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Where is the SUMMER Previews Thread? |
Hi all - the SUMMER thread was removed entirely in error. Unforunately there's no way to restore a thread so posting a transcript of all the messages here. So sorry about that.
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Posted by Member: BroadwayConcierge
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Previews for the Donna Summer jukebox musical Summer begin in just a few days (Wednesday, March 28, 2018) at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre. Starring LaChanze, Ariana DeBose, and Storm Lever as Donna Summer in three parts of her life, Summer is set to open officially on Monday, April 23 for an open run.
Who's going?!
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Posted by Member: Famebroadway2
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
I hope they made a lot of changes since La Jolla.
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Posted by Member: mar6411
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
From the earlier run . . .
https://www.broadwayworld.com/board/readmessage.php?thread=1105376#4991383
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Posted by Member: Mildred Plotka
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: Yet again, why do these need to be posted several days before the first preview? God forbid anyone beats the President of these boards in making a preview post. Posting them this early just turns the first few pages into rush and seating questions. But whatever, BWW is a one person dictatorship now I guess.
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Posted by Member: BroadwayConcierge
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Mildred Plotka said: "Yet again, why do these need to be posted several days before the first preview? God forbid anyone beats the President of these boards in making a preview post. Posting them this early just turns the first few pages into rush and seating questions. But whatever, BWW is a one person dictatorship now I guess. "
1) Formatting consistency
2) So people can discuss rush/lottery/seating options a bit more pointedly before the first audience.
Chill out, please.
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Posted by Member: Alessio2
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
If anyone attends who also saw the show in LaJolla please post your thoughts and if there were significant changes made (I hope so) My husband is insisting on seeing this on Broadway even though we saw it at LaJolla and didn.t think it was great! We are both huge fans of Donna Summer, and the show at LaJolla just didn't do her life any justice.
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Posted by Member: Mildred Plotka
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: Formatting consistency? Do you work for the site?
You post these because you want it to appear like you're in charge.
You post them super early so you can beat others to it. And then we have to hunt to find actual reviews. Never had to do that before you came along.
I'll "chill out" when you stop trying to run the joint.
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Posted by Member: n2nbaby
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: Mildred, please take your anger on something that actually deserves your anger.
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Posted by Member: Mildred Plotka
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: Oh there's no anger. Just sick of watching a hypocrite trying to run this board.
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Posted by Member: gypsy101
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Mildred Plotka said: "Formatting consistency? Do you work for the site?
You post these because you want it to appear like you're in charge.
You post them super early so you can beat others to it. And then we have to hunt to find actual reviews. Never had to do that before you came along.
I'll "chill out" when you stop trying to run the joint."
They're clearly a Broadway Concierge, so they're just doing their job!
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Posted by Member: DAME
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Girls, YOU ARE BOTH PRETTY!
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Posted by Member: JustAnotherNewYorker
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
I'm sure this will be another forgettable jukebox musical. Hopefully not awful, but likely not great.
That said, I'll see it, if just to hear LaChanze's take on it.
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Posted by Member: ArtMan
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
I really want to see this in May. It is the only show I haven't bought my ticket for, in advance. The discounts are barely nothing. I think the producers are over estimating the demand for this show.
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Posted by Member: Sondheimite
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Mildred Plotka said: "Oh there's no anger. Just sick of watching a hypocrite trying to run this board."
And you're doing that by trying to run the board.
Chill, mamacita. Go have a smoke and relax.
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Posted by Member: smidge
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: I feel the same as ArtMan. I'm just wondering if this will still be around in May. Even with TKTS, the prices seem too much. Hoping for a good rush or lottery. Can't miss a Donna Summer musical.
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Posted by Member: dramamama611
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
^And I feel just the opposite - I couldn't care less. Ive yet to see a biopic musical that Ive enjoyed, just not my thing.
For those going/looking forward to it: I hope you ejoy.
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Posted by Member: ArtMan
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
smidge said: "I feel the same as ArtMan. I'm just wondering if this will still be around in May. Even with TKTS, the prices seem too much. Hoping for a good rush or lottery. Can't miss a Donna Summer musical."
Smidge, I'm hoping for a general rush. At the worst, standing in line at TKTS. Or buying my ticket at the box office and saving the Ticketmaster fees. I just can't justify paying well over $100 for an extremely side orchestra seat or an upper mezzanine seat. Even the $58 upper mezzanine with fees are close to $80 and it is the last rows and extreme side for the Saturday matinee I want to see. And if it closes before mid May, which I don't have any control over, that will free me up to see Three Tall Women.
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Posted by Member: BroadwayConcierge
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Invited dress tonight! Any board members there?
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Posted by Member: RippedMan
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: That marquee is ugly. Google image search and the first font they found. Oof.
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Posted by Member: Miles2Go2
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: I hope to get to NYC this summer before Angels in America and Three Tall Women close. Not many new musical productions on my radar (a first!), but this still hasn't piqued my interest much. Love Donna Summer's music and think this will probably work best if one goes in with expectations of concert tribute to her life and music rather than a full-fledged musical production. Looking forward to reports from tonight's first preview.
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Posted by Member: Lot666
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Miles2Go2 said: "think this will probably work best if one goes in with expectations of concert tribute to her life and music rather than a full-fledged musical production"
We're going in early June with that expectation.
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Posted by Member: ArtMan
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Yay, they announced a general rush policy. At least if i get a side/partial view seat, i only paid $40 for it. Instead of over the $100 seats that were on ticketmaster.
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Posted by Member: BroadwayRox3588
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Well this thread got off to an interesting start...
Anyway, this is one of the ones I'm on the fence about, so I'm interested to hear people's thoughts tonight! :)
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Posted by Member: Bwayfan292
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: The show is over. Any reports? Seems like everyone decided to take a pass on this.
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Posted by Member: WhizzerMarvin
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Someone left the cake out in the rain alright.
I love Colman Domingo and I was so happy to see that a gay, black man was on the team to write the book for Summer; it did take three people to write this book though, which is never a good sign. But after all, Donna and her relationship with the gay community is the most interesting story to tell here, which is all the more reason why this show was so disappointing (aside from the fact that it looks cheap and is a mess).
Paul Jbara's name is not even mentioned ONCE during the evening, which is truly unforgivable, and the AIDS controversy? Nada. There's a brief little moment where Summer mentions saying God created Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve and it whipped up a category five level of controversy, but that's not really the whole story, now is it?
This musical should have been about the gay men in Summer's life, how they felt betrayed, her career suffered and then how (I believe) she slowly won back our trust.
Instead we got this. It's non-linear, which I'll give them points for, but if you unscramble the timeline it's still as paint-by-numbers as they come. There's a half-baked conceit of the entire ensemble being women and playing all the minor male roles, often as different races than the actors too. Of course this would be much more interesting if ALL the men where played by women, but Summer's father, Bruce Sudano and Neil Bogart are all played by men. Giorgio is oddly played by a women though...
And it's not like they were trying to solely make this a feel good time that would shy away from anything unpleasant. We dealt with five years of molestation by Summer's church choir director from ages 11-16, her domestic abuse from a German boyfriend and several people suffering from cancer. But AIDS and gay men and whole controversy that surrounded her entire later career barely received a passing mention.
It was insulting.
LaChanze is the only one who really could rise above it all. She's in great voice and a class act. Maybe she'll even be nominated for this, but she, and the audience, deserve better.
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Posted by Member: dave1606
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
I was there tonight and have MANY thoughts. First of all I am a HUGE Donna Summer fan. I went with my coworker whom I listened to Donna nearly every day with when we worked together. We even went to the I Feel Love Festival in Brooklyn last year that was produced by and featured a set from Giorgio Moroder.
Despite the negative buzz out of La Jolla, I was VERY excited for tonight. Sadly the show is mixed to bad with the largest offense that it feels boring which is a pretty big sin for a musical about a disco singer.
I think Duckling Donna should be cut. I don't know why these biopics always feel the need to start with a child version. Nothing interesting happens in these early scenes and for a show without an intermission it only adds a runtime.
While we are cutting things, let's also remove "White Boys" from Hair which while an enjoyable enough number has nothing to do with the proceedings. A big crime is also "On the Radio" which contains a bizarrely staged car chase that should be a fun number. I think the whole thing should be re-worked. I enjoyed McCarthur Park, but I think it belongs at the end too.
Finally, let's cut down on Church Donna in the final sequences. If you aren't going to deal with Donna and her gay issues, this becomes a very weird muddled section of half mentions and just doesn't work.
There are a few nice moments. "She Works Hard for the Money" was fantastic and sung incredibly by LaChanze. LaChanze's later church song was a knockout for her as well even if it was trapped in a section that went on far too long. The Studio 54 moment is great, and I really enjoyed it and wish we had spent more time there.
The "Stamp your Feet" moment in the hospital was cringeworthy. These certainly feels like a show that was rushed to Broadway. It's hard to care about much of anything because the show never spends much time on any one character but at the same time feels overlong. There are many moments to focus on in Donna's life, but in this show it almost starts to feel as if the disco segment gets the short shrift. (Why isn't there even a megamix??)
Frankly I'll probably see it a few times because I LOVED LaChanze and Ariana DeBose and I am thrilled to be hearing these songs live, but this show could have used a few more tryouts before Broadway.
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Posted by Member: Miles2Go2
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Thanks for your reviews, WhizzerMarvin and dave1606. As a gay man and Summer fan, this is so disappointing. I think I definitely will be skipping this if I make it back to NYC before it closes.
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Posted by Member: WhizzerMarvin
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Dave, I too am a huge Donna Summer fan. Once Upon a Time is THE greatest disco album ever recorded. They would have just done better to present Once Upon a Time in full- it is a hooker Cinderella concept album after all- instead of this mess.
I completely agree with you about the youngest self. All of these bio musicals are so obsessed with 10 year old Gloria Estefan or whomever and it just pads 20 minutes to the show. They all sing from an early age. They all have someone who believed in them (usually, but not always a grandparent), and someone who doubts they can make it (usually, but not always a parent). Just get on with it!
While I think Summer's music is some of the best we've ever seen featured in a Broadway jukebox bio musical, it comes with some innate problems of its own. First of all, how long does the shortest Donna Summer song run? 8 minutes? Many of the big hits are in the 12-17 minute range, and when you choose to give us a 100/110 minute intermission musical, then the songs are going to suffer. I wouldn't say we only got snippets, but we got the verses with none of the awesome dance music. MacArthur Park should not be 3 minutes long. Neither should Love to Love You Baby.
Summer didn't just releases disco hits, but disco concept albums. This is never discussed on explored in the show at all. She actually did some daring things in the pop/dance music world and it couldn't interest these writers in the least.
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Posted by Member: BroadwayConcierge
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Sorry to be that person, but with the Tony predictions thread all abuzz, does anybody see this having any potential for a nomination in any categories?
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Posted by Member: CurtainPullDowner
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Spoiler Alert
Does she die on stage?
Literally?
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Posted by Member: Trish2
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Whizzer, are you saying that the show runs almost two hours with no intermission? Yikes!
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Posted by Member: WhizzerMarvin
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Yes, it is intermissionless. Des came out at the beginning, as he does at all first previews, and told us it would run 100 minutes no intermission which damn short for any musical, let alone a Donna Summer jukebox musical. MacArthur Park and Love to Love You Baby are each 17 minutes, Last Dance and On the Radio are each 8- I mean, you don't have to be a math whiz to realize things aren't going to add up properly!
In reality it ran closer to 2 hours and sometimes felt long. They should have had an intermission with MacArthur park as a huge 10 minute act one finale. There really wasn't THAT much dancing and barely any time was spent in Studio 54/Discos. If she is Queen of Disco, then we should spend time with her, I don't know, at a frickin' disco! There should be long dance sequences of gay men writhing to her music, not scenes of her performing in the living room with her siblings.
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Posted by Member: RippedMan
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: This sounds insanely misguided!!! My friend and I were sooo looking forward to dancing in the aisles at this, but sounds dreadful.
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Posted by Member: Trish2
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Not what I was expecting--and I certainly lived through her era. How banal it all sounds--even at the thought of a possible.TDF ticket.
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Posted by Member: WhizzerMarvin
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
The choreography is shockingly sexless. The disco moves are the type of stuff you'd see on an episode of So You Think You Can Dance. She became famous by orgasming on record for god's sake! Love to Love You Baby should have been hot and titillating, but we didn't even get to hear the moaning! They mentioned she moaned 22 times, but we didn't get to hear it.
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Posted by Member: Miles2Go2
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: Wasn't her family (children) involved in developing this? I'm guessing that they are perhaps fundamentalistic Christians (just a guess; please don't attack me) since her homophobic comments were made when she became a conservative Christian whch was probably how she raised them as well. That would explain the odd decision to cut her disco hits down, cut gay men's contribution to her autobiography and limit her time in discos while apparently emphasizing the church. Despite her strong catalogue, this seemed iffy from the time it was announced. I must say I don't hold out much hope for The Go-Go's or Cher shows either despite loving their music. If memory serves correct, there have not been many successful jukebox musicals in the recent past. Jersey Boys, Mamma Mia, Beautiful. (Personally, I loved American Idiot - my first Broadway show! - more than all them.). You'd think the developers of these shows would realize the odds are stacked against the success of jukebox musicals and they must be crafted with care. I suppose they think the music is so strong that the work is halfway done and, at least in this case, they wanted to preserve the legacy of an icon.
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Posted by Member: ArtMan
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
In my fantasy (which is a fantasy since I have no talent) I'm directing this and have decided to break it up into two acts. At the end of Act 1, there is conflict with either Bruce, her manager, Georgio Moroder, or anybody. And they tell Donna they are leaving her. At that point she begins singing my favorite song "Walk Away". I would receive the Tony just for that moment alone.
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Posted by Member: WhizzerMarvin
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
I'm sure her family was involved. It's the only way to explain away the excision of the importance her music was to the gay community and the events that followed.
Here's an interesting article from The Guardian about how Summer was an accidental gay icon:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2012/may/18/donna-summer-accidental-gay-icon
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Posted by Member: Elegance101
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: You just named three incredibly successful productions that each ran for years (one of which is still running). All three even did well critically, so not sure what you mean?
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Posted by Member: WhizzerMarvin
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
ArtMan said: "In my fantasy (which is a fantasy since i have no talent) I'm directing this and have decided to break it up into two acts. At the end of Act 1, there is conflict with either Bruce, her manager, Georgio Moroder, or anybody. And they tell Donna they are leaving her. At that point she begins singing my favorite song "Walkaway". I would receive the Tony just for that moment alone."
I LOVE Walk Away too. The 12" single mix is gay heaven. Sadly the song is not sung in the show at all.
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Posted by Member: Miles2Go2
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
ArtMan said: "In my fantasy (which is a fantasy since i have no talent) I'm directing this and have decided to break it up into two acts. At the end of Act 1, there is conflict with either Bruce, her manager, Georgio Moroder, or anybody. And they tell Donna they are leaving her. At that point she begins singing my favorite song "Walkaway". I would receive the Tony just for that moment alone."
I love it. Also, in your fantasy can I be in the cast and can I please be shirtless and have six-pack abs? I don't have to be Bruce or Georgio. I'll be happy to be a non-singing chorus boy in the disco scenes. The most important this is this: six-pack abs.
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Posted by Member: Miles2Go2
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Elegance101 said: "You just named three incredibly successful productions that each ran for years (one of which is still running). All three even did well critically, so not sure what you mean?"
Sorry I wasn't clear. I meant those three are the only clear (that I can think of) jukebox successes since 2001.
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Posted by Member: ArtMan
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Whizzer, are the songs Rumour Has It, Try Me I Know We Can Make It or One of A Kind included?
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Posted by Member: WhizzerMarvin
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
I don't know if many people know this song, but it's one of Donna's best (written by Paul Jbara) called We're Gonna Win about the AIDS crisis. It would have been the perfect addition to the show to demonstrate the healing between her and the gay community. Lyrics:
https://youtu.be/XqgACwNmb_8
I've grown up a lot
The past couple of years
I've seen my babies born
And kissed away their tears
I've seen such happiness
And I've seen pain
But something's going on
I just can't explain
People I know are dying
People I care about no longer here
My heart is breaking
It scares me so
We've got to do something
So let's begin
To do what we can
We're gonna win
Just take my hand
We'll make the chain
That's too strong to break
We won't give up
We won't give in
We're gonna fight
We're gonna win
Though I've said goodbye
To so many of my friends
I saw the future as
A road that never ends
Something's going on
I can't explain
It's tearing me apart
So let's begin
To do what we can
We're gonna win
Come, take my hand
We'll make the chain
That's too strong to break
We won't give up
We won't give in
We're gonna fight
We're gonna win
We're gonna, we're gonna
I'm a friend if you need me
Just call me
I'll be there at your side
Always, oh
Would you hold on to the dream that we've been sharing for a lifetime?
Oh
So let's begin
To do what we can
We won't give up
We won't give in
We're gonna fight
We're gonna win
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Posted by Member: Lot666
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
WhizzerMarvin said: "Once Upon a Time is THE greatest disco album ever recorded."
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Posted by Member: WhizzerMarvin
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
ArtMan said: "Whizzer, are the songs Rumour Has It, Try Me I Know We Can Make It or One of A Kind included?"
None of those songs are included. 
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Posted by Member: Miles2Go2
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: I'm guessing no Enough is Enough either since I'm guessing someone would've mentioned if someone was playing Barbra. I'm also guessing Unconditional Love was included as it fits the narrative the creative team is trying to tell.
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Posted by Member: WhizzerMarvin
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: Both Unconditional Love and Enough is Enough are included. There's no mention of Barbra. The three selves sing Enough is Enough together while the middle self is beaten by her German boyfriend/stalker. The abuse is poorly staged and almost campy (she slams his fingers under the lid of a piano as he chaces her around it). Then like a SWAT shows up and arrest the guy and the audience clapped.
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Posted by Member: smidge
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: Is there a song listing in the Playbill? I know they can't include everything. But I was hoping for a good representation of what I consider her 3 finest albums: Once Upon a Time, Bad Girls and The Wanderer. Whizzer, did you see the workshop of Last Dance in 2012 about Paul Jbara? It was odd but at least it showed respect for his music. Rob Morrow was the lead and I didn't remember that I saw Katrina Lenk in it too!
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Posted by Member: uncageg
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
WhizzerMarvin said: "Dave, I too am a huge Donna Summer fan. Once Upon a Time is THE greatest disco album ever recorded. They would have just done better to present Once Upon a Time in full- it is a hooker Cinderella concept album after all- instead of this mess.
It is a frigging disco Masterpiece!!! (That i performed all the way through alone in my bedroom on a few occasions...!)
I can remember when it first came out I ran and got it. And it was a double album! After listening to it I remember thinking i would love to see this whole thing as a musical. This and Ashford and Simpson's Street Opera.
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Posted by Member: Miles2Go2
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
WhizzerMarvin said: "Both Unconditional Love and Enough is Enough are included. There's no mention of Barbra. The three selves sing Enough is Enough together while the middle self is beaten by her German boyfriend/stalker. The abuse is poorly staged and almost campy (she slams his fingers under the lid of a piano as he chaces her around it). Then like a SWAT shows up and arrest the guy and the audience clapped. "
That sounds horrid.
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Posted by Member: WhizzerMarvin
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: Smudge, no, but I wish I had. I LOVE Jbara and wish he was better known/respected. He recorded a fantastic song with Summer called "Shut Out." Do you know it? If not, you must track it down.
Bad Girls is decently represented. Once Upon a Time (her masterpiece) is never mentioned by name; two songs are sung. No songs are sung from The Wanderer.
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Posted by Member: Bwayfan292
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: From what you can tell how was the audience reaction in the theatre? Did they like it? Or was it a meh response?
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Posted by Member: WhizzerMarvin
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: The audience reacted well to the hit songs and especially to LaChanze. She got a midshow standing ovation in the second act. I would say they most loved Hot Stuff and Last Dance which were performed mega mix style at the end of the show in Studio 54. The whole show should have been what the last two songs were if they wanted a fun, silly night out.
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Posted by Member: After Eight
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Song List in Playbill:
The Queen Is Back
I Feel Love
Love to Love You Baby
I Remember Yesterday
On My Honor
Faster and Faster to Nowhere
White Boys
MacArthur Park
Heaven Knows
No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)
Pandora's Box
On the Radio
I Love You
Bad Girls
She Works Hard for the Money
Dim All the Lights
I Believe in Jesus
Unconditional Love
To Turn the Stone
Stamp Your Feet
Friends Unknown
Hot Stuff
Last Dance
It was fairly routine as jukebox/bio musicals go. I've definitely seen worse, but this lacked excitement and imagination.
I had a far better time at Got Tu Go Disco many moons ago.
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Posted by Member: Lindsay is a goddess
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: How was Ariana DeBose? I've been a fan of hers since I saw her in A Bronx Tale, so I'm really interested in seeing how she did here. What do you think her chances are of getting nominated?
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Posted by Member: Wicked Fanatic
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
After Eight said: "Song List in Playbill:
The Queen Is Back
I Feel Love
Love to Love You Baby
I Remember Yesterday
On My Honor
Faster and Faster to Nowhere
White Boys
MacArthur Park
Heaven Knows
No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)
Pandora's Box
On the Radio
I Love You
Bad Girls
She Works Hard for the Money
Dim All the Lights
I Believe in Jesus
Unconditional Love
To Turn the Stone
Stamp Your Feet
Friends Unknown
Hot Stuff
Last Dance
"
Looks like the song list is exactly the same as in La Jolla with the only change being My Life which followed I Feel Love and a Love To Love You Babe Reprise which followed White Boys eliminated. From the comments here looks like the book is even weaker than it was in La Jolla 
.
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Posted by Member: rosscoe(au)
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
After eight ,what did you think of it?
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Posted by Member: BroadwayRox3588
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
After Eight said: "It was fairly routine as jukebox/bio musicals go. I've definitely seen worse, but this lacked excitement and imagination.
I had a far better time at Got Tu Go Disco many moons ago.
"
Coming from A8, this is pretty much a rave.
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Posted by Member: Ado Annie D'Ysquith
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
WhizzerMarvin, you express yourself incredibly well when evaluating shows. Furthermore, you post a review on these forums for, well...almost everything that opens on Broadway.
Which begs the question- why do you not have your own website? You could publish/archive all of your amazing opinions in a more formal manner. I sure as hell would vouch for your blog!
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Posted by Member: greensgreens
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
I am deeply disappointed that My Life, a song Donna wrote for her Ordinary Girl musical was not used. It's deeply dramatic and would've been thrilling in a theatrical context, as well as perfectly relevant to the plot.
Actually, they should've just continued development around the Ordinary Girl musical and gone with that. It was a very similar "star is born" tale with original music but still would've had that Donna Summer flair. But maybe it's an easier sell to do the (lukewarm) jukebox thing with the songs everyone knows...
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Posted by Member: After Eight
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Ado Annie d'Ysquith wrote: "WhizzerMarvin, you express yourself incredibly well when evaluating shows."
Yes, indeed. And Dave1606 as well. The BWW community owes them both a debt of gratitude for their reviews.
I didn't feel as negatively as they about the show. It struck me as passably entertaining. And considering how painful it is to sit through so many things nowadays, I'll settle for passable.
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Posted by Member: Lindsay is a goddess
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
How are the technical aspects? Is the design at least good?
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Posted by Member: LimelightMike
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Ticketmaster cites that Row B is "obstructed view". Is the stage *that* high that 2nd row is a bad view?
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Posted by Member: BroadwayLuv2
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Anyone try to rush this yet? What was the line like? Where are the seats? THANK YOU
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Posted by Member: AlfieByrne
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: The stage is pretty bare-bones with a LED screen panel wall. An updated Jersey Boys "set" without any scaffolding. Also kinda reminded me of Curious Incident's set but without any sense of magic.
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Posted by Member: ACL2006
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: Whizzer, in your opinion what was worse, this or Margaritaville? I enjoyed Margaritaville myself despite it's campiness, but have no desire to see this.
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Posted by Member: theatregoer3
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: These reviews make me think of a word After Eight brought up recently: taste. I'm not thinking of good taste vs bad, but rather different tastes.
Summer sounds dreadful to me. You couldn't pay me to spend my time at this show. Most people on this board raced for Three Tall Women and I thought the writing was dull and slow. A8 strongly disliked Mr. Burns whereas I thought it was the best new play of the past ten years at least. Folks here panned Frozen and I thought it was fun. An audience member at the performance of Returning to Reims we attended stopped the show to walk out and loudly proclaim the play was terrible while my partner and I found it to be gripping and the best show we've seen so far this year.
All to say what most of you already know: this is all so subjective.
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Posted by Member: WhizzerMarvin
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Ado Annie, Thank you for your kind words. I'm actually currently working on launching a website (non-theater related) and it is so much work ha. I like just posting for fun here and I love the discussions and community that BWW has to offer. I have met lifelong friends from this board and I enjoy reading everyone's opinions.
ACL2006, Well, I guess I'll ask you: Would you rather eat a piece of moldy bread or moldy cheese? I guess I would pick the cheese (Margaritaville) because it probably would mask the mold better.
Summer is a bigger disappointment. I think her life had much more potential than a Buffett musical, either an original story or bio-version. Plus I just like the Donna Summer songbook better. On top of all that you have LaChanze, who is the only actor in either show who finds ways to elevate the material. That said, I was so heartbroken that they ignored the gay community and AIDS controversy that I just can't recommend it. It was like they thought the mass tourist audience would be less uncomfortable hearing about an 11 year old girl getting molested and a young woman beat and thrown around a room that dealing with the homos in her life and her reluctant gay icon status.
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Posted by Member: Lindsay is a goddess
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: So now having seen the lack of improvement in the show after it's out of town tryouts, what do people think it's nomination potential is? I had it as a potential nominee for Sound Design, Leading Actress, and Featured Actress, but based on this early feedback, it looks like LaChanze is the only one with a chance of nomination.
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Posted by Member: MadsonMelo
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
No nominations, I think.
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Posted by Member: BroadwayConcierge
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Lindsay is a goddess said: "it looks like LaChanze is the only one with a chance of nomination."
While that may be true, Lead Actress is rather dense.
Three slots are pretty much accounted for, with Ambrose (MFL), Kilgore (OOTI), and Lenk (Band's Visit) as ones to bet on.
I predict Mueller (Carousel) will also get a nomination. Maybe LaChanze could nab that fifth slot, but it's sounding likelier that it'll go to one of the Frozen ladies.
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Posted by Member: Jeffrey Karasarides
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
I doubt Jessie Mueller is gonna be nominated this year. From the reports for Carousel, she has very little to do despite being the female lead. If Mean Girls ends up doing well in nominations, could Erika Henningsen go along for the ride?
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Posted by Member: Evans2
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Jeffrey Karasarides said: "I doubt Jessie Mueller is gonna be nominated this year. From the reports forCarousel, she has very little to do despite being the female lead. IfMean Girlsends up doing well in nominations, could Erika Henningsen go along for the ride?"
Jeffrey, way to work Carousel into this thread.
Have to admit though, little disappointed you weren't able to find away to take another shot at Jack O'Brien.
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Posted by Member: bwayphreak234
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: For a musical about disco, this falls extremely flat. Flat on its face at most points. How can a musical about the Queen of Disco be this bland and unexciting? I didn't go into this with high hopes, but I thought at the very least it would be a fun night out. Summer has no spark, no sizzle, and no heart.
The three leading ladies are incredible and sing the hell out of the songs. I have no complaints in this department. They were firing on all cylinders. Ariana DeBose was the real standout for me. MacArthur Park was the high point of the evening for sure. Suddenly the show just comes to life in this one amazing number. Sadly, it flat lines again as soon as the number is over.
The book is extremely weak. The show is structured in a very odd and ineffective way. La Chanze's Donna is looking back on her career and narrates most of the proceedings. She is oftentimes stepping in and out of the roles of Donna and Donna's mother. The show feels way too long and drags on and on at the end.
The set is bare bones and pretty much non-existent. The panels and screens feature some pretty hideous clip art. I like what someone in this thread said earlier - it's Jersey Boys with no scaffolding.
Summer commits what, in my opinion, is the worst crime a musical can commit - it's boring. As I said earlier, it's surprising that the show isn't at least fun considering the music. Some other jukebox musicals may not have been perfect, but at least they were fun. This one is just a real doozy through and through.
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Posted by Member: raddersons
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
What a load of bubblegum this was. If this show were anyone but Donna Summer I would have had an awful night. But even thru the slog, I still bopped my head and smiled because the music was infectious. Then it started getting into her later catalog and I stopped caring.
Some loose thoughts after seeing it tonight:
I thought the first moments before "Duckling Donna" showed up were actually pretty good. It has the right vibe that the show should have. And then... it got boring real fast.
The White Boys moment is strange, because it's about being the only black girl in Zurich. Which is empowering I guess?
Ariana DeBois stole the show, in my opinion. She was marvelous.
The best moments of the night where I Feel Love, MacArthur Park, Hard For The Money, and the two finale numbers. Maybe others... a lot of it blended together.
I guess I can appreciate a musical where there was no boring song sung by a man in it.
LaChanze basically plays a narrator - she was doing her best with the most flat lines ever written. The whole narration aspect of the book is corny -"woo, what a life I had! Let's take a look back at what made me, me!"
There were plenty of plot points that were never wrapped up. Like the lawsuit. No resolution?
Not that there was ever really a plot.
All the Jesus stuff was weird. I get that's who she was, but man, there was a lot of church in this one.
Lots of hating on anti-depressants. They work for some people, what's going on here? Did she get addicted to medication doctors prescribed her? That didn't come across too clearly.
They tried to have a "rain" motif throughout... any time she was sad? But then doesn't follow thru with an explanation or even a corny line to tie it in. It's like someone heard MacArthur Park and was like "oh, the cake's in the RAIN! Let's make it rain when it's somber!"
Whizzer, you mentioned the AIDS controversy was basically ignored. I guess they've made a change, and not really ignored, but just clumsily. As it was tonight, LaChanze sings a song (I was unfamiliar with, so I don't remember which it was) and plays the piano, while panels of gay men were behind her, then talks about her gay manager. When it was happening I was rather confused what was going on... and then she has the "Adam and Steve" lines which was... well. Bizarre. I think my main issue is how it's really apologizing for her actions when she probably didn't even think those things. It's like some weird revisionist history, where they couldn't IGNORE it but didn't know what to say. The moment is also a total departure from the rest of the show, as if the point of the whole show was to be like "hey, Donna said weird stuff about gay people, but she's sorry!" Is she sorry? Is THAT the point of this show? To show the world how she got overwhelmed and found Jesus so her opinions were a little warped?
Why is there a scene where LaChanze sings a calypso song to her children while painting? That should not be in a Donna Summer show. It's not her vibe. That was the moment when I was like "okay, this needs to end immediately." I seem to recall having that thought a few times.
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Posted by Member: ArtMan
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
raddersons said
Some loose thoughts after seeing it tonight
Why is there a scene where LaChanze sings a calypso song to her children while painting? That should not be in a Donna Summer show. It's not her vibe.That was the moment when I was like "okay, this needs to end immediately." I seem to recall having that thought a few times."
Raddersons, If the calypso song is Unconditional Love, that was a so -so hit for Donna with Musical Youth. It only reached #43 in the top 100 (which is still not bad) but did much better on the r&b charts as well as other country charts. It was remixed for the dance clubs and had some success there. It may have been showcased in the show, because it was a different sound for Donna, at that time.
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Posted by Member: raddersons
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message: ^^
I'm not entirely familiar with her later catalog - I've listened to most of her music via Spotify (spot the millennial!) so I've always had the option of pressing "next" when I don't love a song. Which is to say, I'm listening to dance, not to go to margaritaville.
I think what I'm trying to say about that scene is that a Donna Summer musical that is not about sex, drugs, and disco, is a misstep. It was scrubbed clean of most of the sex, the only drugs they talked about were anti-depressants, and she spent almost the entire night denouncing her "queen of disco" title. Then it was replaced with Jesus, a scene with her painting, and weird apologies. Honestly if that's her life... a biopic musical doesn't match up with her music. I agree a staging of Once Upon A Time with some interstitial book scenes would have been 8000x better.
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Posted by Member: kennin
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
Miles2Go2 said: "Wasn't her family (children) involved in developing this? I'm guessing that they are perhaps fundamentalistic Christians (just a guess; please don't attack me) since her homophobic comments were made when she became a conservative Christian whch was probably how she raised them as well. That would explain the odd decision to cut her disco hits down, cut gay men's contribution to her autobiography and limit her time in discos while apparently emphasizing the church. Despite her strong catalogue, this seemed iffy from the time it was announced. I must say I don't hold out much hope for The Go-Go's or Cher shows either despite loving their music. If memory serves correct, there have not been many successful jukebox musicals in the recent past. Jersey Boys, Mamma Mia, Beautiful. (Personally, I loved American Idiot - my first Broadway show! - more than all them.). You'd think the developers of these shows would realize the odds are stacked against the success of jukebox musicals and they must be crafted with care. I suppose they think the music is so strong that the work is halfway done and, at least in this case, they wanted to preserve the legacy of an icon. "
I have the most hope for the Go-Gos musical since it is not biographic.
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Posted by Member: ArtMan
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
The Go Go's show is one that would be interesting if it was biographical. Those girls fought like cats and dogs. Don't get me started on the drug use. Belinda, at one time, was a mess. But with the exception of three Go Go's songs and Belinda's two solo hits, I don't really know their music and I was around at that time. At least Donna's show, I know most/all of the songlist.
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Posted by Member: Miles2Go2
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
^Yeah, we'll have to see. Two of the three most commercially successful jukebox musicals of the last two decades were biographical in nature. And some of the non-autobiographical (Tupac's, Margaritaville) were/are out-and-out critical and commercial flops. Then again, the autobiographical On Your Feet neither recouped nor was it a critical success. At least, it stayed around awhile, I suppose. Personally, my favorite jukebox musical remains American Idiot (even if it didn't recoup) so if The Go-Go's Musical can bring that level of creativity to the stage I'll be interested. Green Day's songs though naturally lent themselves to a narrative. I guess we'll see soon enough. I'm guessing Head Over Heals will be closer to Mamma Mia in how it wedges the songs into a storyline.
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Posted by Member: David10086
Subject: SUMMER: THE Donna Summer MUSICAL Previews
Message:
As a long-time Summer fan, I'm so disappointed in reading these reviews. I was looking forward to putting this on my 'theater list' for my Summer weekend jaunts to the city this year (June - September). But now...hmmmm.
It's disappointing for many reasons, but especially the fact that Summer had been working on a musical of her life since the mid-90s. There was a story, original music, and her catalog.But no producers at the time. Why not put that on the stage?
"Hey little girls, look at all the men in shiny shirts and no wives!" - Jackie Hoffman, Xanadu, 19 Feb 2008
"Hey little girls, look at all the men in shiny shirts and no wives!" - Jackie Hoffman, Xanadu, 19 Feb 2008
joined:5/15/03
joined:
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"Hey little girls, look at all the men in shiny shirts and no wives!" - Jackie Hoffman, Xanadu, 19 Feb 2008
"Michael Riedel...The Perez Hilton of the New York Theatre scene"
- Craig Hepworth, What's On Stage
joined:7/24/15
joined:
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Posted: 4/11/18 at 12:47pm