WAR PAINT Previews- Page 8

[ljay889]

Posted: 3/14/17 at 12:17am

I saw Ben Platt too! 

Also, I forgot to mention I really enjoyed the design elements as well. Sets, costumes, and lighting were top notch. Like you said, not extremely inventive, but perfectly suited to the show and attractive to the eye.  

[IdinaBellFoster]

Posted: 3/14/17 at 12:30am

Happy to hear such posistive thoughts!! I really loved this show. Sounds like there trimming a bit. It was almost 2:50 last week. 

[sing_dance_love]

Posted: 3/14/17 at 2:07am

Caught the first preview (for my birthday!), just getting around to reading through this thread. I enjoyed it quite a bit and agree with much of what has been said on either side of the debate.

The Great:

-Patti and Christine are absolutely on fire. Patti's voice was jaw-droppingly strong. It really was thrilling. Both beautifully handle the comedy and drama their characters require and their performances are a wonderful compliment and contrast to each other. 

-The costumes are beautiful and the set is appropriate.

-I very much enjoyed Dossett and Sills, personally, and really didn't have any issue with their numbers.

The Good:

-The score is, as many have said, both intelligent and clever. There are some lovely musical passages and I agree that I have a feeling some of the more atypical, but stylish and inventive, melodies will land after repeat listens. I just didn't find much to be as affecting or profound as "Another Winter In A Summer Town" or some of F&K's other best work. I thought "Forever Beautiful" and "Back on Top" were really the standouts.  "Pink" I thought was fine, and "Face to Face" and most of their duets just felt like they needed something...more. However, "If I Had Been A Man" I thought was excellent and the musical highlight of the evening. In general, I really enjoyed the score though, just hoping for a dash more emotional impact. 

The Needs-Some-Work:

- The Staging. I actually found a lot to like in the actual choreography, I enjoyed the Fire and Ice sequence a lot, but the musical staging left a lot to be desired. I think some of those lovely duets and solos could have that bump up in impact that I was hoping for with some more interesting staging than constantly crossing back and forth from 2 Stage Right to 2 Stage Left and standing there. 

-The Book. Wonderful doses of humor (Patti really nails some wonderfully juicy lines), and I really enjoyed "the meeting" towards the end of the show. And the characters are fascinating and appropriately layered, but it just needs a push towards compelling. It's not that it's "plotless" as some have intimated, it's that there's nothing that pushes the evening forward and drives you to the edge of your seat. I'm not saying I know what that is, and it's not that a twin character study isn't a valid approach to a show, but it's what I think the evening needs to feel truly satisfying.

But hey, just having Patti and Christine doing excellent work and just siiiiiiiiingingggggg almost takes it there on its own. For that alone, I'll remember the evening and It's only because there is so much on that stage that is wonderful or on the verge of it, that I just want it to be even better. 

[Addison D.]

Posted: 3/14/17 at 10:14am

sing_dance_love said: 

"...But hey, just having Patti and Christine doing excellent work and just siiiiiiiiingingggggg almost takes it there on its own. For that alone, I'll remember the evening and It's only because there is so much on that stage that is wonderful or on the verge of it, that I just want it to be even better."

 

Agreed!

[RippedMan]

Posted: 3/14/17 at 2:05pm

Where have the rush seats been?

[ljay889]

Posted: 3/14/17 at 4:44pm

I mentioned this yesterday, but I got there at 10:10 and got mezz k101 for rush. Pretty decent seat.

I wanted to add that Patti's diction was only a problem in her opening number, otherwise I had little little difficulty understanding.

Also, I loved how both actresses displayed the aging of the characters throughout act two. It felt and looked very natural. 

[RippedMan]

Posted: 3/14/17 at 11:40pm

I'm a little torn on this. Ebersole and Lupone are INCREDIBLE. Both women are flawless in performance. Their vocals are not to be missed, and their execution of aging warhorses is interesting and intriguing. The score is "eh" to me. The only song that really struck me was "Pink," but it doesn't deliver a big enough wallop. The ending is wonky. I didn't care for any of Lupone's songs. I just didn't think they were interesting or catchy, but maybe the will grow on me. 

The real problem is in the staging. The opening is very "who cares" and the ending is stilted. I mean you have these two powerhouses on stage and you end with a unison mid-range note? It was so ho-hum. Would it have be interesting to have Ebserole reprise one of Lupone's numbers and vice versa? Something! 

The two men are just awful. The actors themselves are fine, but the two songs are awful and we don't care about them! Why they need two songs - both of which are tuneless - is beyond me. The entire show could have just been these two women and I don't think we would have minded. Their interesting, their intense. 

I can't imagine this is going to catch on. But I will probably return. I'd imagine both women will only get better in their roles. 

Also, Kelly Clarkson has a song called "War Paint" and I could not stop singing that tune before and after the show. 

Updated On: 3/15/17 at 11:40 PM

[JaglinSays]

Posted: 3/15/17 at 1:10am

RippedMan said: "I mean you have these two powerhouses on stage and you end with a unison mid-range note? It was so ho-hum. "

 

Perhaps because their characters were nearly 90 years old at this point!  Sheesh.

 

 

 

"

 

[RippedMan]

Posted: 3/15/17 at 1:14am

It's theater. Suspend your disbelief. 

[KitKatBoy24]

Posted: 3/15/17 at 1:39am

RippedMan said: "the ending is stilted. I mean you have these two powerhouses on stage and you end with a unison mid-range note? "

My interpretation was that the ending note was unison because the two of them were finally eye-to-eye and saw how similar they really are. I thought it was quite lovely 

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 3/15/17 at 1:46am

Saw the show on Monday night.  One of the most magical theater experiences I've had in a long time and I've been seeing shows on Broadway since 1972 (age 7).

From the sets to the costumes to the story to the performances - stellar in every level.  You get that bang for your buck.  LuPone shines from the moment she enters the stage and lands every one-liner and song.  The audience was in the palm of her hand - cheering after every one of her numbers and her countless one-liners received applause.  What a gift of a showcase role for her.  Their eventual meeting towards the end of the show was the perfect bookend.  Both ladies brought it all out during that scene.  I even got teary-eyed before it was over and the ending was beautiful and powerful for ALL women.  

I need the cast recording right now and I'm excited to see this show again.  It is still lingering with me which is a rarity for me.  

[RippedMan]

Posted: 3/15/17 at 1:58am

I totally understand that from a creative standpoint, but i was a ho-hum and a let down from an audience stand point. 

[icecreambenjamin]

Posted: 3/15/17 at 2:05am

I'm really excited to see this.  A friend of mine just saw it and said that it reminded her of the old "star vehicle" shows from the golden age, but with a Sondheimesque score.  She also said that the show felt very non-linear and almost surreal, but in a good way.  It'll be thrilling to see Mrs. Lupone and Ebersole again.  Can't wait!!

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 3/15/17 at 2:08am

Miss LuPone and Miss Ebersole - NOT Mrs.  Their respective husbands have different last names.   

[RippedMan]

Posted: 3/15/17 at 2:19am

OK

[haterobics]

Posted: 3/15/17 at 8:25am

Emily Post disagrees, says Ms. is most appropriate if they are married but keeping their maiden names.

http://emilypost.com/advice/guide-to-addressing-correspondence/

[Wardrobe Mistress]

Posted: 3/17/17 at 6:54pm

Has anyone heard any news or rumblings of news that the cast are releasing a recording of the show?

[ljay889]

Posted: 3/17/17 at 7:35pm

icecreambenjamin said: "I'm really excited to see this.  A friend of mine just saw it and said that it reminded her of the old "star vehicle" shows from the golden age, but with a Sondheimesque score.  She also said that the show felt very non-linear and almost surreal, but in a good way.  It'll be thrilling to see Mrs. Lupone and Ebersole again.  Can't wait!!"

I agree with your friend but the show is NOT non-linear. The plot is structured and shows the rise and fall of both women. 

[Dancingthrulife2]

Posted: 3/17/17 at 8:25pm

Saw the show on Wednesday and enjoyed most of the performance. My only quibble is that the show is quite on the restrained side when it comes to more provocative issues. It's great that they mentioned in the end that the liberation brought by the two giants might also be objectification at the same time ("what they did for women" v.s. "what they did to women". The show would've been a lot more interesting and layered if the creative team went deep into issues like this instead of focusing too much on their personal lives (and men that obviously no one cares about). 

[Ragged Tear]

Posted: 3/18/17 at 12:10am

I think "Mrs." was actually intended here as an attempt at pluralizing "Ms." unsuccessfully. But certainly not worthy of castigation!

[QueenAlice]

Posted: 3/18/17 at 12:31am

Have ANY other women seen this? Please don't tell me I'm the only one. I love my gay boys, but they are too wedded to their divas to be trusted objectively. I desperately need another female perspective on the show...

[uncageg]

Posted: 3/18/17 at 1:09am

Queen, I am a gay boy and really enjoyed it. I do not agree with Addison's comment about it having mild things to say. This show is all about women in power and how they were treated at the time. I think some people have to realize that this took place a long time ago and this is how things were. At times I think it was a bit much but that was fine. I always have to let a show sink in a few days and I know I HAVE to see this again. All of my friends are raving about Sunset amd telling me I MUST see it. And I will. But this show is the must see, in my opinion. No, it is not perfect but it is a thrilling night at the theater. It shows how these two strong women broke barriers. I had no problem with the focus on the men in their lives. I think it showed how powerful and business saavy, to a point, these women were in a male dominated world. 

Just my random tboughts.

Updated On: 3/18/17 at 01:09 AM

[FANtomFollies]

Posted: 3/18/17 at 10:37am

Does anyone know if any significant changes have been made during the preview period so far? Sounds like most people agree the show could use some tightening/trimming. I see the show in a couple weeks so hoping it happens :)

[Robbie2]

Posted: 3/18/17 at 9:57pm

[Robbie2]

Posted: 3/18/17 at 10:00pm

from The New Yorker

A Diva Smackdown in “War Paint”

Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole star in a new musical, at the Nederlander, about the rivalry between two women who ran competing cosmetics empires.

Fresh off Ryan Murphy’s “Feud” comes another diva smackdown: a new musical about the rivalry between Helena Rubinstein and Elizabeth Arden, who ran competing cosmetics empires. Though they never actually met, both women used eyeliner and chutzpah to reshape mid-century ideas about beauty. In “War Paint” (now in previews, at the Nederlander), with a score by Scott Frankel and Michael Korie (“Grey Gardens&rdquo, they’re played by Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole, no strangers to the D-word. Let the lipstick fly!