Post by Nikki on Apr 27, 2010 16:03:49 GMT -5
I saw this musical for the first time over the weekend and really enjoyed it. So now I would like to share some thoughts on here about it. Even though it's completely different I've made a number of comparisons with Kunze and Levay's 'Mozart' because that's what most of us are more familiar with (particularly the Hungarian production in my case)
I don't really speak French at all so because I don't understand what's happening word for word most of my opinions are based on the feeling/impression I get from the actors
The cast
Mikelangelo Loconte - Wolfgang
Diane Dassigny - Constance
Mélissa Mars - Aloysia Weber
Florent Mothe- Antonio Salieri
Maeva Meline - Nannerl
Solal - Leopold
Yamin Dib - Graf Rosenberg
Marwan Rim - Innkeeper/Clown
Mozart here is played out like a 17th century rock star. Many of the songs are quite rocky and the story has similarities with the movie 'Amadeus' with the Salieri rivalry thing. Colloredo is just a very minor character and the baroness seems non existent.
It's a real feast for the eyes though with it's gorgeous set's and costumes, the cast themselves are equally impressive.
I enjoyed Attila and MAZs when I saw them as Mozart in Budapest, they are both very talented performers yet I get from either of them my own ideal Mozart. There were just qualities/characteristics missing to seal the deal for me. That's simply down to my just my taste and expectations. Now though I think now I found my ideal stage Mozart in the actor playing the role in this version
He is flamboyant, wild, playful, immature and yet doesn't come across as over the top with it. He's an absolute arrogant sod who thinks he's better than everyone else, especially Salieri who he speaks to with a tone of mocking and sarcasm , he well deserves the slap he eventually gets from Mama Webber.
Yet when things get dark and serious he brings it with sincere emotion!
I also have a new fave Leopold. I love how he is played out here. He comes across as a strict, proud authority figure who as head of the household feels very strongly about doing what's best for his family and cares about them a great deal. He comes across genuinely hurt/disappointed at his sons behavior. It also doesn't hurt that the actor playing him has an incredible voice, very rocky and strong, also when he speaks he sounds very commanding
Constance is also played out very differently. She's as sweet as cherry pie and almost comes across as a Cinderella type figure. She's overlooked by her everyone including Wolfgang at first. When he first enters the Webber house she's playing the piano yet soon gets shouted at to stop by her mother who seems embarrassed by her and is preoccupied by getting Mozart get involved in Aloysia's career . It's clear from the get go that she cares about him. She's genuinely happy for him on his successes while the rest of her family are only happy because of the benefits Aloysia will get from it. While they are all fawning over him with fake admiration it's her alone who notices his mother is waiting to speak to him and brings it respectfully to his attention. She disapproves of how her sister uses him but can only look on with a quiet concerned longing as things take their course.
I do slightly prefer the sassy wild girl approach we see in 'Mozart' because I believe the historical Constance was like that, more of a match for Mozart and more inclined to risque behaviour. But still this works really well for the show and the actress playing her sounded lovely
Aloysia comes across as a bit of a joke in in the Budapest I'm not sure if it's the same for all production's of K&L's Mozart. Here though she's a proper character and plays a bigger part, she's a manipulative little cow who see's Wolfgang as a stepping stone and doesn't think twice about mocking him when he's no longer of use to her. I prefer this actually, it's more realistic
Salieri like Leopold has an air of authority about him. He speaks and everyone stops to listen and is respected, except by Mozart of course. He's the kind of character I can imagine Szilveszter playing. Quiet, brooding and as the jealousy eats away at him becomes quite erratic and crazed. He has some of the best songs of the show(in my opinion) He has a dark/gothic overall look with his costume and hair etc and has this signature rock style cry/scream thing he dose during his solo's all which add to the dark feel perfectly. I thought he was brilliant!
Just before Mozart's death the 2 rival's sing a duet where it seems they finally forgive and accept one another, it's a lovely scene and they're voices blend just beautifully.
I cannot really say much about 'Nannerl'. the way she's characterized is not too far removed from what we've seen before, the actress didn't quite look like an 'older sister' but was good overall and made the best of her part, had a really lovely voice!
The character of 'Rosenberg' doesn't actually have any songs, only dialog but is great fun to watch. The best way I can describe him is kinda like an equivalent to Arco but with a lot more backbone and wit. He's a bit of a sidekick to Salieri and dose his dirty work for him. He's plain hilarious!
The clown is an interesting one. He's quite sinister and comes on only to mock Mozart like an inner demon to remind him of his failures etc, it's an interesting concept. He has a great voice too
Now for the gripes
This show has a great ensemble of dancers, but that's all they seem to use them for. Instead of having them sing back up in the choruses etc they instead use recordings featuring the main cast (from the cast recordings?) for the backing vocals which is disorientating when you have the actor singing there song and also hearing their voice (or that of another cast member not on stage) on a recorded backing vocal
The taking of pictures during the show seems common too, I had people right in front of be brazenly taking pics which although thankfully there was no flash being used, the frequent view of the bright screens was quite distracting! I so wanted to say something but my language issues prevented me
Overall though I thought it was a great show and probably would see it again someday
I don't really speak French at all so because I don't understand what's happening word for word most of my opinions are based on the feeling/impression I get from the actors
The cast
Mikelangelo Loconte - Wolfgang
Diane Dassigny - Constance
Mélissa Mars - Aloysia Weber
Florent Mothe- Antonio Salieri
Maeva Meline - Nannerl
Solal - Leopold
Yamin Dib - Graf Rosenberg
Marwan Rim - Innkeeper/Clown
Mozart here is played out like a 17th century rock star. Many of the songs are quite rocky and the story has similarities with the movie 'Amadeus' with the Salieri rivalry thing. Colloredo is just a very minor character and the baroness seems non existent.
It's a real feast for the eyes though with it's gorgeous set's and costumes, the cast themselves are equally impressive.
I enjoyed Attila and MAZs when I saw them as Mozart in Budapest, they are both very talented performers yet I get from either of them my own ideal Mozart. There were just qualities/characteristics missing to seal the deal for me. That's simply down to my just my taste and expectations. Now though I think now I found my ideal stage Mozart in the actor playing the role in this version
He is flamboyant, wild, playful, immature and yet doesn't come across as over the top with it. He's an absolute arrogant sod who thinks he's better than everyone else, especially Salieri who he speaks to with a tone of mocking and sarcasm , he well deserves the slap he eventually gets from Mama Webber.
Yet when things get dark and serious he brings it with sincere emotion!
I also have a new fave Leopold. I love how he is played out here. He comes across as a strict, proud authority figure who as head of the household feels very strongly about doing what's best for his family and cares about them a great deal. He comes across genuinely hurt/disappointed at his sons behavior. It also doesn't hurt that the actor playing him has an incredible voice, very rocky and strong, also when he speaks he sounds very commanding
Constance is also played out very differently. She's as sweet as cherry pie and almost comes across as a Cinderella type figure. She's overlooked by her everyone including Wolfgang at first. When he first enters the Webber house she's playing the piano yet soon gets shouted at to stop by her mother who seems embarrassed by her and is preoccupied by getting Mozart get involved in Aloysia's career . It's clear from the get go that she cares about him. She's genuinely happy for him on his successes while the rest of her family are only happy because of the benefits Aloysia will get from it. While they are all fawning over him with fake admiration it's her alone who notices his mother is waiting to speak to him and brings it respectfully to his attention. She disapproves of how her sister uses him but can only look on with a quiet concerned longing as things take their course.
I do slightly prefer the sassy wild girl approach we see in 'Mozart' because I believe the historical Constance was like that, more of a match for Mozart and more inclined to risque behaviour. But still this works really well for the show and the actress playing her sounded lovely
Aloysia comes across as a bit of a joke in in the Budapest I'm not sure if it's the same for all production's of K&L's Mozart. Here though she's a proper character and plays a bigger part, she's a manipulative little cow who see's Wolfgang as a stepping stone and doesn't think twice about mocking him when he's no longer of use to her. I prefer this actually, it's more realistic
Salieri like Leopold has an air of authority about him. He speaks and everyone stops to listen and is respected, except by Mozart of course. He's the kind of character I can imagine Szilveszter playing. Quiet, brooding and as the jealousy eats away at him becomes quite erratic and crazed. He has some of the best songs of the show(in my opinion) He has a dark/gothic overall look with his costume and hair etc and has this signature rock style cry/scream thing he dose during his solo's all which add to the dark feel perfectly. I thought he was brilliant!
Just before Mozart's death the 2 rival's sing a duet where it seems they finally forgive and accept one another, it's a lovely scene and they're voices blend just beautifully.
I cannot really say much about 'Nannerl'. the way she's characterized is not too far removed from what we've seen before, the actress didn't quite look like an 'older sister' but was good overall and made the best of her part, had a really lovely voice!
The character of 'Rosenberg' doesn't actually have any songs, only dialog but is great fun to watch. The best way I can describe him is kinda like an equivalent to Arco but with a lot more backbone and wit. He's a bit of a sidekick to Salieri and dose his dirty work for him. He's plain hilarious!
The clown is an interesting one. He's quite sinister and comes on only to mock Mozart like an inner demon to remind him of his failures etc, it's an interesting concept. He has a great voice too
Now for the gripes
This show has a great ensemble of dancers, but that's all they seem to use them for. Instead of having them sing back up in the choruses etc they instead use recordings featuring the main cast (from the cast recordings?) for the backing vocals which is disorientating when you have the actor singing there song and also hearing their voice (or that of another cast member not on stage) on a recorded backing vocal
The taking of pictures during the show seems common too, I had people right in front of be brazenly taking pics which although thankfully there was no flash being used, the frequent view of the bright screens was quite distracting! I so wanted to say something but my language issues prevented me
Overall though I thought it was a great show and probably would see it again someday
