Full Article Text
FRIDAY, AUGUST 09, 2019
THEATER: more! More!! MORE!!! -- "Moulin
Rouge" and "Bat Out Of Hell"
MOULIN ROUGE! ** 1/2 out of ****
AL HIRSCHFELD THEATRE
BAT OUT OF HELL ** out of ****
NEW YORK CITY CENTER
Director Baz Luhrmannn and composer Jim Steinman have at least
one thing in common: they both believe excess is a wonderful place to
start. If a scene in a film can go over the top, Luhrmann wonders, whynot go over the top and then over THAT top? If a song can benefitfrom a choir, Steinman thinks, surely two choirs would be evenbetter? Luhrmannn wanted to create an original movie musical in the
style of Bollywood. Steinman fought for decades to tell a rock and roll
version of Peter Pan in full-on theatrical glory.
Both succeeded immensely, with Luhrmann directing the Oscar-winning smash film Moulin Rouge! and Steinman masterminding the
massive selling Meat Loaf album Bat Out Of Hell. They can savor
dream projects springing from those hits and playing now in NewYork, at least for the moment. But Moulin Rouge! the stage musical is
an out-and-out smash that will make the film's success seem a mereappetizer. It's going to run for years. In contrast, Bat Out Of Hell
comes to City Center battered and a little bowed -- after some offstage
travails -- for a brief run and a shortened North American tour. Fans ofboth should be plenty pleased, but M oulin Rouge! is going to make a
lot of new fans while Bat Out Of Hell must settle for the faithful.MICHAEL GILTZ AT WORK
Michael Giltz is a freelance writer
based in NYC and can be reached atmgiltz@pipeline.com
FAVORITE LINKS
Americablog
Five O'Clock Lightning baseball blogDeep Pop -- Lori Lakin's Blog
The Back Page -- Jason Page on ESPN
Radio
Cine-Blog -- George Robinson's Blog
Documents On Art & Cinema - Daryl
Chin's Blog
Brucie G's Wondrous Blog Of
Adventure and Mystery -- Bruce
Greenspan's Blog
BLOG ARCHIVE
▼ 2019 (58)
► September (9)
▼ August (9)
BOOKS: "The Outlaw Ocean" by
First, the hit. Moulin Rouge! was a successful film, I thought, but
apparently it's a truly beloved film as well. Since day one of previews,
this show has been playing like a monster hit AFTER the rave reviews
came out, not like a musical with a movie tie-in and something to
prove. Audiences are lined up, ready to have fun and the show issending them away very happy. You want excess? Moulin Rouge! has
it in spades, from the draped-in-sumptuous-red theater to theperformers prowling the aisles and staring haughtily and sexily at oneand all to the score that has been expanded from the film's already
lengthy list of beloved pop classics to include a LOT more songs that
have come out since the movie opened in 2001.
You might complain that the story is cobbled together from a thousand
different references. But since that's the ENTIRE POINT of Moulin
Rouge! your complaints will fall on deaf (or at least deafened) ears.
Instead of Ewan McGregor as a young artist new to Paris, we have thecharming Aaron Tveit. Instead of Nicole Kidman as the courtesan with
a heart of gold who loves the young artist but must offer herself to a
vicious nobleman to save the Moulin Rouge and all her friends from alife on the street, we have the steely, sexy Karen Olivo. And instead ofAlan Cumming circa Cabaret , we have Dannny Burstein as our sleazy,
don't-turn-your-back-on-him master of ceremonies. It's a fair tradeand all three handle the heavy lifting they are called on to do with
ease.
I don't really like the film Moulin Rouge! but the stage production has
one huge advantage: no editing. Baz Luhrmann likes to edit his movies
in a manic style that makes the typical MTV music video seem like an
Ozu film. The stage show certainly isn't a shrinking violet when it
comes to action (they pop the confetti right at the start and it keepscoming down for almost the entire show) yet it's not an assault on thesenses. And like the film, all those new pop songs tossed into the mixare actually chosen with care. Those songs might provide a key phrase
or line of dialogue; other times the performers sing a verse or chorus
(though hearing an entire song is a rarity). But it's not just a medley ofsongs you know. Each tune serves a purpose, however passing orobvious. It's not until the curtain call and its Mamma Mia- like, legally
required mini-pop concert that they deliver the radio dial-spinning
mashup of song after song after song I feared all along. And by that
point, who cares?Ian Urbina Review
BROADWAY DIRECT: Fall
Book Roundup For Theater
Lov...
SHOWBIZ SANDBOX #459:
Jay-Z and NFL Play Fans For...
BOOKS: "The Doll Factory" by
Elizabeth Macneal
THEATER: Jake Gyllenhaal and
Tom Sturridge Grapple...
SHOWBIZ SANDBOX #458:
Music Industry BattlesPlagu...
THEATER: "Unchilding" Gets
Shakily On Its Feet
THEATER: more! More!!
MORE!!! -- "Moulin Rouge"an...
BOOKS: "Travel Light, Move
Fast" review
► July (7)
► June (3)
► May (9)
► April (10)
► March (5)
► February (1)
► January (5)
► 2018 (38)
► 2017 (6)
► 2016 (2)
► 2015 (20)
► 2014 (2)
► 2013 (5)
► 2012 (17)
► 2011 (15)
► 2010 (10)
► 2009 (43)
► 2008 (86)
► 2007 (781)
► 2006 (2412)
► 2005 (5)
It's all stuff and nonsense and it's done with professional zeal by a
tireless, hardworking cast and a creative team on point from start to
finish. Both shows would benefit from villains that are less villainousbut a little moustache-twirling never hurt anyone. Like a hooker,Moulin Rouge! tantalizes and teases and implies you'll be getting the
experience of a lifetime. But she's not your girlfriend and this isn't a
romance. You get what you paid for and not a penny more. She's a pro
and you're the mark and really, you have nothing to complain about.And yeah, when friends come to town and want to see a big hit show,you'll be back; you know you will. And she'll be waiting, a cool, distant
smile on her face.
Bat Out Of Hell however is here for a limited time only before heading
out on tour. If you're a fan of that classic Meat Loaf album or the Jim
Steinman aesthetic of Phil Spector teen melodrama turned up to 11, byall means catch it. You'll hear some classic songs delivered with verve
by a vocally terrific cast. You'll also see Steinman's long-gestating,
post-apocalyptic spin on Peter Pan, more's the pity. In it, the city of
Obsidian is floating out to sea, plagued by teens trapped in eternalyouth by some nuclear winter fallout or something. The adults resent
those restless, sexy, ready-to-rock kids and of course the kids resent
those boring old adults because that's what kids do.
Raven, the daughter of a real estate mogul named Falco has fallen hard
for Strat, the leader of the Lost (as in Lost Boys, natch). So when shesneaks away and...wait, what am I doing? Describing the plot? The
plot is batshit crazy. The show is batshit crazy. The choreography is
Jane Fonda-ish batshit crazy. The directing is batshit crazy, tossing inlots of video cameras to capture the action even though it's wildlyunnecessary and distracting. The set is...well, not bad, with the high-
rise home of our villain Falco suggesting the neck of an electric guitar
quite nicely while the hangout of the teenage heroes is nestled at itsbase. The costumes are REALLY batshit crazy. (Apparently everyapocalypse leads to people wearing football shoulder pads and a lot offringe: see Mad Max and all its descendants.)
Who cares? It's Bat Out Of Hell! I am dorky enough to spot the
artwork from Jim Steinman's solo album Bad For Good on Raven's
bedroom wall. I know Jim Steinman's work very, very well, from Air
Supply to the Streets Of Fire soundtrack to his early days at the Public
Theatre right up to today. He's not a guilty pleasure, just a pleasure
and his songs are enduring, bombastic fun. Which is why anyone whowants to sing along to tunes they love can turn off their brain and havea pretty good time.
I couldn't, not really, because these musical-worthy numbers deserve
much better.
Pop songs have been reaching for operatic grandeur since the early
days of Spector, Roy Orbison, Johnny Ray, Lesley Gore and all therest. And Steinman knows his way around a show tune. But the post-apocalyptic setting he's had his heart set on undercuts the fun ofseeing a kid's emotions explode into rock n roll. Set this story insuburbia rather than Blade Runner and these songs immediately work
better. EVERYTHING is big when the world has collapsed, so thesetting dwarfs the emotions. When you're stuck in high school andyour friends and parents roll their eyes and indulge your puppy loveand don't realize the feelings you feel are the biggest feelings anyonehas ever felt (ever!), the only thing a teenager can do is burst into abig, big song.
"Paradise By The Dashboard Light" is a song about two people who got
married too soon. In my mind, maybe because it was sung by Mr. Loafand Ellen Foley, the couple is pretty young and haven't even paid off
the bills for their honeymoon yet. And already they realize they've
made a big mistake. Here it's performed by parents who are in their40s or 50s, people who fell out of love a long, long time ago. Highschool wasn't yesterday; it was centuries ago. Bradley Dean and Tonywinner Lena Hall sing the hell out of it, along with "What Part Of My
Body Hurts The Most," another highlight (and a song that's new to
me). Indeed, they're so good they practically steal the show from thekids. As with Moulin Rouge!, Dean is the villain here and the show
would work better if he wasn't so nasty, so physically abusive andcontrolling of both his wife and daughter. Ah well, complexity is not
the order of the day.
Other songs also work a charm, despite the absurd trappings of the
story and the staging. (At one point, a guy roars in on a motorcycle, hasan exchange and then angrily takes off...while carefully backing up his
bike so he can get offstage without causing harm. Safety first!) The
deep-voiced Danielle Steers and Tyrick Wiltez Jones turn the Bat Outof Hell hit single "Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad" from a kiss-off to a
touching duet. "Making Love Out Of Nothing At All" -- the Air Supplyhit -- also becomes a lovely number for both the teens and the parents.
And I FINALLY made lyrical sense of "I Would Do Anything For Love
(But I Won't Do That)" when it was performed by the happy couples atthe finale pledging their all.
Andrew Polec is wide-eyed and strong-voiced as Strat and Christina
Bennington is right there as Raven. She has a funny opening momentas a very bored teen who pours herself over the couch and onto thefloor. Indeed, Bennington seems to spend half the show on her bed or
sprawled on the floor and takes it all in stride, though she and Polec
are helpless to overcome some of the godawful choreography andstaging which sometimes has them prancing around the stage in aludicrous manner. And ludicrous in this context is saying something.
But Dean and especially Hall almost make you wish the show was
about the adults. The rest of the cast is also very strong vocally, withthe strutting Will Branner such a standout in a small part that you
know without looking he's the understudy for the lead role of Strat.
Yeah, this is supposed to be a show, not a tribute concert, but if theyjust stood there and belted these songs out you'd have a lot of fun. Andwho the hell knows? The original album came out and caused noexcitement. It wasn't until Meat Loaf toured the hell out of it that theaudiences became bigger and radio airplay caught on and MTV started
putting his songs on an endless loop late at night. I doubt lightning
will strike again. This show always seemed to have a strictly Britishappeal in its staging a la the truly awful Queen musical
We Will Rock
You. But maybe they'll tour and word of mouth will spread and history
will repeat itself.
Steinman has always been working in a theatrical context. His songs
have reprises and natural breaks where you can fit in some dialogueand then dive back into the song. They can be performed , not just
sung. "All Revved Up And No Place To Go" is a terrific scene-setter.
The song "Bat Out Of Hell" is a gem of an act one closer. (Imagine if
you'd heard it for the first time on stage in a musical, rather than as afamiliar classic shoehorned into a show after all these years.)
Damn, this project could still be good. I'd do a TV movie with teens --
and make the setting painfully banal rather than the no-rules world of
The Walking Dead. These songs would be their only emotional release,
not a respite from trying to survive the end of the world. I'd tellSteinman that I love the song "Dead Ringer For Love" (Cher and MeatLoaf crush it on Loaf's second album) but it's actually not interesting
dramatically speaking and should be cut. I'd point out that since Stratis the Peter Pan character, it doesn't make sense for Raven to singmost of "It's All Coming Back To Me Now." He's the one who forgets,he's the one who left and waited six months to come back, so thatshould be his song. I'd tell Steinman the vengeful Tink subplot is
faithful to J.M. Barrie but just doesn't work here and besides, we'reditching the whole Peter Pan thing anyway. I'd tell him to either buythe rights to "Rock Me Amadeus" or call the dad something other thanFalco. And then I'd ask Steinman to sign my cassette and CD and vinylcopies of Bad For Good.
THEATER OF 2019
Frankenstein: Under The Radar Fest at the Public ** 1/2
Minor Character: Under The Radar Festival at the Public ***
Ink: Under The Radar Festival at the Public ** 1/2
Choir Boy ** 1/2
White Noise ** 1/2
Kiss Me, Kate ***
Ain't No Mo' *** 1/2
Ain't Too Proud **
The Cradle Will Rock * 1/2
Mrs. Murray's Menagerie *** 1/2
Oklahoma! (on Broadway) ** 1/2
Socrates **
The Pain Of My Belligerence *
Burn This **
Hadestown *** 1/2
All My Sons * 1/2
Tootsie ** 1/2
Ink ***
Beetlejuice **
Estado Vegetal ***
Hans Christian Andersen * 1/2
Cirque du Soleil: Luzia ***
BLKS ** 1/2
Moulin Rouge ** 1/2
Bat Out Of Hell **
Unchilding **
Thanks for reading. Michael Giltz is the creator of BookFilter, a book
lover’s best friend. It’s a website that lets you browse for books online the
way you do in a physical bookstore, provides comprehensive info on new
releases every week in every category and offers passionate personal
recommendations every step of the way. He’s also the cohost of Showbiz
Sandbox , a weekly pop culture podcast that reveals the industry take on
entertainment news of the day with top journalists and opinion makers as
guests. It’s available for free on iTunes. Visit Michael Giltz at his website.
Download his podcast of celebrity interviews and his radio show, also called
Popsurfing and also available for free on iTunes.
POSTED BY MICHAEL GILTZ AT 12:07 AM
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THEATER: more! More!! MORE!!! -- "Moulin
Rouge" and "Bat Out Of Hell"
MOULIN ROUGE! ** 1/2 out of ****
AL HIRSCHFELD THEATRE
BAT OUT OF HELL ** out of ****
NEW YORK CITY CENTER
Director Baz Luhrmannn and composer Jim Steinman have at least
one thing in common: they both believe excess is a wonderful place to
start. If a scene in a film can go over the top, Luhrmann wonders, whynot go over the top and then over THAT top? If a song can benefitfrom a choir, Steinman thinks, surely two choirs would be evenbetter? Luhrmannn wanted to create an original movie musical in the
style of Bollywood. Steinman fought for decades to tell a rock and roll
version of Peter Pan in full-on theatrical glory.
Both succeeded immensely, with Luhrmann directing the Oscar-winning smash film Moulin Rouge! and Steinman masterminding the
massive selling Meat Loaf album Bat Out Of Hell. They can savor
dream projects springing from those hits and playing now in NewYork, at least for the moment. But Moulin Rouge! the stage musical is
an out-and-out smash that will make the film's success seem a mereappetizer. It's going to run for years. In contrast, Bat Out Of Hell
comes to City Center battered and a little bowed -- after some offstage
travails -- for a brief run and a shortened North American tour. Fans ofboth should be plenty pleased, but M oulin Rouge! is going to make a
lot of new fans while Bat Out Of Hell must settle for the faithful.MICHAEL GILTZ AT WORK
Michael Giltz is a freelance writer
based in NYC and can be reached atmgiltz@pipeline.com
FAVORITE LINKS
Americablog
Five O'Clock Lightning baseball blogDeep Pop -- Lori Lakin's Blog
The Back Page -- Jason Page on ESPN
Radio
Cine-Blog -- George Robinson's Blog
Documents On Art & Cinema - Daryl
Chin's Blog
Brucie G's Wondrous Blog Of
Adventure and Mystery -- Bruce
Greenspan's Blog
BLOG ARCHIVE
▼ 2019 (58)
► September (9)
▼ August (9)
BOOKS: "The Outlaw Ocean" by
First, the hit. Moulin Rouge! was a successful film, I thought, but
apparently it's a truly beloved film as well. Since day one of previews,
this show has been playing like a monster hit AFTER the rave reviews
came out, not like a musical with a movie tie-in and something to
prove. Audiences are lined up, ready to have fun and the show issending them away very happy. You want excess? Moulin Rouge! has
it in spades, from the draped-in-sumptuous-red theater to theperformers prowling the aisles and staring haughtily and sexily at oneand all to the score that has been expanded from the film's already
lengthy list of beloved pop classics to include a LOT more songs that
have come out since the movie opened in 2001.
You might complain that the story is cobbled together from a thousand
different references. But since that's the ENTIRE POINT of Moulin
Rouge! your complaints will fall on deaf (or at least deafened) ears.
Instead of Ewan McGregor as a young artist new to Paris, we have thecharming Aaron Tveit. Instead of Nicole Kidman as the courtesan with
a heart of gold who loves the young artist but must offer herself to a
vicious nobleman to save the Moulin Rouge and all her friends from alife on the street, we have the steely, sexy Karen Olivo. And instead ofAlan Cumming circa Cabaret , we have Dannny Burstein as our sleazy,
don't-turn-your-back-on-him master of ceremonies. It's a fair tradeand all three handle the heavy lifting they are called on to do with
ease.
I don't really like the film Moulin Rouge! but the stage production has
one huge advantage: no editing. Baz Luhrmann likes to edit his movies
in a manic style that makes the typical MTV music video seem like an
Ozu film. The stage show certainly isn't a shrinking violet when it
comes to action (they pop the confetti right at the start and it keepscoming down for almost the entire show) yet it's not an assault on thesenses. And like the film, all those new pop songs tossed into the mixare actually chosen with care. Those songs might provide a key phrase
or line of dialogue; other times the performers sing a verse or chorus
(though hearing an entire song is a rarity). But it's not just a medley ofsongs you know. Each tune serves a purpose, however passing orobvious. It's not until the curtain call and its Mamma Mia- like, legally
required mini-pop concert that they deliver the radio dial-spinning
mashup of song after song after song I feared all along. And by that
point, who cares?Ian Urbina Review
BROADWAY DIRECT: Fall
Book Roundup For Theater
Lov...
SHOWBIZ SANDBOX #459:
Jay-Z and NFL Play Fans For...
BOOKS: "The Doll Factory" by
Elizabeth Macneal
THEATER: Jake Gyllenhaal and
Tom Sturridge Grapple...
SHOWBIZ SANDBOX #458:
Music Industry BattlesPlagu...
THEATER: "Unchilding" Gets
Shakily On Its Feet
THEATER: more! More!!
MORE!!! -- "Moulin Rouge"an...
BOOKS: "Travel Light, Move
Fast" review
► July (7)
► June (3)
► May (9)
► April (10)
► March (5)
► February (1)
► January (5)
► 2018 (38)
► 2017 (6)
► 2016 (2)
► 2015 (20)
► 2014 (2)
► 2013 (5)
► 2012 (17)
► 2011 (15)
► 2010 (10)
► 2009 (43)
► 2008 (86)
► 2007 (781)
► 2006 (2412)
► 2005 (5)
It's all stuff and nonsense and it's done with professional zeal by a
tireless, hardworking cast and a creative team on point from start to
finish. Both shows would benefit from villains that are less villainousbut a little moustache-twirling never hurt anyone. Like a hooker,Moulin Rouge! tantalizes and teases and implies you'll be getting the
experience of a lifetime. But she's not your girlfriend and this isn't a
romance. You get what you paid for and not a penny more. She's a pro
and you're the mark and really, you have nothing to complain about.And yeah, when friends come to town and want to see a big hit show,you'll be back; you know you will. And she'll be waiting, a cool, distant
smile on her face.
Bat Out Of Hell however is here for a limited time only before heading
out on tour. If you're a fan of that classic Meat Loaf album or the Jim
Steinman aesthetic of Phil Spector teen melodrama turned up to 11, byall means catch it. You'll hear some classic songs delivered with verve
by a vocally terrific cast. You'll also see Steinman's long-gestating,
post-apocalyptic spin on Peter Pan, more's the pity. In it, the city of
Obsidian is floating out to sea, plagued by teens trapped in eternalyouth by some nuclear winter fallout or something. The adults resent
those restless, sexy, ready-to-rock kids and of course the kids resent
those boring old adults because that's what kids do.
Raven, the daughter of a real estate mogul named Falco has fallen hard
for Strat, the leader of the Lost (as in Lost Boys, natch). So when shesneaks away and...wait, what am I doing? Describing the plot? The
plot is batshit crazy. The show is batshit crazy. The choreography is
Jane Fonda-ish batshit crazy. The directing is batshit crazy, tossing inlots of video cameras to capture the action even though it's wildlyunnecessary and distracting. The set is...well, not bad, with the high-
rise home of our villain Falco suggesting the neck of an electric guitar
quite nicely while the hangout of the teenage heroes is nestled at itsbase. The costumes are REALLY batshit crazy. (Apparently everyapocalypse leads to people wearing football shoulder pads and a lot offringe: see Mad Max and all its descendants.)
Who cares? It's Bat Out Of Hell! I am dorky enough to spot the
artwork from Jim Steinman's solo album Bad For Good on Raven's
bedroom wall. I know Jim Steinman's work very, very well, from Air
Supply to the Streets Of Fire soundtrack to his early days at the Public
Theatre right up to today. He's not a guilty pleasure, just a pleasure
and his songs are enduring, bombastic fun. Which is why anyone whowants to sing along to tunes they love can turn off their brain and havea pretty good time.
I couldn't, not really, because these musical-worthy numbers deserve
much better.
Pop songs have been reaching for operatic grandeur since the early
days of Spector, Roy Orbison, Johnny Ray, Lesley Gore and all therest. And Steinman knows his way around a show tune. But the post-apocalyptic setting he's had his heart set on undercuts the fun ofseeing a kid's emotions explode into rock n roll. Set this story insuburbia rather than Blade Runner and these songs immediately work
better. EVERYTHING is big when the world has collapsed, so thesetting dwarfs the emotions. When you're stuck in high school andyour friends and parents roll their eyes and indulge your puppy loveand don't realize the feelings you feel are the biggest feelings anyonehas ever felt (ever!), the only thing a teenager can do is burst into abig, big song.
"Paradise By The Dashboard Light" is a song about two people who got
married too soon. In my mind, maybe because it was sung by Mr. Loafand Ellen Foley, the couple is pretty young and haven't even paid off
the bills for their honeymoon yet. And already they realize they've
made a big mistake. Here it's performed by parents who are in their40s or 50s, people who fell out of love a long, long time ago. Highschool wasn't yesterday; it was centuries ago. Bradley Dean and Tonywinner Lena Hall sing the hell out of it, along with "What Part Of My
Body Hurts The Most," another highlight (and a song that's new to
me). Indeed, they're so good they practically steal the show from thekids. As with Moulin Rouge!, Dean is the villain here and the show
would work better if he wasn't so nasty, so physically abusive andcontrolling of both his wife and daughter. Ah well, complexity is not
the order of the day.
Other songs also work a charm, despite the absurd trappings of the
story and the staging. (At one point, a guy roars in on a motorcycle, hasan exchange and then angrily takes off...while carefully backing up his
bike so he can get offstage without causing harm. Safety first!) The
deep-voiced Danielle Steers and Tyrick Wiltez Jones turn the Bat Outof Hell hit single "Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad" from a kiss-off to a
touching duet. "Making Love Out Of Nothing At All" -- the Air Supplyhit -- also becomes a lovely number for both the teens and the parents.
And I FINALLY made lyrical sense of "I Would Do Anything For Love
(But I Won't Do That)" when it was performed by the happy couples atthe finale pledging their all.
Andrew Polec is wide-eyed and strong-voiced as Strat and Christina
Bennington is right there as Raven. She has a funny opening momentas a very bored teen who pours herself over the couch and onto thefloor. Indeed, Bennington seems to spend half the show on her bed or
sprawled on the floor and takes it all in stride, though she and Polec
are helpless to overcome some of the godawful choreography andstaging which sometimes has them prancing around the stage in aludicrous manner. And ludicrous in this context is saying something.
But Dean and especially Hall almost make you wish the show was
about the adults. The rest of the cast is also very strong vocally, withthe strutting Will Branner such a standout in a small part that you
know without looking he's the understudy for the lead role of Strat.
Yeah, this is supposed to be a show, not a tribute concert, but if theyjust stood there and belted these songs out you'd have a lot of fun. Andwho the hell knows? The original album came out and caused noexcitement. It wasn't until Meat Loaf toured the hell out of it that theaudiences became bigger and radio airplay caught on and MTV started
putting his songs on an endless loop late at night. I doubt lightning
will strike again. This show always seemed to have a strictly Britishappeal in its staging a la the truly awful Queen musical
We Will Rock
You. But maybe they'll tour and word of mouth will spread and history
will repeat itself.
Steinman has always been working in a theatrical context. His songs
have reprises and natural breaks where you can fit in some dialogueand then dive back into the song. They can be performed , not just
sung. "All Revved Up And No Place To Go" is a terrific scene-setter.
The song "Bat Out Of Hell" is a gem of an act one closer. (Imagine if
you'd heard it for the first time on stage in a musical, rather than as afamiliar classic shoehorned into a show after all these years.)
Damn, this project could still be good. I'd do a TV movie with teens --
and make the setting painfully banal rather than the no-rules world of
The Walking Dead. These songs would be their only emotional release,
not a respite from trying to survive the end of the world. I'd tellSteinman that I love the song "Dead Ringer For Love" (Cher and MeatLoaf crush it on Loaf's second album) but it's actually not interesting
dramatically speaking and should be cut. I'd point out that since Stratis the Peter Pan character, it doesn't make sense for Raven to singmost of "It's All Coming Back To Me Now." He's the one who forgets,he's the one who left and waited six months to come back, so thatshould be his song. I'd tell Steinman the vengeful Tink subplot is
faithful to J.M. Barrie but just doesn't work here and besides, we'reditching the whole Peter Pan thing anyway. I'd tell him to either buythe rights to "Rock Me Amadeus" or call the dad something other thanFalco. And then I'd ask Steinman to sign my cassette and CD and vinylcopies of Bad For Good.
THEATER OF 2019
Frankenstein: Under The Radar Fest at the Public ** 1/2
Minor Character: Under The Radar Festival at the Public ***
Ink: Under The Radar Festival at the Public ** 1/2
Choir Boy ** 1/2
White Noise ** 1/2
Kiss Me, Kate ***
Ain't No Mo' *** 1/2
Ain't Too Proud **
The Cradle Will Rock * 1/2
Mrs. Murray's Menagerie *** 1/2
Oklahoma! (on Broadway) ** 1/2
Socrates **
The Pain Of My Belligerence *
Burn This **
Hadestown *** 1/2
All My Sons * 1/2
Tootsie ** 1/2
Ink ***
Beetlejuice **
Estado Vegetal ***
Hans Christian Andersen * 1/2
Cirque du Soleil: Luzia ***
BLKS ** 1/2
Moulin Rouge ** 1/2
Bat Out Of Hell **
Unchilding **
Thanks for reading. Michael Giltz is the creator of BookFilter, a book
lover’s best friend. It’s a website that lets you browse for books online the
way you do in a physical bookstore, provides comprehensive info on new
releases every week in every category and offers passionate personal
recommendations every step of the way. He’s also the cohost of Showbiz
Sandbox , a weekly pop culture podcast that reveals the industry take on
entertainment news of the day with top journalists and opinion makers as
guests. It’s available for free on iTunes. Visit Michael Giltz at his website.
Download his podcast of celebrity interviews and his radio show, also called
Popsurfing and also available for free on iTunes.
POSTED BY MICHAEL GILTZ AT 12:07 AM
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