A CHORUS LINE
January 22nd 2012 07:11
:
Reviewed by David Jobling
Adelaide Festival Centre in association with Tim Lawson presents
You may have seen the movie of a chorus line directed by Sir Richard Attenborough and featuring Michael Douglas in the role of the director, Zach (played here by Josh Horner).
If you have only seen this screen version the best thing to do is forget about it, not because it isn't a good film, simply because it is a screen adaption and not the same show.
On stage A Chorus Line is about as real as a musical confection will get. The experience of auditioning for a Broadway musical is not directly in my lexicon of experience, but I have auditioned for major productions in Australia including an all day dance and movement audition for Meryl Tankard who eventually went on to choreograph Tarzan on Broadway for the Disney Company, and I can say this, the pressure one applies to oneself in the audition process is about as forceful as the pressure one feels on the opening night of a show that's yet to be seen by an audience. It is a little terrifying.
This is one of the things that stands out in the stage version of A Chorus Line the unending pressure particularly as there are no commercial breaks to ease the tension or divert the focus from what is happening right before your eyes.
The similarity to the real experience is strong; it remains a conceit in so much as it is a show after all, but it is a very realistic show that unravels in real time before your very eyes.
Michael Douglas in the film version was at the top of his form becoming an extremely popular movie star after winning hearts on television as an actor and awards as a film producer; but he was never a dancer. He simply didn't have the ability to do the dance numbers required, so they wrote his character out of them.
In this far superior stage version the director who is making the dancers strut their stuff while telling them to relax and just speak to him is capable of every dance step he is demanding and this rings very true not only providing Josh Horner with some wonderful moments to show what a great dancer he is, but also to give us the insight into what it is to be an all rounder someone who can sing, dance and act, sometimes called the triple threat.
It is truly wonderful for the audience that this show is jam packed with triple threats, and has some of the greatest song montages ever constructed for the stage.
Some of the sixteen characters trying out for the few available bit parts and chorus spots sing their personal story with a featured song, while others are left to tell it as a monologue or even as a mime that we never fully hear.
The way the show is written forces one story, the story of Paul (Euan Doidge) to stand out from all the others, mainly because he never really sings his story he has a long monologue to describe his background and how he came to be here auditioning today, and then through some anti-dramatic handling of the plot by the writers (James Kirkwood, Jr. and Nicholas Dante) his destiny is altered possibly for the rest of his career and life.
Another character Cassie (Anita Louise Combe) has also had some illustrious highs and lows in her career that have brought her to this audition, and she must lay her all on the line in order not to be one of the many who are asked to leave before the end of the day.
It is definitely a bitter sweet show filled with comedy and heartfelt moments, and this production delivers on all levels. A simple but effective set, a wonderfully subdued lighting design that helps keep direct focus on the important moments, and some completely energetic and enlivened dance sequences that leave you breathless and in complete awe of these extraordinary athletes making stomping around in time to music look effortlessly simple.
This is such a wonderfully measured show with some extremely solid talent bringing life to the variety of characters that make up the little world weÃÂre sneaking a peek inside. I think the greatest star is the core group who developed the material originally because it is so well layered with lght and dense moments without ever getting too silly or camp. The structure of the story and the content reveal a lot of the realities faced by people who live to dance as a career, even if it is simply in a chorus line.
The lyrics written by Edward Kleban, and music composed by Marvin Hamlisch is classic mid-seventies schmaltz and style with some great influences of 1930s jazz here and there and fine Motown sounds embedded.
A Chorus Line is a great show and well worth the ticket price.
David Jobling
Until December 31.
Tickets are now on sale online at bass.net.au and from 9am on Tuesday 4 October through all BASS outlets and on 131 246.
This singular sensation and dazzling new production comes direct from Broadway, directed and re-staged by Baayork Lee, with Musical Supervisor Peter Casey, produced by Tim Lawson and TML Enterprises.
A CHORUS LINE was originally conceived, choreographed and directed by Michael Bennett, featuring a book by James Kirkwood and Nicholas Dante, with music by Marvin Hamlisch and lyrics by Edward Kleban. Director Baayork Lee has been involved in A CHORUS LINE since 1975, first as a dancer in the original Broadway cast creating the role of Connie, through to directing the show in the U.S. and now in Australia.
Adelaide Festival Centre CEO and Artistic Director Douglas Gautier says We are very much looking forward to presenting A CHORUS LINE as our summer musical. It will be a great night out for those of us who loved it the first time around, and it's exciting to be able to introduce it to a whole new generation of theatre goers
Producer Tim Lawson says After seeing the incredible pool of talent at auditions, I know that audiences are going to be blown away by the dynamic talent that will shine in this Broadway classic. An exciting mix of new performers and established favourites
A CHORUS LINE tells the tale of 17 dancers desperately auditioning for eight stage roles in a musical. Its origin stems from when Bennett started taping interviews with New York dancers sharing their feelings and frustrations.
The original production of A CHORUS LINE opened at the Public Theatre's Newman Theatre in 1975 and transferred to Broadway's Shubert Theatre later that year. It won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, nine Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Score and Book, and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award. It ran for nearly 15 years, closing in 1990 after 6,137 performances. A CHORUS LINE remains the longest running American musical in Broadway history.
'The chance to see Michael Bennett's masterpiece again, or for the first time, shouldn't be missed' THE NEW YORK OBSERVER
Venue: Festival Theatre
When: From 31 December, 8pm (2hrs)
Cost: Premium $110-$119, A Reserve $90-$105, A Concession $80-$95, Groups 6 $70-$95, B Reserve $80-$95, B Concession $70-$85, C Reserve $70-$85, C Concession $60-$75, GreenRoom $45, Family Pass $200 - $300
Bookings: BASS on 131 246 or online at www.bass.net.au (suitable 12 years)
A CHORUS LINE
You may have seen the movie of a chorus line directed by Sir Richard Attenborough and featuring Michael Douglas in the role of the director, Zach (played here by Josh Horner).
If you have only seen this screen version the best thing to do is forget about it, not because it isn't a good film, simply because it is a screen adaption and not the same show.
On stage A Chorus Line is about as real as a musical confection will get. The experience of auditioning for a Broadway musical is not directly in my lexicon of experience, but I have auditioned for major productions in Australia including an all day dance and movement audition for Meryl Tankard who eventually went on to choreograph Tarzan on Broadway for the Disney Company, and I can say this, the pressure one applies to oneself in the audition process is about as forceful as the pressure one feels on the opening night of a show that's yet to be seen by an audience. It is a little terrifying.
This is one of the things that stands out in the stage version of A Chorus Line the unending pressure particularly as there are no commercial breaks to ease the tension or divert the focus from what is happening right before your eyes.
The similarity to the real experience is strong; it remains a conceit in so much as it is a show after all, but it is a very realistic show that unravels in real time before your very eyes.
Michael Douglas in the film version was at the top of his form becoming an extremely popular movie star after winning hearts on television as an actor and awards as a film producer; but he was never a dancer. He simply didn't have the ability to do the dance numbers required, so they wrote his character out of them.
In this far superior stage version the director who is making the dancers strut their stuff while telling them to relax and just speak to him is capable of every dance step he is demanding and this rings very true not only providing Josh Horner with some wonderful moments to show what a great dancer he is, but also to give us the insight into what it is to be an all rounder someone who can sing, dance and act, sometimes called the triple threat.
It is truly wonderful for the audience that this show is jam packed with triple threats, and has some of the greatest song montages ever constructed for the stage.
Some of the sixteen characters trying out for the few available bit parts and chorus spots sing their personal story with a featured song, while others are left to tell it as a monologue or even as a mime that we never fully hear.
The way the show is written forces one story, the story of Paul (Euan Doidge) to stand out from all the others, mainly because he never really sings his story he has a long monologue to describe his background and how he came to be here auditioning today, and then through some anti-dramatic handling of the plot by the writers (James Kirkwood, Jr. and Nicholas Dante) his destiny is altered possibly for the rest of his career and life.
Another character Cassie (Anita Louise Combe) has also had some illustrious highs and lows in her career that have brought her to this audition, and she must lay her all on the line in order not to be one of the many who are asked to leave before the end of the day.
It is definitely a bitter sweet show filled with comedy and heartfelt moments, and this production delivers on all levels. A simple but effective set, a wonderfully subdued lighting design that helps keep direct focus on the important moments, and some completely energetic and enlivened dance sequences that leave you breathless and in complete awe of these extraordinary athletes making stomping around in time to music look effortlessly simple.
This is such a wonderfully measured show with some extremely solid talent bringing life to the variety of characters that make up the little world weÃÂre sneaking a peek inside. I think the greatest star is the core group who developed the material originally because it is so well layered with lght and dense moments without ever getting too silly or camp. The structure of the story and the content reveal a lot of the realities faced by people who live to dance as a career, even if it is simply in a chorus line.
The lyrics written by Edward Kleban, and music composed by Marvin Hamlisch is classic mid-seventies schmaltz and style with some great influences of 1930s jazz here and there and fine Motown sounds embedded.
A Chorus Line is a great show and well worth the ticket price.
David Jobling
Until December 31.
Tickets are now on sale online at bass.net.au and from 9am on Tuesday 4 October through all BASS outlets and on 131 246.
This singular sensation and dazzling new production comes direct from Broadway, directed and re-staged by Baayork Lee, with Musical Supervisor Peter Casey, produced by Tim Lawson and TML Enterprises.
A CHORUS LINE was originally conceived, choreographed and directed by Michael Bennett, featuring a book by James Kirkwood and Nicholas Dante, with music by Marvin Hamlisch and lyrics by Edward Kleban. Director Baayork Lee has been involved in A CHORUS LINE since 1975, first as a dancer in the original Broadway cast creating the role of Connie, through to directing the show in the U.S. and now in Australia.
Adelaide Festival Centre CEO and Artistic Director Douglas Gautier says We are very much looking forward to presenting A CHORUS LINE as our summer musical. It will be a great night out for those of us who loved it the first time around, and it's exciting to be able to introduce it to a whole new generation of theatre goers
Producer Tim Lawson says After seeing the incredible pool of talent at auditions, I know that audiences are going to be blown away by the dynamic talent that will shine in this Broadway classic. An exciting mix of new performers and established favourites
A CHORUS LINE tells the tale of 17 dancers desperately auditioning for eight stage roles in a musical. Its origin stems from when Bennett started taping interviews with New York dancers sharing their feelings and frustrations.
The original production of A CHORUS LINE opened at the Public Theatre's Newman Theatre in 1975 and transferred to Broadway's Shubert Theatre later that year. It won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, nine Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Score and Book, and the New York Drama Critics Circle Award. It ran for nearly 15 years, closing in 1990 after 6,137 performances. A CHORUS LINE remains the longest running American musical in Broadway history.
'The chance to see Michael Bennett's masterpiece again, or for the first time, shouldn't be missed' THE NEW YORK OBSERVER
Venue: Festival Theatre
When: From 31 December, 8pm (2hrs)
Cost: Premium $110-$119, A Reserve $90-$105, A Concession $80-$95, Groups 6 $70-$95, B Reserve $80-$95, B Concession $70-$85, C Reserve $70-$85, C Concession $60-$75, GreenRoom $45, Family Pass $200 - $300
Bookings: BASS on 131 246 or online at www.bass.net.au (suitable 12 years)
CAST
Zach - Josh Horner
Larry - Gerrard Carter
Don - Mark Hill
Maggie - Stephanie Grigg
Mike - James Maxfield
Connie - Lean Lim
Greg - Rohan Brown
Cassie - Anita Louise Combe (SA)
Sheila - Debora Krizak (SA)
Dianna - Karlee Misipeka
Bobby - Ashley McKenzie
Bebe - Monique Salle
Judy - Renee Armstrong
Al - Will Centurion
Kristine - Sian Johnson
Cal - Hayley Winch
Mark - Scott Morris
Paul - Euan Doidge (SA)
Roy - Mitchell Hicks
Tom - Jakob Ambrose
Frank - Mark Strom
Butch - Joel Hewlett
Lois - Samantha Dodemaide
Vicky - Amber Jean Thomas
Trisha - Meghan O'Shea
Dance Captain - Alice Ramshaw
Swing - Heath Keating
Full biographies
Zach - Josh Horner
Larry - Gerrard Carter
Don - Mark Hill
Maggie - Stephanie Grigg
Mike - James Maxfield
Connie - Lean Lim
Greg - Rohan Brown
Cassie - Anita Louise Combe (SA)
Sheila - Debora Krizak (SA)
Dianna - Karlee Misipeka
Bobby - Ashley McKenzie
Bebe - Monique Salle
Judy - Renee Armstrong
Al - Will Centurion
Kristine - Sian Johnson
Cal - Hayley Winch
Mark - Scott Morris
Paul - Euan Doidge (SA)
Roy - Mitchell Hicks
Tom - Jakob Ambrose
Frank - Mark Strom
Butch - Joel Hewlett
Lois - Samantha Dodemaide
Vicky - Amber Jean Thomas
Trisha - Meghan O'Shea
Dance Captain - Alice Ramshaw
Swing - Heath Keating
Full biographies
| 27 |
| Vote |
Add To: 
subscribe to this blog
