Saved! 5/10/08- Page 2

[broadwaybaby086]

Posted: 5/11/08 at 11:34pm

I saw it tonight and really enjoyed it! I have to show some love for the girl who played Tia, Emily Walton. Hilarious. It was a lot of fun, it could use some tightening, and I (unfortunately) did not care at all for the song between Murney and Keenan-Bolger in Act 2. It just seems like it could've been better.

[DidYouReallyHearMe]

Posted: 5/11/08 at 11:57pm

Tonight there were some minor line cuts and blocking changes, as well as a when Hilary Faye practices the song with the lyrics "I'm popping a zit for Jesus" in act 2, the song is now reminiscent in the prom sequence with the that 1 line added in.

Act 1 ran 15 minutes shorter than the night before, due to some much better pacing of the book and songs.

[broadwaybaby086]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 12:12am

I heard someone behind me talking about how they had seen it last night; was that you? Second row?

And for those still purchasing tickets, I suggest getting a seat further back. Front row is literally in the lap of the stage and the venue is super small.

[Raviolisun]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 12:38am

Can someone tell me where they put songs? I'm seeing it in early June and am very interested in that.

[veryownplanetz]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 12:41am

And for those still purchasing tickets, I suggest getting a seat further back. Front row is literally in the lap of the stage and the venue is super small.

woops. I bought a front row seat for next weekend. It was that or row K and I chose that. oh well...

[jspaeth87]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 12:46am

i loved the show, it was a lot of fun. but i feel like the cast as a whole was under utilized and have much more talent than what they were able to show w/ the script and score

[TheBoyDownstairs]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 12:50am

I definitely enjoyed the show, I didnt love it, but it was a very enjoyable evening. I thought the cast all did a great job and there were a few nice songs.

They really do need to come up with a new way to end things though, I know they cant do it the same way as the movie, but the whole climax was a bit weak IMO.

[Vespertine1228]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 1:17am

It totally petered out in the end. That was disappointing. Then again so does the movie really.

I thought it was a lot of fun, but the space wasn't big enough for everything they were trying to do. And I didn't understand the curved design. What was that for exactly?

That said, the performances were good. My favorite song was the Mary Faber "Heaven" number. Really showed her character.

Also, I thought Celia and Julia looked like sisters, not mother and daughter.

I think there's a few numbers that could be cut entirely.

Overall, the show is lots of fun, but it's a little bit tamer than the movie is, which I'm not sure was the right direction to go. It feels a lot like an Off-Broadway musical. They'd have to totally redo it if they made a commercial transfer to somewhere bigger.

Everyone should go see it though.

[DidYouReallyHearMe]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 2:17am

Like I said before, the climax does need some work. The cross looks like they didn't have enough in the budget to make something nicer. It's cardboard.


SPOILER!SPOILER



I mean, you can see where it breaks in half when Hilary says the classic line.





END SPOILER

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 2:37am

yes, the cross was extremely cheaply made. it looked like a middle school project that someone did...

[shesamarshmallow]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 8:02am

Act 2 is far stronger - in all honesty, I think they should cut about half of Act 1 and turn it into a 90 minute show. Beefing up Dean's character was a mistake because they can't do it enough (so that like so many other gay characters, his only defining trait is that he's gay), and therefore most of Act 1 therefore feels sort of worthless. In addition, it's made up of mostly religious songs without an ounce of satire and has some serious tonal problems. But I loved almost everything about Act 2.

Standouts were Van Hughes (duh), Morgan Weed (though I think that was 90% her character and not necessarily performance) and Emily Walton (ditto - and I'd like her character to be developed a little more because she had the most pathos from the audience of any).

Aw guys, Saved is finally here!

[TheBoyDownstairs]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 8:19am

I agree that Heaven was my favorite number from the show as well, it really got inside Hilary Faye's mind, and Mary Farber did a great job with it.

I also am not sure how effective the expanding of Dean's role really was, nothing about the character really changed from the movie, he was just there a lot more, so they took a 10 minute role and stretched it but didnt really add anything.

There is definitely a lot there to work with though, so its definitely worth going to see.

[DrewT]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 10:52am

i know someone mentioned there was student rush for this show. is there a number of tickets set aside for rush...or is it just whatever unsold seats there are that day? i'm trying to decide if i want to rush the show or if i want to go pre-purchase tickets. thanks :)

[Vespertine1228]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 11:19am

Most of the students who were there last night got turned away. I think a few ended up in the so-called loge and the front row.

[caquino]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 11:27am

Seats are never held for rush. Rush is always based on availability. My last post:

Playwrights Horizons has a rush policy for people 30 and under called HotTix. It's a $20 ticket - one per person (each person much show proof of age) - starting an hour before showtime based on availability. Same goes with student rush - $15 per person with a valid student ID an hour before showtime, based on availability.

The Ticket Central box office is open 12pm-8pm every day. I recommend calling them the day before or the day of a show you might want to rush - just to find out if it's sold out or close to it. 212-279-4200.

[folkyboy]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 11:28am

is there a song list?

[popular_elphie]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 3:01pm

Songs:
"In The Light of God" - Company
"I'm Not That Kind of Girl" - Mary, Hilary Faye, Lana
"Orlando" - Lillian
"I Can't Help It (The Love Song)" - Hilary Faye, The Christian Jewels
"What's Wrong With Me?" - Dean, Mary, Company
"Make It True" - Patrick, Company
"Saved" - Cassandra, Patrick
"What Am I Missing?" - Pastor Skip, Lillian, Mary, Patrick
"Prayers" - Mary, Company

Act 2:
"Something Wrong" - Company
"Changing" - Mary
"Heaven" - Hilary Faye, Company
"The Pastor's Son" - Patrick
"I'm Not The Man I Thought I'd Be" - Pastor Skip, Patrick, Roland, Dean
"Prayers" (reprise) - Cassandra
"How To" - Lillian, Mary
"Prom" - The Christian Jewels, Company
"Corinthians" - Company

I hate to compare the show to the movie, even though it is based on it. I felt like they were two different things entirely - the show wasn't as satirical as the movie, and I think that made things a little awkward. As for the music, I really really loved "Make It True", "Heaven", and "I'm Not The Man I Thought I'd Be". I felt like "Corinthians" was incredibly similar to "No Voice" from BARE: A POP OPERA. A little odd. I really really enjoyed the show, and hope to go back and see the changes.

Standouts were Emily Walton (who I'd seen in a workshop of EVER AFTER and absolutely loved), Van Hughes and Curtis Holbrook.

[DidYouReallyHearMe]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 7:25pm

popular_elphie, if you noticed during many of the incidental music moments, it was the same as the incidentals that the Bare Studio Cast album uses when Ivy and Jason speak after Pilgrim's Hands. Saved uses a piano version and Bare uses guitar.

Jesse Vargas, who was the musical director/additional music creator for Bare, also does the music direction and incidental music for Saved.

[adamgreer]

Posted: 5/12/08 at 7:34pm

"In all honesty, I think they should cut about half of Act 1 and turn it into a 90 minute show. "

I agree with this sentiment...far too much of Act 1 feels like "fluff." They can start by getting rid of "Orlando," which does absolutely nothing- it doesn't add to the show, and doesn't even give Murney a chance to belt.

"I felt like they were two different things entirely - the show wasn't as satirical as the movie, and I think that made things a little awkward. "

I actually enjoyed that they made the "bad" characters seem more human. I thought that was a pleasant change. That's one of the reasons I loved Mary Faber and her rendition of "Heaven" so much.

[tgrabon]

Posted: 5/13/08 at 10:34am

I also saw the first preview on Saturday and agree with the reviews for Saved posted here especially shesamarshmallow's suggestion to cut Act 1 and make it a 90 minute show. Act 2 is where the action is. Act 1 is too long. The songs pretty much sound the same whether it's the adults or kids singing. I liked the show and also wanted to love it. It's the first time I've seen Celia Keenan-Bolger on stage. She is wonderful. The set was inventive especially the color block squares on the back wall that changed for each scene creating crucifixes, windows, doors, etc. Very inventive. Hats off to Scott Pask.

It was nice to see Jean-Claude fussing over guests in the outdoor seating area of Chez Josephine next door to Playwrights Horizon before and after the show. It's nice to know that somethings never change.