What Happened to BIG?

[Roxie]

Posted: 11/6/04 at 10:30pm

Personally I think it's an awesome show. My theatre school did it and I love. What happened to it that made it such a flop? It has good music etc.....whats the deal? (P.S. I'm listening to it right now, hence the randomness)

[BWIDB Charlie]

Posted: 11/6/04 at 10:35pm

Well, I know (and you do too, if you did the show!) that many, many songs seemed to have changed after Broadway, because the current script/score have many songs added from the tour(s.) I always assumed it was a bit like too many cooks in the kitchen ruin a million dollar show backed by FAO Schwartz, or whatever that expression is

Charlie
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[Jon]

Posted: 11/6/04 at 11:04pm

It sucked, that's what happened.

[johny0828]

Posted: 11/6/04 at 11:43pm

it did suck, but it opened the same year as rent and that got all the attention.

[Mr. Tuttle]

Posted: 11/7/04 at 2:19am

What happened?

First..take a movie that doen't need to be musicalzied and then musicalize it.

Second..well, after the first reason..there is no need for any other.

[bronxboundexpress]

Posted: 11/7/04 at 2:57am

Mr. Tuttle, (sorry I keep picturing you as that short chubby teacher with the nazal voice from "Saved by the Bell,") what makes a movie able to be musicalized or not able to be musicalized?

[sean martin]

Posted: 11/7/04 at 3:56am

It's not so much whether or not a movie can or cant be musicalized, but how they do it. In the case of BIG, the original production lacked focus and heart, and without those, you're gonna die.

[Jon]

Posted: 11/7/04 at 7:29am

The late Mike Ockrent was a brilliant director of broad comedyh - as seen in ME AND MY GIRL and CRAZY FOR YOU, but not warmth and heart, which "big" was desperately in need of.

And who can forget the usually genius Stroman's attempt to capture the (sanitized suburban white kid) style of hip-hop dancing? FORBIDDEN BROADWAY parodied it wonderfully:

"Hey - Susan Stroman choreography! AWESOME!!!"