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Post by inthenose on Jul 3, 2022 18:32:47 GMT
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264 posts
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Post by squidward on Jul 6, 2022 0:31:36 GMT
I’d be very interested to know how the narrative of the show was condensed into an hour. If anyone on here is planning on going to see it, please report back. Thanks in advance.
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Post by inthenose on Jul 6, 2022 5:26:01 GMT
I’d be very interested to know how the narrative of the show was condensed into an hour. If anyone on here is planning on going to see it, please report back. Thanks in advance. A few more clips also available, courtesy of Broadwayworld on YouTube. I also don't know how they explain the plot in just an hour. A second call for more info please!
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Post by Deleted on Jul 6, 2022 5:31:47 GMT
I'm going in a couple of weeks, so will let you know. Yes, it will be interesting to see how they manage to tell the whole story in just one hour.
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Post by inthenose on Jul 12, 2022 12:04:05 GMT
I'm going in a couple of weeks, so will let you know. Yes, it will be interesting to see how they manage to tell the whole story in just one hour. Waiting excitedly for a review!
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Post by Deleted on Jul 12, 2022 15:45:54 GMT
I'm going in a couple of weeks, so will let you know. Yes, it will be interesting to see how they manage to tell the whole story in just one hour. Waiting excitedly for a review! I'm going this Saturday evening, so will post my thoughts as soon as I can after the show. They have now extended the run to the Sunday 14th August.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 16, 2022 21:48:14 GMT
I'm going in a couple of weeks, so will let you know. Yes, it will be interesting to see how they manage to tell the whole story in just one hour. Waiting excitedly for a review! Well, that was incredible. I'll write a proper review tomorrow when I have more time, but it worked really well in that setting. It was basically "The best of...Diana" - they'd cut out most of the Natalie/Henry stuff, and unfortunately (as I really like them) "I've Been" and "Light in the Dark". So it makes it an intense hour as there's no variation in mood, but Alice Ripley was even more than I hoped for. She put everything into that and sounded fantastic. I think you have to know the show to appreciate this abridged version. There was a successful Spanish production about 5 years ago that played Barcelona, Bilbao and Madrid, and there were so many Americans there tonight who had travelled to see the show (/Alice). The 360 effects were wonderful. Virtual Adam Pascal worked as Diana has all her appointments by video call or phone. And the visual stuff really complemented Alice's performance, getting inside her head etc. As as I said, I'll write all my thoughts tomorrow. But for what we got tonight, €35 a ticket was a bargain.
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Post by inthenose on Jul 16, 2022 21:56:32 GMT
Waiting excitedly for a review! Well, that was incredible. I'll write a proper review tomorrow when I have more time, but it worked really well in that setting. It was basically "The best of...Diana" - they'd cut out most of the Natalie/Henry stuff, and unfortunately (as I really like them) "I've Been" and "Light on the Dark". So it makes it an intense hour as there's no variation in mood, but Alice Ripley was even more than I hoped for. She put everything into that and sounded fantastic. I think you have to know the show to appreciate this abridged version. There was a successful Spanish production about 5 years ago that played Barcelona, Bilbao and Madrid, and there were so many Americans there tonight who had travelled to see the show (/Alice). The 360 effects were wonderful. Virtual Adam Pascal worked as Diana has all her appointments are by video call or phone. And the visual stuff really complemented Alice's performance, getting inside her head etc. As as I said, I'll write all my thoughts tomorrow. But for what we got tonight, €35 a ticket was a bargain. Thank you, looking forward to hearing more! Specifically how the story is actually told narratively and all that good stuff. Thanks for sharing your thoughts so far!
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Post by Deleted on Jul 18, 2022 16:53:09 GMT
Well, that was incredible. I'll write a proper review tomorrow when I have more time, but it worked really well in that setting. It was basically "The best of...Diana" - they'd cut out most of the Natalie/Henry stuff, and unfortunately (as I really like them) "I've Been" and "Light on the Dark". So it makes it an intense hour as there's no variation in mood, but Alice Ripley was even more than I hoped for. She put everything into that and sounded fantastic. I think you have to know the show to appreciate this abridged version. There was a successful Spanish production about 5 years ago that played Barcelona, Bilbao and Madrid, and there were so many Americans there tonight who had travelled to see the show (/Alice). The 360 effects were wonderful. Virtual Adam Pascal worked as Diana has all her appointments are by video call or phone. And the visual stuff really complemented Alice's performance, getting inside her head etc. As as I said, I'll write all my thoughts tomorrow. But for what we got tonight, €35 a ticket was a bargain. Thank you, looking forward to hearing more! Specifically how the story is actually told narratively and all that good stuff. Thanks for sharing your thoughts so far! Sorry for the delay with this, but here's some more on the staging and narrative etc, and I've tried to avoid any spoilers for those who don't know the story... First of all, I think most people watching on Saturday night had previous knowledge of the show - there was certainly a vibe of familiarity in the queue outside before it started. I spoke to some Spanish and Americans (people started queuing over an hour before the doors opened, as it was first-come-first-served for seating choice) and all of them had seen it before - either the Spanish production 5 years ago; or were huge fans of the show in the US, and had flown over to see it (and Alice Ripley) in Barcelona. One guy behind me had seen it over 40 times on Broadway and tour, while others had Playbills from various shows they were hoping to get Alice to sign. Once we got in, we could sit on any of the cubes dotted around the room (with the exception of some which were reserved, and used by the actors at various times during the show). Luckily I got there early and started speaking to two really nice Spanish ladies who had seen it the week before, so they told me to follow them when we got in, for the best seats (and they weren’t lying). Regarding the narrative, the show has been adapted by the original writers, Brian Yorkey and Tom Kitt, for this version. So it’s very carefully done so as not to lose the integrity (is that right word?) of the piece. And it feels very true to the original and certainly not a knock-off version. The audience is allowed into the space about 15 mins before the start, and Diana is already sitting on a chair in the middle of the room. She’s sitting anxiously (and performs it brilliantly), which it turns out is her at 3.30am waiting for Gabe to arrive home. During that 15 mins while the audience is coming in and finding a seat, there is some text appearing on the walls - some of it background information about the musical, while other pieces explaining a little about Diana, her illness and her family, to set the story up. You can see that here in this Instagram post: www.instagram.com/reel/CfobPb4l6Rp/?igshid=MDJmNzVkMjY=The show itself then runs at about 1h10m (with what would be the first act being about 37 mins, and the second act 33 mins - but obviously there is no interval in this version). As I said in my last post, it’s like a “Best of Diana” show, with the focus being specifically on her. The other characters are there to serve her story, which is always the case, but it doesn’t go into so much detail on their individual struggles in the same way the full show does. So songs like Natalie’s “Everything Else” and Dan’s “I’ve Been” are completely cut, and others are just one short verse if it’s essential to the story. For example, Dan just sings the final verse of “A Light in the Dark” when he’s trying to get Diana to agree to the treatment. Most other songs have also been trimmed down, with verses removed. It really is an illusion though, because I still don’t understand how they were able to cut so much, yet feel that the full story was there. And even watching it, it didn’t feel rushed. I think the actors did a lot to make sure their characters’ story was told as much as possible. Natalie and Dan’s acting was fantastic, so what was cut from the show about their own struggles, really was compensated in their performance. I know it sounds a bit pretentious, but you do really feel the emotion from the character when they are sitting crying in the chair right beside you. They also used a voiceover at times, to fill in parts that had been removed. At the end of (what would be) Act 1, there is a narrator explaining what is happening, as Gabe is still singing “There’s a World”. While other times the actor says in one line what would have been sung in a full verse - again, an example is when Diana phones Dr Madden and simply says “It’s been four weeks since the treatment and my mind is still a mess”, and he then goes straight into singing “Are you talking with your husband…”. I’m not sure what else I can say, so just ask me anything I haven't explained clearly enough. The 360 effects really do work in getting inside Diana’s head - in her video calls with Dr Madden, for example, you see flashes of the rock star image she sees, and get a sense of the chaos that’s inside her mind. I don't know what the future of this version is, as a lot of it really is dependant on the space and 360 effects, but it is being billed as the world premier of this staging, so I'm not sure if that suggests they plan to take it elsewhere. A full show would be great, but they would have to change the seating, as I’m not sure I could have lasted much longer sitting on that cube. inthenose , you've already explained the problems bringing Next to Normal to the UK, and I'm not sure this version would do well anywhere else in Spain, being in English, and the fact most people from abroad who would travel to see it, would have probably already done so during this Barcelona run. However, I assume this version was in English to accommodate Alice Ripley - she seems to have a good relationship with Pablo del Campo, the producer, and has done various projects with him for his Spanish language productions of Casi Normales in Buenos Aires and Madrid. So maybe they will do a Spanish version of this in Madrid with a different cast, if they can recreate the effects in another space.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 18, 2022 17:05:27 GMT
I tried to post a link to this in my last post, but it was embedding the video right in the middle of the text, which was annoying me. So here it is in another post:
I was referring to Alice's previous work with Pablo del Campo for Casi Normales: this video featuring her and Jennifer Damiano is great:
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Post by inthenose on Jul 18, 2022 23:34:04 GMT
Well it sounds absolutely terrific!!! I really wish I could’ve seen it live. Seems to be there is a lot more chance of this coming to the UK at a small London venue than the original production.
Did you shed a tear?
Edit: and thank you again for such a detailed write up!!!
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Post by Deleted on Jul 19, 2022 16:04:35 GMT
Well it sounds absolutely terrific!!! I really wish I could’ve seen it live. Seems to be there is a lot more chance of this coming to the UK at a small London venue than the original production. Did you shed a tear? Edit: and thank you again for such a detailed write up!!! That did cross my mind given the writers of the musical are obviously onboard, having adapted the show for this production. And Simon Pitman, the director, is English, so there could be an appetite to take it to the UK. Although if that does happen, it would be nice if they did the full show. And yes, I shed more than one tear - it was quite an intense hour or so. It was also good being able to see other audience members around the room, as you could see their reactions too. Only negative point is one for the 'early clappers' thread. One hardcore Alice fan tried to make the show about himself, with whooping and clapping while she was still singing "I Miss the Mountains".
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Post by Deleted on Jul 19, 2022 22:29:25 GMT
Well it sounds absolutely terrific!!! I really wish I could’ve seen it live. Seems to be there is a lot more chance of this coming to the UK at a small London venue than the original production. I've just watched a couple of interviews with Alice Ripley on YouTube, and in one of them she mentions that she'd love to see this version visit some major cities across Europe, and maybe end up in an immersive space in Brooklyn. So fingers crossed it is more than just a 6-week run in Barcelona and it plays the UK. For anyone that's interested, the interviews are here:
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Post by inthenose on Jul 20, 2022 1:47:26 GMT
I’ve spoken at length about the difficulties in being this over, this version is a lot more possible…
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165 posts
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Post by MoreLife on Jul 21, 2022 8:42:20 GMT
Having seen the show last Sunday night, I can only echo Furet's comments above: it's so, so good and would definitely deserve a longer life. This is not a "oh let's just make it into a shorter thing and sell it like that", it was perfectly trimmed down, the order of certain numbers rearranged so that the narrative could be followed and would make perfect sense despite entire verses (or even whole numbers) having been cut.
Sadly I've never seen a full production of N2N in any incarnation, even though I've tried - in fact, managing to see this one felt a bit like dispelling a curse. I was, however, very familiar with the recording and I may have watched enough of it on Youtube to know the plot and characters well. I had the feeling (and I'd be curious to hear whether you had a similar impression, Furet?) that through being compressed and condensed into 70 minutes, and with the enhanced sensorial involvement coming from the projections and immersive set-up, the material hit even harder from an emotional standpoint. I certainly teared up multiple times including at points where it was the sheer power of it that got to me, rather than a specific plot point.
Alice Ripley shines in this, and 13 years after the Broadway run she still brings to the role loads of raw vulnerability and gosh, can she make it sound an almost easy sing - which it very much isn't! But I was truly impressed by the quality of the performances delivered by the young actors playing Natalie, Henry, and Gabriel. Eloi Gomez (who plays Henry) and is the only company member from Cataluña stood out for me, for he sang the part so beautifully, and brought such a fresh, naive and hopeful energy to a role which could, in less capable hands, fade into the background.
I would of course be thrilled if at least in this incarnation the show could finally make it to London, as I'd certainly love to experience it again. I still believe this will call for a bold production team who are willing to make a bit of a bet and cross their fingers, as I really feel that it's a rather hard sell for British audiences (this being an overly generalised comment, of course all you guys reading this thread are well interested!)
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Post by Deleted on Jul 22, 2022 8:11:31 GMT
Sadly I've never seen a full production of N2N in any incarnation, even though I've tried - in fact, managing to see this one felt a bit like dispelling a curse. I was, however, very familiar with the recording and I may have watched enough of it on Youtube to know the plot and characters well. I had the feeling (and I'd be curious to hear whether you had a similar impression, Furet?) that through being compressed and condensed into 70 minutes, and with the enhanced sensorial involvement coming from the projections and immersive set-up, the material hit even harder from an emotional standpoint. I certainly teared up multiple times including at points where it was the sheer power of it that got to me, rather than a specific plot point. Yes, I completely agree. I actually haven't stopped thinking about this show all week (as you can probably see from my rambling posts and Youtube videos above), so it certainly has made a lasting impact. I do love the complete version and was a bit worried this would be like a 'highlights' show - like an edited-down concert version - but I was wrong. I think this version hit me harder than the regular show did. And it was because the emotion is ramped up right at the start and remains very intense for the 70 mins. In addition to being so 'immersed' in the action without an interval, plus the 360 projections. That said, I would still love to see the full show done this way, as there's so much material there that I really enjoy. Great to hear your thoughts on the show too, MoreLife.
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Post by Boob on Jul 22, 2022 8:40:40 GMT
Great to hear these positive reports. I’m going tomorrow, having never seen the show before, and am really looking forward to it.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 22, 2022 9:49:54 GMT
Great to hear these positive reports. I’m going tomorrow, having never seen the show before, and am really looking forward to it. Have a brilliant time. I arrived at the venue at 19:45 (for a 21:00 start) just to suss out the situation, and there were two ladies already waiting outside. I started speaking to them and they said they had seen it the week before, and that a queue quickly builds up round the block. So as the seating is first-come-first-served, I decided to wait with them. I think they normally open the doors at 20:30 and the queue moves inside, before then opening the doors to the room at 20:45.
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123 posts
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Post by terrylondon79 on Aug 26, 2022 19:34:55 GMT
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132 posts
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Post by blobble84 on Aug 26, 2022 22:11:38 GMT
Sadly, clicking the link then says…
“Join the waitlist to show your interest if you would like this event to take place”
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Post by partytentdown on Aug 26, 2022 22:14:17 GMT
Fever is an established events company and have produced various immersive things in the past, so it wouldn't surprise me if they were in early discussions to open this in the UK, but this page is very vague and clearly just a data collection/search engine optimisation exercise as it stands.
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594 posts
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Post by AddisonMizner on Aug 27, 2022 0:25:50 GMT
I really hope this immersive production does come to the UK, even though it is an abridged version. I have wanted to see this show since being introduced to the cast recording of the show by the staff at Dress Circle years ago now.
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4,598 posts
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Post by Mark on Aug 27, 2022 9:36:37 GMT
I thought the reason we hadn't had a full production was that the creatives wanted a full open ended run or nothing. How would this be better?
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Post by inthenose on Aug 27, 2022 9:47:23 GMT
I thought the reason we hadn't had a full production was that the creatives wanted a full open ended run or nothing. How would this be better? Contracts, clauses and egos! I’ve put feelers out, I didn’t know anything about this and I’m fairly ITK about this show and its workings.
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Post by inthenose on Aug 31, 2022 22:48:23 GMT
This is happening.
They are looking at “non-traditional” venues to host this, and want it up by Spring 2023. This may well run in London at an adapted space for an initial 8 week run.
No possibility of a full version. Director Michael Greif holds most the cards and won’t play ball.
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Post by inthenose on Aug 31, 2022 22:58:16 GMT
This Spanish version is to be workshopped in coming months, finances aren’t an issue, the Spanish debut of this version overperformed financially. Backers are secured.
If you’re reading this actors, get your agents on it. I would suspect (guesswork) Alice Ripley will reprise Diana, but the rest should be very much up for grabs.
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4,598 posts
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Post by Mark on Oct 10, 2022 11:37:57 GMT
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266 posts
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Post by theatrenerd on Oct 10, 2022 11:37:59 GMT
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123 posts
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Post by terrylondon79 on Oct 10, 2022 11:38:31 GMT
Full version at the donmar.. Looking forward to it
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Post by partytentdown on Oct 10, 2022 11:49:18 GMT
Didn't see that coming!
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