BEETLEJUICE - Pre-Broadway Tryout in DC

[Catsbroadwayfan]

WldKingdomHM said: "Just heard an audio of the show.

Why would they have Beetlejuice open the show is beyond me...."

Thats exactly what i mean when I say they rushed it. It would have been better to have a big reveal but no. They have to rush the whole story line to cram everything in

[darquegk]

He says F*ck a LOT, snorts coke and talks about getting an STD from a beloved deceased film star within the first fifteen minutes.

[RippedMan]

Agreed. I think him starting off the show is the wrong choice. Rather have a big reveal. But excited for the design.

[morosco]

A warning like "Parents Beware, Really F*$#&*G Explicit" will lead many potential ticket buyers to not buy tickets because they would think that any show that would go as far as describing itself as Really F*$#&*G Explicit must have full nudity and live sex acts of some nature. I know it's kind of an edgy jokie kind of thing but this won't help sell tickets to the masses. And for those who DO buy in anticipation of anything Really F*$#&*G Explicit, they will be sorely disappointed. This isn't Two Girls One Cup - The Musical.

Marketing fail.

[GreeneStreet]

All they need to say is warning: beetlejuice contains strong language and some acts that are not sutiable for younger audiences.

[morosco]

You're exactly right GreeneStreet.

(Oh, and I should warn everyone that Two Girls One Cup - The Musical is something that you should definitely avoid googling. Especially if you are on a computer at work.)

 

[morosco]

For people that have been, are the merchandise stands selling Zagnut bars?

[Kad]

Avenue Q got a lot of mileage from playing up its content.

[jpbran]

RippedMan said: "Agreed. I think him starting off the show is the wrong choice. Rather have a big reveal. But excited for the design."

Didn't Charlie/Chocolate Factory do the same thing, opening the show with Wonka vs. him appearing later after some build-up? 

[Elegance101]

jpbran said: "RippedMan said: "Agreed. I think him starting off the show is the wrong choice. Rather have a big reveal. But excited for the design."

Didn't Charlie/Chocolate Factory do the same thing, opening the show with Wonka vs. him appearing later after some build-up?"

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is not really the model to follow, though...

[Catsbroadwayfan]

While I would have preferred a big reveal, it works really well to have him introduced first. Plus people are there to see Beetlejuice so unlike King Kong they give the people what they want early on

[darquegk]

A day later, it occurs to me that this Beetlejuice is (to some extent) an adaptation of the franchise more than of just the movie. In streamlining the film's rambling plot, they've brought in elements of both the Beetlejuice cartoon and of the long-running Graveyard Revue. In the film, Beetlejuice is a bigger cipher than the Phantom, only appearing sparingly and mostly offering Michael Keaton the opportunity to improvise and do elements of his stand-up routine where he channels Pittsburgh's Don Brockett.

This new version explicitly makes Beetlejuice a demon rather than a ghost (one of the more infamous bits of information Burton's film deleted from the shooting script), but also makes him a Grim Reaper and guide to the underworld, which is much closer to what his position was in the 1990s cartoon series. And his overall demeanor is drawn more from the Graveyard Revue, which only closed when the musical began development.

[Kad]

I think it makes sense to expand the role of Beetlejuice far more than Chocolate Factory's handling of Wonka. After all, Wonka is only really absent for the first third of that story, but then shows up and dominates the rest as the co-main character and the one who incites the plot. The musical made the poor adaptational choice to turn the first third into the first half, which meant less time for the character.

But Beetlejuice is doled out in fairly small amounts through the film until the climax. The film is about Lydia and the Maitlands, not him. So in adapting it into a full-length musical, he ends up being the role that needs the most expansion.

 

[darquegk]

Plus, Beetlejuice may be bad and gross, but he's FUN. This musical has played up the neurotic, chilly tendencies in both the Maitland and the Deetz family: the Maitlands are a lot more neurotic and manic-depressive than they were in the film, with their loss of a baby MUCH more prominent than the film, and the Deetz family other than Lydia is still a mess. So BJ is a breath of fresh air between the pompous, the neurotic and the new age woo-woo of the living characters, in a way he didn't have to be in the film, which made the Maitlands much more unambiguous audience surrogates.

[shrekster224]

Who are the understudies?

 

Also-did anyone screenshot the instagram post before it was removed? If so, please PM me...

[YvanEhtNioj]

Is there a lot of puppetry in the show? From what I remember in the movie he transforms into different things a couple times so I was wondering if this was kept in the story or how it would be done

[disneybroadwayfan22]

Here right now. The show just stopped for a technical difficulty for 3 minutes

[disneybroadwayfan22]

Technical difficulty #2. I’m enjoying the show, but it really has some Fixer uppers. Sophia Anne is phenomenal as Lydia. Alex is fun as Beetlejuice!

[MadsonMelo]

No rush, right? Only lotteries? Reports would be great

[disneybroadwayfan22]

I’m unsure about rushes, but I’m pretty sure there’s a lottery.

I was and am so impressed that the musical is so different from the movie. It was freshening to not see the direct movie on stage a la Disney and Shrek.

I enjoyed the show a lot. It is really fun. Act 2 is in perfect shape for Broadway. Act 1 needs a lot of work done. To quote a person who was waiting for the bathroom with me: “The songs overtake the words.” There was a song every 1 or 2 minutes and there was like no breathing space. The longest time without a song was when Lydia moved in for like 3-5 minutes.

Like others, I wasn’t impressed by the songs at all. Most of the melodies literally sounded the same song, esepecially Beetlejuice’s. The only songs I was impressed with were Lydia’s solos, Act 2 opener, Barbara’s song in Act 2 about being a mother, the netherworld song (OMG!) and my Big Creepy Man (the wedding song). Act 1 seriously needs to cut half of the music and the melodies overall needs a overhaul. The show does end with Shake Senora, but I feel like there could be a stronger finale.

I agree that Beetlejuice shouldn’t open the show. The fun part of the movie is the wait for him. While part of his role is the Narrator, the buildup would be worth it. Alex Brightman was great as Beetlejuice, however the writing took away some of BJ’s quirkiness & unique edge and made him pretty flat. Because of this, Alex can’t really shine like James MI as Genie and Ethan as Spongebob. They made Lydia a much much more interesting character and Sophia Anne Caruso was phenomenal as Lydia. She brought a lot of grieving and vulnerability in Lydia while making her a normal kid. I was caught off guard Lydia had poppish songs, but I got used to it. That girl can seriously sing! Alex and Sophia have great chemistry and you can tell they are having fun together. Also, their performances aren’t Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder impersonations either, they do their own things.

Rob and Kerry’s characters were flat as well, but Rob and Kerry brought a genuine sense of dorkiness and warmth in them. Leslie Kritzer was a hoot as the dad’s girlfriend and she will defientely be recognized Tony time.

The set and the lighting was phenomenal. I was actually expecting more of the House set, but the technologies and stagecraft made it work! I can most understand why the show had to stop twice. It will definitely be a front runner for Best Set. The pictures don’t do it justice. There wasn’t really a lot of puppetry, which was a disappointment. But the few we got was so cool. The Earthworm was mind blowing.

The Banana Song was a showstopper and was one of the funniest things I saw in the theater. As soon as Leslie started singing, the audience lost it. I say that the Banana Song is good to go for Broadway. The netherworld is now in Act 2 and I won’t even ruin it because holy crap, it’s hysterical! I was dying the whole time. Just think it as Beauty School Dropout meets Spooky Mormon Hell Dream.

So, yeah. Beetlejuice was great. It’s almost there to be ready for Broadway. They just need rewrites for the character of Beetlejuice & the music, add more puppetry, and the show will be good. It will def sweep the Creative Tonys.

[darquegk]

I strongly doubt they're going to make Beetlejuice a smaller role- in the film he's a supporting character, but they've clearly defined the character onstage as "the white equivalent of The Genie."

[OKBroadwayFan]

Running time?    Thinking about coming down from Baltimore and train schedules.

[BroadwayBear2]

I went last night, I would say normally between 2 hours and 30 minutes to 2 hours and 40 minutes. Last night was close to 3 hours, just due to the 2 brief technical holds in act 1 and an extended intermission where they adjusted some lighting. Show starts at 730, after the show I stage doored-met the whole cast. And I was in a lyft to my hotel by 11:05pm

[OKBroadwayFan]

Thank you!   The last train is at 10:45 pm.  That is very doable.   

 

 

[darquegk]

Have there been any notable changes since the opening?