#TBT: Vintage Playbill: A Christmas Story: November 2012

I was at a distinct disadvantage when I saw A Christmas Story: The Musical. I had never seen A Christmas Story: The Movie! The good news is, the musical was wonderful, and though I may not have been able to anticipate beloved scenes, I laughed right along with everyone else. Even better was the fun score by relative unknowns Benj Pasek and Justin Paul. And there was some riotously funny choreography by Warren Carlyle. I mean, come on! A kick line with chorus cuties and leg lamps!!?? Too funny. It was also great fun to see a college idol of mine, Dan Lauria, as the narrator, as well as three other Broadway favorites: Caroline O'Connor, Erin Dilly and John Bolton. It speaks volumes (I think) that despite its limited engagement and being closed several months before the Tonys, it was still nominated for three major 2013 Tony Awards: Best Book, Best Score and Best Musical.

Well, I still haven't seen the movie version. But maybe I won't. Why ruin a fond memory?

A Christmas Story: The Musical
Lunt-Fontanne Theater
15 previews, 51 performances
November 2012 Cast (Opening Night!): Dan Lauria, John Bolton, Erin Dilly, Caroline O'Connor, Zac Ballard and Johnny Rabe
Book by Joseph Robinette. Music and lyrics by Benj Pasek and Justin Paul. Based upon the film A Christmas Story and the book In God We Trust, All Other Pay Cash by Jean Shepherd

(Click/tap images to enlarge.)

As befitting the holiday season, there was no shortage of family fare on Broadway in November 2012. There was A Christmas Story, Annie, Cinderella, Elf and Peter and the Starcatcher. Of course there were 3 Disney extravaganzas to choose from as well: Mary Poppins, Newsies and The Lion King. There was no shortage of star power, either: Al Pacino, Katie Holmes, Jessica Chastain, Paul Rudd, Debra Winger, Ed Asner, Cheyenne Jackon, Henry Winkler, Ricky Martin, Matthew Broderick and Broadway celebs including Kelli O'Hara, Carolee Carmello, Rob McClure, Patti LuPone, Norbert Leo Butz, Laura Osnes and Michael Cerveris. Revivals included Evita and The Mystery of Edwin Drood. At the time, who knew Scandalous, The Performers, Dead Accounts and The Anarchist would be huge flops? Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark is a whole other story! November 2012 was also the last time Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? played the Rialto!

📸: J. Kyler, C. Rosegg
#2225

The Friday 5: 5 Broadway Lights...Sort of...

They say the devil is in the details, so this week I'm getting really specific. Some people obsess over costumes.  Others pay close attention wigs. Or furniture (remember that table that never left the stage during Doctor Zhivago?). I was reading a discussion somewhere recently that revolved around shows that are as famous of a set piece as they are for their book and score.  You know, the tire from Cats, the helicopter from Miss Saigon, the barricade from Les Misérables... then I got to thinking about that chandelier from Phantom. (Okay, a big number from Moulin Rouge! might have gotten me on that track, too...) How many shows feature a prominent lighting fixture? Here are the ones that sprang to mind:

The Friday 5:

5 Broadway Lights...Sort of...

1. The Phantom of the Opera chandelier
The granddaddy of Broadway lighting fixtures...the one that started it all. It really is the gold standard. The take incredibly good care of it, and 31 years later it really shows.

2. The Sunday in the Park with George chromolume
It figures prominently in act two of this Pulitzer Prize winner - there's even a song about it. A commentary on art and technology, I thought how they did it in the most recent revival at the Hudson Theatre was pretty impressive - especially from the balcony.

3. The Great Comet comet
This one is so important, it's in the title of the show. It totally worked in the highly stylized Broadway version. Those of us who see shows regularly at the Kennedy Center Opera House felt a sense of déjà vu.

4. The Hadestown swinging lamps
The road down to Hadestown is dark and fraught with peril. But the Workers' head lamps can only do so much illuminating - even with the beacon that is Timothy Hughes. Enter those lamps that descend from the rafters and do their own choreography. Breathtaking!

5. A Christmas Story leg lamps
A whole production number about a lighting fixture! Sweet! Talk about a kick-line! Careful! They are fra-gil-e!

*****

ANSWERS TO BROADWAY LOGOS ABCs

(F - J)

A couple weeks ago, we posted the second Friday 5 round of Broadway Logo ABCs. Here are the answers! How'd you do?

#2135

The 2013 Tony Awards: Best Musical Nominees on TV (Part II)

FINAL TWO DAYS TO VOTE IN THE FINALS OF 
THIS YEAR'S HOT OR NOT CONTEST!

POLL CLOSES TOMORROW NIGHT AT 7PM!  VOTE NOW!!  
(CLICK THE PIC TO YOUR RIGHT!)

Yesterday, I talked about the TV ads for two of the four Best Musical Tony Award nominees (HERE).  Today, I'll take a fast look at the other two: A Christmas Story: The Musical  and Matilda.

A Christmas Story: The Musical

The people behind this show are the smartest of the season.  Don't tell me all of those banner ads for the show "looking for kids for the upcoming tour" weren't also there just in time for Tony nominations to be made by sheer coincidence!  Haven't seen one since the show nabbed a coveted nod in the Best Musical category...

• This ad plays to all of the familiarity of the beloved film.  It trades on the audience going in knowing what they are getting before they get there.  People will part with money faster for a "sure thing."
• Using critical quotes adds legitimacy to fans on the fence and regular theatre-goers who usually snub shows made from films.
• You gotta love the film-like narrator, the vintage wrapping paper on the gifts, and the Ralphie (from the film) lookalike.  And what else can you do but smile at that crazy leg lamp?
• Slick!  And it doesn't contain a single second of the show - no pesky "original cast" to have to fess up about for future productions.  The ultimate in "Broadway Green" - reusable with no changes needed!

I admire the audacity of the whole thing.  And as one unfamiliar with the film before seeing the show, I still wanted to see it.  What more can you ask for from a TV ad?

Matilda

Instead of ignoring that it is a British import, this ad celebrates it while seamlessly celebrating the sheer "Broadway-ness" of it all.  Love the British voice over!

• The floating letters emphasizing certain words in critical quotes does triple duty: you get plum critical huzzahs, key words ("extraordinary" and "believe the hype" are but 2 examples) emphasize why you NEED to see this, and it recalls the set and "discovery" of Matilda's brilliance.
• The narration giving way to the "Revolting Children" number is good: it gives audiences a sample of the score, and it tells us that the show is child-centric.
• Notice you don't see much of Matilda herself... emphasis is on the kids and their adversary, the evil Miss Trunchbull, seen in eerie light, staring evilly in a smoky room, versus the good girl of Miss Honey, sweet in her flower print dress and pink sweater, giving hugs.
• Notice, too, the emphasis of the mysterious - cross-cutting between all those odd, over-the-top characters: how could all of these oddballs fit into one show? - and again, lots of eerie colors - yellows and greens - and tons of soupy fog.
• And then there is the subliminal nod to Spring Awakening: doesn't a lot of that dance sequence look a lot like those "Totally Fucked" moves, anchored by a kid lead singing a la "The Bitch of Living"?  Is this the Spring Awakening for the grade school set?  Or does this show that even though the show is teeming with little tykes, that it will appeal to the all-important 18-49 demographic?  What is more exciting than watching adult-sized children swinging on giant swings with carefree abandon?

Exciting, colorful, thoughtful, mysterious and engrossing - the commercial and the show.  This much effort in a 80 second ad shows the same level of care taken with the whole show,  No wonder it should and will be the 2013 Best Musical.

Jeff

4.249

Broadway's Winter Cleaning 2013 Edition

Winter is a lousy time for most Broadway shows, as is evidenced by what has become an annual blog for me.  It all started in 2010, when next to normal announced its closing.  While I mourned my favorite show, I took comfort that my misery was not to be done in solitude, and noted that 16 productions were set to close by the end of January.  Last year was somewhat better with just 9 set to close by the end of January.  This year is right in the middle - with just 11 productions set to leave the Street by January 27.  The numbers are considerably more bleak if shows scheduled to close by the end of February - 5 more are set to go by then.  And get this: 3 of those 5 haven't even started previews yet!

Anyway, in keeping with tradition, here's a look at those Broadway shows set to close by the end of January 2013.


^ - Open run coming to an end
~ - Limited engagement, ending as scheduled
+ - Limited engagement, ending after extending 
* - Limited engagement, closing early


December 16:

*The Anarchist (23 previews, 17 performances at the John Golden Theatre) 
A confrontation between a prison-hardened criminal and the warden written by Mamet sounds like an explosive night of theatre.  Apparently, not so much.  Not even Broadway star power (La LuPone) or a Hollywood heavy-hitter (La Winger) could draw crowds.

December 30:

+ Bring It On: The Musical (21 previews, 171 performances at the St. James Theatre)
The best new musical of the season features a top notch creative team, dazzling direction and choreography and jaw-dropping cheerleading stunts.  The score is tuneful and the cast is full of talented kids who we will be seeing for years to come.  People will be saying, "Remember when we saw Nicholas Womack in Bring It On?" even though they never did.  I just don't get why people are staying away... teen angst is a hard sell, I guess, even if its simplicity and larger than life emotions seem perfect for Broadway.  You should see it before it goes.  It's a lot of fun!

~A Christmas Story: The Musical (15 previews, 49 performances at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre)
A loving recreation of a Christmas Classic that takes full advantage of stage and musical theater conventions, with some of the best kids to step foot on a Broadway stage.  And it has a great score by newbies Pasek and Paul, two voices we'll be hearing about for years to come.

January 6:

~ Elf: The Musical (71 performances at the Al Hirschfeld)
A return engagement of the 2010 holiday hit.  It was pretty great the first time around... will we see it again in a couple of years?

~ Grace (22 previews, 107 performances at the Cort Theatre)
Another chance to see Paul Rudd on stage, not to mention TV legend Edward Asner, but in a play that wasn't nearly as provocative as it thinks it is, well... The box office numbers tell exactly why it isn't extending.

^ Chaplin (24 previews, 135 performances at the Barrymore Theatre)
I really loved the dark stylized staging of this bio-musical.  And I think Rob McClure's already award-winning performance will be talked about for some time.  It's too bad that the public took a pass at this thought-provoking show.  See it while you still can...

^ War Horse (33 previews, 718 performances at the Vivian Beaumont)
It really was the Best Play of 2011.  Epic in every way and visually stunning - those puppets are beyond belief.  An emotional thrill ride, I'm sure going to miss Joey and Topthorn!

January 20:

^ Peter and the Starcatcher (18 previews, 319 performances at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre)
I thought it was the Best play of 2012.  As terrifically structured as it is creative, as brilliantly acted as it is funny, and as zany as it is heartfelt.  It is as inventive as any stage play in years, Peter celebrates everything that the live theatre can do that film can't.  So long Adam, Celia and crew!

~ Glengarrry Glen Ross (48 previews, 50 performances at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre)
Apparently, you can do this play and not have the critics orgasmic.  Apparently, Al Pacino can give a performance that the critics universally despise. A Spider-Man-like preview period notwithstanding, the crowds are giving the critics a very Mamet-like "Fuck you!" and are shelling out big bucks to see it, anyway.

~ Golden Boy (30 previews, 53 performances at the Belasco Theatre)
Maybe the raves this epic play got will earn it an extension.  Let's hope so!

January 26:

^ Evita (26 previews, 337 performances at the Marquis Theatre)
Star quality has kept this show going (you gotta love Ricky Martin).  Not adored by the critics but loved by fans (including this one), the show does well, even when the numbers are down.  I'll never forget the dancing - simply stunning.  An kudos to producers for closing rather than keep it going with sub-star casting.


Before you go... (Click the blue links!)
Check out these reviews: 

• The Mystery of Edwin Drood
• A Christmas Story

Check out these Broadway Babies:

• The Book of Mormon's Matt Doyle (Mr. December)
• A Christmas Story's Erin Dilly (Ms. November)
• The Mystery of Edwin Drood's Eric Sciotto - Chat Part 2! 
• Spencer Plachy (Face of the Future)

VOTE IN THE THIS MONTH'S POLL - LEFT SIDE OF BLOG!

4.102

Jeff

HOT or NOT: A Christmas Story Edition

I know I said last week was the last HOT or NOT until after the holidays, but how could I leave out a big holiday show like A Christmas Story??  I'll be brief - you all know what to do by now!  A couple things to remember:

1. There are 17 cast members to consider, so there are TWO polls to complete (I can only put 10 on each!).  CLICK "DONE" AT THE END OF EACH ONE!
2. The poll program only gathers your answers, not ANY personal information.

Here are pictures of the cast, then the polls... keep scrolling!

John Bolton and Dan Lauria

Lead Actor

(Left) Erin Dilly - Lead Actress

(Right) Caroline O'Connor - Supporting Actress

Female Ensemble: Tia Altinay and Charissa Bertels

Lindsay O'Neill and Lara Seibert

Kirsten Wyatt

NOW TAKE THIS HALF OF THE POLL, CLICK "DONE" AND SCROLL DOWN FOR MORE PICS AND THE SECOND HALF OF THE POLL!

Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey, the world's leading questionnaire tool.

PART TWO OF THE POLL AFTER THESE PICTURES.  

SCROLL DOWN, TAKE POLL AND CLICK "DONE."

Swings: Matthew DeGuzman and Mara Newbery

Male Ensemble: Andrew Cristi and Thay Floyd

Nick Gaswirth and Eddie Korbich

Mark Ledbetter and Jose Luaces

Create your free online surveys with SurveyMonkey, the world's leading questionnaire tool.


Before you go... (Click the blue links!)
Check out these reviews: 

• The Mystery of Edwin Drood
• A Christmas Story
• Scandalous

Check out these Broadway Babies:

• A Christmas Story's Erin Dilly (Ms. November)
• The Mystery of Edwin Drood's Will Chase (Mr. November) 
• Eric Sciotto (JKTS Chat) 
• Spencer Plachy (Face of the Future)

4.091

Jeff