On A Clear Day First Preview- Page 5

[Miranda3]

Posted: 11/18/11 at 9:24pm

I suspect Mr. Bernard CON is the culprit.

[Gaveston2]

Posted: 11/19/11 at 2:46pm

I hope they call Miranda3 if they need additional lyrics to "Hurry, It's Lovely Up Here!"

She's got the pun thing down cold.

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 11/19/11 at 5:27pm

Just back from the matinee and am happy to report this is an enjoyable revival, far from pointless, and from a standpoint of the libretto, all in all a vast improvement on the original. If the result is not stellar, the original never was. But it certainly deserves credit and deserves to be seen.

The theme is overcoming fear, the greatest test of which is having the balls to replace romantic obsession with reality. In this, the show knows what it's about and delivers. In doing so, it sacrifices what had been the show's greatest asset, the dual role star slot. This is a case of 6 steps forward, 5 steps back. But all its choices are well-reasoned.

Instead of a great leading lady, we now have two fine performances from Turner and Mueller, both of whom are adorable. They are extremely well cast as variations on each other. Mueller's voice is gorgeous. Turner is funny and endearing.

Surprisingly, neither Melinda nor David are psychic, and Melinda has no love life (in her own lifetime that is). Instead, Parnell has focused on Melinda as David's spunky alter ego. This easily evokes the identification many gay men of David's generation had with musical and movie divas of the 1940s. Meanwhile, Melinda is not the selfish, destructive femme fatale she was originally, but rather a lovely gutsy naturally joyous independent woman with a dream, and Mark's fascination with him..... uh, her.... much more persuasive. A huge step forward!

The Gamble (pun intended, sorry Gaveston) of splitting David and Melinda throws the focus on Mark and how he will move on from widowerhood. Of course, it also throws the spotlight on Connick who, if a bit predicable in the role, holds the show well and sings beautifully.

Previously I had imagined a Goodbye Charlie meets Persona fiasco. What a welcome surprise that Connick's heartfelt longing for Mueller recalls Joseph Cotten's for Jennifer Jones in Portrait of Jenny (and that the charm, depth and humor of the dual plot reminded me at times of City of Angels and Kiss of the Spiderwoman).

The show is much funnier - and certainly much bolder in its insistence on opening one's eyes to alternative consciousness - in this incarnation (sorry, Gaveston).

The interpolation of the trunk songs is generally first rate, especially Too Late Now, a heartbreaking duet for Mueller and Connick toward the end. The great original songs of the second act, and the treatment of the story as it resolves, at times verge on brilliance. Turner's rendition of What Did I Have is glorious (receiving the biggest ovation, and with good reason), and there is no worry that the anatomical obviousness of the answer (wisely and tastefully dealt with by David himself) renders the number vulgar or facile; all of that is handled extremely well, mostly because the song becomes just as much - MORE! - about David's self-esteem than it is about how he has lost Mark to Melinda.

Apart from a very fine first act curtain, which Mayer handles brilliantly, the first half is hardly impressive, and sometimes a complete mess, but the second act is deeply emotionally satisfying. The op art set worked very well for me, if too obvious in referencing images from the film.

"Go To Sleep" wasn't in the score today so perhaps it's been tossed.

O'Malley is, as always, superb and touching. And Drew Gehling is completely lovable as Warren. His singing (terrific throughout!) Love With All The Trimmings as an original singer/songwriter composition on the guitar to David a romantic highlight, as is his joining Connick on Come Back to Me.

I don't want to oversell this, but I was very surprised how much I enjoyed it, and how well it tells the story it wants to tell. The real question is is this better than the original. In terms of having a coherent story worth telling the answer is a definite yes!








Updated On: 11/19/11 at 05:27 PM

[Miranda3]

Posted: 11/19/11 at 8:05pm

Great report, Henrik. What did they do with "S.S. Bernard Cohn"? I think someone previously posted that it has been retained but altered (shortened?).

[Gaveston2]

Posted: 11/19/11 at 8:06pm

You are forgiven, henrik, on the condition that here, 3,000 miles from you, I be allowed to simply adopt your opinion as my own.

Thanks for the report. I am very happy to hear they have done interesting things with the material and I look forward to the CD.

Now. Will John Cullum be giving interviews where he complains that Harry Connick Jr. didn't consult him on how to play the part? Or does that only apply in the movies?

[Miranda3]

Posted: 11/19/11 at 8:13pm

Gaveston: I know you're joking re Cullum, but I've been hoping there might be a revival-related feature in the Times that interviews Cullum and Harris about the original production. I know Harris is somewhat reclusive, but she gave one interview about ten years ago. Maybe she would do another, especially if the central topic is the production and not herself.

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 11/19/11 at 8:18pm

Miranda, I don't recall that well how long S.S. Bernard Cohn was originally, or much about it, but I wouldn't be surprised if it's all that different from the original. My only experience seeing the original was at Encores (and the movie which didn't have this number). David sings to his friends rooftop about his time with Mark on the boat; on the other side of the stage we see Mark and Melinda enjoying the ride. It's not my favorite number although the tune makes for a nice entr'acte.

Glad for the pardon, Gaveston. I don't think we have much to worry about Cullum taking a Holliday to complain about not being consulted.

[Miranda3]

Posted: 11/19/11 at 8:32pm

Henrik: I think S.S. must not be much different from how it was in the original, when Daisy sang it to her friends rooftop too. It's kind of a corny novelty song, with the "toot toot" and all that, but I find it endearing for some reason and was hoping they'd retained it.

[Copperfield2]

Posted: 11/19/11 at 9:46pm

Henrikegerman--Yours is the first positive post I've read on this show since it started previews. I saw the original Broadway show which I loved, the Encores production, and the Vineyard Theater workshop which included most of the Broadway cast except for Connick who for some reason didn't participate.

My problem with the workshop was David Turner who just didn't make Hurry It's Lovely Up Here, The S.S. Bernard Cohn or What Did I Have That I Don't Have special. Granted I'm spoiled by Barbara Harris's versions of the songs but those three songs should be three show stoppers.

From your report it sounds like only one song really soared by David.

Glad to hear you liked Jesse Mueller and Connick. I think Drew Gehling should have played David.

What doesn't sound good though is that the first act is a mess. An audience isn't going to have much patience if the first act doesn't work.

I'm seeing the show on Dec. 2. It sounds like a smart move to take out Go to Sleep. I would also remove all those reprises of Open Your Eyes.

[bwayphreak234]

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

If someone has a picture of the show curtain would they please post it

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 11/20/11 at 12:14am

Copperfield, I agree. I think the show may not succeed because the first act just isn't that good. This is one of those rare shows where the second act is a whole lot better than the first. But I hope it does.

[Copperfield2]

Posted: 11/20/11 at 12:51am

Someone on the other chat board called this show The Musical Moose Murders. I wonder if Michael Mayer is reading any of these comments. He's certainly a smart enough director to improve this show. Certainly with such a good score and a proven musical performer like Connick.

[Gaveston2]

Posted: 11/20/11 at 6:20am

I think John Cullum should be consulted by every actor playing every role.

And FWIW, MOOSE MURDERS wasn't as bad as they say. Parts of it were actually very funny; unfortunately those parts included neither the moose nor the murder. And for some reason, they insisted on casting dry, wise-cracking lead actresses (Eve Arden, then Holland Taylor when Arden dropped out) in what was actually a very broad farce. I love Holland Taylor in anything, mind you, but her comic style was completely different than the rest of the show.

It was more a WTF? show than a total atrocity, IMO. Perhaps the same will prove true of CLEAR DAY, if the first act is in such trouble.

***

BTW, it has been said that when your second act doesn't work, the problem is usually in the first act. Where is the problem when your first act doesn't work? Updated On: 11/20/11 at 06:20 AM

[After Eight]

Posted: 11/20/11 at 9:30am

I would say don't listen to the initial gloom-and-doom naysayers who proclaimed the show a disaster. It's not, far from it. Yes, it has many flaws, but for all that, it turned out to be a fairly pleasant entertainment overall. It moved smoothly, had some nice laughs, and evoked the era faithfully and with charm. I thought the dancing was bright, and the costumes amusing and delightful.

It was a pleasure to hear the songs from the original show, though they wre not all well served in presentation here. The added songs struck me as less effective.

It would have been better to have stuck with the original book, and tweaked it a bit. It was better than this rewriting. When Warren becomes in both writing and acting the most engaging and charismatic character on stage, you know there is a problem. Plaudits to Drew Gehling for a great job. Jesse Mueller was very good, but her part is underwritten. David Turner has been great in other shows; here, his character is too wimpy and colorless, and he doesn't hold one's interest. Harry Connick's character is fairly colorless as well. He's no great shakes as an actor, and he seems stiff here. He did handle his passionate speech at the end very effectively. His singing style also didn't seem well suited
to these songs.

It's enjoyable enough, and certainly more so than Bonnie and Clyde, Lysistrata Jones, and the excruciating Queen of the Mist.

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 11/20/11 at 9:55am

Copperfield, I'd agree that What Did I Have is David's only very strong musical moment. Turner has a big voice and acts the s... out of it. It should also be noted that Turner is giving a very courageous performance. He is playing a mild-mannered queeny guy in front of an audience that has come to see a Harry Connick musical. I admire him and think he is doing a great job (and from what I could see, the rest of the audience agreed), especially since the first act, especially musically, often puts him on very thin ice.

Hurry It's Lovely is a much more interesting number in the original book (and I've gone on ad naus about why I think so). Here it's simply a flat introduction to David, shown in the flower shop where he works, as narrated by Mark. Not only do we not have Daisy's initial reluctance to reveal much of herself to Mark in treatment as we did originally, but our hero/heroine isn't a psychic but merely a good gardener. I don't blame Turner for not being able to sell this number all that well, let alone make a feast of it the way Harris did. This is a big problem not only dramaturgically, but because the audience has come to see Harry Connick in a big musical, and they are getting as their opening number a second lead doing the best he can with a number that, through no fault of his own, doesn't work.

Perhaps I should have been clearer in my first review about how different my reactions to the first and second acts were. At intermission, I was "ok, it's not very good, but it's not bad either, and the show was never really that great anyway." The second act, which is leaps and bounds beyond the original's for romance, humor, and even scoring, completely won me over.

S.S. Bernard Cohn is a number that has never really spoke to me and still doesn't, although as I said before, it makes a catchy melody before the second act curtain.

"BTW, it has been said that when your second act doesn't work, the problem is usually in the first act. Where is the problem when your first act doesn't work?"

Great question, Gaveston. The best answer I can come up with in this instance is that the creator's ambitions are tremendous and being spread way too unevenly.

After Eight, I disagree with you about the restructuring of David/Daisy and Warren. David is frightened and passive but Melinda is his alter ego. Warren and Sharone (Kerry O'Malley) are two wonderful, warm people right in front of David and Mark's eyes but in David's case, he doesn't have the balls to commit and embrace a real, flesh and blood available relationship. In Mark's case he's obsessed with his late wife's memory and then with Melinda. David's and Mark's stories are about how they, by Opening their Eyes beyond the here and now, can mature and move on. I loved that at the end David realizes what he has with Warren and that Warren is a highly charismatic, wonderful, sexy guy. Otherwise this would have ended up being an extremely offensive of course the gay-boy-prefers- the- straight-hunk story.




Updated On: 11/20/11 at 09:55 AM

[Copperfield2]

Posted: 11/20/11 at 11:42am

After all is said and done, it sounds like this rewrite of On a Clear Day should have been another play or musical. And that they should have had Jessie Mueller play Daisy Gamble opposite Harry Connick. And improved upon the original book and audiences may have been happier. Certainly it would have given Connick a better starring role to play. Since I'm not seeing the show until Dec. 2 which is still a while away, I'm expecting a lot more fixing by then.

Not sure why I've always liked Bernard Cohn but Barbara Harris really sold that number and it's one of my favorites on the cast recording.

One thing that I haven't seen in any of the posts about the show. How is the audience reacting? Are they sitting there politely or do they seem to be enjoying it? Or they reacting to Connick who is a popular performer?

Connick is usually a hands on guy when it comes to the music. I'm surprised he isn't collaborating with Mayer about how to improve the pace of the show or the way numbers are working. Updated On: 11/20/11 at 11:42 AM

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 11/20/11 at 12:48pm

The audience seemed very receptive, some more than others of course, and I think I'm not alone in finding the second act much better than the first. But Broadway audiences are extremely polite these days. I can't remember the last time I didn't see a standing ovation at a musical. This one happened well before Connick's curtain call however.

[Copperfield2]

Posted: 11/20/11 at 1:39pm

After reading some of these posts, I would think people were walking out at intermission.

[Gaveston2]

Posted: 11/20/11 at 3:02pm

Would anyone like to venture a guess as to why Harry Connick Jr. was attracted to this project? I am asking for pure speculation (unless somebody here is a close friend of his) because it isn't apparent to me from the accounts of the show (pro or con) posted here.

henrik? After Eight? Anybody?

[TimesSquared]

Posted: 11/20/11 at 3:05pm

I understand MAJOR changes are underway for this show, so I hope it can be salvaged.
However, It's hard to imagine they can make something good out of what I just saw.

The new story is actually pretty good, but too many factors are undermining it. Many of the original songs feel shoehorned into the story, jukebox-musical-style. I think "On a Clear Day", "She Wasn't You", "Melinda", "What Did I Have?" and "Come Back to Me" should be retained, along with the interpolated "Open Your Eyes", "Who Is There Among Us Who Knows", "Every Night At Seven", "You're All The World To Me" and "Too Late Now" (imo, one of the most gorgeous songs I ever heard, which fits beautifully into the new plot). The rest should be jettisoned outright. The show is way too long right now anyway, so it's not like they'd have to replace the cut songs. Eleven songs (plus a couple of reprises) is enough for this show. Hell, the original score only had 12 songs!

I think the new story has more drama than the original with much higher stakes. But being less fluffy than the original, it doesn't support silly songs like "Wait 'Til We're 65", "On the S.S. Bernard Cohn" and "When I'm Being Born Again". And I think "Hurry It's Lovely Up Here", "Love With All The Trimmings" and "Go to Sleep" just don't work as they're presented in this production.

Other problems with the show, imo, are some of the casting, the costumes and the choreography.

David Turner lacks stage presence, and his limited vocal abilities are a problem for a character with so much singing to do. Jesse Mueller has a lovely voice, but her character reminds me of those snappy, carefree, quick-with-a-quip roles Ann Miller used to do, not the ethereal, intriguing and magnetic woman that I think the script calls for. Mueller doesn't provide enough contrast (aside from her much better voice) with David--something about her needs to be almost magical, and her Melinda is just too prosaic. Sarah Stiles' obnoxious, over-the-top character Muriel chews great hunks of scenery whenever she's onstage--she is out of control. Kerry O'Malley, as Sharone, a colleague of Dr. Bruckner's who is in love with him, does not find a way make you root for her. Aside from her gorgeous voice, her character lacks warmth and seems a little too pathetic to garner our sympathy. In O'Malley's defense, her role is under-developed. Note to Parnell: a lot less Muriel, a little more Sharone.

The costumes are hideous, overblown parodies of 1940s and 70s fashions. No 1940's woman's hat is too big, no 1970s bell-bottom is too wide, and no color, anywhere, is too bright. Zuber's clothes are so costumey they belonged in a much more stylized and silly show than this. Connick, in a contemporary, beautifully tailored blue suit throughout, is the only person in the show who doesn't look like he's in a high school mashup of "On The Town" and "Hair".

And the choreography. Cut it all. Let it be a play with music-- with the notable exception of Mark, Melinda and David's trio romantic dance. THAT was quite brilliant (and appropriate)--with choreography worthy of a classic Astaire and Rogers movie. Please cut that embarrassing Hare Krishna number. Connick looked like he wanted to kill himself during that dance.

I hope they really, seriously overhaul this. If not, it could end up one of the classic Broadway disasters of all time.
Updated On: 11/20/11 at 03:05 PM

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 11/20/11 at 3:17pm

TimesSquared, I think I agree with you about almost everything, especially the score (although I liked Warren's Love With All the Trimmings), except I'm much, much fonder of Turner, Mueller and their roles; in fact, I think the new Melinda is makes much more sense as Mark's wake up romance then the old one did.

And your advice more Sharone, less Muriel, couldn't be more apt. Stiles had some amusing moments, but for the most part I also found her annoying. By the way, yesterday "Go To Sleep" was gone, and I couldn't imagine it working as the act 2 opening number

Gaveston, I don't know what in particular was the draw form Connick but between his big songs and the Mark's generally appealing romantic turning point, there's more than enough to see how he was initially with the program.
Updated On: 11/20/11 at 03:17 PM

[Gaveston2]

Posted: 11/20/11 at 3:19pm

Thanks, TimesSquared. That was beautifully articulated and a great contrast to henrik's post.

[TimesSquared]

Posted: 11/20/11 at 3:44pm

Thanks, Gaveston. I know I sort of slammed it, but only because I think there is potential there for a remarkable show. With everything leading up to it working well, the penultimate scene at the airport and Mark's final breakdown could be absolutely devastating. What a thrill that ending would be if they could make the rest work!

And yes, Henrik, on reflection, my issue is not so much with Mueller, but her character. So my problem with Melinda could be more to do with the direction she's being given.

By the way, I liked Connick a lot in this. I just think he's swimming upstream against the show's many problems.

[TimesSquared]

Posted: 11/20/11 at 3:54pm

SO GLAD to hear "Go to Sleep" was cut. That's a good start.

[Gaveston2]

Posted: 11/20/11 at 4:22pm

TimesSquared, I'm not likely to see the show in New York, so of course I don't have an independent opinion on it. But I understand why you and others have strong reactions. A lot of us who loved the original score and performances care strongly about this adaptation.