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Sunset Boulevard.

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Post  Scorp Fri Feb 19, 2010 1:08 pm

Granted I never saw Hugh Jackman's Joe live, but from what I have heard/seen I really don't like him in the role. The acting is very OTT and hammy. The voice doesn't really appeal much either. If they do make a film of this show, I wouldn't want him cast.

I really like Alan Campbell in the role. I also very much liked Alex Hanson, whom I saw opposite Elaine Paige (he's currently starring in Night Music on Broadway). Out of everyone he reminds me the most of William Holden in the film.

I cannot stand Uwe Kröger in the role even though some people seem to like him in it. Maybe I'm biased because I really don't like Uwe in anything I've seen, but his Joe is just the same as all the other roles. I hate his mannerisms and his OTT camp. He just seems to play himself all the time. His successor in Germany, I thought, was far better.

Kevin Anderson in the OLC does nothing for me either. He seems bored and mildly irritated all the time with no variation. Why exactly ALW promised him Broadway along with LuPone before either of them made their London debut I have no idea. I always thought transfers were based on actors proving themselves to be so extraordinary in whichever roles they created that it would be a crime not to let others see them. Hence why I don't quite get Ramin and Sierra already being promised Broadway for LSD LND.

RE Diahann Carroll, I've heard she was very good live and I like her on some parts of the Canadian recording, but I don't really like the fact that the entire score had to be lowered for her. 'With One Look'--my favourite song from the score--in particular seems to lose a lot of its power by being transposed down to D.
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Post  Paula74 Thu Feb 25, 2010 12:15 am

The Signature Theatre in Virginia is doing Sunset....

http://www.broadwayworld.com/article/Signature_Theatre_Announces_CHESS_BOULEVARD_ART_et_al_in_1011_Season_20100224


SUNSET BOULEVARD, The Washington Premiere of the Legendary,Tony Award-winning Hollywood Musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber

Book and Lyrics by Don Black and Christopher Hampton
Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber
Based on the Billy Wilder film Sunset Boulevard
Directed by Eric Schaeffer
Starring Florence Lacey
December 7, 2010 - February 13, 2011
The MAX

"All right, Mr. DeMille, I'm ready for my close-up" are the infamous words from a legendary character - silent film star Norma Desmond. And this December, this tragic figure will be singing the glorious songs of Andrew Lloyd Webber in Signature's production of Sunset Boulevard. Starring Florence Lacey (star of Broadway's Evita and Signature's Follies) as the faded screen star, Sunset Boulevard is a noir musical and one of the greatest Hollywood tales ever told. With such stunning songs as "With One Look," "As If We Never Said Goodbye" and "Perfect Year," Andrew Lloyd Webber's Sunset Boulevard is a lush romantic tragedy.


A very good friend of mine ushers there so I'll probably hear a lot about this from her.
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Post  operafantomet Thu Apr 01, 2010 7:08 pm

Sunset Boulevard to be played at the Gothenburg Opera House from October:

http://en.opera.se/forestallningar/sunset-boulevard-2010-2011/

Gunilla Backman is to play Norma. Not sure about that choice. I've heard her in "Chess" (Svetlana) and "Mamma Mia!" (Donna) previously, and she doesn't strike me as the typical Norma performer. But she has a good voice, so I'm a bit intrigued as well.
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Post  EarlFan Thu Apr 01, 2010 8:12 pm

Oh, I like Gunilla Backman, I saw her in Mamma Mia and thought she was great. Norma is a different kind of role though but if I can I will definitely go and see this production.
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Post  LadyCDaae Thu Apr 29, 2010 1:32 pm

Arvada Center's doing a production of this in the fall. Also on the card: Hairspray and Cabaret. I have GOT to get season tickets this year!

~LCD

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Post  LadyCDaae Sun Sep 19, 2010 2:35 am

Review of the Arvada Center production: Clickety-click!

I'll be seeing this a week from today. bounce

~LCD

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Post  Scorp Mon Sep 20, 2010 10:31 am

LadyCDaae wrote:Review of the Arvada Center production: Clickety-click!

I'll be seeing this a week from today. bounce

~LCD

Is that the one with Ann Crumb in it? Interested to hear what she's like...
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Post  ML6 Tue Sep 21, 2010 12:52 am

Official video of Ann singing 'As If We Never Said Goodbye'. I don't know what to think about it. I think I have more of a problem with the orchestra and the horrible sets/costumes in the background. It's like she doesn't belong with it? She looks fancier than the set and costumes (like they're using a High School to help them with the production). As for her voice, it's a bit too husky and warbly at times. Like she's trying to do LuPone. But she's not as bad as, oh lets say, Petula Clark? lol

Anyway, I'm almost done with Patti LuPone's autobigoraphy she released last weekend. Gotta say, I appreciate her performance in many different ways now. If anybody is interested, she dedicates two and a half chapters to her experience in the musical. She doesn't really talk about the musical all that much, but the drama that became more famous than the musical. It was good, and I felt delciously satisfied in the end.
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Post  LadyCDaae Sun Sep 26, 2010 2:10 am

I think I have more of a problem with the orchestra and the horrible sets/costumes in the background. It's like she doesn't belong with it? She looks fancier than the set and costumes (like they're using a High School to help them with the production).

Having seen the production, I think that was somewhat deliberate (well, not the orchestra, which did sound better in other parts). The backdrop is supposed to be the soundstage for Samson and Delilah, and I got the impression they deliberately made it look phony--Betty had this bit in a later scene where she talks about how fake everything is on the backlot, which she emphasizes by rapping her fist on the "curtain." As for Norma looking "fancier" than the ensemble, an article in the program contained this quote from the costume designer:

[Norma] has 11 different costumes for the show, and each one of them needs to look as if it had been created exclusively for her, not something that could be bought of the rack. They show a heightened sense of reality...Norma wears costumes, not clothing. This is in direct contrast to the rest of the characters of the show, who wear clothing representing their various occupations, socio-economic level, etc., as well as their individual characters as written.

(This doesn't exactly excuse the somewhat sad harem girl outfits, but it does give an idea of what they were shooting for.)

So, what did I think? Overall, I enjoyed it. Most of my problems were with individual moments, rather than the production in general, which is usually a good sign.

The Good:

~Norma Desmond (Ann Crumb) (acting): It's not easy to make such an iconic film character your own, but Crumb does it very well. She plays Norma as someone who was never able/allowed to grow up beyond the sixteen-year-old she was when Max first discovered her: petulant, needy, enthusiastic, vulnerable. There's a deliberate note to her theatricality--a diva playing to an audience she doesn't know no longer exists. In her emotional instability and gradual mental breakdown there's traces of Judy Garland, Marilyn Monroe, Michael Jackson...everyone who rose too high too fast and had nowhere to go but down, and hard.
~Joe Gillis (Kevin Earley): Good voice, and good character--dry and cynical when addressing the audience, a fine mix of pity and self-interest which gets him tangled in Norma's web, and a final realization of self-disgust when he realizes what he's become. Not an easy character to make empathetic, but Earley sells him very well.
~Max Von Mayerling (Stephen Day): If my prayers are one day answered and Arvada Center does PotO, Day would be on my short list for the title role with his beautiful, versatile voice--full and powerful at times, tender and pure at others. His Max, driven by his overprotective and ultimately unrequited love for Norma, is in many ways as tragic as she is.
~Norma's mansion: The primary set is simply gorgeous, with its wrought iron balustrade and air of faded elegance. Another nice touch is the outer edge of the stage, which has a proscenium of lights and rigging and a movie screen for a "curtain"--a reminder of both the story's subject and its origins.
~The ensemble: The chorus numbers were great. I was especially impressed with "Every Movie's a Circus" which has never been my favorite song in the show but onstage became entertaining and effective.
~The direction (mostly): With a lot of ALW shows, you run the risk of things getting bogged down, and while Rod Lansberry makes some mistakes (more on that below) he does keep things from stagnating. The scenes have energy and direction, the songs clear purpose and dramatic arc, and the production is well-staged and well-paced.

The Not-So-Good:

~Norma Desmond (Ann Crumb) (singing): As I said, I loved what Crumb did with the character dramatically, so it's really sad that her voice wasn't up to the same standard. She does well enough on the gentler songs ("Surrender," "The Perfect Year,") but she doesn't have the power to sell the big belters ("With One Look," "As If We Never Said Goodbye"). It doesn't help that the Arvada Center tends to over-amplify its orchestra, but while Earley and Day were delivering their "money" notes effectively, Crumb never gets enough force behind hers to bring her songs to an effective climax.
~Betty Shaefer (Jenny Gelwick): She was just trying too hard to be earnest, and I never really believed she was attracted to Joe--certainly not enough to consider abandoning her engagement to Artie (a fun, good-natured guy as played by Jeremy Sortore).
~The car chase: Dear Lord, the car chase. Maybe I'm a bit spoiled by the Broadway production, which did a reasonable job of creating the feel of a film car chase on stage, but this was just silly. The drivers were situated on bench seats with steering wheels and gear shifts in front, mounted on rigs that rolled back and forth over the stage while lights flashed and traffic noises played on the sound system--my uncle described it best when he said it looked like "bumper cars on love seats." It just didn't work, all the more disappointing because the score for the scene is great, and one of my favorite bits of ALW incidental music.
~Norma's New Year's Eve String Trio: It's time for another "Good Idea, Bad Idea." Good idea: having live musicians onstage when the scene calls for it. Bad idea: having live musicians onstage who have very obviously just come upstairs from the orchestra pit--no makeup, unstyled hair, and clothing that, while not obviously twenty-first century, looks nothing like the sharp, stylish late-40s outfits everyone else onstage is wearing. The intention was good, but put some more effort into it, people--get some nice dresses and lipstick on those ladies, and tell the cello player to shave his goatee!
~Where's the Generation Gap?: During the scene where Norma visits the Paramount lot, she encounters two different types of people: the old-timers who remember her and treat her like the star she once was, and the younger generation that doesn't even know her name. Unfortunately, the ensemble of the show is almost entirely comprised of actors in their 20s-30s, and no effort has been made to make them look otherwise. So we have a young security guard at the gate looking at Norma and saying "You're who?" followed by a second guard who looks about the same age, but greets Norma like an old friend and waves her inside. It makes the scene lose something, and again it could have been fixed with a bit more effort (a gray wig, a few age lines, something).

And just one more thought:
The opening was very nice, with the Paramount logo and title screen from the Sunset Boulevard film playing for a few moments before the overture. I kind of wanted it to end the same way, with Gloria Swanson's immortal close-up, but no such luck. Ah well.

~LCD

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Post  Scorp Sun Sep 26, 2010 11:44 am

Thanks for the review! Very interesting casting with Ann Crumb I have to say. I don't think she did too badly on that video I watched of AIWNSG, but something wasn't quite right.

Is is just me or does the design of almost every new production of Sunset look incredibly tacky? I know we were incredibly spoiled by the sheer luxe of the original (which turned out not to be remotely economically viable), but surely there is some way of making a professional production look classier than am dram. The only new production of Sunset which I've thought *looks* professional in terms of its aesthetics is the recent actor-musician revival in Britain starring Kathryn Evans.

What production was it in America recently where they digged out Norma's costumes from the original show? Those amazing ones by Anthony Powell. Is that production still on?

EDIT: A pic of the original set for Norma's mansion (which could levitate!) for nostalgia purposes...

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Post  ML6 Sun Oct 17, 2010 3:25 pm

Swedish Sunset Boulevard

Its an exact. replica. of. the. film.

And, it looks beautiful.


Last edited by ML6 on Sun Oct 17, 2010 11:07 pm; edited 2 times in total
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Post  Scorp Sun Oct 17, 2010 9:18 pm

ML6 wrote:Sweedish Susnet Boulevard

Its an exact. replica. of. the. film.

And, it looks beautiful.

It really does. Quite possibly the first professional production of Sunset aside from the original production and the recent revival in London that doesn't look cheap and tacky.

I am very tempted to make a trip to Gothenburg to see this. A weekend break in Sweden would be nice. Josefine/Anéa/anyone who knows about this, any idea how nice a city Göteborg is? Worth a visit? Things to do?
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Post  operafantomet Mon Oct 18, 2010 5:30 am

Scorp wrote:I am very tempted to make a trip to Gothenburg to see this. A weekend break in Sweden would be nice. Josefine/Anéa/anyone who knows about this, any idea how nice a city Göteborg is? Worth a visit? Things to do?
Hey', Gothenburg is only like 5 hours away from me! I have a musical friend who recently moved there, and we've talked about seeing SB. They play until April 2011 (which is a long season in Scandinavia, to compare "Mamma Mia!" is only scheduled for 3 months in Copenhagen). Their tag line is "As in the movies, except live". Smile So it's a prestigious production. Here is their English web site, which I think I might have posted earlier:
http://en.opera.se/forestallningar/sunset-boulevard-2010-2011/

You can hear "With one look" (Med ett blick) on a link to the right. Not too familiar with the cast, except Norma. Gunilla Backman is usually a wonderful performer. Somewhat strained top-top notes (bothered me a bit when she was Svetlana in "Chess"), but otherwise I really love her. Great Donna in "Mamma Mia!".

And Gothenburg is such a cozy city. Not too big, but wonderful to stroll around in, and some cool museums. Definitely worth a visit. But better yet, return from Copenhagen, which airport is some three hours away, so you get to see "Mary Poppins" too! Razz
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Post  Scorp Mon Oct 18, 2010 9:38 am

operafantomet wrote:
Scorp wrote:I am very tempted to make a trip to Gothenburg to see this. A weekend break in Sweden would be nice. Josefine/Anéa/anyone who knows about this, any idea how nice a city Göteborg is? Worth a visit? Things to do?
Hey', Gothenburg is only like 5 hours away from me! I have a musical friend who recently moved there, and we've talked about seeing SB. They play until April 2011

Ooo! When are you thinking of going? I can't quite work out when I'd do it... I'd love to go asap but I'm thinking it might be better to do it next year...

You can hear "With one look" (Med ett blick) on a link to the right. Not too familiar with the cast, except Norma. Gunilla Backman is usually a wonderful performer. Somewhat strained top-top notes (bothered me a bit when she was Svetlana in "Chess"), but otherwise I really love her. Great Donna in "Mamma Mia!".

She wasn't a bad Fantine either in London.

And Gothenburg is such a cozy city. Not too big, but wonderful to stroll around in, and some cool museums. Definitely worth a visit. But better yet, return from Copenhagen, which airport is some three hours away, so you get to see "Mary Poppins" too! Razz

Good idea, although if I were to see Poppins I'd have to go before the end of November... hmm. I think it's more likely I'd have time to go early next year when I've had a chance to think about it. Is it really only 3 hours away from Copenhagen? By train? Any other nice places nearby?
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Post  operafantomet Mon Oct 18, 2010 10:18 am

Scorp wrote:
And Gothenburg is such a cozy city. Not too big, but wonderful to stroll around in, and some cool museums. Definitely worth a visit. But better yet, return from Copenhagen, which airport is some three hours away, so you get to see "Mary Poppins" too! Razz

Good idea, although if I were to see Poppins I'd have to go before the end of November... hmm. I think it's more likely I'd have time to go early next year when I've had a chance to think about it. Is it really only 3 hours away from Copenhagen? By train? Any other nice places nearby?
We haven't decided when to do it yet. Since he live there and it's not too far away from me, we get a little lazy... Also, he want to come to Oslo and see "Next to Normal" first. So I'm open for suggestions! Too bad about missing out on "Mary Poppins", though. Would have loved to hear your thoughts on it. DIdn't realize they only played until the end of November. Usually they do December/Xmas too. Must need some time to get the steam punk sets that is Wicked into place. Wicked starts in mid January, which I think is earlier than usual.

Train runs from Göteborg and directly to Kastrup airport. I think it's about 3,5 hours. If I remember correctly, the train continues from there to Copenhagen. You can also step off in nearby Malmö and take the train over, or in Helsingborg and take the ferry/train option there. So let's be generous and say 4 hours then, to Copenhagen city. But it really isn't all that far.

And true, I liked Backmann's Fantine too! Had forgotten about that.
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Post  Phantomlove Tue Oct 19, 2010 1:14 am

I have also been thinking about seeing SB in Gothenburg, so if possible I'd like to tag along Smile . I need to see a saturday matinee though to be able to get back home with the train. The Gothenburg opera is a repetoire theatre so they don't play SB every day.

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Post  Scorp Tue Oct 19, 2010 2:04 am

Phantomlove wrote:I have also been thinking about seeing SB in Gothenburg, so if possible I'd like to tag along Smile . I need to see a saturday matinee though to be able to get back home with the train. The Gothenburg opera is a repetoire theatre so they don't play SB every day.

Group trip? Very Happy
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Post  operafantomet Thu Oct 21, 2010 5:16 am

Some rather/very positive reviews from Sweden:

http://www.svd.se/kulturnoje/scen/lyckad-satsning-pa-slocknande-stjarna_5523675.svd
(Ooooh, bed picture! The reviewer also calls it ALWs probably best musical)

http://poplight.zitiz.se/blogg/bel-black/recension-sunset-boulevard-med-gunilla-backman-aer-arets-baesta-musikal
(Best musical of the year, according to the reviewer)

http://www.expressen.se/noje/1.2177265/kai-martin-en-grandios-flort-med-hollywood
(cool, but small dance picture. Another good review. The scenographer is Paul Edwards, according to this guy)

http://www.dn.se/kultur-noje/scenrecensioner/sunset-boulevard-pa-goteborgsoperan-1.1191787
(reviewers seems to love Gunilla's Norma. Wanna see! Two rather boring pics in this link)
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Post  Scorp Thu Oct 21, 2010 11:07 am

operafantomet wrote:Some rather/very positive reviews from Sweden:

http://www.svd.se/kulturnoje/scen/lyckad-satsning-pa-slocknande-stjarna_5523675.svd
(Ooooh, bed picture! The reviewer also calls it ALWs probably best musical)

http://poplight.zitiz.se/blogg/bel-black/recension-sunset-boulevard-med-gunilla-backman-aer-arets-baesta-musikal
(Best musical of the year, according to the reviewer)

http://www.expressen.se/noje/1.2177265/kai-martin-en-grandios-flort-med-hollywood
(cool, but small dance picture. Another good review. The scenographer is Paul Edwards, according to this guy)

http://www.dn.se/kultur-noje/scenrecensioner/sunset-boulevard-pa-goteborgsoperan-1.1191787
(reviewers seems to love Gunilla's Norma. Wanna see! Two rather boring pics in this link)

I love how they went as far as duplicating the ChaneyPhantom/Norma bed! Can we buy it off them once they're done? ;-)

Thanks for posting the reviews, glad they have been positive! I REALLY want to see this! I do have a free week next week but I'm thinking it might be better if I go in spring, so I can properly plan it... I do need a holiday.

Please post any more you find!
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Post  operafantomet Thu Oct 21, 2010 1:24 pm

Scorp wrote:Thanks for posting the reviews, glad they have been positive! I REALLY want to see this! I do have a free week next week but I'm thinking it might be better if I go in spring, so I can properly plan it... I do need a holiday.

Please post any more you find!

I just nicked them from http://musikal.net/ Smile
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Post  Scorp Sun Oct 24, 2010 10:54 am

Trailer! http://en.opera.se/forestallningar/sunset-boulevard-2010-2011/
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Post  EarlFan Sun Oct 24, 2010 11:41 am

Scorp wrote:Trailer! http://en.opera.se/forestallningar/sunset-boulevard-2010-2011/

It looks great! I hope I can go and see this, I really like the cast. Gunilla Backman and Fred Johanson are among my favourite performers and I've seen Martyna Lisowska in some productions in my hometown. Must say I don't know much about Jonas Eskilsson though, but he seems good as well.
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Post  TheMaskedLion Sat Nov 06, 2010 10:55 am

I just attended the preview performance for the Palo-Alto Players Production of Sunset Blvd. It was a great performance and production. I really enjoyed myself.

Note: It's also the first premiere regional production of the show in California

One of the most interesting things about the casting was that Joe Gillis was played by a African-American actor, which caused for some interesting line changes. For instance during "Girl Meets Boy"

Original Line "No one dies except the best friend, no one ever mentions communists, no one takes a black friend to a restaurant"

This Production: No one dies except the best friend, no one mentions communists, don't ever criticize the F.B.I"

Not a bad change but interesting. I promise a more indepth review tomorrow. The cast features the following performers.


The Palo Alto Players cast of SUNSET BOULEVARD is as follows:
Norma Desmond- Annmarie Martin* (Santa Clara)
Joe Gillis – Ashley Simms (Stanford)
Max Von Mayerling – Russ Bohard (Pacifica)
Betty Schaefer – Courtney Hatcher (Half Moon Bay)
Cecil B. DeMille & Sheldrake – David Martin (San Mateo)
Artie Green – Danny Martin (Millbrae)
Manfred – Joey McDaniel (Menlo Park)
*Appearing courtesy of Actors Equity Association
Ensemble Players: Ted Martin (Oakland), Steward Kramar (Foster City), Jordan Kersten (Los Altos Hills),
Morgan Collazo (San Mateo), Patty Reinhart (San Jose), Kristina Stasi (Santa Clara), Brittany Blankenship
(Mountain View), Ruth Fox (Campbell), Gwynn Lawrence Villegas (San Francisco), Nicole Martin (San
Mateo), Ian Teter (Menlo Park), John Duarte (Sunnyvale
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Post  Scorp Sun Feb 13, 2011 10:39 am

Scorp wrote:
ML6 wrote:Sweedish Susnet Boulevard

Its an exact. replica. of. the. film.

And, it looks beautiful.

It really does. Quite possibly the first professional production of Sunset aside from the original production and the recent revival in London that doesn't look cheap and tacky.

I am very tempted to make a trip to Gothenburg to see this. A weekend break in Sweden would be nice. Josefine/Anéa/anyone who knows about this, any idea how nice a city Göteborg is? Worth a visit? Things to do?

...And I've bitten the bullet and decided to go and see this in a few weeks with operafantomet. Looking forward to it! Smile
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Post  ML6 Sun Feb 13, 2011 5:40 pm

Scorp wrote:
Scorp wrote:
ML6 wrote:Sweedish Susnet Boulevard

Its an exact. replica. of. the. film.

And, it looks beautiful.

It really does. Quite possibly the first professional production of Sunset aside from the original production and the recent revival in London that doesn't look cheap and tacky.

I am very tempted to make a trip to Gothenburg to see this. A weekend break in Sweden would be nice. Josefine/Anéa/anyone who knows about this, any idea how nice a city Göteborg is? Worth a visit? Things to do?

...And I've bitten the bullet and decided to go and see this in a few weeks with operafantomet. Looking forward to it! Smile

Oh god, this is going to be so amazing. I can't wait to see how you guys enjoy it. Its so pretty. I wish they would film this for DVD or something. I just can't get over that it looks like the film.
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Post  operafantomet Sun Feb 13, 2011 5:51 pm

Doing my best to get us a backstage tour. The understudy Norma is the teacher of a friend of mine (who's also joining us). Problem is that the understudy is not always on, and I don't know yet if she'll be there at March 8. I cross my fingers! But either way, I'm really looking forward to this, the production looks stunning.
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Post  operafantomet Wed Mar 09, 2011 8:14 am

Sunset Boulevard in Gothenburg: fantastic!

I'll write a longer review later on, but seriously. Wow. The whole production is a homage to the movie. In the advertising they're saying that "movies are better in the opera", and the opening, intermission and ending have credit lists just like in the movies. There's also heavy use of projections, some of which were used in brilliant ways. And some scenes are basically cut out of the movie. Very, very, VERY cool concept.

Another detail I loved was that Norma Desmond's world was all black and white (well, rich nuances of maroon, silver, bluish black and the likes), while the rest was in bright, almost garish, colours. it reminded of the bw/colour version of "Wizard of Oz", and gave an amazing filmatic feeling. This site has several pages of photos:
http://www.gunillabackman.com/?page_id=26&album=2&gallery=3

Seeing such a large-scale production, with full soaring orchestra, in an opera house, with a brilliant cast... wow.

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Post  Miss von Krolock Wed Mar 09, 2011 11:57 pm

Indeed that set looks absolutely fantastic! WOW!
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Post  Scorp Fri Mar 11, 2011 11:52 am

They actually had a swimming pool! It was very cool. And so nice to hear the show with a full orchestra again.
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Post  LadyCDaae Fri Mar 11, 2011 2:10 pm

That is some marvelous design indeed! I loved that they projected the opening scene from the film in on the prologue--why try to recreate what's already been done so well?

~LCD

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