TUCK EVERLASTING Previews- Page 8

[ohjustjake]

Posted: 4/9/16 at 7:27am

Hairspray0901 said: "I saw the show last night and I enjoyed it. Definitely needs some changes. My friend actually turned to me during the second act and said *spoiler* 

 

 

Click Here To Toggle Spoiler Content

"I bet that's his son!!!" She was talking about the man in the yellow suit being Thomas (Miles' son). I know the show follows the book but, how great would that be?? I was actually shocked it DIDN'T happen. I believe the time line would fit perfectly. It would make sense how he heard about the Tucks - he sings/talks about learning about them when he was young from his Grandmother or something and we know that his Mother took him away from them when he was a young boy, because they didn't age. Thoughts?? Is this supposed to be implied? If not, they really should make it this way.  

 

I loved the set and my seats were fantastic, ESPECIALLY for $19.75. I was able to snag center mezz row F. The tree was stunning and the ending was so beautiful, though, it did drag a little. Not sure why but it sort of  reminded me of Finding Neverland. Overall, a nice night at the theater! 

 

"

I honestly thought that that was going to happen (re: your spoiler). It felt like it was being set up that way for awhile, so I was surprised when it didn't happen!

 

Posted: 4/10/16 at 3:23pm

Hairspray0901 said: "I saw the show last night and I enjoyed it. Definitely needs some changes. My friend actually turned to me during the second act and said *spoiler* 

 

 

Click Here To Toggle Spoiler Content

"I bet that's his son!!!" She was talking about the man in the yellow suit being Thomas (Miles' son). I know the show follows the book but, how great would that be?? I was actually shocked it DIDN'T happen. I believe the time line would fit perfectly. It would make sense how he heard about the Tucks - he sings/talks about learning about them when he was young from his Grandmother or something and we know that his Mother took him away from them when he was a young boy, because they didn't age. Thoughts?? Is this supposed to be implied? If not, they really should make it this way.  

 

I loved the set and my seats were fantastic, ESPECIALLY for $19.75. I was able to snag center mezz row F. The tree was stunning and the ending was so beautiful, though, it did drag a little. Not sure why but it sort of  reminded me of Finding Neverland. Overall, a nice night at the theater! 

 

But wouldn't it be an even BIGGER surprise if Thomas turned out to be Billy Cane in "Bright Star"?  Sorry, couldn't help myself.  

 

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 4/11/16 at 11:23pm

I caught this tonight. I went in with low expectations after reading the posts on here and not being a fan of Nicolaw's work except for The Book of Mormon. Let me preface this post by saying that I read the book and saw the movie years ago as a child, but I remembered next to nothing about either one, so this was basically like I was going in cold. While the show was definitely better than I thought it would be, I can't say I loved it. Liked it and enjoyed (most) of it? Yes. Loved it? Definitely not.

 

I would put this on the same level as Finding Neverland, but with the strengths and weaknesses in the show being very different and almost exact opposites of each other. While Finding Neverland's score was not perfect by any means, it did have some beautiful tunes. Tuck Everlasting's score is generic at best, and even calling it generic is generous. The songs are pretty much all up beat and sound exactly the same.

 

Finding Neverland's choreography was abysmal IMO, but the choreography for Tuck Everlasting is beautiful and full of energy. That being said though, I found Tuck to be HIGHLY over choreographed to the point of just being distracting. More differences occur with the design elements. Finding Neverland is cheap and gaudy and ugly. Tuck Everlasting has one of the most beautiful set designs I have seen this season. I was in the rear orchestra and was bummed the top of the tree was cut off. I would definitely recommend sitting in the center or left mezzanine for this show.

 

The ballet sequence at the end was the strongest point of the evening. It was simply beautiful, elegant, and graceful. There was more story in those fifteen minutes than there was all evening! Like someone else said, it is very reminiscent of the beginning of Pixar's UP!.

 

The cast is excellent and Sarah Charles Lewis is giving an amazing Broadway debut as Winnie! So much talent and such a strong voice for being so young. I was definitely reminded of Lilla Crawford. Andrew Kennan-Bolger is simply adorable and charming beyond belief as Jesse Tuck. Carolee Carmello actually had quite a bit to do in this show, which is great after seeing her underused in Finding Neverland. Terrance Mann was good, but I absolutely loathed his character's songs - especially the song about his yellow suit that opened the second act. Speaking of yellow, the comedic song between the Sheriff and the Deputy about the man in the yellow suit has GOT to go. Rhyming habeas corpus with porpoise? Just awful.

 

This show definitely has it's strong points (the design elements are the biggest things this show has going for it), but it also has a lot of misses ranging from the weak score and over choreographed numbers. It's interesting to see two children's books playing onstage right next door to each other. Unfortunately the adaptation of Tuck Everlasting lacks pretty much everything the makes Matilda such a great adaptation except for a gorgeous set. I would say see this if you get the chance, but I wouldn't spend top dollar for a ticket.

[wolfwriter2]

Posted: 4/11/16 at 11:26pm

When, five minutes in, you and your companion look at each other and make that face, you know it doesn't bode well. We left at intermission, which, I know ticks some people off (who apparently, have many hours of their lives left to surrender, doing things they dislike). Time is finite.

There is a lot of talent in the show, but the poor cast is given, 'less-than-nothing' to work with. Poor Carolee Carmello. I, just love this woman and wish someone would write her a musical worthy of her talent. The music is beyond atrocious. It is not melodic or pleasant and sometimes, just grates on your eardrums.The set is interesting and I did like the tree, but the madrigal dancers who escaped from the local Renaissance Faire, to form the "clock" were distracting and annoying and looked, at times, like they were doing the robot.

The book is boring and goes on, interminably. Nothing happens in Act One. There is no real conflict. The set up for Act Two is so small and inconsequential, neither of us cared what the resolution was.

I had never heard of Tuck Everlasting, so I was unfamiliar with the story and was rather excited to know very little about a new musical. I am so disappointed that I felt the way I did.

Our conversation, afterward, was spent trying to determine how this made it all the way to Broadway, in the first place.

I truly hope the wonderfully talented cast finds material better suited to their gifts.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/11/16 at 11:36pm

You should really watch the film. It's a really wonderful story that, when told well, is beautiful. 

[Sauja]

Posted: 4/12/16 at 9:24am

I'll echo a lot of what Whizzer said about the first preview. This is overlong (even though it's only 2:15), over-choreographed, and while I haven't read the book, it seems to skim the surface of the material without ever really diving into some of the more interesting ideas about mortality and selfishness that are just begging to be brought to the surface more.

 

To me, this was a case of everyone doing their job well, but none of the pieces quite sticking. There are too many unnecessary songs. The book meanders. If they want to plunge deeper into the subtext, they could find ways to flesh out an evening at this length. But if they keep it as small and surface level as it currently is, cut some of the songs that lead nowhere and punch through in 90 minutes. 

 

There are so many truly talented people on stage (Carmello and Mann tops among them) but even though they have material, it's so bland that I thought there was little they could do to elevate it. Only Michael Wartella in the tiny role of Hugo stole my heart.

 

The ballet at the end, though, I will give full marks to. It would be even more effective, as discussed earlier, if there hadn't been so much pointless dance before it (how many times can you circle that silo and jete?) but still, it was lovely. 

 

Nothing about the show is bad. I just also didn't find anything about it especially...special.

[ACL2006]

Posted: 4/12/16 at 9:46am

I wonder if this show will make it past Labor Day. The word-of-mouth reviews haven't been kind so far.

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 4/12/16 at 9:47am

It's interesting to me that many of the negative reviews in this thread are people who admittedly don't know or don't like the material. There's only so much they can do to make you like it when you don't like the material.

I think they did a great job with what is there. Should Tuck Everlasting be a 2 hour musical? Probably not.

[Sauja]

Posted: 4/12/16 at 10:43am

neonlightsxo said: "It's interesting to me that many of the negative reviews in this thread are people who admittedly don't know or don't like the material. There's only so much they can do to make you like it when you don't like the material."

 

I think these are very different issues. You shouldn't have to know the source material for a musical to work, of course. And on the other side, I have fallen in love with musicals where I didn't much enjoy the source material (Hairspray is the one coming to mind right now). But sure...it's hard to win over an audience who already has negative connotations, but it seems to me that more people here are generally unfamiliar with the book or previous adaptations. 

[wolfwriter2]

Posted: 4/12/16 at 10:44am

Jordan Catalano said: "You should really watch the film. It's a really wonderful story that, when told well, is beautiful. 

Thanks for the suggestion. I will look for the film, this weekend. It struck me that this could make a sweet small chamber musical. Maybe 90 minutes with no intermission. 

Someone mentioned not liking the material. There wasn't really any material to dislike. I'll go along with any story, if it's well-told and engaging and I can see a lot of potential for the 'idea' of this story. It was just the execution that, sadly, didn't work so well, for me.

 

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 4/12/16 at 10:48am

"You shouldn't have to know the source material for a musical to work, of course"

 

That's not what I'm saying at all. I'm just saying you have to have the right expectations. Tuck Everlasting isn't Aladdin. It's a very simple story. So when people come out saying "oh that was boring" well yes that's the story. It's fine if you don't like it, but I think having the wrong expectations is coloring many people's experience.

My point is your non-criticism.
"The book is boring and goes on, interminably. Nothing happens in Act One. There is no real conflict. The set up for Act Two is so small and inconsequential, neither of us cared what the resolution was."

The book is not the issue here. The issues you're expressing are the story which they are adapting. My point exactly. Updated On: 4/12/16 at 10:48 AM

[Auggie27]

Posted: 4/12/16 at 10:55am

Whatever its immediate fate -- and in the same season with "Bright Star" (entirely different but I've already heard people confuse them at TKTS), it may be a hard sell -- this show likely has one of the longest lives imaginable in high schools.  It can be performed anywhere without offending communities that increasingly parse material. For the creators, the glass arrives half full.  

[Sauja]

Posted: 4/12/16 at 12:55pm

neonlightsxo said: My point is your non-criticism.
"The book is boring and goes on, interminably. Nothing happens in Act One. There is no real conflict. The set up for Act Two is so small and inconsequential, neither of us cared what the resolution was."

 

That criticism was from a different poster, but I appreciate you saying that yes, you need to be able to be involved in the story despite its "smallness." But I would argue that the biggest problem of the piece as it currently stands is that it rejects that smallness by tossing in lots of extra dancing around the silo, a carnival number that just feels like Nicholaw trying to throw in a showstopper, and a cast that has at least 8 more people than it needs. They didn't tell a small story in a way that allowed you to dig digger into the themes (what of Jesse's selfishness; what even of the affect of Winnie on the Tucks). There are enormous themes at play here, but they seem brushed over in exchange for more choreography or songs that seem to repeat themselves. 

 

I thought Miles' song was one of the more affecting of the show, but why did we need so many dancers on stage? Wasn't there more room for emotional truth? My ultimate feeling is that if they stick with a surface level telling, they need to cut a significant amount of what feels repetitive. And if they want to keep the length, they would need to dig deeper AND allow it to feel more intimate. 

 

I also believe that the songs need to be more specific. Let the Tucks tell their stories--where they've been and why they feel the way that they do. It would allow the material to be more deeply felt than the sort of generic songs like "The Wheel" that just feel like pop ballads that comment broadly on aspects of the story that we never really dig into. 

 

That's the ultimate frustration I had--it feels like there actually is a lot of emotion and thought and philosophy behind this supposedly simple story, but it doesn't appear to make it to the stage. 

 

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 4/12/16 at 12:58pm

I didn't mean to imply that was your post. Also I totally agree with what you're saying about Nicholaw's direction. You're right.

[MegInManhattan]

Posted: 4/12/16 at 4:26pm

Saw the show last night and was really underwhelmed. Maybe I'm not the target audience though as a single 30-something. For families and kids this could be charming, but still not great. Many people have been comparing it to "Finding Neverland" so I must say that I highly preferred FN. I felt no emotional connection to Tuck until the last 15 minutes, whereas I absolutely did for FN. I don't think it's a fair comparison though, as FN has much more for adults than Tuck. I also fount the humor very generic, predictable and not funny.

The cast is doing a great job with the material, especially Sarah Charles Lewis and Terrance Mann, but the songs fall flat and all sounded the same. I don't remember a single song a day later. The set and lighting are beautiful, but I agree the dancing is overdone. Between the choreography and the forest set, I sometimes felt as if I were watching "Midsummer Night's Dream".

Left me feeling "eh" overall, but I can't say that it's baddddd. It's really just not a show for me I think.

I rushed, and if you can help it DO NOT GET HOUSE RIGHT!! The tree many have mentioned is really obtrusive. I was in E 22, one of the top 2 worst rush seats I've ever had.

[hanabana]

Posted: 4/12/16 at 8:51pm

I saw the show last weekend, and I absolutely loved it.  I thought the story was intriguing and beautifully delivered on stage.  I have never read the book, so I went in knowing just the basics that I got from their marketing.  I liked the songs, some were more memorable than the others, but that's the case for me in all musicals.  Personally, I loved the dancing that they incorporated throughout the show, I never thought that it was forced.  Also, I liked all the characters, and thought that Andrew Keenan-Bolger and Sarah Charles Lewis made an adorable stage duo.  The ending was perfect in my opinion - amazingly staged.  Overall, this was one of my favorite musicals that I have seen in the past 3 years or so (I try to see about 8 per year).  I definitely think that people should check out this show.  But of course, everyone has different tastes, and this one just happened to be mine.

Updated On: 4/12/16 at 08:51 PM

[Matt Rogers]

Posted: 4/12/16 at 9:07pm

I had one of those $19.75 tickets and if I paid anything more than that, I would have been really annoyed because I hated pretty much every minute of this. It is like children's theatre. I have no idea what it is doing on Broadway. The book is dull, the songs all sound the same, and my mind was wandering starting about halfway through the first act. It's just static and very boring. I can't imagine what they could do to improve it at this point.

[TFMH18]

Posted: 4/13/16 at 10:18am

Please forgive me if this has been addressed already, but has anyone rushed this lately? Would love to know how many people were in line, etc. I was planning on rushing Friday morning for the evening perf, and want to have an estimate of when to get there. 

Any insight is appreciated! 

[emilyrobyn25]

Posted: 4/13/16 at 10:31am

Updated On: 4/14/16 at 10:31 AM

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 4/13/16 at 10:42am

^like she doesn't have an alternate? I'm not sure if she will be nominated either way. It's a tough category this year. 

[sorano916]

Posted: 4/13/16 at 1:58pm

^ According to the Playbill & the show website, Elizabeth Crawford is the Standby and Brooklyn Shuck is the Understudy. No Alternate.

[bdn223]

Posted: 4/13/16 at 2:08pm

Saw the show last night and I went in with extremely low expectations except for a friend who loved it, and was pleasantly suprised. Is it a groundbreaking musical? No, but it is a well staged  beautiful production of a classically written American Musical. 

After reading through the thread and bumping into Casey Nicholaw in the rear of the orchestra who was actually asking people what they though, you can tell that he really wants to fix this. From seeing the show last night, the show has clearly come a long way, and is almost at the finish line.

I have some updates on point of contention people have had below:

 

Click Here To Toggle Spoiler Content

The Music Box although not central to the plot is seen and explained throughout. We first hear it when the fair passes the Foster House, and Nana remarks "Oh there it is again, I have heard that song off and on since I was young," The Man in The Yellow Suit over hears her and immediatly grabs and questions her thinking she is a Tuck, when she says "No I have just heard the music comong from our wood". The next time it is seen is Mae Tuck opens it just before she meets Miles in the Wood, where he grabs it and immediatly scolds her for not being careful. She says something about special occasions implying that she only opens it every 10 years when she sees her sons. It is next opened in front of Winnie, causing Winnie to bring up her Nana and help put her at ease. Mae then gives it to Winnie before they part. It is last seen at the end of the Ballet, right before Winnie dies. She opens it and all of her loved ones besides the Tuck surround her, as she passes, solidifying that she lived the life that Mae and the rest of the Tucks couldn't.

 

Regarding the ending:

When we see the Tucks at at the send they appear to be visiting Winnie's grave just after she passed, so it is about 1960ish. Although their costumes do not scream "late 50's early 60s" they are more modern then their costumes seen earlier. 

 

 

Regarding the background Dancers:

I don't know how heavily they were featured before, but they seem to be toned down, and I thought they actually gave energy to the production. I think Casey's decision to use them is 3 fold. As I said they give a lot of energy to the productions allowing the show to maintain its mommentum especially in the first Act. Also I think they are supposed to be representation of everyone the Tucks have lost along the way. Third is they bring the ending Ballet full circle, as without them the ballet really just comes out of left field. 

 

I think the there are 2 problems the show has in order take take the show from being ok/good to good/great.

The first is is focus. The book is about a Winnie, who has never been able to see the world outside her gate, going on an adventure and loosing her innocence, through her interaction with the Tuck family and not the other way around. The seem to be working on that of ensuring the Tucks are never onstage without Winnie once they meet. I think the problem is that so much time is spent on introudcing the Tucks and their plight, that Winnie's problems become secondary instead of the central focus. The way to fix this in my opinion is have Mother and Nana have a larger presense in the first act. They need a song after "Hugo" to explore why Mother raised Winnie so strictly to keep the plots focus on Winnie running away instead of the Tucks. The second Act although much more uneven uneven does a much better job of this.

The other problem is Andrew Keenan-Bolger, not that he isn't great in the part. but its his chemistry with Sarah Charles Lewis is great to the point of it causing the audience to become distracted. Having read the book back in the day and seen the movie, the greatest critisism of the movie is they made Winnie 15 instead of 11. This created a romance between Winnie and Jesse that is not supposed to exist. The fact that Andrew reads really young and Sarah actually reads older then she is despite actualy being 11, causes the audience to see their relationship as a romance instead of a friendship. This is why Mae is so angry when Winnie says he told her to wait till she is 17, as he is 105 years old creeping on an 11 year old, along with the torturous existence they live. Although Jesse's desire to "marry" Winnie existed in the book, there isn't the explicit sexual reference and easy joke Andrew says regarding why she has to wait. Then again Hugo is also another creeper, so I think they need to get rid of the whole pedofilic element of the plot. But in truth they need to make Winnie and Jesse's relation ship scream friendship and not read as a romance. 

 

Overall though I thought the show was in great shape. Yes the the conflict it quite small to the point of being a deus ex machina with the Man in the Yellow suit, but I think that is addressed in my comments on the focus.. The first Act was almost perfect, and the second act is 80% there. The tree is marvoulous and everyone around me was saying how they wished they could play on it. Everyone gives strong performances and outside of Mother and Nana, each gets their own moment to shine. I do wish "Everlasting" ending on strong big note instead of tappering of into the ballet, but it worked well in showing her internal conflict. 

 

Is the show perfect no, but is is good for what it is yes.

Updated On: 4/13/16 at 02:08 PM

[peacelovemagic1]

Posted: 4/13/16 at 2:24pm

I also saw the show last night, and I really loved it. I cried for most of the ballet at the end, as did many of the people around me. My biggest criticism was that I still found the dance/ general ensemble overpowering at times, especially during things like Top of The World and Good Girl Winnie Foster. At times the dancing was loud enough to make it hard to hear the lyrics of the songs, which was a bit frustrating. I think they need to trust in the power of their beautiful set and talented cast, and just let them sing without the constant movement going on. I also agree that some of the lines between Jesse and Winnie in the act one finale were a bit strange, and gave me a slightly uncomfortable vibe. My favorite parts of the show were Partner in Crime, Everlasting, Top of The World, and The Wheel. They have incredible sets, I mean that tree...wow. Overall I really loved the show and I hope they use the rest of previews to keep tweaking with it, because it has incredible potential and I think they can get it there. 

Updated On: 4/13/16 at 02:24 PM

[TFMH18]

Posted: 4/15/16 at 11:31pm

Oh my goodness. I saw a preview this evening and I don't have sufficient words to explain how utterly... Bad it is. I have never seen a show where I couldn't find a single redemptive quality until tonight. I cannot believe that a musical about living forever made me wish for death (I'm kidding, of course, but yes it was that terrible). 

Sorry to be so harsh, but if you value your time on earth, see anything else. 

[VernonGersch]

Posted: 4/16/16 at 11:54am

i so want to this show now - for whatever that $19 deal is - it sounds awful and I'd love to test myself to see if I can at least make it through the first act