Tony night, GREY GARDENS is performing...

[CapnHook]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 10:33am

"Revolutionary Costume," from the mouth of Christine Ebersole.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 10:35am

*gasp*

[wickedfan]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 10:36am

I was afraid of this. Love the song and especially her delivery of it, but it's not the best representation of the show.

[StageFan2]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 10:41am

*ponders why?*

[shesamarshmallow]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 10:44am

I was rooting for Five Fifteen or Around the World. Oh well!

[Glebb]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 10:50am

Yay!
REVOLUTIONARY COSTUME will get the tv viewers undivided attention.
Can't wait. (I've only seen the show once.)

[wonderfulwizard11]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 10:52am

Though I am excited to see her do the song, I agree it won't pull in many viewers.

[CapnHook]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 10:54am

I wish they would do the beginning of "Entering Grey Gardens" into "Revolutionary Costume."

My ideal choice would be the dialogue scene with Ebersole and Wilson where they are arguing and speaking over each other about why she left and came back and is threatening to leave again. Do that into a cut-down version of "Around the World."

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 10:55am

I called that one.

[Glebb]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 10:58am

I love Act I and especially like listening to The Five Fifteen, but the show comes to life when she sings Revolutionary Costume. It's shocking and one realizes she/he must start paying very close attention. Perfect choice for people who've never seen the show.

[Rentaholic2]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:03am

I like both of CapnHook's ideas.

[bschneid76]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:03am

I was hoping for Another Winter in a Summertown!

[somethingwicked]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:03am

I'm not suprised in the least (this has been the most realistic option since day one,) but I am pretty dissapointed.

While I LOVE "Revolutionary Costume" and Ebersole's delivery of it, I think it's a bit too show-specific and quirky to draw in a mainstream audience. Something more general with broader themes (like "Another Winter.." or "Around The World") would have been a better choice for people who have no idea what the show is about.

As CapnHook said, another song going into the number (like a bit of "Entering Grey Gardens") would have at least made it a little more clear, but they've obviously chosen to go a different route.

Updated On: 5/20/07 at 11:03 AM

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:05am

Around The World would have been better & maybe brought a few more people to see it

Look for it to close within 3 months unless it sweeps

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:08am

"Revolutionary Costume" on its own will without a doubt make for very entertaining television, but will it entice TV viewers to spend money to see more of it? Absolutely not.

It will be seen as shocking and funny, but afterward the viewer will be like, "I'm glad I only saw that once. Moving on..."

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:13am

Can you really speak for all viewers?

Wow. I wish I could do that.

I actually believe it's an interesting decision and will serve to intrigue the viewers who haven't seen in and perhaps serve as motivation.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:19am

Yes, I can speak for the very one-note, stereotyping, human categorizing, judgmental TV audience for whom all of the dreck that is produced on network television succeeds.

[FOAnatic]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:24am

STAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUNCH!

There's nothing worse, I tell ya.

STAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUNCH!

S-T-A-U-N-C-H.

[TheQuibbler]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:24am

The song isn't too show-specific. At the opening of Act II, we really don't know anything about these two women in their current state and it introduces us to Little Edie as she is at the time. I don't think it'll be confusing or too "show-specific" at all.

[wonderfulwizard11]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:27am

I will say, though, that I was really interested in the show after seeing the Drama Desk performance on Youtube.

[ElFantasma14]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:30am

I think that "Around the World" would really pull the viewers to see it because in that one scene, Chrisine shows such an unbelievable range of emotion and acting abiliy. However, I'm sure some people will be curious to know more about her quirky character after watching "Revolutionary...".

[ljay889]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:34am

I just didn't want this to happen because she did the same exact thing on the Drama Desks last year. I wanted to see something different now.

It's like Mary Louise Wilson who is giving a totally brilliant performance, is forgotten.

[FOAnatic]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:36am

I think it's a smart decision because, while "Around the World" shows quite a range of emotions...at that point in the story the audience knows what Edie is singing about and why she relies on her wall to recreate the memories of the places she's been. Because she never leaves GREY GARDENS. If you were to see that song without having gotten the backstory, you'd be confused as to why she acts the way she does.

"Revolutionary Costume" introduces the character and the portion of the song where she reads the newspaper article informs the audience of who she is and what her predicament is as well. I think it's a smart song because not only is it humorous and intriguing, it serves to give a decent explanation of the show.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:38am

Quibb, but the point people are making about it being show specific is that the Tony performance needs to be used as a marketing tool, and seeing "Revolutionary Costume" on its own leaves an outside audience pretty clueless. It doesn't encourage them to go one way or another. When people are sitting in the theatre at the beginning of Act II, they have already paid their money. The number performed on the Tony Awards needs to entice the average TV viewer to buy tickets to the show. A number like "The Five-Fifteen" is a traditional upbeat musical theatre number. That's what gets people excited and wanting to see more. Something that makes them want to get up from their couch and spend $100 to dress up, go out and have an evening worthwhile of those sacrifices. "Revolutionary Costume" on its own will only appeal to a very specific group, if that. I think that it may not only turn away the people who are not familiar with the documentary, but also the people who are obsessed with the documentary. Without Act I and the rest of Act II cushioning it between them, the number leaves people with a big question mark above their head.

[sondheimboy2]

Posted: 5/20/07 at 11:39am

I, for one, was hoping for "Another Winter in a Summer Town", if only because she sang "Revolutionary Costume" last year at the Drama Desk Awards.

And I think that the heartbreak and beauty of "Winter" would pull in more people who know nothing about "Grey Gardens" than "Costume".