Profile for chernjam

David10086 said: "Chernjam, it's all because of you I went to see it in June, 2017. I was undecided, and asked on this board - and you said "Go see it! Go see it! Go see it!" - so I did and I'm forever thankful to you."

Too bad RUG/producers weren't giving commissions out :)  So happy that my recommendation got you there and that you were able to enjoy and experience such a unique theatrical experience.  To me it was one of the best ex

Really beautiful track.  Of the three we've heard (Bad Cinderella, Far Too Late and now this Only You, Lonely You) its a tie between Far Too Late and Only You.  Both are pretty emotive and moving - and Far Too Late we only got the acoustic version with ALW accompanying on piano.  When I heard the clip of the strings for that, I imagine that's going to be pretty sweeping.

Happy that it seems a more sung-through, lush score from Andrew then the more recent outings

David10086 said: "nealb1 said: "I saw the 2017 Broadway revival twice. That's so interesting that when you saw it, you had that experience.

The nights we saw it, there was no mugging, playing it for laughs, or having the audience laugh. We didn't experience that at all. Having seen her in the original version multiple times, and knowing the cast album by heart - for the most part, it was so wonderful to see her Norma, being done in a different take/style.

Bettyboy72 said: "

It really was a missed opportunity. I was at the stage door during previews. A fan asked Xavier about a new recording and he said no. Glenn, who was within earshot, perked up and piped in, "no, no, no- we are still in discussions with the producers. We are going to make this happen. I want this production preserved." It gave me some hope. Sadly, it never came to fruition. It did make me wonder though, if it was a meta-Norma moment for Glenn. Wa

scripps said: "I recall being kind of wishy washy about seeing the revival because hey, it didn't have the opulent set. I went with a friend regardless courtesy of TDF and had a fantastic time courtesy of a patron who might'vehad a little too much to drink at intermission leading to an audible shout of approval when Michael Xavier came on in just his swim trunks to start the second act. The audience erupted in laughter and support and Michael turned to the house and preened w

David10086 said: "


And a big YES to Michael Xavier ! I forgot about him in the revival until someone mentioned him - an excellent Joe Gillis. I wish they released a recording of the revival !

"

There was a group of us who harassed RUG, ALW and Glen Close multiple times to try to get ANYTHING of that production recorded and released... stellar cast with a symphonic orchestra (and incredible new orchestrations) such, such a shame and missed

I can't believe its 27 years ago tonight... Before the internet was the internet, and having to survive on little bits and pieces in the NY Times, magazines like "Theater Week" to get the scoop on what was happening.

Love reading all your comments and found myself agreeing with a lot of them.  The whole World Premiere having to be postponed 2 weeks because the scenery was malfunctioning - in what was a global event really did screw many things up - not the least

Phantom of London said: "Mark Harris’ article for the vulture was illuminating and very concerning.

Broadway has to start from scratch, with high unemployment and lack of tourism due to Covid 19, Broadway has to chase every buck, not that it didn’t anyway, they’ve to go harder now.

I would think that Producerswould be now reluctant to spend money, they would want to test the market - I would be shocked if the Britney Spears and Michael Jackson

OK - so I'm just watching this for the very first time.

1 - I had never been a fan of Cats - (only saw it once, which was enough) - although as an ALW fan, I did enjoy the music
2 - Was not put off by the early trailers and was actually intrigued/curious about it
3 - Most definitely was swayed by the visceral negative reaction to not bother going to see it in the theaters 

Now, I don't know if being self-quarantined is getting to me... maybe I have the cor

In the recent Paper Mill Playhouse "World Premiere" of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Unmasked he did concede that this remains one of his more controversial shows with a majority of the critics hating it but that it has done very well in the Australian production.  The fact that it did tour in the US (and I remember reading that year it was considered one of the more lucrative tours on the road) and has toured Japan and now a "World tour" with basically the same

 

 

 

Just returned from seeing Unmasked this evening.  What an absolute delight.  It was amazing to me that the show ran over 2 and a half hours, didn't include all of ALW's works - and moved at a brisk pace that the whole thing just flew by.  Was a bit concerned going in having read some reactions and then seeing the list of musical numbers - but the pacing, the ALW narrations and the absolutely incredible voices made for an incredi

The reddit story is more ridiculous then the actual story of Cats

And if I remember correctly, ALW had little to nothing to do with the filming of this.  I thought that he liked Hooper because Hooper wanted to keep the film close to the stage show (obviously to a fault)

 

Wayman_Wong said: "Jason Derulo, who played Rum Tum Tugger, is defending ''Cats'' and calling the critics a bunch of sourpusses:''Reviews don't matter, man. … It’s an incredible piece of art done by some of the best people in the world. Tom Hooper’s a class act. I don’t think there’s another director out there that’s more classy than he is. So yeah, I’m just excited for the people to actually see it. Reviewers, wh

Gorlois said: "A Director said: "There will never be a movie version of ALW's Sunset Blvd."

I think this will be the saddest legacy of Cats. The movie version of “Sunset Boulevard”was already unlikely after Glenn Close failed to win the Oscar this year but after Cats became a public laughing stock and now the miserable box office returns, we will probably not see an adaptation of “Sunset Boulevard” very soon, if ever.&quo

sabrelady said: "loving things is nice.



To quote the Witch "Just nice".

I get peoples love musical theatre and want to see more and if this meets your standards OK. For YOU.

BUT it doesn't meet others standards on SO many levels- not a blind irrational hatred but a a deep hurt disappointment over the qualityinstead of what could have been.

Carry On."

Wow - so carry on offe

robbie_731 said: "James Corden on 'Cats': "I’ve heard it’s terrible”; says he hasn't seen it yet, which means he skipped out after photos for the premiere:

https://www.tmz.com/2019/12/25/james-corden-cats-review-terrible/"

Not for nothing - that's a ****ty thing for him to say/do.  Had it been a huge hit he would've loved basking in all the praise.  Suck it up that it was a mis-step that didn't go we

Wow - reading the article about the "update" is really not going to add anything but more bad press/wild speculation about the whole film.  A few weeks ago, I forget what entertainment site it was, but they had mentioned the delays and suggested they postpone the December release for a January seeing that it wasn't going to be released in time to be eligible for award screenings/deadlines and instead basically saying "take the time to get it right."

I h

Haven't seen it yet, but listening to the film soundtrack, it sounds beautiful... "Beautiful Ghosts" sung by Francesca Haywad is much more effective then the Swift version.  The new orchestrations are so crisp and fresh - Jellicle Songs especially.  They probably should've released the album earlier to help build more positive buzz 

I'm planning on going to see this.. perhaps not until after Christmas as I'm just busy with holiday preparations and stuff... but it's interesting reading people already saying this is a train wreck based on critics reviews and a few trailers and speculating what would've been better.

First off, the other "visions" - a cartoon version for example - yeah we look at some cool drawings and think that would've been much better... but remember Cats is far f

Not for nothing... not a "Cats" apologist - (yes I'm an ALW fan, but Cats has been on the lower end of my preferences)
But all this talk about "Rotten tomatoes" - if you look, you'll find the film of the stage production got a "20" so take that for what it's worth...