Numbers That You Would Love to See Cut From Classic / Big Hit Shows

[Jarethan]

Posted: 11/10/19 at 4:03pm

To increase your own personal enjoyment:

I would go with the following off the top of my head:

Gypsy: Little Lamb, All I Need Is the Girl

Hello Dolly: The Waiters Gallop or shorten it (shoot me)

Sweet Charity: Rich Mans Frug

Follies: Too Many Mornings and, most days, In Buddys Eyes

Sweeney Todd: Judge Turpins Song And Bye The Sea

WSS: Dance at the Gym and I Feel Pretty (never liked it)

Billy Elliott: The first three songs...just not good songs IMO

Updated On: 11/13/19 at 04:03 PM

[Emmaloucbway]

Posted: 11/10/19 at 4:28pm

Music Man: Shipoopi

[MattieIce2018]

Posted: 11/10/19 at 4:34pm

Even though it's a pretty song, A Change in Me (added to Beauty and the Beast 4 years into its run) stops the pacing of Act 2 dead in its tracks

[magictodo123]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 7:52am

MattieIce2018 said: "Even though it's a pretty song, A Change in Me (added to Beauty and the Beast 4 years into its run) stops the pacing of Act 2 dead in its tracks"

Wow...that's so interesting that they added a song that late into the run! Do you know how much longer it ran after that song was added?

[After Eight]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 7:54am

None.

Not a single, solitary one.

[willep]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 7:55am

magictodo123 said: "MattieIce2018 said: "Even though it's a pretty song, A Change in Me (added to Beauty and the Beast 4 years into its run) stops the pacing of Act 2 dead in its tracks"

Wow...that's so interesting that they added a song that late into the run! Do you know how much longer it ran after that song was added?"

...nine years...

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 10:39am

magictodo123 said: "MattieIce2018 said: "Even though it's a pretty song, A Change in Me (added to Beauty and the Beast 4 years into its run) stops the pacing of Act 2 dead in its tracks"

Wow...that's so interesting that they added a song that late into the run! Do you know how much longer it ran after that song was added?"

It was added when Toni Braxton was cast to play Belle. She demanded a solo in Act 2, as Belle's only real solo in the show before that was "Home" (the "Belle Reprise" isn't really long enough to be considered a solo number).

[goodlead]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 10:51am

Oklahoma!: It's a Scandal, It's an Outrage

Carousel: Geraniums at the Winder

Flower Drum Song: Chop Suey

A Funny Thing: That Dirty Old Man

Cats: too many to list

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 11:27am

MattieIce2018 said: "Even though it's a pretty song, A Change in Me (added to Beauty and the Beast 4 years into its run) stops the pacing of Act 2 dead in its tracks"

Aww. “A Change in Me” ended up being my favorite song in the show. Especially after Ashley Brown joined the cast and they updated the orchestration closer to the belted version she originally performed in On the Record.

[trentsketch]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 11:38am

I would not miss Shriner's Ballet if it was taken out of Bye Bye Birdie.

[MattieIce2018]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 11:53am

CATSNYrevival said: "MattieIce2018 said: "Even though it's a pretty song, A Change in Me (added to Beauty and the Beast 4 years into its run) stops the pacing of Act 2 dead in its tracks"

Aww. “A Change in Me” ended up being my favorite song in the show. Especially after Ashley Brown joined the cast and they updated the orchestration closer to the belted version she originally performed in On the Record."

 

I actually really like Change In Me on its own, I just don’t like it in the context of the show for the fact that it seems to stop the show dead for a few minutes so Belle can sing

 

[GF21]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 11:57am

My wife thinks I'm nuts, but I wouldn't mind a bit if "Dear Theodosia" was cut from Hamilton.

[PatrickDC]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 4:14pm

“The Small House of Uncle Thomas” sequence from The King and I.

[another sloe eyed vamp]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 4:16pm

Young and Healthy from 42nd Street
Jerry Likes My Corn from Grey Gardens
Tom, Dick or Harry from Kiss Me, Kate
and I'm a Believer should never have been stuck onto the end of Shrek. 

[Jarethan]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 4:44pm

PatrickDC said: "“The Small House of Uncle Thomas” sequence from The King and I. "

I was going to say that, but concluded that I enjoy it once in a while.  I certainly don’t think the show would be hurt one iota if it was eliminated.

[joevitus]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 4:48pm

Jarethan said: "PatrickDC said: "“The Small House of Uncle Thomas” sequence from The King and I. "

I was going to say that, but concluded that I enjoy it once in a while. I certainly don’t think the show would be hurt one iota if it was eliminated."

If it was cut, that would cause a plot hole, as Tuptim makes her big plea to the Kind near the end of it, and then Anna and the King are discussing her calmly in the next scene, assuming she's hiding in fear of the King's wrath.

[Jarethan]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 5:07pm

joevitus said: "Jarethan said: "PatrickDC said: "“The Small House of Uncle Thomas” sequence from The King and I. "

I was going to say that, but concluded that I enjoy it once in a while. I certainly don’t think the show would be hurt one iota if it was eliminated."

If it was cut, that would cause a plot hole, as Tuptim makes her big plea to the Kind near the end of it, and then Anna and the King are discussing her calmly in the next scene, assuming she's hiding in fear of the King's wrath."

I think you raise a very valid point.  I do, however, wonder whether the authors could have come up with another way to introduce that scene...maybe not.

TKAI is one of my favorite shows.  I have seen it at least a dozen times (a lot for me — that may be a record, although there are a bunch I have seen 8 to 10 times)...I have frequently sensed a very restless audience during that number.  I think a lot of people in the audience see it as being a little too ‘artsy Fartsy’ in an otherwise perfect show.  I enjoy it when I am in the mood for it...maybe it is a case of ‘familiarity breeds ennui’.

Probably the same reason I have come to dislike The Waiter’s Gallop In Hello, Dolly.  It may be a very creative number; but, for me, it just gets boring with repeated viewings.

[GoblinKing2]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 5:14pm

“Something Bad” from Wicked.

[rattleNwoolypenguin]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 5:23pm

Jarethan said: "To increase your own personal enjoyment:

I would go with the following off the top of my head:

Gypsy: Little Lamb, All I Need Is the Girl

Hello Dolly: The Waiters Gallop or shorten it (shoot me)

Sweet Charity: Rich Mans Frug

Follies: Too Many Mornings and, most days, In Buddys Eyes

Sweeney Todd: Judge Turpins Song And Bye The Sea

WSS: Dance at the Gym and I Feel Pretty (never liked it)

Billy Elliott: The first three songs...just not good songs IMO"


Little Lamb is troubling and brilliant in its simplicity and no one ever recognizes that.

also “too many mornings”? “In Buddy’s Eyes”? Are you against great songwriting that develops character or something?

“By the Sea” isn’t my favorite Sweeney song but it’s there to show how dynamically tragic and pathetic her and Sweeney’s relationship is.

 

cut songs that drag **** by all means but don’t cut necessary story beats.

 

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 6:11pm

rattleNwoolypenguin said: "Jarethan said: "To increase your own personal enjoyment:

I would go with the following off the top of my head:

Gypsy: Little Lamb, All I Need Is the Girl

Hello Dolly: The Waiters Gallop or shorten it (shoot me)

Sweet Charity: Rich Mans Frug

Follies: Too Many Mornings and, most days, In Buddys Eyes

Sweeney Todd: Judge Turpins Song And Bye The Sea

WSS: Dance at the Gym and I Feel Pretty (never liked it)

Billy Elliott: The first three songs...just not good songs IMO"


Little Lamb is troubling and brilliant in its simplicity and no one ever recognizes that.

also “too many mornings”? “In Buddy’s Eyes”? Are you against great songwriting that develops character or something?

“By the Sea” isn’t my favorite Sweeney song but it’s there to show how dynamically tragic and pathetic her and Sweeney’s relationship is.



cut songs that drag **** by all means but don’t cut necessary story beats.

"

Well said! Somehow, when none of us was looking, Jarethan sold his soul and heart to Applegate.

And apparently he hates Louise. "All I Need Is the Girl" is the most moving moment in the show until, perhaps, "Mama, I'm a pretty girl." (Jarethan, my friend, I'm sure you know that scene isn't about Tulsa's kitschy dance act.) Without the two numbers Jarethan would cut, we wouldn't even know who Louise is when she suddenly becomes the focal character of Act II.

Myself, I would cut either "Fathers and Sons" or "No One Is Alone"--the late-second act of INTO THE WOODS wears out everyone--and any song where a human barks like a dog. 

[sparksatmidnight]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 6:25pm

Little Lotte from The Phantom of the Opera. Honestly I don't have a single reason to give why is that still in place. Change it for two book lines and voilá. Also, I'm 99%sure that at least 90% of the audience that has ever seen the show doesn't have a single idea of what Little Lotte is.

[PatrickDC]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 6:52pm

I don't know about audiences, but I bet most actors would like Turkey Lurkey Time dropped. Hasn't Donna commented more than a few times over the years about the physical therapy the ensemble needed during the original run of Promises, Promises due to that number? 

[Jarethan]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 7:03pm

rattleNwoolypenguin said: "Jarethan said: "To increase your own personal enjoyment:

I would go with the following off the top of my head:

Gypsy: Little Lamb, All I Need Is the Girl

Hello Dolly: The Waiters Gallop or shorten it (shoot me)

Sweet Charity: Rich Mans Frug

Follies: Too Many Mornings and, most days, In Buddys Eyes

Sweeney Todd: Judge Turpins Song And Bye The Sea

WSS: Dance at the Gym and I Feel Pretty (never liked it)

Billy Elliott: The first three songs...just not good songs IMO"


Little Lamb is troubling and brilliant in its simplicity and no one ever recognizes that.

also “too many mornings”? “In Buddy’s Eyes”? Are you against great songwriting that develops character or something?

“By the Sea” isn’t my favorite Sweeney song but it’s there to show how dynamically tragic and pathetic her and Sweeney’s relationship is.

I am not against great songwriting, I find those two Follies songs boring...it may be that I have seen Follies and listened to the various recordings too many times, but I not longer have patience with those songs.

I know the intention of By The Sea...that doesn't mean that I have to listen to the song to appreciate how pathetic the relationship is...there are plenty of ways in which that is demonstrated.  Hereto, it is probably worth noting that I have also seen the show, movie, TV taping, and listened to the OCR so many times that I am bored with what I consider either lesser or unpleasant songs.

cut songs that drag **** by all means but don’t cut necessary story beats.

Same thing with Little Lamb.  I have taken it off the playlist, along with All I Need is the Girl because they bore me at this point.  Also, seen the show many times, the movie many times, listened to the Lansbury recording many times.  I don't have interest in listing to Little Lamb any more.  I am tired of it.

 

 

Updated On: 11/12/19 at 07:03 PM

[joevitus]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 7:25pm

Jarethan said: "joevitus said: "Jarethan said: "PatrickDC said: "“The Small House of Uncle Thomas” sequence from The King and I. "

I was going to say that, but concluded that I enjoy it once in a while. I certainly don’t think the show would be hurt one iota if it was eliminated."

If it was cut, that would cause a plot hole, as Tuptim makes her big plea to the Kind near the end of it, and then Anna and the King are discussing her calmly in the next scene, assuming she's hiding in fear of the King's wrath."

I think you raise a very valid point. I do, however, wonder whetherthe authors could have come up with another way to introduce that scene...maybe not.

TKAI is one of my favorite shows. Ihave seen it at least a dozen times (a lot for me — that may be a record, although there are a bunch I have seen 8 to 10 times)...I have frequently sensed a very restless audience during that number. I think a lot of people in the audience see it as being a little too ‘artsy Fartsy’in an otherwise perfect show. I enjoy it when I amin the mood for it...maybe it is a case of ‘familiarity breeds ennui’.

Probably the same reason I have come to dislike The Waiter’s Gallop In Hello, Dolly. It may be a very creative number; but, forme, it just gets boring withrepeated viewings."

I think you're probably right about the ballet--and, frankly, it isn't my favorite in the R&H canon. In fact, of the ballets in Oklahoma!, Carousel and The King and I, it's my least favorite (of course, South Pacific doesn't have one, and I've never seen the one for the original stage version of Flower Drum Song). 

[rattleNwoolypenguin]

Posted: 11/11/19 at 7:27pm

I guess I’m over here never having found Too Many Mornings boring and thinks it’s troubling and haunting and beautiful and odd.

And find In Buddy’s Eyes just devastating and such an interesting acting moment cause she’s lying to herself and affirming herself.

But sure-Theyre boring I guess...