TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD Previews — Page 4

Parade3, I enjoyed reading your review. Even if I had an opportunity, I would have probably passed on this. I'm not a real Jeff Daniels fan and I didn't like the concept of the children being played by adults. Although I never read the book and only saw the movie, maybe twice, I never knew that Capote was the inspiration for Dill. Thanks for the info.

Can we maybe use spoilers when talking about the changes made to this adaption? I'd rather not know what happens before going in. Being angry doesn't mean you can ruin things for others. You can be angry, but don't ruin it for other people who haven't seen the show yet. Thanks.

Updated On: 11/3/18 at 12:05 AM

The Distinctive Baritone said: "I think the whole point of this production is to do something different with the story. Purists still have the Oscar winning film version, as well as the dreadful Christopher Sergel stage version."

Then Mr. Sorkin should have written his own play and not an adaptation in which he felt it was okay to change certain aspects of the story and characters that are germane to the novel. For me, this falls under the heading of chutzpah. I suspect that people who will love it are the people who finally admit they have no real affinity or knowledge of the novel at all and maybe have seen the film.

I'm not seeing this production until mid January so I can't comment about what's currently onstage, but for those who don't feel it's appropriate to rethink Mockingbird, I urge you to read Go Set A Watchman, which is Harper Lee's original novel about Atticus and her adventures. It takes place as Scout is a grown woman working as a writer in New York City who goes back home to find out that much that she believed about Atticus is far from black and white. Calpurnia also has a large role in this text. Her editors didn't think it was very strong so she agreed to get back to the drawing board and created To Kill A Mockingbird. It is an inferior text compared to her only other published novel, but I believe that much of that original conception may have led Sorkin to take a fresh look at these beloved characters and create an original stage creation. That was what the legal battle was about but since all parties agreed I'm looking forward to what I will see on stage.

Hey West Side Story is being reimagined both by Van Hove and Spielberg so let's embrace creativity folks!

Go watch the movie if you want the movie.

Go read the book if you want the book.

This is an adaptation of To Kill A Mockingbird by Sorkin.

If you don't want an adaptation of the work, go read the book or go watch the very fateful movie.

This production on Broadway doesn' null-and-void the book or movie, they still exist and are apt for consumption.

And certainly don't lampoon an adaptation just because you read a Broadway World review.

If you want to hate this production, at least see it. Hell, you don't even have to see it. Read it when it's published. Listen to or watch a bootleg. But don't decide this is an abomination just because you read someone on Broadway World who didn't like it.

Okay, goodnight

nycward said: "I'm not seeing this production until mid January so I can't comment about what's currently onstage, but for those who don't feel it's appropriate to rethink Mockingbird, I urge you to read Go Set A Watchman, which is Harper Lee's original novel about Atticus and her adventures. It takes place as Scout is a grown woman working as a writer in New York City who goes back home to find out that much that she believed about Atticus is far from black and white. Calpurnia also has a large role in this text. Her editors didn't think it was very strong so she agreed to get back to the drawing board and created To Kill A Mockingbird. It is an inferior text compared to her only other published novel, but I believe that much of that original conception may have led Sorkin to take a fresh look at these beloved characters and create an original stage creation. That was what the legal battle was about but since all parties agreed I'm looking forward to what I will see on stage.

HeyWest Side Story isbeing reimagined both by Van Hove and Spielberg so let's embrace creativity folks!"

For me personally, I think considering Watchmsn when creating TKAM for the stage is a huge mistake. Watchmsn was basically a first draft or attempt (whatever you want to call it) and was discarded by Harper Lee in favor of Mockingbird. It was published years later to make money. Period. If Lee has wanted it published she would have done so years before when she was of sound mind and body.

Whether or not this is good drama is of no interest up me. I would like to have seen a dramatization of TKAM. This is not it. It uses what Lee discarded. It eliminates what Lee created. The fact that there are no children in the production tells me Sorken and company have no feel for the book and what it stands for. I’ll pass.

Doing an original worked “inspired by TKAM” would have been acceptable. Calling it TKAM when it’s not...just doesn’t seem right.

Okay, I saw it last night. First DO NOT sit in the balcony rush seats. I stood the entire show. That is really one of my only complaints though. And even standing up the run time went by really fast. I thought it was great and depressingly relevant in today's society. To the people who complaining that the show starts in the middle of the court case, the whole play is told through memories. The court case is presented in about 5 different parts throughout the play. I thought it was very successful. I've only read the book once when i studied it in an english class so i am not by any means a mockingbird purist but I thought the play made for a great evening in the theater.

The design is very simple. Moving platforms and chairs, all mostly pushed on and off by actors. The scene changes into the court segments are clunky because none of the court scenery is automated. I thought the set was very effective but nothing ground breaking. It also doesn't feel minimalist and fills the stage very well.

The music served the piece very well. Nothing really to write home about though. They have 2 musicians on stage playing the music the entire show off to the side.