Discussion Board
And the 'Concert@ debate goes on and on.
So nice to see such a split in people's views. Only thing that seems to be common among us is the fact that we have a view on concert performances. I have said this before, and will say it again, songs from musical theatre belong in musical shows, not on the concert stage. Having said that, I still travelled all the way to Cardiff (more than 200 miles) to see Anyone can Whistle, and had a thouroughly pleasant evening I might add. I have got to say however that, much as I would like to see everything staged I also have an alternative view. The Road You Didn't Take was a first class concert, and the songs were neatly contextualised to make it more accessible to everyone. Of course it may be that some of you didn't like the contexts that were used and could have managed without them, but to say that you were bored is frankly ridiculous. The performances were, in the main, extremely good and that alone should have satisfied even the most critical. I detect a serious lack of commitment to promoting Stephen Sondheim's work amongst some of the ranks of the society, If you look at the last few weeks comments on this page there are far more critical remarks than positive ones, you should be ashamed of yourselves! Personally, if I had the choice between a concert or no performance at all, I would choose the concert - and that's what it really boils down to. If you are all so keen to criticise then remember this. THE BEST WAY TO CRITICISE SOMEONES WORK IT TO DO IT BETTER YOURSELF. So get your hands in your pockets and find the money for all these fully staged productions you want to see and I will gladly buy a ticket.
Re: And the 'Concert@ debate goes on and on.
Can I put a somewhat less dogmatic view than Steve? I agree that songs from musicals lose something (sometimes a lot) performed out of context in concerts. One would, of course, prefer fully mounted productions. But that's often not possible for all sorts of reasons. And I'd much, much, rather hear a song sung in concert than not at all. Take 'Ragtime', which I was fortunate to see on Broadway. It's arguably the next best thing after Sondheim and it would be wonderful to see it produced in the West End. But I doubt it will ever happen. So I'm really looking forward to tootling off to Cardiff on Saturday to renew my acquaintance with a live performance of the score.
Oh, and I too thought TRYDT was excellent. Worth it for The Ballard of Booth alone.
Oh, and I too thought TRYDT was excellent. Worth it for The Ballard of Booth alone.
Re: And the 'Concert@ debate goes on and on.
Sorry if I came over as dogmatic, I was just getting a little sick of people constantly complaining. I did voice just the same opinion as you have about this issue of concert v staged performance. Of course, for anyone who is familiar with the shows where the concert songs are from, nothing is lost because we can mentally fill in the gaps and are aware of the context in which they belong. The only problem is that of accessibility for those who are unfamiliar with the show or shows.
Anyhow, I think we are in agreement that a concert is far better than nothing so, many thanks to all who put the effort into producing theses concerts and long may they continue to do so.
Anyhow, I think we are in agreement that a concert is far better than nothing so, many thanks to all who put the effort into producing theses concerts and long may they continue to do so.
Thank you Steve
...you are so right. I will remind all members that in the past we have written to you and explained that we would love to put on a fully staged show, but that the costs are high. We invited every member to consider making a donation towards such a production, and got precisely no donations at all. Considering that we had around 700 members then, I thought it a pretty poor response.
We have been quoted anything from £200,000 up to £1,000,000 to stage a production; the costs of mounting a concert are much cheaper and therefore slightly more accessible.
So, if there are any angels out there, get in touch.
Lynne
We have been quoted anything from £200,000 up to £1,000,000 to stage a production; the costs of mounting a concert are much cheaper and therefore slightly more accessible.
So, if there are any angels out there, get in touch.
Lynne
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© 2004 Damon Jones, inSignificant Productions
© 2004 Damon Jones, inSignificant Productions