Favourite Scene Transitions?- Page 2
Favourite Scene Transitions?
#25Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/2/16 at 8:24pm
As for brilliant changes, I agree with the poster above about Baby June and Louise turning into their young adult selves under a strobe light. Gave me chills every time.
And speaking of Robbins, I would add the transition to the gym in WEST SIDE STORY. Though I was watching from the stage manager's desk in the wings (during the 1980s), the falling streamers still took my breath away!
As far as I know, Jerome Robbins more than anyone was responsible for inventing stage equivalents to movie cuts, cross-fades and the like. It was as if his early training were not in ballet but with Cecil B. DeMille.
#26Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/2/16 at 8:49pm
A (very) recent one: In Bright Star when we see Alice Murphy the editor transition to her younger self, and we watch her transform on stage before our very eyes. It's one of the most beautiful moments I've witnessed in the theatre.
#27Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/2/16 at 8:54pm
I've always liked the end of I Hope I Get It from A Chorus Line when the lights go off, then immediately back on and there they are with head shots in front of their faces....then they slowly lower the picture to reveal their face and slowly get in to their characters pose on the Line. I feel the image, of the entire line, is an iconic piece of Broadway. And watching how they form the line and then watching personalities develop with their stance on the line.
#28Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/2/16 at 8:55pm
Great idea for a thread. It infuriates me when people think it's okay to talk during transitions; they can be as graceful and memorable as anything in the theatre. Have to think on this one.
ChiTheaterFan
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/9/15
#29Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/2/16 at 8:58pm
TFMH18 said: "A (very) recent one: In Bright Star when we see Alice Murphy the editor transition to her younger self, and we watch her transform on stage before our very eyes. It's one of the most beautiful moments I've witnessed in the theatre.
"
I wanted to mention this but felt like all my posts have practically been about Bright Star since I saw it so I refrained. :) But I totally agree. In large part due to Carmen Cusack's performance. It's amazing how she seems to drop 20 years of heartache in those few moments and transform to a carefree teenager.
mikey2573
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/28/10
#30Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/2/16 at 8:59pm
One of my favorites was in the Broadway revival of THE SOUND OF MUSIC. When Maria is leaving the Von Trapps to go back to the Abbey. She sneaks out of the Von Trapp house and down the stairs while the orchestra plays a light version (flute maybe?) of "How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?". Then the string section comes in as Maria reaches the bottom of the stairs, turns and looks at the VT house as it is slowly pulled back into darkness. She turns and exits and we hear the nuns singing as the abby set flies in.
RentBoy86
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/15/05
#31Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/2/16 at 9:07pm
I thought American Psycho had some really beautiful transitions. When the entire set flies up to reveal The Hamptons set is pretty gorgeous.
And the same for Therese Raquin when the Paris set flies in.
#32Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/2/16 at 9:13pm
I would not put The Father at the top of my list but part of the reason it was done that way was to distract people from concentrating on scene changes....which in theory made sense.
#33Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/2/16 at 9:18pm
I still remember being wowed by the scene changes in the original RAGTIME...they were so cinematic. You just don't see physical productions like that anymore...
#34Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/2/16 at 9:33pm
ggersten said: "Gypsy - as newsboys and june age in the strobe light"
I get all choked up during this transition every time I see a production of Gypsy.
Another one for me is the transition from the prologue to the first act in Grey Gardens, when the dilapidated facade of the house flies offstage to reveal the bright and beautiful interior of the house as it was in the 1940s.
When I see the phrase "the ____ estate", I imagine a vast mansion in the country full of monocled men and high-collared women receiving letters about productions across the country and doing spit-takes at whatever they contain.
-Kad
nolanativeny
Stand-by Joined: 3/29/16
#35Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/2/16 at 9:57pm
RentBoy86 said: "I thought American Psycho had some really beautiful transitions. When the entire set flies up to reveal The Hamptons set is pretty gorgeous.
"
Yes! Also the first time when it happens during Killing Time. I think that and the Hamptons are my favorite sequences in the show. Especially when Killing Time transitions to In the Air Tonight which transitions to the homeless man scene which is then ironically transitioned into the Hardbody workout scene. Holly James is fantastic as the trainer.
On a separate note, really any of the scene changes in the current She Loves Me but especially when it changes from the perfume shop to the cafe. When I saw the show that set change got applause. It's really quite stunning how smooth and effortless it looks.
Stand-by Joined: 12/31/69
#36Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/2/16 at 9:58pm
I love this thread! To me, great transitions can make or break a show. There are so many in Wicked, like the transitions in Dancing Through Life from the coutyard with the statue to the different girls talking and into the ballroom. Also the transition from the Wizard's chamber to the attic for Defying Gravity is very well done.
Also, Kinky Boots has some wonderful transitions. For example, the transition from the pub ("Take What You Got"
into the drag club scene ("Land of Lola" is phenomenal, and so is the transition from the nursing home to the Milan fashion show!
#37Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/2/16 at 10:02pm
"In large part due to Carmen Cusack's performance. It's amazing how she seems to drop 20 years of heartache in those few moments and transform to a carefree teenager."
Yes! And, to once again praise Carmen's performance, I honestly think that it's necessary for the audience to watch her actually transition from her older to younger self, as she is so convincing as both 16 and 38 that you wouldn't necessarily believe it was the same actress, had you not actually seen her go from one age to another.
#38Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/2/16 at 10:05pm
BroadwayConcierge said: "The transition in the Broadway production of Hedwig from "Wicked Little Town (Reprise)" to the start of "Midnight Radio" gave me chills and broke my heart every time I saw it. Stunning."
I have chills just thinking about it.
And yes, Wicked has some of the best transitions from start to finish.
Broadway Star Joined: 12/31/69
#39Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/2/16 at 10:06pm
anything from Hal Prince's version of Showboat, where the workers of the era change the scene hoisting and pulling ropes....genius.
RentBoy86
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/15/05
#40Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/2/16 at 10:10pm
I actually think most of Mitchell's shows are pretty unimaginative in their direction/transitions.
I love watching live recordings, but I hate that they mostly don't show the transitions.
The beginning of Blackbird is pretty cool.
And I love the floating up of the house in Fun Home. I think that music is so gorgeous.
#41Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/3/16 at 3:02am
I've had a fascination with scene transitions ever since I was a kid watching my mother perform in The Nutcracker, which is a very fluid show, and I'm always sort of disappointed when there's no care put into transitions. I still haven't seen many shows live, sadly, but here's a couple I'm at least aware of:
-The transition from the Polo Lounge fight scene in the original staging of Merrily. Frank storms off and, distraught, Mary and Charley hug with a kind of fierce desperation. Instantly, the chorus bursts out of the wings as the turntable carries them away, and the first time I saw it, it was like a punch in the gut.
-The transition in A Chorus Line where (I think this happened a few times) a song or sequence begins and suddenly the entire line, except for whoever's about to perform, backs away en masse into the darkness. I know for sure it happens at the beginning of At The Ballet, and the way they move with one, smooth motion takes my breath away.
-Loveland. I mean, duh.
GavestonPS said: "And speaking of Robbins, I would add the transition to the gym in WEST SIDE STORY. Though I was watching from the stage manager's desk in the wings (during the 1980s), the falling streamers still took my breath away!"
Ohh, I'd love to know what happened here, could you describe it?
¿Macavity?
Broadway Star Joined: 1/29/16
#42Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/3/16 at 3:34am
I get chills just thinking about the transition from My House into the final school scene in Matilda. The flashing red lights, the loud intimidating music, and then of course seeing Miss Trunchbull towering over the heads of all the little children. Ugh, so perfect!
jo
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/15/03
#43Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/3/16 at 3:39am
Thank you for your thoughts!
Compared to films, when very fluid and memorable transition scenes happen on stage one appreciates even more fully why the stage is a remarkable performing medium.
#44Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/3/16 at 3:50am
Speaking of Matilda, it's not quite a scene transition but the shift from the doctor's room back to the birthday party in the opening sequence is totally thrilling and surreal.
Wilmingtom
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/18/11
#45Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/3/16 at 4:07am
City of Angels: a dead body on a gurney rolls over and is now the producer getting a massage.
verdigris
Stand-by Joined: 7/20/14
#46Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/3/16 at 4:39am
I love the transition from Naughty (Reprise) to the Schoolyard scene in Matilda.
Fun Home also has some wonderful transitions. I too love the Telephone Wire and Edges of the World transition. I also love the transition in Party Dress where Medium Alison yells "I am a lesbian!"
#47Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/3/16 at 7:36am
Wicked has some of the finest and graceful scene transitions. I love the transition that happens during the I'm Not That Girl (reprise) with the Wizard's head gliding back upstage as the vines and ropes slowly fly in and the back wall of gears closes to create the forest setting for As Long As Your'e Mine.
"There’s nothing quite like the power and the passion of Broadway music. "
#48Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/3/16 at 7:55am
I also love Carmen Cusack's transition in Bright Star. She does a fantastic job on stage...
Dollypop
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/15/03
#49Favourite Scene Transitions?
Posted: 5/3/16 at 7:55am
It won't surprise anyone that mine is in "Dolly". It is the transition from "Sunday Clothes" into the hatshop. Minnie Fay has a monologue on the street which is underscored by a staccato-like version of "Call on Dolly". Ensemble members cross behind Minnie bobbing their heads to the music. I've always looked forward to that moment in the show.
"Long live God!" (GODSPELL)
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