Mini-reviews and suggestions of shows to watch at home

[bear88]

Posted: 3/19/20 at 3:53am

I'm not trying to steal the moderator's thunder for books to read and shows to watch as a group, but I figured I would share my thoughts about any plays or musicals I catch online. If anyone has suggestions for filmed productions of available shows I should watch or you enjoyed, please let me (and everyone else) know.

My first show was one I had seen before, both in a local production and on screen: the original cast of Sunday in the Park With George - on YouTube. It's one of the rare shows where my wife and I disagreed strongly. I loved the musical; she didn't. I think I had a key advantage: I had actually seen the Mandy Patinkin-Bernadette Peters production before I saw it in person.

I wanted to see what my daughter, home from college, would think of it. She really enjoyed it, and I got new things out of seeing it again. The first and obvious thing: Bernadette Peters is marvelous. She takes minor laughs and gets big ones. The opening scene/title song is a master class that she pretty much has to carry by herself. Peters plays two different roles, arguably three (because who is Dot at the end?), and goes from infatuated if frustrated young lover to a much older woman who's funny and sentimental in a different but recognizable way. The role isn't exactly underwritten, but Peters takes what's on the page and creates two memorable, three-dimensional characters. 

I liked the score from first listen, but it's definitely one that gets better the more times you hear it. It's a show that forces you to pay attention to the lyrics because you don't want to miss anything. The best songs are classics, and "Sunday" is one of my favorite first act closing songs in any musical.

The second act is always controversial, because plenty of folks say it's not really necessary. I understand that perspective. But odd as the time jump is, the second act feels like a risky but rewarding exploration about art and artists that enhances the first act. Plus, it's got "Children and Art" - one of the few manipulative musical theater songs that works every time I hear it. The directing of the song in the filmed production is very effective. (Peters' "Goodbye, Mama" just gets me.) And then there's "Move On" and the finale.

Next on tap for me, when I get around to it: the original cast of Into the Woods, since I'm now in a Sondheim mood. I saw the movie, which was just OK. I'll see what I think of the filmed stage production (which I didn't know existed).  

 

 

[bear88]

Posted: 3/29/20 at 4:10am

I watched ACT in San Francisco's production of Gloria on Saturday night. I was happy to support the theater, disliked the play a lot in what could only be described as an Unpopular Opinion. Part of that is my fault for failing to click the link to read the extensive warning. I wrote up a longer critique in the thread on the play. I have another local show to catch on video, School Girls at the Berkeley Rep, but I'll probably catch an old videotaped musical before then. 

Updated On: 3/29/20 at 04:10 AM

[bear88]

Posted: 4/1/20 at 2:28am

More Sondheim, this time with the recorded original cast production of Into the Woods. I enjoyed it a lot more than the film. Once again, Bernadette Peters steals the show (at least in the first act) as the hilarious witch. She's less fun in the second act with your youth and beauty restored but her powers gone. The first act is a charming and well-constructed hoot. The second act works as a concept, deliberately messier, but I'm not sure the execution hangs together as well, with the darker themes spelled out a bit too obviously. Joanna Gleason is quite good as the Baker's Wife, so I guess I understand why won all those awards.

[bear88]

Posted: 4/3/20 at 2:53am

Ghost Quartet at the McKittrick Hotel, the show Dave Malloy posted from a professionally filmed 2015 performance a couple of weeks ago. I went in virtually cold, and 'd be lying if I said I totally followed the story, which feels like it should be easier to track than it was for me. I felt like the people who were lost during Great Comet at times. While I caught some of the references, it's definitely a show that would benefit from repeat listens (or views, in this case). Then again, I could also not worry about it. Brittain Ashford is a standout both in a song I'd heard before, "Any Kind of Dead Person," and an extraordinary one I hadn't, "Hero."   

[Pashacar]

Posted: 4/3/20 at 6:33pm

bear88 said: "I watched ACT in San Francisco's production of Gloria on Saturday night. I was happy to support the theater, disliked the play a lot in what could only be described as an Unpopular Opinion. Part of that is my fault for failing to click the link to read theextensive warning.I wrote up a longer critique in the thread on the play. I have another local show to catch on video, School Girls at the Berkeley Rep, but I'll probably catch an old videotapedmusical before then."

I'd agree with you here. Was happy to support ACT, but after hearing a lot of hype about the play (and knowing the "big" spoiler), I was underwhelmed, to be sure.

[bear88]

Posted: 4/7/20 at 2:02am

There were a few glitches that delayed matters, but I finally got to see the Berkeley Rep's production of School Girls, Or, the African Mean Girls Play tonight. Things closed down in the SF Bay Area out here before the play even had a first preview, or a final dress rehearsal, so they filmed a tech rehearsal a few days beforehand. There's a little apologia for that from the Berkeley Rep's artistic director at the beginning, explaining the circumstances, but I was happy the performance got filmed at all and happy to support the theater.

It's entirely unfair to judge the performances at a pulled-together-as-they're-about-to-shut-down tech rehearsal, but I liked the play. It's light, deliberately derivative, but surprising and serious in ways that go beyond the story. I was impressed with the various issues and shifting tones playwright Jocelyn Bioh is able to weave through the play, which clocks in at a tidy 80 minutes. Akilah Walker makes a compelling Paulina, especially by the tail end of the play. 

 

[Plannietink08]

Posted: 4/7/20 at 10:12am

https://forum.broadwayworld.com/readmessage.php?thread=1121855

[bear88]

Posted: 4/9/20 at 3:20am

A rundown of the last few things I've seen...

The King and I (Kelli O'Hara & Ken Watanabe in the London production in 2018) - My wife and I saw the touring production a few years ago. It's not my favorite R&H musical but I enjoyed it more this time around, although I did prefer Jose Llana as the king in the touring production. I had never seen O'Hara before and she was quite good. Na-Young Jeon was excellent as Tuptim. Seeing it again gave me more appreciation for the story and the score.

Kiss Me Kate (the 2000 London revival with Brent Barrett and Rachel York) - We debated seeing the most recent revival on Broadway last year and maybe it was better. But I can't say I enjoyed the musical all that much. The songs aren't good enough to redeem a story that was just too dumb for me. Personal taste. Barrett and York did their best.

One Man, Two Guvnors (National Theatre) - As with many farces, it took me a little time (well, a scene) to get into this one. I'd heard it was very funny, but I was struck by how much fun it turned out to be. There are plenty of brilliant scenes, wordplay and physical comedy - and it really was a fantastic showcase for James Corden. Long for a comedy, but I wasn't bored at all.

The first two I watched on BroadwayHD, the third on YouTube. I'm not sure how long One Man, Two Gunvors will be on the site. I'd highly recommend it.

[bear88]

Posted: 4/10/20 at 7:05pm

Two very different shows yesterday, both on BroadwayHD...

- Indecent (the filmed production from 2017 with Katrina Lenk) - The play was very intense from the beginning and manages to overcome the deliberate repetition to work powerfully. It's one of those shows that really made me miss live theater, though, but I certainly couldn't complain about the excellent performances and imaginative staging. Sholem Asch's controversial career (not just about God of Vengeance) continued throughout his life - too much to be included in Paula Vogel's powerful play.

- Cats (filmed production from 1998 with Elaine Paige) - I never had any particular interest in seeing the musical back when I visited New York City several times in the early 1990s, so I thought I ought to see it. I guess it's a truncated version of the show, with some songs trimmed or eliminated entirely. There's really not much to say that hasn't been said. It wasn't for me. The musical's success, I concluded as my mind wandered, must owe to the fact that it arrived many years before Disney brought its family-friendly adaptations of popular films to Broadway. 

[bear88]

Posted: 4/18/20 at 3:34am

Caurosel (2013 concert version with Kelli O'Hara on BroadwayHD) - I remain somewhat flummoxed by the musical, which has some gorgeous songs but a conclusion that is even more tragic than Rodgers and Hammerstein probably intended. The best thing about this production is hearing the score sung to its highest potential, even if O'Hara is a little miscast as Julie Jordan and Nathan Gunn can't act well enough. Stephanie Blythe is wonderful, and Jessie Mueller - who I'd never seen before - is quite good as the future Mrs. Snow.

Jesus Christ Superstar (NBC) - The live production from a couple of years ago is one of my favorite musicals, and this version has a lot of terrific moments and performances even if the show being amped up to 11 detracts from the actual drama at times. I didn't change my mind much from the first time I watched it.

Miss Saigon (BroadwayHD) - I don't like the musical but haven't seen it in decades. This was its best shot, with Eva Noblezada and Jon Jon Briones both excellent as Kim and The Engineer. It's an fine production, even if the director uses too many close-ups. So if you like the show, I'd recommend it. But even aside from its cultural cluelessness, the show doesn't really make much sense, even by the generous standards of a musical. And I was reminded of how irritating it is to have a West-focused melodrama filled with exotic Asian cliches be interrupted by a preachy lesson about the plight of children born in Vietnam but left behind by American soldiers.

She Loves Me (BroadwayHD) - Another favorite, in part because my wife and I went to see the 1994 London revival on our honeymoon cold and saw a bunch of Olivier winners. This production is the one filmed in 2016 with Laura Benanti and Zachary Levi. It's the best argument for a fun musical-comedy in existence. The songs are good but not great, the story has occasional weak patches, but it's all so pleasant and cheery that I never cared. And this production is wonderfully done and perfectly cast. To this day, I regret not seeing it on Broadway during our trip that year. But it's certainly a nice musical to see now.

Updated On: 4/20/20 at 03:34 AM

[bear88]

Posted: 4/23/20 at 4:21am

Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill (the HBO production with Audra McDonald on BroadwayHD) - I was ambivalent about the play, which got a bit tedious as the biographical details are dutifully arranged and the substance abuse gets repeated a little too often, but McDonald makes most of it work. It is fascinating watching her rearrange her voice to try to sound like Billie Holliday. There are moments of tension and beauty in the show that are quite compelling, and McDonald's performance of "Strange Fruit" is extraordinary.

Beardo (Shotgun Players in Berkeley on Vimeo from 2011) - It's an interesting local production that starts strong, with some good performances and music by Dave Malloy that occasionally sounds like an early draft of a subsequent musical, Great Comet, set about a century later in Russia - this time about Rasputin. Beardo is often silly, lewd and flat-out weird. Some of that is clever, but it's less interesting after the players are introduced. I think its two-week run online is about to end.

[bear88]

Posted: 5/2/20 at 4:23am

My free BroadwayHD tryout, which I got with my 'ticket' to see the videotaped version of School Girls at the Berkeley Rep, came to an end on April 30. I liked BroadwayHD overall, and would probably get another month at some time in the future. The last full shows I watched were a mixed bag:

Memphis - This won the Tony for Best Musical? Honestly, this show annoyed me to no end. It's loosely based on a real DJ but the character in the show is such a frustrating idiot that I lost all patience with him. I realize that's part of the point, but Huey Calhoun is also the hero of the story, the white savior who brings 'race music' to the South before he self-destructs. I never bought the love story between Chad Kimball's Calhoun and Montego Glover's level-headed Felicia Ferrell, and the formulaic book and mediocre score left me bored. There are some good performances along the way, and at least the show moves along at a decent clip. It was interesting to see Derrick Baskin, who went on to star in Ain't Too Proud, in a supporting role. 

Present Laughter - The 2017 revival of Noel Coward's play is worth seeing for Kevin Kline's performance. He's perfectly suited for this sort of thing. Kate Burton, as his estranged wife, and Cobie Smulders, as a seductress I am apparently supposed to dislike but didn't, also deliver good performances. The play itself isn't as funny as I hoped it would be, but Kline gets plenty out of it. 

Without BroadwayHD, I'll have to work a little harder to find shows to watch.

Updated On: 5/2/20 at 04:23 AM

[Fan123]

Posted: 3/27/21 at 11:19pm

I thought it would be worth bringing this thread back because there seem to be more online theatre options available than ever. Which is great, for audiences and creators both, but it can be difficult to figure out what to spend time/money watching. Especially when there are a lot of lesser-known companies and creators putting out new streamed productions, often for limited periods of time. Any tips on what is, or isn't, worth watching would be appreciated.

Here's one short review: I watched the Landestheater Linz stream of 'The Wave' (ie 'Die Welle', the musical written by Or Matias of 'The Great Comet' etc, which I've been posting about in another thread. In short, I thought it was pretty well done, but not mind-blowing. If you have an interest in themes such as social experiments and fascism, Or Matias' work, shows suitable for young adult performers, German-language theatre (English subtitles are available) etc, it's definitely worth a watch, but I wouldn't call it a general must-see.
Ironically, I found it a bit difficult to buy into how quickly and drastically the student characters were swept up by the Wave. That's part of the point of the show: incredulity about it happening again, could in itself help facilitate it happening again. But I still wish the show had been able to take me along for the ride more, somehow. I wonder if this type of theme would work better in a theatre experience which got the audience directly involved, and made them complicit in the situation. (Not a possibility for a streamed production like this, obviously - unless each audience member was encouraged to use an app to choose between variant pre-recorded plot points or something like that? But I digress.) Anyway, I can provide more specifics on the show if anyone's interested, but that's it in a nutshell.