A Chorus Line

[gregography]

Went to see this revival in NYC with just-met rexsteed.

I missed the phenomenon the first time around and the show hasn't aged well.

The most glaring non-working thing to me was that maybe back then admitting you were gay, or having your parents catch you performing in drag, or being a wierd child, were intimate revelations that made you feel like you knew and cared for these people.

Now, with the internet and reality TV absolutely nothing was shocking. It was just boring - turn on any reality show to see people who are far more fucked up and think nothing of having a camera trained on them as they act it all out.

The woman who played Cassie - Charlotte D'Amboise - was a clumpy dancer, so much so that I had to ask rexsteed if her big mirror dance number was to make me believe the character was not and had never been a good dancer, or if the actress was merely ungraceful.

Also the guy who played the director was 1/2 her age, making the failed-relationship thing seem to come out of nowhere. He he took her out of the chorus line it was right after she picked him up outside the elementary school.

There were no "gasp" moments of good acting and it felt very work-a-day overall.

One of the guys had really pretty arms and they had him in a sleeveless shirt. rexsteed pointed out that in the original they had dancer's bodies, not gym-porn bodies. At least it gave me something to look at.

rexsteed was much more engaging.

Comments

[fabunobo.livejournal.com]

... Back then admitting you were gay, or having your parents catch you performing in drag, or being a wierd child, were intimate revelations ...

Yeah, hello? That kid on Ugly Betty is so me when I was twelve and he's performing show-tunes on the subway.

[sunsmogseahorse.livejournal.com]

I saw the road show in the eighth grade. I remember well the angst one character felt about being gay and thinking that things had to be different somehow when I was ready to come out. And they were.

[pagerbear.livejournal.com]

You know, I saw it for the first time ever before Christmas. I had exactly the same reaction you did, right down to admiring the fellow's arms. I wondered what all the fuss had been about in the 70s. (But then, I guess I take for granted a lot that has happened socially and politically since then.) I thought the singing overall was only adequate, and sometimes not that, although Mr. Arms wasn't bad. I did enjoy the large dance numbers, especially since I was very high up in the nosebleed section and could view them from above, as it were.

[mondragon.livejournal.com]

"Adequate" is probably the right term to use. I think it's fair to expect more.

Yeah - I agree Greg

[swankyjournal.livejournal.com]

The movie is SO much better - you should have seen the Kenley Players production of it. Cassie was played by Helen Lawson!
XOXO

[macduff131.livejournal.com]

i think the biggest problem with this revival is in the direction. they wanted to be so faithful to Michael Bennett's vision, that it feels like they didn't allow for the actors to create their own characters. i first saw this production, not having seen the original, back in october, and all i could think was, "wow. this must have been amazing when it first opened."

and i cannot stand Charlotte.

'twas nice meeting you guys yesterday. i do apologize for not really being able to chat at all. it ended up being rather busy for me. thanks for saying hi!

[mondragon.livejournal.com]

I got the feeling the staging was pretty much a copy. It would make more sense to have a staging that makes sense for the cast, I think.

Is Charlotte that bad every perf? I thought she got some things across but as with all the other characters there was no arc, and given how few lines they each had it seemed bad that some of them just weren't accounted for in the characters progression. And the mirror dance! I kept thinking of drag queens who would put on exactly the same show with the same DRAMA.

I didn't care about any of them. And later someone explained to me that Sheila was supposed to be "hard", not sassy like she played her. It didn't make sense with the lines.

Only paid 1/2 prices. You had a line of hungry consumers there so it was understandable!

[macduff131.livejournal.com]

the staging/choreography are exactly the same as the original. which may have been stipulated in Michael Bennett's estate...and that's fine, but i think there's still a way to allow for creation of one's own character within those confines. a good deal of it is miscast. Charlotte phones it in most of the time. what you saw was actually one of her better days. oh, and the Zach you saw was an understudy...=)

[mondragon.livejournal.com]

He seemed fine, if a bit young.

Are people all crazy about HAVING to have stuff, or is it just "nice tshirt, I'll get it"?

[macduff131.livejournal.com]

well, there are the collectors...those who must have a magnet or a souvenir program or a mug from every single show they ever see. then there are the people who'll only get one t-shirt or something and that's it. and then there are my favorite people who leave themselves open to suggestion. all i have to do is say, "would you like anything else?" and they blurt out 5 more things they want to buy. and if they stress over cash, i casually remind them that i also take credit cards. and then they go hog-wild.

sometimes tourists aren't so bad, after all. heh heh...

[rexsteed.livejournal.com]

I should have bought something... I only have those really tight Tshirts they were selling in the first incarnation

[macduff131.livejournal.com]

it's ok. i'll forgive you. heehee...

[macduff131.livejournal.com]

by the way...i've friended you. hope that's ok!

[mondragon.livejournal.com]

I'd already friended you, so of course :)

[rexsteed.livejournal.com]

Well, and i will probably say this in my own posting, I enjoyed seeing the staging - I do think it's brilliant what can be accomplished on that bare stage - but I found it awfully synthetic. Like has been said, this was a copy... the actors were playing their parts, not creating characters.

Nice meeting you and spending time with you!