Sunday, October 17, 2010

Don't Knock it 'Til Ya Try It: La Cage aux Folles - the new Broadway cast recording


Ah, La Cage aux Folles.  I'll admit, I've never seen this musical. I haven't even seen the original French film that it's based off of (although I plan to), but I have seen The Birdcage, which I love. But ever since I bought the original cast album off of Itunes last year, I've fallen in love with the music and I've been dying to see the show.

I'll admit, when I first heard that a new cast album was coming out, I was skeptical. What could possibly top the original? George Hearn sang all those songs so well, along with the rest of the cast. It couldn't possibly be as good as the original. Curiosity got the best of me, though, so I bought this new recording the morning it came out, and guess what? All my doubts about it were proven wrong. I haven't stopped listening to it since, and as much as I hate to say it, I actually prefer it to the original.

Alright, alright, I admit, Douglas Hodge isn't as good a singer as George Hearn. I still listen to Hearn's versions of A Little More Mascara, The Best of Times, and of course, my favorite show tune of all time, I Am What I Am instead of Hodge's. The orchestra isn't as good either, because as we all know, the size of Broadway orchestras has shrunk over the years. But aside from those few issues, I like listening to the new version better.

First of all, the new recording is clearer, as you might expect. I couldn't always understand exactly what the singers were saying on the original, but on this one, I can understand nearly every word. It's also nice to have a lot more dialogue, which helps you really understand what's going on in the story if you listen to the album the whole way through. Not only are there tracks devoted to some of the important in-between conversations that explain important plot points, but even the songs themselves have more dialogue. This is most notable in Cocktail Counterpoint, the title song, and Masculinity. Some of the songs have been extended, too, such as With Anne On My Arm, in which there's a part with Jean-Michel singing and Georges reflecting on his son's announcement that he's getting married. ("But after all he's a great kid/So full of charm for a straight kid!")

So, sure, there's aspects about the original recording no one can ever beat, and Hearn's I Am What I Am will never be surpassed, but don't knock this cast album until you take a listen. It's well worth the money, and an awesome cast album overall!

-Marina

4 comments:

  1. Given the size of the Menier Chocolate Theater, which is where this production started, they pretty much had no choice but to reduce the orchestra. It's the same thing with the Watermill Theater, where that revival of Sweeney Todd originated. It's so small they can't even fit a band onstage. That's why the actors play the instruments too.

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  2. Yeah, it's kinda a shame, but still, big orchestra or not, the cast album is awesome!

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  3. So, I got my hands on the new recording. These new pared down orchestrations sound a WHOLE lot better than the recent Menier Sunday orchs. Those were embarrassing!

    The one thing I don't understand: okay, so the Chocolate Factory is small, they need a smaller band. Cool. A Broadway theatre is bigger and the producers have more money... expand the orchestra!!!

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  4. They couldn't. The set is built over the orchestra pit to make room for the tables in the front row.

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