ZORBA at Reprise (LA)

[BroadwayBaby6]

Posted: 4/11/06 at 1:32pm

Any news/gossip re ZORBA casting at Reprise?

[lite2shine]

Posted: 4/12/06 at 2:01am

Marc Kudisch, Judy Kaye, Stan Chandler and Camille Saviola.

The Reprise! cast also features Paul Avedisian, Danny Bolero, Marc Cardiff, Suzanne Carlton, Venny Carranza, Sascha Childers, Robert Alan Clink, Gayle Dawn Comins, Mark Esposito, Susannah Hall, Lesli Margherita, Chris Prinzo, Eddy Rioseco, Michael Uribes, Lisuan Whittingham, Vincent Zamora, and Kristine Zbornik.

http://www.theatermania.com/content/news.cfm/story/8046

What I'm interested in is what they are planning for Marvelous Monday! concert on 5/8.

[Patronus]

Posted: 4/12/06 at 10:55am

"Oh What a Beautiful Evening" a tribute to Rodgers and Hammerstein.

I have my tickets for this as part of a season package, but am not sure if I am going. I'll wait for casting.

http://reprise.org/homepage.html#

[Danielm]

Posted: 5/4/06 at 3:48pm

We saw this last night and I found it an exciting, but dissapointing evening. I've never seen this show but have always like the OCR. This production is very exciting--the staging is simple, the dancing is often quite good and it's extremely well sung. Camille Saviola as the leader of the chorus is astounding--why this woman isn't a huge star I will never know. She commands the stage like a star and is impossible to look away from. The chorus is also excellent handling the choreography and the singing with great ease and applomb. The concept itself is very exciting with the cast and some musicians (though I'm not sure they are actually playing) sitting in a circle. I would love to see a production of this like the current "Sweeney Todd" with cast members playing instruments. The show itself is quite dark and it's easy to see why it was not a success in its initial run.

The dissapointing part of this production is the miscasting of the leads. The leads are all talented--Marc Kudisch, Judy Kaye and Stan Chandler have all been fantastic in other rolls but they are miscast here. Chandler is probably the closest to right though his character's motiviations are never really clear and he remains a bit bland. His catharsis is not the heart breaking moment it should be. Kudisch and Kaye are both too young for their rolls. While both sing the rolls extremely well they can't capture the pathos that is demanded. Kudisch can't get at the anger and despair that needs to be under Zorba's high spirits and Kaye is just too robust and attractive--you keep wishing someone of the appropriate age and physical type was in the roll.

But, those issues aside I am really glad I got to see this rarely produced show. With so many Reprise and Musical Theatre Guild shows you come away thinking "Well, I'm glad I saw it, I never have to see it again." With this, I came away thinking, "I'm really glad I saw that--I wish someone would do another production with more appropriate actors in the rolls." I do reccommend that anyone who loves musical theatre see it.

[tophertilson]

Posted: 5/4/06 at 4:12pm

I love Kudish, but I don't see him having the earthiness or the the age for this role. Maybe in twenty, thirty years. And opposite Kaye? Isn't she old enough to be his mother? (No disrespect intended - I love her, too, but she's considerably older than Kudisch, no?)

TT

[Danielm]

Posted: 5/4/06 at 5:06pm

Yes, Kaye is older than Kudisch. I think Hortense could be older than Zorba, but the age difference is wrong here. She's not really old enough to be sympathetic. Also, she's supposed to be kind of sickly and is there a more full-of-life performer than Judy Kaye? Kudisch sings the Hell out of the roll--the age is certainly important but I also just think he doesn't have enough seasoning.