Tonight at Eight Would Be Just Great

I don't know if we've ever gotten this many rave reviews for a show! I hope you'll all come share this wonderful, wacky rock musical with us...!

Here's what the critics say...

“New Line Theatre’s Two Gentlemen of Verona is an enthusiastic, gutsy, spirited, humorous and totally entertaining show. New Line’s cast is the ultimate in professional silliness. Shakespeare has never been this much fun!” – Harry Hamm, KMOX

“It's a happy romp! It's a silly, illogical, lovely tale! And it's a hit! It's New Line Theatre's immensely enjoyable new offering, the musical comedy version of Two Gentlemen of Verona. . . The New Line cast is uniformly fine. There simply isn't a weak spot. It's full of New Line veterans brimming with talent and with that special kind of family love that Scott Miller has magically fostered in his company over the years. They all perform with such joy and confidence and generosity of heart. . . as a whole package – the show, the cast, the band, the production values – it all makes New Line Theatre's Two Gentlemen of Verona the most purely enjoyable evening of theatre I've had in a long, long time.” – Steve Callahan, KDHX

“New Line Theatre and director Scott Miller's current production of Two Gentlemen of Verona not only rocks, but it's hilarious as well, aided greatly by the spectacular efforts of an enthusiastic cast and a crack band. I honestly can't recall when I've ever witnessed an audience laugh at and enjoy Shakespeare more; the resident Bad Boy of Musical Theatre has come through again. . . I really love the way director/music director Scott Miller makes the most of each comic moment, not milking it, but mining it for the richest results. . . New Line Theatre's production of Two Gentlemen of Verona is brilliantly executed and funny as hell. This terrific presentation continues through March 26.” – Chris Gibson, BroadwayWorld.com

“Director Scott Miller's production just goes to show what you already know: That Shakespeare is so strong, a smart production can take his work in almost any direction, and it will flourish. Just take a look. . . We can identify with unfamiliar times, places or situations when theater artists help us draw fresh, imaginative connections. Miller, who often stages shows that aren't obvious or easy, not only seems to know that's possible, he appreciates how those unsuspected links can pay off in enormous theatrical pleasure. And that's exactly what Two Gents delivers.” – Judith Newmark, St. Louis Post-Dispatch

“This winsome work by MacDermot, Guare and Shapiro is a delightful romp that is much more than the sum of its parts. Scott Miller’s inspired version directed for New Line Theatre features an exuberant and engaging cast that thoroughly enjoys itself and infectiously spreads that fervor throughout its audience. . . With Miller’s flamboyant and spirited approach, though, it’s easy to sit back and enjoy these musical Gentlemen. A 4.5 on a scale of 1-to-5.” – Mark Bretz, The Ladue News

“New Line Theatre pushes the proverbial envelope to dimensions other theatres simply do not. If you want to see a show and feel like you're in New York or Chicago, go see a show at New Line. Go see Two Gentlemen of Verona. It'll be the most fun you have at the theater this year.” – Christopher Reilly, The Patch

“The familiar New Line crew never fails to disappoint, and the ensemble members are always completely engaged and energetic. . . I was struck with how familiar the songs sounded and then I remembered, oh yeah, Galt MacDermot did the music for this. He also composed the music for Hair, and the music for Two Gents is very reminiscent of that (with a little Spanish spice thrown in) – engaging, groovy, and the New Line Band was tight and handled it well. . . After a while, you forget that it's Shakespeare. And I mean that in a good way.” – Andrea Torrence, St. Louis Theatre Snob

“This is one you don’t want to miss. It’s really a piece of history and the infrequency of productions of Two Gentlemen of Verona makes it a true must-see.” – Steve Allen, Java Journal

“Mardi Gras in St. Louis turned cold and blustery, but spring is very much in the air, thanks to this bright, funny, beautiful show. And if you were expecting another New Line musical with a dark, cold edge to it, you'll be very pleasantly surprised by this thoroughly light-hearted adventure. Producer/director Scott Miller must be in love – or, at least, in love with this show.” – Richard Green, TalkinBroadway.com

“It's bright and breezy in its current production by New Line Theatre. It opened last night and will run delightfully through March 26. . . Scott Miller's direction is solid, and Robin Michelle Berger did some charming choreography, well-handled by the cast. The acting also is strong. . . a highly enjoyable evening.” – Joe Pollack, St. Louis Eats and Drinks

Long Live the Musical!
Scott

Love Has Driven Me Sane

We've been getting RAVE reviews for Two Gents! “Shakespeare has never been this much fun!” (Harry Hamm, KMOX-FM); “the most purely enjoyable evening of theatre I've had in a long, long time.” (Steve Callahan, KDHX); “I honestly can't recall when I've ever witnessed an audience laugh at and enjoy Shakespeare more.” (Chris Gibson, BroadwayWorld.com). I'll post them all here when they're all in.

But one review today begs for a response. Mark Bretz' review in The Ladue News was extremely complimentary about our production (giving us a 4.5 out of 5 rating!), but somewhat dismissive of the show itself. Mark wrote, "Like its subject material, this musical version of Two Gentlemen of Verona is flawed, most notably by a dreadful opening and closing number, 'I Love My Father,' that features amazingly banal lyrics more wincingly childish than sophisticated. Despite the clumsy introduction and stumbling finale, this winsome work by MacDermot, Guare and Shapiro is a delightful romp that is much more than the sum of its parts."

But I think he's missing a lot here...

First, the references to the changing of the seasons that open the first song (and the show) are about these young people's constantly changing moods and loves. They sing, "I am like all seasons" -- really? all of them? -- and we will soon see that their mixed-up young lives are a psychedelic kaleidoscope of constantly conflicting and shifting emotions. They really are like all seasons at once! But this opening is also a song about a shallowness (or even a complete lack) of self-awareness that will drive the entire plot. They throw around the word love a lot, but none of them really knows (yet) what love actually is. They haven't experienced real love, so their take on it is, of necessity, shallow. Notice the end of the opening song: "I love my mirror, I want to tell me, I want to love me." These are selfish, childish people. It's joyful, but it's without substance...

Mark's complaint that the opening lyrics are more childish than sophisticated is true and it's intentional. How could these selfish, childish, sheltered, young people have a sophisticated view of themselves or of life...? And what kind of story would start with the protagonists having complete self-knowledge? That has to be earned in a Hero Myth.

Hair makes the same point sometimes, giving its hippies intentionally shallow, childish things to say or sing because they are shallow and childish in a lot of ways. Berger's rant before the song "Easy to Be Hard" is as childish and selfish and hurtful as anything Proteus does in Two Gents. And I think the creators are making the point that the hippies were not all Zen Masters. Because so many of them were children, they also tended to be selfish and self-involved.

I think in some ways, Two Gents is about the selfish side of the hippie movement. Sure it was about peace and love, but it was also about getting laid and getting stoned...

And the finale, which I totally love, is about letting go of the bullshit that always surrounds love. The main characters have learned that "the shock of happiness" comes when they stop thinking about what they want and start thinking about what the person they love wants. And though the "I love my father" section was shallow and perfunctory at the beginning, here there is some more adult understanding of the interconnectedness of everyone (which is the point of the Tai Chi moves). The discovery here of real love, rather than the excitement of lust or the easy gratification of selfish infatuation, teaches them what a wrong road they've all been on. When Launce sings, "Wonderland is not where Alice is..." he's standing in for all the lovers, who now understand that true love doesn't exist in a fantasy world of hearts and flowers, and that love and joy can be found in the real world. Fake, shallow love drove them all crazy, but real, rational, adult love will drive them all sane...

I think sometimes reviewers fault a show for not being or saying what they expect. I think Mark wanted the writers to make a statement in the opening and closing numbers, but instead the characters make those statements. As in Assassins, these messed up people have to speak for themselves. And though it may not be tidy and clear, it's a lot more real that way...

Self-knowledge doesn't come easily.

Long Live the Musical!
Scott

Follow the Rainbow

My director's notes for Two Gents...

It’s easy to say in hindsight, but maybe Two Gents was the perfect Shakespeare play for the composer of Hair to tackle. After all, this play was Shakespeare’s Rent, youthful, raw, rowdy, messy, rude, and certainly flawed. And composer Jonathan Larson said that he intended Rent to be the new Hair. It’s the flaws that give Hair, Two Gents, and Rent -- and our June show, bare --their rawness and rough edges. They don’t feel manufactured or focus-grouped. They possess that same authenticity that the best, most lasting rock and roll has. The same is true of lots of recent musicals, like Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, American Idiot, Love Kills, Passing Strange, and others.

Like the brilliant filmmaker Tim Burton, Shakespeare wasn’t always the best storyteller in the world. He borrowed plots, he relied on improbable coincidences, mistaken identity, and other devices we’d find amateurish in anyone else’s hands. Just as Burton’s real artistry is in his visual language, Shakespeare’s real artistry is in the complex psychology of his characters, maybe even more so than in his amazing language. He was the first theatre writer to delve deep down into the complexities of human emotion and motivation, and he got it so right in most of his plays that we continue to perform them hundreds of years later.

Two Gentlemen of Verona was Shakespeare’s first play, and though he’s not at the top of his game here, he’s still Shakespeare, and that’s enough. The musical’s original director Mel Shapiro and playwright John Guare fixed some of the play’s problems, and together with composer Galt MacDermot, they fashioned a new work, one still very organic to Shakespeare’s play but with a contemporary sensibility that brings this rarely produced work to vivid, modern life. Its 1971 cultural vibe brings so much more complexity and high stakes to the story, adding to the original plot a pregnancy, a decision about abortion, and the Duke’s habit of sending Silvia’s boyfriends not just away, but literally off to “the Vietnam meat grinder,” as they used to call it.

It’s true that Two Gents as a play doesn’t have the artistry or polish of Hamlet or The Tempest, but there is much that’s wonderful here. Critic Paul Friswold wrote about our other Shakespearean rock musical, Return to the Forbidden Planet, “This is no parlor trick of a musical; there’s a rich vein of Shakespeare’s favorite ingredient – the wondrous depths of the human heart – that elevates the show from cunning stunt to artful meditation on the destructive nature of power and the redemptive power of love.” The same is true here.

Our hope with this production is to get back to the original spirit of Shakespeare’s plays – rowdy, sexy, dirty, funny, popular, irreverent, rule-busting, and most of all, deeply, crazily human.

Long Live the Musical!
Scott

A Picture of Glee

We had a really wonderful run last night -- funny, high-energy, and terrific pacing. The cast and band have pretty much mastered this show. There are still little things to polish and tweak, but I took fewer notes last night than I've ever taken before during Hell Week. It's just that solid.

One more run-through tonight, then Thursday we put it in front of a preview audience, find out where unexpected laughs may be, get a sense of where to hold for applause, all that stuff.

Todd's psychedelic set is so cool, such a great playground for the actors to play on. The costumes are a hoot, the lighting is really cool (lots of gobos, my favorite!), and the band is truly rocking the score. Everything has really come together.

I think some of the actors were feeling a bit weird after Monday's run-through. Because there are so many elements in this show -- some of them pretty complicated -- Monday night's run was less about the art and more about figuring out all the practical stuff. They were working with live mics for the first time, dealing with costume changes (including one onstage), hearing entirely new sounds and cues coming from the full band, so much suddenly thrown at them all at once, after weeks of relative comfort thinking about nothing other than the acting and singing. But I knew that for a show like this, that less artful Monday night run was an important step. They had to deal with all that practical stuff so that last night they could "run free" inside their characters.

And that's exactly what they did. Any hesitation or confusion from Monday was totally gone last night. All the emotion, humor, wackiness, etc., all came roaring back last night. Just like I knew it would.

We'll do a little more tweaking tonight -- and Jill will be there to take production photos -- and then we send it out into the world...

This is my favorite part of the process. After tonight, I get to sit back and watch our awesome, crazy show grow deeper and richer over the next four weeks.

I love my job.
Long Live the Musical!
Scott