Where did Lestat go wrong?- Page 2

[bjh2114]

Posted: 7/17/06 at 1:00pm

The casting choices didn't help matters any. They should have cast Drew Sarich as Lestat instead, and Carolee should have had a bigger part.

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 7/17/06 at 1:03pm

Mr. Roxy, I'm not dissing Lestat. The music sounds amazing. The dialogue sounds wonderfully over the top. I'm just wondering how it became one of the biggest flops of the season.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 7/17/06 at 2:08pm

It's called "Thems the breaks"

[Anna_Elizabeth]

Posted: 7/17/06 at 2:17pm

Where did it go wrong? The director, the book, some of the lyrics, Warner Bros. I could go on. But I don't think the music itself had anything to do with it's downfall. I liked it from the clips that were shown when rehearsals first started. Unfortunately, the story took a downhill dive after the first presentation and the photoshoot. Casting-wise, it was the most talented group of performers I've seen in a long time. The material was just not up to their standards. And truthfully, the orchestrations were better in San Francisco than New York. This is just another case of not understanding the material nor the audience. Because this show could have worked on so many levels with the right people attached to it.

[Roninjoey]

Posted: 7/17/06 at 2:21pm

The show had no coherence or structure. The lyrics could have been removed for the characters to sing "WAGGA DAGGA DIGGLE PIGGLE" over and over (which may have been more entertaining), and the show had no apparent point. It was always contradicting itself and had numerous moments where the people on stage looked more confused than we did. I am not in agreement about the quality of Elton John's music (I think this was one of the most derivative scores I've unfortunately heard) but I do think it was one of the better aspects of the show (its bombast gave the audience something to think they might be enjoying). Sure, the cast was great, but that just isn't going to cut it unless the material they are working with is great too. It was wrong from conception, in my opinion.

[mejusthavingfun]

Posted: 7/17/06 at 2:26pm

Linda Wolverton.

[SueleenGay]

Posted: 7/17/06 at 2:30pm

I think it went wrong the moment whoever put Rice's book down after reading it and said, "Hey, this would make a GREAT MUSICAL!"

[Roninjoey]

Posted: 7/17/06 at 2:39pm

Heh. Why did Lestat go wrong? Because Lestat was LAME.

[mejusthavingfun]

Posted: 7/17/06 at 2:53pm

We could list what went "right." I'm huge fan of the music. This is Taupin's first musical so it's a little amaturish, but he can still write a nice pop tune.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 7/17/06 at 3:10pm

Pop music is thought to be the (wolf) bane of the theater. It shouldn't be but regretfully it is

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 7/17/06 at 3:28pm

"WAGGA DAGGA DIGGLE PIGGLE" is a good idea for a musical.
Someone hire Jess Roth fot this one too.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 7/17/06 at 3:44pm

If John had been more hands on
If Rice had done likewise
If they had closed down like AIDA & completely retooled it

I say this even though I enjoyed it. These are just hypothetical answers

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 7/18/06 at 9:07am

And let's face it, it seems like a pretty dark show. Maybe a little too dark for today's post 9-11 Broadway.

Posted: 7/18/06 at 9:17am

i saw the show and to be honest i was bored. the only part that i even remember from the show is the girl singing "I Want More". That was the one and only highlight from the show.

[rocky2428]

Posted: 7/18/06 at 11:38am

They'd have been better off making "Interview with the Vampire: The Musical".

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 7/18/06 at 11:44am

I'll quote Harry Groener:

" I've read all the Anne Rice books…

They couldn't make a Broadway musical out of them.
They just didn't get it! They didn't understand! [laughs] They should have talked to me. Really"

http://www.broadway.com/gen/Buzz_Story.aspx?ci=533223&pn=2

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 7/18/06 at 12:13pm

I know. Interview With the Vampire is probably the most popular of the Anne Rice novels. I mean the movie is more popular than Queen of the Damned. And if they had done it, they would have totally kept Sail Me Away and Make Me As You Are. And Allison Fischer wouldn't have had to sit offstage during Act 1 gaining weight and playing poker with the stage hands (I'm just joking around, I know that's not really what she did)