Re-seeing The Comet 170423 cc @joshgroban

I went again to see Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812.  This is absolutely the very first time that I went to see a Broadway show twice.  I just don’t do this.

There was a convention of Grobanites.  They met for lunch before the show at something called Russian Samovar.  I didn’t hear about the lunch until after its as full. I wasn’t checking my twitter enough.  

I did hear soon enough to get the last seat on the stage.  And I got to have dinner with some of the convention group after the show at Juniors on 44th.  I saw quite a few Grobies I knew both in the theater and after the show.

The previous time that i saw the show, I was in the upper balcony, quite far from the stage.  This time I was actually on the stage.  

It was an interesting contrast.  I felt, on the stage, that I was part of the show more. The performers seemed less like they were bigger than life.  They seemed more immediate, more human.  Sitting behind Josh and seeing him mostly from the back was different, as well.  I’ve seen his back before, because he does concerts in the round.  His slightly rounded shoulders, which he got from his dad, seemed very appropriate to this role.

The sound was very interesting. They use computer effects and the wave properties of sound, to project the sound right where the performers are, making the sound seem to come from them.  I didn’t notice that so much in the upper balcony, because I was far from the soloists most of the time.  On the stage, it was very noticeable.

I spent a lot of time trying to figure out what I was hearing, because the sound seemed to come from the performers, and yet it also sounded amplified.  Later someone told me that there was something written somewhere about the special sound effects used in the show.  It is really quite remarkable.  i have a background in physics and engineering, so someday I should read up on how they achieved this effect.

The voices are all very interesting and different.  

Brittain Ashford who plays Sonya has a very unusual sounding voice.  It’s interesting, because it’s more of a folk sound, rather than a Broadway sound.  Of course, you can see her on YouTube. 

I’m clueless as to why these talented performers don’t have recording contracts.  Her song is really riveting IMHO 

She sounds like someone I’ve heard before, but I can’t figure out who.  I was just going through some YouTube videos of performers who I’ve heard before (Joan Baez, Bonnie Raitt, Ronnie Gilbert, Holly Near, even Grace van der Waal) and none of them were quite the same.  Can someone tell me who I’m missing here?  Probably Ronnie Gilbert was closest?

It’s intriguing that they cast a low alto to be the “good” girl and a very high tenor to be the “bad” boy.  Usually, lower voices are used for bad characters.

Lucas Steele, the “bad” boy is an extraordinary singer: incredible high notes.  He also plays violin during the show.

Yet, you can see why he’s cast as a villain.  Despite his being so handsome and having such a beautiful voice, there is something very sinister about him.  I guess he was still in character when signing autographs?  I certainly never saw him crack a smile at us.  He might have been trying to save his voice also, because he signed silently, not saying anything to anyone.

Josh by contrast was very social and chatted casually with fans.  He didn’t allow any selfies this time. I guess he now is putting a priority on autographs.  Maybe also his management wants people to pay for a meet and greet to get a selfie?  

I found the story easier to understand this second time round, because i knew what was coming.  They make a point at the beginning to say that you should consider yourself at the opera and refer to the libretto in the program to follow the action.  This time I really didn’t need to.

I got to see how they used discord in the music to correspond to discord in the plot.  This was what I found most interesting about the music, when it sounds more like modern classical and less like Broadway.  I really like the “opera” scene, where they make the opera bizarre, spooky, discordant, and ominous, because something bad is happening to Natasha in the audience during the performance — 

Josh recently called this show a “circus,” which is apt in a way.  There are all kinds of amazing things going on.  Dancing, playing instruments, varieties of costumes — and performers running all over the theater.  I couldn’t see the ones out in the audience as well from the stage. 

Sitting on the stage has the disadvantage that you’re especially not allowed to be up and about, because performers are trying to run by.  They had warned us not to be in the aisles even in the rear balcony, but they’re especially worried about that on stage.  The ushers were all asking everyone if they were sure they didn’t need to go to the bathroom before the show as it would be an hour and a half before intermission.  I did go, some didn’t, but, being one of weak bladder, it was a bit nerve-wracking knowing that I couldn’t get out of my seat without totally bollixing up the show.  It turned out not to be an issue.  I didn’t have to get up, but I was worrying about it all through the show, which detracted from enjoying the performance.  

Also the restrooms are up on the mezzanine, which is a hike from the stage.  

The line extended down the stairs almost to the stage when I went out at intermission.  They had people directing traffic throughout the line and in the bathroom, where there were 16 stalls.  They had to keep reassuring us that we would all get in.  That this happens at every intermission for them.  They must have had at least six people dedicated to managing the intermission restroom line.  The line did move fairly quickly.  Still it was an adventure.

Normally, I choose aisle seats, so I can dash out at intermission and get near the head of the restroom line.  This time I took the last seat on stage, so I wasn’t on an aisle, plus we were told to walk down the stage, rather than backstage (which was where we came in from) to get to the restroom, so I had to walk to the back of the theater, across the back, and then back up toward the front to get to the end of restroom line, which was not the shortest way at all, and made me get more toward the back of the line.

There was a handicap restroom near the stage, but it was guarded by someone who was making sure only handicapped people used it. Perhaps I should have brought a cane.

Still it all worked out.

Anyway, I do like the show, though i think it was less affecting from the stage than from the audience, because being on the stage was de-mystifying.

Now if you’ve been following this blog, you know it’s been characterized by criticizing Josh’s singing errors.  So I would not be true to myself if I failed to note that he did go nasal a couple of times during the show, though generally he sounded good — very commanding, with a great aura of gravitas.

More concerning to me was that both he and Grace McLean did some rough singing.  Now I have never been a fan of rough singing and one of the things that attracted me to Josh was that he didn’t do it. Apparently, he has found a way to do it that he feels doesn’t endanger his voice, which may or may not be true.  Still, I suspect now that he’s gotten into it he’ll be doing some rough singing in his concerts as well. That’s not going to make me a happy camper.

I *am* hoping that the reason that Josh is leaving Comet is that he’s planning on doing some touring this summer.

He does actually dance during the show.   For those of us following him for a long time, this is a bit surprising in and of itself. And, curiously, his kicks are actually getting quite high, almost shoulder level.  During the Marvin Hamlisch memorial at Lincoln Center he had asked to be excused from high kicks — and characterized his having been excused as “merciful.”  I gather he has a history of falling while dancing, from the stories he’s told.  He didn’t fall. He certainly doesn’t look as graceful as the other dancers, but that is in keeping with his character, still I think he kicked higher than I could, and I do yoga and consider myself fairly flexible, so I was surprised.

He does play piano and accordion.  I may be mistaken, but I think he was playing more this time than he did the last time I watched, or maybe I just noticed more, because I was closer to him.  There is another guy there who can play, but I think Josh really likes to play the piano.  He starts out playing the accordion at the beginning, but doesn’t play long.  This time I could see that he used the accordion  at least one other time during the show, though one of the ensemble — a very attractive, and scantily clad woman — seemed to be playing that instrument more often than he.

As to his acting, he did seem very natural to me.

At the end, he and Lucas Steele went out on stage to ask audience members to donate to Broadway Cares.  Lucas spoke quite movingly of the medical services he received there when he couldn't afford other healthcare -- and said he didn't know if he would be here at all if they hadn't been there.

I took some pictures during the autograph signing

I didn't get photos of most of the performers, because I was too busy getting signatures -- and, also, didn't think of it until Josh came out.  Then I had to spend a bit of time getting my phone turned back on.

Here's my signed program

It's hard to decipher who is who, but I think the other performers left the white part with the title blank so that Josh could sign there.

They're very strict about not taking pictures in the theater.  I saw them making one woman delete photos from her camera. I was very good.  I had my phone completely turned off during the whole show.

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Addendum 10/25/17

So I posed the question above as to who Brittain sounded like.  A reader from twitter,  @Gennyxxxx kindly offered that she was reminded of Judy Collins singing "Turn Turn Turn."  

Yes, there is some similarity, though I don't think that this was what I was thinking of.