Spiderman Preview Thread!- Page 41

[TheatreDork3]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 10:37am

manhattanite:

While I'm sure there are a handful of people on here that wish ill-will towards either the show or the cast, I think most of hte people in here really see serious problems with the show. And be careful, deriding non-theater community people, because that makes us the ticket purchasing public. And without us, there is no theater community.

Let's face it, like it or not, social media has transformed how people learn about, react, and respond to the theater. Now, if only we could convince some powers that be that there is a lot of good feedback that is clearly not filtered on here. Reading through the myriad of posts, most people agree that Bullied by Numbers is strange and a little awkward. The whole army sequence comes out of nowhere and (except for the fun choreography) doesn't exactly stop the show (which I guess in the case of Spiderman is a good thing - it doesn't need any thing to stop the show at this point). And the Act II steal all the high-heels Carrie Bradshaw dancing spiders moment was one of the weirdest moments I've seen on the stage.

Again, I would love to see this show do well. I actually didn't hate it, but I didn't love it either. I'm just afraid that the artistic team has so insulated themselves from public reaction that they're really not seeing the bigger picture and problems. I just don't see how you can go into previews with a musical and have the people responsible for the music touring in another country. While I'm hoping they're having daily skype conversations and madly rewriting songs in their off time, from what I've seen and heard the music is pretty much set and will not be changing. I hope I'm wrong. I home my little insider elves are wrong. But, at this point it doesn't look like I'm wrong.

TD

[manhattanite]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 10:54am

I wasn't actually deriding non-theatre people at all, I was more commenting on those who seem to have a knee-jerk death-wish against the show (ie. Michael Riedel). If the show has a chance at all, it will be more with the tourist set anyway rather than the snobby New York theatre-goer.

I have heard through the grapevine that the creative team is not blind to audience feedback. They would be stupid to ignore it. So I look forward to seeing it again post-opening to see how it's changed. And I stand by the fact that I enjoyed some of the songs especially in Act I, but agree the shoe number is appallingly bad. I wonder if it works better with Natalie Mendoza.

I didn't love it, didn't hate it, either. But there is potential there, would hate to see all that wasted.

[TheatreDork3]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 11:59am

manhattanite:

I bet we agree on more than we disagree then. I want to see most theater succeed. But let's face it, some shows just shouldn't be made.

Sorry about my knee jerk reaction to what I perceived as "the theater insider" comment. I've run into some theatrical professionals who really do forget about the paying public.

As for Michael Riedel, maybe he relishes the train-wreck a little too much, but through the snarkiness he's often right. He's a talented, humorous writer. However, you have to read through the humor to see the real point at times. Overall, I do think he as his place in the business. Without him drumming the beat about Spiderman, I probably would have waited until it opened to even bother seeing the show. Now, I've seen it in previews and will most definitely take friends to see it when it opens. See, he got me to buy two tickets - Julie Taymor and friends should thank him.

TD

[DavidMattingly]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 12:06pm

We saw it last night--awful. The flying was fun, but why not just see Cirque de Soleil? They do it better, and you don't have to sit through those dreadful songs. I wondered why I hadn't heard any of the music anywhere. I don't wonder any more--the songs are as unmemorable as any Broadway musical in recent memory. And the show is long--if it is going to be bad, at least make it short and bad!

[Kad]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 1:30pm

"From "The NY Times" review of Taymor's THE TEMPEST:

"As Miranda, Felicity Jones is both the sweet, unworldly apple of Prospera’s eye and a younger, softer version of her ardent, intelligent mother. Ms. Jones utters Miranda’s flights of love poetry with marvelous feeling and conviction, which unfortunately only emphasizes the inadequacy of Reeve Carney, the skinny mumbler cast as Ferdinand, the object of Miranda’s devotion."

ouch lol"


It's funny you picked that particular quote from the review, because I found this one a lot more appropriate and telling:

“The Tempest” is, perhaps above all, the portrait — the self-portrait — of an artist on the verge of saying farewell to his art. By abjuring her “rough magic,” burying her magician’s staff and drowning her book of spells, Prospera elects to live in a world without supernatural possibilities; having demonstrated the power of art, she accepts the limits of that power and forsakes hubris for humility, something Ms. Taymor seems unable to do."

[mybigsplash]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 1:55pm

Rumor is their advances are tanking because everyone is "waiting until later" to see it. Sure there's all the press about the show, but people are learning to "wait" until the show is better or finished. When will people decide the show is good enough to see? I guess it will be after the terrible reviews come out, and they realize it will never be good enough. I suppose this is why they started the new Discount through February? Because everyone I've talked to recently is saying, "I'm waiting to see it later." Haven't you been hearing that too?

[leefowler]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 2:54pm

One has to wonder if the Reviews for "The Tempest" are omens of what Julie Taymor will have to face when Spider-Man opens. Here's an especially mean quote from the Newark Star-Ledger:

You can imagine why Taymor was drawn to this play (and bent the genders). Prospero is a role the famously difficult director was born to play, at least in her own mind — the talent ahead of her time, the misunderstood genius.
Except she’s not misunderstood — that’s the problem. And — after “Titus,” “Frida,” “Across the Universe” and now this — it’s becoming clear she’s no genius, either.

[TheatreDork3]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 3:15pm

mybigsplash:

I think you're right about people waiting to see the show. However, I'm telling everyone I know to get tickets now. Honestly, I don't know how long the show will last. I wish I could say it would last forever (I can't wait to see it again for all the wrong reasons), but I honestly don't know if it will be a large enough draw.

At the same time, I haven't really seen anything exact on ticket sales since the $1 million after the first preview. All I know is that with a $1 million per week operating budget, they have to be making at least that to even stay afloat. Only five shows actually made that much the week of November 15-21 (Billy Elliot, Jersey Boys, Promises-Promises, The Lion King, and Wicked).

And these shows barely made the $1 mil mark during that week. Basically, Spiderman needs to not only sell tickets, they need to sell the hell out of merchandise. I know I helped. I wanted one of everything - they're like my own personal medals of honor!

TD

TD

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 3:57pm

Going to the show next Friday, sitting Row R Center Orchestra. Trying to make sure the show is safe for my grandmother, who has a small bladder. Is there a lot of action at all in the aisles and/or will ushers keep her out of (or in) her seat for long periods of time?

Also, how is the view from there?

[leefowler]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 4:08pm

Frankly, there's a lot of action in the house, and if your grandmother needs to get up and down throughout the show, I can see where this might be a problem!

[jonartdesigns]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 4:11pm

After watching the Isabel Keating interview, it seems clear that the book hasn't changed at all since the first reading circa '06/'07. This could explain a lot.

[SNAFU]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 4:12pm

Depends Everythingtaboo, depends.

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 6:54pm

Thanks, guys. (And clever, SNAFU.)

[ElphaWoods]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 7:33pm

Thanks TheatreDork3 !!!!

I'll have a look this weekend

[JillianSch]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 8:03pm

Can someone please tell me how Jennifer Damiano was as MJ?!

[SeanMartin]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 10:40pm

>> "having demonstrated the power of art, she accepts the limits of that power and forsakes hubris for humility, something Ms. Taymor seems unable to do"

Ouch. True, but... ouch.

Insofar as reworks: folks, I dont think they *can* change much now, save in the smallest of ways. SPIDERMAN is a great big computer program, and no one's gonna want to touch one line of the code without having to deal with the hours upon hours of making sure it actually works. Now that the creative forces have run off to Australia, it's now in the hands of the techies, and I honestly dont think there's much they can do, not when the show is this rigorously timed to the stunts.

[Stewpot]

Posted: 12/10/10 at 10:57pm

It is just like Springtime for Hitler, only without good music, novelty, shock or entertainment.

Those who are fortunate enough to see this disjointed abortion are witnessing Broadway history in the form of the most expensive flop ever.

[uncageg]

Posted: 12/11/10 at 12:05am

Alison Stewart, whom I love, did a segment on Taymor on PBS' "Need to Know" this evening.

Here is the extended interview with Taymor. The first part is about the tempest and then they move on to Spiderman:

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/need-to-know/culture/julie-taymor-on-spider-man-and-her-new-shakespeare-adaptation/5712/


Stewart saw the show after the interview and weighed in with her opinion on the show:

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/need-to-know/the-daily-need/spider-man-on-broadway/5650/

Updated On: 12/11/10 at 12:05 AM

[PReeves2]

Posted: 12/11/10 at 12:17am

"Can someone please tell me how Jennifer Damiano was as MJ?!"

to be honest it took me a minute to realize "MJ" stood for Mary Jane not Michael Jackson. there are so many characters in the show i thought i missed Michael which would have been a highlight! All I remember is she sings a song...or was it a duet? Maybe both? Can't remember a lyric or rhythm. i'm sure she is immensely talented along with others in the cast but the show to me was all about the flying and wanting to be a vegas cirque like event regardless of the cast members abilities and talents.

[dshnookie]

Posted: 12/11/10 at 12:22am

has Arachne's costume been shown in the media? I'm pretty certain every other villain has been shown except hers. If not, what's it like?

[TheatreDork3]

Posted: 12/11/10 at 10:55am

Uncageg:

Thanks for the posting of the PBS interview. After watching the interview, I think the most telling comment was when she came right out and said, "we made the choices a long time ago." And I think that pretty much spells the biggest problem with the show.

TD

[TheatreDork3]

Posted: 12/11/10 at 10:59am

I saw Jennifer Damiano in both Spring Awakening and twice in Next to Normal, so I know how good of an actress she can be. Sadly, her talent it grossly un-utilized in Spiderman. While she has a couple of good moments, she doesn't really have any singular moment where I remember her just shinning.

Actually, the most apt metaphor for her performance is probably the opening image of her character in the show - hanging by a piece of rope ready to fall. Unfortunately, the Green Goblin isn't behind her hanging - it's the creative team of Spiderman.

TD

[TheatreDork3]

Posted: 12/11/10 at 11:05am

dshnookie:

That blasted Arachne. The first major image of her is pretty cool. She's hanging in air as a weaver and then she's transformed into a spider and these mechanical legs (that clearly have a life of their own) come out from behind her as her other six legs. That image of her is pretty cool.

As the show goes along, we see her in a big spider bubble (the spider's abdomen) to hider her legs. Until there's the one really bad scene where she has the abdomen on, but here she walks around on the stage for a brief period of time. Well, less walks and more scurries like a Japanese Geisha.

Of course her arms have been turned into spider legs, but she's still beautiful woman from the waist up.

Then there's the point where she magically stops being a spider and becomes woman again (kind of against the lore, but oh well). At this point, she's where a black suit with a slit up the side and of course - spiderweb stalkings underneath.

TD

[uncageg]

Posted: 12/11/10 at 2:19pm

TD3, that stuck out for me also. Along with comicon comment.

Looks like my post made it to BWW TV. :)

[PiraguaGuy2]

Posted: 12/11/10 at 6:00pm

I'm hearing rumors that the "geek chorus" has mercifully been cut. Confirmation?