Songbird
Songbird
#1Songbird
Posted: 10/21/15 at 5:15am
I caught the first preview last night of "Songbird" with Kate Baldwin at 59 E.59 and enjoyed it. If you're a fan of the show "Nashville" you'll probably like this. It's Chekhov's "The Seagull" set to country music. I thought the show was in good shape and the performances were excellent. I liked the music and look forward to a cast recording. Great fun to see Kate and Erin Dilly together in such an intimate space. Other stand-outs Kacie Sheik and Eric William Morris.
Updated On: 10/21/15 at 05:15 AM
neonlightsxo
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/29/08
VintageSnarker
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/30/15
#5Songbird
Posted: 10/21/15 at 6:32pm
They did not provide an official Playbill but provided a color fold-out that listed cast and crew bio info.
There was a glossy slip inserted in the fold-out that listed characters and actors name, scene date and location. Unfortunately they did not provide song list. There is an intermission.
Kate is stunning.
Songbird Unplugged: "Small Town Heart"
Check out Kate Baldwin singing "Small Town Heart" from Songbird, with Adam Cochran playing, as the first of our "Songbird Unplugged" series! Stay tuned for more, including songs written by our talented cast. #SongbirdOffBroadway #5Aseason 59E59 Theaters
Posted by Songbird on Monday, September 21, 2015
Updated On: 10/21/15 at 06:32 PM
#7Songbird
Posted: 10/23/15 at 5:11am
I thought the set was perfect right down to the aroma of cedar you get when you walk into the theater. There was a circular trap front center stage that was disconcerting because I kept thinking about how they'd use it. Turns out they never did so it just proved to be an annoyance. At one point, Kate Baldwin almost caught her stiletto heel in it.
Updated On: 10/23/15 at 05:11 AM#8Songbird
Posted: 10/26/15 at 11:17am
I think the easiest way to discuss the show is by breaking it down by the good and bad. The good: all of the music and Kate Baldwin. The bad: everything else. This was honestly like a bad episode of Nashville mashed up with the staging of ONCE.
Lauren Pritchard really knows how to write some amazing songs. I just wish she had a better vehicle to showcase her talents. There seemed like no connection between the music and the book. It was more like the audience got a break from all the terrible acting and trite story.
Kate Baldwin is by far the best thing on that stage but she's in far too little of the show. Instead we are forced to watch performances by people who can sing pretty well but should stick to that and give up on acting. Ephie Aardema was the worst and every time she spoke I wanted to punch her character in the face. I really don't know if you're supposed to sympathize with this character since something I'm guessing emotionally shocking happens at the end but I just found it laughable. Adam Cochran who plays Baldwin's son is another one that I hated seeing and had far too much of the emotional core to deal with. One of the most absurd things is the constant reminder that Tammy's new boyfriend is so much younger than her yet Eric William Morris reads exactly the same age as her. I didn't really buy Cochran as her son because he seemed a lot older too.
I was really looking forward to the possibility of THE LAST GOODBYE coming to NYC at some point. That was until I saw that Michael Kimmel write both shows. Everything just came across so hackneyed and cliched. I get that this is a different take on Chekhov's THE SEAGULL (which I admittedly am not familiar with). It seems like Kimmel is trying to take great works and turn them into musicals with great music and crappy writing.
The set looks good. I had the same feeling as Melissa that I was waiting for something to happen with this giant circle cut into the floor but nothing did and it became distracting. There is a big cast and I guess it's because they all play instruments but I wish we had fewer people on stage because the story is overstuffed and so is the stage at times when everyone is there. Also the second scene set outside has a lot of haze that seemed to never end.
I would recommend that the producers come out with a cast recording because the music truly is great but I wouldn't want to have to sit through this just to hear it. Isherwood was at the Sat night performance so I'll be interested to read his thoughts.
"Pardon my prior Mcfee slip. I know how to spell her name. I just don't know how to type it." -Talulah
#9Songbird
Posted: 10/26/15 at 12:02pm
I thoroughly enjoyed the show. The music was so damn beautiful. I thought the piece was very original and Kate Baldwin was flawless. I mean, every show has their flaws...but when your looking for people who can play instruments, sing, AND act...they will probably fall short in one category. The only thing I kind of was confused about was the ending. I mean, I understand it...I just wish it was executed differently.
Overall, I thought everyone sounded beautiful and played wonderfully. I really hope they release a cast album!
Updated On: 10/26/15 at 12:02 PM
VintageSnarker
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/30/15
#10Songbird
Posted: 10/26/15 at 3:04pm
Re Melissa: I did not smell any cedar. I thought the circular trap door looked great for the Opry and was OK if not necessary for the stage at the bar. I didn't find it distracting but I agree that it didn't serve much of a purpose.
Clyde, you pretty much said everything I needed to say. The songs were fantastic and Kate Baldwin was without a doubt the best thing about it. She was like what other people seem to see when they watch Connie Britton on Nashville. Her acting was captivating and her voice was fantastic and she seemed to truly know exactly who her character was. But yes, the book was terrible and only seemed there to get me to the next song which had nothing to do with the story. It was somehow more awkward than Glee and Nashville in its attempts to shoehorn songs in. Apparently these people are constantly playing music. It was a nice idea to make it all diegetic but it strained my suspension of disbelief more than a traditional musical where they just feel compelled to sing their feelings. I hope they're working on the book because not only is it simple and formulaic but it's choppy too. It just kind of lurches around from plot point to plot point. I don't know if it's an issue with adapting a more complicated play but there's a lack of elegance or tension or reason for things to be happening. There's no direction or momentum.
This is going to be mean but yes, Ephie Aardema was horrible. She delivered her lines so awkwardly sometimes, I wondered if something was wrong with her. Like, if she was hearing impaired and had just gotten a Cochlear implant and was hearing her voice for the first time. When she came back later with sunglasses it legitimately took me a while to confirm that she wasn't blind. Just, very strange choices in her acting.
I didn't think Adam Cochran was that bad but he's given a very moody character to play and doesn't strike the right tone. It's not completely comedic and yet it's not dramatic and you don't feel anything for him because the character is written like a joke. To bring it back to Nashville, he should be Avery but he's just a moody teenager... like a joke version of a character from Spring Awakening.
I think this is a great country music concert but not a show. There are some laughs to be had and again, Kate Baldwin was great, but overall the story is trite and formulaic and just has no reason for being. It doesn't have anything to say. It doesn't aspire to be anything. It walks us through stereotypes without any depth.
#11Songbird
Posted: 10/27/15 at 5:54am
I really don't know if you're supposed to sympathize with this character...
This is precisely the feeling I had about many of the characters which I found myself thinking about more so after the play was over. During the show I definitely found the son and his girlfriend annoying beyond belief. But I thought that was the point. You know, that we should question our lack of empathy given certain circumstances?
#12Songbird
Posted: 10/27/15 at 1:09pm
VintageSnarker said: "Clyde, you pretty much said everything I needed to say."
Thanks for making me feel like I wasn't alone, Vintage. The audience the night I went was really into the show at first but then I could tell they were starting to realize the awfulness. It also seemed like an NYU reunion of people who were friends with Lauren Pritchard so that could have been the difference as well.
"Pardon my prior Mcfee slip. I know how to spell her name. I just don't know how to type it." -Talulah
#13Songbird
Posted: 10/29/15 at 5:39am
NY Times Critics Pick
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/29/theater/review-songbird-a-honky-tonk-take-on-chekhov.html
LUCKY2
Swing Joined: 10/29/08
#14Songbird
Posted: 11/1/15 at 8:43am
Went last night and thoroughly enjoyed.
The music (Pritchard) is album worth. The cast is over-the-top talented, picking instruments off the wall to provide their own accompaniment. I found myself continuing to make comparisons to The Seagull. However, looking back - I think that Songbird stands on its own merit.
I especially liked Missy (Sheik) in her vocal rendition of "Highway Fantasy". And, Mom (Dilly) was a hoot to watch in her hot pursuit of Doc.
As a speech consultant born in the South, I thought the variety of dialects amongst the cast were authentic. Deep Tennessee is similar to Appalachian. The variation in speech depends upon where you were raised, and the amount you assimilate (travel). Locals have been known to develop a language style of their own. What we would perceive as being butchered (annoying) is totally natural to them. I thought Mia (Aardema) was right on the mark -- her lack of sophistication was conveyed by her use of local tongue. Her performance was genuine - your disdain makes perfect sense.
My only question: Why destination LA? The country music mecca is Nashville.
VintageSnarker
Broadway Legend Joined: 1/30/15
neonlightsxo
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/29/08
#17Songbird
Posted: 12/4/15 at 1:00am
I really liked this show, seen it twice with the $10 online rush tickets. The music is great, and there are some really great performances, Kate, Erin, Katy...
Once meets Nashville seems pretty accurate, but I don't think that's a bad thing! It works. It's pretty dark of course, but there are plenty of laughs to keep it entertaining. The ending was is a bit too abrupt for my taste and I hate the Mia character, but other then that... I'd definitely recommand seeing it and I hope they get a cast recording or a transfer to a bit of a bigger theater. I can't see it on Broadway, but a bigger off-Broadway house, the Public of Lincoln Center. Would be interesting in the round, too!
The LA thing didn't bother me at all. I don't know too much about the country music biz, but in Nashville people go to LA all the time 
And Tammy might have drifted into a more "commerical" country pop that justify LA vs. Nashville
#19Songbird
Posted: 5/15/18 at 4:55pm
I was just reading what people thought about the show, since it seems like it will live on at Two River Theater in Red Bank, NJ.
I was planning on seeing it, and peoples reviews want to make more go more.
https://www.tworivertheater.org/plays_events/current_season.php?categoryID=261&spektrix_bounce=true
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