Full Article Text
12/12/2015Theater: Rocky The Musical Doesn't Go the Distance | Evernote Web
https://www.evernote.com/Home.action#n=9b8b5f11-ad42-478b-b782-5778af531bc1&ses=4&sh=2&sds=5&1/4Theater: Rocky The Musical Doesn't Go theDistanceTheater: Rocky The Musical Doesn't Go the DistanceROCKY * 1/2 out of **** WINTER GARDEN THEATREIf ever a show cried out to be staged in the round, it's Rocky. The boxing ring dominates the Italian Stallion's lifeand the boxing ring should have dominated the musical's production design. Of course, on Broadway that wouldhave meant the tiny Circle In The Square while producers opted for one of the biggest houses in town. Notsmart. A show about boxing done in the round might have captured some excitement and intensity. It certainlywould have called for inventive staging. And it definitely could avoid the momentum-killing spectacle of stoppingthe show right before the climax to reseat audience members on the stage, slide out a boxing ring, lower anelectronic billboard and otherwise bring everything to a halt.That creative missed opportunity aside, the idea of Rocky as a musical raised eyebrows from the start. But why?Sammy Davis Jr. had one of the best roles of his career in the boxing tuner Golden Boy. And, really, any subjectcan be turned into a musical. Still, in the case of this particular movie, however, the eyebrows were right.Sylvester Stallone's Oscar-winning drama is a quiet character study (and a good movie), far closer to thebutcher-in-love romantic spirit of fellow Oscar winner Marty than the cartoon-ish sequels it begat. Rocky II?Rocky III? The Soviet-baiting Rocky IV? Now those are big, loud, brassy musicals waiting to happen. Satirical,humorous and probably Off Broadway musicals, to be honest. Still, they could sing!But enough about the creative choices they might have made or the movie they should have musicalized in itsplace. Here is Rocky, a show that pumps up Bill Conti's theme from the movie at the beginning and end of theevening, not to mention shoe-horning Survivor's "Eye Of The Tiger" into a training montage (even though it'sfrom Rocky III!). Rocky has multi-media aspects, boxers coming in from the back of the theater, TV camerasflashing the action as it happens onto video screens and a general three-ring circus atmosphere.And all that noise and nonsense detracts from what everyone involved knows is the heart of Rocky: the shy,quiet romance; the tongue-tied palooka; the sense of place; the air of desperation and the belief that a guy couldlose and still win. The sensitive, real moments are what made the movie a hit. The sensitive, real moments ofthe show are few and far between.You know the story. Rocky (Andy Karl) is a 29-year-old boxer who makes a few bucks as a reluctant enforcer fora local loan shark in Philly. He's got nothing going on. Even the shy, mousy Adrian (Margo Seibert) -- the sisterof his friend Paulie -- won't go out with him. But the defending champ Apollo Creed is coming to town for a highlypublicized bout and his opponent has just been injured. They need a replacement -- fast -- and the unknownRocky is suddenly shoved into the spotlight with the chance of a lifetime: he's guaranteed a huge purse and,who knows, maybe he'll get in a few good licks before the champ grinds him into the ground. I mean, Rocky'sgonna lose, of course; everyone knows that.Most of the texture and telling details of the film are missing here. Sure, they show the scene where Rockydrinks egg yolks and they rather perfunctorily display the stairs leading up to the Philadelphia Museum of Art justso he can jog his way to the top in triumph. But the people in the film, the characters that were vivid and real,
12/12/2015Theater: Rocky The Musical Doesn't Go the Distance | Evernote Web
https://www.evernote.com/Home.action#n=9b8b5f11-ad42-478b-b782-5778af531bc1&ses=4&sh=2&sds=5&2/4barely register here.Adrian's brother Paulie (Danny Mastrogiorgio) seems like a harmless schmuck and frankly he's the only reasonRocky and Adrian go out on their first date. But after one thoughtless remark, he's drunk and demanding Adriancome home. Before you know it, she's singing a defiant "I'm Done" and cataloguing Paulie's ills as if he were anemotionally cruel monster. Huh? To confuse matters even further, practically in the next scene, Rocky is invitingPaulie to be in his corner during the big bout.Crusty old manager Mickey (the pro Dakin Matthews) feels more like a hanger-on than a friend with Rocky'sbest interests at heart. Apollo Creed (Terence Archie) -- despite a bevy of beauties on his arms and a soulbrother persona -- barely registers as a character, much less a foil for Rocky. Paulie's girlfriend, her pals andmost everyone else is even more anonymous. The sense of Philly and the working class milieu that both heldRocky down and then lifted him up in pride? Nowhere in sight.But at least we've got Rocky and Adrian. HIs banter with Adrian is easy and harmless. Their fumbling desire toconnect comes across when Rocky first visits her at the pet store where she works. He makes a joke and -- withher back to him -- Adrian smiles and we smile too. There's even a little heat when they first kiss. (Why not? Shelooks great in a red dress and he looks great with his shirt off.)But then they sing. The songs by the team of Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty seem as self-conscious as thetwo shy lovers. In keeping with the film's sensibility, they've striven for a casual, low-key vibe. The problem isthat melodies have been tamped down as firmly as any "Broadway" belting. Apollo has a would-be soul numbercalled "Patriotic" (with the inevitable "Can you dig it?" lyric). But otherwise it's one downbeat, unmemorable,plain-spoken tune after another. Act One perks up just a tad with a more traditional song for Rocky called "FightFrom The Heart" and the closer "One Of Us." Still, he's staged to appear as much like a regular joe as possiblefor fear of looking like, you know, he's in a musical. Even when Rocky's belting out a number, they want you toremember he can take a belt as much as sing one.Act Two is worse, with training montages that mimic similar scenes in the movies, as if we needed to see acinematic reenactment of a training montage, rather than a theatrical one. (I think Rocky IV was 40% montages,40% flashbacks to footage from earlier films and maybe 20% new material, but I digress). Tellingly, we learnliterally nothing about actual training or fighting or strategy. "Eye Of The Tiger" is catchy of course, but it'sstrange to hand off lines to Apollo. He has so little to do, I'm not surprised they made that mistake. Still givinghim a part of the tune ruins the song's emphatic, "I'm the man!" swagger. It should have been Rocky's momentof proud determination; instead Apollo gets another chance to stare him down.Peter Hylenski's sound design doesn't help -- I'm speaking here of the miking of the orchestra and the mix. Themusic throughout felt a tad muffled. I thought at first this was because maybe the actors didn't have the power tocut through a full orchestra, but by the end it seems clear that wasn't the issue. Even "Eye Of The Tiger" and"Gonna Fly Now" (the instrumental theme song that went to #1 on the Billboard charts and is a guaranteedheart-pumper) don't have the sonic punch they should. The happy exceptions are Adrian's emotionally out ofplace but at least lively "I'm Done" and Mickey's "In The Ring." Sung when Mickey is pleading to be Rocky'smanager, it's a solo spot for Matthews that has a solid melody, decent lyrics about the good old days of boxingand instrumentation to echo a by-gone era. These two songs aren't great, by any stretch, but they stick outdefiantly in a show that otherwise has one bland piece after another.They got Rocky's hat right, but the rest of the costumes by David Zinn are either undistinguished or just tackilyobvious. His gym is as anonymous as the guys who are in it and for all the landmarks on display, they might justas easily be living in Boston or Phoenix as Philly. Rocky's disheveled apartment is nicely cluttered. But it's theonly notable success of scenic designer Christopher Barreca who otherwise has filled the stage with clutter of analtogether different nature. Instead of Philly, we get slabs of metal, and then a train wreck at the finale.
12/12/2015Theater: Rocky The Musical Doesn't Go the Distance | Evernote Web
https://www.evernote.com/Home.action#n=9b8b5f11-ad42-478b-b782-5778af531bc1&ses=4&sh=2&sds=5&3/4For the big bout, the theater and front rows are filled with a boxing ring, a giant electronic billboard like you'd seeat Madison Square Garden, risers on the stage for the people who've been moved from their section in theorchestra seating, sportscasters dropping down from the roof in a studio booth suspended in mid-air to blatheron about the upcoming fight (to distract us from the fact that nothing is happening while we watch a set change),Adrian shoved up into one corner, fight promoters, babes in skimpy outfits who parade around telling us theround (they even walk through the middle of the fight, god knows why), managers, trainers, referees, audiencemembers on the side encouraged to stand up (they do, otherwise they probably wouldn't see a thing), cameracrews and guys with boom mikes to capture the dialogue in the ring and display it on the video monitors and ifyou're wondering how they shoved all those people onto the stage and made sense out of it, don't worry. Theydidn't. So many people are milling around that the actual fight -- often done in slow motion -- seems anafterthought. Director Alex Timbers has come a cropper here, turning a distinctive, low-key movie into an anonymous, noisy,desperate to distract musical with no heart. The final boxing match is so confusingly handled -- any chance ofexcitement is dimmed by the ludicrous way in which it is staged -- that only a fanatic who can argue for themerits of Rocky V would be moved.Karl has an appealing presence as Rocky and Seibert brings some life to the timid Adrian. Matthews does whathe can with the manager Mickey but everyone else is so thinly drawn or forgettable that the actors are surely notto blame. A critic is not a pollster, but the evening audience I saw this with most assuredly did not feel roused.They tittered happily over a few key moments (like when Rocky drinks his egg yolks). The sides of beefdescending from the ceiling for that meat locker scene got some polite applause. But mostly, they sat there andpatiently waited for the fight which, in the end, seemed a lot of bother for very little.To be clear, Rocky isn't a disaster or a train-wreck, not really. It's just...boring.THEATER OF 2014Beautiful: The Carole King Musical ***Rodney King *** Hard Times ** 1/2 Rosencrantz And Guildenstern Are Dead ** I Could Say More * The Loneliness Of The Long Distance Runner ** Machinal *** Outside Mullingar *** A Man's A Man * 1/2 The Tribute Artist ** 1/2 Transport ** Prince Igor at the Met ** The Bridges Of Madison County ** 1/2 Kung Fu (at Signature) ** Stage Kiss *** Satchmo At The Waldorf *** Antony and Cleopatra at the Public ** All The Way ** 1/2 The Open House (Will Eno at Signature) ** 1/2 Wozzeck (at Met w Deborah Voigt and Thomas Hampson and Simon O'Neill) Hand To God *** Tales From Red Vienna **
https://www.evernote.com/Home.action#n=9b8b5f11-ad42-478b-b782-5778af531bc1&ses=4&sh=2&sds=5&1/4Theater: Rocky The Musical Doesn't Go theDistanceTheater: Rocky The Musical Doesn't Go the DistanceROCKY * 1/2 out of **** WINTER GARDEN THEATREIf ever a show cried out to be staged in the round, it's Rocky. The boxing ring dominates the Italian Stallion's lifeand the boxing ring should have dominated the musical's production design. Of course, on Broadway that wouldhave meant the tiny Circle In The Square while producers opted for one of the biggest houses in town. Notsmart. A show about boxing done in the round might have captured some excitement and intensity. It certainlywould have called for inventive staging. And it definitely could avoid the momentum-killing spectacle of stoppingthe show right before the climax to reseat audience members on the stage, slide out a boxing ring, lower anelectronic billboard and otherwise bring everything to a halt.That creative missed opportunity aside, the idea of Rocky as a musical raised eyebrows from the start. But why?Sammy Davis Jr. had one of the best roles of his career in the boxing tuner Golden Boy. And, really, any subjectcan be turned into a musical. Still, in the case of this particular movie, however, the eyebrows were right.Sylvester Stallone's Oscar-winning drama is a quiet character study (and a good movie), far closer to thebutcher-in-love romantic spirit of fellow Oscar winner Marty than the cartoon-ish sequels it begat. Rocky II?Rocky III? The Soviet-baiting Rocky IV? Now those are big, loud, brassy musicals waiting to happen. Satirical,humorous and probably Off Broadway musicals, to be honest. Still, they could sing!But enough about the creative choices they might have made or the movie they should have musicalized in itsplace. Here is Rocky, a show that pumps up Bill Conti's theme from the movie at the beginning and end of theevening, not to mention shoe-horning Survivor's "Eye Of The Tiger" into a training montage (even though it'sfrom Rocky III!). Rocky has multi-media aspects, boxers coming in from the back of the theater, TV camerasflashing the action as it happens onto video screens and a general three-ring circus atmosphere.And all that noise and nonsense detracts from what everyone involved knows is the heart of Rocky: the shy,quiet romance; the tongue-tied palooka; the sense of place; the air of desperation and the belief that a guy couldlose and still win. The sensitive, real moments are what made the movie a hit. The sensitive, real moments ofthe show are few and far between.You know the story. Rocky (Andy Karl) is a 29-year-old boxer who makes a few bucks as a reluctant enforcer fora local loan shark in Philly. He's got nothing going on. Even the shy, mousy Adrian (Margo Seibert) -- the sisterof his friend Paulie -- won't go out with him. But the defending champ Apollo Creed is coming to town for a highlypublicized bout and his opponent has just been injured. They need a replacement -- fast -- and the unknownRocky is suddenly shoved into the spotlight with the chance of a lifetime: he's guaranteed a huge purse and,who knows, maybe he'll get in a few good licks before the champ grinds him into the ground. I mean, Rocky'sgonna lose, of course; everyone knows that.Most of the texture and telling details of the film are missing here. Sure, they show the scene where Rockydrinks egg yolks and they rather perfunctorily display the stairs leading up to the Philadelphia Museum of Art justso he can jog his way to the top in triumph. But the people in the film, the characters that were vivid and real,
12/12/2015Theater: Rocky The Musical Doesn't Go the Distance | Evernote Web
https://www.evernote.com/Home.action#n=9b8b5f11-ad42-478b-b782-5778af531bc1&ses=4&sh=2&sds=5&2/4barely register here.Adrian's brother Paulie (Danny Mastrogiorgio) seems like a harmless schmuck and frankly he's the only reasonRocky and Adrian go out on their first date. But after one thoughtless remark, he's drunk and demanding Adriancome home. Before you know it, she's singing a defiant "I'm Done" and cataloguing Paulie's ills as if he were anemotionally cruel monster. Huh? To confuse matters even further, practically in the next scene, Rocky is invitingPaulie to be in his corner during the big bout.Crusty old manager Mickey (the pro Dakin Matthews) feels more like a hanger-on than a friend with Rocky'sbest interests at heart. Apollo Creed (Terence Archie) -- despite a bevy of beauties on his arms and a soulbrother persona -- barely registers as a character, much less a foil for Rocky. Paulie's girlfriend, her pals andmost everyone else is even more anonymous. The sense of Philly and the working class milieu that both heldRocky down and then lifted him up in pride? Nowhere in sight.But at least we've got Rocky and Adrian. HIs banter with Adrian is easy and harmless. Their fumbling desire toconnect comes across when Rocky first visits her at the pet store where she works. He makes a joke and -- withher back to him -- Adrian smiles and we smile too. There's even a little heat when they first kiss. (Why not? Shelooks great in a red dress and he looks great with his shirt off.)But then they sing. The songs by the team of Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty seem as self-conscious as thetwo shy lovers. In keeping with the film's sensibility, they've striven for a casual, low-key vibe. The problem isthat melodies have been tamped down as firmly as any "Broadway" belting. Apollo has a would-be soul numbercalled "Patriotic" (with the inevitable "Can you dig it?" lyric). But otherwise it's one downbeat, unmemorable,plain-spoken tune after another. Act One perks up just a tad with a more traditional song for Rocky called "FightFrom The Heart" and the closer "One Of Us." Still, he's staged to appear as much like a regular joe as possiblefor fear of looking like, you know, he's in a musical. Even when Rocky's belting out a number, they want you toremember he can take a belt as much as sing one.Act Two is worse, with training montages that mimic similar scenes in the movies, as if we needed to see acinematic reenactment of a training montage, rather than a theatrical one. (I think Rocky IV was 40% montages,40% flashbacks to footage from earlier films and maybe 20% new material, but I digress). Tellingly, we learnliterally nothing about actual training or fighting or strategy. "Eye Of The Tiger" is catchy of course, but it'sstrange to hand off lines to Apollo. He has so little to do, I'm not surprised they made that mistake. Still givinghim a part of the tune ruins the song's emphatic, "I'm the man!" swagger. It should have been Rocky's momentof proud determination; instead Apollo gets another chance to stare him down.Peter Hylenski's sound design doesn't help -- I'm speaking here of the miking of the orchestra and the mix. Themusic throughout felt a tad muffled. I thought at first this was because maybe the actors didn't have the power tocut through a full orchestra, but by the end it seems clear that wasn't the issue. Even "Eye Of The Tiger" and"Gonna Fly Now" (the instrumental theme song that went to #1 on the Billboard charts and is a guaranteedheart-pumper) don't have the sonic punch they should. The happy exceptions are Adrian's emotionally out ofplace but at least lively "I'm Done" and Mickey's "In The Ring." Sung when Mickey is pleading to be Rocky'smanager, it's a solo spot for Matthews that has a solid melody, decent lyrics about the good old days of boxingand instrumentation to echo a by-gone era. These two songs aren't great, by any stretch, but they stick outdefiantly in a show that otherwise has one bland piece after another.They got Rocky's hat right, but the rest of the costumes by David Zinn are either undistinguished or just tackilyobvious. His gym is as anonymous as the guys who are in it and for all the landmarks on display, they might justas easily be living in Boston or Phoenix as Philly. Rocky's disheveled apartment is nicely cluttered. But it's theonly notable success of scenic designer Christopher Barreca who otherwise has filled the stage with clutter of analtogether different nature. Instead of Philly, we get slabs of metal, and then a train wreck at the finale.
12/12/2015Theater: Rocky The Musical Doesn't Go the Distance | Evernote Web
https://www.evernote.com/Home.action#n=9b8b5f11-ad42-478b-b782-5778af531bc1&ses=4&sh=2&sds=5&3/4For the big bout, the theater and front rows are filled with a boxing ring, a giant electronic billboard like you'd seeat Madison Square Garden, risers on the stage for the people who've been moved from their section in theorchestra seating, sportscasters dropping down from the roof in a studio booth suspended in mid-air to blatheron about the upcoming fight (to distract us from the fact that nothing is happening while we watch a set change),Adrian shoved up into one corner, fight promoters, babes in skimpy outfits who parade around telling us theround (they even walk through the middle of the fight, god knows why), managers, trainers, referees, audiencemembers on the side encouraged to stand up (they do, otherwise they probably wouldn't see a thing), cameracrews and guys with boom mikes to capture the dialogue in the ring and display it on the video monitors and ifyou're wondering how they shoved all those people onto the stage and made sense out of it, don't worry. Theydidn't. So many people are milling around that the actual fight -- often done in slow motion -- seems anafterthought. Director Alex Timbers has come a cropper here, turning a distinctive, low-key movie into an anonymous, noisy,desperate to distract musical with no heart. The final boxing match is so confusingly handled -- any chance ofexcitement is dimmed by the ludicrous way in which it is staged -- that only a fanatic who can argue for themerits of Rocky V would be moved.Karl has an appealing presence as Rocky and Seibert brings some life to the timid Adrian. Matthews does whathe can with the manager Mickey but everyone else is so thinly drawn or forgettable that the actors are surely notto blame. A critic is not a pollster, but the evening audience I saw this with most assuredly did not feel roused.They tittered happily over a few key moments (like when Rocky drinks his egg yolks). The sides of beefdescending from the ceiling for that meat locker scene got some polite applause. But mostly, they sat there andpatiently waited for the fight which, in the end, seemed a lot of bother for very little.To be clear, Rocky isn't a disaster or a train-wreck, not really. It's just...boring.THEATER OF 2014Beautiful: The Carole King Musical ***Rodney King *** Hard Times ** 1/2 Rosencrantz And Guildenstern Are Dead ** I Could Say More * The Loneliness Of The Long Distance Runner ** Machinal *** Outside Mullingar *** A Man's A Man * 1/2 The Tribute Artist ** 1/2 Transport ** Prince Igor at the Met ** The Bridges Of Madison County ** 1/2 Kung Fu (at Signature) ** Stage Kiss *** Satchmo At The Waldorf *** Antony and Cleopatra at the Public ** All The Way ** 1/2 The Open House (Will Eno at Signature) ** 1/2 Wozzeck (at Met w Deborah Voigt and Thomas Hampson and Simon O'Neill) Hand To God *** Tales From Red Vienna **