TUCK EVERLASTING Previews- Page 5

[RippedMan]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 1:30am

I didn't find their relationship creepy at all. Just didn't love his vocals, but thought his acting was spot on. 

I just found the entire show/score bland. Can't imagine anyone wanting to hear any of these songs again. The act opener/closers were all very forgettable. 

[Gink]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 1:36am

^I just looked through the song list--we liked Good Girl Winnie Foster, Top of the World was nice, Partner in Crime and Seventeen. My daughter mentioned that she would have loved to sing some of Winnie's songs if she were younger and in vocal class again. Many of the songs are fun in the moment but don't linger

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 1:41am

On the subject of Andrews age. We have to remember Jesse may be 17 on the outside, but he's older on the inside which is basically andrew in real life. Andrew looks like a 17 year old(if you get rid of all the muscles), but is 30. He also started working on the show at a much younger age.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 1:47am

His muscles aren't an issue? He's fine. There's not even any romantic elements. Everyone knows he's older. That's the point, really. 

And GINK, agreed. Which I think is kind of the problem with modern theatre scores. The songs didn't say anything or DO anything. They were just there. They didn't move the plot forward at all. 

[Gink]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 1:57am

I think the characters played it off as if they were in arrested development, so while Jesse was over a hundred he did come off as a 17 year old--who also happened to have traveled the world and was looking for a partner in crime. The parents seemed a little bored with life until the kids came home, and the older boy had the maturity that came with being a husband and father, but over-all they didn't come off as people who had been educating themselves and evolving mentally over the years. They seemed stuck in time which, I think, didn't make Jesse's relationship with Winnie too creepy.

 

[RippedMan]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 2:01am

Agreed. Which could be a flaw in the show. There's never a sense of "been there, done that." 

The song placement and the song choices all just seemed odd to me. I hate a musical where every principle seems to need a song. Fred Applegate, to me, was giving the most winning performance, but I don't think he needed a song really. 

[Gink]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 2:15am

Fred's song was one of the fun-in-the-moment songs. I'm thinking I liked this a lot more than you did Rippedman, It's not a big show, but I enjoyed it, my daughter loved it, I cried--a lot--it will be interesting to see how it does. If I were teaching upper elementary, I'd have the kids read this and see the show in a heartbeat!

[LimelightMike]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 2:20am

Is the stage high for this? Is BB a decent view?

[Gink]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 2:20am

RippedMan-my daughter and I talked after the show about changes they might make and I mentioned that "You Can't Trust a Man" was an easy choice to cut because it doesn't further the show, but in the end we both agreed it was fun. On a lot of cast recordings we forward through certain songs, this may be one of them, but we did love the performances Applegate and Wartella gave. I'd rather cut some dancing

 

[Gink]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 2:43am

And Hugo needs air time

 

[EvanK]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 3:26am

When I saw the rehearsal clips I didn't want to say anything... But the opening number with her in the centre and all the people dancing around came across as so odd, out of place, and frankly awful. Sad to hear it is still like that. I hope they completely rework the opening. I firmly believe dancing should enhance and help tell the story, not just be there to be there. Not every musical is a dance musical. 

[RippedMan]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 10:13am

He doesn't quite seem to understand how to just let an actor do their thing. Even the one song with the older brother. Pretty enough song, and well performed, but instead of listening to the character and charting their journey we are watching this cute kid run around with someone who isn't his dad. Why not back lit them against the back wall so we don't see faces and have them more in the background so they aren't the focus. 

[theatreguy12]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 10:19am

Updated On: 4/3/16 at 10:19 AM

[veronicamae]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 3:25pm

The sheer number of 20-something girls, at least in the rear mezz, at the show last night...my ears are still ringing. So much loud talking and scream-cheering, and they were all sobbing at the end.

I mean, I am so happy there are young people so enthusiastic about theatre!!!!

I hope this isn't too spoilery...

Overall I enjoyed the show, but I felt like there were too many songs, especially in Act I. Every 2 minutes there was a song, and not all of them seemed to really push the story forward, and then with one scene in Act II the entire story culminated and ended, which is when everyone was sobbing but I was left like ???? Because I had ZERO emotional connection to wanting Winnie and Jesse to be together since we only ever saw them as 11 and "17." I needed Winnie and Jesse together as appropriate age (well, relatively speaking) to get emotionally invested. OR to feel more compassion for Jesse being alone. He was with his family the entire show - when did we ever feel pity for his lonesomeness? 

Maybe if I had read the book??

The staging/sets were BEAUTIFUL! (Though frequently overloaded with dancers.)

Updated On: 4/3/16 at 03:25 PM

[tazber]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 4:34pm

WiCkEDrOcKS said: "SOMETHING ROTTEN! never had a different opening number. They did, however, have a lovely Act Two quartet that was cut early on. 

 

"

If I remember correctly it was called "Lovely Love".

 

It was by far the prettiest song in the show but it was completely unnecessary. It's a shame they didn't record it as a bonus track.

[homeimp]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 10:45pm

I personally don't care much if a song moves the plot forward, as long as it's a great song with a memorable melody and strong/clever lyrics. Do R & H's songs really move the plot forward? I mean really? I think it would be difficult for any competent music theater writers to write a song that neither advances the plot nor establishes character. But that's me.

[wickedfan]

Posted: 4/3/16 at 11:00pm

homeimp said:

"I personally don't care much if a song moves the plot forward, as long as it's a great song with a memorable melody and strong/clever lyrics. Do R & H's songs really move the plot forward? I mean really?"

Yes. They do. They either push the plot forward or show the audience an aspect of a character that was not known before the song. That's what a musical is supposed to do. 

[LimelightMike]

Posted: 4/4/16 at 12:04am

Bumping. Hoping to get an answer to my question eventually. Lol

[RippedMan]

Posted: 4/4/16 at 12:36am

Yeah, sorry. Check out even something as recent as Dreamgirls. Those songs all serve a purpose. As I've said before, the first two songs of the show say the exact same thing. So, why do we need two? It's the same sentiment of "This isn't for me." So get rid of one of them. I think the beginning needs to go. It's super cheesy. They should just start with the house setting and the mother/daughter scene. 

And agreed about the relationship. It didn't seem as epic of a love story as the ending seemed to think it was. I never even got the idea that they were flirting. I thought the relationship was more brother/sister than like, actual lovers. But maybe that's a fault of the story. 

[lucillefrank]

Posted: 4/4/16 at 11:00pm

I was there again tonight and they've already cut a song. It's "Live to Tell the Tale," that fun one where the family is beating each other up. But Carolee told me the creative team is still deciding whether they'll keep it that way.

[Sally Durant Plummer]

Posted: 4/4/16 at 11:22pm

Oh, Whizzer, why did you have to bring up The Grass Harp? On the subway ride back I listened to the recording and was reminded how subtle and moving it is, filled with gorgeous songs that expand character and move the plot forward - so much of Catherine's character is found in "Marry With Me." Unfortunately the very comparison of the two is insulting to The Grass Harp.

A poster has already mentioned that the first two songs say the exact same thing and one should be cut - to which I reply, what does any song say about anything in Tuck Everlasting? For a show with few books scenes, it seems a lot of the creative team to ask the audience to sit through eleven songs in act one where not one thing happens. Not one. No character is expanded through the songs, and little plot develops either. The music is bland and forgettable, orchestrated to sound like the bounciest music box you've ever heard. The lyrics are dull and often downright bad, the most egregious being "Seventeen". The only song I actually enjoyed in the first act was "Partner In Crime", maybe due to the winning performances and the appropriate choreography. Even Carolee's big song, "My Most Beautiful Day", failed to make an impression due to the inept direction, despite her glorious voice.

Which brings me to the inane blocking. The ensemble steps in randomly to river dance in most songs, bringing a stilted quality to the whole affair and leaving the fair scene with little impact. "My Most Beautiful Day" may have benefited from a dance section with young Angus and young Mae, but the entire chorus just took away from the moment. Even in the best song of the night "Time", the ensemble joins in, to which I nearly yelled "let the man sing!". The director clearly doesn't trust the material enough to just let the actors deliver a number, so he adds the ensemble in to distract.

The cast is all around wonderful. I actually thought that the girl playing Winnie was Lilla Crawford for the entirety of the first act. This bring a level of professionalism to the unprofessional book and score. As for cuts, I don't think anything being cut would make much difference. However, the two numbers that did nothing AND were centered around third tier characters were "Hugo's First Case" and "You Can't Trust a Man". Maybe if Guettel, LaChiusa, or Frankel had written the score, it would be worth dusting off in twenty years, but as of now, even making it a chamber musical couldn't fix the inept score.

The finale ballet was glorious. Even I was moved by the ending and was a little teary-eyed. It says something when the only enjoyable part of a musical is when no one is talking or singing.

 

Updated On: 4/5/16 at 11:22 PM

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/5/16 at 12:08am

I saw this tonight. When it was over, I turned to my friend and asked "Is Ken Mandelbaum producing shows now, just so he can include them in his next book?"

[Myglass989]

Posted: 4/5/16 at 12:27am

I also saw this tonight, and agree with those who said that the second act was better than the first...but maybe that was because we switched seats and could see better! We got tickets through TDF, and were very disappointed. We were in L 26 and 28, at the far right side of the house. The tree blocked a third to half of the stage. TDF does not usually give partial view seats unless that is explicitly stated, so we were a bit confused as to why they gave us those. Luckily, we were able to move a few seats in for the first act, and then took some empty seats  in the row in front of us for the second act. I would say if you are higher than seat 18 or 20, you will miss part of the action in ensemble numbers, and definitely not get a full view of the backdrop, set, lighting, etc. It seemed to us like a good part of house right was blocked by the tree- which is beautiful, but we didn't get why they placed it there. It looked like the people in the first rows of our section also had extreme partial view- I hope those seats are being sold as such!

[lucillefrank]

Posted: 4/5/16 at 12:32am

I'm guessing those tickets were on TDF before the set was finished and the tree came to be, which is why they aren't listed as partial.

[LimelightMike]

Posted: 4/5/16 at 1:26am

Has anyone sat in Row BB of the orchestra? If so, what's the view like from that close up?