The Woman in White- Page 2

[Unmasked05]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 1:41am

I would have to agree with you completely ThankstoPhantom on that Maria being robbed statement. She deserved to be nominated for a Tony that year and we all know she would have won.

[Sally]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 4:58am

Thanks, ThankstoPhantom for the explanation of what happened. I saw the show with all of the original cast and liked it very much---the music, the cast, the much maligned projections ( which did not make me dizzy), "Lammastide" (which did not make me think of "Macarena" when I saw the show)---the whole thing except for the character Anne's shrieking "I have a secret" ad nauseam.

I read that there had been changes but didn't try to keep up with them. I knew, however, that they had changed the ending and thought that a lived-happily-ever-after conclusion would be awful. One of my strongest memories is of Maria Friedman standing ALONE on the stage at the end.

Posted: 12/15/09 at 5:25am

I wondered about the changes--I know MANY were made (and thought he cast album is a "live" recording with the audience reactins edited out I believe th eending on the CD wasn't actually ever done on stage either)but it was hard to keep track

[mallardo]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 7:05am

The projections were a problem if you were sitting close to the stage - which is a MAJOR problem. They played well from the mezzanine.

I thought and still think it's one of ALW's better scores, with some really heart-stopping songs, especially for the ladies. The Fosco character was fun and his Rat Trick number in the 2nd Act was a true show-stopper. But he was essentially extraneous to the plot and there was no disguising that.

The problem for me was the complexity of the story - there was just SO much exposition, especially in Act One. Once we got all the characters and plot points straight - in Act Two - the show got a lot better.

Also, I have to say, although I am a huge David Zippel fan I thought his lyrics were a mismatch for ALW's big tunes and the patter songs, of which there were too many, just wear me down with their archness.

But, having said that, I enjoyed the show.

[romgitsean]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 7:37am

But a further question though--on Broadway, weren't there many replacements for the cast? I read somewhere they only played with the OBC a few times before they had to replace Maria Friedman, and then Michael Crawford, and eventually other roles too, right? Is this true?

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 10:51am

I like the story and I really enjoy much of the music. Unfortunately, I never had the chance to see it on stage. The most shocking element to me was how embarrassingly BAD Zippel's lyrics were. I couldn't believe this was the same man who penned the brilliance found in City of Angels and Disney's Hercules. I Believe My Heart makes me wish they simply performed the number in sign language.

[Dantes]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 11:05am

"(For instance, Blood Brothers has done terrible in the US, Rent has done terribly in the UK). "

I agree with BB but Rent ran over a year and a half here, the tour was huge, its limited engagment at the Prince of Wales was a big hit and the Cast Recording has sold amazingly well here. Whilst it didnt have the 11 year run it had on Broadway it did well

...well, except Rent Remixed, but that was horrid

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 11:11am

I haven't seen it live but I enjoy the music. But some of those lyrics...REALLY, David Zippel? You're the guy who wrote, "You are so jealous of my track record/Tolstoy, do tell us your feeble hack record".

[iamchanging9]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 11:29am

romgitsean- Maria Friedman was battling breast cancer during the run and her understudy went on many times (luckily i was able to see her twice). MIchael Ball contracted an extremely bad virus and had to call out sick many times (I only saw him once). There were no replacements made, though I'm pretty sure that when the closing was announced Michael Ball could no longer perform.

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 11:35am

So it wasn't the fat suit that was making him sick? Because that's what happened with Michael Crawford in London.

[iamchanging9]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 11:49am

I'm pretty sure I remember it being a virus, I could be wrong though.

[bwaylvsong]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 12:19pm

Iamchanging9, if I remember correctly, Judy Kuhn was announced as a replacement for Friedman.

[adamgreer]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 12:31pm

Kuhn was announced as a temporary replacement, but the show closed before she performed. Lisa Brescia went on for Freidman a lot. Brescia once said it was about half the run.

[iamchanging9]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 12:33pm

Michael Ball had a viral throat infection.

Brescia most certainly did not perform half the run. She went on a lot but it was not half the run, Maria Friedman is quite the trooper.

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 1:12pm

I saw Brecia and thought she was quite mediocre. Glyde was the only truly good performance.

The projections were not okay from the mezzanine. That is where I was and was nauseated.

"All for Laura" was a nice moment, tho much better sung by Maria, and there was a lovely trio for the sisters and the stud.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 2:25pm

...and there was a lovely trio for the sisters and the stud.

*snicker*

Do you mean Trying Not to Notice? I think that is probably the most beautiful melody in the score.

[philly03]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 3:15pm

^^I agree Mister Matt; perhaps my favourite in the piece actually.


Judy Kuhn was to replace Maria Friedman from February 12th-ish until the end of March or April. Kuhn went through rehersals/all that, but then last minute the show just announced it would close, on the 19th, so Kuhn didn't even get a chance to perform in the show. Brescia was good - but not as good as Friedman.

I think they said of the 109 performances, the original cast performed ALL together 31 or something?

I liked the projections - very pretty to look at it and massive!

[philly03]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 3:18pm

^^I agree Mister Matt; perhaps my favourite in the piece actually.


Judy Kuhn was to replace Maria Friedman from February 12th-ish until the end of March or April. Kuhn went through rehersals/all that, but then last minute the show just announced it would close, on the 19th, so Kuhn didn't even get a chance to perform in the show. Brescia was good - but not as good as Friedman.

I think they said of the 109 performances, the original cast performed ALL together 31 or something?

I liked the projections - very pretty to look at it and massive!

[Scripps2]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 3:45pm

After The Secret Garden, Jane Eyre and The Woman in White, I'd like to make it clear to readers of BWW that not everyone in the north of England lives in a mansion overrun with ghosts and lunatics.

I exorcised mine by playing them the recording of BatBoy.

Still I'm pleased that Laura has finally decided to have some renovations done - I've been telling her to do so for years. If Marion goes eavesdropping again she won't slip off the ledge this time.




Updated On: 12/15/09 at 03:45 PM

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 4:53pm

Actually, Scripps, Laura's the somnambulist.

[Phantom of London]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 5:29pm

^^ lol Scripps, we must catch this in London before it closes!!!

Woman in White deserved a longer run on Broadway, than it got, testimony by how many good review there are on this thread, if we asked for thoughts on Wicked, you know, we would of had a similar mixed bag of reviews, although I am not excusing WIW, it did have its problems.

Trevor Nunn poor direction of this show, failed to translate the great Wilkie Collins book to stage very fluently.

David Zippel's lyric in some cases were woeful.

There was a total over reliance on projections, where in some cases sets should of been used, not ruling out projection but it was OTT, however the projections made a great ending, with the train, bet none of you expected that did you, no?

The show did have some magic one example is above and others such as 'A Gift for Living Well', 'If Not For Me For Her', 'You Can Get Away With Anything'.

As one contributor said Fosco was extra to the story, I believe his role was similar to The Thernadier in Les Mis, if you didn't have these three characters the show would be very melancholy.

Remember Brantley gave this a mixed review and Barnes absolutely raved about this show. As I said in my introduction WIW deserved a semi decent run, but did not help with the illness of Maria and Michael and agreed Maria should of been nominated.

[Scripps2]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 5:56pm

Thanks Mattbrain - I've edited my post accordingly.

Seriously - the sets and staging were totaly inappropriate - the expression about old dogs and new tricks springs to mind. It's not very frightening when the woman in white is supposed to leap out of the trees unexpectedly but she actually steps out of a door in a screen with some trees projected on to it.

I enjoy this show for the wrong reasons: I do like it when the Victorians start running around screaming.

Updated On: 12/15/09 at 05:56 PM

[romgitsean]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 6:27pm

Projected sets for period pieces are often critized (i.e., Lestat). I think they're cool...but for WiW, I would agree, it looks out of place.

I really do feel like they should give it another shot.

[iamchanging9]

Posted: 12/15/09 at 6:41pm

MIster Matt, I think doodlynyc meant the trio during the act one finale.

Posted: 12/15/09 at 7:32pm

Trying not to Notice is probably my favorite melody in the piece too.

I still wonder why Zippel was hired for this show--as it proved it really doesn't work to his strong points whatsoever--just bizarrely odd subject matter for him. However I think it was ALW and Charlotte Jones who made ALL the changes from the original novel which really just made things even more complicated (I get some of them, im theory to make them more theatrical when the novel uses different narrators in the epistolary style). Fosco, as well, plays a more interesting role in the novel (interestingly there was a BBC version of the novel in the late 90s, that I recently came across on tv here that also heavily changes the novel, in some ways similarly).

Anyway it's a much better score than Beautiful Game/Boys in the Photograph etc :p

And Dante's right--the Summer I spent in England I saw Rent twice, this was a year into its run and it definitely wasn't a flop. I was surprised it closed so soon after I left considering how well it seemed to be doing