Quarantine play WINDOWS aims for Spring 2022 Bway

[JBroadway]

Posted: 10/26/21 at 4:49pm

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Tawni-ODellsWINDOWS-Aims-for-Broadway-Bow-in-Spring-2022-20211026

Saw Tawni O'Dell's other most recent play Off-Broadway, and did not care for it at all. Plus, a play about quarantine sounds like kind an eye-roller. So, I'm not optimistic about this one. But I'll give it a chance if their Broadway plans come through.

My only broader irritation is that real-estate is pretty sparse on Broadway right now. Of all the shows fighting for a Broadway theatre, this would not be my first pick to win out. But like I said, I'm happy to give it a chance in the event that it does come to Broadway. Maybe I'll be eating my words. 

[Kad]

Posted: 10/26/21 at 4:52pm

It will need an absolutely A-list cast if it has any hope of succeeding.

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 10/26/21 at 4:57pm

I love her work but I just can't go back to the early days of the pandemic, regardless of the platform. 

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 10/26/21 at 5:02pm

This is the kind of show to produce maybe 10 years from now, not when we're still not through the pandemic. Who's gonna pay money for that now?

[quizking101]

Posted: 10/26/21 at 5:07pm

We aren’t even out of the pandemic yet! What the actual fudge?

Save this noise for 15 years from now when I’m in my 40s and can look back wistfully on the days of coming home from my 12 hour nursing shifts wondering if I caught it or if I’d end up dying alone in my apartment.

[ACL2006]

Posted: 10/26/21 at 5:18pm

Not really feeling this. Who wants to go see a show about a pandemic that we're still going through?

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 10/26/21 at 5:25pm

They’re gonna have to get Meryl Streep, Robert Downey Jr. and Jesus Christ, himself to star in this to make money.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 10/26/21 at 7:08pm

7 vignettes? Pass.

[JBroadway]

Posted: 3/18/24 at 5:43pm

In case anyone happens to be looking for closure on this thread: this play is being performed at Town Hall next week, with a fairly impressive cast

http://thetownhall.org/event/windows-a-new-play-by-tawni-odell

Updated On: 3/18/24 at 05:43 PM

[BoringBoredBoard40]

Posted: 3/18/24 at 8:36pm

Presented by: Out of the Box Theatrics & MarMaxMedia present

 

Out of the Box which produced that terrible revival of Baby and Millenials Are Killing Musicals which was a trainwreck that the director left before previews

 

huge pass 

[chrishuyen]

Posted: 3/25/24 at 1:24pm

Anyone going tonight?  I'm curious to hear responses since I'm mostly interested based on the casting.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 3/25/24 at 1:26pm

I’m seeing it this week

[berniesb!tch]

Posted: 3/25/24 at 1:35pm

Seeing this tonight because a friend couldn't use their ticket. I only said yes because they said Avantika is in it - I didn't even realize who else was in the cast! Cautiously optimistic for the cast alone. Will report back

[berniesb!tch]

Posted: 3/25/24 at 10:47pm

berniesb!tch said: "Seeing this tonight because a friend couldn't use their ticket. I only said yes because they said Avantika is in it - I didn't even realize who else was in the cast! Cautiously optimistic for the cast alone. Will report back"

To everyone who worked on this I am so sorry but I did have to walk out a little before halfway through. Some of the worst writing I have ever seen. Incredibly corny. It felt like a bunch of college kids got together and said "let's write a play about quarantine and never edit a single line". The actors did their best, but the writing was so bad no one was really good. I left after Avantika's scene. My time was too valuable and it was making me too angry. Save your money.

[CoffeeBreak]

Posted: 3/25/24 at 11:25pm

We passed hearing it was Tawni Odell.  "Pay The Writer" was some of the worst writing this season.  

[willep]

Posted: 3/25/24 at 11:38pm

I really enjoyed some of the performances, but woof the writing is bad. And a series of monologues and scenes really gets to be a lot no matter how much humor the talented cast mines from it. Every time a new one starts you know it isn’t going to be happy. She tries to end on an uplifting note with what, in my opinion, was one of the poorest written ones. Very heavy handed, surface level pandering writing throughout. I was so relieved when Tovah came out with book in hand because so many people before her felt like they were struggling with lines to the point where I was more distracted in worrying for them.

[CoffeeBreak]

Posted: 3/25/24 at 11:51pm

From a friend - "Don't go.  This is terrible.  The writing is terrible and the cast does what they can.  They look foolish regardless because of the material.  Adam Kantor comes out the MVP  of the night."

[ClydeBarrow]

Posted: 3/26/24 at 10:40am

I would highly recommend staying away from this even if free (which I'm sure no one is paying money to see it). As other people have said, the writing is awful no matter how talented the actors are and how they try to elevate it. I must admit that I left after the Mommy scene because it was so cloying and aggressively straight, especially when following the Tony Danza one. The next one I assume was going to be about the BLM protest which I don't need a straight, white woman's take on.

Oddly enough it seemed like most people were there for Danza because no one else received entrance applause but people went wild when he appeared on stage...and many left immediately after his scene.

If you must go, I'd suggest an aisle seat so you can leave when you've gotten your fill.

[GottaGetAGimmick420]

Posted: 3/26/24 at 10:43am

CoffeeBreak said: "We passed hearing it wasTawni Odell. "Pay The Writer" was some of the worst writing this season."

Say no more. Can't believe we're producing this playwright again.

Edit: Also OOTB really needs some new Artistic Leadership. Add the missed Floyd Collins revival to the list of flops.

Updated On: 3/26/24 at 10:43 AM

[Theater3232]

Posted: 3/26/24 at 12:32pm

What time did the 7.30pm show end?

Updated On: 3/26/24 at 12:32 PM

[ClydeBarrow]

Posted: 3/26/24 at 12:52pm

Theater3232 said: "What time did the 7.30pm show end?"

I can't say for certainty because I left mid-performance but I will say it didn't start until at least 7:45. I dipped out at 9pm and there were still 3 more vignettes left. 

[dseaver70]

Posted: 3/26/24 at 4:11pm

Edit: Also OOTB really needs some new Artistic Leadership. Add the missed Floyd Collins revival to the list of flops.

This. An embarrassing mess...especially as of late. 

Updated On: 3/26/24 at 04:11 PM

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 3/26/24 at 6:18pm

They said it was 90 minutes but (even with starting 15 mins late), the 3pm show today got out at 5:15. I looked at this kind of like a workshop of a new play. There were some interesting ideas up there and I like the idea of a play showing how a pandemic and that kind of isolation affects different people. While 2020 was a global event we all shared, we all have very different stories about what we went through and what we lost. So from that lens, it’s stories worthy of telling - but they need a lot more work here. Some of the performances I really did enjoy, Danza being at the top of the list. It reminded me of what a good dramatic actor he is and it’s been a very long time since we’ve gotten to see that from him. Adam Kantor as well, was fantastic. My issue (well one of my issues) with pretty much all of these was that you knew how they’d end - except for that last one which I’ll get to. 

So what we have is 8 scenes of varying themes of Covid except for the George Floyd one which almost seemed out of place here, not tying into the other stories at all besides the fact that it took place in 2020. But on the flip side of that, I got to hear Tonya sing on stage for the first time in years so “a win is a win” and we need her in a new musical. 

Im gathering my thoughts while typing so maybe a little rambling but almost each scene was also entirely too long for what it was and I could sense myself and others around me thinking “let’s wind this one up, we already know the point of it and what’s going to happen.”

But ok the last scene in the jail. I’m just going to say what happens so don’t read ahead if you don’t want to know. It’s an ex-soldier in a prison cell with a musical theater actor and it’s just a baffling “HUH” 10 or so minutes. Besides the soldier being in there for refusing to wear a mask (which is quickly mentioned and never addressed again) this has nothing to do with any events of 2020. They realize they have stuff in common when the soldier (after telling the other guy he doesn’t have a problem with him being gay, he has a problem with him SAYING that he’s gay) says how he grew up watching musicals and asks the dude to sing for him and we get a full on belting version of “Tomorrow” which kind of brings a tear to the soldiers eye. One of the most WTF things I’ve ever seen on stage. 
 

Happy to see all these people on stage and good on them for workshopping (or whatever this is) a new play for a few days but yeah, this isn’t something I’d recommend you have to see tonight or tomorrow.