Sondheim and Ives' HERE WE ARE at The Shed- Page 47

[kdogg36]

Posted: 10/16/23 at 5:31pm

hearthemsing22 said: "I'm not sure if commercial audiences will love this, but I do hope it has life after The Shed."

I know you probably mean a life in the immediate future in NYC, but I have to think that we'll at least see some regional productions in the coming years. I can't see Signature (the Virginia one) waiting too many seasons to tackle this.

[rosscoe(au)]

Posted: 10/17/23 at 12:39am

The rush for this was hardest I’ve ever done. Over five shows and couldn’t crack it. I need it to extend again into at least the second week of February. That when I can get back into the city from Australia. 

[binau]

Posted: 10/17/23 at 2:46am

The other obvious after-life would be London - either a transfer of the entire production and cast somewhere (super cool) or a new London production (also would be cool to see a different interpretation, though I have a feeling it will be very hard to top this production). 

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 10/17/23 at 5:30am

ljay889 said: "
I do think his music is better than his lyrics in this score. But I love how fun and zippy the score is, especially after Assassins, Passion, and Road Show. When is the last time he had written an unadulterated classic musical theater comedy number like the “I’m a Terrible Priest” song?"

Dress Big or I Love to Travel from The Frogs (expanded) maybe?  Not that they're top tier Sondheim, but they seem pretty much done in the classic musical comedy style...

 

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 10/17/23 at 11:10am

binau said: "The other obvious after-life would be London - either a transfer of the entire production and cast somewhere (super cool) or a new London production (also would be cool to see a different interpretation, though I have a feeling it will be very hard to top this production)."

I’ve also been thinking a London transfer is also absolutely going to happen at some point. This is the perfect show for a run somewhere like The Young Vic.

[EvanHansen]

Posted: 10/17/23 at 1:24pm

Selling two tickets for HERE WE ARE tomorrow (Wednesday, October 18) at 8pm. They are located in the LEFT seating section (on the aisle closest to the center section, with the fullest view of the stage from that section).

Purchased for $134 each, selling for $90 each. Please PM me if interested!

 

[hearthemsing22]

Posted: 10/17/23 at 4:03pm

kdogg36 said: "hearthemsing22 said: "I'm not sure if commercial audiences will love this, but I do hope it has life after The Shed."

I know you probably mean a life in the immediate future in NYC, but I have to think that we'll at least see some regional productions in the coming years. I can't see Signature (the Virginia one) waiting too many seasons to tackle this."

Interesting! I never even considered regional theaters doing a production. Do you think it would appeal to those audiences?

[hearthemsing22]

Posted: 10/17/23 at 4:05pm

Listener said: "I have tried repeatedly and failed to get rush tickets for this. If someone can't make tonight - Saturday - or Sunday night's performances, and doesn't want a large amount of moolah for one ticket, please reach out.

Remember when the folks rewarded with a rush ticket were the ones who bothered to line up at the box office? Yeah. Sigh."

Remember how some shows still do in person rush? yeah. sigh. 

[PublicHorizons]

Posted: 10/17/23 at 4:44pm

I've won the rush and the secret is even if it says "all tickets being held" keep refreshing like hell over and over that's how I got it....just keep clicking don't be dissuaded right away- assume in the first minute that yes all tickets are held but over the next 5 mins someone will release them.

[JasonC3]

Posted: 10/17/23 at 4:59pm

I think regional theaters that have done a lot of Sondheim (like Signature) are likely candidates for a future production, as well as those like the Guthrie in Minneapolis that at least periodically do more unique or challenging shows.

[kdogg36]

Posted: 10/17/23 at 5:54pm

hearthemsing22 said: "Interesting! I never even considered regional theaters doing a production. Do you think it would appeal to those audiences?"

I think so, at least at certain theaters. I know from experience that Signature has successfully sustained weeks-long runs of shows like Pacific Overtures and Passion, so I have to imagine a lot of those folks would turn out to see Sondheim's final work (in a smaller production, of course). 

[KevinKlawitter]

Posted: 10/17/23 at 6:10pm

JasonC3 said: "I think regional theaters that have done a lot of Sondheim (like Signature) are likely candidates for a future production, as well as those likethe Guthrie in Minneapolis that at least periodically do more unique or challenging shows."

The Guthrie just put on a wonderful production of Into the Woods last season, so they're definitely up for Sondheim, and they always like to stage newer shows.  I'd love to see what they could do with Here We Are.

[StylishCynic]

Posted: 10/17/23 at 7:52pm

Given that opening night is Sunday and critics will start attending this week, the show is probably frozen as of tonight?!

Updated On: 10/17/23 at 07:52 PM

[Jarethan]

Posted: 10/18/23 at 1:06am

Saw this tonight and loved it.  The cast was great, with special kudos to Jones, Diamond, Hyde Pierce, Ha and O’Hare (the latter more in Act 1, however).

I thought that Ives made a bigger contribution to my pleasure than Sondheim; on first hearing, the music seemed like minor Sondheim, although the lyrics were as always a source of pleasure.  I didn’t like the choppiness of some of the early songs.

Highlights for me: Hyde Pierce’s entrance scene, Ha / Diamond’s duet (boy, did both have great control, and all of Act 2.  

Bottom line: I had a smile on my face every minute of Act 1 and was fully engrossed during Act 2.

Investor’s see should not waste their money moving this to Broadway…I just don’t see a broad audience for this, and fear that demand would peter out quickly, if there was heavy demand at all.
 

 

Updated On: 10/18/23 at 01:06 AM

[bear88]

Posted: 10/18/23 at 2:19am

jkcohen626 said: "Jordan Catalano said: "“Ljay and others what are your fav musical and non musical Rachel Bay moments?”


The bit with the dogs cracks me up every time I’ve seen this and her scene with DHP is maybe my favorite part of the entire show."

100% agree on both counts. The dog thing was so perfectly "rich person" and absolutely hilarious and the RBJ/DHP scene was my favorite in the whole show."

I really should go to bed but I couldn’t agree more. Rachel Bay Jones is fantastic as Marianne and her scene with David Hyde Pierce gave the show an unexpected sweetness I didn’t see coming and worked so well on stage. Pierce doesn’t even show up until the tail end of first act but he, along with an unsettling but hilarious Dennis O’Hare (playing multiple characters) have the best male roles in the show.

I wanted to enjoy Here We Are so my bias (and being surrounded for an evening by a bunch of people who really wanted to like it too) may be showing. But I thought it was a surprisingly successful adaptation due to the work of director Joe Mantello, book writer David Ives and the cast in taking what Stephen Sondheim left them and piecing together a show that works so effectively.

[JasonC3]

Posted: 10/18/23 at 5:18am

I think David Ives is an excellent playwright in general.  All in the Timing, Venus in Fur, School for Lies are all favorites from his many works.

[binau]

Posted: 10/18/23 at 5:48am

I would love to hear more about what naive theatre goers think of the show because I do think it's impossible for many of us including and especially myself to be truly objective haha. 

EDIT: I forgot that show-score exists for this purpose. Quite interesting to read the mixed/negative reactions.

https://www.show-score.com/off-broadway-shows/here-we-are

Updated On: 10/18/23 at 05:48 AM

[rattleNwoolypenguin]

Posted: 10/18/23 at 9:53am

Whenever there is a new Sondheim score throughout history people have said “I think this is lesser Sondheim”

He is a composer that is just not a one time listen to judge. To have the cast recording and the ability to Re listen several times will really be the opportunity to see what the score is.

His work grows on you the more you take time to unearth it.

[missthemountains]

Posted: 10/18/23 at 4:04pm

Jarethan said: "Saw this tonight and loved it. The cast was great, with special kudos to Jones, Diamond, Hyde Pierce, Ha and O’Hare (the latter more in Act 1, however).

I thought that Ives made a bigger contribution to my pleasure than Sondheim; on first hearing, the music seemed like minor Sondheim, although the lyrics were as always a source of pleasure. I didn’t like the choppiness of some of the early songs.

Highlights for me: Hyde Pierce’s entrance scene, Ha / Diamond’s duet (boy, did both have great control, and all of Act 2.

Bottom line: I had a smile on my face every minute of Act 1 and was fully engrossed during Act 2.

Investor’s see should not waste their money moving this to Broadway…I just don’t see a broad audience for this, and fear that demand would peter out quickly, if there was heavy demand at all."

I felt exactly the same way - was grinning throughout Act I and was fully into Act II also. 

This piece is an odd duck, but I'm an odd person who likes odd things so it felt like in many ways like I was the ideal audience. 

I've been wrong about many things before - I did not think A STRANGE LOOP or KIMBERLY AKIMBO would transfer to Broadway and they did. I also thought BEETLEJUICE would flop on arrival based on how it went in DC, but I was wrong on that, too. That being said, I think it would be unlikely for this to transfer. Maybe or a limited run at Lincoln Center or something but it has pretty much no commercial appeal. Bobby Cannavale--who is foxy as all get out in this--is probably the biggest name to tourists aside from Pierce, and neither of them really have the draw that would be needed to overcome the obscurity of the subject material to a tourist audience. Back in the day you could pull off something like NIGHT MUSIC which was based on a relatively obscure movie and no names (although, was Cariou a draw back then? Unsure, wasn't alive). Speaking of ALNM, that's probably the show I would compare this too the most, as I do interpret ALNM as a satire, but it often isn't played as such.

Sondheim is of course why we're all seeing it, but Ives and Mantello do an excellent job as well--I also loved Zinn's designs. The color coordination reminded me a bit of ASSASSINS and was on that level of iconography for me. I'd be curious moving forward to see how other productions design it, because I think it'll be hard to top. 

I suppose my only real complaint about it is that aside from a broad comedy like FORUM, it's his least emotional work. It doesn't quite capture the human condition in ways that his other works do for me, especially COMPANY & MERRILY. But the moment between Bay and Hyde in Act II was really, really lovely.

My biggest takeaway is even if you didn't care for the piece, it would be hard to argue that it's anything less than a high caliber production. Tons of amazing performances, top-notch direction and design. It deeply saddens me that we will never have another premiere like that again (perhaps The Sondheim Estate will budge and let someone stage EVENING PRIMROSE commercially; although it's my understanding Sondheim didn't want to see it performed live but let it happen on a smaller scale once or twice). In my lifetime, I never had the experience of seeing an original Sondheim piece, much less one in previews, and it was money well spent for that alone.

[binau]

Posted: 10/18/23 at 4:19pm

Nice review BUT for A Little Night Music, surely Glynis Johns would have been considered a 'name'? 

[Jarethan]

Posted: 10/18/23 at 4:41pm

My biggest takeaway is even if you didn't care for the piece, it would be hard to argue that it's anything less than a high caliber production. Tons of amazing performances, top-notch direction and design. It deeply saddens me that we will never have another premiere like that again (perhaps The Sondheim Estate will budge and let someone stage EVENING PRIMROSE commercially; although it's my understanding Sondheim didn't want to see it performed live but let it happen on a smaller scale once or twice). In my lifetime, I never had the experience of seeing an original Sondheim piece, much less one in previews, and it was money well spent for that alone."

I have seen every Sondheim musical since Company except Bounce and The Frogs (neither of which I have ever seen) at the latest within two weeks after opening in NY.  Ironically, I didn’t like a lot of them the first time, frequently because I could not appreciate the complex score on first hearing (in the case of Company, I thought George Furth was the reason).

Most of them I came to love once I became more familiar with the score (although I will always hate Passion).  Other than Follies, I probably enjoyed this more than the others the first time.  Ironically, I think the reason is because what score there is is clearly Sondheim, but not IMO sophisticated Sondheim in the music department.  So, I enjoyed the score for what it was on first hearing.

[quizking101]

Posted: 10/18/23 at 5:43pm

I’m went again for the matinee because I’m a boss at the TodayTix rush. I’m more of a fan the second time around since it seemed to move much quicker in Act II, as opposed to the previously languid pace that clocked almost 90 minutes last time I went. Per Denis O’Hare at the stage door, they most just cut a line here or there in Act II (but it added up to about 11 minutes of excised material) and it’s a testament to the writing that I couldn’t tell what went missing.

Lin-Manuel was also there (with Shaina Taub). We briefly chatted at intermission. He’s such a theatre geek and he was just rapt with wonder like a kid at Disney World. We literally saw him skipping down the sidewalk in joy.

Also, strange as this may sound, I overheard in the bathroom, presumably it was his understudy (Adam Harrington) that David Hyde Pierce will be out for 5 shows next week. Not sure which they are, but take that information for what you will…

[BETTY22]

Posted: 10/18/23 at 6:52pm

Critics are angry that they haven’t ALL been invited…

Do shows often cherry pick critics? 

[ACL2006]

Posted: 10/18/23 at 7:10pm

This is definitely getting mixed word-of-mouth. IF this is planned to transfer to Broadway in the Spring, will they workshop it again in Feb and tweak what's needed?

[bryan32]

Posted: 10/18/23 at 7:13pm

I hope they make a cast cd of it