(with apologies to Messieurs Boulbil and Schonberg)
WHY GOD WHY?
Why does Sutton want to do this show? When she's already been so long at sea? I'm treading water now but all I think Is that Miss Foster is about to sink... as MOLLY BROWN?????!!!!????
You don't give answers, do you pet? But I'll keep asking and "I ain't down yet!"
Why God? Why this show? After Millie, Reno, Jo? There's nothing in it we won't miss! Why must she take a role like this?
A lady sings loud of her "Own Brass Bed" A tragic crossing and some social-climbs A lady sings proud of a "House that's Red" A "featured" tony - hah! - for Tammy Grimes! MOLLY BROWN????!!!!????
Look I mean Sutton no offense But why does nothing here make sense?
Why God? Show your hand Why can't Sutton understand? She seemed a gal who knew much more I never felt confused before
Why Marc? What's your plan? You can't help her, no one can At least I'm sure you'll do quite well At least as well as Harve Presnell!
WHY GOD????!!!!!??? What utter rot! A grating score! A dated plot! 'Til now dear Molly had three fates! Tammy! Debbie! Kathy Bates!
I liked my Mollies as they were But now she'll be SUTTON FOSTER!!!!
"Noel [Coward] and I were in Paris once. Adjoining rooms, of course. One night, I felt mischievous, so I knocked on Noel's door, and he asked, 'Who is it?' I lowered my voice and said 'Hotel detective. Have you got a gentleman in your room?' He answered, 'Just a minute, I'll ask him.'" (Beatrice Lillie)
But yeah, I did this show in summer stock a few years ago and it was like being in some sort of musical theater hell. Even if the stupid, cheesey, obnoxious, dated book were completely rewritten, you'd still have two other major problems: a) the score is equally cheesey and obnoxious and b) NO ONE GIVES A #&@$ ABOUT MOLLY BROWN. Except maybe a few old people in Colorado.
Such venom. I really liked the movie - but have never seen the stage show. It was one of the earliest movie musicals I saw and and my mother played the record quite a bit. Yeah, I now see how much Debbie Reynolds over-acted - but I still find the movie charming and somehow invigorating. To each his own.
Apparently the Meredith Wilson Estate (mainly his widow) have funded the rewrites and have opened the entire Meredith Wilson catalogue to Dick Scanlan in hopes that he can create a new, better show.
I heard a report that the show in its present state is a better vehicle for Kudisch than Foster - they haven't found a way to utilize her particular talents yet. Makes sense, since Molly wasn't originally written for a singer; it would be difficult to turn a Willson trunk song into a showstopper for Molly Brown, unique character that she is.
Actually "NO MORE REVIVALS PLEASE" could be a great name for a new musical. It might begin with a Pirandellian opening night final curtain of CHU CHEM. This a major event for the New York theater. For it's Ang Lee's long-anticipated (by, oh, at least dozens of people) revival, with a new book by Amy Tan, produced by Whoopi Goldberg, and starring Margaret Cho, Jesse Eisenberg and Mel Gibson. Performed in Yiddish, with choreography by Ping Chong.
The curtain call is interrupted by a disgruntled but savvy 12 year old aspiring dramaturg and seasoned theatergoer, our protagonist, Ruthie Reiser (a Brigid Harrington type), who stirs the equally irate audience into a frenzy demanding an end to this lunacy (the title tune begins!) as countless firstnighters and critics join in her crusade. As they take their anger to the streets and OSA (Occupy Shubert Alley) begins, the entire city hears the call and joins the ranks.
At first no one seems to know how to fill the gap for quality musical theater in New York - or any musical theater in New York. But Ruthie's mom, Rita Reiser, a one time tony nominee who gave up the stage years ago to home school Ruthie and teach her everything she knows about musical comedy (calling Jessie Mueller!) remains steadfastly supportive of Ruthie! This is tested with the arrival of big movie star Rafe Page (you guessed it, Harry Connick Jr.) on the Reisers' Hell's Kitchen stoop. Rita - (did I mention Rita's a widow who's yet to have a "Before the Parade Passes By" moment?) - has always had a huge crush on Rafe. Ever since "One Evening at the Paramus Park AMC" (a tender ballad).
Rafe and Rita meet cute because Rafe is in a rage. All his life he had dreamed of singing on Broadway and his dream was just about to come true before Ruthie ruined everything. He had just secured his New York musical theater debut in his dream role, Destry in Destry Rides Again, when "Now thanks to your daughter, Ms. Reiser, no roads lead to Harold Rome!" Of course Rita finds a romantic rival in Rafe's starlet fiancee Demi Sweet (paging Lea Michele), who, as you might have known, was to play Frenchy in the Destry revival.
I attended the reading a few years ago in Denver. Kudish did that one and Marshall was there.
Dexter, before the reading, they talked about how the estate opened the catalouge. I think it was Scanlan who talked about it. It was a very interesting story.
They will no doubt alter the focus so a secondary character takes the lead so they can bring in a big time male singer that's comfortable doing ballads about heartache. I mean, it worked so well before, right?