SUNDAY IN THE PARK & FOLLIES Coming To DVD in 2014

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 12:52pm

Did Anyone See These Productions??

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 12:57pm

Here's a teaser for their Follies:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-JXFCOm35PU

Curious ... is this because Goldman's widow doesn't have any control over international filming (assuming the rights have been secured)? Or because the book was adapted into French, therefore not her deceased husband's work?

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 12:58pm

The songs at least are in English ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORar_kDlDkQ

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 1:03pm

For some reason I thought these were entirely in English.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 1:03pm

For some reason I thought these were entirely in English.

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 1:06pm

Probably are. Probably are.

EDIT: Maybe that whole "Goldman widow" idea is a myth.

Updated On: 11/18/13 at 01:06 PM

[FANtomFollies]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 1:17pm

eeek, "Follies" looks like amateur hour.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 1:27pm

Just watched that YouTube clip and I agree.

[Hex3]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 1:37pm

Both are entirely in english. There was a limited time free download of Sunday in the Park with George a few months ago. I've got it on my computer. I've only gotten up to just before Putting it Together. The set is huge and spectacular and the voices are wonderful. However the acting is not the best, I was not a fan of the costuming, and the over all production lacked any real heart. That's why I just stopped watching it. Also they relied too much on those damned projections.

As for their production of Follies... Eek! From what is shown on youtube of this production it looks like nothing more than community theater. Amateur hour indeed.

[Wildcard]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 1:49pm

I have the download version of SITPWG. It's decent but the stage is too big. Neither one of these productions are as magical as their recent Broadway counterparts.

[StageStruckLad]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 2:00pm

I'm quite content with the Pantinkin/Peters video of Sunday in the Park, but a full-scale Follies video would be wonderful.

Not that Sondheim is obliged to part with any of his (I assume) vast fortune, but wouldn't it be nice if he bankrolled a PBS production that could be commercially released?

[Brian07663NJ]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 2:00pm

Makes a LOT of sense...produce a substandard version for posterity instead of the two quality productions that were on Broadway.

[Roscoe]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 2:22pm

Is the youtube an indication of what can be expected from that FOLLIES DVD? Surely it won't consist of one camera at the back of the house zooming in and out for two and a half hours...

[jimmycurry01]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 5:29pm

Will these DVDs be released in the US, or just Europe?

[PalJoey]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 5:47pm

Please, gods of the theater, please, do NOT put that Follies on DVD.

Updated On: 11/18/13 at 05:47 PM

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 5:49pm

Widow Goldman's cackling "Y'all bitches wanted a video, so here ya go!!!!"

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 6:27pm

Whoah…as much as I certainly admire many members of the cast in that production of Follies….that is one crappy production design!

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 8:23pm

I have the download of the Sunday in the Park recording and enjoy it for what it is. It certainly sounds wonderful with that huge orchestra.

That Follies teaser is certainly... interesting. I love how the whole video is made up of footage being played at half-speed.

[darreyl102]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 9:31pm

It DOES show us what to expect. The only difference is that it will be pro-shot. Those YouTube videos still let us know what the show sounds like and what it looks like- and it’s substandard- this video will just be pro-shot substandard.
This makes those who are handling Follies look bad (Considering the productions that we have had that could have been filmed). It will also represent Follies in a way that is below par.

[Someone in a Tree2]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 9:39pm

Am I the only one who thinks the black&white film projection in the youtube clip for Who's That Woman is kind of a brilliant stroke? Seeing the young chorine ghosts straight out of Busby Berkeley take their place in the line projected across the rear stage wall is a lovely way to merge the two worlds in one image. Frankly, I could have used more of that in the recent Broadway revival.

[best12bars]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 9:42pm

I actually didn't think a lot of it looked any worse than the latest revival on Broadway.

Updated On: 11/18/13 at 09:42 PM

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 9:52pm

With the exception of what I assume is the Beautiful Girls staircase, I don't think it looked that horrible. Loveland looked more interesting on that video than it did in the revival.

[GoSmileLaughCryClap]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 10:50pm

This Follies definitely has a style. It's weird because the design has a sort of German expressionistic vibe combined with deco overlay. It doesn't really match the actual past or present of the material. It might actually be exciting if shot well.

The constant of the three receding proscenium echoes works. The homage to Fraver for the Loveland and Ben collapse are actually intense and make a direct connection to the original production in an oblique way. How the pristine design decays is a great and direct reference to the original artwork.

The projections really build on the Fritz Lang style German '20s cinema. This is a case where a distinctly American work is reamagined by a mixed combination of European sensibilities. It may not be an accurate accounting of the period or visual style, but it should be evocative if properly filmed.

It looks like Follies crossed with Cabaret.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 11:23pm

As they say in German Expressionism, "Blecch."

[GoSmileLaughCryClap]

Posted: 11/18/13 at 11:35pm

HAH!