The Wild Party: Battle of the "L's"- Page 5

[apdarcey]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 3:55am

agreed munk. if lippa had reset the poem i would understand. but no, thus why i critique them against each other.

[Jazzysuite82]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 3:57am

I have to agree with munk. Artists don't think about target audience, producers do. I guarentee LaChiusa and Lippa both sat down with the same goal: to write a piece based on this poem to the best of their abilities. They both wanted a conherant, serious musical work. I think they both succeed, but I'm obviously biased to the one I think succeeded more.

[bjivie2]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 3:57am

Come on. You can't think that while Michael Jon LaChiusa was writing his Wild Party he was thinking, "Gee, I really hope those tween girls like this." Or Lippa was thinking, "Gosh, I really hope this appeals to the sophisticated art house fans." I don't know WHO they were writing it to, but the shows appealed to those people WHEN THEY OPENED. It's not like the appeal has changed. They know who's going to buy tickets to their shows.

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 3:59am

They each write different styles to begin with. Lippa never could have come up with something as complex as La Chiusa's, and La Chiusa (not speaking from knowledge, just assumption) might have a harder time writing a belt-obnoxious score.

[bjivie2]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 3:59am

And I must say that I DON'T think that they were specifically writing for a specific group, but they're style of composition caters to certains populations, and they have to know that. And you have to realize that as well.

[bjivie2]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:00am

Haha. Belt-obnoxious. I like it.

[Jazzysuite82]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:01am

no you're absolutely wrong. No artist worth his salt his thinking about teeny bopers and socialites or anything else. I swear to you it's not even a consideration. things like that get it the way. Look at Seussical. Ahrens and Flaherty originally wanted that to be a family musical for adults and children. But a lot of kids ended up coming to see The 'Cartoony Version' and were a bit disappointed.

[apdarcey]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:01am

i disagree. i think they write the piece of musical theatre they think is the best for that work they chose. they obviously have different styles. but at the same time, i think they were trying to achieve the same thing. and they both did to a certain success. i do believe lippa's is more commercially successful while lachiusa's is more theatrically successful.

[Jazzysuite82]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:03am

From what I've heard, they both didn't do too well. I think they are aware of who their music caters too, as am I. I think it caters to certain people because of their individual style, which was developed long before they even had an audience. So they're writting what they feel first...then the audience comes and decides what corners to go into.

[bjivie2]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:04am

Ok, my earlier post was misleading and I tried to make it more clear with my next one, but that might not have been effective. I didn't mean that they're actually thinking about who they want to come this show. Sometimes that's true and writers say, "I want this to be a show that soccer moms can come and enjoy," or something like that. I don't have any reason to believe that Lippa or LaChiusa wrote those shows FOR any specific audience. But I'm pretty sure they do know who it will be appealing to.

And I don't really understand your Seussical example. I didn't see the show, and (from the CD) I don't see the difference between the "cartoony version" and the version Flaherty and Ahrens wrote.

[apdarcey]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:06am

now i'm confused too.


i like both scores, though i think lachiusa's is more successful in achieving what it set out to do.

[Jazzysuite82]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:10am

Well if you look at the themes in Seussical, they're rather adult. I mean Mayzie gets "pregnant" and leaves horton with the "baby" while she flies off. Those are pretty adult themes. 4 and 5 year olds won't nec. get that. But people brought these children to see that show and they were expecting "The Cat in the Hat" Live or "on ice". From what kathleen Marshell says about it, they weren't expecting what they got. Therefore Seussical never really found a "target audience".
Updated On: 4/8/05 at 04:10 AM

[bjivie2]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:12am

Ok, I see. In that case, I would think that the parents would get more upset than the kids. They wouldn't understand anything like that, exactly. At least I don't think. I thought that Seussical was an extremely close stage adaptation of the stories.

But that's getting off the topic...

[apdarcey]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:14am

i needs me a seusical cd.

[bjivie2]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:16am

Meh, not really. Make sure to get Ragtime, Once on this Island and Man of No Importance before you get Seussical.

[Jazzysuite82]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:16am

I think the score is great. It's one thing I can say about Ahrens and Flaherty, they're soooo ecclectic. Ragtime, Man of No Importance and Once on this Island are distinctly different sounds and styles...wait this is a totally different thread.

[bjivie2]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:18am

That's ok! I really like F&A also. They write best when they have a musical theme to carry the show. Well, I guess I mean that Stephen Flaherty does. All of his best work is very specific: rag, carribean, irish. And I'm sure Dessa Rose is very stylistically specific.

[apdarcey]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:19am

wait until you all get the dessa rose soundtrack. despite your feelings on the show itself in the theatre, there is some truly glorious sounds coming out of the voices in the mitzi newhouse and people will be dying when they hear it on cd.

i'm ok with moving on to other great composers of contemporary musical theatre for now.

[apdarcey]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:23am

the score's style is very different from the others. and so exciting. it has a hint of americana in michael haydn and rachel york's pieces. lachanze's are very african. there is tribal, spiritual stuff tossed in too. and the climax is the combination of the two styles, the glorious "in the bend of my arm"... "trouble" too is amazingly nice how flaherty has actually made it a cappella with 'slave percussion' (meaning the actors use props to make the accompaniment sounds that slaves would have had.) it's very sophisticated the score.

[bjivie2]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:25am

I want to see it so baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad. I love Flaherty and Ahrens.

[apdarcey]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:28am

can you get studentix? that's what i did and i was front row center. god, norm, rachel, lachanze and michael were basically in my lap. and their voices... ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

[Jazzysuite82]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:30am

isn't that something you have to join yearly with Lincoln center?

[bjivie2]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:31am

Well I would, but I live in Seattle. Hopefully I'll get there in May and I can see it. I couldn't go during my spring break this year because I was busy directing middle schoolers in Into the Woods.

[apdarcey]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 4:32am

the new studentix program you can join whenever.
the link's on the right of the lct homepage.
(everyone notice i'm a legend now!)

student tix Updated On: 4/8/05 at 04:32 AM

[Thenardier]

Posted: 4/8/05 at 3:00pm

Well, in a way composers write for the audience. Obviously each composer has a certain style that generally attracts certain people. I mean, The Phantom of the Opera may not appeal to people who hate slow, somber, rather operatic music.

I think that with the new style of music - more belting, etc. the public like the music in Lippa's better. If you sit down with the two of them, after reading the book, you will see LaChiusa's is somewhat better. I am reading the book now, and not once have I heard Lippa's playing in my head. Grant it, more of LaChiusa's lyrics come straight from the book. But nevertheless, I hear LaChiusa's music.

I think both scores are very good. My school was going to do Lippa's (I just found out). But they did Forum instead. I am going to petition hard for LaChiusa's version to be done.

Updated On: 4/8/05 at 03:00 PM