Passing Strange final performance

[broadwayman17]

Posted: 7/20/08 at 6:30pm

For anybody who went, care to report on the show's final performance

Posted: 7/20/08 at 7:10pm

It was INSANE. I hate for the show to close, but it went out with a bang.

Spike Lee filmed the last performance as well. There was a large group of SROs.

Everything was really great. Keys lasted forever....the whole audience stood (well except the person in front of me who left at intermission). There were tears everywhere at the curtain call...Coleman filmed the audience....the understudies came on stage. I am so glad I got to see it.

[gustof777]

Posted: 7/20/08 at 7:49pm

I have to go eat and meet up with a friend but it was hands down the most alive experience I've had in my life in the theater and was an afternoon I will NEVER forget. I will try to gather my thoughts later this evening...

[dave1606]

Posted: 7/20/08 at 7:59pm

This show went out with a BANG. The final performance was beyond incredible. The second half of "keys" was a straight out rock concert. and the finale of the show was simply amazing..if every audience were like this the show would have run for twenty years. (and regardless it should have). every one of the actors was in top form, and stew milked the audience for all it was worth.

Props to everyone involved for being so nice at the stage door!

[frogs_fan85]

Posted: 7/20/08 at 9:33pm

"Keys" was 15 minutes long. It started exactly at 4 PM and ended up around 4:15. Jumping up and down next to Kelly McCreary and Oskar Eustis of the Public Theater is a memory that is going to stay with me for a long time.

I really can't write more without being nonsensical.
Updated On: 7/21/08 at 09:33 PM

[clever name]

Posted: 7/20/08 at 9:48pm

NO frogs tell me more!! I have been checking in the last couple hours to hear about the last performance. It must have been amazing. I want to hear everything about it.

[frogs_fan85]

Posted: 7/20/08 at 10:07pm

I don't exactly have my voice back if that tells you anything.

[StateOfJade]

Posted: 7/20/08 at 10:20pm

I wrote some (okay, a LOT) of thoughts/reviews on my livejournal. Which is friends only, but I made this entry public for the occasion :). Disregard the personal stuff, it is my LJ after all :)

http://www.cheaperfumes.livejournal.com

[Scarywarhol]

Posted: 7/20/08 at 10:26pm

VERY special show. Spike Lee was there again, though I thought it was only supposed to be on Saturday. So glad I got to catch it again.

As was said, Keys was INSANE! Stew's jamming/semi-improv portion went on at least eight or nine minutes. Everyone was dancing and jumping and screaming. The curtain call must've lasted ten minutes. Everyone was in top form. It was a total 180 from that day I saw it when nobody was applauding or seemed into it in the nearly-empty theater.

I don't even know what to say other than that it was one of the best performances I have ever seen and it was easily the most fun I've had at a show this year.

[thetinymagic2]

Posted: 7/20/08 at 10:32pm

we all just came home from the cast party and are drunk. Wait till later, or tomorrow!! We're speechless after the performance of the century!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We'll post later...

[thetinymagic2]

Posted: 7/20/08 at 10:55pm

Jade says it best.... I thought the Belasco would collapse from the vibrations!!!!!!

No words for me yet, except that in 45 years of theatregoing (WSS, my first show at age 5), I have seen Gielgud, Richardson, Maggie Smith, Carol Channing, Lansbury, LuPone, Stritch, Liza, you get the idea.....

but NEVER have I been sooooo shaken to the core by a show, or this particular performance!!!

I feel sorry for anyone who wasn't there this weekend. Or tonight!! Ya missed THE REAL!!!! (wait for the movie!!)

Cryptic msg. to those on the ROOF: "WWOOOOOOOOO-HHHOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!!

,
@ 2008-07-20 22:08:00
Previous Entry Add to memories! Tell a Friend! Next Entry
Current mood: heartbroken

Why you gotta leave, right when it was starting to feel real?
Nothing will EVER top this performance. I'm convinced that what I just saw was the most magnificent thing in theater history. Dara and I got to the theatre and I had to pick up tickets and we ran into Rebecca, who was already choked up. Then we realize that Spike Lee's crew is still outside...and they're TAPING the final performance. Then we went inside. And um, I spent about a week's paycheck on these tickets. I was in the 2nd row.

When Stew and the band came out, everyone was SCREAMING for them. The band stood up front with Stew and did the first song, and it was so much like a rock concert. Then when the rest of the cast came out the entire place was screaming and cheering. The audience was amazing. They cheered for every song, laughed at every joke...where were these people before!?

KEYS was unlike anything I've ever seen. In the middle of it, Stew said 'I'm tired of singing. Your turn' and everyone started singing 'YEAH IT'S ALRIGHT' and then the ENTIRE F*CKING THEATER stood up in their seats and were dancing, screaming, singing and cheering while everyone onstage rocked out. I'm not exageratting. The ENTIRE audience, including the balcony and the mezzaine. Daniel ran over to my side of the stage and pointed to me while he was singing, which killed me. While this was going on, Stew all of a sudden lunged off the stage and ran into the aisle, ran around the whole theatre, and came back onstage. And then I noticed in the midst of everything, De'adre had snuck offstage, and it looked like she was trying to pull someone onstage who didn't wanna be there...and it was Eisa Davis! Everyone started freaking out and she danced with everyone in her little mom coat and the entire place was on fire and the audience was rocking out and it was like one big ****ing orgasmic fugue of rock and love. Colman picked up Chad and started twirling around with him. Rebecca just sort of swayed because I think she was really close to losing it. It must've lasted about 10 minutes. When the song finally ended, the audience stayed standing and screamed for about 5 more minutes until they finally sat down and they continued with the next scene.

The second act was when it started to get emotional. It's funny because the whole show has a lot of themes that are appropriate for a 'show funeral'...'Why you wanna leave,' etc. And around this time I started to tear up, especially since Daniel looked at me during 'Identity' and winked at me. That just broke my heart. So the cast was having a hard time keeping it together, especially Rebecca, who was putting her all into her song and when she sat down she was visibly crying and trying to wipe her face. I lost it around that time and during the phone conversation. I don't outwardly cry, instead I try to contain myself so I don't make a lot of noise, so I had tears streaming down my face and it probably looked like I was having a seizure because I was shaking. Youth's eulogy was DEVASTATING, and I could hear people around me sobbing. When Stew sang the last note, I felt like someone had kicked me in the chest. I barely could scream when they came out for bows because I was crying so hard. The whole audience was standing up and screaming for them, and they did 'It's Alright' as the finale, and then the understudies ran onstage as well as Annie Dorsen & the crew, and Spike Lee. They kept coming back because the audience kept cheering. When they finally left and didn't come back, it was heartbreaking. I felt like I'd just come up for air. The whole thing was so emotionally draining.

Stagedoor was insane. Spike's people were filming everyone. I managed to say goodbye to Colman, Rebecca & Daniel. Rebecca's mom came up to me and said 'Hi Jan! I hear you go to the new school. Rebecca has a cousin there'. That cracked me up that she remembered. Becca's BF Rob gave me a hug too and asked if I was alright lol. And apparently we're related, since we're all Rosenbergs lol. Daniel and I hugged for a long time and he told me he'd call me soon. It was so hard to say goodbye to him and Rebecca. I also said hello to Heidi and she said 'Aw, you came back!' and I thanked her for EVERYTHING.

I finally got a cab to go to Grand Central because in that heat, as exhausted as I was, there was no way I was gonna walk through the subway without collapsing. Pulling away from the theater hurt my soul because I knew I was leaving Passing Strange for the last time. This show has meant so much to me and really helped me when I was in a bad place (it sounds 'cleesh', but it's the truth). No piece of art has ever touched me in this way before, and I've never felt so CONNECTED with the music and the people. It breaks my heart to think that so many people missed out on this simply because they had a misconception of what it was. But I think that PS is too big for broadway. Like Stew says, he's not a broadway baby and it's amazing that it lasted this long. It's meant for a MUSIC audience, not just a broadway audience. If you got to expirience the real, consider yourself one of the lucky ones.

This is not a passing phase.

[TulitaPepsi]

Posted: 7/20/08 at 10:57pm

Just keep thinking: A Spike Lee Joint in Hi-Def (and IMAX?!).
It's not really over, guys....

Updated On: 7/20/08 at 10:57 PM

[StateOfJade]

Posted: 7/20/08 at 11:04pm

Ooh, that's embarassing. I thought I'd be less of a loser by simply posting a link but there are my own sappy words staring back at me lol.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 7/20/08 at 11:05pm

I wasn't even all that crazy about Passing Strange, but that sounds like a magnificent experience. Thanks for sharing your post, StateofJade. I loved reading it. I'm really glad all of you who were there got to have that kind of experience.

[thetinymagic2]

Posted: 7/20/08 at 11:08pm

Oh, JADe!
BE PROUD OF YOUR GREAT WRITING AND INSIGHT!!!!!!!!
Pls forgive me, but I couldn't help posting your "review"!!!
FANTASTIC!!!!
t

[mikem]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 12:17am

I just got home.

My palms hurt from clapping so much this afternoon. I literally have bruises on my palms from clapping. I am not exaggerating.

[aliciag]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 12:30am

Wow Jade, it sounds like you had an amazing experience. And even though I couldn't be there today I do consider myself lucky because I gave Passing Strange a chance and saw it three times and no one can ever take that away from me!

[verynewyorkcurious]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 2:05am

It was ****ing insane. I think I still might be shaking from it.

[thetinymagic2]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 2:12am

sorry you missed the CHAT awhile ago. Just the Scaryos.
Sleep? AMBIEN CR!

[jewishboy]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 2:14am

Oh man, that sounds so f***ing amazing!!

[verynewyorkcurious]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 2:18am

I just got home like 15 minutes ago. I feel kinda sick right now because I drank more than I normally would.

I wish we would've stayed longer at Hurley's. That was amazing. I already thought Heidi was sweet, but after we went to the party, I was amazed by how welcoming she was. Holy ****, I'm still like, WOW Heidi Rodewald.

[thetinymagic2]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 4:46am

4:25 am. (coming down off the PS experience..)
Insomnia... (and boozy headache)
clicked on the TV.....surfing away.....
for my fellow lovers of GREAT music of another kind!

CUNY TV - Classic Arts Showcase
1991
George Shearing (piano) and Neil Swainson (bass),
playing
"Isn't it Romantic" (Richard Rodgers!)
TO DIE FOR, my musical friends!!!!!!
As a pianist myself, these mind-blowing classic jazz renditions by geniuses of the art form, are something to behold!!!
I'm REALLY in heaven now!!!

this was the web address from TV: http://www.view.com/home-jazz.html (i'm too tired to do a search)





Updated On: 7/21/08 at 04:46 AM

[thetinymagic2]

Posted: 7/21/08 at 1:33pm

this particular poster on ATC says it very well, better than I ever could..

Cuz we say it's alright", Stew. -- saying goodbye to PASSING STRANGE.

Posted by: jesse21 10:31 am EDT 07/21/08
Late in the first act of Passing Strange, toward the end of the song "Keys (It's Alright)", narrator Stew breaks the fourth wall and turns his open mike to the audience so they can join in with their own "Yeah. It's alright"(s).

At yesterday's closing performance, Stew was playing to a SRO crowd of fans and I think "newbie" people who probably kept putting off seeing the show until the last minute. In any case, the assembled were a receptive audience who looked like a cross-section of what contemporary America actually does look like in 2008.

Stew's audience-participation gesture was always an intrinsic part of the material, but this time it resulted in a cathartic demonstration that might have pleased Euripides. Yes indeed, it turned into a mid-show standing ovation, but a special type where actors, musicians and audience joined as one to rock the bejesus out of the song's ending. The audience was so electric, they made Kevin Adams's back wall of fluorescent tubes seem like a single 100-watt incandescent in comparison. Chalk up another entry in my book of Broadway's unforgettable moments.

So let me say it for the last time. Passing Strange is the best new musical presented on or off Broadway during the last season in New York City, and quite possibly in the entire world. (Even though I haven't seen them, I have a feeling I'm correct in assuming Londoners won't counter with Lord of the Rings, Gone With the Wind, or Desperately Seeking Susan.)

Passing Strange pushed the envelope in yet one more new direction to make the musical relevant to the 21st century. That kind of ambitious creativity makes for a tough sell under any circumstances, and, sadly, the show didn't fill enough seats to keep itself open for a longer run. However, if you were at the Belasco Theatre yesterday, you may have looked around and felt a sensation similar to mine. This time maybe the battle at the box office was lost, but not the future path of what the ticket-buying public will be interested in seeing.

Meanwhile, we are fortunate to have the cast album of Passing Strange: The Stew Musical, which is brilliantly produced by Ghostlight Records. And maybe even luckier for the movie version Spike Lee continued to shoot at yesterday's closing performance. These audio and visual recordings will be around to inspire new generations of artists about the exciting avenues of approach that are possible for musical theater.

Stew opened yesterday's show by saying "We're gonna play some songs, then we're goin' to Montauk." Talk about a send-off to the beach. At the curtain call, Stew reprised "Keys", cast and musicians danced on stage, as did some of the audience at their seats and in the aisles. The rest just stood, applauded, and cheered as the celebration went on for a solid five minutes.

re: "Stew's audience-participation gesture"

Posted by: falcon15 11:40 am EDT 07/21/08
In reply to: "Stew's audience-participation gesture" - chekky 11:07 am EDT 07/21/08
I disagree. The song really builds to that moment. It's the "Someone in a Tree" of rock music, in a way - it starts with Marianna giving the Youth her keys, and we slowly realize what this event means to him. Then he tells us it's a life-defining moment for him - "And after so long, feeling so alone, I feel like picking up the phone and calling up that place called home to say I found a brand-new family, where I can be that thing called me..."

Then Stew puts into words what Youth can't, cause he's too close to the moment. Stew puts it into perspective, first in specifics ("In Beverly Hills, they gave him chills, and South Central put his soul in the deep freeze"), and then growing broader and more meaningful - "I guess no one ever made him feel as real as when she mended him by lending him her keys."

If Youth's realization of the Real in church is what sets him off on his quest, this is the milepoint. There's no turning back now that he's found a part of the Real and knows it's there and that he can be a part of it. It's the moment in Invisible Man when the protagonist has his first taste of invisibility with Dr. Bledsoe. It's the moment in The Tin Drum when Oskar decides not to grow up. It's the moment in Demian when Sinclair finds the note about Abraxas. It is a moment of great joy and pain and communion. It's ritualistic theatre in the best sense.

At yesterday's closing performance, Stew was playing to a SRO crowd of fans and I think "newbie" people who probably kept putting off seeing the show until the last minute. In any case, the assembled were a receptive audience who looked like a cross-section of what contemporary America actually does look like in 2008.

Stew's audience-participation gesture was always an intrinsic part of the material, but this time it resulted in a cathartic demonstration that might have pleased Euripides. Yes indeed, it turned into a mid-show standing ovation, but a special type where actors, musicians and audience joined as one to rock the bejesus out of the song's ending. The audience was so electric, they made Kevin Adams's back wall of fluorescent tubes seem like a single 100-watt incandescent in comparison. Chalk up another entry in my book of Broadway's unforgettable moments.

So let me say it for the last time. Passing Strange is the best new musical presented on or off Broadway during the last season in New York City, and quite possibly in the entire world. (Even though I haven't seen them, I have a feeling I'm correct in assuming Londoners won't counter with Lord of the Rings, Gone With the Wind, or Desperately Seeking Susan.)

Passing Strange pushed the envelope in yet one more new direction to make the musical relevant to the 21st century. That kind of ambitious creativity makes for a tough sell under any circumstances, and, sadly, the show didn't fill enough seats to keep itself open for a longer run. However, if you were at the Belasco Theatre yesterday, you may have looked around and felt a sensation similar to mine. This time maybe the battle at the box office was lost, but not the future path of what the ticket-buying public will be interested in seeing.

Meanwhile, we are fortunate to have the cast album of Passing Strange: The Stew Musical, which is brilliantly produced by Ghostlight Records. And maybe even luckier for the movie version Spike Lee continued to shoot at yesterday's closing performance. These audio and visual recordings will be around to inspire new generations of artists about the exciting avenues of approach that are possible for musical theater.

Stew opened yesterday's show by saying "We're gonna play some songs, then we're goin' to Montauk." Talk about a send-off to the beach. At the curtain call, Stew reprised "Keys", cast and musicians danced on stage, as did some of the audience at their seats and in the aisles. The rest just stood, applauded, and cheered as the celebration went on for a solid five minutes.


reply |
Updated On: 7/21/08 at 01:33 PM

[frogs_fan85]

Posted: 7/22/08 at 9:38pm

Bump in case anyone interested doesn't visit the Love thread.

I went a bit overboard this morning and wrote out my thoughts, by hand at first. I warn you it is long and highly personal at some points, but I entreat (where'd I get that word) to read on:

http://chronictruthiness.blogspot.com/2008/07/passing-strange-again.html

[thetinymagic2]

Posted: 7/22/08 at 10:09pm

Dear Frogs_
what can anyone say after reading that????
As Stew might say: That was one giant "mind****"!!
You stole my heart and soul, frogs_.....
I'm no writer, but have been picking out my Passing Strange chords on the piano for 2 days now, with a (hopefully) emerging "tiny" 30's blues/funk rendition. With a little Bach fugue thrown in, in honor of Spurney. For 5 months now, I have had the priviledge of listening to Spurney's warm-ups every night, from Hendrix to Mozart, from Bach to Led Zep, from Beach Boys to Rachmaninoff, from Billy Joel to T-Bone Walker, from Motown to Puccini, from the Beatles to Bing.....blah, blah.....
Please, COLONY Record Shop, have the PS score soon!
Heidi???Are ya listening??