| re: Am I going to Theatre Jail for not really liking MERRILY? | |
| Last Edit: davei2000 11:17 am EDT 06/23/24 | |
| Posted by: davei2000 11:16 am EDT 06/23/24 | |
| In reply to: re: Am I going to Theatre Jail for not really liking MERRILY? - Hirving 10:08 am EDT 06/23/24 | |
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| Friedman's best contribution was the new framing device - beginning with Frank at the end of the story, regretfully holding the script for "Take a Left" which he promised he'd do "next" with his best friend for almost two decades, and now questioning what he has done to his life and friendships. This motivates the ensemble to question him with, "How did you get to be here?" They become the voices of his conscience as he revisits his choices in reverse order, and when it comes back to him with the script at the end of the show we can presume that this "A Christmas Carol"-style revisiting of his life will maybe lead him to making some better choices tomorrow. This device adds a heartbeat to the musical that would not be there otherwise. I can agree with this (and also that Groff is a very likable Frank), but I want to point out that framing the story as a "revisiting" is exactly what the original production did, partly by casting an older actor as Frank the graduation speaker and letting the young people reenact his story in a confrontational way. I have always called the ending Capraesque. It's unfortunate that consensus grew that this structure was unworkable. And I still miss The Hills of Tomorrow... |
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| Previous: | Now I might get sent straight to PRISON, instead of jail.... - DistantDrumming 10:17 pm EDT 06/23/24 |
| Next: | re: Am I going to Theatre Jail for not really liking MERRILY? - jjhbb340 11:06 am EDT 06/23/24 |
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