Sunset Boulevard Revival Broadway Thread

[muscle23ftl]

I think Ann Crumb would have been able to do Betty justice too.

[brian1973]

Wait a minute..Nancy Anderson is the Norma understudy?!! That is just bizarre..and wrong!!

[kdogg36]

muscle23ftl said: "I think Ann Crumb would have been able to do Betty justice too."

Probably true! She has played Norma in a regional production:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUqrVHsK3q4

 

[Bettyboy72]

brian1973 said: "Wait a minute..Nancy Anderson is the Norma understudy?!! That is just bizarre..and wrong!!

 

I agree. Isn't she about 40? Granted I'd love to see her take on it but she still reads very young. 

I wonder why they didn't just hire an older standby. I mean Glenn could get sick at any moment and a standby makes more sense. Nancy is in the ensemble. 

 

[chernjam]

muscle23ftl said: "I think Ann Crumb would have been able to do Betty justice too.

 

"

I love Ann Crumb - she will always be Rose from Aspects of Love for me...  I think she'd be a bit too old to play Betty.  

[chernjam]

nice article in WSJ about ALW

 

https://www.wsj.com/articles/andrew-lloyd-webber-is-the-talk-of-broadway-1486497839

[Robbie2]

ALW would never approve of Ann Crumb...her past history lawsuit with Aspects of Love.

[Robbie2]

brian1973 said: "Wait a minute..Nancy Anderson is the Norma understudy?!! That is just bizarre..and wrong!!

She'll never go on as Norma! It's all about Glenn!

 

[BroadwayConcierge]

I mean... I feel like if Glenn ever calls out for a performance, the entire ticket-buying audience will ask for refunds. I predict Nancy Anderson won't ever actually go on as Norma.

[BrodyFosse123]

So, I was at tonight's (Tuesday Feb 7, 2017) performance.   Having seen Glenn and every actress who played the role on Broadway (including Linda Balgord in the 1st Nat'l Tour), and having had an odd obsession with the show back then, here are my thoughts on this new interpretation. 

Floating dummy Joe was effective at the start of the show.  I was Orchestra Center Row H so I never saw him suspended throughout the show, until I intentionally looked up for it based on other's comments.  

The young Norma was a nice touch.  Now if someone would pass along a note stating it would be more chilling if she mimicked Glenn's movements whenever they shared the stage.  Especially during the interlude section of "New Ways to Dream."

How I wished Glenn brought along ALL of her original costumes.  These satin pant suits were boring as ph**k.  At least she sported a few turbans.  

Performance wise, Glenn's kooky and hammy Norma didn't mesh with me, though her breakdown moments were heartbreaking.  Especially her sobbing before the end of Act 1.  It broke your heart.  The entire final scene was played for laughs and she got them.  Tonight's audience were a bit too amused.  

Also, the way the audience reacted to all of Norma's arias you'd think it was the coming of the Lord.  The shouts of "brava!".  Really?   

Yes, Glenn's voice was bumpy in spots but forgiving and I love this low-end Isotta Fraschini auto though they should have showed it during Max's dialogue with Norma instead of having it done in voiceover.  When the car drives under the scaffolding resembled the car driving thru the Paramount Studio gates so it was a clever touch.  

All in all I'm happy I caught this as it will be an event for the ages and talked about forever.  But I still prefer my old overproduced monster original production which gave you a genuine bang for your buck.  

 

[Scarywarhol]

Nancy Anderson is far more age-appropriate for the role than Ms. Close, can obviously sing it better, and would probably act it just as well and very differently. I enjoyed Close's Norma, but I dearly hope to see Nancy go on. 

[muscle23ftl]

I don't think Nancy would sing it better, because I think she has the wrong voice for Norma. She is a good light soprano, and I love that she always gets cast to play women in the 50's because of her look. She is an amazing actress, but not Norma Desmond material in my point of view. Glad she is back on Broadway in such a stellar production.

Regarding the sets, I find the new sets more effective than the 1994 production for some reason. I find the new screen with images of LA in the 1950's extremely interesting because I feel transported to that time and place. That didn't happen with the original Broadway production. But then again I saw Betty Buckley and Alice Ripley and I thought they were both awful in this show.

I went back again tonight and saw it from the mezzanine this time and I think this show is a gem and we are so lucky to be able to see this again on Broadway. The cast is superb. My only minor issue is with Siobhan Dillon's line delivery, other than that, this production is perfection.

 

[Pernigraniline]

Ann Crumb would probably never want to go near ALW again after her foot got mangled in the stage in Aspects in London. Presumably she had to do Broadway as part of contract.

[jjstud8]

Did rush for tonight. Got there at 9:45 and there were about 15 people ahead of me. Most took 2 tickets. I ended up with Balcony Right Row C. Hey it's up there but basically a buy one get one over paying face plus fees on Ticketmaster. 

[BroadwayConcierge]

Just extended through June!

http://www.broadwayworld.com/article/SUNSET-BOULEVARD-Starring-Glenn-Close-Extends-Ticket-Sales-Through-June-20170208

[LesWickedly]

It's been like that for about a week now, but seems like they just put out the press release. 

[Willie4316]

Update: They have released rear mezzanine seats for $75 in addition to dropping the prices for some balcony seats to $49. 

[chernjam]

Guess this was nicely times pre-Opening Night to add to the buzz...

 

Really excited for ALW and this company.  Haven't stopped thinking about this since I saw it Saturday afternoon and will most certainly be making a return visit

[QueenAlice]

 Glenn Close missed a number of performances 20 years ago, so I find it very hard to believe that she will be able to do the show until June without calling out at least a few times. I too was a little surprised that  they don't have somebody covering her who is a little closer to her age, particularly since she is now significantly older than the character she is playing and that now must be a part of the conceit of this production. I suppose it's possible they could bring in another woman to be a standby, leaving Nancy Anderson to just be an internal cover. Karen Mason, who I saw go on for Glenn in 1994, could still do it.

[jo]

Glenn Close won a TONY for the same role way back then and was popular with audiences.  She continues to be a fairly successful working actress so she has not been out of the public eye.  And having successfully revived the production in London, it is not surprising  to see her cast in this Broadway transfer of the revival.

But it is doubtful that any replacement/understudy would be of the same age as Ms. Close as the character of Norma is said to be in her 50's ( both from its film noir origin directed by Billy Wilder and from  the first staging of the musical adaptation). Ms. Close would be more the exception because of her talent, her success with the role, and her name.  Unless someone like Barbra Streisand agrees to continue with the role, when Glenn Close leaves the production

[Phantom of London]

She could win the Tony again.

[BroadwayConcierge]

^Ah, I've been meaning to ask the question to those who've seen this production: if Close was eligible for the Tony this year (which she's not), do you believe she's currently giving another Tony-worthy performance in this revival?

[chernjam]

BroadwayConcierge said: "^Ah, I've been meaning to ask the question to those who've seen this production: if Close was eligible for the Tony this year (which she's not), do you believe she's currently giving another Tony-worthy performance in this revival?"

-- She's not eligible?  Must confess my ignorance - had not heard that/didn't know that...

Do I believe she's giving a Tony-worthy performance- Abso-freaking-lutely yes.  In fact this portrayal seems even more worthy than 1995 because there's a depth and humanity as well as a newness to the role whereas Trevor Nunn's approach was more of replicating the movie.

[chernjam]

QueenAlice said: " Glenn Close missed a number of performances 20 years ago, so I find it very hard to believe that she will be able to do the show until June without calling out at least a few times. I too was a little surprised that  they don't have somebody covering her who is a little closer to her age, particularly since she is now significantly older than the character she is playing and that now must be a part of the conceit of this production. I suppose it's possible they could bring in another woman to be a standby, leaving Nancy Anderson to just be an internal cover. Karen Mason, who I saw go on for Glenn in 1994, could still do it."

If I remember correctly, 20 years ago, Glenn missed two weeks for the infamous "Vacation-gate" that was announced.  Other than that, I don't think she missed a great number during her 9 month run.  And last year during the 5 week run, she missed a few performances which made news because of the extremely limited run and the whole thing being almost completely sold out (so it was hard to refund/get new tickets)  But I think that's why the 7 performances per week was done so that once it opens, Glenn will have 2 full days/3 nights of rest between performances so she can recover and be prepped (might encourage people to see the Wednesday performances as she'll be fully rested for those!)

As for Karen Mason - I wondered the same thing - would she be up for being an alternate/understudy?  Is she too big for that role at this point?  Having seen her twice in the original production, her voice is AMAZING - and I would go back just to hear her singing with that orchestra.

[JVJ93]

Opening night tomorrow! Anyone think they'll offer rush for this tomorrow? Or if the show will even go on as scheduled due to the snow? 

[Bettyboy72]

I think Glenn sounds better now than she did in 1994. Not better than the recording but better than live. I think she's trained her voice even more. While it has decompensated with age I think it is more expressive and she has better control. 

Also it's a better performance. I loved the kabuki Norma but in hindsight it's so elevated. I like the reality of this Norma. I do miss some of the old costumes, the severe makeup and the turbans.