The Starry Messenger

[bmoo]

Posted: 10/26/09 at 10:52pm

Anyone going to see the first preview tonight? I'll see it in a week and I can't wait anyone's thoughts.
Updated On: 10/26/09 at 10:52 PM

[AC126748]

Posted: 10/26/09 at 11:45pm

I saw the first act. Anyone who paid money for tonight's performance should receive a full refund.

First previews are always dicey. The audience expects to see a performance of a work in progress, but they also expect to see a professional performance. What happened on the stage of The Acorn this evening was certainly not professional, and was hardly even a performance.

Pre-show, Scott Elliott announced that this was the first time the cast had ever performed the show straight-through, and it showed. Hell, I've been at sitzprobes that were more put-together than tonight's public performance. There was a prompter in the front row, so that "the actors would feel at ease and relaxed" should they need to call for a line. As you can probably guess, there was only one person who needed to be prompted: Mr. Broderick. He called for line ten times in the first act alone, often followed by a slapping of the face and him muttering "Oh God" or "I'm sorry" under his breath. Some of the lines on which he had to be prompted were as simple as "Goodbye" or "Where is he?". This is an actor who has been working in theatre for twenty-five years, and still, with every show he does, we go through the same process of him not knowing his lines by the time performances start. Will this ever change?

Another actor jumped in at the last minute. He read his part from a script. I sympathize, knowing that it's not easy to jump only a few days before the first performance. At least he has an excuse for not knowing his lines.

I will say that Catalina Sandino Moreno was entirely competent, considering that this was her first stage performance ever. She never went up, and even tried to prompt Broderick when he forgot his lines. I'm sure that as previews progress, she'll really come into her own.

The rest of the cast--which include stage veterans J. Smith-Cameron, Missy Yager, and Grant Shaud--simply seemed to be attempting to get through the performance, reading their lines without any semblance of connection to the text. Only Kieran Culkin, as a precocious young student, bothered to construct a character, rather than just saying words.

The play itself is a mess--there are four underdeveloped plot lines and by the end of the first act, the audience has no idea what the play is about. The dialogue is clunky and repetitive. Act 1 alone lasted ninety minutes, and the usher said that they expected the performance itself to run over three hours.

I have no doubt that the production team will move back the opening (something which they've already hinted at in the press). Is it possible that the show will vastly improve by the time opening rolls around? Sure--anything is possible. But it needs a MAJOR overhaul. They should cancel this entire week of performances. I can't imagine how, in good conscience, they can charge people a $70 top to see what is essentially a tech rehearsal.

[Pgenre]

Posted: 10/26/09 at 11:52pm

OMG this sounds likes an unmitigated disaster! Hope it improves (though it seems impossible that it couln't!).

P

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 10/27/09 at 12:15am

holy s**t. i hope he knows his lines by Wednesday...this sounds like a disaster.

[AC126748]

Posted: 10/27/09 at 12:16am

I wouldn't hold your breath, WAT. But you like trainwrecks, don't you? This certainly qualifies as one.

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 10/27/09 at 12:21am

i am hoping to meet Matthew Broderick after the show...and if it's as bad as you say it is, I won't know what to say to him when he signs my playbill...it could be very awkward.

[mc1227]

Posted: 10/27/09 at 6:08pm

I had tickets for the first preview and then was called to reschedule for another performance. I chose this coming Saturday. Personally, I usually go to an earlier preview to get an idea of the story and performances and then attend again after it opens. In most cases, there are some differences in the chemistry, the polish and the telling of the story. The only play I can say that didn't happen was "The Philanthropist". It was equally bad the second time. However, unlike most of the theater world blogs, I do not blame Broderick for that. I blamed the writer and the director for a horrible play. I always go to a preview with no expectations other than to try and understand the story and see the interaction of the cast. Even after reading some of these postings, I prefer to see it for myself and form an opinion. I understand that some people could be annoyed since you've paid for the experience, but you have to know that going in. Broderick is notorious for slow development of a character. I have been watching him onstage for many years and have never been let down by a performance. I don't judge the performances before the show actually opens. I don't believe it's a fair thing to do even if you have paid full price for your ticket. That's your choice.

[Patti LuPone FANatic]

Posted: 10/28/09 at 6:41am

Here is the NY Daily News' Gatecrasher column on Matthew Broderick:

Theatergoers must have wanted to "shoot the messenger" during the first preview of Matthew Broderick's new play on Monday night. The Broadway veteran put on such a poor showing at "The Starry Messenger" that some fans left in a huff.

Producers may have taken notice of the subpar performance, too: they announced yesterday afternoon that the show will officially open a week later than planned, on Nov. 23.

The reason for all the fuss? Broderick clearly wasn't prepared for the preview, and had to stop the play to ask for his lines numerous times during the show. And not that anyone's counting, but, well, okay, they are: An audience member confirms Broderick flubbed 10 times in the first act alone.

A theater insider tells us that Broderick - who has starred in "The Producers," "The Foreigner" and "The Philanthropist," among others - is notorious for studying scripts late in the game. But fans weren't very forgiving after Monday's performance. Several members of the audience took to talkinbroadway.com, a theater Web site used by Broadway regulars, to air their grievances.

"Broderick should be fined for this sort of thing," one angry user wrote. "The theater, the producers, Kenneth Lonergan (the director) and Broderick should be ashamed to have let an audience in for this."

Another Broadway fan who hadn't even seen the show chimed in: "For God's sake, they are charging good money for this, and it is indeed unconscionable to use these as rehearsals. I only hope they do cancel this week of performances because I, too, have a ticket, and I don't want to endure this either."

Perhaps audience members were being a bit harsh. It was just a preview, after all, and a source close to the show says that a recent casting change may have led to the play's rocky start. Merwin Goldsmith replaced Jonathan Hadary just this past weekend.

But our insider says Broderick's flubs were more than just a few butchered lines. "It was an overall mess," said the source. "He kept apologizing under his breath after he forgot a line, and everyone in the audience started to feel awkward."

It's a bad start for Broderick and his "Starry Messenger" run, which comes right after some unkind critical notices for Sarah Jessica Parker's hubby. Several outlets panned his performance in "The Philanthropist," which ran from April to June. While one review commented on his "dullness," others even got a little personal, dissing the sideburns he grew for the part.

from RC in Austin, Texas


Uh Oh Matthew Broderick

[mc1227]

Posted: 10/28/09 at 12:18pm

But our insider says Broderick's flubs were more than just a few butchered lines. "It was an overall mess," said the source. "He kept apologizing under his breath after he forgot a line, and everyone in the audience started to feel awkward."

mmmmm...same exact commentary in AC's posting....I guess we know the source.....sounds fishy..