SWEET CHARITY Revival — Page 4

I'm glad they aren't trying to ignore Bob Fosse and his imprortant contributions to the piece. The last revival had many thinking Charity was a bad show in general, which really peeved me at the time. It's one of my favorite musicals and this production seems the be getting so much right. Maybe the brass would simply be too overwhelming in that small space? Though much of the score relies heavily on it and gives it a pulse.

Excited to see how the revised ending works. I directed a production several years ago where I changed up the ending a bit, borrowing much of the tone and the sentiment from the original Nights of Cabiria. In this production, I had Charity pull herself back up only to be surrounded in the park (sitting, strolling, etc.) by couples in love giving her a moment of heart break and isolation and amid crowd. After this beat, a single man tips his hat to her in a gentlemanly fashion - just enough to give her a glimmer of hope to rejoin humanity before settling into that iconic (Gwen Verdon) charity pose with the look over shoulder.

I just got back from this show. Run, don't walk to it!! I loved it. The ending gave me goose bumps. This is the type of show that should be made into a broadway production. I will be thinking about this for days.

CindersGolightly said: "Joey, I love the sound of that ending! The ending of this show something very interesting. I don't know if anybody can ever agree on what should happen, and the fact that almost every revival has done something different is pretty magical. I personally loved the Applegate ending. It seems very in character for Charity to pick herself back up and exclaim to the audience, "Have you ever had one of those days that was perfect? I have. This isn't it. This definitely isn't it. But there's always tomorrow,""

I adore that ending.

...I'm gonna go ahead and say I actually kinda liked the wig. It could stand to look less fake, and it actually started coming off a little towards the end last night. But there's something endearingly goofy about it. Like. Charity is going for style, but it makes her look sort of kid-like and silly.

Updated On: 11/4/16 at 11:42 PM

Yeah I wasn't sure if it was just weirdness in the picture or not, but the wig looks longer than the pic and it is a very bright blonde. (Not very hair-literate.)

Updated On: 11/4/16 at 12:02 AM

I'd be fascinated to hear about that, though it sounds shockingly wrong-headed.

Just checked the 80's revival! It DOES end with the fairy. It's very abrupt, sounds like it played exactly as written above. After the fairy, theres a little music from Charity's Theme and that's it, show over, no singing, no introspective lines, I guess it was to portray a never ending cycle of hope and disappointment for Charity. The audience seemed to get a kick out of it, but I can see why the ending is constantly tinkered with.

Updated On: 11/4/16 at 07:36 AM

I loved the ending of the last revival which had a reprise of I'm the Bravest Individual.

Wow! Jaw on the floor about that Good Fairy ending. I have NEVER heard of that!

Here is a picture of Ruth Buzzi as the Fairy in the original production. She was probably hilarious.

I've heard that the Ruth Buzzi as a good fairy bit was an inside joke with the production; something like a producer asked for a happy ending, and Fosse said "What? You want a good fairy to rescue Charity at the end?" He then allegedly put the bit in out of spite.

The Fairy ending, when I've seen it, has never played well... maybe it worked in the original, but it's always felt a little too pointedly contrived. The sort of "queer absurdist" sensibility of it feels much more out of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmitt than Sweet Charity.