 at 10:05am

It's not on the outrage charts like the collective Chenowethian gasps, but was anyone else startled to see Jonathon Tunick take two orchestration slots, shutting out M-M Campbell? I remain loyal to the original arrangements (Mr. Tunick's, curiously), but think she did a masterful job of re-conceiving the sound of the show. The 110 orchestrations did not strike me as a radical departure from the Hershey Kay orignals.

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"I'm a comedian, but in my spare time, things bother me." Garry Shandling

Updated On: 5/15/07 at 10:05 AM

#2

re: No Mary Campbell Mitchell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/15/07 at 10:07am

Dude, her name is Mary-Mitchell Campbell.

It's a Tony meltdown that she wasn't nominated.

#3

re: No Mary Campbell Mitchell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/15/07 at 10:10am

I really think she deserved a nomination, but I'm not really surprised since people have been divided on the reduced Company orchestrations all season.

#4

re: No Mary Campbell Mitchell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/15/07 at 10:11am

Whoops. Thanks, I dood it over, dude.

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"I'm a comedian, but in my spare time, things bother me." Garry Shandling

#5

re: No Mary Campbell Mitchell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/15/07 at 10:47am

This pisses me off. A lot. She deserved one. Her work for the show is fantastic; the orchestrations are just beautiful.

In other news, with only three nominations, that show is... well, totally ****ed.

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A work of art is an invitation to love.

#6

re: No Mary Campbell Mitchell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/15/07 at 10:52am

I don't know - to be honest, I don't love COMPANY's new orchestrations they way I loved SWEENEY's. They're just okay for me.

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"If you are going to do something, do it well. And leave something witchy." -Charlie Manson

#7

re: No Mary Campbell Mitchell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/15/07 at 11:10am

I loved these orchestrations even more than Sweeney's. I actually prefer them to the original ones.


It's a shame...I think this show really got the short end with the nominations. It deserved a lot better, and I'm worried about how much longer it will be open.

#8

re: No Mary Campbell Mitchell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/15/07 at 11:17am

I thought the orchestrations for COMPANY sounded very thin. Different? Yes. Unusual? Yes. Good? No.

#9

re: No Mary Campbell Mitchell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/15/07 at 11:21am

I'm with Munk. It is always commendable to see someone completely put new effort into an older score, although I don't really think they were too fantastic. It worked with the concept of the show, more like as an experience, but ultimately left me unfulfilled. I think Sweeney's were better overall, even if these "worked" more for the show.

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#10

re: No Mary Campbell Mitchell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/15/07 at 12:06pm

Call me a fangirl, but I would've nominated her for 'You Could Drive A Person Crazy' alone. Ah well. Despite a mere three nominations, I will still fly the Team Company flag come June 10th. Goddammit but these were disappointing nominations from a 'Company' fangirl perspective.

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Notes from the Earlham Street Gutter

#11

re: No Mary Campbell Mitchell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/15/07 at 12:13pm

I'll wave it with you.

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A work of art is an invitation to love.

#12

re: No Mary Campbell Mitchell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/15/07 at 12:15pm

I don't think the orchestrations sounded as 'altered' as SWEENEY's. Also, I think the playing of the cast was less polished than SWEENEY's company. They may have been great orchestrations, but were marred by playing that wasn't completely clean...so who can really tell?

That said, I really was terrifically surprised by how much I liked COMPANY (didn't love SWEENEY). I thought it just worked better as a whole. And the last 20 minutes, including Walsh's spectacular LADIES WHO LUNCH through to the end, were some of the best I've experienced this season.

Esparza was pretty terrific in a cypher of a role. But I do think it's a shame that Walsh's wonderful turn was overlooked. Especially since I think one of the reasons Esparza was so good was because of the work she did with him in that final scene of theirs.

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"I'm so looking forward to a time when all the Reagan Democrats are dead."

#13

re: No Mary Campbell Mitchell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/15/07 at 12:17pm

Go, teamCompany! Flags across the city!

#14

re: No Mary Campbell Mitchell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/15/07 at 12:22pm

There's an image.

I've always been proud to support this show. Today doesn't change that.

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A work of art is an invitation to love.

#15

re: No Mary Campbell Mitchell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/15/07 at 12:25pm

Em - you are right. I was annoyed by the low number of nominations, but I still think this show is sadly overlooked. I love it. Guess I better stock up on tickets while I can.

#16

re: No Mary Campbell Mitchell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/15/07 at 12:30pm

"I loved these orchestrations even more than Sweeney's. I actually prefer them to the original ones."

Here here!

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"I chose and my world was shaken. So what? The choice may have been mistaken. The choosing was not."-Sunday in the Park with George

#17

re: No Mary Campbell Mitchell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/16/07 at 12:59pm

I was a little disappointed to learn she was not nominated. I thought they were beautiful and took the show out of the 70's. Plus it matched the staging perfectly. I thought she had a good shot at winning.

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9/10 - Next To Normal, Ensemble Theatre
9/18 - Brian Stokes Mitchell, Cincy Pop's
9/28 - Death Of A Salesman, Wright State

#18

re: No Mary Mitchell Campbell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/28/07 at 7:09pm

MMC is a total sweetheart. Besides being one of the few women musical directors on Broadway and teaching at Julliard, she finds time to run a non-profit: Artists Striving to End Poverty (ASTEP).

The fact her creativity wasn't recognized by the Tony nominators for Company will be a small footnote in the long career she has ahead of her. It is still insane, IMHO.
A STEP's website

#19

re: No Mary Mitchell Campbell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/28/07 at 7:12pm

Agreed! And additionally, congrats to her on the Drama Desk!

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A work of art is an invitation to love.

Updated On: 5/28/07 at 07:12 PM

#20

re: No Mary Mitchell Campbell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/28/07 at 9:27pm

I have to agree with even who says that she deserved the Tony nom. Out of all of the musicals this season, both new and revival, I was the most impressed by Company.

#21

re: No Mary Mitchell Campbell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/28/07 at 9:30pm

I think they're so-so orchestrations. She deserved a nod over Tunick's orchestral reduction of 110 in the Shade (He's brilliant, but his work was medicore on that.) or Spring Awakening. I loved Sweeney Todd's new orchestrations though. However, Tunick's work on Company was so superb, it's hard not to wish you were hearing the original when you're hearing something that isn't.

#22

re: No Mary Mitchell Campbell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/28/07 at 9:37pm

I was actually very upset.

#23

re: No Mary Mitchell Campbell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/28/07 at 9:49pm

I'm one of the few who prefers Doyle's Company to his Sweeney. I think that the reduced orchestrations worked for both, but I really loved how it was done with Company. The instruments actually played a part in the production this time, as opposed to Sweeney. I would've preferred Company get a Best Orchestrations nomination over Spring Awakening.

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"Sing the words, Patti!!!!" Stephen Sondheim to Patti LuPone.

#24

re: No Mary Mitchell Campbell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/28/07 at 10:53pm

I loved her work on SWEENEY, not at all on COMPANY.
It sounded weak on such a great score and it didn't help that the so called actors/musicians were very sloppy in playing it.
She is a wonderful artist and will do very well without the nom this year.

#25

re: No Mary Mitchell Campbell nom for COMPANY

Posted: 5/28/07 at 10:56pm

Curtain- Campbell didn't win for SWEENEY TODD, that was Sarah Travis.

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I am a firm believer in serendipity- all the random pieces coming together in one wonderful moment, when suddenly you see what their purpose was all along.