SILK STOCKINGS - Anyone?

[Skip2]

Posted: 3/23/13 at 2:02pm

What's the word?

[goldenboy]

Posted: 3/23/13 at 2:13pm

I thought Hollywood Pinafore was so lackluster that I am skipping this.

[egghumor]

Posted: 3/23/13 at 2:14pm

I'm hoping we might get a report about the show from Whizzer later on today...

[goldenboy]

Posted: 3/23/13 at 2:17pm

Yes my mind can be changed. People seemed to have liked Happy Hunting.
Reviews? Perceptions? Thoughts?

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 3/23/13 at 5:56pm

Ha, yes I did see it today and was very disappointed. In fact I would go as far as to say it was painful and unprofessional. I fully realize the actors have limited time to learn their parts, but they didn't even know the tunes and rhythms to the songs. The staging was inert and occasionally laughably bad.

Actors were positively buried in their books; when you can't look up during The Red Blues you know there is a problem!! Erin Davie was so bored she actually almost fell asleep singing one of Nina's songs!

The whole thing was dull as dirt and I'm kind of mad I paid $40 for it. Jim Morgan made a crack about Encores during his curtain speech and honestly he should keep his mouth shut. They are putting on productions of the highest quality while Mufti insulted us with this.

Goldenboy, btw I thought Happy Hunting was only marginally better than Hollywood Pinafore. Opening Doors did a MUCH better job with it a few years ago. It was taken too seriously at Mufti and, again, song cues and lyrics were flubbed and missed. Truly, when everyone in the audience of these things can sing along to the cast recordings by heart there is no excuse for so many mistakes when scripts are in hand and so much money is being charged. As much as I want to continue to support the mission of the Muftis I have to seriously consider whether I will attend the next series.

[Ed_Mottershead]

Posted: 3/23/13 at 6:46pm

I've only seen the movie, but I've always liked the score and the show in general. I would love to see Encores! take on it.

[goldenboy]

Posted: 3/23/13 at 9:40pm

Wow again with actors head stuck in books at 40 bucks a pop. I will pass.
Opening Doors Happy Hunting was great a year or so ago. Fully staged on a tiny little Cabaret Stage. Hollywood Pinafore-heads in books and quite dull at Mufti. Now you are telling me it was again with the heads in books in Silk Stockings??? I won't be back unless its something I really reallly really need to see. They definitely shouldn't be making cracks about Encores. Superman was terrific as was Blondes . Fiorello, while not Quite as good as the others.........much better than anything I've seen at mufti.. Encores is a treasure. Encore's only miss that I've seen was Pipe Dream...... but that's only cause the material was so awful. Still a decent production of a really bad musical

[After Eight]

Posted: 3/24/13 at 12:28am

"How sharper than a serpent's tooth it is
To have a thankless child! Away, away!"- King Lear

No company has done more for those who love the Broadway musical than Musicals in Mufti, and that includes Encores.

Year after year after year, Musicals in Mufii has given us the opportunity to experience rare gems that we would never see otherwise.

Tirelessly and devotedly James Morgan has bestowed these gifts upon us,
displaying his boundless love and appreciation for our musical heritage.

Musicals in Mufti is a godsend to us all, and we owe James Morgan a debt of gratitude beyond words.

I enjoyed its presentation of Superman more than Encores'.

Happy Hunting was a blast, and better than any Broadway musical I've seen in ages.

So please, to all swell-headed, know-nothing, know-it-all ingrates out there:

Away! Away!

[goldenboy]

Posted: 3/24/13 at 4:33am

You know Mufti's faults are fixable.
If they were smart, they would take the critiques of some of us and use it to improve their game. They should be the little theatre that could.........
instead of thinking "we are too small to compete with Encores." They should study Encores and see what works and use it.

Note to Mufti's creatives
1) ask your actors to keep their heads out of their books--better yet aim for being off book as much as possible. Books are certainly acceptable if the actors aren't buried in them. That seems to be an ongoing problem here. Years ago there was a brilliant She Love's me with books in hand starring Madelyn Kahn. It was so compelling and well directed that you forgot they had books in hand.
2). Hire a real director/choreographer who can work fast. Nor sure who is directing these readings but someone sharper than the tired serpent's tooth who is directing the current production.
3) Add a modicum of production values. Just a set --suggestion.
4) If they are just thrown together readings with 2 day rehearsals..don't charge full price for them.

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 3/24/13 at 10:07am

Exactly, goldenboy.

I had my rant against Jim and the Muftis not because I hate them, but because I love them and realize the potential they once held. I have been a very loyal Mufti patron; I've missed only two in the past five years. When they are at their best it's some of the most fun you can have at the theater in New York.

Unfortunately there has been a slow but marked decline in quality over the past few series. Two By Two was fun, but that seemed to be the exception, not the rule. Everyone was totally prepared for that show. The actors only used the books for reference and there was a strong sense of staging.

Silk Stockings was the straw that broke the camel's back for me. It was so under-prepared it bordered on unprofessional.

I think your suggestions are good ones. They would be wise to listen to them.

[goldenboy]

Posted: 3/24/13 at 4:24pm

Thanks Whizzer. It seems we great minds think alike. Loud and often!