Questions. re filmed stage musicals..- Page 2

[kec]

Posted: 9/1/05 at 2:17am

Thanks, everyone for your responses. They've been helpful.

"You hear alot from Broadway performers that they are required to make the role all thier own. But I guess it comes down to the type of show like Phantom (They don't want an actor taking too many liberties with the character), and the director and how fast they need the actor to learn thier part. Thats all I could think of."

I understand about not wanting an actor to take too many liberties with the character, but wouldn't that be worked out between the director and the actor?
Updated On: 9/1/05 at 02:17 AM

[Fosse76]

Posted: 9/1/05 at 10:46am

Well, as I said, Phantom doesn't have a full production archived at the library. Going off memory, I believe it's only the press reals that they issued. So I doubt they would have any actor watch that performance.

Contact wasn't released. The only way that a llibrary could possibly have it is by having recorded it from television when it aired.

[kec]

Posted: 9/1/05 at 10:56am

Thanks Fosse...

[Carl Magnum]

Posted: 9/1/05 at 10:58am

KEC: as far as I know this isn't true. From what I've heard, as one of the tour cast Phantoms is a family friend who has also played the role on broadway breifly, Hal Prince works with each new actor cast as the Phantom. And in your rehearsals with him, which aren't too many, he gives you the basic skeleton that he and Crawford created, blocking, motivation, back story, certain gestures. Then he gives you freedom to take the basic skeleton and make it your own, apart from certain things, so each Phantom is unique. All other rehearsals are done with the production stage manager I believe.


As far as the debate on the archive copy copy goes. What's to say Lord Andrew doesn't have a private copy? Or the production company itself. Tapings can be made outside of the Lincon Center copy.

[kec]

Posted: 9/1/05 at 12:44pm

Thanks Carl Magnum, that is very helpful.

As far as the archive copy is concerned, another person in the discussion had e-mailed the RUG query master regarding the release of the archive copy -- I'm assuming of the London cast. She was told that it would not be released ever. Nonetheless, there are people on the board I'm on who believe that if/when Lloyd Webber sells the rights to his musicals (there have been rumors that a sale would be completed by summer's end), the new owner (the name Sir Michael Grade was mentioned) might just release the POTO archival tape to please the avid fans of MC and the original cast. I've tried to explain that there are more things involved than fan demand -- i.e. monetary compensation for everyone involved in that production -- but my comments are falling on "deaf ears" so to speak -- or rather, blind eyes.

[Fosse76]

Posted: 9/2/05 at 10:17am

Archival tapes CANNOT be released. There are union contracts involved. Plus, most of these aren't of commercial quality. And while it may be true that RUG has an archival copy, this discussion was of the Lincoln Center Branch of the New York Public Library, which doesn't.

[kec]

Posted: 9/2/05 at 10:32am

Thanks Fosse -- The poster I've been discussing this with made reference to a Broadway archive copy when telling me that actors going into the Broadway Phantom saw a video of MC's performance. I am assuming that the RUG archive tape won't be released for the reasons you stated for tapes from Lincoln Center -- union contracts and non-commercial quality. I have explained these issues to those in the discussion, but, as I said, it seems to be a futile effort.

[wickedrentq]

Posted: 9/2/05 at 1:43pm

At the Museum of TV and Radio where I'm a member, I go there all the time using different search techniques to try to find stuff like this. One day I found a stage production of Camelot. Don't remember who was in the cast or if it aired on PBS or another station, but it was there.

Came across Showboat there a little while ago, never saw the show and didn't know much about it, so very glad I was able to see that.