Does anyone know anything about Harold and Maude The Musical

[Zimmy]

Posted: 2/5/06 at 10:57pm

Harold and Maude: The Musical

I would love to get insight or even better some music.

Thanks.
Updated On: 2/5/06 at 10:57 PM

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 2/5/06 at 11:16pm

No legal recording exists. I saw this at Papermil and thought it was a dull, often sunny look at a dark, tragic story. Estelle Parsons was great, but lacked the layering that made Ruth Gordon so perfect. It is just a perfect movie, and the stage musical makes you realize how much better the film is. One of the films biggest highlights is Cat Steven's perfect, and haunting score. The score for the stage version brought nothing new to a piece that already has a musical attachment. Donna Lynn Champlin was perfection, and the rest of the cast did their best with the mediocre material. I left thinking, eh, that was cute. But Harold and Maude, though a love story, is anything but cute. The stage version seemed to be avoiding the truly dark aspects of the story. It is a gloomy piece, and the creators seemed afraid to explore this. I also thought the Papermill, known for safe choices, wasn't the best spot. It needs to be in a small theatre, in a more liberal area, where they can do the material justice.

Ps: YOu might want to edit your thread title, so it has Harold and Mause in it. You may get quicker responses that way.
Updated On: 2/5/06 at 11:16 PM

[Zimmy]

Posted: 2/5/06 at 11:34pm

Thanks Bobby. Informative!

[CJWesselman]

Posted: 2/6/06 at 12:28am

Was at a Q&A in Dayton, OH in Fall 2004 where Tom Jones was visiting and got to hear a couple songs from the show. From what I remember they were nice, but I have no idea what's changed or anything. The Papermill run was, what, a year ago? Dunno how it did there. Tom seemed pretty excited about the show and quite confident in it. No idea where it stands now, just thought I'd share my two cents.

[hushpuppy]

Posted: 2/6/06 at 10:44am

BobbyBubby hit it right on the head. The movie was perfection and the musical added nothing to enhance it. I'mm old enough to have seen the movie in a theatre when it first came out and Maude's free-spirit character was such a revelation and her striking out at the establishment was refreshingly different and new. Thirty years later, that all seems so commonplace and Harold seems the one out of touch with reality. Has Harold been raised in the basement all these years? What would cause him to be so repressed and stifled in an era of do-your-own-thing? In the musical, we never get a clue into the characters inner feelings.

Plus the score was dull.

And I agree, staging it in a barn like the Paper Mill with its (dare I say) older, subscription audience wasn't the best choice.

[Zimmy]

Posted: 2/6/06 at 6:07pm

Thank you guys - I appreciate it!