The Nance... Could have been better.
The Nance... Could have been better.
Unknown User
Joined: 12/31/69
#1The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/21/13 at 10:59pm
Just got out of The Nance at Lyceum Theatre.
I really was rooting for the show but boy I was let down. The 'vaudeville' didn't work at all! The audience hardly laughed. Not surprise some people didn't come back for the second act. Pitiful.
Nathan Lane is terrific as usual but nothing out of the ordinary. He can do the act from home. Jonny Orsini is wonderful and convincing. You should watch out for him. The set is multi-functional, reminds me of Chinglish.
A lot of work to be done. Could use some snipping. 2 hours and 40 minutes feels like eternity.
Updated On: 3/21/13 at 10:59 PM
Stage Door Sally
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/4/09
#2The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/21/13 at 11:23pmWhat did you think of the book? I am leery of Beane after the dreckful Mr. and Mrs. Fitch.
Borstalboy
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/9/04
#2The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/21/13 at 11:32pm
How was Johnny Orsini?
I saw the poster and thought it sort of looked like THE ENTERTAINER. Then I wondered why didn't someone just revive THE ENTERTAINER with Lane.
PlayItAgain
Broadway Legend Joined: 11/8/11
Unknown User
Joined: 12/31/69
#5The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/21/13 at 11:41pmThe book could have been written by an intern.
Unknown User
Joined: 12/31/69
#6The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/21/13 at 11:43pmJonny Orsini is the one to watch out for!
Borstalboy
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/9/04
#7The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/21/13 at 11:49pmWell, good for him. Not four years ago I saw him do a supporting role in FIFTH OF JULY off-off.
#8The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/21/13 at 11:53pm
I've got to disagree with the OP. I really liked it, and thought it was easily one of the better new plays of the season. It is a little long right now, but after some trimming they'll be just fine.
The show alternates between Burlesque scenes where Lane plays "The Nance," a gay character who uses double entendre to illicit laughs, and scenes from his private life attempting to have a gay relationship with Johnny Orsini.
Cady Huffman, Andrea Burns and Jenni Barber play three strippers at the Burlesque house and all three are wonderful. Lewis J Stadlen almost steals the show as Lane's stage partner- totally hilarious work.
Lane is excellent. Funny as ever, and really excels in the dramatic scenes. He has a monologue in act two testifying in a courtroom that I loved. Orsini has a full frontal nude scene coming out of a bathtub- who'd have guess we'd have two of those in a few weeks from each other! Orsini gave a sweet performance, Borstalboy. I was impressed and hope to see him in other plays.
I've been critical of Beane in the past, but I liked this more than anything else I've seen of his. It gets a tad preachy in the end, but there are loads of laughs and I thought the Burlesque numbers came off very well.
The set is Chinglish-esque. The costumes are beautiful too.
I wasn't really looking forward to seeing this tonight, but I ended up a fan.
After Eight
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/5/09
#9The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/22/13 at 12:18am
I'm afraid the original poster is correct. It's not rich enough, deep enough, or dramatic enough.
The play is a departure for Douglas Carter Beane; absent is the dopey snark he has been doling out for several years now. Now he aspires to something more serious, but after a promising first scene set in the automat, the play sputters and starts like a car running out of gas. By the second act, it doesn't move at all.
Nathan Lane is very good, as are the other cast members in one-dimensional roles. The only exceptional element in the show is the elaborate set design.
egghumor
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/9/11
#10The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/22/13 at 12:20am
Thanks, Whizzer, as always! I had no idea what I might hear about this play. Now with your opposing take on the show from OP, I have no idea where this production is ultimately headed...
WiCkEDrOcKS
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/13/04
#11The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/22/13 at 12:20am
HA! I love that! "The original poster is correct." Didn't know opinions/a matter of personal taste could be correct or incorrect.
At least you're consistent, After Eight.
April Saul
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/17/06
#12The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/22/13 at 12:23am
Thanks for the review, Whizzer...I inadvertently double-booked Sunday afternoon, with a third-row Nance ticket and a $10 Big Knife one, so decided to go for Nance and catch Big Knife later; then I read the first post here and winced! Now I'm psyched...Nance and Superman in one day, I'm ready to be entertained 
After Eight
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/5/09
#13The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/22/13 at 12:24am
Wicked,
Glad I taught you something you didn't know.
Actually, there's a lot you don't know; unfortunately, there isn't nearly enough time to teach it all to you.
April Saul
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/17/06
#14The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/22/13 at 12:28am
Now Eight, knock it off...I already paid for my Nance ticket!
Guess I will just have to see for myself
#15The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/22/13 at 12:28amThat sounds like the talk of someone who's been indoctrinated by the critics, Wicked.
#16The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/22/13 at 12:32am
The Nance and Superman will be a lot of gayness to take in one 24 hour period, but you should have some fun.
I think the production will be just fine for a while. It has a subscriber base to fall back on, and Lane usually can sell a decent amount of tickets. I think the critics will shower Lane with their praises and he should pick up some nominations. (I don't think he will beat Letts though.)
Lane really knows how to milk a laugh out of this style of material. Some sample lines:
Would you like half of my sandwich? It is ham, so I guess it verges on cannibalism.
Is that Hortense? I don't know she looks pretty relaxed to me!
#17The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/22/13 at 12:43amBefore people can say that this is merely a tactic due to potential bad word of mouth, at least the full page ad in The New Yorker emphasizes about three times that it is a strictly limited run.
#18The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/22/13 at 12:46amYes, well all LCT shows start out as limited runs.
TalkinLoud
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/3/09
#19The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/22/13 at 12:49amThis is selling VERY well and will likely extend.
aaronb
Broadway Star Joined: 6/3/12
#20The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/22/13 at 6:01amWhat a shame. I've never had the chance to see Nathan Lane onstage.
#21The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/22/13 at 8:39am
I wish the best for Nathan and Cady!
I also hope to get to see this in June...
#22The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/22/13 at 8:52am
I think I fall somewhere in between the previous posters. I think the play has a lot of potential and I enjoyed it, but it definitely needs work to be at its best. The show feels bloated and needs some major trimming.
The show's structure is very interesting, with an alternation of burlesque scenes and regular book scenes, with the burlesque scenes commenting on the action (a la Cabaret), but the burlesque scenes are lengthy routines rather than quick bullets (it felt like at least a third of the running time is the burlesque scenes). Lewis J Stadlen and Nathan Lane are fantastic in the burlesque scenes, but the burlesque scenes are too long and need to be tightened in terms of pacing. The burlesque jokes, as Whizzer has pointed out, are very corny, which is great fun at first but starts to feel repetitive. And there is no forward movement in those scenes so the show is very long but it doesn't feel like there is a lot of momentum.
Nathan Lane's character is potentially a great part -- he sings, there is a large range of emotions to play, and there's a chance to shine both in farce (in the burlesque scenes) and in drama (the book scenes). And the play feels like a star vehicle -- he is hardly ever off stage for very long. The role must be exhausting. Lane was terrific, especially for a first preview. From where I was sitting, there was a lot of laughter. And Lane knows how to get every last laugh.
But I don't really feel like I understood his character and why he made the choices he did. He makes a decision at the end of the first act that I'm still having trouble understanding the motivation for. And the character doesn't seem to know, either -- later on, he says something that seems to invalidate the apparent motivation and seems to contradict how he's portrayed elsewhere. And his major decision in the second act is also confusing -- not necessarily a surprise, but I'm not sure what Beane is trying to say here. The book scenes could be beefed up a little bit in terms of motivation and character development.
And this is a small thing, but Lane's character's catch phrase is "Hi, simply hi!" and I thought for most of the show he was saying, "Hi, Sibley, hi!" and wondering who Sibley is.
The cast as a whole is great, and the set and costumes are terrific. (The set definitely deserves a Tony nomination.) The show is much more elaborate than I thought it would be, with a lot of costume changes and a live (offstage) band. You can see the Lincoln Center money on stage.
The show feels like it wants to be a big, important production that says something. It's definitely a change of pace for Douglas Carter Beane. I think there is potentially a great show in there, but the preview period needs to be used wisely to get there.
#23The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/22/13 at 10:48am
I went into the show last night not knowing what to expect. I ended up really enjoying the material and loving the actors.
This, in my opinion, is some of Douglas Carter Beane's best work. I liked THE LITTLE DOG LAUGHED, but absolutely detested his books for XANADU and CINDERELLA. Yes, the script is a bit long, but last night was the first preview and he has time to tweak, but the foundation for a solid work is definitely there.
Nathan Lane is giving a wonderfully layered performance. I honestly thought he was outstanding last night and will only improve as the run goes on. From my vantage point, the audience seemed to love him as well. It is hard to believe that this is his 19th Broadway show - with absolutely no signs of slowing down. I truly love the man and think he is insanely talented.
The rest of the cast supports Lane perfectly. Jonny Orsini makes a triumphant Broadway debut. Lewis J. Stadlen is perfection in his role and he and Nathan make a great on stage duo during the Burlesque skits. Cady Huffman, Andrea Burns, and Jenni Barber all get chances to shine as well...and they are fantastic.
As other have mentioned, the sets and costumes are definitely up to LCT caliper and deserve praise. I also think Jack O'Brien and Joey Pizzi deserve a mention for the direction and choreography.
It is upsetting to me that the title of this preview thread will forever be "The Nance...Could have been better," because I think it is an excellent play, that I would highly recommend. With some minor trimming, I hope this play gets the critical praise it deserves once the reviews come out. Definitely go see THE NANCE. You won't regret it.
Updated On: 3/22/13 at 10:48 AM
#24The Nance... Could have been better.
Posted: 3/22/13 at 1:12pmWhizzer, I always enjoy reading your posts, as you state your opinion very cogently, but I admit that I'm really looking forward to reading that you dislike a show sometime.
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