Sweet Charity 2005 Revival: What Went Wrong? — Page 2

There were MANY theories to the firing, but there was no definite answer. Their replacements were equally as wonderful, if not better.

It's too much to get into now, if you want to know how people really felt at the time - do a search.

The failure of the show was HARDLY Applegate's fault. She's the reason the show continued, she had so much drive, and passion for the show, she never gave up. She was rarely out. More BROADWAY stars should have the dedication and drive that Applegate had. She was very capable of the role. Cilento ruined most of the choreography, he was most responsible for what went wrong. Christina got better and better as time went on. And by the end of her run her voice was noticeably stronger.

Applegate was alright.

What went wrong?

She's no Gwen Verdon.

it was easily Cilento's bastardization of the show. i'm all for reinvention, but make it good... PLEASE

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By trunk song I meant a song that had been written by Coleman and Fields that hadn't been used in any show before, I'm not sure what song it was, "A Good Impression" was the only one that remained.

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IMHO...

The revival suffered from the same problem as many other revivals before and after it: packagitis. A producer looks at a fondly remembered musical from the past and thinks, Hey, we get some trick casting and then stroll through the rest. So they get some second-tier star to take a lead role for name recognition, then proceed to cut corners on everything else because they figure the audience wont care. In their minds, the audience will be there with the automatic expectation of having a great time seeing a show they'll automatically love because it's, well, a revival of that Great Theatre Classic, _________________.

We've seen it a hundred times before, and we will no doubt see it a hundred times again. Revivals like SWEET CHARITY and FOLLIES and all the rest simply underscore what Broadway is slowly but surely turning into: a packaged event.

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I thought Denis O'Hare was adorable, and Applegate was adorable, but as a pair they couldn't have been worse. He could have played Charity's dad, but her love interest? That was just silly to watch. I thought he was the best part of the show, but as others have said, there were too many mismatches in the creative team along with the cast for this production. I thought Ann Reinking could have done some great work on choreography for this show. I'd love to see Applegate in a straight play in the future.

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A strong star AND a strong director ()and choreographer in this case)

Applegate was wonderful. She did an amazing acting job with Charity, I believed everything she said.

As for Jane Krakowski it is almost laughable if that is not a rumor. She was hanging from sheet singing "Who's not wearing any clothes? I'm not" at studio 54 every night, played a woman who was cheating on her husband in Alfie and played a a pretty demeaning female on Ally McBeal. I love her but I hope that is not a true story.

Oh I think the movie of Sweet Charity is just a fascinating experiment, you can see the way Fosse was trying to do different things that he eventually perfected in Cabaret. It's a bad movie but as a way to see Fosse's film work, it's rather fascinating. The dancing is great as well and it's great to see numbers like "Big Spender," "There's Gotta Be Something Better Than This," and "If They Could See Me Now" fully choreographed and danced by top-notch performers.

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The revival was a lot of fun(i dont get all this negative response to it)

Applegate was great as Charity ,her singing got better as the show went on and her comic timing was spot on.

The choreography was fine(im a dancer and i loved it) and the sets looked great.

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FYI - Nine played the O'Neill, not 54.

From Brantley's review:

"Ms. Applegate, who is best known for 11 seasons as the dopey daughter on the sitcom "Married ... With Children," exudes a soft hopefulness and a sterner determination that suit her character, an unlucky dance-hall hostess in eternal pursuit of love. She has a comic polish that considerately stops short of polyurethane sheen, and an easy, conversational way with a song, even if her voice isn't always on pitch.

But as a character meant to be a shopworn angel, Ms. Applegate looks more like a merry cherub, an ingénue fresh from the suburbs. More important, in the musical numbers, she seems to grow smaller rather than bigger, which is one thing that definitely should not happen if you are playing Charity Hope Valentine.

But the production asked a question that boded ill for future incarnations: Could "Charity" possibly soar without the Fosse touch and a star who thrilled to it?

This latest revival, directed by Walter Bobbie and choreographed by Wayne Cilento, answers that question with a weary "no." While the overture, with its delicious opening vamp from the song "Big Spender," makes you salivate, the main course never seems to arrive.

The dances never achieve more than a low-grade fever, when what's wanted is that old steam heat. The pop-religion parody, "The Rhythm of Life," usually a guaranteed showstopper, fizzles for want of choreographic and satiric sharpness.

The supporting cast includes solid pros like Ernie Sabella (as the dance-hall proprietor) and, as two of the many men in Charity's life, Denis O'Hare and the handsome-voiced Paul Schoeffler. Doing a variation on his Tony-winning performance as a neurotic gay accountant in Richard Greenberg's "Take Me Out," Mr. O'Hare at least provides some comic oxygen as a neurotic heterosexual accountant."

http://theater2.nytimes.com/2005/05/05/theater/reviews/05char.html?ex=1172120400&en=43964cab52c6c94b&ei=5070

The Charity film is a brilliant experiment. Ahead of its time really. Fosse did a fine job with the direction and the supporting cast was charming. Shirley McLaine was badly miscast, however.

Perhaps miscast isn't the word. Perhaps I just didn't like her. I think Gwen Verdon was a big enough star. She could have handled it. It also would have been a slightly better film, I think.

Updated On: 2/22/07 at 12:14 AM