So goes "And The Money Kept Rolling In," from Evita. It's an appropriate metaphor for the breathtaking, rapid-paced revival currently being mounted by the Twin Cities' Theater Latté Da.
Helmed with muscular invention by estimable director Peter Rothstein, Evita could very well be his most ambitious work yet. Evita not only steams across the stage like a speeding locomotive, but it also manages to soar to high-flying heights for this highly innovative theatre company.
Never one to rest on his laurels as one of the Minnesota theatre's premier directors, Rothstein doesn't seem content to let his audience rest either. Indeed, Evita zips by in a quick two hours and twenty minutes (intermission included). Much of the breathtaking propulsion is set by choreographer Michael Matthew Ferrell's entrancing tango, in which every actor is summoned to partake.
Fortunately, Rothstein has found exceptional talent to keep up with nary a breath.
As Evita herself, Zoe Pappas offers a towering if often overpowering performance. But that seems completely justified given Eva Peron's own commanding reach for fortune and fame. Pappas invites them in as a first-rate triple threat. She demonstrates enormous confidence and competence in finding the Argentine First Lady's subtle shadings. Pappas' vibrant singing voice could easily fill an auditorium ten times the size of the McKnight, and her dancing prowess is one rarely seen in leading ladies.
Yet it's the enormously charismatic Jared Oxborough whose little touch of star quality grabs hold of you long after you leave the theatre. As Che, Oxborough infuses his narration with so much star power that it's a wonder he's not performing on a Broadway stage. Blessed with natural charm and an intoxicating singing voice, Oxborough makes it seem so effortless. It came as a shock for me to learn that this gifted actor recently graduated from college where he was better known for his agility on the ice (as in hockey). He practically skates circles around the rest of the cast.
While not perfect, there is much to adore about this Evita -- arguably the best and most satisfying of musical collaborations between Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. Musical director Denise Prosek manages to make her quartet sound like a full orchestra. Rick Polenek's monumental scenic design sets a new benchmark in excellence for the company, supplemented handsomely by Paul Whitaker's wonderfully evocative lighting. And Rich Hamson's impeccable costume design ensures that this Evita is dressed to the nines.
As for the tune referenced at the top?
Well, fortunately for Twin Cities audiences, there is no blink or you'll miss it. Excellent advance ticket sales already came rolling in, enabling Evita to extend its St. Paul engagement by another two weeks through November 14, 2010.
In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post. However, in the interest of full disclosure, please note that I am not only a donor to Theater Latté Da, but I also participate in its community advisory council.
As if it weren't bad enough that Love Never Dies director Jack O'Brien and choreographer Jerry Mitchell already jumped ship for what they certainly must hope is smoother sailing with their other more promising project -- you guessed it -- Catch Me If You Can -- the irony of the Marc Shaiman/Scott Wittman/Terrence McNally musical capturing Love Never Dies' place at the Simon Theatre must add insult to injury for Sir ALW. One can only imagine the intrigue that's taken place behind the scenes. (UPDATE: Producers for Love Never Diesannounced on October 1, 2010, that the show would not be mounted on Broadway during the 2010-11 Theatrical Season.)
For composers Shaiman and Witttman, this will mark a homecoming of sorts as their only other full-fledged Broadway musical -- the Tony Award-winning Hairspray -- occupied the Neil Simon for six and a half enormously successful years. If Catch Me If You Can catches on with critics and audiences, it'll become the first regular show to have succeeded since their earlier work closed at the beginning of last year.
While casting has yet to be announced, such acclaimed Broadway draws as Norbert Leo Butz, Aaron Tveit, Tom Wopat and Kerry Butler starred in the out-of-town tryout in Seattle last summer. I know I'm not alone in hoping each of these talented actors can be caught yet again to reprise their roles on the Main Stem.
Previews for Catch Me If You Can are scheduled to begin March 7, 2010, and open April 10.
As for Andrew Lloyd Webber? Well, perhaps he'll think twice about never saying never when naming a musical.
In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post.
Last Sunday evening while I was stilling coming down from this, Fox season premiered "The Simpsons." Now ranking as American television's all-time longest running comedy series, "The Simpsons" is now in its 22nd season.
As arguably prime time television's premier satirists, the writers for "The Simpsons" used Sunday's episode to send up Broadway in one fell swoop, thanks to Lisa Simpson and her friends. Practically faster than you can say "Great White Way," Mame,Angels In America- Perestroika (yes, Perestroika specifically), Betty Comden, Elaine Stritch and Andrew Lloyd Webber are all conjured up in a few blissful moments that any Broadway fan should appreciate.
Is it just me, or are we starting to see a true renaissance of Broadway references included in the Hollywood-branded pop culture?
In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post.
Arguably one of Broadway's most anticipated new shows may have already withered before ever making it to the United States.
Make no mistake. Love Never Dies-- Andrew Lloyd Webber's $15 million sequel to The Phantom Of The Opera that transports the action from Paris' Opera House to New York's Coney Island -- is still playing at London's Adelphi Theatre. But now reports are suggesting that the show won't make it to Broadway this season, if ever.
Update: Love Never Dies producers announced on October 1, 2010, that the production would not be on Broadway during the 2010-11 Theatrical Season.
The musical sequel opened to largely negative reviews in London earlier this year. After seeing the show for myself in May, I concluded that it needed an immense amount of work if it was ever going to last even a fraction of the twenty-plus years that Phantom has been around. And indeed, it's been my understanding the performance West End audiences are seeing today is different than the one I saw just months ago.
But apparently that's not enough.
Previews were slated to begin for an open-ended run in April 2011, but all of that has now been called into question since director Jack O'Brien and choreographer Jerry Mitchell have reportedly bailed so they may concentrate on a more sure-fire hit: Catch Me If You Can.
The New York Post's Michael Riedel goes one step farther to say that although his sources have said the show is postponed "indefinitely," he says, "The $15 million London production, which was directed by Broadway vets Jack O'Brien and Jerry Mitchell, will not be seen in New York. Ever."
Thus, I have pulled Love Never Dies from my confirmed list of shows scheduled for the 2010-11 Theatrical Season and have placed it on my "Definitely Maybe" list. Until we hear for certain that Andrew Lloyd Webber's sequel is truly a non-starter for this season, it will languish like several other improbable shows on that list.
P.S. I must place a large SPOILER ALERT on the second comment below. If you don't want to know the plot, read no further.
In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post.
Sure, the pop culture wags were busy trumpeting the news that Ricky Martin would return (yes, return) to Broadway in its very first revival of Evita.
But for those of us who had the opportunity to simply adoreMichael Grandage's high-flying production when it first graced the West End a few years ago, we're absolutely thrilled that the Great White Way will finally know the name Elena Roger. Proving that good things really do come in small packages, Roger is the real deal.
After seeing Elena Roger perform as Eva Peron in 2007, I said:
Making her spectacular West End debut is an astonishing Argentine talent, Elena Roger, who offers an exceptionally nuanced performance as Eva Peron. The compact Roger evolves right before your eyes from the flirtatious young girl seeking her ticket to Buenos Aires stardom to her role alongside Juan Peron to a physically and emotionally impaired invalid. And what a powerful, beautiful voice!
A year and a half later, I took in a so-so London production of Piaf. But Elena Roger made it all suddenly seem worthwhile. The reasons I recommended the show were as follows:
First is the opportunity to enjoy a live performance of the timeless songbook from the legendary "Little Sparrow" Edith Piaf. Second is to have it delivered by the abundantly assured and captivating actress Elena Roger in the title role. Just as she dazzled in last year's West End revival of Evita, once again, Roger proves a sensation. Succeeding in eerily channeling Piaf, Roger soars to make for one of the year's most extraordinary and magical performances, almost in spite of the ill-conceived production around her.
I for one can't wait to see what she does next and can only hope that Broadway is paying attention.
Fortunately, Broadway appears to have heard that clarion call.
Sure, it's crazy, perhaps in a good box office sort of way, that Ricky Martin will be portraying Che in the long overdue revival of what is arguably Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's greatest work.
Yet it's the name Elena Roger that you'll be remembering most after the show opens on Broadway in 2012.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post.
That Love Never Dies is merely a shameless rip-off of the original becomes painfully clear after Christine (Sierra Boggess) arrives at New York’s Coney Island to perform a new aria she and Raoul (Joseph Millson) discover has been written by her rejected and disfigured suitor (Ramin Karimloo) from the Paris Opera House. When the words, “We’re just in this for the money” is spoken, the jig is up for all involved.
To Love Never Dies’ credit, both Karimloo and Boggess are in exceptional voice. And there’s a visually arresting projection design from Jon Driscoll. But with the exception of a first act tune “Beauty Underneath” in which director Jack O’Brien must have decided that the time had come to show at least a little money up on the stage, Love Never Dies comes up short in terms of spectacle for which the first show is known.
Instead, this sequel is mostly overwrought that's overdone. (Also overdone the night I attended was the incessant fog machine, which obscured all action on the stage for at least three or four minutes of the climax, making the unintended disembodied voices seem like the true phantoms. It left me thinking "Fog Never Dies.")
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post.
SOB's Favorite Shows Of The Noughties: #15 - Evita (2007, Adelphi Theatre, London, United Kingdom)
Introduction: Hard as it is to comprehend that we're already 119 months into this "new" millennium, we are fast approaching the end of its first decade. While we have yet to agree on what exactly we should call the '00s, I'll take a cue from the fine folks at The Times of London and the BBC and henceforth refer to them at the Noughties. With that small introduction, I'm pleased to present my list of plays and musicals that wowed me the most during that time. Out of the hundreds and hundreds of shows I've seen over the last ten years, I give you my countdown of my 25 personal favorite shows of the Noughties.
To see the best revival of the 2006-07 Theatrical Season, I had to fly across the Atlantic and visit London. Michael Grandage's West End revival of Evita was unequivocally stunning. I absolutely adored this high-flying, soaring production. Credit Grandage's direction and choreographer Rob Ashford with once again revitalizing a musical in a most breathtaking, dazzling manner.
Making her spectacular West End debut was an astonishing Argentine talent, Elena Roger, who offered an exceptionally nuanced performance as Eva Peron. The compact Roger evolved right before your eyes from the flirtatious young girl seeking her ticket to Buenos Aires stardom to her role alongside Juan Peron to a physically and emotionally impaired invalid. And what a powerful, beautiful voice! Philip Quast brought a deceptively steely charm to his characterization of strongman Juan Peron epitomizing why he and Eva would be "surprisingly good" for one another.
Added to all of this were the newly syncopated rhythms offered by David Cullen's lush orchestrations (particularly in songs like "Buenos Aires") for what is arguably Andrew Lloyd Webber's best score, along with a breathtaking set design by Christopher Oram, and the result was one of the most stellar evenings of live theatre I've enjoyed over the past ten years. It left me on a proverbial "Rainbow High."
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post. I paid my own way for this performance.
I first saw what is now the Great White Way's longest running show in London in 1988, as well as during its 1998 Los Angeles run when I was provided a free ticket.
As I've said before, I've never truly understood the lasting appeal of The Phantom Of The Opera. Some have said that it has essentially become a tourist attraction, while I view it as the very first entry level Broadway or West End show for the tens of millions who have seen one incarnation or another.
So in order to say I saw the show before it hits that magic 9,000 number tonight, as well as to finally scratch the last Broadway theatre off my list of venues I've never visited, I'm taking in today's matinee, which happens to be its 8,999th performance.
And as POTO fans gather for the evening's milestone performance, I'll be just a block away ... toasting the very first preview of Tracy Letts' Superior Donuts. While this latest import from Chicago's Steppenwolf most certainly won't go the distance of 9,000 performance, something tells me that it will be a whole lot more satisfying.
UPDATE (9.17.09):Imagine my surprise at yesterday's matinee for The Phantom Of The Opera when it was announced immediately prior to the performance that this would mark the 9,000th record setting milestone. I had read elsewhere, earlier, that #9,000 would occur that same evening.
Immediately after yesterday's matinee, countless television cameras and still photographers filled the aisles to capture the celebration as Andrew Lloyd Webber, Harold Prince and Gillian Lynne all appeared on stage to join in the festivities, with each delivering remarks. For his part, Webber announced that the sequel, Phantom: Love Never Dies will debut in London next spring and land on the Great White Way in November 2010.
Now that the dust has settled on yesterday's momentous occasion, I did some additional research. According to the Internet Broadway Database (IBDB), The Phantom Of The Opera had played 8,995 performances as of this last Sunday. Although the show is one of the few Broadway shows with a Monday performance, that one added to Tuesday's and the two on Wednesday only add up to 8,999, so my title of this piece is inaccurate as well.
Webber's Really Useful Productions indicates that the actual 9,000th performance comes this evening, but for some reason, the powers that be decided to celebrate at Wednesday's matinee.
So even though I got the photo opp yesterday, if you're seeing The Phantom Of The Opera at the Majestic on Thursday, September 17, you truly have the bragging rights to #9,000!
Eleven years after taking the West End by storm, and winning an Olivier Award for Best New Comedy in the process, Ben Elton’s Popcorn will reportedly make its Great White Way debut sometime this fall.
According to Playbill, the shoot ‘em up play -- which seeks to answer the rhetorical question of whether art imitates life -- has issued a casting notice. Its Broadway berth has yet to be announced.
A self-deprecating Elton once described himself as “a smug earnest git.” Quite the renaissance man, thanks to a wide-ranging career spanning stand-up comedy, film direction and best-selling books (“Popcorn” initially appeared as an acclaimed 1996 novel), Ben Elton is very well known in the United Kingdom. However, he is far from a household name stateside. Elton is perhaps most familiar to American audiences for his work on the British television program “Blackadder” or for his collaboration with Andrew Lloyd Webber on the musical The Beautiful Game.
Whether or not Popcorn will "pop" with American audiences remains to be seen. I’ll be curious to hear from readers who are familiar with this work.
Today marks a most auspicious occasion for Broadway's longest running show ever. Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom Of The Operacelebrates its twentieth anniversary treading the boards of Rialto's Majestic Theatre, after opening there on January 26, 2008.
As Kenneth Jones of Playbill points out, after today's showings (both matinee and evening) conclude, the tuner will have enjoyed 8,319 performances.
When Phantom opened stateside a year and a half after its West End debut, its two London leads -- Sarah Brightman (then Webber's wife) and Michael Crawford -- transferred to New York. The original Broadway cast also featured a very young Rebecca Luker in her Great White Way debut.
The Phantom Of The Opera would dominate the 1988 Tony Awards, winning Best Musical over the original Into The Woods, Romance/Romance and Sarafina! Overall, the show received ten Tony nominations and won seven, including for Crawford, Judy Kaye (Best Featured Actress in a Musical) and Hal Prince for Best Direction of a Musical.
Even though I've now seen The Phantom Of The Opera twice (three times if I count my visit last year to Phantom - The Las Vegas Spectacular), I've never seen it on Broadway. Is that heresy? I mean, I did see the show in London 20 years ago, but the only other time I took in the show was in Los Angeles in 1998 when I was provided a free ticket.
While I've never truly understood the lasting appeal of The Phantom Of The Opera, I realize this is often the very first entry level Broadway or West End show for millions of fans around the world. Over 12.5 million have seen the Broadway incarnation alone, and the production at the Majestic has grossed over $675 million -- more than any film.
And so, The Phantom phenomenon continues. Happy anniversary to everyone associated with the show.
Apart from the fact that my sightlines were obstructed when I first saw the show nearly 20 years ago, not long after it initially bowed in London's West End, I found the entire proceedings to be a bit of snooze.
Holding out the possibility that jetlag may have gotten the better of me the first time around, I readily accepted a gratis ticket nine years ago on this side of the Atlantic to see it again. It wasn't any better. In fact, I found the plot ridiculous and forgettable.
But since I was going to be in Vegas, I thought how bad could it be to check out the relatively new, truncated 95-minute version of Phantom - The Las Vegas Spectacular, which was once again directed by Harold Prince.
Let's just put it this way: the third time was not the charm.
When an ornate lighting fixture becomes the most exciting part of a spectacle, a show's in trouble. In this Phantom, the celebrated chandelier takes center stage (actual center theatre in the specially-designed opera house) very early on through a whiz of special effects that lifts four separate pieces into place as if it were an object from outer space. During those first five minutes when Paul Kelly's gorgeous scenic adaptation of the original work whirls together with David Rockwell's breathtaking theatre design and special effects, the denouement is dazzling to be sure.
But there's still a couple trifles like the score and book that leave me cold. And then there's the acting, which is entirely overwrought. Worst offender was Kristi Holden in the pivotal role of Christine Daaé; not only did she chew Kelly's considerable scenery, but her acting was so over the top that I kept thinking the chandelier would come crashing down at any second.
Fortunately for her and her fellow thespians, Broadway and West End veteran Brent Barrett offered some degree of gravitas to the proceedings in the title role. Ryan Silverman also added to the production with his tender portrayal of Raoul.
While the edited tuner excised at least nine songs (by my count) from the original production, it certainly sped things along and reduced the number of times I had to look at my watch. However, the result is that Christine becomes something of an enigma in how she inexplicably vacillates between the Phantom and Raoul. It's as if we're missing a reel from a film that's been cut down to accommodate a distracted television audience.
Do I doubt for one minute that most Phantom Of The Opera fans won't eat this all up? Of course not. Many probably won't even know the difference. In fact, they'll likely love all the special effects. But all the makings of a spectacle does not a spectacular make.
According to a report from London's Daily Mail, Jersey Boysappears likely in 2008 for the coveted stage of the West End's Prince Edward Theatre. That's the current home for Mary Poppins, which the report suggests will tour the United Kingdom.
It looks like the world will have another phantom to kick around. That’s right, just as I raised that specter a few weeks ago, Andrew Lloyd Webber is now officially set to resume writing a sequel to Broadway’s longest running show, The Phantom Of The Opera.
According to Sir ALW himself, the action will move from Paris to Gotham City. Maybe instead of a plummeting chandelier, he’ll simulate a drop of the New Year’s Eve ball.
Years ago, the knight was collaborating with Frederick Forsyth on a sequel. But after that effort failed, Forsyth published a novel called “The Phantom Of Manhattan.” No word on whether the new stage sequel will be based on said book.
The Phantom Of The Opera is perhaps the last of a certain dying breed of European mega-musicals where spectacle and song thrill audiences the world over. I remember seeing the original London production back in what seems a lifetime ago, and I even admit that I enjoyed it, despite having undoubtedly the worst seat in the house.
But I hardly consider Phantom to be Lloyd Webber’s best work. Personally, my favorite from his canon is Evita. I also much prefer both Jesus Christ Superstar and Sunset Boulevard over Phantom. Still, Phantom is much better than Starlight Express or my least favorite of his, the interminable Cats.
While Chris Caggiano reminds us that there have indeed been decent sequels to big, beloved musicals, it’s hard to believe the odds favor lightning striking twice on something so universally loved (or reviled) as The Phantom Of The Opera. When I put my SOB Poll question -- “Do you think Andrew Lloyd Webber should move forward with a stage sequel to The Phantom Of The Opera?” -- to you just a couple weeks ago, the overwhelming majority (85.7%) of you voted thumbs down.
I guess we’ll just have to wait and see whether Sir Andrew can triumph again. You can bet I’ll be watching developments closely.
After Evita opened at London's Adelphi Theatre last June 21, most U.K. critics heaped praise upon the show's native Argentine star Elena Roger. The actress even earned an Olivier Award nomination for her turn as Eva Peron. However, like the other three nominations the show received, she failed to win the award.
Barely a week after Evita opened last summer, word began to spread that plans were in the works to bring the revival to Broadway. But with the revival not even lasting an entire year, perhaps those pronouncements were premature, if not pure hype.
...Do we really need a sequel to The Phantom Of The Opera? I thought Catswere supposed to have nine lives, but isn't two phantoms one too many? What can Sir Andrewpossibly do for an encore? Implode the opera house? You can weigh in via the new SOB Poll found on the right-hand side of the site.
...Wasn't it a relief that temperatures finally began to warm up and inspire more people to go to the theatre last week? And how about Spring Awakening's amazing bump up at the box office! Not only has the tuner finally scored a capacity of over 90%, but it's also among the top five Broadway shows in that category. The great word of mouth is finally catching up with the show.
...Isn't the prurient interest in all things Daniel Radcliffe just a little bit unseemly for someone who's still 17 years of age? If I have to see one more picture of his bare bum, I'm going to turn myself in. With talk that his full frontal turn in Equusmight transfer to the States, hopefully Radcliffe will have the temerity to first celebrate a birthday before an official Broadway mounting.
...Can the already announced Xanadu musical really find the appropriate mix of tongue-in-chic relevance with Kristen Bell, now that Jane Krakowski won't be riding her roller skates across a Broadway stage this spring? Thankfully, we can still see the latter on "30 Rock" -- arguably the most hilarious show on television.
...Isn't Rocco at What's Good/What Blows In New York Theatre just about the funniest theatre blogger around? Today's entry on "What My Mom Says About..." is priceless. Rocco, I think our mothers would get along just fine (and by the way, that's a great wide-eyed photo, presumably of you!).
...Why do directors and/or producers think that a novel winning formula for one show will work for another? John Doyle has already been burned for attempting to parlay his success from Sweeney Toddin requiring his actors to double as musicians one too many times (read: Barnum) even after the novelty wore off with critics via Company. But now, Doug Hughes appears to be copying Spring Awakening's unique onstage audience seating formula for his upcoming revival of Inherit The Wind. Still, I guess it would be rather cool to be able to say you were on stage with Brian Dennehy, Christopher Plummer and Denis O'Hare, now wouldn't it?
Hello, Buenos Aires! New London Revival of Evita Opens Tonight
Will Argentinian actress Elena Roger demonstrate more than just a little touch of star quality when she takes to the West End's Adelphi stage this evening for the hotly-anticipated London revival of Evita?
There's certainly plenty of production quality among the team for this remounting of the classic Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice musical, starting with director Michael Grandage, who turned last year's Guys And Dolls into an unmitigated success. Rob Ashford, fresh from Broadway's The Wedding Singer, has reteamed with Grandage to provide fresh choreography.
It also probably goes without saying that the original Hal Prince-helmed Evita helped turn actresses Elaine Paige and Patti LuPone into first ladies of the London and Broadway stage, respectively. But can it do the same for Rogers? We'll know tomorrow whether the critics exult in a rainbow high.
Rain: A Tribute To The Beatles Limited run extended through May 31, 2011 (Show will go on hiatus starting January 15 and reopen at Brooks Atkinson Theatre on February 8)
Rock Of Ages - Open-ended run (Show will go on hiatus starting January 9 and reopen at Helen Hayes Theatre in March)
As someone who has been involved in both politics and public relations, it's no wonder I love watching theatre. Good or bad, it's the raw energy of seeing a live performance that gets my adrenaline pumping. From the moment I saw my very first Broadway show ("Annie" in London in 1979), I was hooked. Now I see as many as 70 shows each year ranging from soaring musicals to two-hander plays. And these eyes just may be in an audience near you!
