Seeing the show in March, plus the NTL screening, which is exciting news! The show started previews on Saturday. Did anyone attend or does anyone plan on attending? I heard that, like Network, there is a lot of video feed used, which may be interesting. There was a rehearsal photo showing the point of view from the mirror when Eve (Lily James) is in her dressing room. Would love everyones thoughts and feedback as the show progresses and develops. Especially script and direction wise!
I've seen a trickle of tweets saying that it was really good, except for the ending. One of them called the ending "jarring." So now I'm dying of curiosity about the ending. I don't think it can be the same ending as the movie, which was powerful but not really jarring.
I was at the first preview on Saturday. Sonia Friedman came out beforehand saying that the company had not yet run the full show with tech, nor had they finished teching the end of the play, but that they were going to go for it.
There's not a particularly delicate way to put this but.... it was terrible. The direction and production on the whole were so pretentious and unfocused, it's hard to imagine it getting much better. Performances are fine, but it was the first time I genuinely felt like I was watching actors being held hostage on stage. There were no dynamics in the production, everything was treated with the same weight, which made it difficult to follow. It became about directorial gimmicks of filmed conversations (and parties) in bathrooms (why???), strange bits of narration, and just general lack of clarity in the story being told. No chemistry between any of the actors whatsoever. They totally missed Eve's cunningness and her ability to manipulate others, and Margo became a thankless role who eventually kind of disappeared from the play. Tonally it was all very strange. Like a dark, campy, pseudo-melodrama- which I don't think is wrong for All About Eve, but it never gelled.
It was my first van Hove play, and from what I understand the Brechtian quality seems to be his thing, so maybe it's just my taste. I'm all for Brechtian, but let's be clear about what the story is that we're telling and why we are telling it in this way.
And yeah, WOOF, the ending. I don't even know if I could spoil because it is truly so insane that it makes no sense. Let's just say that it includes people appearing out of a bed, smearing lipstick on their face, and playing the piano. Mhmm.
I've heard that they've changed it since Saturday and granted according to Sonia, they hadn't properly teched it. But oh man. Another instance of watching probably great actors being held hostage.
Happy I saw it, but trust no one who says it is good. :P
hpeabody930 said: "I was at the first preview on Saturday. Sonia Friedman came out beforehand saying that the company had not yet run the full show with tech, nor had they finished teching the end of the play, but that they were going to go for it.
There's not a particularly delicate way to put this but.... it was terrible. The direction and production on the whole were so pretentious and unfocused, it's hard to imagine it getting much better. Performances are fine, but it was the first time I genuinely felt like I was watching actors being held hostage on stage. There were no dynamics in the production, everything was treated with the same weight, which made it difficult to follow. It became about directorial gimmicks of filmed conversations (and parties) in bathrooms (why???), strange bits of narration, and just general lack of clarity in the story being told. No chemistry between any of the actors whatsoever. They totally missed Eve's cunningness and her ability to manipulate others, and Margo became a thankless role who eventuallykind of disappeared from the play. Tonally it was all very strange. Like a dark, campy, pseudo-melodrama- which I don't think is wrong for All About Eve, but itnever gelled.
It was my first van Hove play, and from what I understand the Brechtian quality seems to be his thing, so maybe it's just my taste. I'm all for Brechtian, but let's be clear about what the story is that we're telling and why we are telling it in this way.
And yeah, WOOF, the ending. I don't even know if I could spoil because it is truly so insane that it makes no sense. Let's just say that it includes people appearing out of a bed, smearing lipstick on their face, and playing the piano. Mhmm.
I've heard that they've changed it since Saturday and granted according to Sonia, they hadn't properly teched it. But oh man. Another instance of watching probably great actors being held hostage.
Happy I saw it, but trust no one who says it is good. :P"
hpeabody930, could you post the ending you saw under the spoiler toggle that BWW has? Would be so interested to see what they did.
Seeing this in March- this review has me thinking I made a mistake booking this- btw- did not like View From The Bridge in NY- and hate the stupid droning background music this director seems to think is avant garde- for whatever reason- it is not avant garde- it is distracting and unnecessary.
For what it's worth, I saw this last week and loved every minute of it. Yes, it's a little over directed and the ending is staged oddly, but it's Mankiewicz's movie brought to life. And if you've seen the movie, you know that's a great two hours of entertainment. I found it far more engaging than NETWORK and I would gladly see it again. I find it hard to believe somebody won't try and get this to transfer.
Impossible 2- yes- you are not only impossible- you are rude and condescending. True- I did not like View From The Bridge- but I love the movie All About Eve- and am hoping for the best
For a play about the backstage lives of theatre actors it had no theatricality and dare I say camp?
Everything clashed so much from the time and place to the actors resulting in a distancing effect so strong the audience just felt drained at the end.
Gillian is great but it’s so restrained. Lily I didn’t like at the beginning it’s hard to pull off that ingénue she got better as the character was revealed but boy did those moments of horror just sail past.
All about Eve should be chilling, but the audience saw and were amused by each little revelation of Lily ‘please will you ask’.
The ending was just so impotent. I wanted that flash forward I saw in Company the night previous. I wanted to see Lily enter into the same vicious cycle that Margo does.
All in all it just plodded along to a fairly boring ending. There’s one exciting moment at Gillian’s first entrance and after that the trick is done, and boring,
I’d love to see this done by a director who understands the history and campiness of these icons of film and the roles they played.
BWAY Baby2 said: "Impossible 2- yes- you are not only impossible- you are rude and condescending. True- I did not like View From The Bridge- but I love the movie All About Eve- and am hoping for the best "
EthelMae said: "These photos from Broadway World today look fabulous. I’m counting the days that this production lands in New York."
Hope you can count high... based on that NYTimes review, this ain't moving anywhere. Cate Blanchett might have been critic-proof, but Gillian Anderson & Lily James aren't.
SomethingPeculiar said: "EthelMae said: "These photos from Broadway World today look fabulous. I’m counting the days that this production lands in New York."
Hope you can count high... based on that NYTimes review, this ain't moving anywhere. Cate Blanchett might have been critic-proof, but Gillian Anderson & Lily James aren't."
Blanchetts play at the National has gotten far worse reviews than this has and there are massive returns on it for every performance.
Anderson has gotten fantastic reviews for her performance.