What did I do this summer?

What I saw at Lincoln Center

What I saw on (and off) Broadway

Who I met at stage-doors!

Last Day at Lincoln Center

Sad as it is, my last day at Lincoln Center finally arrived. 

Does that mean it is ok to take silly photos around campus? 

Yes. Enjoy!

A New Season of Love

Normally when you try to lotto a show, you walk up to the table, they explain the rules, and then they hand you a slip. Is it a bad sign then when upon approaching the theatre while walking down the sidewalk, the girl running the lotto pulls out a slip, stretches it out towards you, and says “You know the drill?” Whether it is a good thing or not, my name was finally called—sixth time’s the charm!

What does winning the Rent lotto mean? Well, it means that I got the opportunity to sit in the front row of the new off-Broadway production for only $25! Yes, the new off-Broadway production.

A little background: Rent first opened in 1996 and ran on Broadway for over 12 years finally closing in late 2008. Only 3 years later, a group of producers decided to produce a new version off-Broadway. Why off? Mainly, it’s much cheaper. The house would also be smaller, and with (usually) cheaper tickets, the show could sell out every night easier than if it were on Broadway.  Now a little of my background going into this: my first encounter with Rent was seeing the Hollywood movie that was released in theatres in December of 2004. I actually pinpoint this experience as the start of my love (/interest/obsession) with musicals and all things Broadway. Now, I had already been to see my first Broadway show at this point, but seeing Rent really solidified everything. I then saw the original version while it was on tour at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta. When it was announced that the original Broadway production was closing, I was a little sad that I’d never see it at the Nederlander, but  was thrilled when they announced that they would film the final show, screen it in theatres nationwide, and release it on dvd. I, of course, saw it at the movie theatre and later bought the dvd.

Warning: This review will be much harsher and more in depth than most. Why? Because Rent means so much to me and (quite frankly) because familiarity with the subject matter allows it. If you are unfamiliar with Rent and wish to remain that way, stop reading now. I will thoroughly compare characters, scenes, actors, and production values between the original production (as I saw live and in the B’way filmed version) and this new version. 

Where to start? How about the actors? I’ll try to make this as short and sweet as possible, because I already know that this critique will be rather lengthy.

•    Mark (Adam Chanler-Berat): Loved, loved, loved! Adam pulls off the right amount of geeky cuteness and was everything I ever want my Mark to be. Did he seem like an obsessed filmmaker? Not entirely, but he charms his way through this role.
•    Roger (Matt Shingledecker): Absolutely hated. He seemed liked he didn’t want to be here. No connection with audience and no chemistry between him and Mimi whatsoever (which really hurts the production).
•    Mimi (Arianda Fernandez): She was decent. I was worried due to all the negative reviews of her swirling about on the internet, but honestly, she was fine. She tried so hard to make a connection with Roger, but it just wasn’t there (and I blame him).
•    Maureen (Annaleigh Ashford):  Finally, though many think she is miscast, I think casting directors finally got it right, and Annaleigh is the best Maureen I have seen. Everything she added and emphasized was perfect and scored tons of laughs. I also now finally believe Maureen when in “Take Me or Leave Me” she states that everyone stares and calls after her (do you really think that would happen to Idina or Eden? Come on.)
•    Joanne (Corbin Reid): Great! Her voice was lovely (one of the better of the Joanne’s I’ve experienced). She and Annaleigh had such a fantastic connection and I fully believed all of their emotional journey (can they give Roger a lesson, please?).
•    Benny (Ephraim Sykes): Such a smooth and wonderful voice. His scenes, though few, were marvelous and his lines, whether stern, threatening, or comedic, were all pulled off to great effect.
•    Collins (Nicholas Christopher): Fair, I feel his and Angel’s connection could’ve been stronger. It felt rushed, and I think I’ve seen better pairs, though I must point out that he did deliver a moving and heartfelt  “I’ll Cover You (Reprise)”
•    Angel (Michael Rodriguez): Ahhh, Angel. I usually love you to pieces, but…  I don’t think he did anything wrong. He did the best with what he was given (a lot of this goes under production values, I know, but it get’s hard to separate). Angel’s costumes were all changed for the worse, and when he is supposed to be in drag, his “wig” is just a blonde piece that seems slapped on.   I don’t think they fully established the “woman” aspect (that Angel acts ladylike and prefers being a “she”), and when Mark stumbles over the use of pronouns during the funeral, it loses impact because this Angel didn’t really present himself in that way.

Songs:  For the most part, everything was great and I’ll only discuss a few numbers here. The music is really what I love about Rent, and it seems to have been left in its original state--that is, expect for Christmas Bells.

•    Christmas Bells has many variants performed throughout the show, and they all remained intact; however, the original Christmas Bells track was not as lucky. The song was chopped up with many lines/whole sections missing, but if you were not extremely familiar with the original (meaning, if it wasn’t your second favorite song of the show that you know every line word for word), I don’t think you would’ve noticed.  I did like that it snowed a little bit every time they mentioned it was “beginning to snow,” as opposed to only snowing at the end. Nice change new version!
•    Today for U didn’t seem right without the Santa suit (Sorry, but something’s just shouldn’t change!).  (watch excerpt: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7lS0ysONw0)
•    I’ll Cover You: What’s the deal with the cape? I know, this should fall under production, but really, what’s the deal with the cape? Instead of a Santa suit, Angel has been wearing a jeans and a tight red jacket complete with a frilly red bow and cape. He plays with the cape throughout this piece (readjusting it to make different outfits?) and then bequeaths it to Collins who wears it proudly for the remainder of the number.  Angel is supposed to be stylish, and honestly, my version of who Angel should be is too fabulous to ever wear a cape, especially this one.  (watch excerpt: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jVZl36_tUY)
•    Out Tonight: My first thought was “Whoa! Look at how original they are being: They are having Mimi dance on railings a level up while wearing a blue top, as opposed to having Mimi dance on railings a level up while wearing blue pants!” Then Mimi pulled the “top” down to be a skirt which made them lose that originality (ha! though the outfit did look slightly better… watch  excerpt: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dusPSFO7d7s)
•    Another Day: I don’t know why, but this number just felt so uncomfortable.
•    Santa Fe: Nice deep voice moment from Angel which was hilarious (“a pleasure cruise”), but STOP playing with levels! We’ll get into this a little more in a minute.
•    Over the Moon: Annaleigh’s performance was perfect, but why was she so high up (curse those levels!)? Also, why did she plead that Joanne not forget her cowbell when she never rang it? Oh, and why were the sunglasses on a stand? That was awkward. Just let her wear them.
•    Seasons of Love is performed in the same manner, but is seriously lacking a strong female soloist (the male soloist was quite excellent though!). 
•    Take Me or Leave Me: I was worried after seeing them perform this at Broadway in Bryant Park, but this was fantastic! Keep up the good work ladies!
•    Contact was better by leaps and bounds. Thank you for getting rid of the awkward everyone-singing-under-a-parachute scene and replacing it with lively and very sexy choreography. 
•    I’ll Cover You (Reprise): While the talking at the funeral couldn’t have been more awkward (please don’t have people chant certain words/phrases at the same time) or unbelievable (all those heartfelt confessions/speeches just sounded fake or, in Mark’s case, didn’t seem supported by what you’ve presented), Nicholas’s emotions and voice were surperb.
•    What You Own: My favorite song.  Adam, we’ve already established that I loved you and your presence in this number was enough to overpower Matt’s awfulness. That being said, did we really need to be continually rotating (like on a turntable, but not) the entire number? No, we did not.

Part of what I love about Rent is the simplicity of it: actors on a pretty bare stage letting the music and the words shine. Dear new version: quit trying to drown them out with flashy video and running around the set like madmen. Let’s get into production values. What did I like? Your Christmas lights that you strung across the top of the stage, the snow in Christmas Bells, and some of the new costumes. Expect for Angel’s. You messed that up, and you messed that up good. You want me to believe that Angel is so stylish that we see his clothes mass produced at the Gap? Hells no! His outfits were all horrible, and no self respecting self proclaiming fabulous gay man/woman would be caught dead in them. The wigs were also an issue, but I believe I already ranted enough about that. Nope-- You see, the first time I saw Rent, my friends and I went to dinner afterwards. We took separate cars and I got there late because I went to the stage door to meet the actors. I arrived at our table, flipped my camera on, and said “Look we meet Angel!” A girl that had seen the show with us then proceeded to argue with me that I hadn’t meet Angel because this was a photo of a man and Angel had been a woman. While that remains one of the funniest theatre conversations I have been a part of (and while that girl completely missed the point of the show), Angel is supposed to give off the air that he is a woman, and in this version, he did not. *Sigh*

Moving on! Let’s discuss the set. It looks like a jungle gym and the actors are children who are very eager to play on it. They are constantly running around, climbing up and down ladders, changing levels, etc., and it is all so unnecessary. Do they think their audience has ADD and won’t pay attention if they stay still for longer than 30 seconds? Yes, the original Rent used levels, but they were stationary and used in a good way. Did I forget to mention the levels all move and spin? Sorry. They do, and it’s not necessary either. Besides the levels, there was one main staging choice that I took issue with: Life Support. In the original, the Life support group is up in the loft, Roger remains on his table in the dark (in his apt), and Gordon is in front on opposite side of stage.  When Gordon says “Because reason says I should’ve died” and the light rises on Roger who joins in singing with him, that moment always hit me in the gut (watch B’way version here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiJ25zj7Dwg).  The new version has the life support kids scattered across the side front of the stage, Roger on his table but pulled back, and Gordon above the group, same side, and far back. I don’t know why, but this staging just made that moment lose all of its impact and was one of the let downs of the show for me.

Overall, I did enjoy going. I’ve read the reviews, and I agree that the actors seem like young children who are playing dress up in these roles and not fully owning them. Maybe in time they will get comfortable enough to take the roles on and make them their own, instead of cautiously playing what they think they should be.  If you want to hear Rent live, go. If you want to experience what Rent was, watch the Broadway filmed movie version.   

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Seeing this “Rent” is like meeting up with a former love after a few years and discovering that while he or she is essentially the same, you don’t like what they’ve done with their looks.
-Michael Sommers

Broadway in Bryant Park

On my last Thursday in New York City, I got to take my lunch break to go see Broadway in Bryant Park, an outdoor concert celebrating Broadway with performances from the show's current stars. I waited and asked to go on this day because of the roster: Jersey Boys, Lion King, Rent, and Wicked. Even though it was unbearably hot, I couldn't have asked for a better line-up or lunch time concert!

The Winter's Tale

Today, I went to the RSC's performance of The Winter's Tale. Not knowing this Shakespeare play before seeing it, I still thoroughly enjoyed it! It was much easier to follow than Lear and a great show to celebrate my time at Lincoln Center (the whole marketing department went together). 

Live from Lincoln Center

Tonight I went to a Mostly Mozart concert that was broadcast across the nation as a part of "Live from Lincoln Center." It turns out that I was given a seat that they couldn't sell due to a camera being in the row, and I had to actually climb over a tv camera to get to my seat!

 

FAO Schwarz photoshoot

Today, I was unwittingly a part of photoshoot at FAO Schwarz (taken by the other toy solider). After taking the 1st photo, he yelled "work it!" while walking forward, twisting the camera, and snapping photos. I honestly thought he was pretending, but when I checked my camera later, I had a lot of photos to go through!

A Sunny Afternoon at the Cloisters

CD Signing

Waiting until almost the last minute, I finally went back to the Book of Mormon stage door today and got the whole cast to sign my cast recording!

Silver Tassie

Today, I went to see the Silver Tassie, an Irish play that was a part of the Lincoln Center Festival. The show was different from most of the things I go to see, but I actually had a great time. The second of the four acts was my favorite. It featured all the soldiers singing, dancing, and playing music (almost like a musical!). I particularly liked the flutist who continued to play even after he was shot and fell down dying!

Gelato Rose and a Starry Night

For a laid back Sunday, I enjoyed a delicious gelato rose from Amorino and a relaxing night ferry ride with starry views of the city.

I Met the Mets!

Walking Across the Brooklyn Bridge

  

  

Muppets at the Museum of the Moving Image

Upon hearing that the Museum of the Moving Image was going to have a Jim Henson exhibit all about the Muppets, I could not wait to go. In fact, when I found out that the opening day would include a screening of the Muppet Movie and a Q and A with a Muppets writer, I knew how I'd be spending my Saturday! I got there early and went straight to Jim Henson's Fantastic World before the movie. It was really neat seeing a film I grew up with in a theater and hearing people laugh along with something that I know so well. Craig Shemin, former Jim Henson Company staff writer and current secretary on the Board of Directors of The Jim Henson Legacy,  led the Q and A and did a great job. Ever wanted to know how a scene was done? He knew. He was also giving out books to people as they asked questions, and I got one! You want to know something funny? On the first Saturday that I planned to do absolutely nothing Broadway related, he turns to someone in the audience and says, "Will you help me pass these out? Everybody, this is my wife Stephanie D'Abruzzo!" So, I was handed my muppets book by Broadway's Stephanie D'Abruzzo  (Avenue Q)! After the talk, I went and explored the rest of the museum. They had a sound room where you could dub yourself into movies (I became Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz), an area where you could record yourself on the movie wall (turns video into flipbook), and a workstation where you could create a stop motion movie. If you are ever in Astoria, check it out!

Royal Shakespeare Dress Rehearsal for King Lear

I did not know the story of King Lear before attending the RSC dress rehearsal. 

Having watched the show, I still do not know the story of King Lear.

Ballet on Bastille Day

After work, in honor of Bastille Day, I walked to a french bakery to sample their macaroons (can you say yum?). Afterwards, I went back to Lincoln Center and had a picnic dinner while listening to the Midsummer Night Swing band. Mainly, I was killing time while I waited for the doors to open at the Metropolitan Opera House where I had a ticket to see the Mariinsky Ballet perform Anna Karenina. I was particularly excited because other than the Nutcracker or young children performances, I cannot think of any full length ballets that I've seen. And to see one in the Metropolitan Opera House? Being able to go in and explore the venue is a treat in itself! The ballet was fine, despite the fact that it received pretty bad reviews. I am not familiar with the story of Anna Karenina, but I don't think any story could possibly involve so much stomping around. I had expected more from what I have learned of the Mariinsky's reputation, but now I can say that I saw a well known ballet company in world famous venue!

Harry Potter at Lincoln Center

The final Harry Potter film held it's premier at Lincoln Center! 

I stopped by briefly to take stock of the crowd;

They had apparently camped out for 2 days to see the stars arrive!

Statue of Liberty

Today, we took the staff boat over to Ellis Island, met up with an EIU alum who gave us a skip-every-line tour of both Liberty and Ellis Island, and took a private ferry around the Statue of Liberty. If  you ever want to visit the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, this is the way to do it!

Broadwy Barks

After meeting the actors at the stage door of Catch Me If You Can, I headed to Shubert Alley for Broadway Barks, an annual charity event run by Bernadette Peters and Mary Tyler Moore to raise awareness for the adoption of shelter pets. Many Broadway stars participate by carrying a puppy onto the stage, reading its back story, and asking you to adopt it. I went not with the intention of finding a pet, but with the sole purpose of paparazzing some B'way stars. Check out the full Broadway Barks album on Facebook.

Royal Shakespeare Dress Rehearsal for As You Like It

Today, I went to the dress rehearsal of As You Like It by the RSC. Unlike Romeo & Juliet, this was more of a true dress/tech rehearsal. Romeo & Juliet had a full, ticketed house and ran as if it were being presented to a real audience, whereas As You Like It only had a handful of employees watching from the mezzanine and was working on lighting cues throughout. Personally, I liked the more dress rehearsal kind of feel--it makes me feel like I am a part of the backstage, behind the scenes magic. As for the story, I've never read it or seen it before. Being as it was Shakespeare, this has the potential to cause problems, but it wasn't that bad. I followed nicely, and the actors were, of course, superb.