Into the Woods 2002 Revival- Page 2

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 12:37am

Yep, she was Cinderella and she was absolutely wonderful.

[LMcC95]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 1:02am

I hope she comes to broadway again soon

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 1:16am

Perfect timing. I have had the cast recording playing in my car the past week or so. I really love the recording. I love Vanessa Williams and Lusra Benanti.

[adamgreer]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 7:13am

I didn't *hate* the production like some people did. I actually enjoyed Vanessa Wiliams a great deal, particularly in act 2. And of course, Benanti and McMartin were wonderful. I also really enjoyed the design, and I was one of the few people who thought the lower keys for the Witch's songs were better- they gave the songs a more haunting quality.

Unfortunately, the show's Achilles heel was the casting of the Baker and his Wife. Steve DeRosa was a poor man's Chip Zien, bringing none of the complexity and depth that Zien brought to the part. And the less said about O'Malley's disastrous performance the better. In fairness to her, though...Joanna Gleason's performance in that role is iconic. Any actress will pale in comparison to her.

Updated On: 12/20/13 at 07:13 AM

[Scarlet Leigh]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 8:15am

As the revival was my first full scale introduction to the show, I feel I tolerate it more then most people do. At the time I thought it was the greatest thing ever. Years later after having seen the recording of the original cast, I see why people have problems with it, but I still don't think it was that awful.

Personally I loved the design of the show. I liked the use of storybooks within the set and the lighting design of the giant blew my little teenage mind back in 2002.

But looking back, the performances did not stand out. I remember the set, the songs, the story, but I can't recall any of the people I saw. Christopher Sieber hamming it up during "Agony" and Williams's turn on the catwalk after her transformation and that's about it. Kinda sad now that I think about it. I mean, the performers were okay but they just didn't seem to capture the work with the same passion and charisma of the original cast. There was no real chemistry between them or connection to the work itself. The cast simply blended into that wonderful scenery. The ONE person who could have likely captivated me was the one person who was out of the show that day, Laura Benanti.

[Scarlet Leigh]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 8:15am

Double Post

Updated On: 12/20/13 at 08:15 AM

[Kad]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 9:09am

In Pacific Overtures, Sondheim also has rewritten the lyrics for Welcome to Kanagawa. Not that it makes a difference, the song is still terrible and ranks amongst his worst.

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 9:11am

^ ... :-O

: - (

[Kad]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 9:21am

Don't tell me you actually like that song!

[Brian07663NJ]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 9:34am

Having seen the original production I was eagerly anticipating the revival. Needless to say I was disappointed and that was confirmed when the witch sang the ghetto lyric version (greens) in Act One Prologue.

So glad I was able to cleanse my mind by watching the DVD of the original production.

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 9:48am

I, actually, LOVE that song, Kad, you cad!

[PJPan]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 10:20am

The recording of the revival was my first introduction to Benanti and I am very grateful for that. I never got to hear him, but damn if 2002 Chad Kimball wasn't cute.

Was fun to see Molly Ephraim pop up in Paranormal Activity 2 - I thought she was great.

[PJPan]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 10:20am

The recording of the revival was my first introduction to Benanti and I am very grateful for that. I never got to hear him, but damn if 2002 Chad Kimball wasn't cute.

Was fun to see Molly Ephraim pop up in Paranormal Activity 2 - I thought she was great.

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 10:47am

Needless to say I was disappointed and that was confirmed when the witch sang the ghetto lyric version (greens) in Act One Prologue.

What's different about it? I've never noticed anything before, unless it's not on the recording or something.

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 12:02pm

I remember when it first came out, people hated - and I mean HATED it - without having actually seen it or heard any of it. Just because it wasn't the iconic production or the legendary casting. Were we ever going to get lightning in a bottle again? No. But it was the first time trying and I think a lot of the buzz was skewed. That said, I will agree that some of the casting was off, but in all I really liked it.

[James885]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 12:18pm

I saw it a couple months before it closed. I didn't hate it, but it wasn't a production that was exceptionally memorable. Laura Benanti was exceptional, and Vanessa Williams was serviceable. I do agree that the actress who played Jack's mother was awful; her singing drove me up the wall.

I hated the lyric changes to Last Midnight.

Updated On: 12/20/13 at 12:18 PM

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 12:51pm

I actually love the lyric changes to Last Midnight. The creepy and eerie tone to the song was chilling. I love how she kissed the baby on the forehead before handing him over to Cinderella.

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 12:55pm

I like:

You're so pure
But stay here
And in time you'll mature
And grow up to be them
So let's fly
You and I
Far away

But I hate:

I'm leaving you alone
Squirming the mess that you made
Fix it on your own
Time for me to go, I'm afraid
Back to what I know
Back to long ago
Safe inside the world that I'm from
Better ugly and spurned with my powers returned
And I fear
Midnight's here
Time to disappear
Mother, here I come!

Too on the nose.

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 1:23pm

Safe inside the world that I'm from

I absolutely adore the orchestrations after that line though on the cast recording. The creepy horn riffs are awesome.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 2:00pm

I intend to post more comprehensive thoughts later, but aside from the senseless rewrites that were often pointless and did nothing to offer better flow or insight, but often threw a wrench into the cogs of the show, the revival had one problem and one problem only. JAMES LAPINE.

Lapine wrote the show from the ground up and directed it from the same perspective in the original production and it all felt very organic. This time, he did not direct the show from any place of honesty of connection to the material. He wanted to prove that he could just do it differently and all of his choice from casting through opening clearly and plainly came from a place where his number one consideration was "Do it differently from - in fact, do the exact opposite of - the original. The original worked, that is why much of the revival did not and why not very many things in the revival felt HONEST. Many times, you could see where he had directed an actor or designer by saying no more than "do the opposite of the original production."

Example: The Narrator. He specifically has a line in act two about not being a part of the story, about having to be on the outside to tell it. In the original, the Narrator is alien from everyone til that moment, when they turn and look at him and it sent chills down your spine. You weren't aware that they knew he was there. In the revival, the Narrator spent the ENTIRE show interacting with the cast, playing Cinderella's Birds (tacky, might I add), planting the flowers for Little Red to pick, handing off props, etc. He was never OUTSIDE of the story, so now that line has NO meaning and negates everything. Lapine plainly ignored his own text.

ONE thing that was done 100% differently but absolutely worked on it's own merits - Milky-White. You lost the sight gag of carrying the statue and it falling over, but gained other moments of comic gold.

[artscallion]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 2:08pm

They lost all of the comedy in the process. All the line readings were off. Lines that were specifically written to be funny were read with a different emphasis so as not to be like the original. Therefore falling flat. And other lines that were not written to be funny were read as if they were. Fail, fail, fail.

The relationship between the baker and his wife was drastically changed. It seemed like they didn't like each other.

[Brian07663NJ]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 2:19pm

Jacob - sorry for the confusion. I meant that she sang it with a ghetto beat. The lyrics weren't changed.

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 2:28pm

This thread got me to stick my DVD of the original in and I'm watching it now! I had surgery yesterday and have all day to nothing, so I thought there would be no better way to spend the day than watch the original I am just NOT a fan of Bernadette as the Witch. Joanna Gleason is just out of this world though.

[broadwayguy2]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 2:32pm

Exactly, artscallion. How do you root for these two characters to get their wish and have a baby when everything is directed and staged to make it seem as though they genuinely detest one another?

[Kad]

Posted: 12/20/13 at 2:41pm

I can't recall: did the 2002 revival use the expanded "Children Will Listen" with the lyrics taken from the cut "Second Midnight"? I know the 2012 revival did.