Mixed Race Musical Theatre Casts

Posted on December 9, 2005 by David Fick
Annie Soundtrack Cover

Audra McDonald (bottom left) in ANNIE

One of the hot topics in musical theatre at the moment seems to be the validity of mixed race casting. The trend seems to have been pushed into the spotlight by the television remakes of Cinderella (which featured a completely mixed race company), Annie (in which Audra McDonald was cast in the traditionally “white” role of Grace Farrel, while the orphans and chorus was composed of multiple races) and The Music Man (in which the chorus was multi-racial) and the film adaptation of Chicago (which featured Queen Latifah as as prison warden Mama Morton). Debates rage across the Internet with ardent support from those who support casting decisions like these and others who do not.

My view? I don’t have a problem with mixed race musical theatre casts – with one proviso: it is definitely not a viable choice in shows where racial issues are thematic. Then, to make the point of the show some characters have to be cast according to what race they are meant to represent. Other than that, I think it is just great, particularly in a case such as the casting of McDonald in Annie where the choice made the role far more resonant that it has even been on stage or film and the film is all the better for it.

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RENT Rant: Anachronistic much?

Posted on December 3, 2005 by David Fick
Rent

RENT

Does anyone know the precise year in which RENT is set? It seems that Christopher Columbus and Stephen Chbosky do – 1989. But wait! Wasn’t Thelma and Louise , a film reference in RENT only released in 1991? How did Angel know what ‘Thelma and Louise did when they got the blues’? And what about the reference to 1995 Oklahoma City Building in “Over the Moon”? Or is the mention of ‘being tied to a yellow rental truck filled with fertilizer and fuel oil’ really meant to hold no resonance whatsoever? Clearly this choice of setting isn’t what Jonathan Larson had in mind when he created the show.

And if you’re going to make a period film, shouldn’t the design details be correct too? Just a few little inconsistencies from the film:

  • New York City Police Officers wore light blue shirts in 1989, not dark blue shirts as depicted in the film.
  • The can of Coca-Cola seen next to Roger after “Another Day” is a design that appeared in the 1990s.
  • Au Bon Pain only adopted a blue and yellow color scheme well after the 1980s were over and done with, yet this design is clearly seen as Maureen, Joanne and Mark make their way to Buzzline.
  • Cars in the backgrounds of many shots, such as in the scene after Maureen, Joanne and Mark leave Buzzline, were only produced after 1990.
  • The MetLife logo wasn’t displayed on the Pan Am building until 1992.
  • The posters for the Olympic Bid – seen in “What You Own” did not appear until New York actually put in their bid for the Olympics in 2004.

Oops! I guess Howard Cummings, Keith P. Cunningham, Nanci Noblett and Barbara Munch didn’t do their homework either. Tut tut tut…

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“Perfect” Movie Musicals?

Posted on December 3, 2005 by David Fick
Rent

RENT

The release of RENT seems to have stirred up once more the debate around what makes a film adaptation of a stage musical “perfect”. Is it one that remains as faithful as possible to the material? Is it one that caters for the medium of film, even if a great deal of the show ends up being cut? One that just tells the story told in the musical? Or one that is simply a good film that doesn’t concern itself with trying to please fans of the stage show?

The point is that every film adaptation will have it’s detractors, so maybe there is no definitive answer. Maybe perfect is the wrong word to use. Off the top of my head, I’d say that Chicago, The Sound of Music, Fiddler on the Roof and Cabaret are great film adaptations of stage musicals. Even when they aren’t particularly faithful, they are good films in their own right.

Any thoughts?

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Amra Faye Wright in Broadway’s CHICAGO

Posted on December 2, 2005 by David Fick
CHICAGO

Amra Faye Wright and Samantha Peo in the South African production of CHICAGO

2006 will see Amra Faye Wright take over as Velma in Chicago for a stint of three months, starting 16 January 2007. Wright, who has performed the role in the South African production of the show, has also starred in Grease and A Chorus Line there as well as in the UK tour of Footloose and this will mark her Broadway debut. Wright will star opposite Robin Givens as Roxie.

As a South African, I am filled with pride to see a South African actress move from a South African production of a show, to the London production and, now, to Broadway. I saw Wright in the SA production twice and she was absolutely fantastic. All the best to to Ms Wright for her stint in Chicago in New York!

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RENT Rant: Living and Dying Hollywood-style

Posted on December 2, 2005 by David Fick
Rent

RENT

The film adaptation of RENT certainly has its flaws, none more offensive than that which it inherited from its source material: the death of homosexual transvestite Angel and the miraculous survival of Mimi because of the endurance of “straight” love. Of course, the medium of film manages to take things to a new level: Angel, when dying, is emaciated and covered with sores, but Mimi, although sweating profusely, looks more like she has stepped out of a sauna at the gym when it seems as though her death is imminent. That another way in which one satisfy the conservative masses, you see: let the gay man die painfully because of his HIV-infection, which is what the conservative masses believe is right and justified and, to an extent, an awful shame. In this way, the conservative masses can feel really proud of themselves for feeling sorry for the gay man who dies of AIDS, even though they’re really happy and validated when the straight girl suffering from the same disease lives.

Posted in Broadway, Commentary, Movies, Musicals, Theatremaking | Tagged , , , , , , , | 31 Comments

RENT Rant: Cut Numbers and Spoken Lyrics

Posted on December 2, 2005 by David Fick
Rent

RENT

On stage, RENT was a rock opera. It’s unquestionable that it is one: the story is told primarily through a series of episodic and eclectic musical numbers that are grounded in the idiom of popular music. On film, RENT looks like a shaky adaptation of a very mediocre musical play. Anyone who knows me will be able to tell you that I am very frank about what flaws I feel RENT has, but it the potential to be better that that.

Because of the shift in form, several numbers have been cut and a few have been shifted. That is par for the course when it comes to movie musicals. Perhaps what is worse is the attempt to pass off certain sections of the score as dialogue. In these sections, the lyrics are simply spoken – and it sounds weird. This is not merely a case in which familiarity with the source material spoils an appreciation of the adaptation. Ever an ear unfamiliar with RENT can pick out spoken moments in the film that are jarring when they are heard.

Lyrics and spoken dialogue are two completely different things. Lyrics are more specifically constructed that spoken language in musicals. They are often more economical in terms of word usage than dialogue and, because they are poetic rather than prosaic, have a specific cadence when spoken aloud. That is why these lyrics sound so strange when they are spoken as dialogue without any alteration whatsoever. The flaw also makes itself apparent, I suppose, because people tend to forget that although lyrics are specifically crafted in musical theatre, the creation of spoken dialogue is also a skill in its own right. The combination of these two miscalculations is what makes this appropriated dialogue sound forced.

It’s such a pity that nobody working on this film trusted the material with which they were working. There’s a big difference between refining something, or streamlining it to function optimally within the conventions of a different medium, and butchering it completely.

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Pop Idol’s Darius in CHICAGO

Posted on November 21, 2005 by David Fick
CHICAGO

CHICAGO

Tonight is Pop Idol contestant Darius Danesh’s first official night as Billy Flynn in the West End production of Chicago. No one I’ve spoken to this that the casting is a brilliant idea, although more seem to say it might work than think it’s a completely awful idea. Others think it’s just another celebrity casting for Chicago and couldn’t be bothered less by it. If anyone who read this blog goes to see him in the show, how about leaving a comment in the comment box to tell us what he’s like?

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CHICAGO in London and Ute Lemper as Velma

Posted on November 6, 2005 by David Fick
CHICAGO

CHICAGO

Thought for the day: This is probably a rather unpopular opinion but I really do not like the London Revival Cast Recording of Chicago much at all. For me, there is just something missing. I don’t find it particularly entertaining. I wasn’t overly impressed by the highlights package assembled for the Royal Variety Performance. The accents are iffy at best. It’s not funny. I don’t think the cast gets the style of the humour, even though the singing is good, as is the playing from the orchestra. And as for the two leading ladies… well, I think Ruthie Henshall was pretty much miscast as Roxie and I’m generally not a very big fan of Ute Lemper as Velma either. It probably does not help that Lemper throws a series of unforgettable backstage tantrums in the “Making of” documentary of the production. I found those really annoying. Yes, Ute, the choreography is difficult. The Fosse style is tough and demanding and challenging. But it’s your job. Just do it.

That is all…

Posted in Cast Recording Reviews, Commentary, Musicals, West End | Tagged , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Belle in BEAUTY AND THE BEAST

Posted on October 30, 2005 by David Fick

Beauty and the Beast is a show that is a hot property for community theatres around the United States right now. One of the most frequent questions asked by aspiring Belles seems to be this: is it more important for Belle to be a great singer or a great actress?

My take on the matter? I would say that Belle has to be a great singer and a great actress. Although the role of the Beast is somewhat more complex than in the film, the story on stage is still primarily told from Belle’s point of view. The score reflects this structure and unless you have a Belle that can hold the show together, you’re sunk.

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STARLIGHT EXPRESS: Perfect for Animation?

Posted on October 5, 2005 by David Fick
STARLIGHT EXPRESS

STARLIGHT EXPRESS

Don’t you think that Starlight Express would work brilliantly as a CGI film? I think it’s possibly the only way to imagine an effective film adaptation of the show, especially if it was produced by a company like PIXAR who is able to develop remarkably fleshed-out characters from stock character types.

For me, one of the fundamental problems with Starlight Express is that we never get deep enough into the characters – even for a piece of “fluffy” entertainment. One should want to care about what happens to Rusty, understanding what the specific and universal stakes are when he wins or loses the race. There is an attempt here, as in Cats to place an entire mythological way of life onto the stage and, for me, I think the exploration could be a little more intense. The narrative is never going to become more complex, but the world in which it exists can.

PIXAR, in particular, makes animated films that transcend the child/parent entertainment boundaries and that their films have a mass appeal to all ages. The folks at PIXAR are also not afraid of telling their stories from the point of view of the older/adult characters in the plot and I think that Rusty’s rites-of-passage/coming-of-age narrative in Starlight Express would be a perfect vehicle for them.

The basic framework of the child playing with his trains could also be retained and possibly fleshed out slightly so that there is a reflection of the main plot in the bookend segments (which would take care of the child’s experience when viewing the film, the way that the “Nemo” sections of Finding Nemo does). And I think that there should be free use of all the material created for Starlight Express in the main body of the film (which would be akin to the the “Marlin/Dori” sections of Finding Nemo, which bring the teen/adult viewing experience into focus) so that the best songs can be used to tell the best possible version of the story.

I think this would also offer the opportunity to make use of really good singing voices for the characters, as I often feel that there are compromises made in Starlight Express – which certainly become evident on the cast albums – so that a proficient skating cast can be assembled.

A neat idea, no? Even if it is a highly improbable one…

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