The most disturbing theatre experience of my life--A Raisin in the Sun- Page 2

[jrb_actor]

Posted: 3/30/04 at 1:21pm

oh---he does!

[newyorkuniq]

Posted: 3/30/04 at 1:38pm

Well whoevers shilling the show hasn't done a very good job. This post is the first I had heard anything about Raisin even being close to previews or opening soon. I must say I have no desire to see P Diddy trying to act. This seems like a SNL sketch turned real.

[MasterLcZ]

Posted: 3/30/04 at 2:38pm

Robbie, what role are you in your play?

Posted: 3/30/04 at 8:06pm

Young Einstein, innit gonna be yummy?

Robbie, can we arrange for a private tutorial on the theory of relativity?

[QuixoticK8NY]

Posted: 3/30/04 at 8:45pm

where is theatreboy's original post, you may ask?

this is what is wrong with this theatre community/ message board.
if someone feels so guarded from making an honest theatrical review of an all african american cast for fear of being called a racist, what the HELL have we progressed to?

he made an honest statement about the new audience.
i'm sure if there was a musical that pop star britney spears decided to produce and then star in, the audience might have a couple more thirteen year old mtv-lovers unaware of talking/manner control.
it sounds elitist, yes, but thats what happens when you try to integrate a pop icon with mass appeal into the somewhat elitist atmosphere of the theatre.

it was an honest review of sean combs performance and what led to an unenjoyable experience.
the man, never having true theatrical training was following in the footsteps of such legends as SIDNEY POT, and because a critic negatively reviews puffy...he's a racist?
again, if britney came in and decided she wanted to take a stab at mama rose, after ethel merman and bernadette peters...no one would be calling the critic who labeled her performance as poor as a racist.

so.
i would suggest you look at 1V1ason's post, where there is a detailed assessment of some of puffy's acting faults, and maybe you will understand that combs just plain doesnt make the cut, especially surrounded by such broadway superstars as audra mcdonald.

please think before acccusing another critic in the future.
this is where we get to exercise our freedom of speech as theatre lovers, so respect each opinion as that: one of an informed theatre goer and dont automatically become defensive because there is a means to.

thank you, and cross your fingers for the show.

[Plum]

Posted: 3/30/04 at 10:31pm

The posters at ATC are a lot more impressed with Combs, so I'll wait and see. I'm intrigued. :)

[nystateomind04]

Posted: 3/30/04 at 11:02pm

so am i, plum. whether or not he is any good, p diddy will bring in audiences, even if they arent regular theater goers

[EddieVarley]

Posted: 3/31/04 at 12:23pm

Robbiej is the MAN!

[robbiej]

Posted: 3/31/04 at 12:27pm

Yes, Elton, I CAN feel the love tonight.

You guys make me blush!!!

come see my show.

[EddieVarley]

Posted: 3/31/04 at 12:30pm

I'm sooo there!

[SueleenGay]

Posted: 3/31/04 at 12:44pm

Quix, having read the original post and the following responses, I believe theatreboy was accused of being racist because of his description of the audience, not because he thought Diddy sucked.

[Theatreboy33]

Posted: 3/31/04 at 5:13pm

That is correct Quix. I suppose the term "puff daddy fans" makes me (who the hell even knows what race i am?) a racist. The three-word term placed myself above them and condemned them for their supposed color of skin, according to zagat3, who has so strangely disappeared from the board. Bravo. Thank you everyone who supported me. Though I don't think ill repost my thoughts until after the opening and real reviews, which will most likely echoe my previous opinions, at least about combs' performance. Everyone else in the show is FANTASTIC.

and to you zagat3, please, don't return. you are unwelcomed here. Updated On: 3/31/04 at 05:13 PM

[cmleidi]

Posted: 3/31/04 at 5:15pm

I saw RAISIN IN THE SUN today. It was a nightmare. High school students were there. and they were extremely disrespectful. They were yelling, moving around, laughing at dramatic moments, etc. Towards the end, the students expressed their displeasure at Audra M. kissing Phylicia Rashad. They kept changing seats, and unwrapping candy.

As for the production, the three women are excellent. Bill Nunn shines in the very small role of Bobo. Sean Combs is fine. He's not great, and he's not awful. He can be quite good, and then be completely amateurish. I've seen this kind of performance from theatre veterans. Hopefully, Mr.Combs will be allowed to work on his performance because he does show potential.

[lvlas0n]

Posted: 3/31/04 at 5:57pm

cmleidi,

How would you describe Sean Combs physical life on stage? This was the one aspect I found to be unforgiveable.

I think it is important to remember that the purpose in staging "Raisin in the Sun" (or any play for that matter) is not to stick someone onstage and test out their versatility, but rather to watch people, lights, sets, costumes, and sounds unfold the action of a story for an audience. When I think about reviewing a piece I think about how well (or how poorly) the particular story was told.

I am convinced that Sean Combs did a poor job of telling the story. He was too awkward, and low energy. Sure, I thought he did "fine" even "good" in respect to my expectations of what a musical artist and unexperienced actor would look like, but that is all trivial. What matters is that he failed to tell the story.

I'd be interested in reading what you have to say.

-Mason Updated On: 3/31/04 at 05:57 PM

Posted: 3/31/04 at 6:14pm

who cares about P.Diddy?? I would give my left leg to see Phylicia Rashad and Audra McDonald on the same stage.

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 3/31/04 at 6:25pm

that's quite an icon ya got there, pulp

[cmleidi]

Posted: 4/2/04 at 1:45am

lvlas0n, it's difficult for me to give a definitive answer because Combs had scenes where he effectively used his body to further/tell the story, and there were other times where he didn't know what to do so he started gesticulating wildly with his arms. He was excellent when it came to dealing with the young actor playing his son. He was also quite effective in the scenes with the white man who comes to buy them off. His problems were the highly emotional scenes, but I think the direction is the main problem and not so much him. The director needs to stop him from using his arms to show emotion. It's distracting, and it undercuts what he's trying to do. I should also reiterate that I didn't see his performance under the best of circumstances so it's a bit unfair to criticize him.

You're right that a production should not be about testing a performer's versatility, but I don't think Sean Combs is a bad actor. He just needs a bit more guidance, and I didn't feel cheated (cost of airfare, ticket, hotel room) by the performances/production the way I have with more high profile production or performers who don't show up. As I wrote intially, I've seen trained actors who've given the same or lousier performers. If Sean Combs shows up for the performances, that's a lot more than some of the people complaining have done, and they were trained actors.

As a side note, all three female actresses are worthy of Tony nods.

[joeyjoe]

Posted: 4/2/04 at 7:21am

an experienced actor would now how to convey emotion without wildly gesticulating with his arms...

[cmleidi]

Posted: 4/2/04 at 11:26am

I would assume that an experienced actor would know how to convey emotion without flailing his/her arms, but I've seen the flailing arm bit done by professional actors. Ethan Hawake in the recent HENRY IV comes to mind. Hawke's mannerisms were extremely distracting although not as much as the amount of saliva he expectorated. Sean Combs at least had moments of effective subtlety.

[MusicMan]

Posted: 4/2/04 at 6:52pm

I have no doubt that an audience for A RAISIN IN THE SUN could exhibit unruly, inappropriate and boorish behavior, the same kind of behavior I witnessed (with a largely white audience)at AIDA, an experience which was nothing short of an Orwellian nightmare. The sheer uncivilized, animal rudeness of that particular audience was staggering beyond anything I have EVER seen in a public venue. The line from A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE kept running through my head, "Don't---DON'T hang back with the brutes!" (Tennessee KNEW what he was talking about). It's a sign of the times. Civic engagement, courtesy and civility have become meaningless in certain aspects of society and our dumbed-down, narcissistic pop culture has EVERYTHING to do with it.

[Plum]

Posted: 4/3/04 at 1:54am

It isn't dumbing down- it's a false sense of privilege. People think that paying $100 a ticket gives them the right to dress and behave however they please.

All that $100 gives a person a right to do is to sit and watch a show from the seat you bought on the day you bought it for. Not to come in wearing shorts and sandals and not to unwrap candy or read your cell phone's text messages during the show, and not to bounce along to the songs and block this short girl's view. Just to watch and applaud, dammit. A theater isn't a private living room. /end rant.

Geez, I'm such a misanthorpe.

[Dollypop]

Posted: 4/3/04 at 9:27pm

Hey Pulp, I'm in the market for a new left leg. Since youo're willing to give yours away, perhaps we can work something out.

[lensman55]

Posted: 4/4/04 at 2:26pm

>The talents of Phylicia Rashad, and Audra MacDonald illustrate >the other side of the spectrum.

I don't know about Audra MacDonald, but ye Gods and little fishes, having to work up again a talent like Ms. Rashad would be bound to make anyone nervous, especially a neophyte.

[Roscoe]

Posted: 4/4/04 at 8:33pm

I saw the performance on Friday evening, April 2. Mr. Combs didn't disgrace himself, in that he seemed to know his lines and didn't bump into the furniture. He had one big dramatic moment in the second act that was quite simply the worst piece of fake acting I've ever seen. He rolled his eyes and waved his arms and indicated being very upset. He got laughs rather than tears. Then Ms. Rashad quite effectively upstaged Mr. Combs with a display of grief that made Mr. Combs' reaction look like the fake bit of sub-high-school posing that it was. Combs did manage to make his final scene work quite effectively, but up until that moment he delivered a completely one-note performance, never once for a moment making any but the most obvious and easy choices.

Audra MacDonald and Phylicia Rashad were excellent. But Mr. Combs is just flat out miscast. He is in over his head. He throws the play off balance, because it quickly becomes apparent that Ms. MacDonald's character is twice the human being that Mr. Combs' character is, mainly because Ms. MacDonald is a talented and capable actress, while Mr. Combs is coasting on his fame as a rap star and ruining a great American play in the process.

[Auggie27]

Posted: 4/21/04 at 7:46pm

Well, I'm weighing in on this performance two weeks after others found much to debate. And dismiss. I saw a polished, if still evolving, production. At today's Wed. matinee, the balcony was full of school kids, the house packed. Though they were restless before -- truly excited -- their behavior was exemplary once the lights went down. You could hear the proverbial pin drop at key moments; they were listening. Were there laughs that might have been at inappropriate -- in terms of Ms. Hansbury's intentions? Sure. But that happens at every show.

I was moved by the high school kids just being there, experiencing the moment-by-moment power of a live play. When Mama asks Walter Lee's young son to stay in the room for the final dramatic confrontation, they gasped. To me, it was a startling moment of collective recognition -- the absolute power of a matriarch taking a risk, doing the unexpected.

As for Mr. Combs -- several people have advised we not say too much about a show while in previews (a strange request at a web site that is built on such posts) -- but he is clearly working hard and growing, using the previews to both hone his characterization and perhaps simply learn stage technique. I'd guess that both have improved a lot since the early posts in this thread. He in no way seems distressingly out of sync with the trio of powerhouse ladies. And to me, he seems well cast, very true to period. Oddly enough, he is far more believable as a Chicago chauffeur in the 50s that the precise-speaking, erudite Mr. Poitier. What Combs lacks in experience he makes up for in sheer force of will and authenticity. This is not a piece of stunt casting to be ridiculed. At least not unseen. He is intensely focussed and invested, listens closely to other actors, and his overall makes a poignant and compelling case for the tortured character. He has lovely moments with Audra. The phrase "people will be surprised" is overused, but it's just what I felt. He and the gifted company are bringing this play to audiences who'd never see it, so let's see the glass half full. For some of us, the glass is almost to the brim.

Updated On: 4/21/04 at 07:46 PM