Before I continue with my 52 show wrap up I need to explain a concept: show vs. production vs. performance. These three are completely different and I know for a fact they will come up as I continue to write thoughts on shows from 2016 and going into 2017.
It is completely possible to absolutely loathe a show, but think it was a great production or enjoy an actor’s performance. At the same time there are some shows that I have loved and I have hated the production even in spite of performances from actors I adore. I think this is important to note because I am very particular and I don’t want people I care about to think I hate everything about a show that they have been a part of, even when I pretty much hated everything about a show.
So here is how I break down these types of analysis.
Show – When I am referring to a show I am looking at the show for what it is, the story, the characters, the music, the lyrics, basically what I would see and interpret if I picked up a script and read it. This takes away actors and directors’ choices that sometimes make or break a show. It is just completely bare bones. When I’m thinking about shows that I have seen that I have just really, really disliked most of the time they are interpretations of previous works such as a book or movie turned into a musical. Some things translate into musical theatre quite well (Peter Pan and Wizard of Oz are two easy examples of books and/or movies that turned out well). Other times we see shows where I think ‘who on earth would think THAT would be a good musical?’ and it actually works (recent examples being Hamilton and Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812…I mean seriously, a founding father and War and Peace, who would have thought?). Then there is the third category: things that should have never been set to music or put on stage. I saw a few of those this year. My analysis of these shows will have to dive a bit deeper and try to out why the show, even being awful, was chosen and how it can be relevant today.
Production – My thoughts on production are what I see in front of me at that moment in time. This includes the direction of the show and choices the director made, the lighting, the sound, the set, the costumes, and a host of other things that make up the overall production of a particular show at a particular time. I have seen shows that I love with actors who I greatly respect completely ruined (in my humble, but rather loud) opinion by a terrible director with an awful ‘vision’. That does not take away from the brilliance that is the show itself or the talent I see stage, but the directing and technical elements can certainly ruin a show for me. Another note on production is that a production can be done with different actors. The blocking, lighting, and set would be the same, but with a different cast. The best example of this is professional tours or replacing an original Broadway cast. All the elements are recorded so that an identical show may be produced elsewhere while giving the audience the same show that was seen in New York or London.
Performance – This is all about the actors. I have seen shows that were not the best with little production quality, but had one or two stand outs that made me want the show to go on. I have a whole theory I call the ‘Jodie Sawyer Effect’ (more on that in a future post), but it is based on the ballet movie Center Stage and references a person that you cannot tear your eyes off of when they are performing, whether it is dancing, singing or acting, they just have ‘it’ and you want to watch them. I have seen this in dancers a lot throughout the years, but also in actors. A famous example for me is Sutton Foster, I just love her. I would pay really good money to see her in anything, including my least favorite musical of all time (Oklahoma! If you were wondering). There is just something about her stage presence that makes me want to watch. Clearly Ms. Foster is ridiculously talented, but this type of person does not have to be the best at what they do, but there is just something about them that draws your eye to them. Those are my favorite people to watch in a show. I think this quality is fairly rare, but it definitely exists. Sometimes performance is just the best person in a show.
All of this being said I will say my favorite pieces to see on stage are the type where you have a solid show, a wonderful production, and solid performances from an ensemble cast where no one really stands out (even though I love to see a Jodie Sawyer from time to time). This type is when you really win with theatre, the actual total package to make magic on stage.
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