Posted: 2/22/24 at 11:06pm
I think they should just have Melody double up as Addaperle/Evilene and Deborah as Aunt Em/Glinda. Both ladies still get two songs and Glinda’s introduction goes back to the 2nd half of the show.
Posted: 2/23/24 at 9:48am
tomwsjr said: "Why does Schele keep getting high profile directing jobs? I just don’t get it!"
I wonder the same thing. It was also just announced that she's being awarded the Drama League's Founders Award for Excellence in Directing this year which is surprising to me based on the responses to everything she has spearheaded so far. Still hoping (but not optimistic) someone else takes the reins on Aida.
Posted: 2/23/24 at 9:58am
silent said: "I think they should just have Melody double up as Addaperle/Evilene and Deborah as Aunt Em/Glinda. Both ladies still get two songs and Glinda’s introduction goes back to the 2nd half of the show."
I think any kind of doubling up sends the wrong message (as if we're supposed to intuit a link between the characters). I do prefer Glinda only showing up at the end.
Posted: 2/23/24 at 10:05am
Even though the film as a whole doesn’t cohere, I can’t really bring myself to dislike it. The individual musical numbers are all incredible. The art direction and conception of an Oz/NYC hybrid is genuinely brilliant and realized extremely well- it’s incredibly specific, rooted in Dorothy’s character and the experience of urban Black Americans at the time, and has a point of view.
Contemporary takes on it just sort of become a generic Afro-futuristic whimsical mishmash that feel rooted in no particular context.
Posted: 2/23/24 at 10:13am
It's odd to me that early on, the responses were much more positive, especially in terms of performance--only comments on the sets and overuse of backscreen projection was a consistent complaint, and even that was assumed to be an issue sure to be remedied for Broadway--but the most recent responses have been strongly negative even in terms of performance. Have things deteriorated?
If the show continues to be done on the cheap, I worry we won't even get a cast recording. And I really, really want a cast recording that takes in the complete score (of course, I've know idea how many numbers have already been cut for this production--"I Was Born on the Day Before Yesterday" is missing, for one).
Posted: 2/23/24 at 10:29am
I think the tour is simply playing to more discriminating audiences now that it has landed in places like Los Angeles. If they wanted to give Deborah Cox more to do, I don't understand why they didn't give her the Aunt Em track as other productions have done doubled Glinda/Aunt Em.
Posted: 2/23/24 at 10:39am
Kad said: "Even though the film as a whole doesn’t cohere, I can’t really bring myself to dislike it. The individual musical numbers are all incredible. The art direction and conception of anOz/NYC hybrid is genuinely brilliant and realized extremely well- it’s incredibly specific, rooted in Dorothy’s character and the experience of urban Black Americans at the time, and has a point of view.
Contemporary takes on it just sort of become a generic Afro-futuristic whimsical mishmash that feel rooted in no particular context."
Very well put, I agree with pretty much everything (except the film coheres for me, at least, I think)! I love what you said! Yay!
Posted: 2/23/24 at 11:51am
MagicalMusical said: "Kad said: "Even though the film as a whole doesn’t cohere, I can’t really bring myself to dislike it. The individual musical numbers are all incredible. The art direction and conception of anOz/NYC hybrid is genuinely brilliant and realized extremely well- it’s incredibly specific, rooted in Dorothy’s character and the experience of urban Black Americans at the time, and has a point of view.
Contemporary takes on it just sort of become a generic Afro-futuristic whimsical mishmash that feel rooted in no particular context."
Very well put, I agree with pretty much everything (except the film coheres for me, at least, I think)! I love what you said! Yay!"
Since the film was brought up I'll chip in my 2 cents...for whatever that's worth. I agree that the individual musical numbers in the film are (for the most part) spectacular. The Oz/NYC hybrid as a concept is brilliant, but it lacks proper execution in many sequences. A lot of this film is just way too dark. Munchinkland, which is supposed to be full of vibrant color in contrast to Dorothy's normal existence is dark, the cinematography and (non-existent) lighting do the "He's The Wiz" number no favors. The nightmare sequence in the subway was just downright weird, weird, weird. And as much as people love the Emerald City Sequence, I find it overblown, over-produced, and excessive. But one of the worst crimes Sidney Lumet's film version of THE WIZ committed (aside from Diana Ross' being miscast) is giving "Dorothy" first dibs on the song "Believe in Yourself". It made absolutely zero sense. If she already realized she had the answer all along then why the hell did she need "Glinda" to swoop in and scream it to her at the top of her lungs via Lena Horne? At that point, they should have just had "Glinda" swoop in and exclaim, "You wanna go home? Just click your heels three times, honey" and be done with it. I seriously hate the film.
Updated On: 2/23/24 at 11:51 AM
Posted: 2/23/24 at 1:53pm
CarlosAlberto said: "MagicalMusical said: "Kad said: "Even though the film as a whole doesn’t cohere, I can’t really bring myself to dislike it. The individual musical numbers are all incredible. The art direction and conception of anOz/NYC hybrid is genuinely brilliant and realized extremely well- it’s incredibly specific, rooted in Dorothy’s character and the experience of urban Black Americans at the time, and has a point of view.
Contemporary takes on it just sort of become a generic Afro-futuristic whimsical mishmash that feel rooted in no particular context."
Very well put, I agree with pretty much everything (except the film coheres for me, at least, I think)! I love what you said! Yay!"
Since the film was brought up I'll chip in my 2 cents...forwhatever that's worth. I agree that the individual musical numbers in the film are (for the most part) spectacular. The Oz/NYC hybrid as a concept is brilliant, but it lacks proper execution in many sequences. A lot of this film is just way too dark. Munchinkland, which is supposed to be full of vibrant color in contrast to Dorothy's normal existence is dark, the cinematography and (non-existent) lighting do the "He's The Wiz" number no favors. The nightmare sequence in the subway was just downright weird, weird, weird. And as much as people love the Emerald City Sequence, I find it overblown, over-produced, and excessive. But one of the worst crimes Sidney Lumet's film version of THE WIZ committed (aside from Diana Ross' being miscast) is giving "Dorothy" first dibs on the song "Believe in Yourself". It made absolutely zero sense. If she already realized she had the answer all along then why the hell did she need "Glinda" to swoop in and scream it to her at the top of her lungs via Lena Horne? At that point, they should have just had "Glinda"swoop in and exclaim, "You wanna go home? Just click your heels three times, honey" and be done with it. I seriously hate the film."
Dorothy first sings "Believe in Yourself" in the original stage version, too, if I recall correctly (maybe I don't), and Lumet wasn't responsible for Diana Ross. Universal was. She bypassed Barry Gordy (who told her she was too old) to tell the execs at Universal that if they cast her, she could guarantee Michael Jackson.
Posted: 2/23/24 at 5:54pm
MagicalMusical said: "Kad said: "Even though the film as a whole doesn’t cohere, I can’t really bring myself to dislike it. The individual musical numbers are all incredible. The art direction and conception of anOz/NYC hybrid is genuinely brilliant and realized extremely well- it’s incredibly specific, rooted in Dorothy’s character and the experience of urban Black Americans at the time, and has a point of view.
Contemporary takes on it just sort of become a generic Afro-futuristic whimsical mishmash that feel rooted in no particular context."
This is basically what I tried to convey. I think the art direction of the film was overall pretty good (and a great lift from the Wizard of Oz) and made sense in the context of what's going on. This current tour could've gone deeper into a dedicated art direction that's neither the film nor Wizard of Oz, but it fell back to more of an WoZ vibe, which is unfortunate in my opinion.
Very well put, I agree with pretty much everything (except the film coheres for me, at least, I think)! I love what you said! Yay!"
Posted: 2/24/24 at 10:10am
Posted: 2/28/24 at 12:31am
joevitus said: "CarlosAlberto said:Since the film was brought up I'll chip in my 2 cents...forwhatever that's worth. I agree that the individual musical numbers in the film are (for the most part) spectacular. The Oz/NYC hybrid as a concept is brilliant, but it lacks proper execution in many sequences. A lot of this film is just way too dark. Munchinkland, which is supposed to be full of vibrant color in contrast to Dorothy's normal existence is dark, the cinematography and (non-existent) lighting do the "He's The Wiz" number no favors. The nightmare sequence in the subway was just downright weird, weird, weird. And as much as people love the Emerald City Sequence, I find it overblown, over-produced, and excessive. But one of the worst crimes Sidney Lumet's film version of THE WIZ committed (aside from Diana Ross' being miscast) is giving "Dorothy" first dibs on the song "Believe in Yourself". It made absolutely zero sense. If she already realized she had the answer all along then why the hell did she need "Glinda" to swoop in and scream it to her at the top of her lungs via Lena Horne? At that point, they should have just had "Glinda"swoop in and exclaim, "You wanna go home? Just click your heels three times, honey" and be done with it. I seriously hate the film."
Dorothy first sings "Believe in Yourself" in the original stage version, too, if I recall correctly (maybe I don't), and Lumet wasn't responsible for Diana Ross. Universal was. She bypassed Barry Gordy (who told her she was too old) to tell the execs at Universal that if they cast her, she could guarantee Michael Jackson."
I like that Oz is very dark, including Munchkinland. It makes it seem like a darkness for Dorothy to get through. Or maybe I just think it looks cool and feels epic. The Subway scene is weird, but that is the point. It's creepy. I do find the Emerald City scene a bit superfluous, it doesn't need to be as long as it is, but I still like it. Also, yes, Dorothy indeed sings "Believe in Yourself" to the Wizard in the original version of the musical! So they were faithful to her singing it first. She realizes her friende always had what they needed, but she didn't realize she could have home anytime she needed until Glinda came along. Works for me.
Posted: 2/28/24 at 1:00am
In the original stage version, the Wizard first sang "Believe in Yourself."
Posted: 2/28/24 at 9:27am
g.d.e.l.g.i. said: "In the original stage version, the Wizard first sang "Believe in Yourself.""
Yes, that's right. Thank you for the correction.
Posted: 3/1/24 at 4:09pm
Thanks for the reviews to everyone who has given them. It saves me from taking two buses and a train to the Pantages and the price of admission. If it's a mess then I'm not wasting my money on it.
Posted: 3/1/24 at 5:50pm
Saw this on Wednesday at the Pantages, and yeah, it is BAD. Boring, lazy choreography (both in design and execution), community theater sets, and utterly listless and mundane direction (mostly consisting of "plant yourself on this mark, stare out at the audience, and sing"). The voices are fine, but agree with previous comments about way too much "American Idol"-style riffing. Highlights for me were Wayne Brady and Kyle Ramar Freeman, but it was a pretty low bar. I don't see this breaking the Marquis' recent streak.
Posted: 3/4/24 at 1:56am
Went to the final LA performance of The Wiz tonight.
Is this Wiz everything everyone will want? No. Is it still good? I say yes.
The projections as a set are projections as a set. Most of the costumes are OK, but the Lion looks terrible. It looks like he's wearing a diaper the whole show. The weather this weekend in LA was around 50°. That's cold enough that people brought out their fur coats - so there were people in the audience better costumed to play the Lion than poor Kyle Freeman.
Sets and costumes aside the show is peppy & moves at a good pace. Everyone's singing is great. Melody A. Betts milks the audience for every laugh right from the first scene as Aunt Em; and that's nothing compared what she does later as Evilene. Philip Johnson Richardson is sex in a tin can. For me, those were the two stand out performances.
Wayne Brady & Deborah Cox both are collecting easy pay cheques. Both do their parts well, but they aren't doing the heavy lifting here. That's on Nichelle Lewis, and to some extent Avery Wilson. I've seen the film too much so I found myself comparing Wilson's Scarecrow and Lewis's Dorothy to MJ & Ross. Wilson brings enough of a silliness that he makes the role his own by the end. Nichelle Lewis was good, but she doesn't have the vulnerability of the film Dorothy, so it's different. But she was good. I'd like to hear her sing "Home" again. It brought the crowd to their feet.
Some more negative: I would like to see better choreography for the ensemble, especially in the second act opener in Emerald City. The audience liked it. But they haven't seen Camille Brown's work in Hell's Kitchen yet. Compared to that, this looks lazy. It tries to be an homage to Ballroom culture, but doesn't go far enough and isn't tight enough.
Altogether though I had a good time. It could be a lot better. But I still had a very good time.
Finally, the Hollywood Pantages Theatre is gorgeous! And they don't allow food or alcohol inside the theatre! An observation deserving of an exclamation point.
Posted: 3/4/24 at 7:07am
Caught the show in LA this weekend and truly loved it. Sold out audience which seemed to really enjoy it. The Cast is superb and the sets, costumes etc were wonderful and innovative . I’m sure they will shave a bit before Broadway and make other tweaks to make it even tighter, but for sure this is a crowd-pleaser! Joyful and fun!
Posted: 3/4/24 at 2:41pm
The reactions to this production are all over the place. Does anyone have any insider information on whether they are making any meaningful changes prior to Broadway? You would think they would try to address some of the issues that many have pointed out, but as these things normally go, I'm not counting on it.
Posted: 3/4/24 at 11:14pm
Rentaholic2 said: "The reactions to this production are all over the place. Does anyone have any insider information on whether they are making any meaningful changes prior to Broadway? You would think they would try to address some of the issues that many have pointed out, but as these things normally go, I'm not counting on it."
I was JUST about to post the same question. I already got my tix. Raised on that Original Cast record and film
Posted: 3/5/24 at 7:30am
I don't have any insider info, but after they played to pretty much sold out houses in huge theatres ( the Pantages seats 2700 vs the Marquis's 1600) where the audience went bonkers for every goofy look Scarecrow gives & every line, and just random stuff like
Like a little bit Wayne Brady did where he takes off his hat and even though he's bald now, he runs his fingers through the hair he used to have and the whole frigging place erupted in screams and laughter
When that's the reaction they were getting on the road, they probably won't think they have to change anything. Will it play the same in NY? Maybe if it gets the same audience who sell out MJ.
Posted: 3/5/24 at 9:05am
It was noted somewhere (and i don't know that this is official) that the production was getting a $2M enhancement for Broadway. But its worth noting that the Broadway run is being advertised as 20 weeks only, making it essentially a long engagment on its continued touring schedule.
In terms of the reaction the show has received, its perhaps also worth noting that critics and audiences were fairly divided on the original staging in 1975. But even those divided back then seemed to agree the costumes, scenery and choreography were outstanding. So it's disappointing that for its first revival in a very long time on Broadway, it appears these are the elements most lacking.
Posted: 3/5/24 at 10:07am
From a friend - their pre-Marquis rehearsals were basically slashed by 50%. Any money going towards a Broadway ‘revamp’ is for design elements, but don’t expect many changes regarding book/score/staging; which should be obvious considering the (rumored) figure.
Posted: 3/5/24 at 10:34am
Does anyone know how many librettos The Wiz has had over the years?
Concord Theatricals licenses the 1974 book by William F. Brown.
The 2006 production at La Jolla was marketed as a "reimagining." It boasted new orchestrations but still listed Brown as librettist.
The 2015 television special featured a revised book by Harvey Fierstein. I liked some of his ideas but I don't think this can be licensed.
And I've read the current production features "new material by Amber Ruffin." Is it a fresh book or has she added new jokes to Brown's original?
Posted: 3/5/24 at 10:37am
I saw the show twice in San Francisco and the great thing about it is how wonderful the cast is. Well, the principal/featured cast. They are incredible and worth the price of admission. Some of the ensemble looked so bored...it was sad. The updated book isn't perfect but I really enjoyed it. And then there's the music....so great. All wonderful.
The problem is the direction....or lack there of. It's terrible. The pacing is terrible. The design is cheap. Hopefully they will put some money in it for Broadway. For example, SPOILER: When Evillene dies, an empty bucket of water is tossed on her. She is slowly lowered through a trap door in this gigantic ugly set piece. There is no snoke, no effects, no music. Nothing. The audience just sat there thinking, really?? Is this it? I'm hoping they fix things like this. A lot of it felt like bad community theater.
Updated On: 3/5/24 at 10:37 AM
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