ACL revisited 5/4 matinee – LONG with SPOILERS

[wonderfulday2day]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 4:23pm

7th visit to this revival (and countless during Broadway ‘75-‘90 plus tours, regional, stock) since the first preview and went strictly to see the combo of Mario and Jessica Lea Patty as Cassie (she performs the role on Sunday matinees). I had not previously seen either in their roles.

The house: approx 75% full downstairs – but only about 100 people upstairs. Very sparsely scattered mezzanine, which I do expect midweek; but surprised for a Sunday matinee.
Details of the onstage and back of house follow, as I positioned myself in the last row of the orchestra so I could observe. Granted I choose the word observe, as I attended this particular performance not to necessarily engross myself in the show itself, but to examine the blocking, changes and observe the performances. I wanted to see for myself what I had read on the board postings and what I had heard thus far about Mario Lopez.

First the BLOCKING, and those of us who know the show will be more interested in these notes, as if one hasn’t seen ACL before they have nothing to compare it to.

As for the opening, Mario in slicked back hair, tight tan pants and even tighter brown collared shirt, dances ably the opening combo – however not yet with the confidence and drive Zach should poise, and obviously and most noticeably not anywhere in the league of his colleagues on stage. However, I'll give him the slack of this being only the end of his second week - he danced it fine (surprised to see he nailed the double pirouette) and will no doubt get more comfortable in his shoes with time. He does not have much of the onstage interaction with Larry as did his predecessors, (offstage observance comes later) – meaning the going over of the audition cards and clustering to discuss the dancers. What I did notice however, is during the opening elimination, that he turned to the cut groups and directed his being “sorry” to them and held the moments, instead of mere dismissals.

Moving on. Blocking is blatantly changed with two enormous revisions that in my opinion, downright insult the integrity of the show. Cassie’s new blocking during “everybody take a break out in the hall” positions her closer to stage right for “Cassie, stay on stage please”. She no longer exits the stage with her bag to re-enter for “Well this audition is really interesting” – instead Mr. Lopez struts down the aisle to gratuitously join her onstage for this integral pre-Cassie Dance scene , which sets up her story and their relationship. Playing the scene to each other onstage destroys its intensity, timing, and emotional context, and hurts the vulnerability and desperation of her plea. The blocking is obviously physically awkward – (it even looks as if they feel awkward playing it) – with Cassie and Zach directly facing each other throughout – interspersed with “The Music and the Mirror” song pulling Cassie into spotlight facing front for the internal “Give Me Somebody To Dance For…” , with Zach in blackout. And then facing him again for the dialogue, and then again facing front in spotlight for song “To Have Something That I can Believe In….” and then facing him for dialog. The follow spot better be timed better, as at one point Cassie was still in “internal” light when her head turned to move back to Zach, at the end of the moment. The audience members down front on house right and left, probably only see Cassie and Zach’s backs as the way it is blocked they do not cheat any of the dialog front to the audience. They are completely facing each other a few feet apart. And I must add, there is no chemistry created between them. The scene performed this way felt amateurish, and was performed like a reading in an acting class. Neither knew what to do with themselves on stage and looked rather clumsy, no less uncomfortable.

Next injury to MB staging comes during the Rehearsal One’s – Larry and Zach both consistently pacing back and forth in front of the Line during the Groupings. Walking stage left –stage right; then stage left – stage right….and then Mario doing it alone. Here they are directed to be watching and observing the dancers by crossing back and forth– obviously to give Mario more gratuitous stage time front and center. All this pacing pulls focus of the beauty and excitement of the One groupings choreography. The audience is not drawn in to the genius of the staging but distracted by Zach. On a side note, personally I have always hated Larry and Zach being center stage in this revival’s blocking, after Zach says to Cassie “Is this what you really want to do?” during One. That’s a built up Cassie moment and always has been….she should be solo center and the addition of Zach and Larry in this moment kills that for me. Ah well.
For some reason, following Cassie’s exit in the confrontation scene during One, Larry’s line “Who do you want to hire?” and Mario’s “I don’t know” got a huge laugh! I think it was Nick Adams’ interpretation of the line.

As for the Finale, we all know by now Mario gets the first bow. And he leads the Wedge. Here too, he looked a bit stiff and not yet comfy in his shoes, lacking the true style, and he had exuded to the audience a sort of “look ma, I’m on Broadway” kinda feel while dancing the finale. But he did it. The audience nowadays doesn’t know the difference and happily cheered him on as he extended his arm on the entrance to leading the wedge. His bow applause was enthusiastic but nothing overly huge, and several in the cast thankfully received cheers equal to his.

As for his overall performance - flat, uncommanding or with the authority and fear factor a Zach should impose. To me Mario is just reciting Zach’s lines in the best way he knows possible, and may quite possibly be channeling a tad of Michael Douglas’s movie Zach. It again is an observation, but I found his speaking voice and inflections to be a bit breathy and monotone on the microphone, which reminded me of Michael Douglas. Mario is not yet engaged in the role … and for many of the posters saying they can’t keep their eyes off of him onstage – I didn’t find him strong enough of an actor to make this a convincing role for him. Yes, he looks awesome –but if anyone is coming to see his toothy grin and deep dimples, they will be disappointed. There’s no smiling for him in ACL. You get the eye candy of a fully clothed Mario Lopez; that’s about it.

Now for the OFF-STAGE antics and why I sat in the last row. Once again, I wanted not only to observe the staging, but I also wanted to keep another eye on the Zach podium and how he handles playing Zach when not in audience full-view. Here ‘goes…….
For the most part he pays little attention to what is happening on stage when he does not have speaking lines or Line interaction. I watched Mario (along with Nick Adams) chat and engage themselves in small talk when Larry is sitting with Zach at the podium (Larry sits next to him) in the early part of the show after the Names. The very worst was to witness Mario and Nick remove themselves from the podium to sit on the floor between the mezzanine stairs and sound console - and do exercises! Yes - crunches, sit ups, leg lifts- during performance – somewhere between I Can Do That, Bobby’s Monologue and At The Ballet. At other times during performance, Mario either went outside to the Box Office Lobby (about 3 times) or to the Downstairs Bar lobby (twice). At one point I even heard him talking to people who had left during the show (right after he exited the theater) – I heard his chatter as the exit door opened. I also observed him reading his script for a long stretch of time on the mezzanine stairs in preparation for the Cassie/Zach scene. And during the Alternatives scenes when he is already back of house before his last line of dialogue, he was doing kicks and stretches near the stairs, warming up for the One Finale. For someone only in the role for two weeks – still in dire need of commanding the part, his antics in the back of house are very telling. Shame on you Mario – it’s as if you are already bored. I would expect you would show more interest and respect to remain in character. Concentrate on the show and step up to the plate.

Final thoughts on the cast/shape of show: Jessica Lea Patty – very young, but at least that works with the Mario combo. I had heard raves, so was anxious to see her finally. Not crazy about the acting, but granted the first scene was difficult to get a momentum on because of the blocking. She’s got a great voice and technically a lovely dancer. I won’t go into the dissection of her dance interpretation, but there are some really nice moments for her. What for me is a major distraction is the long hair. Only Vicki Frederick in 1977 glamorously and gracefully pulled off dancing M&M with long, thick Walt Disney type hair. Ms. Patty’s hair is just very long and goes all over the place (including her face) with a life of its own during the dance. Although she only plays the role on Sundays, I think a short, stylish, sophisticated Cassie cut, the way most other Cassies through the years were asked to get, would do her justice. Or just put the hair up in a twist or bun or something. Keeping it long and hanging, IMHO, takes away from the number, as the eye is constantly watching the hair and where it is flying. I thought Jeffrey Schecter’s I Can Do That was better than ever– some nuances new to his version of the number (at least that I had not recognized in previous viewings). I also think he was having more fun, letting loose with the number. I liked choices in Katherine Tokarz’s Kristine; a fun interpretation. And I also enjoyed Heather Parcells’ Judy Turner more so than before. 3 understudies were on I had not seen in these roles – Grant Turner (Don), Michelle Aravena (not Connie Wong this show but Connie McKenzie) and Mike Cannon (Al). There is still some over-the-top pushing going on, and others just adequate at best, but overall the performances held steady.

P.S. I noticed that Mario's new workout book is on display and sold at the theatre now, where I believe one can also get his Mario as Zach poster (it hangs on display with the other current Line posters.

[WestVillage]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 4:59pm

And at only 62.1% capacity (a drop of 21.3% from last week), he isn't exactly setting the box office on fire. Maybe this stunt casting is backfiring.

Posted: 5/5/08 at 5:07pm

VERY well written. and I agree with you 100% about him not paying attention to the show. utter DISRESPECT not only to the actors on stage but to the integrity of the show.

[dancingthrulife04]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 5:09pm

Eesh. That sounds a little rough. The new blocking sounds awkward and just... eh.


Random question, though: With the change to "Connie MacKenzie" from "Connie Wong," what do they do about her age? Connie normally says "...the year of the chicken." How do they change that line?

[Fosse76]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 5:22pm

It's not beneath me to say "I told you so." And as far as observations, Nick usually remained still during Beresse's tenure. It wasn't until Mario showed up that he began goofing off. Also, the stretching he doesn't isn't uncommon. Beresse used to do stretches throughout the show (he also used to feel-up Nick Adams, but we won't go there). But he generally remained focused on the show (enough that he would ACTUALLY give the other cast members notes). Mario does in fact read from the script in the back of the house, and occasionally while speaking into the microphone he IS reading from the script. For someone who had two months of rehearsal and three weeks of performances, he is not up to par. And to make things worse, I believe he leaves the show for about a month relatively soon.

[dancingthrulife04]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 5:28pm

I think he leaves at the end of next week.

If he is in fact still reading from the script, that is absolutely ridiculous. Learn your lines.

Larry’s line “Who do you want to hire?” and Mario’s “I don’t know” got a huge laugh!

People always seem to laugh at that line. I think it's the way Nick says it (he does sound kind of funny then).

[popular_elphie]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 5:40pm

For someone only in the role for two weeks – still in dire need of commanding the part, his antics in the back of house are very telling. Shame on you Mario – it’s as if you are already bored. I would expect you would show more interest and respect to remain in character. Concentrate on the show and step up to the plate.
Michael Berresse didn't stay at the podium either. He walked around, sat on the mezzanine steps, played around with his cell phone, etc. Think about if they were backstage and you couldn't see them - they'd be doing that stuff anyways.

[WestVillage]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 5:58pm

Just because Berresse did it too doesn't make it right or acceptable behavior. Mario is very weak in the role, and he's not backstage ... he's in the back of the house. He's new at the role, he's making his Broadway debut, and he's messing around and not paying attention to what's happening on stage or to his character. What a pro.

[catstagestud]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 6:06pm

Sorry to kinda thread-jack the Mario stuff but how was Michelle? I wanted to see her in the show when I was in the city last time but couldn't fit it. I recently worked with her in The Pajama Game where she played Gladys and brought the house down each and every night!

Cheers,

Christopher

[gymdudeva]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 6:08pm

It's set not just on the stage, but in the house. Zack and Larry are doing their jobs from the back of the house....the actors are not back there just waiting to go on, they are back there in character. And it's in full few of much of the house. So they should stay in character, PERIOD.

When I saw it, I couldn't see Beresse, but I could see Hanes very easily (so I like looking at him, sue me!), and was very impressed that he stayed at the podium, watching the audition just as Larry would.
Updated On: 5/5/08 at 06:08 PM

[DottieD'Luscia]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 6:55pm

The first time I saw A Chorus Line was from standing room (the spot right next to Tyler). From my recollection, both he and Michael remained there throughout. It took a lot of concentration on my part though to focus on the stage as opposed to Tyler as he was right next to me.

[dancingthrulife04]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 7:01pm

I've had standing room a few times and never seen Berresse move from his space.

Random question, though: With the change to "Connie MacKenzie" from "Connie Wong," what do they do about her age? Connie normally says "...the year of the chicken." How do they change that line?

Anyone? Bueller?

[theaterguy11]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 7:12pm

Instead of King and I in the montage. She says "Summer Stock" which rymes better with "up till now I've never stopped" anyway...

[morosco]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 7:18pm

I don't think Mario is to blame. I think all of the blame should go to John Breglio, Baayork Lee, and Bob Avian.

Greed.

(And if the argument is that the show was doing poorly and would have closed without Mario then so be it. I can't believe that Michael Bennett would have wanted it this way.)

[wonderfulday2day]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 7:29pm

In reply to the questions about Connie Wong, when Michelle went on yesterday she was Connie McKenzie. This is not a first for ACL as whenever there was a non-Asian in the role they had to change the dialogue. So this Connie says she is twenty in the Names section, and gets caught as being 32 later on in her monologue. She also sings "From the time I was five in Summer Stock, Summer Stock, instead of King And I, King And I". She was wearing Connie Wong attire of course, and did a fine job.

Posted: 5/5/08 at 8:34pm

i also agree with morosco....it should not be tolerated. Even though he is a "star" he should have to live up to the standards all broadway actors have to.

I use the term star loosely. let's just refer to him as AC from now on.

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 8:40pm

"he very worst was to witness Mario and Nick remove themselves from the podium to sit on the floor between the mezzanine stairs and sound console - and do exercises! Yes - crunches, sit ups, leg lifts..."

And that's bad because...?

[ACL2006]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 10:31pm

She becomes Connie Sue McKenzie from Greenville, South Carolina and claims to be 21.

BTW, I'll be seeing the show again on Thursday.

Updated On: 5/5/08 at 10:31 PM

[JMVR]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 11:36pm

I am really surprised by the star treatment they're giving Mario. Let's face it- he is known as a B lister at best and has achieved recent notoriety more from his hot body and random hosting gigs than for any real acting, singing or dancing. He clearly is not a major box-office boost.

And yet . . . changes in blocking of one of the most legendary musicals, allowing him to sell his book at the theater, changing another character's outfit and so many other things that have been posted here seem to me like the kind of treatment they would give either a BIG name that sells a lot of tickets or someone who is known or at least recently notorious for some great acting, singing or dancing. I don't get how he is able to get almost unheard of perks like that. It's the kind of thing you would expect in a star vehicle certainly not a primarily ensamble show. I can't recall the last time I saw so many concessions made and such a big buildup for a moderately talented B or C lister not known for any acting or vocal talent. It just seems like too much.

[Fabrizio2]

Posted: 5/5/08 at 11:43pm

definately agree with Jessica Lea Patty's hair. She is a FABULOUS dancer. She made Cassie's dance look SO easy. However, that hair is everywhere, and I don't see how she dances with it in her face like that. Especially during pirouettes.

[Fosse76]

Posted: 5/6/08 at 11:31am

"Michael Berresse didn't stay at the podium either. He walked around, sat on the mezzanine steps, played around with his cell phone, etc."

While it is true he he didn't remain at the podium, he never used his cell phone, or left to go to the bathroom. He usually would get up to stretch during Paul's monologue and Cassie's Solo. Those are the only times he really did that.

[itsagift]

Posted: 5/7/08 at 6:34pm

Wow! Somebody's bitter. As much as you observed off-stage how did you see the show?
Your view on most of what you "observed" seems to be a bit biased.
I saw the Sunday show the previous week and Mario was fine. As far as keeping the integrity of the storyline, that's important but not always 100% possible.

Guess what!? Women are able to preserve their looks today more so than they did years ago. You can still be older and do roles portraying younger characters or be a little younger and perform roles as an older character.

And Jessica's hair is gorgeous! I think her hair adds to the drama of the performance. Cassie is only supposed to be around 32.

Like it or not Mario and Jessica look hot on stage together. Sorry I guess that has nothing to do with the integrity of show. But seriously, get that chip off your shoulder.

[EponineAmneris]

Posted: 5/8/08 at 8:16am

VERY informative and interesting.

Thank you for sharing.

[WestVillage]

Posted: 5/8/08 at 1:16pm

"Sorry I guess that has nothing to do with the integrity of show. But seriously, get that chip off your shoulder."

Obviously some people care much more about the integrity of the show than you do. Read any interview with Baayork, and her purpose is to keep ACL as Michael Bennett directed it and to maintain the integrity of the piece (which makes me think she was forced by Breglio/Avian to make the changes for Mario). So anyone who thinks keeping the integrity of the show is unimportant should just go see Legally Blonde and be satisfied.

"As much as you observed off-stage how did you see the show?"
The OP clearly said he had seen the revival 7 times and the original production countless times, and specifically sat in the last row to observe. What happens in the back of the house at ACL is just as important as what happens on stage.
Updated On: 5/8/08 at 01:16 PM

[PalJoey]

Posted: 5/8/08 at 1:43pm

which makes me think she was forced by Breglio/Avian to make the changes for Mario

You have no basis for saying that and no RIGHT to say that.

"Forced?" What a silly and melodramatic word to use in this situation. Did they blackmail her? Put reeds under her fingernails? Waterboard her?

Had Breglio, Avian or Baayork not wanted to make the changes, any one of them could have vetoed the changes.

The responsibility was shared by ALL THREE OF THEM.