rOcKS @ 'Road Show' — Page 2

Oh my God, yes! When the front of that box came crashing down and out popped Michael... I loved it.

Doyle was trained by someone who worked with Brecht, and you can see the pervasive influence.

---

Well, Company was undoubtedly cold, too. And Sweeney, of course. I didn't find Road Show *as* cold as the previous two, but it did have that element to it, to a degree. That's one of the things I worry about with Road Show's reception, actually. I think people are going to complain that Doyle is employing too many of his "usual" devices... but really, those devices fit so, so well with the things that Sondheim writes about over and over again -- and those themes are certainly present in Road Show, so it works. That's why they're such a perfect team, IMO.

---

All That Chat, the message board at talkinbroadway.com.

---

I think one of the underlying problems with the concept, no matter what the show's title is or who the director is, is that there's just not much to make the audience care about the brothers for most of the show. I saw the Kennedy Center incarnation of Bounce and I left not giving a damn about the Mizner brothers. I love Sondheim, so I bought the CD, but I couldn't tell you one song that really stuck with me lyrically, much less emotionally. So reading some of the reviews of Road Show so far don't really surprise me. I just wish I understood better what it is about this concept that keeps Sondheim interested in trying to make it work after all of these years.

---- Spoilers Ahead -----

Less Brechtian? The actors were visibly waiting in the wings and using common objects as other things - like the "snow." I found it interesting, to say the least. I actually think there is plenty of "drama" within the characters it just hasn't been tapped upon yet byt he cast/director. No one seems the least be surprised that Addy is gay, which surprised me - given the time period. Also, they never really touch upon the drug habits of the two brothers. They sort of give it a tongue-in-cheek sort of wink at the idea of an addiction. They both do coke, yet nothing is really said about Addy doing it. I never saw his downward spiral that led to Hollis wanting to leave. I think it will get there, but right now the actors (mostly Addy) haven't tapped into all its potential. The book def. doesn't help out, but I don't think it's awful.

Well, in those shows, you were also seeing a distinct lack of realistic props (i.e. the empty glasses and empty plates), and they were very classically Brechtian in the sense that there was a lot going on that constantly reminded you that you were in a theater, watching a play. Like, with the instruments, you were looking at something that you simply do not see in real life -- a constant reminder that you were watching a play. Those kinds of things are still definitely present in Road Show. It's very theatrical, and continually reminds you that you're watching a play, but kind of... in a toned down way, almost, comparatively speaking. For example, the use of props is still minimal, since one of Doyle's big things is to toss out anything that isn't absolutely necessary to the telling of the story in the way he's chosen to tell it, but it's look certainly errs a little bit more toward visual realism than Company did.

I hope that was semi-coherent.

It could still transfer. The show isn't dependent on Michael, as great as he is.

---

Updated On: 10/30/08 at 08:00 PM

Really? I mean, I thought he gave a great performance. I was in awe of how he developed such a monster of a character. I mean, he really is an awful guy, and I loved seeing him transform into that. He was just so in the moment the entire time, and I loved seeing that.