Most Misguided Interpretation You've Seen? - Page 2

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 8/25/14 at 1:20pm

I've only had the (mis)fortune to see one of his productions, but I think anything Calixto Bieito directs would fit this category (including his Boston production of Camino Real.) http://www.operanews.com/operanews/review/review.aspx?id=359&issueID=15

[IronMan]

Posted: 8/25/14 at 2:15pm

At the same summer stock theater I was in a production of "Bells Are Ringing" that was badly updated from the 1950s to the 1990s. Those not familiar with the show wondered why no one had an answering machine, and the lead's phone number was still 'PLaza 0-4433'.
And yes, a production of G&S' "Patience" set in a 1950s diner.

[Hex3]

Posted: 8/25/14 at 3:00pm

Back when I was little I played Hugo Peabody in a production of Bye Bye Birdie where Albert was played by a young good looking guy and Conrad Birdie was played by an over weight 40 year old. Even during "You Gotta be Sincere" Albert was the one playing the guitar. Not only that but the director changed the song from "Ed Sullivan" to "Dave Letterman". The show was not modernized in any other way. The costumes were still all very period but it was still changed to Dave Letterman. Another age difference was between myself and the girl playing Kim. This was the summer before I entered high school and Kim was about 21-22.

[NoName3]

Posted: 8/25/14 at 3:14pm

The most misguided productions I've seen have been in opera houses. Madama Butterfly set in a Nagasaki whorehouse and ending with the atomic bomb going off, anyone?

In the 1970's Laurence Olivier directed a production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof for American television. Despite a good cast -- Natalie Wood and Robert Wagner as Maggie and Brick, Maureen Stapleton and Olivier himself as Big Mama and Big Daddy -- the whole thing was so misconceived from the first glimpse as to be ludicrous. Big Daddy's house looked like Twelve Oaks from GWTW. Olivier made his entrance as Big Daddy dressed as a clone of Colonel Sanders and spoke with an exaggerated Southern patrician elegance. These characters are not Old South aristocracy. It was just all so wrong.

ETA that IMDB says this was directed by Robert Moore. But it was still so misguided. I found this in an old Guardian article: "[Tennessee Williams] wasn't much more thrilled with a 1976 Granada TV production, starring Natalie Wood and Robert Wagner. Here, according to Williams, Laurence Olivier mistakenly conceived Big Daddy as 'a southern planter gentleman instead of a former overseer who struck it rich through hard work'."

http://www.theguardian.com/stage/2012/sep/30/cat-on-a-hot-tin-roof

Updated On: 8/25/14 at 03:14 PM

[Roscoe]

Posted: 8/25/14 at 3:48pm

"So much of the aforementioned revival of A Little Night Music, but especially Ramona Mallory's shrewish Anne (no trace of the sweet young girl Fredrik is supposed to see, and desire)"

This! A million times THIS! Her bitchy little Anne made at least one big scene completely incomprehensible -- Fredrik turns down delicious Desiree to stay with that ill-mannered frigid brat he got suckered into marrying?

[Musical Master]

Posted: 8/25/14 at 4:06pm

It would be nice to see a production with Jayne Weisner as Anne. I think she could give a more sweet performance than any other actress could do.

[ShakinBaconGirl]

Posted: 8/25/14 at 4:08pm

RENT REMIXED was the worst.

[Musical Master]

Posted: 8/25/14 at 4:10pm

Great, thanks for bringing back some bad memories of what I saw in that production of RENT. Talk about COMPLETELY MISSING THE POINT!

[Alan Henry]

Posted: 8/25/14 at 5:28pm

Re Stratford's West Side Story: I completely disagree. Tony was played by Paul Nolan and there was nothing effeminate or bad about his performance. I thought he was brilliant. Anita was also great - her singing and dancing were fantastic. I don't recall her being Asian (I saw it twice) - but if she was, it still worked.

The production got raves as well, I think.

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 8/25/14 at 6:19pm

"Are we allowed to include movie adaptations? The movie of August: Osage County took a black comedy and minimized the comedic aspects, reduced Mattie Fae (the Rondi Reed/Margo Martindale role) to an afterthought, and made Barbara (the Amy Morton/Julia Roberts role) into a bitter, nagging, unpleasant woman I cared nothing about.

August: Osage County is one of my favorite plays and I could not believe how wrong-headed the direction of the movie was."

Exactly!

[wiggum2]

Posted: 8/25/14 at 10:57pm

I hate the "modern" Jesus Christ Superstar

[ajh]

Posted: 8/26/14 at 2:00am

It has been discussed elsewhere but the London Open Air RAGTIME in Regents Park was an absolute horror show. Set partially in a trailer park (er.....Why?!) and with some very peculiar casting, it got so much wrong I shudder at the memory. Haven't seen anything directed by Timothy Sheader since. Pretty much the only redeeming feature was Rosalie Craig as Mother, and she went on to star in The Light Princess and will soon be seen in the Donmar City Of Angels.

[chrisampm2]

Posted: 8/26/14 at 3:05am

Patash, did you really see West Side Story at Stratford? Paul Nolan's hair was his natural light brown and, while sensitive, didn't seem effeminate to me. The NY Times praised his athleticism. What's not subjective is the ethnicity of the Maria, Chilina Kennedy, and Anita, Jennifer Rias, neither of whom are Asian.

[NeverSoShy]

Posted: 8/26/14 at 5:01am

Craig Revel Horwood's CHESS was one of the strangest things I've ever seen. Someone here's already mentioned the actor-musicians, which I think on the whole worked wonderfully (and made me incredibly jealous of the talent in the ensemble!).

The most bizarre thing about the production was the bondage element in the costume design. Very very odd.

I'm glad that I saw this production but I don't think it should ever be repeated!

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

Posted: 8/26/14 at 7:10am

Director Gale Edwards' modern-dress revival of Jesus Christ Superstar. Jesus, take the wheel!

Seconded. And the real shame is she'd already done a (much better) production at the Lyceum in the West End, which was allegedly scrapped because it didn't tour well. So big deal! Take it to Broadway!

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 8/26/14 at 7:27am

As a rule, I am all for setting anything in a 50s diner. But a production of RUDDIGORE staged as a "Frankie and Annette" beach party movie made no sense to me whatsoever, despite the two pages of the program the director devoted to explaining it.

Similarly, I was fine with Peter Brooks' decision to stage CARMEN with a small cast, but small or large matters little when the cast is kept clueless. While Don Jose and Don Emilio fought to the death over her, Carmen cleared the friggin' dishes! I didn't know whether she had OCD or that was her favorite set of pottery. Either way, I thought the staging of that scene typified the whole (despite the critical raves).

[g.d.e.l.g.i.]

Posted: 8/26/14 at 8:00am

I hate the "modern" Jesus Christ Superstar

Which one? The Gale Edwards version or the arena tour?

[Patash]

Posted: 8/26/14 at 9:03am

"Patash, did you really see West Side Story at Stratford?"

Yes, I did, but OOOOPS I failed to mention that I was talking about the 1999 production, not their more recent one. Maria was played by the beautiful voiced, Ma-Anne Dionsio, a Filipino. But in looking it up just now, I realize that Tony was billed as Tyley Ross, which now reminds me that is NOT whom I saw that day -- much to the dismay of the audience who knew him, although I didn't. The guy who played it for that matinee was an understudy or substitute. And yes, people laughed at him a lot. It was very embarrassing. He had a wonderful voice that didn't match his effeminate performance, but never in a million years should have been playing that role.

By the way, is that the same year I saw MacBeth there in the Tom Patterson? The version set in the future with all the soldiers in trenchcoats carrying laptops? And Act I ended with Lady Macbeth circling the stage drinking the dregs out of all the wine glasses and actually singing "the Rockies may tumble, Gibraltar may crumble
They're only made of clay. But our love is here to stay" I wish I were kidding, but I'm not.

Sorry, don't mean to put down the Stratford Festival -- I've seen amazingly wonderful productions there, but these two were off the charts -- the wrong way!

Updated On: 8/26/14 at 09:03 AM

[GilmoreGirlO2]

Posted: 8/26/14 at 9:36am

David Cromer’s direction of “Rent” at American Theatre Company/About Face here in Chicago. As an actor in the show described it to me, this was supposed to be a “gritty,” “real” production of the show and “how Jonathan Larson intended it to be.” How they were able to ask Larson what he intended is beyond me…but, seeing as so much of the show is about love and friendship, I highly doubt he intended his characters to be so unlikable and act like they never enjoyed each other’s company. It seemed Cromer felt that the more strange, off-putting, and emo these characters were, the more “intense” and “real” the world was. I walked out of the theatre feeling gross – I wanted to get far away from these characters, when I usually leave “Rent” feeling like I want to be a part of their friend group.

Also, for Cromer being so focused on it being “real,” he decided to throw in some stylistic things that would have been distracting even if the rest of the show wasn’t played to be “natural” (in quotes because the entire thing was beyond forced).

Perhaps the most distracting and upsetting part of the show was that you could see the actors’ egos onstage as they acted. You could tell they thought they were doing the coolest, realest, most formidable production of “Rent” anyone would see in their lives. I knew someone in the cast and, talking with him after the show, it was clear that the entire company approached the show in exactly this way and Cromer was pumping it into them that by approaching “Rent’ in this way, they were doing was important, real work.

Also, when I am grateful for the moment in the show when Angel dies…something must have been very, very off.

[Mr. Nowack]

Posted: 8/26/14 at 2:37pm

I once saw a production of HAIRSPRAY where the girl playing Amber played her like Gertrude McFuzz from SEUSSICAL (whom the girl had just played). It did NOT work.

[jonartdesigns]

Posted: 8/26/14 at 3:10pm

not the production, but one performance. Coleman Domingo in Chicago, at the performance I saw he played the role, in essence, as Jackie Chiles from Seinfeld.

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 8/26/14 at 3:53pm

Didn't actually see it and I don't need to: Bobby killing himself at the end of Company.

[dreaming]

Posted: 8/26/14 at 4:01pm

The Sam Waterston production of King Lear was awful. It was directed at a snail's pace...and some things are better left to the imagination.

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 8/26/14 at 5:11pm

Didn't actually see it and I don't need to: Bobby killing himself at the end of Company.

Wow! That does seem a bit of an overreaction, doesn't it?

[NewSynchopation]

Posted: 8/26/14 at 5:20pm

I would probably end up cheering in the middle of the theatre because I wouldn't have to listen to his insufferable droning anymore.