Big Fish Preview Thread- Page 6

[Younger Brother]

Posted: 9/25/13 at 11:44am

Thank you!
Have there been many changes since the first Bway preview?

[VotePeron]

Posted: 9/25/13 at 11:53am

Saw this Saturday night, in a rush seat. (B10, my friend had B12...partial, but second row none the less!) We loved the show. It's big and flashy and tells a great story with a lot of heart. Norbert is giving an all star performance right here, flipping back and forth between a teenager and a dying father. Bobby Serget has a bumpy start building his character, but picks up in the second act. I think this may be a book problem, not a Bobby problem. Speaking of book problems...Kate Baldwin is not in the show that much, especially the first act. And they cut one of her songs (Sandra's Wish) which is still in the Playbill. Her ballad in the second act really made her stand out though. The ensemble was great, and very involved/invested in the show. Only complaint would be a few book/storytelling problems, including a what seems misplaced second act opener.

I overall loved the show and can't wait to go back.

[dreaming]

Posted: 9/25/13 at 11:55am

voteperon-what was the rush line like? Could you give me some idea of when I should get there for a Sunday performance? (I know you did Sat., just wondering if I could get a better idea of when I might need to get there.) Thanks! Looking forward to seeing this tremendous cast.

[VotePeron]

Posted: 9/25/13 at 3:26pm

As of right now, there are no sunday performances.

I got in line at 7am, and the line grew immensely until 10. It's strange though, because you have to split into two lines at the box office - one for matinee, and one for evening. Because of this, the evening show was much more popular, and people that arrived at 9am who would normally not be able to get tickets, were able to get matinee tickets. In the same sense, people who arrived at 8:30am for evening tickets did not receive tickets. This is because you no longer have the option of picking which performance you want to go to at the window, especially if one sells out of rush. I was 13th in line, and 10 of the people before me picked evening, so many people that arrived way after me still received tickets. I imagine the line will fill very fast on Sundays, def. before 10am.

Updated On: 9/25/13 at 03:26 PM

[dreaming]

Posted: 9/25/13 at 3:30pm

Vote Peron-Right here it says there is indeed a 2 PM Sunday mat: Show Dates:
Performances from 05 Sep 2013
Opening 06 Oct 2013
Closing Open-Ended

Performance Schedule:

Monday - Saturday @8pm
Wednesday and Sunday @2pm

Edit: I'm guessing they meant Wed. and Sat. at 2.


Updated On: 9/25/13 at 03:30 PM

[ACL2006]

Posted: 9/25/13 at 5:07pm

for previews, their schedule was/is Monday-Saturday @ 8pm and Wednesday & Saturday @ 2pm. After they open, their schedule is: Tuesday & Thursday @ 7pm, Wednesday, Friday & Saturday @ 8pm, Wednesday @ Saturday @ 2pm, and Sunday @ 3pm.

[charliebrown5]

Posted: 9/27/13 at 3:20am

I saw Big Fish this past weekend. Overall, it's a beautiful show. The sets and costumes are impressive and keep the show interesting even when it's weak. Unfortunately, it's weak nearly every time someone starts to sing. The songs range from mediocre to awful and very few advance the plot. (Imagine having to sit through the Witch's song without the costumes or Daffodils without the gorgeous staging? Painful.)

But the book is strong. Butz is doing too much of the heavy lifting at the moment (I wanted him to go away at times), but he's so talented. I also liked Bobby Steggert's character. Maybe they've made some changes, but I didn't find him too whiney. His relationship with his father seemed very real to me. Perhaps a little too real. I recently lost a parent to cancer and I found several moments in the show very hard. (Based on what I heard and saw of those around me, I wasn't alone.) I never saw the movie for that reason and wasn't sure how the show would sit, but a warning to all those out there in a similar position: it's a very triggering show.

I can't imagine seeing it again any time soon for that reason, but the audience around me was very enthusiastic and I believe the show will do well. At its heart, it's a classic, timeless story, it has some depth and I think people will relate to it.

[Scarywarhol]

Posted: 9/27/13 at 9:35am

So much talent went into this show, and nobody was at the helm. As far as I can tell, there was no director focusing the production and there sure as hell wasn't a professional composer-lyricist. I have never seen something so utterly miss capturing any part of what made its source material special, and this is by far the most generic, toothless, redundant score I have EVER heard reach a Broadway stage. More bland and dormant than Lippa's egregious Addams Family. The most excessive, style-free projection usage I have seen all the way down to community theatre. It looked like a forgotten Playstation 1 game was just being projected onto the set at all times. The book was fine. Norbert did the best he could.

I really don't think I can imagine being more disappointed.





Updated On: 9/27/13 at 09:35 AM

[DramaTeach]

Posted: 9/28/13 at 9:23pm

Bought tickets in August for me and my dad to go as a birthday present. Little did I know, his father, my grandpa, would pass away in the interim. Needless to say, I was pretty nervous how my dad would feel about the show after experiencing such a loss when that's exactly what the show addresses. He has been pretty stoic since my grandpa passed, trying to keep it together for himself and everyone around him, but I looked over to him during the show to see tears streaming down his face. Afterwards, he said he hasn't really cried, but the show opened something up in him.

I know we nitpick when things aren't perfect and listen to reviews from critics, but for me, the true test of a show is the connection it makes to its audience. Big Fish most certainly connected with us.



Updated On: 9/28/13 at 09:23 PM

[RippedMan]

Posted: 9/28/13 at 10:48pm

Have any big changes happened? I think the show needs a new score and some ... umph .... but i guess it won't get it?

[Patash]

Posted: 9/29/13 at 8:01am

Just another request for an answer to what has changed during previews. So many people have mentioned things that need to be changed, but so far no real report that any of them have been.

[ggersten]

Posted: 9/29/13 at 9:37am

People may not know if there are changes unless they have gone twice or have inside information. I'm sure there have been changes since the first preview. There were significant changes made since Chicago.
It sounds like this is show that is going to split audiences no matter what changes are made from here on out. Some are going to connect and love the show. Others are going to be left dazed and confused.

[Younger Brother]

Posted: 9/29/13 at 9:44am

"It sounds like this is show that is going to split audiences no matter what changes are made from here on out. Some are going to connect and love the show. Others are going to be left dazed and confused."

Much like the film did, I guess.

[Kad]

Posted: 9/29/13 at 9:58am

I've heard the opening number is restaged and that the damn joggers were cut from Steggert's first act song.

[ohjustjake]

Posted: 9/29/13 at 10:48am

I saw the show this past Wednesday, and I only noticed a jogger at the very beginning of his song, and then there were like two people sitting on the stage that left shortly after he started singing, and I think there was a woman who walked across who checked her purse and that was it. I didn't find it distracting, so I'm guessing there used to be much more?

And just to put it out there - I loved the show.

[disneybroadwayfan22]

Posted: 9/29/13 at 12:30pm

So, what I'm getting is: "This show is good, but it has some issues." Because I'm thinking about if we can see 2 shows next year (I'm trying to see Aladdn in APRIL for a late birthday gift), it can be probably be this, Pippin, or Cinderella (If Laura and Santino are still in it. I doubt it though :/)

And I can honestly see this beat ALADDIN, IF/THEN, & ROCKY for Best Musical.

[ljay889]

Posted: 9/29/13 at 5:58pm

And I can honestly see this beat ALADDIN, IF/THEN, & ROCKY for Best Musical.

LOL. You've seen all four shows?

[vitamins]

Posted: 9/29/13 at 6:15pm

I really wanted to like this show, but I absolutely hated it.
I think what I hated most were the projections. In a show that is so much about the importance of imagination, this show leaves nothing to the audience's imagination. In a scene in the Bloom's bedroom, is it really necessary to have the outline of a house, with a smoking chimney, waving trees, and the occasional bird? I feel like the projections are being over-used to cover up the atrocious book and score. When everything is projected to death, it takes away from the sets that were actually built. Both Daffodils and the horizon at the end should be breathtaking, but they were "just another set."

I don't want to go in to tremendous detail about every point that I hated, but I was really appalled that Spectre was not part of the musical. Of all the scenes in the film, that one lends itself to the stage the most, wouldn't you think? I can just see a wire with everyone's shoes flying in, and the lighting would have been beautiful. I felt that was a major missed opportunity.

[disneybroadwayfan22]

Posted: 9/29/13 at 6:20pm

LOL. You've seen all four shows?

Why being a smart aleck? I said i can SEE, not know -_- I am GUESSING, after watching a vid of it. And after seeing If/Then in Nov. and hopefully seeing Aladdin (and maybe Big Fish?) in April, maybe my mind will change.

[indytallguy]

Posted: 9/29/13 at 7:40pm

I don't think it is smart aleck to respond a bit incredulously when someone says they can see (imagine) how Big Fish will win the Tony over multiple shows that have yet to open. "I can see" as an expression can be perceived as being more concrete in your projetiton that it sounds like you actually might be. That's one of the challenges of just reading a post. We can't always get someone's tone or intent.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 9/29/13 at 11:04pm

That choreography is a joke. They're doing jazz squares. On Broadway. boo.

[TimesSquared]

Posted: 9/30/13 at 9:25am

Vitamins, I'd forgotten all about the town of Spectre! Such a great part of the film.
When I first heard about the musical Big Fish, the entrance into Spectre was the first thing I imagined for the stage version, with that wire with everyone's shoes silhouetted against the sky. So creepy at first, until you realized it was really heaven on earth.

Given the fact that they already made Edward's home town so "Music Man" with all the merry townsfolk, I bet they didn't know how to make Spectre an even more fantastic place.

[dreaming]

Posted: 9/30/13 at 9:51am

Spectre is where Jenny Hill comes from, isn't it? (I thought she was the little girl.) I was not happy they dropped that plot line AT ALL.

[hanabana]

Posted: 10/1/13 at 1:04am

Just saw this show last weekend, and loved it. And I think I am not alone on this, the house looked full and the audience were very enthusiastic. I did not watch the movie, so I walked in with absolutely no knowledge of the plot. I actually did not expect to enjoy it that much, but I did. The show was really touching and meaningful. I was in tears at the end of the second act, and many around me were as well. I think it's nice to see a show with such depth on broadway. I thought the sets and the choreography were pretty great too. Norbert Leo Butz was terrific (I saw him in Catch Me If You Can and became a fan, and he does not disappoint in Big Fish), as was the entire cast. I personally think it's definitely something worth seeing. Hopefully it will continue to do well after it opens.





Updated On: 10/1/13 at 01:04 AM

[Sauja]

Posted: 10/1/13 at 12:42pm

I had mixed feelings about the show. I can see where people are coming from on the positives and negatives. The only thing that surprised me in this thread is the love for the design. I found the show so visually unappealing. The costumes are garish and obvious. Okay, Kate Baldwin's favorite color is blue, but does that mean it's the ONLY color she wears? And the tarps everyone wears in the witch number so that vaguely identifiable projections can be screened on them are an embarrassment. Or the dress that (spoiler alert) turns into a campfire? It was a neat trick, but...WHY?

And the set... It's mostly slats of wood moving awkwardly about the stage (again having stuff projected on them). Sure, the daffodil number is lovely, but it's undercut by the actors needing to walk in front of a curtain so there's time to move into place so loudly you can hear clangs and booms at the back of the house.

I was also unimpressed by Stroman's choreography (I guess this isn't a "design" element). She has done much, much better work elsewhere just about every time.

I guess given the whimsy inherent in the material, I just hoped for something prettier to look at. But others seem really pleased with the appearance of it, so maybe it's just me!