For some reason, when I got home this evening/morning, I thought a viewing of this concert couldn't wait until tomorrow. It could have waited. Adequate is the word I'd use to describe nearly every aspect of this production. Some unsolicited thoughts at 5 in the morning...
BRYN TERFEL - Based upon what little we had of his Sweeney on video (BBC Sondheim concert, for example), I had incredibly low expectations for his performance. I expected him to plant himself down center, bark his lines unintelligibly and barely acknowledge his co-stars. So, I was pleasantly surprised that his performance was considerably more interesting than that. Not great, but nowhere near the disaster I was expecting. However, I was even more surprised at how lacking I found his voice. When the songs called for ferocity and bombast, it felt that he was holding back so much (struggling?). His Epiphany was a mess and he seemed out of breath. It was actually on quieter vocal moments I thought he equipped himself well - the "Johanna" trio from Act II was gorgeous.
EMMA THOMPSON - Big disappointment for me. If you've seen Thompson's early comedy work, it's no surprise that she likes to mug and "play act", but I don't think she did any solid work until the second act. I thought her best work was during "God That's Good" and "Nothings Gonna Harm You". She was having a jolly time up there, though. Watching her performance was like watching your friend's kids at the playground. You know THEY'RE having fun. And, yes, I suppose that's okay singing for a movie star. Beyond the strain in head voice, I found her chest voice really unpleasant - she goes VERY Kermit The Frog.
BEADLE - Not sure I like the choice of The Beadle sounding so common, but perhaps I'm used to the more posh sounding prior versions. Disappointing vocal performance, too. I miss hearing The Beadle's voice pierce through in the quartet.
THE JUDGE / QUAST - Acting fine, but disappointed we didn't get someone with a deeper more resonant voice. Not only for his solo, but for "Pretty Women". Without the contrast of a basement deep Judge and Sweeney, "Pretty Women" sounded tepid.
PIRELLI / BORLE - Again, what is with casting actors who can't sing the parts? Is Borle seriously a big enough name to warrant this?
TANKTOP CHORUS GUY - Did he wander in from Musical Mondays at Splash?
ANTHONY / JOHANNA - Thought they were both lovely, though I do miss a slightly nuttier Johanna. I thought she played it too straight, but that's obviously Price's choice. Looking forward to seeing Armstrong in On the Town.
AUDRA - Perfect. I'd like to see her Lovett someday.
NY PHIL - I did not think this was particularly strong performance. They seemed disappointingly hesitant at times and were definitely holding back with some of the solos/duets to avoid overshadowing the... strained vocals. I thought the Phil sounded best during big group numbers like "God That's Good". All in all, I think the OBCR orchestra was far more dynamic and colorful.
Anyway, God bless George Hearn.
Updated On: 9/27/14 at 08:15 AM
