Kelli O'Hara, Brian d'Arcy James to star in DAYS OF WINE & ROSES musical from LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA team- Page 4

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 5/4/23 at 2:58pm

can't wait to see it in a few weeks. Eager to read some reports.

[n2nbaby]

Posted: 5/4/23 at 3:28pm

Anyone have any idea on a running time yet? TodayTix says it is 90 minutes, but I don’t trust that quite yet because as far as I can see, The Atlantic hasn’t posting a running time and the movie is two hours. 

[JSquared2]

Posted: 5/4/23 at 3:37pm

n2nbaby said: "Anyone have any idea on a running time yet? TodayTix says it is 90 minutes, but I don’t trust that quite yet because as far as I can see, The Atlantic hasn’t posting a running time and the movie is two hours."

 

It would be foolish to speculate based on the r/t of the movie.  

[Hey, Zelda!]

Posted: 5/4/23 at 4:07pm

Demos are up on Guettel's website.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 5/4/23 at 11:14pm

Friend of mine was at the dress rehearsal tonight. 2 hours, no intermission. He said he really enjoyed it and says it has a “Piazza” sound and vibe to it.

 Very much looking forward to seeing it in a few weeks. 

Updated On: 5/5/23 at 11:14 PM

[TaffyDavenport]

Posted: 5/4/23 at 11:25pm

Updated On: 5/4/23 at 11:25 PM

[Robbie2]

Posted: 5/4/23 at 11:42pm

It has been 18 Years since Piazza was on Broadway at LCT-Beaumont. What's he been doing all these years? Looking forward to seeing this.

[inception]

Posted: 5/5/23 at 12:15pm

He spent a lot of time on a musical adaptation of the 2004 Danny Boyle film Millions.  I don't know if it ever was performed anywhere.

[JasonC3]

Posted: 5/5/23 at 12:23pm

Robbie2 said: "It has been 18 Years since Piazza was on Broadway at LCT-Beaumont. What's he been doing all these years? Looking forward to seeing this."

I went to Wikipedia as I was curious about this as well, only knowing some of what he had been doing.

WIKIPEDIA SAYS:

"He spent much of the period from 2005 to 2007 working on a musical adaptation of The Princess Bride with original screenwriter William Goldman. As of January 2007, Guettel had written the music for ten songs for the project. An orchestral suite from the score was performed at the Hollywood Bowl in November 2006, and Lincoln Center conducted a workshop of Bride in January 2007. The project was abandoned when Goldman reportedly demanded 75 percent of the author's share, even though Guettel was writing both the music and the lyrics.[3]

In summer 2007, Guettel composed incidental music for a production of Anton Chekhov's play Uncle Vanya at the Intiman Playhouse in Seattle, Washington.[4]

In July 2009, the Signature Theatre of Arlington, Virginia, commissioned Guettel to write a new musical for their 2011-2012 season, under the auspices of their American Musical Voices Project.[5] Currently in the works, this will be a musical adaptation of the Danny Boyle film Millions. Other current projects include an opera based on the short stories of Washington Irving and the opera, The Invisible Man, commissioned by the Houston Grand Opera.[6]

In 2019, Guettel's score for Aaron Sorkin's play To Kill A Mockingbird was nominated for a Tony Award.[7]

In January 2023, Atlantic Theater Company announced an eight-week world premiere production of Guettel's adaptation of Days of Wine and Roses, with music, lyrics, and orchestrations by Guettel, book by Craig Lucas (Guettel's collaborator on The Light in the Piazza, almost 20 years previously), and direction by Michael Greif. The production, running in May and June 2023, will star Kelli O'Hara and Brian D'Arcy James, and will be the first full production of a new musical by Guettel since Piazza.[8]"

 

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 5/5/23 at 1:42pm

In addition to the above — Guettel is also someone who has openly battled addiction over the years. I do not know if that is a factor in his limited output since PIAZZA, but that’s something he has struggled with pretty much his whole life.

I hope he finds himself clean & artistically fulfilled these days.

[ChiDoc]

Posted: 5/5/23 at 2:39pm

Hey, Zelda! said: "Demos are up on Guettel's website."

Wow, I can’t stop listening to Forgiveness.  Really looking forward to this at the end of the month.

[halfhourcheckwithmerman]

Posted: 5/5/23 at 3:08pm

"There Go I" completely did me in, holy ****. Listened to it a handful of times. 

Can't wait for this... oh, how I've missed Guettel's writing. 

[RippedMan]

Posted: 5/5/23 at 8:49pm

He also worked on The Princess Bride musical that ended up going nowhere. So it's not like he hasn't been doing stuff. 

[BETTY22]

Posted: 5/5/23 at 9:06pm

I cannot wait. Off Broadway seems to be where a lot of great shows are being developed again. 

[binau]

Posted: 5/6/23 at 7:24am

No reports from the first performance? 

[Sauja]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 9:01am

I confess that I don’t know Piazza, so I can’t compare this to Guettel’s most famous work. But I can report that even in a very early preview, there is something magical happening on that stage. It took me a minute to get into it. The earliest scenes felt a bit too quick and underdeveloped, and the music was intriguing, but I might not have been quite ready for it yet, as it’s more deeply incorporated into the storytelling and less “here’s a big solo.” 
 

While there is a medium sized cast, almost everything falls on the two leads who carry this heavy, challenging show on their backs for its almost two hour run time. Both are astonishing, and I felt that O’Hara in particular has never been better. It was fascinating to watch her go to such rough places with this character.

 

I probably bawled for the entire last half hour. If one has an experienced alcoholism themselves or in their family, a warning that this is really heavy work. But it’s done with so much care and thoughtfulness and love. I’ll go back to see it again if I can both find a ticket and the wherewithal to endure the emotional rollercoaster again. 
 

I don’t know if this will have a big audience. It’s sad and intimate and heady. Not a wildly commercial property, but thrilling for lovers of the form.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 12:34pm

Hoping LCT or something partner to get this to Broadway to give it a healthier. Love to see this but not sure that time frame works. 

[Voter]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 3:59pm

Sauja said: "I confess that I don’t know Piazza, so I can’t compare this to Guettel’s most famous work. But I can report that even in a very early preview, there is something magical happening on that stage. It took me a minute to get into it. The earliest scenes felt a bit too quick and underdeveloped, and the music was intriguing, but I might not have been quite ready for it yet, as it’s more deeply incorporated into the storytelling and less “here’s a big solo.”


While there is a medium sized cast, almost everything falls on the two leads who carry this heavy, challenging show on their backs for its almost two hour run time. Both are astonishing, and I felt that O’Hara in particular has never been better. It was fascinating to watch her go to such rough places with this character.



I probably bawled for the entire last half hour. If one has an experienced alcoholism themselves or in their family, a warning that this is really heavy work. But it’s done with so much care and thoughtfulness and love. I’ll go back to see it again if I can both find a ticket and the wherewithal to endure the emotional rollercoaster again.


I don’t know if this will have a big audience. It’s sad and intimate and heady. Not a wildly commercial property, but thrilling for lovers of the form."

 

Does this show contain any special content warning? 

 

The Atlantic Theatre website does not specify anything. 

[gleek4114]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 5:18pm

Also worth noting that June 23-25 it was announced that Elena Shaddow will be stepping into the show due to Kelli’s prior commitments. She’s not Kelli’s cover, merely just taking over that weekend. A great opportunity to see Elena who rarely performs in the NYC area anymore.

[amiyagi]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 5:28pm

I might be feeling a bit over-generous since I saw NY NY last night, which was horrendous, but I really feel like this show is a solid piece of theatre. It won’t ever have big commercial appeal but it’s a good piece of work for people that genuinely enjoy character-driven theatre.

I will echo the above review and say the early scenes are underdeveloped and need some work. She’s rejecting him and then suddenly they’re at dinner sharing very personal stories. I found the first song a bit awkward and unbalanced. A rare occasion where a musical could use an extra 10 minutes or so. It flows much better and more sensibly after that.

Singing-wise, Brian missed the high notes on Forgiveness which was a little rough but other than that both him and Kelli sounded great. They sound especially good together; their voices blend very nicely.

Most of the cast doesn’t have that much to do but it works. The show is almost entirely carried by Brian and Kelli’s characters with Kelli’s dad having some impact as well. The latter half of the show is an emotional rollercoaster and really puts onstage an intimate view of what alcoholism looks like; the anger, the hope, the relapses, the disappointment. Both Brian and Kelli are in great acting form. I’m amazed after 4 (?) performances the connection and chemistry they have. Really impressed. I never saw Bridges or her in Piazza, but this is a spectacular vehicle for O’Hara’s skillset. The character has a lot of emotional notes and goes pretty dark at the end and she nails it. Her voice is glorious. There’s so much of her music in this I would love to hear again. There’s no song list but there’s one number that is, I presume, a reprise of ‘Forgiveness’ that she sings that I would have on repeat for days.

This is a small show that fits nicely in the Atlantic and could be go a bit bigger but would drown in a Broadway house. I would see it again and would love to get some kind of recording of it too. There’s some beautiful music, especially their duets and a lot of O’Hara’s songs.

I didn’t see any content warnings. There’s some swearing but the biggest thing is obviously the alcohol/alcoholism. There’s one destruction of property scene that is extremely well done and realistic (kudos to Brian) which could be an issue for some people. I can’t get over how real all of this felt. Just a lovely (and slightly depressing) little show.

Run time today was 1hr50, no intermission. 

Updated On: 5/7/23 at 05:28 PM

[halfhourcheckwithmerman]

Posted: 5/9/23 at 11:18am

For those who have seen this, how big is the orchestra? I'd expect not a lot from off-broadway, but still...

[pagereynolds]

Posted: 5/9/23 at 12:50pm

halfhourcheckwithmerman said: "For those who have seen this, how big is the orchestra? I'd expect not a lot from off-broadway, but still..."

Six musicians: keyboard, piano, percussion, drums, reed and bass.

[halfhourcheckwithmerman]

Posted: 5/9/23 at 1:15pm

Thanks :)

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 5/12/23 at 7:44am

I saw this last night, and for a brand new musical, this is in great shape. There is room for some work to be done, but all in all, the show is extremely solid.

Kelli O'Hara is absolutely sublime. Having previously seen her in Bridges, The King and I, and Kiss Me, Kate, I think it's safe to say that this is the best performance I have seen her give. She gets plenty of chances to showcase her songbird voice, but what's most exciting is that we get to see her play a totally different character than we have seen her play before. She really proves her versatility as an actress here. Brian D'Arcy James is simply phenomenal. The two play so well off each other and have remarkable chemistry.

I would say that 90% of the show is just Kelli and Brian with a few appearances and short scenes with some other characters. The weight of the show very much rests on, and it successfully carried by, the leading duo. This is no easy feat, either, as the show is extremely heavy. The themes and depictions of alcoholism and the havoc it can wreak on a family's life are extremely visceral and accurate.

Adam Guettel's score is simply lovely. "Forgiveness" is definitely the best song of the night. The score really gives Kelli and Brian a chance to showcase their vocals. Craig Lucas's book could use some tinkering. The fist 20 minutes are a little plodding with some weird pacing. It also felt like the show seemed to have a few different moments when it was going to end only for there to be another scene. The show is somewhat episodic - very separate scenes in time and place with some transition music in between. I think the inclusion of an intermission would be wise.

All in all, I have to say I was extremely taken with this. The performances from the leads is worth the price of a ticket alone. I'm not sure how commercially viable this would be on Broadway, but I certainly hope this has a future life beyond it's Off-Broadway because it's truly a beautiful show.

[Det95]

Posted: 5/12/23 at 8:34am

A bunch of seats were just released and I was able to get tickets for the 5/20 matinee. Super excited for this.