Scenic and projection designer David Gallo thinks that the vibrant rock musical Memphis is a relatively simple show from a visual standpoint, but that that doesn't mean that boundaries weren't pushed. The Broadway production, which includes a variety of moving scenery, including an adjustable bridge, pillars that move around the stage and a band that glides around the stage, is an energetic, exciting spectacle.
With so many Broadway shows becoming glossier and more high tech, it can be difficult for smaller shows to compete with bigger production values. The solution? Bring in people who work on those larger shows, which is what The Happy Embalmer director Kelly Devine did when she mounted her catchy, off-the-wall musical at the New York Musical Theater Festival last fall.
Upon Ragtime's official opening night performance at Broadway's Neil Simon Theater last November – when the curtain rose and the crowd saw fancily-clad Americans (in early 20th century chic) standing atop a three-story steel and wood set – the audience erupted in applause.
Many off-Broadway and Broadway productions are becoming increasingly ambitious in terms of scope and technical demands. The latest example is Catch Me if You Can, a musical inspired by the Steven Spielberg film about Frank Abagnale, Jr.
Any time someone chooses to revive a Broadway masterpiece, they take on a big responsibility and risk drawing criticism if it does not live up to expectations or takes an unexpected turn. But then that is part of the thrill of live theatre — taking risks and trying to exhilarate audiences with something new and different.
While the recent revival of the classic Broadway musical Guys and Dolls starring Oliver Platt, Craig Bierko and Lauren Graham lasted only 149 performances (including previews), it will likely stand out for a more important reason: its use of 3D video animation to extend the sets and give the show a more cinematic feeling.
With all of the bombastic, turbocharged productions that have invaded Broadway recently, it’s nice to find a show that gets back to the basics: a compelling story, great acting and powerful lighting, sound, and direction. Mary Stuart delivers the goods.
It seems like the concept of the original musical, and particularly one that is not self-reflexive, has been harder to find on Broadway lately, especially in an era where movies are being turned into musicals and old movies are being turned into musicals then back into movies again. Frankly, the trend is tired, which is why Billy Elliot: the Musical stands out.
Pre-Broadway productions are as high tech as their Broadway counterparts, with projections and LED walls helping to expand the scope of imagery in a cinematic way. For Dirty Dancing: the Original Story on Stage, which has played around the world and recently ended its pre-Broadway run in Chicago, such technology helped to recreate the film onstage.
Lighting designer and theatrical consultant Richard Pilbrow has seen it all. Today he has 50 years in the business under his belt — not quite all the way back to the age of gas lights, perhaps — but a different world from today’s automated lights and LEDs.
When the dark terrorist satire The Lieutenant of Inishmore played on Broadway, its violent content and gory second act — literally featuring hacked bodies strewn across the stage — certainly shocked and engrossed audiences. But it played in the Lyceum Theatre with several hundred people in attendance every night, which gave those present a greater sense of safety. The recent production at the Signature Theatre in Arlington, Virginia was far different. Presented in an intimate venue with only 125 seats, it became a far more intense, in-your-face experience. Some people were so shocked that they walked out of a richly ironic story about a rogue Irish terrorist named Padric who goes ballistic on his family and friends when he discovers that his beloved cat has been killed.
Taking a famous literary work and putting it onstage as a Broadway musical is bound to draw fire from critics and purists, and A Tale of Two Cities is certainly no exception.
“If you’re doing something that’s derived from the classics there is almost no way past the critics because the past belongs to the critics, and they will always tell you how it should’ve been done,” remarks Tale scenic designer Tony Walton, a 51-year veteran of the business. He also notes: “Shows that are accessible in a big way to a popular audi-ence seem to carry within them the seeds of seething fury for the critics.”