Understudy Joined: 5/7/07
I am a little confused with the second act...I have listined to the cd many times and love it but I cant tell what exactly is going on...the times are not factual...it says on tuesday which is right but then 1pm sharp and by that time they had already been hit a long time ago...and then he saw the lord but didnt put the collar back on until a year later...HELP ME I want to understand!!!LOL
He is basicaly starting off by talking to a priest. I believe a confession.
Something happens (i forgot what) but he loses faith.
So he decides to try and fool everyone into thinking their is a God. So ... he puts up all these fliers saying see God at i believe 1pm.
So 1pm comes around. And for some reason they are all there and arent looking. But he looks and sees it.
So he then is shocked ... cause his lie turns out to be a truth.
And so he is then telling this story to a cardinal or something ... and saying he believes but not sure he wants to start again.
The show was very confusing, I saw it live and didn't understand it fully. I was listening to the music yesterday and it's very good. Probably Menzel's best vocals in a recording.
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/3/05
One of the best and most complicated shows I have ever seen. And one of those scores that you can listen to over and over and continue to get more out of it.
Something happens (i forgot what) but he loses faith.
He is talking about 9/11. "Last year, last year. I saw the world exploding. I felt a weird foreboding. Before I watched the city fall in silver clouds consuming crowds of unsuspecting souls. How wrong I thought that God would have no pity. He'd let a gleaming city be crushed and leveled to the ground."
He lost his faith because of what happened on 9/11 and he feels that God abandoned everyone.
it says on tuesday which is right but then 1pm sharp and by that time they had already been hit a long time ago
I don't understand the question... if it means what I think it does, he is not talking about 9/11 there. He is talking about the miracle that he says is going to occur. "On Tuesday at 1 pm sharp a miracle will occur here in central park." The entire second act is a flashback about how he lost his faith and then started to gain it again when he saw that a miracle did really occur. Whether it actually did or not is left to the audience for them to decide. And he just didn't gain his faith back immediately. He is starting to but it is taking time.
ashley>> ahhh that makes sense ... (about the 9/11) part.
Well, not to e nitpicky, but I suppose for reasons involving not turning it into a show ABOUT 9/11, and for the sake of timelessness, I suppose, they never say that it's 9/11. In fact, if I remember correctly, that act was being written and then 9/11 happened and it kind of fit into place. But yes, I suppose in the context of this time period, one would naturally assume it's 9/11.
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/3/05
Broadwaygirl- that's true. It wasn't written specifically about 9/11. But I think now that's how it's usually taken. In an interview, Aaron Lohr even said that he was a post 9/11 reporter completely affected by what happened. His song (Curiosity) also plays into the 9/11 theme.
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/6/05
LaChiusa actually finished this show LONG before 9/11. I think the first reading of the show was in 1998. But yes you can't do that show now and NOT think of 9/11. I think it helps to know that the entire 2nd act is sort of a flashback while in confessional to his superior. So he's in confession and he begins to tell what happened a year ago. That's why he seems to be narrating parts of act 2.
Understudy Joined: 5/7/07
dramaboy, try checking this site out. Someone basically put up a synopsis of the show, with pictures. Maybe it'll help as well.
See What I Wanna See Summary
Understudy Joined: 5/7/07
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