| Gypsy: My Take from Tuesday | |
| Posted by: Musicals54 10:43 am EST 12/05/24 | |
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| Gypsy is one of the greatest plays ever as I discussed in a post below. My opinion stands. It is also, as all great works of art, can support different interpretations. That said, let me talk about what I saw on Tues night (3 December), preview 12. It is very much a work in progress. It hasn't gelled yet and Audra who is brilliant at times (the Grantziger scene her mother's rant comes across first as Rose's usual but it becomes very real and exciting as it is unclear whether Rose has perfectly conned herself or it is authentic. Terrific. The set by the way makes the office look like the office of a big shot. The two big end of acts moments are fine (I cried at both, the kind woman two seats from me hand me a tissue after Rose's Turn), but are not there yet. We really don't quite Rose in Roses and the ending of Rose's Turn isn't crisp. The bowing doesn't land as Louise enters a beat too soon and the bowing stops too soon. In both songs, Audra needs to mine and will and can mine more. Louise is the problem. Her lyrics are mushy at times (no problems with anyone else and my seat - first row front Mezz were ideal. We don't see her growth in the strip montage. Her costume changes are taking too long. The announcer for the Detroit portion has to ad lib a long list of superlatives for her to make time. And Minsky number is a catastrophe. It is the garden of Eden number in full (a tribute to what Lilo had cut from Can-Can?). The four men and four women of the ensemble get to do the full number. It's not a strip and (I was shocked and bothered)it played like a Josephine Baker number. Not just wrong, but we lose Gypsy Rose Lee who got one thing from her mother - a forceful and must see personality. The real GRL was in the spotlight all her adult life. This bothered me terribly. Danny Burstein is the best Herbie ever ever ever. And in You'll Never Get Away from Me we so both of them as lovers with a deep sexual connection. Terrific. The technical problems are strange. This is not some new stage craft technology. It's traditional with some digital support. The sets look like sets I've seen all my life. And they're fine and do a first-rate job of defining the socio-economic milieu as I mentioned with the office scene. At times, stagehands moved set-pieces on and off, but not always so it wasn't a meta theatrical point as in Kabuki. Why there were technical problems is a mystery as was the slow costume changes mentioned above. I've never seen a Gypsy before where Louise needs more time for the changes. Louise in little lamb doesn't sing to the lamb at all (it's a stuffed lamb which didn't bother me)and the questing was lacking. I lived for a long time in Toronto and saw lots of pre-Broadway tours, I've seen shows fully baked to awful, but never technical problems like these. Yes, I've seen in the moment fails, but they could be seen as that. Were this an out of town tryout, I'd begin to think that they'd replace Louise and perhaps the choreographer. This won't happen. By the way, Gypsy does not need the Robbins choreography so that's not the problem. Baby June is great and terrific. The Grantziger scene for June now perfect sets up her leaving as we can see her mind working. All else is fine. AND BACK IN THE MAJESTIC first time since Ballroom. It's beautiful and worthy of its rep as the best on Broadway. And look what played there in their prime! My 2¢ | |
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