THE NOTEBOOK Broadway Previews- Page 8
THE NOTEBOOK Broadway Previews
#175THE NOTEBOOK Broadway Previews
Posted: 4/24/24 at 1:59pm
Saw it last night and when I was awake, I enjoyed it fine. The first half of Act 1 is a real snoozefest for the most part, the songs were all variations on a very soft theme. That said, I did appreciate the music and lyrics that reflected Allie's mental state, whenever they showed up. As the action picked up, I started to enjoy it a bit more, and the acting was certainly lovely. (I will admit I spent part of Act 2 also wondering why Ryan chose this play - while he was great, he felt too talented for such a small role.) I enjoyed the songs the younger duo got to sing, felt their actual heat in those. Overall I was feel the musical staging had some nice moments - the younger Noahs and Allies helping the older duo was especially nice. Plunkett and Harewood were lovely. But honestly I found the race towards regaining Allie's sanity was more interesting than the actual love story.
Random note: I was pleasantly surprised how well behaved the audience was. Maybe it was because they made the pre-show announcement after the action already started, so there was already attention to the stage? But don't think I saw a single cell phone. Miraculous.
"Hey little girls, look at all the men in shiny shirts and no wives!" - Jackie Hoffman, Xanadu, 19 Feb 2008
#176THE NOTEBOOK Broadway Previews
Posted: 4/26/24 at 8:18pm
My apologies if this has been discussed elsewhere, but can anyone comment on the book scenes in the musical? Has the book writer made any changes to the way Noah gets Allie to agree to go out with him and how they argue all the time like they do in the film?
MemorableUserName
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/27/19
#177THE NOTEBOOK Broadway Previews
Posted: 4/26/24 at 8:52pm
CATSNYrevival said: "My apologies if this has been discussed elsewhere, but can anyone comment on the book scenes in the musical? Has the book writer made any changes to the way Noah gets Allie to agree to go out with himand how they argue all the time like they do in the film?"
I'll quote from Sara Holdren's review, because this bit has stuck with me:
"Gone is the moment in which young Noah dangles from a Ferris wheel in a mischievous attempt to blackmail Allie into going out with him, or where he convinces her to lie down beside him in the street because she needs to learn to “do what she wants.” No doubt these moments were focus-grouped and deemed a little sexist — how dare he manipulate her by threatening to kill himself! But in stripping Noah of his potentially problematic brazenness, Brunstetter hasn’t replaced it with anything. Now, he’s basically just nice."
She clearly considered that a weakness, but while I agreed with much of her review, I disagreed on this point. A guy who's genuinely just nice seems very appealing these days.
seussical93
Understudy Joined: 8/12/10
#179THE NOTEBOOK Broadway Previews
Posted: 5/6/24 at 11:20am
Finally caught this yesterday, and really enjoyed it. I had not seen the movie and only knew the basic premise/ listened to the album, but I was very emotionally connected and moved. I am shocked that the score, Joy Woods, and orchestrations especially were left out in nominations. Is it groundbreaking? No. But I think that it was very cohesive tonally and knew what it was, and the same cannot be said about many of the new shows this season. I thought that the humor was also sprinkled nicely throughout with some of the secondary characters.
Ingrid has written a score with some haunting melodic themes that I can’t shake from my head. At times it was teetering the “generic mt pasek and paul” vibe, but I think it does justice to the story and is a step above that, feeling more grounded and cohesive.
Joy Wood’s “My Days” also hit so hard - the way the music swells into that modulation and the lights swell to the brightest they seem to have been in the show was very cathartic. An affecting afternoon at the theatre that made me thankful for family, relationships and emotional connection in general. Definitely more of a “mood piece” I guess, but it got my mind to dig up so many beautiful memories in my own life. It seemed pretty much sold out, so hoping it continues to find an audience!
