Yesterday I saw Follies in Concert at the Vintage Theatre in Aurora, CO. This is one of the shows that I figured was going to be on my bucket list for the longest (along with Pacific Overtures).

I thought the entire thing was wonderful, exceeding my high expectations. The surprising highlight, for me, was "One More Kiss," which was sung by two singers with beautiful voices who sounded so good together. "Could I Leave You" was another strong song, as was "Ah, Paris!" But it's hard to pick favorites.  The one drawback of the show was my obstructed view.   I was in the front row, dead center, and there was a music stand in front of me, which partially blocked my view of some of the performers. It blocked my view of Sally's face during "Losing My Mind." 

I'm wondering what version of the book was used, as it seemed much shorter than the original (which, admittedly, is a long libretto). I'm guessing it was an abridged version of the original. 

The intermission was right after "I'm Still Here." 

The woman next to me (Roxanne) was quite talkative, mentioning how she had "Leap of Faith" season tickets (a promotion where Vintage Theatre offers season tickets before the season is announced, at a discount), among other things. She was unfamiliar with Follies, so I told her that the plot centered around a group of performers coming to a reunion as the theatre they performed at was about to be demolished. I said there was also a lot of wistful reflection. (Hoping my description did the show justice.) She mentioned how she liked singing and dancing, and we talked about the upcoming season, which has quite a bit of singing, but I'm not sure about dancing. We also discussed Guys and Dolls and one of the actors in the show.

Great show. "I'm so glad I came."

It's pleasantly warm today. It hit 100° a couple of hours ago, and now it's cooled to 96°. I am not complaining about the heat, only mentioning it.    The humidity is 10%, and the dew point is 28°. I'm planning to wait until it's less than 90° before taking the dog for a walk. I don't think that will happen until after sunset, and I'm not sure how long she can wait.

Tomorrow I am seeing a matinee of Follies in Concert. That's likely as close as I'm going to get to seeing the actual show. I will give a full report on the FOLLIES thread after the show. The theatre company that I am seeing tomorrow is doing Merrily in September. (They're also doing The Mystery of Edwin Drood, Angels in America and A Strange Loop as part of their season.)

Some catchup:

The full libretto of Here We Are was published last month by the British theatrical imprint Nick Hern Books, and includes a 35-page essay by Ives about his writing history and process with SJS.  The book is being sold at NT's book shop and on Amazon's UK site, and can also be ordered directly from the publisher:

https://www.nickhernbooks.co.uk/here-we-are



Also, NT posted this two-minute video of highlights from the show's sitzprobe in April:

 

Dept. of Roads Not Taken:  Jean Smart auditioned for Sondheim and was offered a role in Follies (I'm guessing the 2011 B'way revival?) — but turned it down.
She discusses it in this recent half-hour interview, starting at about 22:24...


I would assume she was probably up for Phyllis — and while, as a low-key Smart devotee of several decades, I have to respect her choice, it's hard not to wonder more than a little wistfully about the performance she might have given.  (Barring that, and as long as I'm fantasizing anyway: if the 2021 B'way Company had had the much longer run it deserved, I would have paid good money to see Ms. Smart as a star replacement for Patti LuPone's Joanne).

From WhatsOnStage:

Merrily We Roll Along producer says Broadway recording "is not a capture... it's its own genre" of film
Sonia Friedman expressed her excitement as the film edges closer to public release


No substantive discussion of the upcoming release; just Friedman gushing with pride in her sister's work translating their production for the screen, for sixty seconds at the tail end of this podcast.  (Which is fine, but the modern tic of hyping these captures as a brand-new art form being born before our eyes — cf., the "Hamilfilm," which may have started this unfortunate trend — still rubs me the wrong way).

Meanwhile, from BroadwayWorld...

Rialto Chatter:  Is Merrily We Roll Along Coming to Movie Theaters This December?

...December 5, to be specific?  Maybe, maybe not;  three days after BWW published that, the AMC Theaters link in their article takes me to a page listing Merrily's release date as January 1, 1900 [sic].  Perhaps the Dec. 5 date had been listed there prematurely — which doesn't necessarily mean inaccurately — and was subsequently removed, pending an announcement more official than "Rialto chatter".

Oh my!  The was a brief, concise article!  

After apparently having shown up at the Tonys the other night (maybe he was on the red carpet, which I didn't watch, before the ceremony?), the Opera Ghost sent handwritten notes to a few news outlets today:

You cannot view this attachment.

The Tonys are always my favorite awards ceremony, partly because I use them as a shopping list to which cast albums I want to listen to. This year I didn't think too much of the numbers chosen from any of the new musicals  (I thought Operation Mincemeat looked particularly bad on TV, but that actually made me more interested in it). I don't think the TV treatment did Floyd Collins any favors either, unfortunately. That's the one cast album I'm most excited about.

I'm also now more curious about Oh, Mary!: How well might it translate to regional theatre?

English is part of the Denver Center upcoming season.

And I believe Cynthia Erivo can do no wrong, although she looked hot (temperature-wise) in the opening number.

This one isn't complete, but it's worth watching just for Jordan's and Gotay's irrepressible energy even behind their microphones.  (Obviously they don't bop along to the music in the actual production, but their exuberance in the studio makes me newly aware of the song's infectious rhythm: the playful syncopation of Guettel's vocal and orchestral lines is evident enough from even a cursory first listen — but, seen outside its stage context, "The Riddle Song" turns out to be downright danceable).

For the full track, we'll have to wait for the album release, July 11 in both digital and physical formats:

https://www.broadwayrecords.com/products/floyd-collins-original-broadway-cast-recording

Quote from: scenicdesign71 on Jun 06, 2025, 01:15 PM
I designed our custom airplane gobo in haste ten days before opening when it belatedly became apparent that projections — always intended to be a major part of this show's design, as they had been for many of my previous Surflight designs years ago — were no longer feasible with the remaining equipment at hand.  This gobo is the only projection-like element we were able to manage, and while it serves just one fairly brief and minor book scene near the top of Act 2, it elicits a gasp of delight from the audience.  Despite being as visibly patched-together from chewing gum and a prayer as the rest of the set, it becomes by default the evening's one sort of "wow" scenic (and lighting) moment.

I was also going to say that the airplane is just delightful and I really love it!!