STAGE TUBE: First Look at LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE!

[Rob]

Posted: 2/3/11 at 5:59pm

Click Here to Read STAGE TUBE: First Look at LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE!

[ljay889]

Posted: 2/3/11 at 6:23pm

Certainly sounds like a William Finn score!

[PiraguaGuy2]

Posted: 2/3/11 at 8:20pm

Exactly, ljay. It sounds like warmed-over Spelling Bee. Oof.

When they started singing "it's the Little Miss Sunshine pageant" in that chipper, peppy way all I could hear was "aaaat the 25th Annual..."

[bwayfan7000]

Posted: 2/3/11 at 10:48pm

To be fair, we have only heard about 30 seconds worth of stuff there. But I do agree, it sounds like Spelling Bee, which, in my book, isn't such a bad thing since I adore that score.

[Actor2]

Posted: 2/3/11 at 11:30pm

I just get all giddy when I see Hunter Foster and Jennifer Laura Thompson together again. =)

[James2]

Posted: 2/3/11 at 11:39pm

That version of the VW bus looks too spacious for me. Not as funny as that soda can of a bus from the film.

[VernonGersch]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 1:22am

maybe not the best way to lead with the show - with no slight to the san diego union tribune, that entire piece looks like the local newscast circa 1980 talking about community theater

[TheLadyoftheWood]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 1:31am

Did I hear him correctly, when he said he would allot himself 30 minutes to right each song? Isn't that a very short amount of time to write a song and think up good non-cheesy/obvious lyrics?

[WestwardHoHo]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 1:45am

That video clip indicates a big, steaming dung pile of a show lurketh there.

[Overkill]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 2:17am

I love William Finn, A New Brain is one of my all time favorite musicals, but from what I hear, this isn't his best. But of course, there wasn't enough to tell. The bus looks like a convertible school bus...kinda throws me off a bit....

I want this to be awesome, though. And it may very well be. Can't wait to see and hear more!

[jacobp]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 3:11am

He meant he would sit down to write a song and if something substantial didn't come to him initially he would start over. He doesn't want the score to sound complex it should be simple. Does that explanation make sense?

[dramarama3]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 6:02am

" Isn't that a very short amount of time to write a song and think up good non-cheesy/obvious lyrics?"

Cheesy and obvious is what Will Finn does. It never really gets tiresome mind you, at least not to me anyway.

[tazber]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 7:54am

Cheesy and obvious are probably the last two words I would use to describe his work.

Cheesy and obvious to me is more akin to Andrew Lippa, Don Black, or Mathew Sklar (not a criticism btw, just making a distinction).

The best word I could choose to describe William Finn would be idiosyncratic. He has a tendency to eschew formal rhyming structure in favor of creating nuance of character and expressing honest (if occasionally quirky) detail and emotion.

Falsettos, Elegies, Romance In Hard Times, A New Brain are all deeply human and personal works. I literally tear up everytime time I listen to March/Falsetoland straight through and share those character's journey's.

The short clip here definitely sounds like Finn musically, but I think every composer has their own style, or voice if you will. So that's exactly what I expected. I don't think anyone can truly evaluate his score lyrically until it is heard in total.

Having said all that I am beyond excited to see/hear/experience this show and spend some time with characters that I hope Finn will bestow his unmatched artistic empathy upon.

Updated On: 2/4/11 at 07:54 AM

[Kad]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 10:38am

I totally agree, Taz. There are very few Finn songs that can be really appreciated out of the context of their show. His style is very unique. None of his songs can be lifted out of a show and moved to another- which is, in my opinion, Make Me a Song didn't quite work, despite it being full of good songs.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 10:53am

I like Finn, especially the MARCH/FALSETTOLAND that Taz pointed out. Having said that, I think the clips look terrible, and the songs and the dialogue (at least out of context, maybe once the show is all up and running it'll be different) sound very cliched and hardly ring true. Not to mention the fact that Huster Fonter's acting is hardly the best.

[iluvtheatertrash]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 10:55am

Finn is one of my favorite composers and this looks absolutely wonderful. I was afraid it wouldn't "work" but I actually think this looks fantastic. Looking forward to seeing it.

And the score snippets sound like classic Finn.

[jv92]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 1:43pm

I'm looking forward to it. I'm a Bill Finn fan and I think this will prove to be a good choice of material for him.

[anthony95401]

Posted: 2/4/11 at 1:57pm

Great to see a little bit of this. I have tickets for Feb 20 at La Jolla and am really looking forward to it. I am a big fan of both Finn and Lapine and it has a good cast, so I am sure there will be much to enjoy. Not crazy about the look of the bus, but we'll see.