PIPPIN on Letterman tonight- Page 2

[Brian07663NJ]

Posted: 5/15/13 at 9:44am

I am trying to evaluate the David Letterman performance not on what I enjoyed but how this worked to market the show to "Joe Public" who knows nothing about the show. The moment on Letterman (or any television performance) is their first glimpse as to what they potentially might experience if the drop their hard earned dollars on the one show they might see this year.

Yes Patina was great and "we" enjoyed what we saw but this is marketing moment that can make a bang for the buck or it could be a blank fired into the air.

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 5/15/13 at 9:46am

I saw the show last month and their appearance on David Letterman last night made me want to see the show again.

[Rumpelstiltskin]

Posted: 5/15/13 at 11:01am

PIPPIN on Letterman

[ajh]

Posted: 5/15/13 at 11:26am

I thought this was dazzling. Finally getting the point of Patina Miller (I thought she was completely charmless and lacking in vulnerability in Sister Act). Excited to see this later in the year.

[behindthescenes2]

Posted: 5/15/13 at 11:27am

Boring, and Patina Miller is no Ben Vereen in performance ability. She was supposed to be telling the story, couldn't understand a word, and she was directed so busily with choreography that it was a distraction as to what her role on the stage was. Costumes were nice. Didn't entice me to see it.

[macnyc]

Posted: 5/15/13 at 12:35pm

I still like Ben Vereen's version of Simple Joys better, but I think Patina did a great job, and the circus stunts looked pretty impressive to me. (Not as good as live in the theater, of course. But you do what you can.) I would have preferred seeing Magic to Do, but maybe I'll get lucky for the Tonys!

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 5/15/13 at 12:56pm

I thought it was a good performance. There's really no way to fully show how impressive the show and the stunts are live, but I thought it was pretty good overall. I still hope they do "Magic To Do" at the Tonys.

[mc1227]

Posted: 5/15/13 at 1:18pm

All the nominated stars are hitting the promo circuit to get voting consideration for a Tony. Nathan Lane as been everywhere.

[SweetLips]

Posted: 5/15/13 at 3:14pm

I loved it--just grateful to see anything from Pippin as I will never get to see it in person--more please.

[Someone in a Tree2]

Posted: 5/15/13 at 4:04pm

Nice to see the number again. "Simple Joys" was the moment the whole revival came into focus for us-- we'd finally slogged through all the dreary humorlessness of the Charlemagne at the palace business and suddenly the clouds parted and the joy of Patina and the circus troupe playing like children was pure happiness. From there on the show hit home run after home run for us.

Updated On: 5/15/13 at 04:04 PM

[ACL2006]

Posted: 5/15/13 at 5:48pm

the number worked on TV. You have to remember that the space Broadway shows are given on Letterman is very small, hence why the entire cast wasn't there or why they didn't do "Magic To Do". I think the average viewer was intrigued by their performance and might want to see the show now. I'm sure Patina & company will appear on a few other talk shows the next few weeks(I believe they'll be on The View next week).

[gchris11]

Posted: 5/16/13 at 12:46am

Just home from seeing the show for my 13th time. Watched the Letterman taping and it does not do the show Justice at all. Smaller stage, the Manson trio is completely out of context. I think they did the best they could with the space they had.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 5/16/13 at 2:04am

"Nice of Dave to put it on as THE last bit too. "

The musical act on basically all these late night talk shows is *always* right at the end (sometimes it even seems rushed or edited due to them running overtime.)

I actually thought it was better than I expected--Letterman is pretty much the only one who does Broadway show performances anymore, and taken in context, given his tage, the poor camera work, etc, it worked better for me than the recent ones from Cinderella, Nice Work and Godspell.

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 5/16/13 at 7:20am

I loved that performance! I need to go see this!

[mikem]

Posted: 5/16/13 at 7:27am

I wish they had taken out the "Ta-daaa!" at the end of the Manson Trio. It made no sense out of context and it seemed self-congratulatory. The audience response seemed to be, "Are we supposed to clap now?"

I thought Simple Joys worked decently. I hope at some point that they do Andrea Martin's number on TV, so I can watch it again and again and again.

[dreaming]

Posted: 5/16/13 at 10:32am

mikem-I love "No Time At All" (Andrea Martin's number), but it seems spoilerish to put it on TV (there is an element of surprise that is essentially ruined if it's broadcast live).

[best12bars]

Posted: 5/16/13 at 11:42am

Now that I see what others have been bitching about here, I disagree. I think the number worked really well on TV. And Patina is terrific.

[ACL2006]

Posted: 5/16/13 at 11:42am

they can clearly do "No Time At All" on TV, just without the trapeze.

[dreaming]

Posted: 5/16/13 at 11:50am

It doesn't pack the same punch without it, though. It'd just be 'parking and barking' as I like to put it. The song needs the other stuff that happens around it (it's been done in other ways, obviously, but there's always other stuff going on).

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 5/16/13 at 12:12pm

I completely disagree. If there's anyone who can sell that song on its own, it's Andrea Martin. She'd win the Tony without all the "other stuff."

[dreaming]

Posted: 5/16/13 at 12:31pm

The song hardly packs the wallop without the stuff and that's not a knock on Martin or anyone else. I love the show and her performance, however, the song loses something if it's reduced to a concert number like that.

[HenryTDobson]

Posted: 5/16/13 at 1:06pm

I have to disagree, dreaming. While the "other stuff" most definitely embellishes Martin's performance, it would not be needed for Martin to still deliver an incredible performance. I was loving her performance even before she started doing the crazy things. When she wins the Tony, it won't solely be because of the extra stuff, but because she's a comedic genius.

Also, the original did not have any of the circus stuff, and that song was still a standout thanks to the performer who really sold it.

[dreaming]

Posted: 5/16/13 at 1:11pm

That's your opinion and you're entitled to it. But, on television, everything usually has to be bigger, and this is no exception. The idea of a TV promo for a show is to get people to buy tickets. Having someone stand center stage and sing a solo and invite the audience to sing on the choruses does not make a good advertisement to people who have not seen the show.

[HenryTDobson]

Posted: 5/16/13 at 1:27pm

I disagree. Smaller songs tend to work better on TV than the bigger ones (think about all the great Tony performances - Jennifer Holliday for instance). But you're right, different opinions. I guess all I'm saying is that Andrea Martin is perfect and doesn't need any help from anything.

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 5/16/13 at 1:37pm

It would also be something special to see Andrea Martin and Paul Shaffer reunite on TV. He was her musical director in the original Toronto production of Godspell.

"No Time At All" is the perfect song to take out of context and sing it to an audience, in my opinion.