Showing posts with label Doo-Wop. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Doo-Wop. Show all posts

Sunday, September 2, 2018

What Gives a Girl Power and Punch? It's HAIRSPRAY LIVE!

UPDATE: First things first, I would like to apologize for the lateness of this post.  With both work and Christmas Traditions, I had difficulty finding the time to really sit and let the broadcast ruminate in my head.  However, I just took the time to watch the re-airing on NBC, and I believe I am now able to assess the show fairly

Hairspray holds a special place in my heart. I've had the pleasure to work on it twice, and have seen it multiple times.  When done well, Hairspray can be a non-stop evening of musical theatre excellence.  When done poorly, it is still a shitload of fun.  By this rationale, Hairspray Live could do little to no wrong in my eyes.  However, to me, this may have been one of the worst executed live broadcasts in the past several years.

As I already mentioned, I am a fan of Hairspray.  Long before the musical was ever written, I was a fan of the original John Waters film from 1988.  Ricki Lake as Tracey and Divine as Edna introduced me to the whacked out world of Waters, and my eventual love for the film/musical Cry-Baby.  I distinctly remember seeing the first national tour, starring Bruce Vilanch as Edna.  The energy coming off that stage could have powered the entire Fox on its own.

When NBC announced Hairspray, my biggest concern was that they do the stage show.  While the 2007 film had some amazing elements, it fell flat to me.  Bringing in Mr. Harvey Fierstein to adapt the script for NBC was potentially the smartest decision the producers could make, after casting him as Edna, of course.  Things could only go up from there, right?  WRONG!

Things I Disliked
  •  Ariana Grande was positive shit as Penny Pingleton.  Honest to God, her casting was the one I was most apprehensive about, and I was justified in my thoughts.  Penny is the epitome of the dorky best friend, not some sexed up mumbler who overacts.  Even Grande's vocals seemed subpar at times.  Instead of saving the vocal pyrotechnics for the latter part of the show, Grande sang in her normal voice the entire time.  She was never Penny; instead, it was Ariana Grande in glasses.  For real Pennies, please watch the following video: https://youtu.be/VTO_Duist34
  • I feel like a lot of issues could have been fixed had the direction been better.  Kenny Leon directed The Wiz Live last year, and it was incredibly well done.  I expected something along the same lines, and was pretty much disappointed.  A lot of my issues concerning performances really come down to things that Leon should have noticed.  

Things I'm On The Fence About
  •  Garrett Clayton as Link Larkin.  He was a very competent Link Larkin, but nothing ever wowed me.  His performance was reminiscent of tapioca pudding: perfectly fine, but nothing exciting (unless of course you like tapioca pudding).
  •  Kristen Chenoweth was good in spurts.  I just got very tired of all the high soprano business.  I'm perfectly aware she has the notes and the talent to back it up, but she didn't need to pull them out for every single one of her solo numbers.
 Things I Enjoyed
  • Maddie Baillio
  • Ephraim Sykes
  • Andrea Martin, Sean Hayes, Paul Vogt, Rosie O'Donnell
  • Derek Hough
  • Dove Cameron
  • Martin Short
  • Jennifer Hudson
  • Harvey Fierstein 
Overall, I enjoyed Hairspray Live, but I do not think it was a step forward with these live broadcasts.  NBC seems to have an issue trying to define what the broadcasts should be.  The Wiz Live was a step in the right direction, and I think they took a step back this year.  There were far too many errors, and a lot of the final product was downright sloppy at times. 

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Who ya been lovin' since I been gone?

Good Day Everyone!  I hope that everyone who reads this is doing well.


I realize that it's been a while since I last posted.  Every time I've tried, something has come up.  Therefore, here I am now, and I have a lot to catch ya up on.


We have finished blocking the entire first act as of last night, and let me just say...this show is going to rock and/or roll the entire evening.  Everyone sounds amazing, and seeing the designs for the set has made this whole experience even more real for me.  I'm going to be the second person ever to play the bass Whiffle (he doesn't have a name in the script, but you can call me Brad).  As we block and rehearse each scene, everyone is bringing their own little tweaks and perks to the material.  We are essentially creating a new(ish) work the minute we step out on the stage, and I wish I could just watch it happen.  Happily, though, I am a part of it. :D  


A few of my favorite bits about this show (so far)
     5. Ryan and Taylor killing it every time they do "I'm Infected"
     4. Ari singing "Jukebox Jamboree".  He hits it, rubs some funk on it, then hits it again.  
     3. Singing that awesome doo-wop background to "Girl, Can I Kiss You?"  Still my favorite song to sing in the entire show.
     2. The Teardrops...period.  I honestly think they are going to stop the show several times in the first act alone.
     1. Being a Whiffle.  That's the simplest way to put it.  It's been a long while since I sang some honest-to-goodness 4-part harmonies.  This is what I was raised on; what made me want to join St. Matthias Choir (and be the only boy for the longest time); what made my 4 years at DeSmet worth it: being able to sing barbershop/doo-wop/4-part anything.  It's my destiny, much like Lenora is Cry-Baby's destiny.
     .5. Terrie singing "Screw Loose"/just being Lenora.  She's that good.


As I said before, my Whiffle name is Bradley.  That's not all though.  My prisoner name is Hugh, and my Drape name is Terrence (many thanks to Dupree for the name).  More on this to come.


Along with the blocking rehearsals, Robin has been teaching us some killer choreography.  I know for a fact that it nearly killed me the first time...'ahem'... Bad joke aside, I haven't danced this hard in the longest time.  I would greatly advise everyone to invest in Bayer aspirin til the end of March.  Their stock might be rising some.  After watching myself in the mirror, and some of the dance videos, I don't know how the hell my body is doing some of the things it's doing, fucked up knees and all.  (For those that haven't noticed it before, my natural stance is first/second position.  I like to think I'm a little duck-footed).  Now all that needs to be done is to practice til the cows come home.

Well, I must get going, so I leave you with my new favorite rockabilly song.  Have a great night.




PS: I thought of this earlier last week, but Terrie put this song on her blog earlier, reminding me of it.  One of the all-time great doo-wop songs from the 50's. First, what Terrie posted


This is what the Squares would listen to.  Perfectly acceptable in its own way.  Now the next version, the original version from 1954 by the Chords.  I believe this would be the Drape version.  Your thoughts?