Sister Act: The Musical

[B3TA07]

Does anyone know if (and if so, WHAT) there will be changes made to the show between Pasedena(sp?) and Atlanta? I'm curious. I missed most of the threads where people posted reviews..who all saw it? The search feature isn't working for me.

[MrBundles]

Though I do not know about actual lyric changes themselves in the songs, I DO know that the songs stayed the same throughout the entire Pasadena run. IMO there are definitely a few that need to be re-written, if not completely replaced.

[theatrelovr]

Am I the only one that thinks making this movie into a musical just doesnt make sense? Was the movie THAT good?

[sondhead]

You're definitely in the minority. I've never met anybody who didn't love that movie. I know I do!!

I love the musical too. Especially for a world premiere (after which the show will get much needed revision) it was pretty excellent.

[MrBundles]

"Was the movie THAT good?"

I definitely think so.

[theatrelovr]

I thought the movie was funny, but making it a musical...it just confuses me. That being said, if it does make it to broadway, I hope it does well.

[MrBundles]

I dont think it will make it to Broadway, although the show is very fun, it definitely lacks a lot of the magic that the movie has.

[James Sims]

If you are interested, I posted a review a while back on the Los Angeles page... http://losangeles.broadwayworld.com/viewcolumn.cfm?colid=13591

Not sure what the future of the show holds... but the local audiences here seemed to really enjoy it.

[sondhead]

"I dont think it will make it to Broadway, although the show is very fun, it definitely lacks a lot of the magic that the movie has."

That's not very fair. There's lots of revision still left. You saw it's world premiere ad you have to go into those situations with that in mind.

[Fiction Writer]

My boyfriend and I wanted to see it, but we couldn't get out to LA.

[MrBundles]

Did I say it WONT make it to Broadway? It would be great if it does. This board is for OPINIONS...I just think it's more suited for something like off-bway.

[BetterThanYou]

all people do on here is bitch at each other for not agreeing with their point of view. This is supposed to be a site where people who love theatre can chat about what they love, not bitch at each other for not thinking the way they do.

[SeanMartin]

:: cough cough :: yourscreenname :: cough cough ::

[theatrelovr]

I agree Mrbundles. I think off Broadway would be much more appropriate.

[gvendo2005]

Oy...I've made myself heard on this matter, but here we go again:

The audience consists, the way I can see it from here, of two groups: a) Dawnn Lewis fans (a very limited group in and of itself, based on the response to her name here), and b) people who dug the movie (of which there are a lot more).

Group B is going to be the most likely buyer. What Group B are being presented with is a book based (in all but character names) on Paul Rudnick's earlier draft for a version to have starred Bette Middler, and an entirely new score.

Word of mouth from Group B will not be impressive, because they're not being presented with something that resembles the movie closely enough for them to remember (or like) it. "We saw the SISTER ACT musical and it was good" is probably going to be a rarely heard phrase once it hits New York...that is, if it stays in its current state.

My advice to whoever is the show doctor:

-- Bring in the Motown, and Marc Shaiman's arrangement of it
-- Keep the book because it's based on a draft that is structurally better than the film, but bring portions of it closer to the film where possible
-- Do a limited time only run in the slower season featuring Whoopi Goldberg as Deloris to really sell some of the higher-priced seats

Do this, and I can guarantee a hit for a Disney audience.

[BroadwayBaby6]

Changes to the show that need to take place:

1) Replace Dawnn Lewis with an actress/singer who will be likely to be favorably reviewed by the New York Times (Lilias White?)
2) Some of the secondarly leads will be replaced with Broadway names. (and this is not a reflection on the talents of the people involved in the regional production- but reality of Broadway casting)
3) The pseudo-rap song "Sister Act" will be taken out and replaced.
4) The low-budget sets will be replaced with expensive sets
5) The Book will be tweaked
6) The opening sequence will be streamlined
7) A couple of new songs will be added

[LostLeander]

I'm hearing from many that Lewis can't really sing the material all that well, and that's great for the part, but she can't sing the big belty numbers that Menken has written.

Also, I've always thought Sister Act II would be much more apt for musicalization.

They probably will have to replace Lewis though with at least some one more NYC familiar.

[BroadwayBaby6]

Dawnn's singing has improved over the run. She is actually a good belter but she can't hit some of the high notes. Her comic timing is impeccable.

[joniray]

Just curious - who is producing this? Is it a Disney Theatrical production? If not, I wonder why and I wonder how that came to be (especially considering Menken's involvement). I would think that Disney would be fiercely protective of any of its properties.

Come to think of it, I wonder how High Fidelity came to be a Broadway musical without Disney's involvement. That was a Touchstone film as well.

[sondhead]

No. It's licensed by Disney but not produced, which I believe is a first.

[joniray]

And High Fidelity?

[silent]

Could this or the Dreamgirls revival be the vehicle to bring Deborah Cox back to Broadway?

I sure hope so!

[BroadwayBaby6]

This is NOT a vehicle for Debora Cox. The lead has to have well-honed comic skills. Lilias White should do the role- she can be hysterically funny.

[bobby_luvs_bway]

I saw it here in Pasadena well into it's run and I agree with most of the reviews saying it really needs more work, but this is a good jumping off point. I also think Dawnn Lewis is good, but is not up to the requirements of this role. She often steps on lines ( I disagree with the impeccable comedic timing...she needs work)and her second act song is hard for someone with her vocal limitations. It doesn't help that her big second act song comes right after the little Nun(Sister Mary Robert...i think) finally gets her big solo (which she hits out of the park and was clearly an audience favorite). I'm sure Ms. Lewis is not happy (nor did she look pleased) to follow that after she's become hoarse from all the singing she does. Some of the songs are downright awful, or at the very least don't fit into the show. I would also vote for recasting some of the other principles, especially the Mother Supereior. My overwhelming thought was that whoever cast the show was trying to recreate the look of the film and not the chemistry the actors had. I could go on and on because my expectations were high (I have always been a fan of the film and thought it could make a great musical), but for now I'll just say they have a long road ahead if they want to go to Broadway.

[phantomCA26]

A lot has changed in the show. They have redone the beginning...the nuns sing a little bit more to establish the nuns story...and Deloris has a new song at the beginning. It's called "Too much to live for." She calls back to it 2 other times in the show and it tells more of her back-story. They also added a big dance scene with Deloris and her back up dancers and some of the nuns. (it's like the good angel and bad devil on the shoulder)

Another big change is the "Going to Hell" scene...They have fixed it and it tells more of a story and includes the bikers more.