Venice Previews

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 5/28/13 at 11:20pm

I saw the first preview tonight and my thoughts are kind of all over the place with this one.

I liked the set and costumes, and for the most part I thought the cast was great. The music was very catchy and full of pop references. (The score was like a rock/r&b/hip-hop version of In The Heights; it was about 1/3 rapped, 2/3 sung.)

Although I liked the music and was singing "Sunrise" while leaving the theater, the lyrics were pretty hit or miss. LOTS of imperfect rhymes, especially in the rap sections. They were never cringeworthy, just imprecise and sloppy, though at other times they really gelled with the music and it all worked.

I had trouble getting emotionally invested with the characters and their plight. Murky story-telling was a big problem; relationships and motivations needed to be defined sooner and with sharper clarity. So while I enjoyed the music and would pop in the OCR, I found the show to be rather cold.

My two favorite performances were from Uzo Aduba, who has a role similar to that of Lillias White's in Fela, and Victoria Platt, who played Leslie Odom Jr's wife.

Platt had a duet with Jennifer Damiano in act two called "Willow" that was probably the highlight of the score of me.

The was a weird framing device where a narrator came out at the beginning with a laptop and began typing the script, which was then projected on the walls of the theater. Before each scene the was some more typing, announcing the song, setting, etc. At the finale (this isn't a spoiler) the narrator tells us it was all just a play, etc- but I didn't understand why this device was being used. It wasn't like the "actors" became the "characters" before our eyes or anything.

The plot revolved around the city/land of Venice that had become divided like East and West Germany. There were walls along the border and checkpoints few could travel through. Venice was also the name of our hero- a rebel leader who wanted nothing more than to reunify the country. There was a lot of convoluted scheming going between the warring factions. Leslie Odom Jr played the evil general who was playing both sides against each other, but it was never clear to what end. He seemed to want Venice, his half-brother, in power, but he kept betraying him at every turn. This stuff needed more work.

There is a Nicki Minaj/L'il Kim/Beyonce type character that was very extraneous to the story and probably could be cut, though the actress brought some good energy to the production. There just wasn't reason enough in the plot to justify the stage time.

This is a lab production, so I'm well aware it's a work in progress. Hopefully they make some changes and it comes out a stronger piece for this run.

Updated On: 5/28/13 at 11:20 PM

[Kad]

Posted: 5/28/13 at 11:32pm

I remember reading somewhere this was "inspired" by Othello. I'm... not seeing how that factors in, based on your description.

How was Claybourne Elder?

[After Eight]

Posted: 5/28/13 at 11:41pm

Haven't read what the OP had to say, but this was one wretched, dreary, muddled, miserable show, and to top it all off, ugly as hell. My admiration to a game cast, and my sympathies to the beleaguered audience, of which I was unfortunately a member.

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 5/28/13 at 11:41pm

There is a note in the program that says when the team began writing this musical it was going to be an adaptation of Othello, but as the process continued the drifted away from that, but there are still some remnants.

Venice stands in for Othello and he's in love with Willow (Desdemona), but she has been betrothed to Theo, who's the leader of the corporation running things on the other side of the wall. Leslie Odom Jr's general acts as Iago, making Venice believe Willow has been unfaithful.

It's there, but very faint.

Claybourne sounded great, but he doesn't have much to work with. He plays Venice's chief of security, who is also a childhood friend of Theo and Willow. His role becomes more of a plot device than a fleshed out character.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 5/28/13 at 11:46pm

Whizzer--how was the choreography?

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 5/28/13 at 11:56pm

The choreography was great. It's very hip-hop inspired. There were two impressive dance sequences: the first at a wedding in act one that turned the party into a techno dance club, and the second was a number for Theo in act two that had him doing something similar to the Dougie, ha.

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 5/29/13 at 12:15am

Glad to hear you liked Brock's work, Whizzer,etc.etc.etc.
He needs a good break.
Maybe Clay's husband can beef up his role, he is wickedly talented.

[mpd4165]

Posted: 5/29/13 at 1:17am

I caught this show way back at its KC Rep premiere and still can recall the score. It was something that I always hoped would have a future life and and am curious to see how it continues to develop at the Public

[BwayTday]

Posted: 5/29/13 at 2:10am

Do you think that the framing device could be easily dropped? Are there any clues or idea you have as to we the creative team thought it was necessary?

[RippedMan]

Posted: 5/29/13 at 3:53am

It's a lab production, so it sounds like a mess. It's interesting because the only lab production I've seen has been Andrew Jackson, and that was pretty much the same that ended up on Broadway.

I did see the Lori-Parks show that was only like an hour? It was about some slavery thing. It was pretty good, but nothing became of it, so whatever.

[supersam1026]

Posted: 5/29/13 at 5:50am

Very interested to see it tonight! Just trying to plan the train schedule after a bit, what was the run time? Thanks!

[Luv2goToShows]

Posted: 5/29/13 at 8:15am

I am seeing this in a few weeks, with a cast like that I had high hopes for it. Lab and all, hopefully they weed out what does not work and enhance what does. Not sure how I feel about the rap, is it old style hardcore or nice and melodic?

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 5/29/13 at 9:32am

I don't think they necessarily need to drop the framing device, I just think it needs to be used more effectively. The guy who plays the rapping narrator is also one of creators, so it is very Lin-Manuel Miranda of him to be doing this.

There is just so much that doesn't make sense about the story and the background of the conflict that the narrator could be explaining to the audience. I mean isn't the point of a narrator to guide the audience on a journey with the characters? I think once he's more integrated into the story-telling of the show his role will work better.

It's clear that they're in a sort of civil war, but how/why did they build Berlin-Wall-type barricades around the two territories? That's pretty extreme. Why is Leslie Odom Jr allowed to walk around freely? What is his official position and who is he supposed to be working for? He is betraying both sides, but they are each aware that he is meeting with the other. It doesn't make sense.

For a Lab show the design aspects are far beyond those of Fun Home for example. As much as I enjoyed the set and choreography it may have been more helpful for the writers to strip away that stuff and really examine the exposed text.

Supersam, The show started about 15-20 minutes late last night, but I think we got out a little after 10.

Luv2go, The rap isn't "hardcore," but it's meant to be a little on the intense side. I would compare it to Eminem's "Lose Yourself."

[Luv2goToShows]

Posted: 5/29/13 at 10:25am

Thanks WhizzerMarvin TrinaJasonMendel, rap is one of my least favorite music, too much of the slamming, old style hate spewing rap gives me a headache. Since it is popular, it has been incorporated in to some shows, when done tastefully I do not mind it.

[ClydeBarrow]

Posted: 5/29/13 at 11:19am

If you hate Leslie Odom Jr after SMASH, will he still annoy you in this or is he redeeming himself?

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 5/31/13 at 8:51pm

Whizzer said: "Although I liked the music and was singing "Sunrise" while leaving the theater, the lyrics were pretty hit or miss. LOTS of imperfect rhymes, especially in the rap sections. They were never cringeworthy, just imprecise and sloppy, though at other times they really gelled with the music and it all worked. "

I'm curious about this. I admit, imperfect rhymes are so common in pop music tt they don't really bother me there, only in theatre music (I'll usually cut some slack to pop based theatre scores, within reason.) But from my limited knowledge of rap, the wy they use words rarely uses perfectrhyming, it's moe about the rhythm--s in hat respect could it just be true to rap culture? Or did they not work in terms of rhythm and the flow of the words as well?

[ClydeBarrow]

Posted: 6/7/13 at 11:39am

Just as an FYI, the show has extended an additional week but the tickets for the extension week are not $15. They are now $46.50.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 6/8/13 at 3:30pm

Seeing it tonight...at Whizzer's suggestion!

[JuanValjean72]

Posted: 6/12/13 at 6:19pm

Because it is a "Lab" production with such a short run, does this mean a reworked production will be coming to a larger theatre for a longer engagement soon? I'm not sure how Off-Broadway theatre works, nor have I seen anything Off-Broadway. Sorry haha

[ClydeBarrow]

Posted: 6/12/13 at 6:23pm

Never seen anything Off-Broadway? That's a travesty.

Who knows if this might have another run. I doubt it because there doesn't seem much buzz around it even if they did extend another week. FUN HOME played the Public Lab last season and it's getting a full production coming up. That was a sold-out run that everyone was talking about though.

[JuanValjean72]

Posted: 6/13/13 at 9:10am

Yeah I hardly have time to go to the city. I'm from CT and am in school & have two part time jobs, I can't see as much as I'd like. I'm hoping it gets an extension or another run, it sounds interesting and I'd love to see it.

[ClydeBarrow]

Posted: 6/14/13 at 12:32pm

Yowza these are some pretty harsh reviews. Also I'm wondering why Brantley reviewed it.

Ben Brantley, New York Times: There's enough plot in Eric Rosen and Matt Sax's "Venice," the action-flooded new musical at The Public Theater, to fill a whole year in a Marvel comics series. Though it borrows some of its story from Shakespeare's "Othello" and much of its tone from apocalyptic movie blockbusters like "The Dark Knight Rises," this tale of a once-and-future civil war still seems to translate into two-dimensional panels as you watch it.

Elisabeth Vincentelli, NY Post: Terrible musicals are a dime a dozen, but what makes "Venice" galling is its humorless grandstanding. Bad is bad, but self-important bad is worse.

Joe Dziemianowicz, NY Daily News: The spoken-word rhythms by Sax, who nudges the narrative along as the Clown MC, give the show an intriguing sound that eventually gets a bit one-note. It's relief when songs trade hip hop for pop-rock melodies, as in the surprisingly pretty "Willow" and "Sunrise." The heavier issue is Rosen's dumbed-down book. His broad strokes reduce the characters and story to comic-book proportions, so the stakes aren't there. Young men selling these tough-talking lines end up sounding like posers. That's no fault of the game and talented cast, which includes Claybourne Elder, as a security chief, and an intense Victoria Platt, who plays Markos' wife.

Michael Giltz, Huffington Post: Contrary to popular belief, it's no fun writing a negative review. It's a lot more fun to come out of a show bristling with excitement over talented performers and behind the scenes creative types whose work you're certain you'll be watching for years to come. Nothing like that happens at Venice, an incomprehensible mess of a show with a hackneyed plot, characters that don't maintain a shred of consistency from one scene to the next and relentlessly bad hip-hop lyrics.

[Lenexajones]

Posted: 6/14/13 at 12:40pm

For what it's worth, the reviewer of our local Kansas City paper found it to be a work of art. I saw the first incarnation of this three years ago and really enjoyed it. Missed seeing in in NY by a couple of days in our last trip. http://www.kansascity.com/2013/06/14/4292541/in-new-york-debut-kc-reps-venice.html


Updated On: 6/14/13 at 12:40 PM

[whatever2]

Posted: 6/14/13 at 12:43pm

Good luck with the price increase after those reviews ...

[Lenexajones]

Posted: 6/14/13 at 12:44pm

It appears that the AP loved it as well: http://www.kansascity.com/2013/06/13/4291691/review-venice-is-a-pulsating-hip.html