#1
Posted: 10/25/06 at 10:15am
Hello Broadway World,
I'm Ken. I am an avid Chicago theatergoer who makes probably two trips a year to New York to see shows. I've been reading your board for some time now. Figured I might as well start posting.
I had the priveledge to see last nights preview performance of the Pirate Queen here at our beautiful Chicago Palace. We've been very fortunate here in Chicago to have some amazing pre-Broadway shows here, so I was very excited to see what the creators of Les Miz and Saigon came up with.
Some of it was great. Some of it was not so great.
The great:
The performances.
Stephanie Block as Grace was very powerful. They need to give her some better material so we care about her character more, but she delivers what she has with 100% commitment. A great voice and interesting actress. (I'd guess Tony nom for Best Actress)
Hadley Fraser does a wonderful job with Tiernan. His voice is incredibly beautiful and made the entire audience sit up and take notice with I'll Be There, one of the more successful songs of the evening. (Tony nom for Best Actor?)
Marcus Chait as Donal is the man you love to hate. His character is so dispicable, but delivered with a level of charm and charisma, along with a fabulous voice. His character more than any other needs more development by the writers. (Tony nom for Best Supporting Actor if they give him some more character development)
Jeff McCarthy does a wonderful job as Grace's father. A rich baritone, and solid acting. And great costumes! He looks like the leader of the clan.
William Youmans provides some very necessary comic relief as Lord Bingham.
The Music:
I've read some other posts where people have criticised the score as being "Les Miz Light" or recycled Saigon tunes. I suppose this is all a matter of personal taste, but I LOVED the music. It dragged in a few places, but I found this to be one of their more intricate and least "in your face" scores. There may not have been as many memorable songs that you walk out of the theater humming, but as a whole I thought the score was stunning. I look forward to a cast recording so I can get to know these songs better.
The Set:
Not as overwhelmingly impressive as I would have expected, but it worked very well for the play. It was beautiful to look at and used effectively.
The Lighting:
Simply put, the best I've seen. Tony win for Mr. Kenneth Posner.
The Costumes:
Incredible. The Queen's costumes alone would win this designer a Tony. Not to mention the detail in the Irish clothes.
Okay- THE NOT SO GREAT:
The central plot:
I'm not sure what it was. And that can't be good. I heard several people at intermission commenting on how they weren't sure what the show was supposed to be about. And that needs to be clarified. Lots of different stories going on. They need to focus on one. I'd like to see more of the Irish love story, and less of the England/Queen Elizabeth.
I won't harp on it as its been mentioned enough in other posts, I simply could not understand what Queen Elizabeth was saying/singing. I would hope that is being addressed.
The flow of the show:
As soon as the show really gets going, it stops again. It gets good, and then it gets not so good. The things that really work REALLY work, and then something happens that REALLY doesn't. These moments all seemed quite apparent to the entire audience, so I assume they are apparent to the writers.
My biggest problem:
THE FIRST HALF HOUR AND LAST HALF HOUR ARE BORING.
The show takes a while to build up some steam. I agree with other posters that Boys'll Be Boys and the Wedding are when the show really gets going. Then it held my attention and focus through intermission in deep into the second act. But, as many others have said, after The Christening, it falls flat. No tangible tension leading to any sizeable drama at the conclusion. Again, I'm no director, but I could feel the entire audience around me seemingly feeling the same thing.
Is this show ready for Broadway. Not yet. But that is why they are here first. From what I understand they have a few months between Chicago and New York. Assuming they put in the necessary work, I think Pirate Queen could be a great piece of theater and have a great run. If they leave it like this, people will be turned off by the flaws in story telling and pace, and they could be in trouble.
I, for one, had a very enjoyable evening at The Cadillac Palace. And I look forward to seeing a better Pirate Queen at The Hilton next year.
I'm Ken. I am an avid Chicago theatergoer who makes probably two trips a year to New York to see shows. I've been reading your board for some time now. Figured I might as well start posting.
I had the priveledge to see last nights preview performance of the Pirate Queen here at our beautiful Chicago Palace. We've been very fortunate here in Chicago to have some amazing pre-Broadway shows here, so I was very excited to see what the creators of Les Miz and Saigon came up with.
Some of it was great. Some of it was not so great.
The great:
The performances.
Stephanie Block as Grace was very powerful. They need to give her some better material so we care about her character more, but she delivers what she has with 100% commitment. A great voice and interesting actress. (I'd guess Tony nom for Best Actress)
Hadley Fraser does a wonderful job with Tiernan. His voice is incredibly beautiful and made the entire audience sit up and take notice with I'll Be There, one of the more successful songs of the evening. (Tony nom for Best Actor?)
Marcus Chait as Donal is the man you love to hate. His character is so dispicable, but delivered with a level of charm and charisma, along with a fabulous voice. His character more than any other needs more development by the writers. (Tony nom for Best Supporting Actor if they give him some more character development)
Jeff McCarthy does a wonderful job as Grace's father. A rich baritone, and solid acting. And great costumes! He looks like the leader of the clan.
William Youmans provides some very necessary comic relief as Lord Bingham.
The Music:
I've read some other posts where people have criticised the score as being "Les Miz Light" or recycled Saigon tunes. I suppose this is all a matter of personal taste, but I LOVED the music. It dragged in a few places, but I found this to be one of their more intricate and least "in your face" scores. There may not have been as many memorable songs that you walk out of the theater humming, but as a whole I thought the score was stunning. I look forward to a cast recording so I can get to know these songs better.
The Set:
Not as overwhelmingly impressive as I would have expected, but it worked very well for the play. It was beautiful to look at and used effectively.
The Lighting:
Simply put, the best I've seen. Tony win for Mr. Kenneth Posner.
The Costumes:
Incredible. The Queen's costumes alone would win this designer a Tony. Not to mention the detail in the Irish clothes.
Okay- THE NOT SO GREAT:
The central plot:
I'm not sure what it was. And that can't be good. I heard several people at intermission commenting on how they weren't sure what the show was supposed to be about. And that needs to be clarified. Lots of different stories going on. They need to focus on one. I'd like to see more of the Irish love story, and less of the England/Queen Elizabeth.
I won't harp on it as its been mentioned enough in other posts, I simply could not understand what Queen Elizabeth was saying/singing. I would hope that is being addressed.
The flow of the show:
As soon as the show really gets going, it stops again. It gets good, and then it gets not so good. The things that really work REALLY work, and then something happens that REALLY doesn't. These moments all seemed quite apparent to the entire audience, so I assume they are apparent to the writers.
My biggest problem:
THE FIRST HALF HOUR AND LAST HALF HOUR ARE BORING.
The show takes a while to build up some steam. I agree with other posters that Boys'll Be Boys and the Wedding are when the show really gets going. Then it held my attention and focus through intermission in deep into the second act. But, as many others have said, after The Christening, it falls flat. No tangible tension leading to any sizeable drama at the conclusion. Again, I'm no director, but I could feel the entire audience around me seemingly feeling the same thing.
Is this show ready for Broadway. Not yet. But that is why they are here first. From what I understand they have a few months between Chicago and New York. Assuming they put in the necessary work, I think Pirate Queen could be a great piece of theater and have a great run. If they leave it like this, people will be turned off by the flaws in story telling and pace, and they could be in trouble.
I, for one, had a very enjoyable evening at The Cadillac Palace. And I look forward to seeing a better Pirate Queen at The Hilton next year.
