prog metal Sweeney in DC — Page 2

I'm sorry, but I f*cking loved it. Yeah, there were imperfections in performances and direction, but I thought the prog metal arrangements sounded amazing, and I had a blast. I even left covered in blood.

The video clip that was briefly released was not at all indicative of how perfectly the arrangements, by and large, fit the score. There were some moments that were better than others and some that maybe could have used a little more tinkering, and Greenfinch was probably one of the more difficult fits. It's a shame that people chose not to see it based on that clip.

Actually, I'm not sorry. I just loved it. It was weird and new and different but not too far out in left field. It works, and it's just the kind of thing I love to see people do.

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Updated On: 9/2/14 at 01:43 PM

I just saw this clip on Playbill.com.

I didn't see the production but I absolutely love what's in this clip.

I think this might be my favorite "Ladies In Their Sensitivities".




Link

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Updated On: 3/12/15 at 04:53 PM

I saw it last summer and it's a must see.
While some songs don't work, many do and a few are really brilliant.
I'll probably see it again.

Sounds like it could benefit from some re-casting and taking a few of the songs in more of a generic rock direction instead of prog metal specifically. Fair assessment?

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My teenage son and his friends dragged me to this show after seeing it once with a school group; that, in itself, should tell you it's quite something. We sat in the splash section and were covered in blood. I saw the LuPone revival, and honestly, this was more fun. The cast was perfect for this version of the show. It was a refreshingly diverse bunch, and most everyone could sing metal. Mrs. Lovett is the lead singer of a popular band. I can see where this version might not be everyone's cup of tea, so consider that before going, but I'd say it accomplished what they set out to do. It was good of Sondheim to work with these guys, and I'm glad they got the Helen Hayes nominations. We'll be back in July for sure.

I really want to like this, because I like heavy metal and think it would be so cool to see more heavy metal MT, but I think writing an original score is really the way to go--what's unfortunate here is that Sweeney lends itself so well to the genre, but Sondheim's score doesn't lend itself well to metal at all. You don't mess with perfection. A noble effort, though. I'd love for this same team to bring in new writers and write their own gothic metal musical.

Hi, I'm in the show, I'm happy to answer questions about it.

Yes, we are going on tour and we are in the middle of holding auditions.

We are also holding auditions for male actors, the biggest issue is most theater singers are not appropriate for progressive metal.

As for the lady who said we had trouble with pitch in Frankenstein, I suggest you take music lessons, your ear is clearly faulty. Thanks

I think maybe his issue is that whenever a small theatre company puts on a show that relatively few people saw or even knew about, it's easy for a couple negative folks to get on BWW and create a perception it wasn't a good show - maybe even that it isn't worth seeing or funding for future revivals. Everyone's entitled to their opinion. But consider: the show earned three Helen Hayes nominations, including Outstanding Musical. That means 8 highly qualified and vetted adjudicators independently ranked the show in the top 5 of 100+ shows they saw that season. Not to mention Sondheim was personally involved and signed off on the work. And if there were such pitch problems in either of these productions, why didn't the Washington Post critics mention them?

While "prog metal" or whatever might not be your cup of tea, this is a company that has worked for years on shoe string budgets to produce work geared for lower income audience demographics, and prioritized all kinds of casting diversity long before most theatres gave it a second thought. We rarely see our top funded theatres taking artistic risks like a metal musical, yet we don't see the Meads and Kogods rushing out to bankroll or build venues for these small theatres. And there are BWW commenters who would sooner say "these actors can't sing in tune" than "these actors need a more optimal monitor system to hear each other better." You could choose to tell people stay home or don't buy tickets - or you could tell them give $ to help a group of local artists address some problems.

It's lucky Sondheim believed in them, because local theatre folks sure hate seeing their own get ahead.

Off the top of my head, I've heard some very hairy moments (typically live, not so much in the studio) from Daniel Gildenlöw, Rody Walker, Steven Wilson, and Joey Eppard. The names are escaping me, but the guy(s) in Graf Orlock didn't blow me away either. Among the no longer active, Nasum had some vocals I wasn't too thrilled about, same with Kill The Man Who Questions.

Have I, by chance, passed your bona fide test, or are we setting up for a "no true Scotsman" discussion?

(Further, I'll add that if you read my post carefully, you'll note that I never claimed any noteworthy prog metal singers had trouble staying in tune, merely that it didn't have to be 100% in tune to be passable prog metal. But, as the kids say, go off, I guess.)

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Updated On: 1/1/23 at 08:34 AM

"But consider: the show earned three Helen Hayes nominations, including Outstanding Musical. That means 8 highly qualified and vetted adjudicators independently ranked the show in the top 5 of 100+ shows they saw that season."

This isn't true at all. This was nominated as a Helen production. There were absolutely NOT 100+ Helen eligible musicals that season.

That aside, good for any company this small being able to do a tour in this economy.

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It was something that the cast did have to adjust to for sure, however for what it's worth, we did some big changes on the Pirelli lines. He's not too substantial of a role compared to some of the others, but he did serve as a proof of concept I suppose for the rest of the show.

Initially upon getting into the gig I was under the impression the entire cast would take a similar approach to the rest of the show before we got that note.

For Pirelli the goal was to flip between classical placement and prog mix to keep elements of the original in tact but to take the notes into more of a Queensryche/Judas Priest area where appropriate.

Based on your profile photo we'd probably have a lot to chat about regarding JCS, my first vocal coach was Annas on the national tours, was Neeleys understudy. I did a local gig of it as Judas a while ago.

I don't think we have plans in that area yet however I believe one of my bands does, happy to get you a free ticket to a gig if we end up crossing paths, could be a fun story to tell.

Indeed it's Larry!



I would like to play New York with landless, they are easily one of my favorite theater companies, and I will bring up this note you made. Thanks for that!



My band, Thrillkiller is about to announce a Brooklyn show this spring, depending on the distance for you, I think you would appreciate the material.

You can find me on social media under PowerRobMusic let's definitely stay in touch.

I spent last night for New Year's talking with a actor I'm friends with for several hours about what I felt consisted for a "good" Judas and Jesus until about 3am lol, I'm not the biggest musical fan per se but that is certainly one that I have a lot of opinions about.