THE SHEER INEPTITUDE OF THIS SHOW LOSES ITS SHOCK VALUE EARLY: The NYT's Ben Brantley reviews the yet-to-open musical Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark. "So grievously broken in every respect that it is beyond repair" is among the Moose Murders-level turns of phrase employed.
NYMag's Scott Brown likes it a little more, calling it "by turns hyperstimulated, vivid, lurid, overeducated, underbaked, terrifying, confusing, distracted, ridiculously slick, shockingly clumsy, unmistakably monomaniacal and clinically bipolar."
WaPo: "To be sure, Taymor has found a way to send her superhero soaring above the audience. And yet, the creature that most often spreads its wings in the Foxwoods is a turkey."
After the first act, I turned to my girlfriend and said the show was critic-proof and would make back its money.
ReplyDeleteI took it back after the second act.
This squares with a lot of what I've heard--the first act is the traditional Spidey story, while the second act is Taymor creating her own Spidey mythology and bizarreness, particularly based around the Arachne character. They've apparently done pretty dramatic reworking there in recent weeks (adding a new finale being a big one), but may not be enough. And remember that Lion King has a similar problem--"Circle of Life" is incredible, but the second act drags, partially because the only John/Rice tune from the movie in Act II is "Can You Feel The Love Tonight?"
ReplyDeleteDoes anybody know (because there have been discussions among friends) wihether Bono/Edge actually wrote the lyrics to this thing? "Music by Bono and the Edge" leads me to believe someone else has the narrrative reins....
ReplyDeleteAlso, $79 ticket offer on Goldstar for 5 dates in the next couple of weeks (Wednesday matinee/evening only). FWIW, Goldstar also has 4 Regal movie passes for $30, and half-price for "Love, Loss, and What I Wore" (currently with Alexis Bledel and Nikki Blonsky), Gallagher, and the Amazing New York Race,
ReplyDeletePaul - Bono and The Edge are also credited with the lyrics. Julie Taymor (and Glen Berger) wrote the book.
ReplyDeleteBut Oprah and Glenn Beck just LOVE it.
ReplyDeleteFrom a friend's review that he posted on Facebook:
ReplyDelete"This is, hands down, the worst Broadway musical I've ever seen. And I saw the original Capeman, which is like the Ishtar of Broadway. This is going to get creamed when (if) it officially opens and I can only imagine the clever puns on the title that will appear. "Turn Off The Lights", "Turn Down The Tickets", etc. I'm thrilled I got to see it because you learn so much from bad shows, and it is a truly epic thing to behold in its awfulness. But what's really sad is if the first act had been the whole show, and they'd used actual Broadway music writers instead of cashing in on celebrity Bono, then there could have been an amazing show."
Also, much like the show the NYT reviewed, my friend's performance had a technical glitch as well.
My friend Megan and I have decided that we want to see this, SO BADLY.
ReplyDeleteI suspect that hanging out with Paul T and Megan would be a very good time, craptastic musicals notwithstanding.
ReplyDeleteI saw Lion King in previews many years ago, so can't really remember how I felt about how it worked in performance, but based on the CD I've always much preferred the non-John/Rice added songs to the originals (save Circle of Life). The chant stuff, in particular, I've always felt added volumes to the score.
ReplyDeleteDespite it all, I really do admire that Taymor swung for the fences.
ReplyDeleteI just want to put out that the worst musical I have ever seen was also the best time I have ever had at a musical. It was "Dirty Dancing: The musical" that was just touring the US last year or so and had stints in Toronto and Chicago and started in Australia. It was just awesomely bad and tons of money was thrown at it, and it basically was 90% faithful to just staging the movie scene for scene on stage. So fantastically bad and wonderful. I couldn't stop bouncing in my seat.
ReplyDeleteIs this that kind of bad? Or a less fun kind of bad? I am guessing it would be less fun to see people hurt.
We make our fun. :-)
ReplyDeleteI hope in a couple of years someone stages Spider-Man: Ow, My Balls! in the cheapest, most minimalistic way possible and just swings for the fences, camp-wise.
ReplyDeleteI was reading where the show is complaining that critics reviewed the show while it was still in previews. As much as I'm enjoying the reviews (and, hell yeah, I'm enjoying the reviews), to me, that's the interesting question. How long does a critic need to wait to review a show, particularly one that's been selling full-price tickets for months but calling the performances "previews"? I tend to think that the critics here did a nice job balancing things, giving the show time to go through previews, but recognizing that so much time had passed since previews started and that the "official opening date" kept being put off. But I'd be interested to hear other people's thoughts on the question.
ReplyDeleteWell, what they all pretty much decided was that last night was the 4th or 5th scheduled opening night, and that was late enough given that they're charging people full price to see this thing.<span> </span>
ReplyDeleteThat's definitely the critics' reasoning. I'm just wondering if everyone agrees with it.
ReplyDeleteIt's somewhat perverse, but because Brantley's review was so bad, I actually want to see the show more. What inspired the producers to sink millions upon millions into the production.
ReplyDeleteI'm pretty sure Zero Mostel has the answer to your question. What? Who is this Nathan Lane chap you refer to?
ReplyDeleteOrdinarily, I'd say give them a chance, except for two points: (a) the full-price tix thing, and (b) the show's problems are not salvagable. The book is what it is, and the mechanical problems are V-22 Osprey levels of insoluable.
ReplyDeleteThis is karma paying Taymor back for doing English-language Die Zauberflote.
I'm normally very much in favor of waiting till opening night and allowing a put-off opening date - Christopher Isherwood (I think) wrote a good NYT article on why he would wait to review it. But at this point, I'm swayed by the number of times it was put off and by the full-price charge without notice to the audience (mainly tourists who haven't read all the inside baseball) that it's still a work in progress.
ReplyDeleteFor those who love flop musicals, I have to recommend "Not Since Carrie," which goes into great detail about many, many bad shows, and has opinions about which could be salvaged, which just had bad timing, and which could never have worked no matter what.