If at first you don't succeed...

Spider-man: Turn Off the Dark

Foxwoods Theatre, Saturday, May 14

2pm performance

Well, it’s definitely improved, but I wouldn’t go so far as to say it’s “good.”  It’s actually a fascinating study on how two different creative teams using the same cast, physical production and composer adapt the same story.  The Taymor version was an incoherent, often boring, but always visually stunning mess. The current production is vastly clearer, better directed, but safely (and still gorgeously) predictable. 

The book has been vastly improved by cutting the Geek chorus and most of Arachne’s role.  And where Taymor was mostly concerned with imagery and spectacle, the current production has instead rightly chosen to strengthen and develop the many relationships (Peter & Mary Jane, Peter & his Aunt/Uncle, Osborn & wife).  Playwright Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa has done the best he could under the circumstances, creating an intelligible story while also trying to shoe-horn in existing tunes and plot (in just three weeks).  In Taymor’s version, the characters seemed secondary to her iconic designs. 

The choreography is still head-scratchingly - for lack of a better word - odd.  It’s very Janet Jackson a la Rhythm Nation (see picture left and compare to military song in Act 1 - I'll try to post a pic if they ever publish one), but seems thrown in just to give the dancing chorus something to do and not at all in line with the angsty alt rock score.  

The flying is all still there, but smartly relegated mostly to Act 2 instead of right up front as in the previous incarnation.  As a college director told me once regarding my acting in a scene, “Don’t blow your wad too early or you’ve got no where to go.”  At least I think he was talking about my acting.  Ah well, wise words regardless of the situation.

Though only one song has been added, the existing score has definitely been re-arranged and augmented.  There are actually a couple of solid musical theatre songs in the second act (“Rise Up”, “Say It Now”), but a large chunk of the score is just generic rock. 

According to the blogosphere, many lyrics have also been changed.  But to be honest, the sound was so bad the first time around (they’ve since fixed this problem) that I have nothing for comparison.  

For those of you who care, the biggest changes I noticed:

• Aunt Mae is no longer written as a bitch
• Uncle Ben doesn’t get run over by a car but killed in a home burglary
• Mary Jane’s father is now just a pathetic, helpless drunk rather than an angry drunk
• The Arachne-Peter dream wedding and set are completely cut
• The creation and appearance of the Sinister Six is now much more clearly explained
• Green Goblin is now the main protagonist through the entire show
• The two guitar players are no longer standing on the edge of the stage
• No more eight-legged shoe song for Arachne
• There are actually jokes written into the script (the original was a humorless bore)
• There’s now actually an arc to the Peter-Mary Jane story so they don’t just fall in love and break-up out of nowhere
• Though there’s more dialogue, they’ve managed to trim about 30 mins from the original 3-hour-plus running time

Incidentally, no one fell, nothing got stuck and nobody broke any bones.  I’d give the new production a solid C+ and the new artistic team an A for effort.  Shout out to replacement director Phil McKinley who directed me eons ago at The Fireside Theatre in Christmas Around the World.  And yes, that show was as cheesy as it sounds.   

Poor Spidey

I’ve only been casually commenting on Spider-man’s continuing production traumas since every major news outlet seems to think it’s headline news.  Imagine TV production meetings all over the country - “Shall we lead off with Iraq, labor strife in Wisconsin or Spider-man?” 

Not that I’m complaining.  How often does Broadway get regular national coverage?  But it seems everyone is obsessed with Bono and Taymor’s vanity project.  Would a $65 million dollar revival of Hello, Dolly! starring Christine Ebersole warrant the same press attention?  “Christine, who?” you ask.  Methinks not.

What I do find somewhat heartening is that finally, after months of previews and painfully bad reviews, the production team is finally deciding to stop this run-away train before it careens into bankruptcy (again).  What have they been doing the last 100 preview performances (I viewed performance #4)?  Well,

apparently not much. 

I’m glad Bono recognizes that a complete overhaul is in order, but at least half of the show’s problems lie in the monotonous, un-theatrical score.  I’m a U2 fan, but Bono and the Edge need to go take a class at BMI.  Pop hooks and poetic cliché do not a musical score make.  At the very least, theatre songs need to illuminate character or move plot along.  Most of Spider-man’s score does neither.

Today’s press release, on the other hand, is a master class in spin.  So carefully worded as not to offend or accuse anybody.  Surprisingly, I’ve worked with the new director, Philip William McKinley, years ago in - brace yourselves - Fort Atkinson, Wisconsin at the Fireside Dinner Theatre.  He directed the original holiday revue “Christmas All Over the World.”  And yes, it was as cheesy as at sounds.  I actually don’t remember much about him except that he employed a lot of hydraulic lifts and spinning turntables.  He seems a good a choice as any. 

Though I wasn’t interested in seeing the show again, now I think I’ll have to buy a ticket if only to tell my grand-nieces or nephews that I saw the infamous Spider-man post- and pre- Taymor. 

It's Good to be Queen

Diana Damrau is a freak of nature! According to the stagebill, she pulled the Queen of the Night role out of retirement for a second farewell run (Trish and I saw last night's performance). She supposedly retired the role in 2006, but due to a scheduling snafu we were lucky enough to see one of her final Queen’s. Even more mind-boggling is the fact she sang the role of Pamina just three days prior in the same production. Sadly, I wish she could have played both roles last evening. Genia Kühmeier, as Pamina in her Met debut, sounded like a 13-year-old boy soprano - albeit a very good 13-year-old boy soprano; rarely a glimpse of vibrato and sometimes a hair under pitch on high entrances (most noticeable on the first note of Ach, Ich fühl’s). I’ll admit she did have some gorgeous high pianissimos and her acting was quite good. Although I didn’t dislike her, she didn’t really register for me one way or the other. But back to DD - after seeing so many lyric coloraturas just stand there and squeak out the role, it’s nice to see a real dramatic coloratura give us a full-voiced and well-acted Queen. Her performance was nuanced, emotional and solid. Her Der Hölle rach received a well-deserved prolonged ovation. My sister, not familiar with DD commented, “She’s crazy!” - in a good way, of course.

I'll admit that I only bought the ticket to see DD having seen the Taymor production in its original incarnation in 2004. This Flute has aged very well. It's still fresh and well executed, with audible gasps and ah's from the audience as sets revolved, bears cavorted, food floated through the air and birds danced en pointe.

Joseph Kaiser, singing Tamino, possessed a pretty, full legato voice and his top had a nice ring, although occasionally a bit nasal. I might add he's also a solid actor and easy on the eyes (although in that Cher a la 1970's wig, and geisha girl make-up, it's difficult to tell - fyi pic to the left is not Kaiser).

Stephane Degout possessed a clean, focused sound and filled out Papageno's tights quite well (if you see this production, you'll see why they're called that) and was charming and funny throughout - definitely an audience favorite. His Papagena was equally charming and effective in her transformation from old lady to young nymph but not so successful in the vocal department, all but disappearing beneath the orchestra and Degout.

It's interesting to note that last night's performers seemed to mine the book's comedy much more ably than the original cast I saw years ago, namely the three ladies and Monostatos. The whole cast seemed to be fully committed and enjoying their time on the stage. Some random thoughts: I love the dancing bears but wish I could have seen Taymor's take on other beasts; the concept of the three floating heads appeals to me, but I'm not sure it always works; the ending always seems rather abrupt to me and doesn't quite satisfy after everything that's come before it; the rumbling of the sets behind the scrim while Sarastro tried to sing his aria in one was totally distracting and seemed somewhat disrespectful to the performer.