I had not heard anything good about it so I was planning on hating it and that way if I ended up liking any of it I could just count that as a bonus! All in all I liked it better than I thought I would (up until the last about 4 scenes) and although there were alot of things I didn't like...they were mostly technical things. I have only been 'into' musicals for about 2 1/2 years so I consider myself a theatre novice...but I do notice so many things I never would have noticed 3 years ago. I now notice things like choreography and lights and set changes and that type of thing and as much as I hate to admit it...I think I have become somewhat of a theatre snob. I'm still not saying I have any real knowledge on the subject but I am now able to form an opinion on things I didn't even know existed before!
For starters...I got there 20 minutes before the show started and they hadn't even opened the house yet...so there we were...hundreds of people standing around in no sort of organized line waiting for the doors to open. When they finally did it was a madhouse as you can imagine. Well we got in, got our seats, which weren't too bad if you ask me...they were about 10 rows back on the isle on the side section!
This is Brandon & I before the show! We are still hopeful that we will enjoy the show!Let me just say that Belle was really good! I was very impressed with how well she fit the part and with her voice! She was definitely the best part of the show! And in all reality...almost all the kids did a very good job! I didn't really care for Maurice - he didn't even pretend to act old and I just didn't buy his character at all! And sometimes it was hard to understand what people were saying. I wish they would have spoken a little clearer but all in all I was impressed with the cast.
Mics - oh my gosh they were AWFUL!! Okay...I don't know much about mics but I do know that when there is static during the ENTIRE opening scene (and the library scene in the second act) that is a problem! Most of the time when people came in for their scenes it took a line or two for their mic to be turned on, they cracked and popped and eeeeeeeee-d in pretty much every scene, and even when they were turned on - half of the time they weren't loud enough so you could barely hear what they were saying.
The set - okay...the sets were amazing! They were beautiful and large! They were detailed and very realistic! And they were HUGE and AWKWARD! Okay...whether they built them or borrowed them, I'm sure their purpose was to impress, which they did...but it made each and every scene change comical! THEY TOOK FOREVER!!!! They bumped into things, and the flys would hit them on their way down! Also - I don't know much about scrims (I don't even know if that's how its spelled) but the one thing I'm pretty sure of is that when a scrim comes down and there is a scene going on in front of the scrim and a set change going on behind the scrim, YOU ARE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE FOCUSED ON THE SET CHANGE! Apparently you are supposed to light the scrim from the front to cover what is going on behind it, that was NOT done here! I could not even pay attention to the scene going on because all you could see was the awkwardly large set being changed behind the scrim. SO DISTRACTING! During the first act it wasn't so bad but it just became TOO MUCH as it got closer to the end. It took so long for the scene to change that there was absolutely no continuity with the show.
Here are some fun pics we took during intermission to break up the review:
Doesn't Brandon make a handsome Gaston?
Me as Belle...
Keri as Belle
Keri, Me, & BrandonThis is our 'Okay...we can make it through another act' face
Back to the review:
The last about 4 scenes were pretty bad, I don't really have anything good to say about them. I felt as if there was no climax and as if I wasn't into the show at all. I blame that mostly on the ENDLESS scene changes...I'm not kidding it took a good 2 minutes to turn the castle piece around...and when you are supposed to be emotionally tied to a chase scene (towns folk going to kill the beast) it doesn't help that every couple of minutes the show 'paused' so that they could change the set. Then I was HIGHLY disappointed in the scene where the towns folk and all the things in the castle are fighting. It was pretty much just a bunch of silverware running across the stage...then some plates...then some towns folk...then some silverware again. There was no real fight of any sort...just running back and forth. Then don't even get me started on the fight between the Beast and Gaston. Horrible. There was no real fight...pretty much Gaston 'stabbed' the Beast a couple of times then in the process of stabbing fell off the back of the castle. (When the audience laughs at this point of the show...things are not going well) Then Belle helped the Beast walk down the steps of the castle and then he 'died' on the stage. (When the fly came down that was supposed to lift the Beast for the transformation...it was so noticeable that the WHOLE audience laughed) Then the fly/transformation was basically a waste of time...he lifted...there was smoke...weird lights...then once he got back on the ground he pulled his wig/robe off. So bad.
(I'm gonna throw in some good here for a second) The Beast was really good! He had a really good voice and I really believed his character of the Beast. I wish that he hadn't kept his head down the whole time, I wish I could have seen his cool makeup (atleast I'm assuming it was cool - I couldn't see it) but I'm guessing that was probably a direction thing. And did I mention Belle did a really good job. And I really did love Mrs. Potts! She did so good! And I liked the wardrobe as well! Lumier and Cogsworth were pretty good - I wish I could have understood what they were saying better but I've seen the movie enough that I was able to follow along. The choreography was good and I LOVED the cottage set piece that was Belle & Maurice's home!
Oh I almost forgot the spot lights...they were soooooooo bad. I'm not kidding you, Brandon was ready to go run them himself. They were always a little ways behind the actor and when they finally caught up they bounced...and bounced...and bounced. It was so distracting.
There were a couple of drops used as the background for scenes (the tavern and the ball room) and they were hung so bad! There were these huge, I don't know how to describe them, waves(?) in them...like they just didn't hang straight.
Oh oh oh...the worst part about the set changing process!! They didn't have a stage crew, so everytime there was a set change...the kids came out (and I was impressed with that because did I mention that they were HUGE sets so they were probably a bugger to move) onto the stage to change the set, they were IN FULL COSTUME! (Did I mention that the set changes were not done in the dark like normal so everything was noticeable) Could the spoon have atleast taken her spoon part off? Everytime the spoon would head onto stage to make a change, we would just cringe!
And last but definitely not least...there was a blue/green light on the stage that was pointed at the audience (Why you ask? I have no idea) and so every time they would turn all the lights up...it pointed right into Brandon & my eyes and totally blinded us! It was sooooo annoying!
The last about 4 scenes were pretty bad, I don't really have anything good to say about them. I felt as if there was no climax and as if I wasn't into the show at all. I blame that mostly on the ENDLESS scene changes...I'm not kidding it took a good 2 minutes to turn the castle piece around...and when you are supposed to be emotionally tied to a chase scene (towns folk going to kill the beast) it doesn't help that every couple of minutes the show 'paused' so that they could change the set. Then I was HIGHLY disappointed in the scene where the towns folk and all the things in the castle are fighting. It was pretty much just a bunch of silverware running across the stage...then some plates...then some towns folk...then some silverware again. There was no real fight of any sort...just running back and forth. Then don't even get me started on the fight between the Beast and Gaston. Horrible. There was no real fight...pretty much Gaston 'stabbed' the Beast a couple of times then in the process of stabbing fell off the back of the castle. (When the audience laughs at this point of the show...things are not going well) Then Belle helped the Beast walk down the steps of the castle and then he 'died' on the stage. (When the fly came down that was supposed to lift the Beast for the transformation...it was so noticeable that the WHOLE audience laughed) Then the fly/transformation was basically a waste of time...he lifted...there was smoke...weird lights...then once he got back on the ground he pulled his wig/robe off. So bad.
(I'm gonna throw in some good here for a second) The Beast was really good! He had a really good voice and I really believed his character of the Beast. I wish that he hadn't kept his head down the whole time, I wish I could have seen his cool makeup (atleast I'm assuming it was cool - I couldn't see it) but I'm guessing that was probably a direction thing. And did I mention Belle did a really good job. And I really did love Mrs. Potts! She did so good! And I liked the wardrobe as well! Lumier and Cogsworth were pretty good - I wish I could have understood what they were saying better but I've seen the movie enough that I was able to follow along. The choreography was good and I LOVED the cottage set piece that was Belle & Maurice's home!
Oh I almost forgot the spot lights...they were soooooooo bad. I'm not kidding you, Brandon was ready to go run them himself. They were always a little ways behind the actor and when they finally caught up they bounced...and bounced...and bounced. It was so distracting.
There were a couple of drops used as the background for scenes (the tavern and the ball room) and they were hung so bad! There were these huge, I don't know how to describe them, waves(?) in them...like they just didn't hang straight.
Oh oh oh...the worst part about the set changing process!! They didn't have a stage crew, so everytime there was a set change...the kids came out (and I was impressed with that because did I mention that they were HUGE sets so they were probably a bugger to move) onto the stage to change the set, they were IN FULL COSTUME! (Did I mention that the set changes were not done in the dark like normal so everything was noticeable) Could the spoon have atleast taken her spoon part off? Everytime the spoon would head onto stage to make a change, we would just cringe!
And last but definitely not least...there was a blue/green light on the stage that was pointed at the audience (Why you ask? I have no idea) and so every time they would turn all the lights up...it pointed right into Brandon & my eyes and totally blinded us! It was sooooo annoying!
Brandon, Me, & Keri - this is how we felt about the show overallSo that was my review of the show. In short, I liked about the first 3/4 of the show. And overall I didn't hate it as much as I had planned. But we did cringe ALOT and laugh at parts that really shouldn't have been funny.
6 comments:
I was interested to hear your take on the show. I haven't seen the production myself, but some of the girls from Forum are in it, so I have chosen to assume that it's as sparkling and wonderful as they are. I used to review everything I saw on my first blog a few years ago and people would just accuse me of being biased and jealous, so it's nice to see someone with no obvious reason to be biased saying the sorts of things I used to.
For the record, their programs are all kind of awesome, but their poster used the same graphic but set it on a redwood table background, and the "book" isn't centered. It drives me nuts every time I see it in my faculty room. OCD + competing graphic designer = crazy man.
Hi Tara. I got your blog off of facebook. I hope you don't care if I add you to mine. It is fun to have contact with people I haven't seen in a while. Sounds like things are good.
where was this show?
Tara! This is Sarah (Johnson) from the old hood! How are you? I saw your blog from Melanie Jolly's. It is so great to see pics of you! You look so great!
Eeek. Well, I'm glad you saw it. I would have like to see Melanie and Keeley in it, but unfortunately, it is very difficult to get away :) Sounds like your night was very entertaining :) Love ya!
Tara you totally need to have your own commentary column in the newspaper. I LOVE your detailed description of the production.
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