Thursday, September 04, 2008
'Les Miz' at Wolf Trap: Vive la Différence
washingtonpost.com: "Can you picture the international musical spectacle 'Les Miserables' without the show's famous revolving stage? Can you imagine a rebellious 19th-century France without the computer-driven barricades impressively heaving themselves up before your very eyes?"
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3 comments:
I believe that this is the way in which the theatre is moving. Now, I am not saying that the good old wooden (and metal and plastic…) set will ever be able to be replaced, but with the new technology, some intricacies that used to give the TDs headaches are now giving projectionists headaches. Some people have said that this undermines the art form, however, I believe that an even worse offence is to not use everything available to you to create the best production possible.
It's a good thing that a smaller theatre is putting a new face on Les Miz. I've never seen it myself, but pretty much all I have heard about it is about the turntable and the barricades. Now, I can appreciate a good old spectacular set, but too often these days, the scenery and the technology overshadow the performance. When I saw Disney's Aida, all I could think about was the set and the moving lights and the lasers (of course, there wasn't much else in the show to think about). I think Theatre of the Stars is doing a good thing by removing the show from its distractions and allowing the audience to appreciate whatever intrinsic artistry and beauty there may be in the play.
Honestly, I think that it is simply a new form of getting more people involved in a classic. The show has been done a million times over with the same equiment, the same basic scenic designs, etc. and I think stripping down to basic or advancing to higher techonology will be provoking more people to come see the new and improved show! This is sincerly one of my favorite musicals and no matter how you perform it, it will still have the same wonderful meanings in all of the songs and the same emotions will come across every audience member. So in all retrospect, in my full opinion, it does not matter how you decide to produce the show, high tech, low tech, it still will be an amazing production simply based on the script.
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