Quote from: scenicdesign71 on Mar 14, 2024, 02:38 PM[...] it's not that I consider Prince's staging untouchable in principle — only that I've yet to see a better one anywhere.

One of the productions of Sweeney that I've seen (a college production) was heavily influenced by the original Prince staging (it had the barber shop on top of the pie shop that spun around on wheels to become the parlor). Another one--Opera Colorado--took the staging in a completely different direction, and it's my most memorable Sweeney. There was a platform over part of the stage where the chorus mostly stayed. There was a large framed image on that wall of a Dürer-like food chain starting with the krill and ending up with the Big Fish several steps later, representative of how everyone gets preyed on by the higher-ups. I thought it was an effective way of not showing the beehive. The action took place all over the stage, which was an in-the-round space with part of the seating blocked off. the barber chair was center stage, and when something (bodies, books, etc.) needed to go down the chair-chute, it got dropped from the ceiling at another part of the stage that represented the bakehouse. The parlor was in a different part of the stage. I'm sure the reason that they went off from Prince's original staging was due to the limitations of the not-quite-in-the-round space. It was an amazing production.

The more he bleeds, the more he lives:
He never forgets and he never forgives.


The razor-sharp writing (no pun intended) in this final "Ballad" reprise always makes me gasp.  The entire quatrain just after the couplet quoted above, with its present-tense callback to the Prologue's "Sweeney heard music that nobody heard," compresses the character's raging heart into such spellbinding poetry that I can't resist transcribing it here:

Sweeney wishes the world away,
Sweeney's weeping for yesterday —
Hugging the blade, waiting the years,
Hearing the music that nobody hears.

But, as usual, the effect of the words is inextricable from their musical setting; their chilling nursery-rhyme simplicity on the page is sharpened and pointed by the shape of the melody: rising lyrically over the first line, falling jaggedly on "yesterday," obsessively worrying just two notes for the second half of the stanza (with the slightest jump to prick our ears, just as in the Prologue, on "music that").  For all its speed and urgency, the words compel active listening rather than letting us glide along; while I ended up settling on the punctuation above, part of me wanted to emphasize the staccato stabs of information, as well as of melody, by replacing all of it with full-stop periods.  The emotion being described isn't misunderstood-goth yearning; it's spluttering, unquenchable fury.

Theatermania:  Sweeney Todd to End Broadway Run When Aaron Tveit and Sutton Foster Depart

...which is to say, May 8.

Quote from: David Gordon, TheatermaniaAt the time of closing, it will have played 28 preview performances and 407 regular performances.

I am not proud to have become someone who keeps score, but I can't deny feeling pleasantly surprised and relieved that Harold Prince's original production remains unchallenged for Broadway longevity, having played 19 previews and 557 performances according to IBDB.

Unchallenged by this production, at any rate; it's not that I consider Prince's staging untouchable in principle — only that I've yet to see a better one anywhere.

We have a lot of heavy, wet snow--about a foot so far, and the forecasts I've heard say a total of one to three feet, which is a huge variation. It's supposed to keep snowing through the day into the night and finally stop maybe around midnight. We tried going out for a walk in it this morning, but there was a huge half-frozen puddle at the end of the driveway (in addition to eight inches of snow on the driveway itself), and the 12-pound dog did not want to attempt jumping over that puddle. So we walked in the opposite direction, where some intrepid person had walked earlier, so there were some footsteps to follow, and we made it maybe around a few groups of houses before she decided to poop, and then I decided to just pick it up and we would go home.

Everything is closed. The snow is the perfect consistency for making snowballs. Usually our snow is much more powdery, but this snow started with rain last night, so it's pretty wet.

[Ed.: Written Monday evening, not posted until the crack of dawn Wednesday]

Yesterday [that is, Sunday] marked exactly a year since my last day of union work:  Raising Kanan's third season was winding down, with writers' and actors' strikes to follow, and jobs have been very slow to rebound since then.

So it's nice to report that I got a call this afternoon for a single day of work tomorrow, from a former employer (from my favorite movie experience to date, actually) with a quick and easy assignment that's not even too difficult a commute (Yonkers).  I'm not holding my breath for it to become full-time, but she says her season so far has been sufficiently chaotic that there have been a lot of quick temporary overhires like this; and if she can use me even on an ad-hoc basis, I wouldn't mind going back to "day-playing" for a little while.

Meanwhile, I'm still doing odd days for NYCO, helping them organize their prop and costume storage for an impending move from Orange County to Queens, and also getting ready to repaint a friend's apartment before he puts it back on the market.  Both at far less than union rates, alas, but at least some money will be coming in, and the next couple of weeks will be busy.

To celebrate, I went on a small theatre binge just now, getting some TDF-discount seats to see Days of Wine and Roses on Wednesday night, and also picking up a full-price ticket to Dead Outlaw near the end of the month.

[Ed.: After I arrived for the union job yesterday 4/12, their schedule got shifted around so that my quick-and-easy assignment isn't happening until today 4/13, so I was given other stuff to do all day AND asked back for a second day of work today.  Double yay, and now I feel more justified in seeing TWO shows by way of celebration.]

You, sir, too, sir,
Welcome to the grave.
I will have vengeance,
I will have salvation!

Who, sir? You, sir?
No one's in the chair--
Come on, come on,
Sweeney's waiting,
I want you bleeders!

Today my friends said goodbye to Marcus.  Yesterday he and his most favorite human, Rich, spend the afternoon outside and having a best day ever.  Today he got his favorite food and lots of attention.  It is sad to say goodbye to a four-legged family member.  I've known Marcus for longer than I've been at my current job.  I will miss him very much.  
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Quote from: KathyB on Mar 04, 2024, 04:39 PMTom, when you find out more information, please keep us updated on Marcus's status. I am hoping all the best for him.

Marcus Update:  Well, the good news is that he didn't need the surgery.  The bad news is that when they took an x-ray before the surgery, the vets found lung cancer.  It can not be treated.  Because of the lung cancer they decided not to operate.  Marcus seems to be in good spirits but physically might be running down.  Dori reports that he was having a bit of trouble breathing the past couple of days and is not very active.  They will say goodbye to him on Tuesday. That will be the third kitty to leave the house in the last 8 months.    

I also dislike "spring forward" day.  I wish we would stay in "fall back" mode.  I do not need an extra hour of sunlight.  In fact, I like it when it gets dark sooner because I don't need to use the air conditioner as much.  Now that I'm in Texas I wouldn't get much savings either way much past late April/early May.  The thing I really dislike is that we finally got to the end of "driving to work with the sun in our eyes" and now the clock is reset and we have to do it all over again.  

I got an early start on laundry as well.  I have one load to take out of the dryer and another ready to go in.  Assuming I fold and put everything away, I will be done for the week hours early!!  (Past performance indicates I probably won't get to the fold and put away part.    )

I was on my way to visit a no kill animal shelter when I decided I needed to eat first.  I dropped chili covered hashbrowns onto my shirt so many times I had to come home and change t-shirts.  My visit will have to wait until next weekend.  I am not thinking of adopting.  They have a foster program, many of which are short term, 1-2 weeks while the animal is waiting for a medical procedure.  I'm sure they hope you will fall in love and adopt.  But I think, once I get my apartment "cat ready", fostering would be a good fit with how much I travel.  

This is the day I dislike most of all days of the year. It seems to take me forever to get used to the hour ahead. My big plans for the day include laundry (already started) and grocery shopping. (Sorry to make everyone jealous.) Also, going on a semi-long walk, as it should be in the mid-60s this afternoon.

Last night I went to a great hockey game. It was the last week of the season before conference playoffs start next weekend.