The Minutes Preview Thread- Page 3

[Miles2Go2]

Posted: 2/28/20 at 12:16pm

That’s weird. Did the moderators delete it? I don’t think I said anything personally negative, did I?

[Mike Barrett]

Posted: 2/28/20 at 12:23pm

If someone wants to PM spoilers, I'm so curious about what is so "shocking" about the play. Its always looked interesting and fun to me but I had no idea it'd make such a transition that seems to be a little polarizing. Can't imagine Im going to make it to the city for this season so I'm happy to be spoiled. Hoping this has a strong run, typically enjoy Letts' plays 

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 2/28/20 at 12:34pm

Miles2Go2 said: "That’s weird. Did the moderators delete it? I don’t think I said anything personally negative, did I?"

They must have, but I don't know why. There wasn't anything that seemed to violate the board guidelines. I wondered if discussing the ending in even the vaguest terms that revealed nothing was forbidden, but I don't think you said anything other posts that are still here haven't.

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[Mike Barrett]

Posted: 2/28/20 at 12:44pm

If you copy and pasted the same review, maybe they deleted it as a double post? Only other reason I can think of. Miles is easily the least offensive poster here lol 

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 2/28/20 at 1:15pm

For those who want spoilers, if you google: "The Minutes" letts spoiler , the first result is a discussion of the whole thing on chicagoonstage.com. (I'm afraid to post a direct link.)

[Hairspray0901]

Posted: 2/28/20 at 7:08pm

My cousin and I won the lottery for this tomorrow night. Can’t wait. Anyone have any idea where the seats are? Also - we BOTH won! So, maybe count this in as one of those “easy” lotteries?

[KingOfTheMine]

Posted: 2/28/20 at 11:50pm

I'm sort of on the fence about this play, and I'll try my best to discuss without any spoilers.  I found the bulk of the evening pretty enjoyable.  The script is funny, and Letts has created some diverse and engaging characters.  Then the play takes a turn in the last five minutes that is bound to be pretty divisive among audiences.  Tonight, I saw one couple walk out during that final scene.  I also saw people on their feet cheering immediately after the final blackout.  Audience response during the curtain call was also mixed.  Some immediately on their feet as I mentioned, some hesitantly began standing, while others remained seated.

For me, this was a uniformly strong ensemble cast.  As others have mentioned, Austin Pendleton is charming and has a good time with some of the better comedic bits in the piece.  I would also single out Ian Barford, who has to hit it out of the park with the material he's given and largely does.  Even if the ending is a bit jarring and the play isn't 100% successful at what it's trying to do/say, it will definitely promote discourse and deep thinking among audiences.  This is the kind of play where I would want to attend a post-show discussion just to hear other people's thoughts.  I'll be thinking about the play and its themes for a long time, so if that was Letts' goal then job well done.

[rosemonday]

Posted: 2/29/20 at 4:12pm

FYI I saw this last night through TDF and had a front row seat. The stage height wasn't an issue at all and I'm rather short. 

The ending of the play was truly something, I'll say that much. 

[Damiensta]

Posted: 2/29/20 at 6:43pm

I can understand why it will be divisive. But I mostly enjoyed it. The cast is great . I can see this play will be one of those if cast incorrectly will be a fail. But the pros on stage milk every joke out of the script. I laughed with simple quips. Yes, Pendleton is the highlight. But everyone gets their Minutes to shine ha. Yes, the end comes out of nowhere but I enjoyed most of what came before it. So don’t mind it.

[CopleyScott17]

Posted: 2/29/20 at 7:09pm

Saw this Friday night, and can definitely recommend it, but strongly advise you to read as little about it as possible. It's very well acted -- there's only one scene, and Austin Pendleton steals it -- but I did find the pacing a bit off. Even at only 90 minutes there are still a couple of lulls, but the resolution is unexpected and arresting. Starts out Arthur Miller, but sure doesn't end up that way

[Tuna2]

Posted: 2/29/20 at 8:58pm

Hairspray0901 said: "My cousin and I won the lottery for this tomorrow night. Can’t wait. Anyone have any idea where the seats are? Also - we BOTH won! So, maybe count this in as one of those “easy” lotteries?"

We had won lottery tickets for today’s matinee.  Our seats were located in the Left Mezzanine, Row G (last row), seats 3 & 5.  Full view of stage.  We enjoyed the show. Well worth the $35!!

[LesMiz24601]

Posted: 2/29/20 at 10:19pm

Could someone please post some spoilers using the spoiler tag? I am not going to have a chance to come up to NY to see this production and am genuinely curious!

Updated On: 2/29/20 at 10:19 PM

[VotePeron]

Posted: 2/29/20 at 11:38pm

PM Me - I'll let someone else spoil.

Updated On: 2/29/20 at 11:38 PM

[GiantsInTheSky2]

Posted: 2/29/20 at 11:55pm

What.

[Coe2020]

Posted: 3/1/20 at 12:13am

For the benefit of those asking, spoilers linked below. I saw this show in the afternoon today and loved it. BIG spoilers, reveal at own risk. 

 

Click Here To Toggle Spoiler Content

Spoiler: Last 5 minutes involves all cast members stripping off their shirts to reveal blood-soaked undershirts, with a ritual performed where they chant, dance, and smear blood on their faces. So, you can see why this would be a decisive moment, with mixed reactions in the crowd.

[Hairspray0901]

Posted: 3/1/20 at 8:02am

So, I saw this last night. Won lotto. Seats were Balcony Row B seats 104 and 105. Great view. Usually I don’t like to sit in the balcony because of the distance from the stage but these were fantastic seats. The show however...can’t say I loved it. Not sure I’d recommend it to anyone. Laughed a few times but expected it to be funnier throughout. Acting was fantastic all around. The ending was interesting - thought it was going to be different and “bigger”. More of a wow factor I guess?

[CatastrophicDay]

Posted: 3/1/20 at 8:24am

I won the lottery for yesterday's matinee on a whim. I thought the show was excellent. The ending was a bit muddled to me, but it connects more strongly with the prior material the more I think on it. I wonder if they'll do anything to clear that up during the previews period. The performances are uniformly good, and I'm also on team 'give Austin Pendleton a nod' (and the detail someone mentioned above about him being the original Motel in Fiddler gave me so much joy). I would recommend especially if you can snag a rush or lottery ticket.

[Owen22]

Posted: 3/1/20 at 9:51am

Well...that was some heavy handed allegory.

Didn't especially work for me but liked the cast (yay, Jessie Mueller who was wonderful until her role just went to ****, and her with it--and I'm not talking about the odd coup de theatre at the end.  She has a declamatory " character explaining" line that is horribly written and delivered horribly).

But you know, kudos to Tracy for going there. And going there in THAT way.  A tribute to those European and 60's Greenwich Village political, experimental playwrights. 

It was Ionesco-lite and I didn't love it  But I appreciated The Minutes.  I guess mainly because I believe in the unfortunately cynical message he was trying to convey.

 

 

 

 

[76Trombones 2]

Posted: 3/1/20 at 11:01am

There is one aspect to the surprise ending that confuses me. Perhaps some of you can help clarify this.

 

Click Here To Toggle Spoiler Content

Why does Mr. Peel (who is the voice of dissent among the group) turn on a dime and join the others in their satanic dance? This moment happens with very little explanation.

I think for the ending to work, this moment needs to be more thoroughly developed. I would love to hear your thoughts.

[Miles2Go2]

Posted: 3/1/20 at 12:54pm

Cute video with discount on weekday mezzanine seats:

https://www.facebook.com/112609783496547/posts/191187285638796/?vh=e&d=n

[CatastrophicDay]

Posted: 3/1/20 at 3:41pm

76Trombones 2 said: "There is one aspect to the surprise ending that confuses me. Perhaps some of you can help clarify this.

 

Click Here To Toggle Spoiler Content

Why does Mr. Peel (who is the voice of dissent among the group) turn on a dime and join the others in their satanic dance? This moment happens with very little explanation.

I think for the ending to work, this moment needs to be more thoroughly developed. I would love to hear your thoughts."

Here is how I read it:
 

 

Click Here To Toggle Spoiler Content

This is compiled from my own conclusions and some read on the aforementioned discussion about the Chicago show (google The Minutes Letts spoilers)

The Mayor's words got to Peel. He initially fought back against the accusation that he would forego his ideals in favor of comfort - this is his immediate reaction and thus exit into the rain. 
Heavy rain serves to wash things away, and I think this is what prompted Peel's 'wake up call'. He had no recourse that would lead to a better world for his daughter. The changemakers and ones with power were in the room he had just left. And the rain, literally and metaphorically, would wash away any blood on their hands for actions they took to preserve the future they wanted to see. 

So he goes back in. He acknowledges that he would bathe in the blood of past atrocities to affect his family's future. He's surprised that their routine is, in effect, an appropriation of a Native American dance, showing once more that the council will continue to take everything for their own in the name of Big Cherry, but he eventually begins to pick it up. 

My thoughts. Would love to hear other people's interpretations.

 

Another question - does anyone know what music was playing as the audience exits?

[Zion24]

Posted: 3/1/20 at 3:51pm

76Trombones 2 said: "I think for the ending to work, this moment needs to be more thoroughly developed. I would love to hear your thoughts."

Everyone is being so charitable about the ending. It rips the rug out from under you, and invalidates the 90 minutes you just spent with these characters. Its cheap beyond cheap, and Letts gets the last laugh when people try to twist themselves into pretzels to generate some deep meaning out of it, or try to solve  blatant inconsistencies like the one 76Trombones raises.

(to your point, of course that makes no sense- if you think about VARIOUS characters in the play not just him, and the stances they had taken throughout, their participation at the end makes no more sense.)

[Kad]

Posted: 3/1/20 at 4:29pm

Does it actually invalidate anything, though? It takes all that we learned about these people and the town and turned it into concise, if abrupt and surprising, imagery.

[Zion24]

Posted: 3/1/20 at 4:53pm

Kad said: "Does it actually invalidate anything, though? It takes all that we learned about these people and the town and turned it into concise, if abrupt and surprising, imagery."

Without spoiling anything, even if we are meant to buy into the gross lunacy Letts is going for with respect to his own character and some of that character's sidekicks, the idea that many of the others (who had throughout the play resisted it) were secretly privy to this, uhm, cult/ritual, is ludicrous and an unearned way to wrap up the 90 minutes of *conflict between the members of the council* that just disappears in the last seconds.

is there anyone who doesnt agree with the underlying point re American history? is there any novel, daring point being made here? Again, I am a real fan of Letts' work but ths is so overthetop silly and in equal measure basic- what a wild disappointment.

[Owen22]

Posted: 3/1/20 at 5:50pm

JDonaghy4 said: "76Trombones 2 said: "I think for the ending to work, this moment needs to be more thoroughly developed. I would love to hear your thoughts."

Everyone is being so charitable about the ending. It rips the rug out from under you, and invalidates the 90 minutes you just spent with these characters. Its cheap beyond cheap, and Letts gets the last laugh when people try to twist themselves into pretzels to generate some deep meaning out of it, or try to solve blatant inconsistencies like the one 76Trombones raises.

(to your point, of course that makes no sense- if you think about VARIOUS characters in the play not just him,and the stances they had taken throughout, their participation at the end makes no more sense.)"

It invalidates nothing. There are portents for that ending throughout the play. The lightning and thunder. The electrical grid going in and out? How the council members all of a sudden knew how to act out this specific piece of Big Cherry history? I'm not saying that specific ending is inevitable, but it doesn't come out of nowhere.

Updated On: 3/1/20 at 05:50 PM