jv92 reads Mainly on Directing by Arthur Laurents

[jv92]

Posted: 3/11/09 at 6:18pm

My pre-ordered copy arrived from Amazon.com yesterday and I devoured it in two days, despite the fact that some parts are painful to read. Anyway...
What can one expect from C. Montgomery Laurents? It's self indulgent, bitchy, obnoxious, cruel but rather well written. The chapter on Gypsy is the only part really worth reading. The man tears the late Lee Remick to shreads, which absolutely disgusted me. He writes movingly about his late partner, Tom. Oh and thankfully Arthur doesn't think Spring Awakening is quite a revolutionary as the dumb-dumb critics did, despite writing about it in nearly every chapter.
It's a read that could only be classified as interesting. Theatre fans should pick it up if they have the time and/or the money.

[PiraguaGuy2]

Posted: 3/11/09 at 6:34pm

What can one expect from C. Montgomery Laurents?

I'm now picturing Arthur Laurents sitting in front of a nuclear power plant, watching that YouTube video of the WSS "Somewhere" ballet sans Nightmare, rubbing his hands together, and muttering "eeeeexcellent...."

[ljay889]

Posted: 3/11/09 at 7:30pm

I opened to the first page, and it was a pan of the 2003 GYPSY. True Arthur fashion.

[jv92]

Posted: 3/11/09 at 8:53pm

Oh, I thought it'd be redundant to mention he'd bash Sam Mendes. We all knew he would.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 3/11/09 at 8:56pm

Does he say, "Sam, you could cast Saddam Hussein and his two sons as those three strippers and that number would STILL get a hand"?

[jv92]

Posted: 3/11/09 at 8:59pm

Not that I recall. I actually got so sick of him tearing to shreds people who have more talent than him and who I respect more than him that I skimmed a little through the bashing.

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 3/11/09 at 9:16pm

Then can you say you really read the book?

[PiraguaGuy2]

Posted: 3/11/09 at 9:19pm

Oh lawdy, heah we go agayun.

[TimeSquare3]

Posted: 3/11/09 at 9:28pm

[PalJoey]

Posted: 3/11/09 at 9:30pm

Who else does he rip to shreds?

Once, at an audition for the part of an older woman, the casting director told us he was bringing in a somewhat elderly Gretchen Wyler, who was very nervous about auditioning for Arthur. She had been a star in the 1950s and 1960s and had replaced Chita in Birdie and Gwen in Damn Yankees but was old now and somewhat feeble.

Nevertheless, she was PERFECT for the part!

She warbled through "So in Love" as her audition song, a little weak but fine for the part. Then she read the scene with the stage manager and she broke the hearts of everyone at the table.

Everyone except Arthur, that is.

She had tears in her eyes as she thanked us all profusely for allowing her to audition and when she left the room, there was a silence. Everyone was thinking: Maybe this show could be a comeback for Gretchen Wyler?

Arthur was the first to speak up, in a voice so loud I was sure she could hear him in the outer room:

"THAT FAT COW! She had NO TALENT thirty years ago and she has LESS TALENT now!"

And there, as Arthur likes to say, you have it.

Updated On: 3/11/09 at 09:30 PM

[BustopherPhantom]

Posted: 3/11/09 at 9:34pm

That's a great picture.

I repeat. I-Cannot-Wait-To-Read-This-////ing-Book. Someone should just pull a David Leveaux and just punch Laurents in the face/lightly shove him, because he's very old and punching him might not be the best idea.

I repeat, I do not wish death on the man. Anyone who draws the loyalty of so many people can't be all bad. It's just... doesn't it seem like he's determined to burn every bridge he has before it's too late?

[jv92]

Posted: 3/11/09 at 9:53pm

"Then can you say you really read the book?"

Oh, I can. Do you want a chapter by chapter synopsis?

And PalJoey...really? That's awful. Poor Gretchen! Updated On: 3/11/09 at 09:53 PM

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 3/11/09 at 9:53pm

So you're saying Arthur loves and respects women, PJ?

[PalJoey]

Posted: 3/11/09 at 10:03pm

Well, he didn't like Gretchen Wyler much.

[jv92]

Posted: 3/11/09 at 10:06pm

Or Lee Remick.

According to Arthur, she didn't have "it" but Angela did. WRONG! They both had "it." Did he see Days of Wine and Roses? Or the Follies concert? And she didn't sing half bad on the Anyone Can Whistle album. I, alas, didn't see the original.
I wonder what Steve thought of that section of the book.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 3/11/09 at 10:13pm

Didn't Steve love Lee Remick so much he almost married her?

[gvendo2005]

Posted: 3/12/09 at 12:49am

Isn't she the ONLY woman he ever loved?

Posted: 3/12/09 at 1:47am

Yeah the Seacrest bio implies Lee is the only woman Steve woulda married. But I doubt Sondheim's even gonna read this book especially after the recent WSS discussions with Arthur. Why bother I'm sure he knows it all (or Arthur's take on it all) anyway.

And I admit I prob will read this... I'm a Spring Awkaening fan though I don't think it's revolutionary or perfect by any means, but I'm confused as to how Arthur could fit critiques of it into every chapter...

[ljay889]

Posted: 3/12/09 at 2:04am

On one of the beginning pages, Arthur briefly mentions his on and off relationship with Sondheim.

Is their current WSS argument legit?

[ljay889]

Posted: 3/12/09 at 2:20am

Also, Arthur is very kind to Bernadette's Rose. We all know his problem was with Mendes, and not Bernadette; but he speaks highly of Bernadette's Rose. He does says Bernadette didn't come full circle until late in the run, and it was just too late.

He also writes how he long wanted to cut the "faux rape" scene in GYPSY, and since the City Center production had no "walls", it was the right chance to cut it. He believes the scene has "nothing to do with the story". He wanted to cut the scene ever since he directed the Lansbury production.

Updated On: 3/12/09 at 02:20 AM

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 3/12/09 at 2:36am

Who "faux" rapes Rose?

Also, what's the current dispute with him and Sondheim? Missed that day in the press, I guess.

[ljay889]

Posted: 3/12/09 at 3:06am

Also interesting: Arthur fought with City Center to have the GYPSY orchestra in the pit, they agreed, but it fell through. Instead $200,000 was offered to the physical production of the show, if Arthur agreed to have the orchestra on the stage, and he did.

Posted: 3/12/09 at 3:09am

"On one of the beginning pages, Arthur briefly mentions his on and off relationship with Sondheim.

Is their current WSS argument legit? "

Well I'm completely just repeating gossip, but it's gossip from a source that has NEVER been wrong before so I belief it--I wouldn't call it a huge riff, basically Sondheim offered on his own accord, but apparantly very politely some advice about the production after seeing it in previews, and Arthur blew it out of proportion and basically said he didn't wanna hear or see him again (at least during the run). I assume he'll be at the opening though.

"Who "faux" rapes Rose? "

I assumed it's in the scene where they're almost kicked out of their hotel for having too many people there, and to get out of it she implies it could look liek the manager raped her. It's in the Midler film -- which annoyingly just went back out of print on DVD -- glad I got mine last Summer. (can't remember about the original film).

[ljay889]

Posted: 3/12/09 at 3:42am

It's also in the original film.

I am actually really enjoying this book. He gives many candid details about the creation of the 2008 revival. When it was about to come to Broadway, he was worried the "diva" Patti was coming back... so he had dinner with her, they talked about it, and the diva was gone.

He also discusses in depth the changes he and LuPone made for the character from City Center to Broadway. They both felt Patti was playing the beginning of the first act wrong at CC, and I completely agree. When it came to Broadway, they agreed her Rose needed some "joy", and from there on her Rose wasn't just angry...she was playful. And that really became evident when the production to broadway. Patti's changes to the beginning of the first act were very noticeable, in my opinion.

*ps sorry for the poor sentence structure, it's almost 4 am..and I'm exhausted.

ps (again) I do not find his writing on Lee Remick to be all that cruel at all.
Updated On: 3/12/09 at 03:42 AM

[jv92]

Posted: 3/12/09 at 2:51pm

Steve should start directing musicals. And yes PalJoey, I think Steve almost married Lee, although he lived with Mary Rodgers for a period of time according to Secrest.