JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR COMEBACK CANCELLED
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THE GLORIOUS CORNER
Story By: G. H. HARDING
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| Arsenio Hall |
CABARET AGAIN --- We went to see the latest revival of Cabaret Saturday night with the incomparable Alan Cumming in the lead role as the emcee of the veritable Kit Kat Klub in Berlin. Michelle Williams stars as the club’s requisite chanteuse Sally Bowles and is positively amazing; I didn't know she could sing, let alone this well. She comes very close to stealing the show, especially with the character’s stellar signature song “Maybe This Time.”
Cabaret is a musical based on a book written by Christopher Isherwood, music by John Kander and lyrics by Fred Ebb. The 1966 Broadway production became a hit, inspiring numerous subsequent productions in London and New York, as well as the 1972 film by the same name.
It is based on John Van Druten's 1951 play I Am a Camera, which was adapted from the short novel Goodbye to Berlin (1939) by Isherwood. Set in 1931 Berlin as the Nazis are rising to power, it is based in nightlife at the seedy Kit Kat Klub, and revolves around the 19-year-old English cabaret performer Sally Bowles and her relationship with the young American writer Cliff Bradshaw.
A sub-plot involves the doomed romance between German boarding house owner Fräulein Schneider and her elderly suitor Herr Schultz, a Jewish fruit vendor. Narrating the action is the Master of Ceremonies (Cumming) at the Kit Kat. The club serves as a metaphor for the threatening state of late, decadent Weimar Germany.
Cunming, who’s celebrating his 30th year as an actor, is positively stunning; you cannot take your eyes of him when’s he onstage or moving about the theater. For me, his rendition of “I Don’t Care Much,” is amazing. We saw him earlier this year in a one man version of King Lear, and he again, was outstanding. Kudos also to Linda Emond (Schneider) and Danny Burtsein (Schultz). Directed by the always visionary Sam Mendes, this is a must-see production. We loved it!
HALL FLATLINED --- The Arsenio Hall Show has been canceled because of low ratings, ending Hall's late-night comeback bid after a single season.
His bid to recreate the success he enjoyed 20 years ago failed to find a big enough audience in the myriad late-night TV market.
CBS Television Production had previously announced Hall's syndicated show would be back for a second season (with no less than then-TV night-time king Jay Leno making the on-air announcement), but faced the prospect of stations moving it to lesser time slots as ratings fell.
In a statement, Hall said he knew launching the show would be a challenge. "I'm gratified for the year we've had and proud of the show we created," the actor and comedian added.
The show is in reruns and won't resume production, a show spokesman said. The last original episode aired May 21.
When Hall began his original series in 1989, he was seen as the cool alternative to Johnny Carson and hisTonight Show on NBC. Guests including sax playing-presidential candidate Bill Clinton helped push Hall into the spotlight.
By 1994, with increased competition from new Tonight host Jay Leno and CBS' David Letterman, Hall's ratings had slipped and the show ended.
When Hall returned last year, he was fighting for attention with even more programs, including ABC's Jimmy Kimmel and the Comedy Central lineup.
I liked Hall immensely when he first appeared and he certainly cut his own path with his innovative guest choices. When he returned, it seemed oddly dated and he never quite fit in with his new-millennial competition.
JESUS CANCELED – The upcoming North American arena touring production of the Andrew Lloyd Webber/Tim Rice rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar has been canceled. A statement on the show’s web site confirmed the news that the production, which was to have started performances June 9 at the Lakefront Arena in New Orleans, was no longer going forward and that all ticket sales would be refunded.
The tour was announced back in April and was to have starred Ben Forster as Jesus, after he won a British reality-TV competition for the role, as well as American music stars Destiny’s Child’s Michelle Williams, ‘NSYNC’s J.C. Chasez, and the Sex Pistols’ John Lydon. The cast was still in rehearsals under the direction of Laurence Connor, currently represented on Broadway with the revival of Les Misérables, as recently as Thursday in New Orleans without any knowledge or awareness of the show’s impending doom. New Orleans was the first scheduled stop in a 54-city tour that would have also played big venues like the Staples Center in Los Angeles and Madison Square Garden in New York City.
A shame as the play is chock full of terrific songs and performances. Maybe another time.
LIFETIME MELLENCAMP --- John Mellencamp won't have to worry about negotiating a record contract for the rest of his life. Republic Records has signed him to an unprecedented lifetime contract.
Mellencamp has done some bouncing around between labels over the length of his career, recording for Mercury (1976's Chestnut Street Incident, 1987's Lonesome Jubilee through 1996's Mr. Happy-Go-Lucky), Riva (1978's A Biography through 1985's Scarecrow), Columbia (1998's John Mellencamp through 2003's Trouble No More), Universal Republic (2007's Freedom's Road), Hear Music (2008's Live, Death, Love and Freedom) and Rounder (2010's No Better Than This).
Republic’s Monte Lipman said "Not only has he served as an ambassador of social consciousness in America, but he has also provided the soundtrack of a generation. We're thrilled to be working with John Mellencamp as part of this historic deal."
Up first will be the album Plain Spoken, his 22nd studio album, which is being called "a stunningly elegant and soul-searching gem." A release date has not been set.
CLOSING NOTES --- Caught Michael Mann’s 2004 film Collateral over the weekend with Tom Cruise and Jaime Foxx … what a great film! Besides Mann’s typical brilliant visuals, the script, acting and music made this a huge favorite. I really enjoyed it all over again …
From The Monkees show in Detroit at The Fox Theater: “It’s a pleasure to hear Micky Dolenz, one of the best male pop singers of the 60’s, hitting every note live, with incredible power and joy. “I’m a Believer,” “I’m Not Your (Steppin’ Stone),” “She,” “Last Train to Clarksville,” “Mary, Mary” -- so many of the Monkees’ hits featured his bright tenor, and it’s quite a feat to replicate vocals one did as a 22-year-old.” Nice! …
From the Carter/Matt TV blog: “Sing Your Face Off is completely ridiculous. The idea of the show is basically to watch celebrities impersonate and sing as other celebrities, and then be scored by a panel of people that includes the resurfaced Darrell Hammond and Debbie Gibson appearing in around her billionth reality TV show. Also, there’s David Alan Grier. In between the judges and the five contestants, you've got two former Dancing with the Stars contestants (Grier and Lisa Rinna), and also two former Celebrity Apprentice contestants (Rinna and Gibson). That’s a lot of I like being on reality TV thrown into here.
The show is just about what you thought: Incredibly cheesy, and at times you feel bad for some of the contestants that it’s come to this. Some of these people have done cool stuff! Why dress up for this silliness? But, we have to give them some credit for really going along with the gimmick of the show and having a good time when they really didn't have to. This sort of show requires no shame, and these people really commit to the impressions. Whoever thought basketball star Landry Fields would be better than Jon Lovitz at impersonations? Then again, we feel like Jon had the biggest challenge of the night trying to be Elton John. We could sit here and go through lengthy discussions about the fairness of every aspect of this competition, but there’s literally no point. We're watching a show here that tries to sell you on its contestants instantly transforming into other people.” Grade: D+ …
Clint Eastwood's Jersey Boy debuts in New York a week from today ...
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