Dr. Blackwell's BLOG

King Kong: The Musical officially opened at Melbourne’s Regent Theater (the same theater where Andrew Lloyd Webber’s magnificent restaging of the Phantom sequel Love Never Dies ran about 2 years ago) last night and the critics are absolutely raving about the production! Aussie theater critic Anne-Marie Peard calls Kong’s entrance “The most spectacular thing ever seen on a live stage” and goes on to claim the show as “gorgeous and unforgettable.” Cameron Woodhead of The Age tags the show as “massive and magical” and ensures it will “leave a colossal footprint” and that it is “mind blowing.”

Australian Stages‘ Vito Mattarelli calls the production “Epic and operatic in scale.” The show itself has been in production for over 5 years as the gigantic 6-meter tall animatronic ape puppet was perfected by Global Creatures (the same team behind the impressive puppets used in the Tony Award winning play War Horse). The show boasts over 70 stagehands and crew members; Kong himself is operated by 13 different puppeteers who use a variety of cables and weight balance techniques to bring him to life. The actors of the production, who worked tirelessly through 5 months of rehearsal (!) are also being praised by critics; Matarelli claimed that as the main lead Esther Hannaford “easily came off best.”

There are plans to bring the show to Broadway. Although any definitive plans have yet to be announced. Currently, tickets for the Melbourne production are on-sale through July 27th. Take a look at the video below highlighting two of the show’s spectacular numbers:

TITANIC, what to me is by far the best show to ever grace the Broadway stage, turned 16 years old Tuesday. The show opened on April 23 of 1997 at the Lunt Fontanne Theater (recent home of GHOST The Musical and current home to Motown The Musical) and would go on to run for close to 3 years, playing for 804 performances. The show broke ground for new technological advances in live theater and featured enormous and elaborate sets that actually “sunk” in the second act. But the true heart of the show lies in its absolutely gorgeous and lush score and musical arrangements that tell a familiar story from an amazingly unique and tragic perspective. TITANIC would sweep the 1997 Tony Awards and take home trophies for Best Musical, Best Orchestrations (Jonathan Tunic), Best Scenic Design (Steward Laing), Best Book (Peter Stone), and Best Original Score (Maury Yeston). “Sail on… Great ship!” Take a look at TITANIC’s performance at the 1997 Tony Awards show below:

The amazing new musical Hands on a Hard Body is going to unfortunately call it quits April 13, 2013 at the Brooks Atkinson Theater. Unable to garner a solid following, the show, originally produced at the La Jolla Theater, had a financially rough preview period and was unable to raise its average ticket price to more than about $32. Last week, the show earned a little more than $240,000 playing in front of a house at a little less than 60% capacity. The musical follows the true story of a 1997 contest at a Texas Nissan dealer that tested the tenacity of a group of people vying to win a free Nissan truck. He or she who was able to keep his or her hands on the truck the longest, won it. Each character has their own number (sometimes sung in duets or even ensemble numbers) that tells the heartwarming reason why winning the truck is such an essential feat to their life. The music is by Trey Anastasio, the frontman of the alternative rock group Phish, and features a score by Amanda Green and musical staging by Sergio Trujillo (MEMPHIS; The Jersey Boys). I was able to see the show during its preview period back in March and my partner and I were thoroughly impressed. The simple staging, which might disappoint some expecting the “razzle dazzle” of a big Broadway musical, actually made the show incredibly intimate; and the musical score and choreography, often involving the truck itself, soared and ROCKED its way into our hearts as we felt empathy and excitement for each one of the contestants. It truly was a unique and incredible addition to the American musical theater that will probably live on through touring and regional productions. But very sadly, the show will only have run for 28 preview performances and 28 regular performances on Broadway, which is a mighty less number than this incredible musical deserved. To obtain tickets for Hands On A Hard Body, which closes this Saturday, visit the show’s Web Site @ http://handsonahardbody.com. Take a look below at some highlights from the show, including exclusive interviews with Trey Anastasio and Amanda Green:

Love Never Dies, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s spectacular sequel to his smash hit musical The Phantom of the Opera, is getting some new life. Webber has called the work his third best-ever behind EVITA and the original Phantom. While I would argue this show is by-far better than both of those productions, Love Never Dies deserves a long and healthy life in the world of musical theater. Originally plagued by issues in its original London bow, the show was a financial disappointment and didn’t last a full year in the West End. Unfortunately, Webber was removed from that production as he battled prostate cancer. Luckily, Webber healed; and so did the show! Hiring a new production team and director (Simon Phillips of Priscilla: Queen of the Desert), he brought the show to Melbourne, where in its reimagined form, won critical praise and adulation by audiences. The show was eventually filmed and released on DVD last year. Now, the Melbourne-based production is starting an 80-week tour in the UK with plans for the show to eventually come to North America and possibly even back to the West End depending on the success of its tour. Take a look at the Web Site for Love Never Dies, featuring news and tour dates below:http://www.loveneverdies.com/

The new musical Kinky Boots, with music and lyrics by pop superstar Cindy Lauper under the direction of Harvey Fierstein, is starting its out-of-town run in Chicago. The show will begin previews on Broadway on March 3, 2013 at the Al Hirschfeld Theater. The show is a light-hearted comedy about a struggling shoemaker who revives his career by designing and manufacturing sturdy shoes for drag performers. Take a look at some clips from the show from Playbill below:

This could get quite interesting. Playbill is reporting that the co-author of Broadway’s smash hit musical Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark is authoring a tell-all book about his experience developing the show. The production was plagued during its preview with a handful of actor and stuntmen injuries; and after Julie Taymor refused to alter the strange story of the original bow that was universally panned by critics and left audiences scratching their heads in confusion, she was let go. Of course, Mrs. Taymor didn’t leave quietly and she sued the producers for her work that she claimed remains in the final production that is now in its second year running on Broadway. I’ve seen the show 5 times and can personally attest it is one of my favorites. The music is rockingly cool (it’s written by the lead men of U2), the sets are breath-taking, and the costumes and entire production is downright opulent and incredible! Here’s the story from Playbill.com:

Playwright Glen Berger, who co-authored the script of Broadway’s Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark, has signed a deal with Simon & Schuster to write “Song of Spider-Man: The Inside Story of the Most Controversial Musical in Broadway History,” chronicling his journey with the production.

As first reported in the New York Times, “Song of Spider-Man” was acquired by Jonathan Karp, the publisher and executive vice-president of Simon & Schuster, himself librettist and lyricist of the Off-Broadway musical How to Save the World… A spokesperson for the publishing company independently confirmed the Berger book plan with Playbill.com, sharing the cover art. The publication date is to be determined.

Berger co-wrote Spider-Man‘s book alongside Tony winner Julie Taymor, who was eventually let go from the production in 2011. Playwright and comic book writer Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa was then enlisted by the musical’s creative team to make revisions to the book alongside Berger.

King Kong: The Musical, which is being touted as one of the most technically sophisticated productions to ever grace the stage, is quickly moving forward in Australia. The show’s producers recently announced that principal casting for the lavish production had been completed and producers posted an enticing video of a press conference complete with a sampling of songs from the show on its Web site (http://kingkongliveonstage.com). According to Playbill:

The new musical features a book by Craig Lucas. Composer and arranger Marius de Vries, whose credits include the soundtracks for “Moulin Rouge” and “Romeo + Juliet,” will create and oversee a a score that will feature revamped versions of 1930s Broadway classics like “Get Happy,” “I Wanna Be Loved By You” and “Brother Can You Spare a Dime” as well as new and existing songs from a mix of contemporary artists: Robert Del Naja from Massive Attack, Sarah McLachlan, Justice, Guy Garvey from Elbow and The Avalanches. A key collaborator on the musical landscape for the show is Stephen Pavlovic from Modular People; Michael Mitnick has contributed lyrics to several new compositions.

Director Kramer said in a statement, “It’s tempting to focus on the spectacle of King Kong himself. But it is only through the humanity of the life around him – the people of New York City, the comic megalomania of filmmaker Carl Denham, the stubborn opposition of first mate Jack Driscoll, and the grace, beauty and power of our leading lady, Ann Darrow – that he truly takes life. After three years of auditions and workshops, it is an honour to introduce the world premiere cast of King Kong.”

The musical, according to press notes, “has gone back to the source – the novella of the original film by Merian C. Cooper and Edgar Wallace – in this world-first adaptation as a large-scale musical. Featuring a cast of 49 actors, singers, dancers, circus performers and puppeteers; a crew of 76; and arguably the most technologically advanced puppet in the world – a one-tonne, six-metre giant silverback – King Kong will be an epic and dazzlingly original theatrical experience.”

The character of King Kong, according to producers, will be “an imposing, stylised silverback of exaggerated proportions…a highly sophisticated animatronic/marionette hybrid that will be controlled by the integration of hydraulics, automation and the manual manipulation from a team of puppeteer/aerialists (The King’s Men) on stage, and off.”

King Kong: The Musical arrives at the Regent Theater in Melbourne on June 13, 2013. Excerpts courtesy Playbill.com.