Broadway Buzz | Broadway.com: More than 40 years after Stephen Schwartz and Roger O. Hirson’s entrancing musical Pippin premiered on Broadway, a new, circus-inspired revival is back on the boards, starring Patina Miller as the Leading Player and Matthew James Thomas as Pippin, the young prince looking for his “corner of the sky.” Chart the journey of Pippin from Carnegie Mellon University to Broadway—and back again!
7 comments:
This is by far the most interesting article I have read on this page. I have NEVER heard of Ron Strauss. Why? I have no idea. I think that it is crazy that every time Pippin is mentioned, everyone automatically says "Schwartz". No one ever says "Strauss", and not even the information about the musical mentions this original collaboration. I hate to see things like this happen. Its unfortunate. Also, this article makes it seem as though the idea was originally Ron's, and the rest of the information on the web says that Schwartz originally conceived this show.
I'd love to know the true story.
This is quite the glowing article for Pippin! I really hope I am able to see it in New York this time around. Its still very interesting to me that Pippin started with Scotch n' Soda here at CMU, and that SnS has done anniversary productions of it a couple times. I would love to see them restage the original (I imagine that cast recording is in the CMU Library somewhere.....) sometime.
I also find it fascinating that "Magic to Do", which is one of the more iconic songs for me, didn't show up until very late in the development process for this musical.
I agree with Brian. It would be really interesting to see the original Pippin before it was altered for New York. The article makes it sound like it was a very different show than the one that opened on Broadway. I'd be interested to see those differences. I am also surprised that one of the most iconic songs in the show, "Magic to Do" came into the show so late in the game. I seems that Ben Vereen really brought that role to life and made it the huge part in the play that it is today.
I really love this article for the fact that it gives me information on how the show originated to how it is now being revived on broadway. It's amazing to see how it has all come together and to see some of the amazing luck that came upon this show or the annoyances that may have occurred, like schwartz being banned from the rehearsal room. It's just great to see how this play has developed and to see how this new director is making so many new adjustments to the show, like making a circus involved and having patina play a predominantly male character. I really hope I get the chance to see this show!
While I may be able to put together the pieces, I was struck by the article's "-and back again!", which I assumed would track the musical's connections with CMU today. Is it just that there is a CMU alum as the lead in the musical? Or are there more connections back to the University.
Seeing the photos from when it was performed at CMU was great - though I also would have loved to see the accreditation of the designers from the original production. Susan Tsu!
I agree with Nate. I never knew Strauss had the original idea to create Pippin! It's strange how some stay in the spotlight, while others fade away and are never heard of again. I also think it is great how theater always changes. Like every design project we do, our initial idea starts out as a specific image, but by the time we are finished, the project looks completely different. Theater just takes time. There is no right or wrong. We may think something is perfect, when in fact there are more ideas to come in the future. I have never seen Pippin, but it is my dad's favorite musical. Maybe I'll see it with him sometime. I wonder what other shows have changed drastically to become what they are today.
Firstly can I say that I really really want to see this. This show has always been one of my favorites. I'd be interested to see how it is done with a female leading player. I've seen productions done like that before but the woman would always make weird octave jumps to fit the songs in their range. I love how they are trying to stay true to the show by keeping the influence of fosse, I feel as though without that it wouldn't quite be the same show. I also find it interesting how much Fosse and Schwartz butted heads. Listening to the show you can't hear the conflict, and some of the sexuality plays very nicely into the themes of the piece. A fun tidbit, the snaps in the song "On The Right" are words that were taken out by Fosse, that Schwartz refused to replace. Can't wait to see it!
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