A Chorus Line
Tue, 2 Dec 2008, 12:30 pmThomas Stanley13 posts in thread
A Chorus Line
Tue, 2 Dec 2008, 12:30 pmAs a lover of “A Chorus Line” I went and saw Melville Theatres version on Saturday evening the 29th November 2008.
Firstly I have seen several versions of this production and prior to watching this show I was keen to see how Melville was going to hold all of the actors in a "line" across the stage.
My question was answered as soon as the line was formed. There was an absence of 2 characters on stage, and it appeared that 3 male roles had been substituted with females. I guess we all know the struggle of finding male singer/dancer/actors willing to perform without payment. The change of male to female roles seemed to work.
The performances were very mixed. I saw some were outstanding while others were less then impressive. I know this is Amateur, but for a show like A Chorus Line, Dancing and Singing is important. The girl that played Mike (Can't remember her new stage name) was the first soloist performance, and although the acting was reasonable. The Singing and Dancing was disastrous. It was ironic that the song was titled “I Can do That”
“At the Ballet” was well harmonised by the 3 girls, although the taller of the three appeared very nervous throughout and lost focus on a number of occasions throughout the show.
The following solo songs throughout the Montage were well executed although I would have liked to see more fiery personality from Diana Morales.
I think it was a wise decision to add an intermission in this play and an equally good choice to have it at the end of the Montage “Shit Richie” which was well sung and full of energy from the cast.
The 2nd Act started with “Tits and Ass” which I found average. The performer didn’t look comfortable on stage and this number needs such confidence.
The part of Cassie in this show was portrayed more like the movie rather then the stage show which I was a little confused about (Although I did hear after the show that she was unwell so I don’t know if this is why it was different?).
I really enjoyed “One” and the “Bows” I take my hat off to the cast on that one (or should I say, Tip my hat) I know it isn’t easy to get a group of Amateur theatre performers who can dance and all did rather well with the classic “A Chorus Line” style Choreography.
Choreography - Throughout the show was of a high standard and the performers seemed very comfortable with it. Although 2 males (Al and Don – I think) seemed to be a beat behind the others and looked very unsure throughout the group numbers, and the Tap part looked a little unrehearsed.
Singing – A few Bum notes reached by some of the Soloists but group numbers seemed to be carried well.
Acting – I was pleasantly surprised at this. There were some extremely strong work here. Performers that stood out were Paul, Sheila, Bobby and Zak. Some of the other performers really need to watch their accents(I always notice accents).
Sets/Costumes – Basic yet effective
Lighting – I felt could have been better, I found moments where the stage was just not lit enough and therefore some interaction lost. Although I found other moments effective, eg The “Bows”.
I have always disagreed with the ending of this show. I understand that the show is written that the Bow is the chorus staying onstage high kicking however I feel that with Amateur Theatre, The performers don’t get paid. A Bow at the end of the play with audience acknowledgement is their payment. Also the audience always gets confused as they are waiting for the actors to come back out on stage.
I must also comment that a nice touch for this play was that they chose a solo Pianist rather then an Orchestra/band. I don’t know if this choice was made due to lack of room? But it gave a great “Audition” effect.
Over all, an enjoyable night and I am sure that the performances will get stronger before closing night. I wish the cast and crew all the best for the remainder of the run!
I went and saw this show on
Mon, 15 Dec 2008, 03:38 pmWalter Plinge
I went and saw this show on the final night, and had heard some interesting (not very good at times) reports about it, and had heard of the various trials the cast had faced (lead catching glandular fever) so went there not quite sure what to expect.
And I have to say considering everything, I was extremely impressed.
It certainly had its weak points, but it also had moments of utter brilliance, and I am not one easily impressed by shows to well done to the cast and crew for pulling through all the trials and tribulations you faced.
I didn't really know the show very well, although i have seen the film once, and do own a copy of the broadway soundtrack. But as soon as I started watching the show I instantly realised how DIFFICULT a show to put on this is. As a Director I will admit I'm too chicken to attempt something this difficulty. Not only do you have to find actors who have all three - dancing, singing & acting, you need to find a very large group of them!
The choreography was probably too simple for a show that is primarily thought of as a dancing show, and the big dance numbers lacked energy because of this I thought. This however may have been because of the lack of trained dancers in the cast. The synchronization of the dancing wasn't very good at times, which was slightly disappointing. I believe had this been lifted then it would have gone from a fairly good show to a REALLY good show, in spite of the other problems it faced. As I said though before this may have been simply a lack of trained dancers in the cast, and what can you really do? It appeared the only cast member who had the dance ability to pull off what was required in this show, was the young woman who played the choreographer Larry.
Singing was interesting in that it was ho-hum in the solos but absolutely brilliant in the ensemble work. The harmonies at times were really nice, my favorite number was "What I Did For Love". Although I must make a special mention to one solo number, and that is "Sing!". The two performers who played the married couple who "sung" this song did brilliantly.
Acting was strong across the board I thought, with special mentions to the woman who played Shiela, the two again who played the married couple, the man who played Zack and most of all to the man who played Paul with the massive monologue. That scene was absolutely brilliant. You had the audience in the palm of your hand through the whole speech. You really got the emotions required across and you had what must have been several pages of dialogue word perfect. Definitely the show stealer.
A couple of the performers had difficulty with accents, one of the girls came out with a very English sounding accent at one point (one of the "At The Ballet" girls) and the Tits & Ass girl have a very strong Australian accent, both of which were very off putting. Don's accent while American was irritating as well, although I can't explain why, so just ignore me :)
Sets were extremely simple, a blank stage with mirrors across the back. And they worked brilliantly. I really liked how you could see the spotlights in the mirror when they came on. Was a really nice effect. In fact all the lighting was really well done. Sound didn't really occur as there were no mikes. This was a problem at times when some of the softer voices needed to sing, they couldn't be heard. Bug mikes could have helped in this case I think.
I read from a previous comment "it seems unrealistic that only two people are cut from an audition whilst the other 17 are kept on." Well yes it is, but what can you do? Your not going to get people who are interested in hanging around for such a small part are you? I'm surprised they found two! I saw that bit, had a bit of a chuckle to myself about how absurd it was and then passed it off as an inevitable issue of being an amateur show where you don't get paid to be there for just a few minutes at the beginning and end.
Anyways, once again congratulations to a very tried and punished cast. It sounds like you've had a rough time trying to put on an already difficult show and you pulled through with something that you don't need to feel embarrassed about at all.