THE KING AND I 96 Revival

[Ciaron McCarthy]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 4:55pm

I know this is random but I'm on a huge R&H kick right now. What do you guys think about the 96 revival? I saw it and LOVED IT!! Thought Donna Murphy was awesome and totally deserved the Tony (sorry Julie).

Lou Diamond Phillips kinda blew but didn't bother me as much as I thought he would.

Bruce Coughlins work on the orchestrations were amazing!!

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 4:58pm

I loved this production and saw it nine times. The last time I went was Lou Diamond Phillips last performance. Donna was wonderful, Faith Prince on the other hand was really inconsistent. Personally, I don't think it was the right role for her.

[gcal]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 4:59pm

such a great recording. didn't see donna- saw marie osmond.
I love the tone of the revival. It's my favorite R&H score.

[Ciaron McCarthy]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:00pm

It was much darker. Donna's "Hello Young Lovers" is one of my all time favorite showtunes.

God that woman can do anything!!

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:04pm

gcal, how was Marie Osmond? I'm kind of sorry I didn't see her in it.

Believe it or not, out of all the times I saw this show, not one time did I see an understudy. As much as I liked Jose Llana, as Lun Tha, I kind of wanted to see his understudy (name escapes me, but he played the Prince in the Disney presentation of Cinderella opposite Brandi).

[Calvin]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:15pm

Paolo Montalban?

eta: I didn't see the Broadway production, but I saw the subsequent tour with Hayley Mills. Updated On: 10/18/06 at 05:15 PM

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:17pm

Yes, that's it! Thanks, Calvin.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:20pm

That revival was stunning. The March of the Siamese Children brought tears to my eyes. I also thought Donna deserved the Tony for her performance. And I really liked Lou Diamond as the King. I was skeptical about him going into the show, but I really thought he gave an excellent performance.

[FoscasBohemianDream]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:21pm

I thought it was a magnificent revival that brought up a different perspective on the story. It wasn't afraid of exploring the darkness of this musical or the sexual tension between Anna and the King. Donna Murphy was sublime in the role, her "Shall I Tell You What I Think of You?" was always exhilarating and a true tour-de-force. Faith Prince was alright if a bit miscast in my opinion.

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:24pm

Mister Matt, there were many moments in that production that brought tears to my eyes. I, too, was skeptical about LDP as the King, but his performances just got better as his run in the show continued.

[Mother's Younger Brother]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:32pm

This was one of the most gorgeous Broadway productions I've ever seen. Everything worked. And I loved LDP.

[jewishboy]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:38pm

The King and I revival was my first good Broadway show (I saw Beauty and the Beast first, which I hated). I saw Donna Murphy's last performance and it was the best expeariance I had for a long time. Donna Murphy is probably the Broadway star who I think has the best voice and the best acting skills. Her, Shall I Tell You What I Think of You? Is still the best number I have seen preformed.

[Ciaron McCarthy]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:39pm

My problem with LDP was that I was lucky enough to see Yul Brenner ar The King and he owned that role. I know that isn't fair but it is what it is. Donna was the star though. She was amazing!

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:43pm

I saw the King and I revival in 1978 and absolutely hated it. It was my 2nd Broadway show, and I remember it played at the cavernous Uris (now Gershwin) theatre. I couldn't understand a thing Yul Brenner said because he wasn't annunciating. It was such a let down, because I was really excited to see this show with this supposedly legendary actor in the role he originated.

[FoscasBohemianDream]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:43pm

Yul Brynner *IS* the King of Siam, he owned (and still does) the role and only lets other people borrow it.
I think Murphy was the star of the show (Rodgers and Hammerstein wrote the King and I as a vehicle for Gertrude Lawrence after all, so in a way it is about Anna). "Shall I Tell You What I Think of You?" was her "Rose's Turn," such a powerful and emotional rendition of the song.

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:45pm

I was at Donna Murphy's last performance, too, and I remember LDP getting choked up as he was giving his speech at the end of the show.

[Ciaron McCarthy]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:45pm

R&H wrote "The King and I" because Lawrence insisted on it! They were both dying to work with her and she came across the book "Anna and the King of Siam" and told them to write it for her. Hammerstein was not into it!! Rodgers was. Finally she convinced them. THANK GOD for the power of Gertrude Lawrence. Too bad she died while starring in the show.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:53pm

I didn't get a chance to see it until Faith Prince was in it. Her problem was that she was trying to put some comedy into it. Anna really can't be played for laughs.

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:56pm

Plus her accent went in and out and the hats on her were very unflattering.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 5:57pm

"she came across the book "Anna and the King of Siam" and told them to write it for her."

There were more teachers than just Anna. When she wrote the book, the other teachers got really ticked off because she made out like she was the only teacher.

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 6:00pm

Gotham, I didn't know that. How interesting. I'm sure they had a few choice words for her.

[FoscasBohemianDream]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 6:03pm

The book is really a fictionalized autobiography and has to be taken with a grain of salt.

[Gothampc]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 6:03pm

"How interesting. I'm sure they had a few choice words for her."

Anna was only hired to teach English, there were other teachers to teach other subjects. The movie I'd like to see is the one where all the teachers gang up on her and give her a boot in her hoop skirt.

[nobodyhome]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 6:04pm

Actually, R&H were kind of wary of working with Lawrence, as they were wary of anyone else having control over what they wanted to do or more power than them on a show. And Lawrence was the most tempestuous, irrational, and unpredictable (including onstage) of stars.

But Lawrence had already bought the rights to the novel. Meanwhile, R&H had become, quite independently of Lawrence, very interested in it. If they wanted to write the show, and by this point they very much did, they had to write it for Lawrence.

Anyway, the idea that the 1996 revival brought out a sexual tension that hadn't been brought out before is pretty unlikely. R&H originally hadn't written it into the show. It was when they saw Lawrence and Brynner playing it during rehearsals that they said, "Oh!" and started adding things to suggest the mutual attraction.

And some people felt that Murphy and Phillips had no chemistry whatsoever, although it was clear that the opposite was the intention.

[StephenSondheimWHOO]

Posted: 10/18/06 at 6:06pm

I wish I could have seen this. Donna Murphy is so amazing!!