Sweeney - Original Staging- Page 2

[allofmylife]

Posted: 12/25/07 at 3:43am

Cubanpab, theatre in the 70s and 80s in New York may not have been the golden years, but it was a lot of fun. I remember many amazing nights and, as I was not a native New Yorker, I was always trying to squeeze other things in before and after.

Let's see... I remember the night we went to the opening of 42nd Street - yes, that night - with the horrible "Ladies and Gentlemen, I have sad news" speech that David The Shameless Merrick made after the show announcing the death of Gower Champion (news that had been kept from most of the cast and crew) There was an immediate rush for the programs.I had to fight to keep the two I still have to this day. Usually, I would take at lest ten from the piles at the ends of the last row but that night they were gobbled up.

The strange thing is, that night, my girlfriend wanted to go out clubbing, so after the show, we walked up to the one club she had read about and thought would be a hoot to go to - Plato's Retreat in the basement of the Ansonia. It was SO bizarre. I won't describe it in detail. You can Google if you are curious.

Another night, after some show, we went to The Red Parrot and saw Liza Minelli singing with that big band they had there. There was about 4,000 people squeezed in.

I used to enjoy Ma Bell's in Shubert Alley and The Cafe des Artists and of course, Studio 54 and Danceteria. We got taken to Regine's one night. The place was full of famous faces and lots of Eurotrash that weren't as much famous as fabulous.

There was the great Broadway theatre bookstores - does anyone remember Richard Stoddert's on I believe West 14th?

Time Square was filled with three card monte dealers and all sorts of disreputable and 42nd Street was very much take-your-life-in-your-hands sometimes.

Does anyone remember the guy who would show up at openings in the clear vinyl suit? My dad once remarked "I can count his change."

We used to like to go down to the Village after a show and back then, you could do dinner, a show and the Village and still have change from one hundred dollars.

One year, I got stuck in New York on Christmas eve. I went out walking around Rockefeller Center. There was a light snow fall. The Salvation Army Band was playing and one of the Sally An guys asked me if I needed a room and a warm meal for the night. I said thanks, no and remember thinking under any other circumstances, I would have found an offer like that kinda creepy.

I remember sitting next to Rex Reed at the opening of Jerry's Girls. I'll wait til he's dead to gossip about that night.

I'm glad someone brought this subject up. Sweeney was a highlight and it's fun wandering down memory lane.

[cubanpab]

Posted: 12/25/07 at 12:55pm

hahaha.... i love all the stories. anyone else going to see "sweeney" at the movies today?

[Jon]

Posted: 12/25/07 at 12:57pm

Eugene Lee seemes to be the only set designer who's ever been able to fill that massive stage at the Uris/Gershwin. The Sweeney set was genius, and he also did pretty good with Sowboat and yes, even Wicked.

I loved little details in the original Sweeney set like having follow spot operators positioned on the upper levelson the sides - in full view of the audience, in period costume. And sometimes the stagehands (also costumed) who moved the revolving unit would not even leave the stage during scenes - they would just sit on the stage floor, huddled against the walls odf the unit like homeless folk.

[StephanietheStar]

Posted: 12/25/07 at 1:19pm

I saw the revival in London in '05 and really enjoyed it. I'd like to see the original staging brought back though. I think it translates the best that way.

[lightguy06222]

Posted: 12/25/07 at 8:54pm

just saw the movie this afternoon and LOVED it (after hating the tour i saw last month)

Going to buy the DVD with Lansbury and Hearn tomorrow... cant wait to watch it!

[regnad kcin]

Posted: 12/25/07 at 8:59pm

I have a related question. What WAS Doyle's concept? I know it was minimalist: there was no ensemble and all of the actors were the orchestra. I heard something about Toby in a institution? I could see how that could or could'nt work. How was it represented? Anyone willing to share details? I'm curious.
Updated On: 12/25/07 at 08:59 PM

[ljay889]

Posted: 12/25/07 at 9:26pm

Yes. It took place in an asylum and was seen through Toby's eyes. It's most likely the asylum we assume Toby would be taken to at the end of the play when he goes crazy. It opened up with him bound and gagged and his "caretaker" who also played Pirelli would release him, he would start the ballad, and the tale would come alive in the asylum as seen through Toby's eyes.

[LadyRosecoe]

Posted: 12/25/07 at 9:28pm

Also, the characters in the show were also patients so you'd see the character of Anthony exiting a scene and racing to the back by the piano, subtly being handed a cup of pills by the "caretaker" ljay made mention of. It was very nuanced and had little touches like that.

It ultimately added a new layer having the characters played by another set of characters.

[morosco]

Posted: 12/25/07 at 10:10pm

Loved the original production. Hated the Doyle production. That score being played by 10 musicians is ludicrous. It was like not allowing Rembrandt to use all the colors in the crayon box...instead he is given only 10.

[morosco]

Posted: 12/25/07 at 10:10pm

double post

Updated On: 12/25/07 at 10:10 PM

[allofmylife]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 3:13am

Does anyone remember "Singing In The Rain" at The Uris? I saw the show in London, at the Palladium with the still amazing Tommy Steele and this wonderful little man named Roy Castle playing the Cozmo role. He was AMAZING. When he did "Be A Clown" - yup, not "Make Em Laugh". I guess the Berlin estate finally said enough is enough to that thievery - Castle sang tap danced, juggled AND did back filps ALL AT THE SAME TIME. Amazing little man. He's long gone now.

ANYWAY, then the show came to New York with relative unknowns (Don Correia, Mary D'Arcy and the ridiculously talented Peter Slutsker as Cosmo) I came into town to see the show. Huh. Didn't move m. HOWEVER, talk about filling the stage. That house of Don Lockwood set from "Good Morning" was amazing. The set was so enormous that only 2/3 of it could be on stage at any one time, so one side or the other was always in the wings. And as the trio raced through the house, the set wold move to adjust, then they'd turn and go the other was and the other side would roll into the opposite wing. That was clever.

Updated On: 12/26/07 at 03:13 AM

[Smaxie]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 8:24am

One thing not yet mentioned about the original Broadway set that particularly fascinated me. As I recall, on the far sides of it, stretching into the wings, were about three levels of areas filled with slightly sinister looking machinery. You couldn't quite make out what they were or what they did, and those areas were never used during the show itself, but it added to the incredible atmosphere. I also remember looking up at the dirt-smeared glass roof, and seeing some beams and girders moving around during the pre-set. It really was a marvel. Frank Rich accurately described the set as "underutilized" but "one of a kind".

[cubanpab]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 8:50am

so the clips i saw on "the website that cant be named" that was from the tour? not the original stage show? were the same sets used on the tour that were used on the stage show?

[Smaxie]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 10:25am

That site does have some murky bootleg footage of Len Cariou and Angela Lansbury in the original Broadway production (not that you can really see the set), but you probably were seeing clips of the national tour video with Lansbury and George Hearn. The national tour set was a greatly scaled back version of what was seen on Broadway - the bridge, some of the side scaffolding, the staircases and platforms, the backdrops and the revolving pie shop/barber shop unit and the corrugated metal wall, but not the entire foundry set that surrounded everything.

[morosco]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 11:02am

I think the bridge on the original set not only went up or down it also could travel upstage and downstage.

[Jon]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 11:57am

The original set was an ACTUAL abandoned iron foundry that Eugene Lee found somewhere in New England. The producers purchased the building and had it dismantled and trucked in. The tour set was built to look exactly like the original, but was a couple of hundred tons lighter - built to travel.

[cubanpab]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 12:11pm

AMAZING! any pictures around of what the original set looked like??? i'd love to see it...

man, i love this show so much now that it pains me to know i'll never see what some of you saw...

[Smaxie]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 1:46pm

I haven't found any great online photos of the original Broadway set. Some of the Sondheim books that you might find in a library have some photos that give you some idea, but I really haven't seen much that shows off the scale and the intricacy of that set.

The national tour set is faintly reminiscent of the Broadway original, but really can't come close to duplicating how staggering the Broadway set was. It's like the Broadway set's younger, smaller, malnourished little brother.

[Jon]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 1:48pm

Here's a clip of the video with the touring set. It will give you SOME idea of the original.
God, that's Good!

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 7:01pm

From what I've gathered, the tour set was basically the original set minus the factory stuff (which was a huge waste of money anyway) and the elevator going to and from underneith the stage.

But yes, the clips on YouTube that you saw are probably from the tour of the Broadway production.

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 7:09pm

Yes, the DVD released of SWEENEY TODD with Angela and George is of the 1980 US Nat'l Tour and the tour cast. It was filmed during its run in Los Angeles.

Seems alot of people are not reading the responses and asking the same question about this DVD/productioin. No biggie.

[cubanpab]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 7:16pm

brody - not sure if that was directed towards me... i knew the dvd was of the tour, i just wasnt sure if the sets used on the tour were the same as the ones used when it was on broadway. thats what i was asking...

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 7:27pm

Pab -- you know I would never be rude to you (for many reasons).

It was directed to those asking those "oh, that is DVD is of the tour?!" questions over and over (and over again).

[cubanpab]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 8:33pm

brody - i figured... :) we have that special miami bond!

well i want the dvd... so i'm going to hunt for it... maybe netflix?

[B3TA07]

Posted: 12/26/07 at 8:41pm

I'm sorry im confused
Is that video on youtube from the tour with george hearn??? with landsbury or with um patti lupone ?