Will "Love Never Dies" get a new cast recording?

[MadAboutTheBoy]

Posted: 5/23/11 at 12:13pm

When a show has been reworked, is it pretty typical for it to receive a new cast recording? Does anyone know if LND will? Thanks!

[Justin D]

Posted: 5/23/11 at 6:09pm

I read on one of the forums a post by someone who 'seems' to be involved with the production that the plan is to do one live like what they did with Poppins.

[chernjam]

Posted: 5/24/11 at 1:58am

that would be interesting. I wonder if the thinking is to preserve this new production and then if it makes it to NY to do a full new recording

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 5/24/11 at 2:46am

I don't see a live recording happening. Webber has said in the past that he finds the applause and audience noise on live recordings to be distracting. That's why parts of the Woman in White cast recording were rerecorded without an audience present.

[chewy5000]

Posted: 5/24/11 at 3:29am

If it ever makes it to NYC it will most definitely get a new recording. Whether or not they record the Australian production is another matter.

[Adam Chris]

Posted: 5/24/11 at 9:00pm

It's strange when POTO arrived on Broadway they did not re-record. Probably because the three leads were the same. If Sierra and Ramin come back to their roles in NY will they keep the same recording? Perhaps there will be a big enough change in the score by the time it comes here that a new recording will be made. From what I have understood on these boards there are more musical strands from POTO in the score and the Phantom's big number comes at the start of the show.

I like that Sunset Blvd got an American Cast recording because it wasn't so choppy and dim like the World Premiere.
Updated On: 5/24/11 at 09:00 PM

[chernjam]

Posted: 5/24/11 at 9:17pm

OT - but Sunset was a huge obsession/hobby for me at the time watching the genesis of that musical... a real fascinating thing to follow in the days before the Internet was a household thing.

Anyway - the world premiere recording was such a rush job, in retrospect, it was somewhat surprising. But Sunset had commanded so much world interest - with NY reviewers going to London to file a first night review, which was somewhat unprecedented at the time. And the music from Sunset was really unknown. With One Look and As If We Never Said Goodbye were released on Barbara Streisand's "Back to Broadway" album the day when Sunset was supposed to premiere (before it got pushed up because of problems with the set) June 29, 1993.

So when the reviews were mixed, and to continue to build hype, I think they rushed the recording.

Glenn Close and the LA Cast began recording the "LA Cast Recording" in December 1993, right around the LA opening and then LA got hit by an earthquake that destroyed the first day recordings (among other devastations). That delayed the recording and I think by that point, people realized that Glenn would end up having the lead in NY too. When they started to record the "American Premiere Cast" - the orchestra grew to like 100 instruments and it became huge.

There are elements about the WPR I really love -- "Girl Meets Boy" sounds so much nicer - and I think Kevin Anderson is much better as Joe Gillis. But anyway...


Why Phantom didn't get a new recording - I think you hit the reason - there wasn't that many changes to the score or the cast to warrant it.

Coming back to the topic at hand - for LND, I think one way or another there will be another recording. The World Premiere one is quite beautifully done, even to the point of ALW re-recording the hwole of Act II after it was already done (always curious how the initial one sounded and what made him change it) But I think we can all agree, he definitely jumped the gun in light of all of the changes he's had to make.

[ClapYo'Hands]

Posted: 5/24/11 at 9:27pm

"There are elements about the WPR I really love -- "Girl Meets Boy" sounds so much nicer - and I think Kevin Anderson is much better as Joe Gillis. But anyway..."

Not to mention Patti LuPone!

[chernjam]

Posted: 5/24/11 at 9:36pm

@Clapyohands - yes, exactly, Not to mention :) (sorry, couldn't resist... not a huge Patti Fan. Not that Glens voice thrills me. My favorite ALW score, without a favorite recording. Too bad Betty Buckley didn't get a full-recording of her own!)

[ClapYo'Hands]

Posted: 5/24/11 at 9:41pm

Or Elaine Paige!

Posted: 5/25/11 at 1:27am

Off topic, but my fave Sunset cast recording is the Canadian one. Yes it's higlights, but has most of the music I wanna listen to, all the leads sound great (I admit part of the appeal is that I got to see that cast live), the orchestra is positively massive for the recording and sounds great.