re: In comes COMPANY....- Page 6

[smartpenguin78]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 12:30pm

As much as I wanted to applaud LADIES, I really agree with the choice not to put a button here. The way that it just trailed off after the final rise was chilling, the true catharsis doesn't come until BEING ALIVE. It was extremely effective for me. (Honestly, I was never a big Raul fan, but this performance is phenominal)

I still think there are some moments when the actor/musician concept doesn't quite fit, it doesn't feel seemless. In many ways the show seems more like it has an on stage band than characters with instruments, I would like to have been able to "see and hear" more of the connection between character and instrument. (Company, You can Drive A Person Crazy, Side by Side by Side, and Being Alive were great in this respect. Some other numbers, not so much.)

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 12:34pm

Maybe this is very old-fashioned of me, but if Barbara Walsh tears up LADIES WHO LUNCH, she should get thunderous applause after the number. JMO.

I should have been born in the 1930s...
Updated On: 10/31/06 at 12:34 PM

[GYPSY1527]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 12:37pm

I guess I'll add my two cents too. Intially I wasn't going to because of the inevitable backlash I will recieve ehh might as well. Overall, I have to say that I felt that the actor-instrument concept worked better in my opinion in Sweeney Todd. In a weird way, I could identify each instrument with the character's distinct personalities while here, I felt they didn't serve any purpose (minus Raul's piano during Being Alive). I adored the set itself and how the actors are positioned on stage. Its beatuiful to watch and really enchances the show.
The performers, I can't say enough good things about them that haven't already been said. They are more than capable and I actually felt that while Barbara Walsh sounded like Strich, I highly doubt it was intentional.

SPOILER:

My biggest complaint would have to be the choreography. It was way way to busy and distracted you from the show itself. It also seemed very contrived and cheesey at moments especially when they would walk in a square and stop for their lines at a spotlight. The lighting also didn't impress me and I felt it actually did a disservice to the actors as many of them said their lines in the dark!

Overall, I expect to be back a few more times to see the new Amy and maybe even grab a ticket to opening night if they become avilable(crosses fingers).

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 12:38pm

Well, there's the if. I didn't quite feel like she tore it up by any measure, but that was six months ago. So we'll see.

It's clearly a choice, and it's a choice in a lot of different respects -- it's obviously somewhat plot-driven, because the cathartic moment, as penguin said, IS Being Alive. This is just leading up to that. But, this is also Raul's show, and everything is making that really clear. That explosive applause is his, and only his. Yes, Joanne was Stritch's role and that's what people went to see -- but that's flipped in Bobby's favor now.

I think the inevitable comparison to the concept in Sweeney Todd is a bit unfortunate, really, because it's going to lead to the failure to realize that yes, it's the same concept, but it's acting totally differently. In Sweeney, it served as a characterization technique on a very individualized level, and here it's a big, sweeping conceit -- it's about group conformity. It works in its own way for each show, and clearly it's going to come down to a matter of technical preference, but some of the people who have the capability to love this show most are people who loved Doyle's work in Sweeney, so I hope it's not harmed by the comparisons.

It's interesting, Gypsy, that you said it had no purpose with the EXCEPTION of Being Alive, because the way the conceit works, if it weren't there the entire time, Being Alive wouldn't work. Being Alive has the purpose you've afforded it BECAUSE the instruments are there throughout -- so isn't that their purpose? I felt like their entire purpose WAS to bring you to that moment when Raul sits down at the piano.

Updated On: 10/31/06 at 12:38 PM

[smartpenguin78]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 12:41pm

WAT- That is totally legitimate. I am firmly in the "everything staged should serve the motif" school. I am certain applause would have seriously dented my enjoyment of Sweeney Todd. I don't think adding applause to LWL would hurt the show, but I do think it is a very valid choice not to have it.

Emcee: Both points you just made were what I was trying to say in my initial post in this thread.

Updated On: 10/31/06 at 12:41 PM

[ljay889]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 12:42pm

I agree with the lighting. It's not all there yet. I'm sure they will improve it. A lot of the lines WERE said in the dark, and I doubt that was intentional.

Also there is no curtain. I felt the curtain in SWEENEY made the show even more powerful. I was kind of hoping for a curtain in this.

I'm sure Walsh has improved has improved since 6 months ago. She really went for it last night. Went all out for LADIES.

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 12:43pm

I may feel the same way about Barbara Walsh when I see it on Friday, but as of right now, the only person I've ever heard sing that song is Stritch (so I'll inevitably be comparing Walsh to Stritch, even if I don't mean to).

Before seeing the show and just hearing about the no applause after LADIES, I feel like it is a punch in the gut to Ms. Walsh. If Stritch was reprising her role on Broadway right now, there is NO WAY IN HELL that Doyle wouldn't allow applause after LADIES. It's almost admitting that Barbara Walsh's Joanne is inferior and doesn't deserve applause.

This is how I feel BEFORE seeing the show. I suppose if I am unimpressed by LADIES, I won't mind not applauding. Like I said, I will post my thoughts on Friday evening.
Updated On: 10/31/06 at 12:43 PM

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 12:44pm

I actually really like the idea of not having a curtain. Apparently Doyle's original idea was to have Bobby just... sit there. The entire time. So when the audience came in, he was there. During intermission, he was there. It's obviously a bit much, but I think not having a curtain works in the same vein.

[Ciaron McCarthy]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 12:44pm

But, this is also Raul's show, and everything is making that really clear.

You bring up an interesting point. Should the who be a showcase for the one character? I am not arguing against it but the past productions I have seen played it very much like an ensemble show.

[smartpenguin78]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 12:45pm

I agree that Walsh is much better. Like I said, I was expecting to have an extreme dislike for her performance, based on "auditory hallucinations" it was actualy quite strong.

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 12:45pm

I was actually really disappointed that they added a curtain for SWEENEY. It was a total cop out for less than sophisticated audiences, who couldn't get the original Brechtian concept for the actors entering and leaving the stage.

SWEENEY did change in previews though - a lot. So I'm sure COMPANY will undergo some tweaking as well.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 12:47pm

I don't even just mean in the sense that Doyle has centered the show around Bobby; the people marketing the show have handed it to him. Take a look at the marquee. I think it's a mixture of a storytelling technique and a publicity push for the actor -- but, it's not so much chicken-or-the egg, really. I think Doyle decided to make it Bobby-centric before it became "Raul Esparza in...." It probably presented itself as an excellent vehicle BECAUSE of the way Doyle's handling the show -- the ensemble is fantastic, but they are Bobby's accompaniment.

Updated On: 10/31/06 at 12:47 PM

[sweetestsiren]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 12:49pm

I still think there are some moments when the actor/musician concept doesn't quite fit, it doesn't feel seemless. In many ways the show seems more like it has an on stage band than characters with instruments, I would like to have been able to "see and hear" more of the connection between character and instrument.

I agree with this, and this was the main problem for me when I saw it. I'm not sure what they could do, though, other than getting more comfortable with the instruments and the staging, that would help with this. There are so many people involved that any consistent instrument/character connections seem impossible. I've kind of seen this as a trade-off that Doyle's Company makes in comparison to his Sweeney: the former is much more conceptually suited to the actor/musician staging, but it sort of by default lacks the seamlessness of the other. It's also possible, though this is probably verging on overanalysis, that the slightly disjointed feeling that's created serves the show.

Despite this reservation, though, I still thought that the show was brilliant. And conceptually it works so well that this can be forgiven.

[Pippin]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 12:53pm

the musicalization works for me this way- I feel the word "disconnected" is a huge theme in this production. I feel that, just as Bobby is disconnected from eveyything and everyone, including himself, that that is reflected in the direction, especially in the fight scene of "little things you do together" also, in the lighting, when the actors walk out of thier light, if that is the way it is supposed to be, it adds to the theme.

by not adding applause, I sometimes felt disconnected from what I was seeing, and that may have been Doyle's objective with this show- to make you understand the disconnected feeling that Bobby is experiencing.

[ljay889]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 12:53pm

Also major kudos to Kelly Jeanne Grant as Kathy. During SIDE BY SIDE/WHAT WOULD WE DO WITHOUT YOU? She literally goes back and forth from flute to sax. Flute in hand, sax around neck. I remember people playing multiple instruments in Sweeney, but I don't remember one performer going back and forth with two instruments as quick in just one number. Though I may be wrong. It's been almost a year since I saw the Sweeney revival.

And in case anyone is wondering, Walsh gets the same billing Stritch got. "And Barbara Walsh." I was glad she got that.

Updated On: 10/31/06 at 12:53 PM

[almostxfamous]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 12:59pm

So glad to hear this is getting such great feedback.'Marry Me A Little' in this production, right?

I can't wait to see this.

[Maggie_May]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 1:00pm

I am really interested in going to see this and I've heard great things about it -- I was just wondering if anyone knew where the student rush seats were located? I know they are $36 and avaiable two hours before the show. I just wanted to know if there were any good. Thanks for any info in advance

[Rathnait62]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 1:01pm

I can't wait to see Doyle's INTO THE WOODS.

[ljay889]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 1:02pm

The student rush seats are probally partial view seats.

I just went for last row rear mezz for 36. You can see everything. Just the seating was a little uncomfortable.

[Pippin]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 1:03pm

yes, Raul sings Marry me a little, and it is just wonderful. I hope this gets a recording.

[ken8631]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 1:07pm

Also looking for the recording when it comes out....

Where was Sondhiem sitting? We were in Center orch, Row C, which was about 5-6 rows back....

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 1:12pm

Ken, I think Sondheim was at the invited dress rehearsal at 2pm, not the actual first preview at 8pm.

[Pippin]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 1:14pm

He was at the dress, just what WAT said, and he was in row C or D on the right side.

[ken8631]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 1:18pm

OK - thought he was at the 8 pm show....

The first row looked too close, by the way. Stage is a bit high for them, and you'd be looking up a lot. 4-6 row center orch - looks perfect.

[SorryGrateful]

Posted: 10/31/06 at 2:14pm

In regard to the actors playing instruments issue:

I never got the chance to see Sweeney Todd, so that could be affecting my opinion of Company. I thought that it didn't really matter a great deal who was playing what and accompanied by whom in Company as it did with Sweeney. I have always just assumed the show is about Bobby and His Friends, with His Friends as one large group. Sure, they have individual characteristics and relationships, but in relation to Bobby, they're just saying, "Get married! You're so lonely! It's uncomfortable for us to see you unmarried!" as one big, loud mass. I don't think the friends need to have a specific instrument related to their specific character because they are the company supporting Bobby. They're one large mass telling Bobby what to do and the music serves that no matter who's playing what.