Zhivago should go to Broadway

[latheatrelover]

Posted: 6/26/06 at 1:23am

I saw "Zhivago" at the La Jolla Playhouse today and I thought it was terrific. The ending should be a little stronger but otherwise I think this should go to Broadway. Des McAnuff's staging was the best I have seen since I saw Tommy on Broadway a number of years ago (which was also directed by McAnuff. Coincidence? Obviously not.). Several leads were excellent but, to me, Jessica Burrows as Lara walked away with the show. Whenever she was on stage, she just captivated it. She could easily play Elphaba in Wicked.


Updated On: 6/26/06 at 01:23 AM

[Anna_Elizabeth]

Posted: 6/26/06 at 1:53am

There is much more than the ending that needs changing. Though I enjoyed all the songs, and the pacing is excellent, some of the scenes need to be rethought. Especially the scene in the library between Lara and Tonya. And Jessica Burrows as Lara wasn't bad. She definitely held her own, but I didn't enjoy her as much as you did.
You can read my review/thoughts at the link below
Zhivago review.

[latheatrelover]

Posted: 6/26/06 at 2:12am

Interesting, you found the male actors more interesting and I the females more so. I felt Hernandez could be replaced easily by almost anyone if it goes to Broadway. I didn't see the deep inner turmoil in him that you did (and I was in the second row); instead, I felt he was at times okay, but not great. I thought the actress playing Tonya was quite good. But I felt that Burrows, from the moment she first came on the stage, was totally mesmerizing. I think she reached great emotional depth in her performance.

Updated On: 6/26/06 at 02:12 AM

[neddyfrank2]

Posted: 6/26/06 at 2:23am

I think that there are way to many love songs, and they cut out the good up beat/fast paced songs like "Hope for the Peasents" at the beggining of Act Two. I also think the book needs A LOT of work, the lines like "Ever since we first made love, I felt a change inside of me, now there are TWO of us who will miss you, me and the baby." But otherwise it is fantastic.

[latheatrelover]

Posted: 6/26/06 at 2:27am

The words "me and the baby" were not spoken today, though the rest was. Maybe that part of it has been cut.

And I was totally amazed at what McAnuff can do on the stage of a community playhouse. Incredible imagination by the set designer.

Updated On: 6/26/06 at 02:27 AM

[neddyfrank2]

Posted: 6/26/06 at 2:37am

I hope they cut it.

At the dress rehersal the show was looking pretty bad, but I must say they sure know what isn't working when it comes to dialogue. Between then and last wednesday the pace of the show had been picked up, except for Lucy Simon's love songs. They really slow the show down, at one point I turned to the person who I went with and just rolled my eyes because there are so many of them. The set is def. the strongest part of the show, it is so creative and simple yet very powerful. Des McAnuff used some of the most creative directing that I have ever seen. The characters entering and exiting from the wings, the fire arising from the floor, the flashlights in the audience really just made the show all that better.

I hate to say it though, I really hope it doesn't go to BROADWAY in this next season, because it will get crushed by shows like Mary Poppins which has a set that is 30000 times better.

Also, I find the acting a problem. Jessica Burrows is really the best in the cast as well as Tom Hewitt. Bibi Valderama who plays Sasha has a very plesent voice and I thought the effect of casting a girl as a boy was very usefull. I did not like Hernandez as much, becuase he came off to me as to intense, a man you couldn't picture writing poetry for the life of him, and he did not have a softer side which I felt was needed. I also thought the man who played the grandpa was good and was very nice in "In This House" (which is in my opinion, the best song since they cut out Hope For The Peasents)

Like I said, it has it's faults but it sure is brilliant.

[TheEnchantedHunter]

Posted: 6/26/06 at 2:52am

God, it sounds dreadful. Just what the world has been waiting for: the first samizdat musical. The industry has gone insane.





Natasha Rostova
St. Petersburg, Russia