Too Soon for La Cage?? (A Debate About Revivals) — Page 2

Do you read the posts that came before yours or do you think your pearls of wisdom have enough sparkle on their own and people will just be dazzled by them?

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London imports have been big audience draws as of late and I think the London buzz from this production will pull in a nice audience coupled with Mr. Grammer's presence.

Personally I find it more tragic that many people on this board see the same production of the same show over and over and over. That's beating a show to death. Seeing a musical in 2 different production in the span of 5 years is hardly overkill. Especially when the production is vastly different in concept than the prior 2 Broadway staging.

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It is truly bizarre that Wicked is doing so well while Ragtime & Finian's are closing.

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How is it bizarre? Spectacle dominated substance in the musical long before Wicked. It is based on one of the most well-known books/films of all time and appeals to a younger demographic than Ragtime or Finian's. Wicked is a name tourists recognize and it's far more appealing for them to see (and talk about when they return home) a name brand than take a chance on something they know little or nothing about.

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I don't think anyone with theatre savvy thinks Wicked is higher quality than the 2 revivals.

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>It is truly bizarre that Wicked is doing so well while Ragtime & Finian's are closing.<

It really is not bizarre at all. Wicked (my own feelings aside) has so many things going for it: Wizard of Oz nostalgia, a throbbing pop score, two great roles for women, a lavish physical production and the element that I think turned it into a phenomenon, tween and teen appeal for disenfranchised young girls (and certain young boys).

Ragtime, despite its appeal to musical theatre die-hards, had a solid but not boffo original run. To those who don't know it, it sounds like Disney World's Hall of Presidents ... something you know you should see, but will get around to it when the lines for Pirates of the Caribbean and the Haunted Mansion are too long. Without ecstatic reviews, it would have been impossible for a show with such a large cast, physical production and orchestra to generate the image of a must-see, the way say South Pacific (a large cast, physical production and orchestra) was the talk of the town when it opened.

Finian - in better times - might have lasted longer. It's a glorious score and the show itself remains a total original. The reviews were mostly raves. But it's a relatively simple little fable that might be too delicate to play to audiences in 2009. The audience I saw it with felt a bit disengaged, applauding and laughing politely, but not ecstatically. I wonder if its word of mouth had people saying "it's a nice show" rather than "run, don't walk to buy tickets".

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I do think it's unfair that La Cage gets 2 revivals when pearls like In My Life are still awaiting their first.

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Taz, IN MY LIFE is being done at the Kennedy Center this year to commemorate it's 5 year anniversary.

Can't we leave crappy revivals of crappy shows in the crappy 00s?

No one will EVER top Arthur's original production. Ever. Next!

P

I kinda agree it's too soon, but, (and I'm not one of the people who thinks this production "re-invents the show" But it is a VERY different show that has been presented before, its less glitz and glammer, and even though the script and book changes are VERY minimal, it seems to have more depth than before, this could be to do with the minimal set though!
It is the BEST show I have seen this year... Infact I've seen it 3 times this year and I just cant get enough, and sure thing, I WILL be catching this ATLEAST twice when I go to New York in August... trusting it's still playing of course!

This closes tonight in London Hope the last performance is fantastic, buzzing and all that jazz. Good luck to Doug and Nick for the Broadway transfer

"Can't we leave crappy revivals of crappy shows in the crappy 00s?

No one will EVER top Arthur's original production. Ever. Next!"

I agree that the original was Phenomenal... but if we never revive or reinvent shows because the original was so great then we wouldn't see so many great shows returning to the stage!

I have seen the London production twice now (once when it first opened, and on Wednesday!) It is a very moving, lovely, quaint production. It is by no means a lavish extravaganza.... its much more stylistically like The Birdcage, a slightly run-down Drag club. But Douglas Hodge is great, and i think Kelsey Grammar is great casting. I hope it does well over there, as it is such a moving show with beautiful music and a wonderful, wonderful book!!

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