"The Music Man" and some predictions...

[SuperSchubert]

Posted: 7/28/04 at 3:27pm

I went and saw The Music Man last night in St. Louis. It was enjoyable. The casting was acceptable. I was most pleased with the casting of Kim Crosby as Marian Paroo. Kim has been hired to play several "strong ingénues" in past seasons: Eliza Doolittle (My Fair Lady) and Guenevere (Camelot). Marian is quite an appropriate addition to her repertoire, and she has the acting chops, sweet soprano and stage presence to carry off the role of a librarian with several psychological issues. I was surprised to see that my prediction of the casting of Harold Hill was WAY off. Dirk Lumbard was Harold Hill, and he was serviceable in the role, but nothing too revelatory. It's not an easy role to play, as the actor is in the giant shadow of the great Robert Preston. Lumbard added a lot of tap-dancing to the role, which is not a norm for past Harold Hill interpretations. Fascinatingly enough, the tap dancing added layers to the "con-man" side of Hill. He's 'tap dancing' his way through the hearts and minds of River City in order to get what he wants. It was an impressive choice. Ruth Williamson, from the recent revival, was a delightfully regal Mrs. Shinn.

The MUNY also had their 'next season ballot' stuffed into the programs. It's a way for the current artistic administration, led by exec-producer Paul Blake, to put up a thin veneer of democracy, and therefore convince patrons that our vote counts. Well, folks, I'm sorry to say this, but we've been had. It doesn't. Someone once said "It's all so preordained at the Muny. A computer could have selected the season." How true that is. After researching past trends, I have found a realistic prediction for the 2005 season:

West Side Story

1. It was done five years ago (that's the rule for recycling shows)
2. It's popular with baby boomers and some younger audiences
3. It IS a good show, IMO, and it's one of the few daring shows that the MUNY will produce.

The Sound of Music

1. It was done five years ago
2. Very popular, especially due to the film's enduring appeal
3. family-fare
4. blue-hair friendly

White Christmas

1. It was done five years ago
2. Popular, especially due to the film's enduring appeal
3. Paul Blake engineered it for the stage
4. Paul Blake needs a 'vanity' piece
5. Paul Blake needs an excuse to showcase a certain aging songstress
6. family-fare
7. blue-hair friendly

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers

1. It was done five years ago
2. Popular, especially due to the film's enduring appeal
3. family-fare
4. blue-hair friendly

Singin' In the Rain

1. It was done five years ago
2. Very Popular, especially due to the film's enduring appeal
3. family-fare
4. blue-hair friendly

An Evening With Irving Berlin

1. Paul Blake has to torture us with another one of his magnificent revues!
2. The blue-hairs probably hated Side by Side by Sondheim and demand something more wholesome

The Wizard of OZ

1. It actually played here four years ago, but the management tends to fudge that rule for this title
2. They need an obligatory kid-show
3. With a kid-show comes $$$$
4. family-fare
5. Extremely Popular, especially due to the film's enduring appeal
6. blue-hair friendly

Hmmm...patterns! How odd! Most of these were films (i.e. 7 Brides, Wizard, Singin'...Rain, White Christmas) before they were made into stage shows, which makes me wonder if people just don't care about musical theatre shows, and would rather just see their favorite movies put onstage. Oy!

As for my predictions...who knows?? I could most definitely be wrong. In fact, I'll bet that 3 of my predictions won't come true, but I've been close to 100% accurate in the past.

Don't get me wrong. I really enjoy going to that theatre, but I will not stand for shoddy management and cheap artistic decisions. I'll go and see something that I think is worthwhile, of substance, and a good contribution to American Musical Theatre (like The Music Man). I will not, however, stand by and let the blue-hairs prevail in keeping the seasons 100% sanitary.

And I admit that I was surprised to see some "saltier" fare included on the ballot, including two Kander & Ebb "untouchables": Cabaret and Chicago! OOO! The latter was probably on there because of the recent popularity of the 2002 film. This is especially surprising because back in 1977, the MUNY did present the national touring company of Chicago. However, the administration censored ALL language and sexual innuendo. Can you imagine Chicago without all of that?!? I wonder if it would happen in 2005 as well? It happened somewhat with Miss Saigon in 2001... It could happen again.

Nevertheless, here are my SEVEN choices for next season: A Little Night Music, Cabaret, Chicago, Gypsy, The Pirates of Penzance, Porgy & Bess and Ragtime. They all have a snowball's chance in Hades of showing up on the season, but I can still hope.

-SuperSchubert

[shesings]

Posted: 7/28/04 at 3:29pm

don't even get me started on the muny....
you forgot Fiddler and Annie ... they do those like every other year

[SuperSchubert]

Posted: 7/28/04 at 3:33pm

Fiddler was done in 2003. Technically it shouldn't be back until 2008.

Also, Annie was done this season, making its soonest possible return in 2009. (It's just as well, because they've had it done in 89, 94, 99, 00 and now 04.)

Though, if Paul Blake gets really sadistic, we might see them for all eternity!

[Plum]

Posted: 7/28/04 at 3:38pm

Chicago without sex is...well, it's something, but it's not Chicago. How weird.

[shesings]

Posted: 7/28/04 at 3:57pm

I'm SURE Paul Blake could make an excpetion. The funny thing is someone from STL tried to tell me the other day that the MUNY actually picks their shows according to what the surveys say. #1, no they don't - I'm sure they use it as a guideline, but if everyone in St. Louis wanted to see The Full Monty, I still don't think they'd pick it
#2, the people who go to the Muny don't know any other shows except those same 7 or 8 that they continually rotate - so what else are they going to vote for - they have no idea what anything else is!

[MusicMan]

Posted: 7/28/04 at 4:00pm

I'm very happy to read that Dirk Lumbard is now employed in leading roles.

[TheaterGeek91]

Posted: 8/24/04 at 10:27pm

Actually, rumor has it that the Muny is going to do Oliver next year, and Sound of Music is pretty much a definite. If they do Oliver and Sound of Music, they will be able to put in the kids chorus, boys in Oliver, boys & girls in Sound of Music. I don't know where the teen chorus gets put in though...
My family has had season tix to the Muny since I was born. And I have seen about 10 shows there in 13 years of going 7 times a summer.
The 5-year-cycle is absolutely a rule. Annie & Meet Me in St. Louis, Sound of Music, Wizard of Oz, Peter Pan, Cinerella, Annie & Meet Me in St. Louis, Sound of Music, Wizard of Oz, Cinderella, wow I'm dizzy.

There is actually a big to-do @ the Muny this year because a) when they did the Annie/Meet Me combo 2 times ago, the girl who was Annie was also Agnes, so Natatlie Bram, this year's Annie, was expecting to get both roles (so I've heard) b) the girl who was Molly this year was mad she wasn't Tootie because the past 2 times they've done Meet Me/Annie, Molly has also been Tootie, and Tootie/Molly will move on to be Annie, so Molly is sure she's set. Is what I've heard...

I hope they end this dumb cycle. There are actually people in St. Louis who appreciate theatre. And sorry to revive an old thread.

[kjklo]

Posted: 8/24/04 at 11:26pm

The funny thing is, that back between roughly the mid-sixties through the late-seventies, it was actually quite outstanding. And now it's just mostly garbage, although they still get a lot of very good people in their casts. Somehow they've become terrified that somewhere there is one person that they might possibly shock or offend. It didn't used to be that way.