What do you all think about a Joseph...Dreamcoat revival? Do you think it would ever happen? It seems as if the show is getting to become pretty darn popular again and I'd love to see it on a large scale again, even if it's just for a limited engagement. But, maybe that's just me!
If you agree, casting ideas? I thought Jonathan Groff as Joseph, Sara Ramirez or Shoshana Bean as the Narrator, John Tartaglia, or Raul Espraza, or Daniel Beaker as Pharaoh, Ed Dixon as Jacob/Potiphar/Guru and Holly Ann Butler or Ellyn Marsh as Potiphar's Wife would round out a fantastic fantastic cast.
Is the "Keep On Truckin" Guru really a common element in productions? I thought he was just thrown into the film's "Go Go Go Joseph" as a one-off gag. I've never seen a live production that uses him- probably because people are confused. Is it Jacob? Is it God? Is it Moses? Who is this guy?
That said, my dream Joseph is twelve guys. That's it. Joseph is the common element, as the eleven brothers form the rest of the story- and the rest of the cast- themselves, Poor Theatre style.
The Guru was a standard part of the '91 revival (I think it was more a joke insert due to the Sixties nature of the "Go Go Joseph" number; often played by the same actor as Jacob/Potiphar) and all things derived from it, which includes the video.
"That said, my dream Joseph is twelve guys. That's it. Joseph is the common element, as the eleven brothers form the rest of the story- and the rest of the cast- themselves, Poor Theatre style."
I could see something interesting in that, but I think you would need 13. I think it would be necessary to see Jacob with all 12 of his sons, both during "Jacob and Sons" as well as at the end.
This is without a doubt one of my favorite shows and I wouild love a new revivial on Broadway, not just a tour or regional production...
"TO LOVE ANOTHER PERSON IS TO SEE THE FACE OF GOD"- LES MISERABLES---
"THERE'S A SPECIAL KIND OF PEOPLE KNOWN AS SHOW PEOPLE... WE'RE BORN EVERY NIGHT AT HALF HOUR CALL!"--- CURTAINS
I think there's a lot of fun stuff you could do with the show now. And I'm not talking crazy Lady Gaga inspired design elements, but in terms of set design, costumes, and casting. I do prefer the single female Narrator instead of a male Narrator as the show is pretty darn male dominant and adding ANOTHER male would make the show a little too male heavy. Plus, the female Narrator adds some vocal elements that most other males can't add. Yes, a male Narrator would be awesome, but I like my female Narrator.
I'd LOVE the chance to see the 91 staging again. It was brought back in London. It was GOING to be brought back in Toronto. I say bring it back to North America. I've seen hundreds of JOSEPHs through the years, and that's still my favorite.
I saw the Harris tour, too, and enjoyed it. I then did the show in college and realized how poorly constructed it truly is. Tim Rice's lyrics are criminal in their forced rhymes. I think at one point he tries to rhyme Farmers/Pajamas. We had to pronounce it "Fa-Mas" to get it to sound right. I don't see a need for another revival. Should stay on the amateur circuit, for sure.
Yes, I was going to say, "farmers" DOES rhyme with "pyjamas" and also happens to be quite an iconic lyric now.
In his book, Tim Rice writes that he did want to change lyrics for the show in later incarnations (the same for Jesus Christ Superstar) but people always complained that they missed the original:
"There are several examples of bad rhyming throughout Joseph...'biscuit'and 'district' always hit the button laugh-wise, but is of course an inaccurate rhyme...Furthermore, when I have tried to correct rhymes for subsequent professional productions, the directors and singers involved always refused to accept the changes, saying they had always loved the original. I am stuck with 'biscuit' and 'district'."
As a side note, Rice has most recently changed the Jesus Christ Superstar Gethsemane lyric "God, thy will is hard, you hold every card." to "God thy will be done, take thy only son." for the new UK Arena Tour.
I don't think it takes away any notion of ambiguity- it merely establishes that Jesus BELIEVES himself to be the messiah, which has already been well-established.
No, Greg, it's not established. What's established is that the crowd thinks he is. We don't know what he thinks. It's telling that he doesn't call God his father until the very last line of the bloody show when he's about to die. (And as of the score for the last touring revival, even that line's been cut. Most Jesii still include it though.)