Houdini

[jo]

He says that the first run-through of HOUDINI ( presumably with Sorkin and Schwartz) will be in two weeks' time. Hmmm... he must be studying the material now, while still filming Les Miserables? He does have a lot of free time on the plane, flying back and forth ;D

Jo

[nevaeh777]

It truly amazes me Jo how Hugh always seems to be one step ahead in all his projects! He really invests a great deal of time and study in everything he does, doesn't he? It seems that while he's involved with one project, he's already preparing to meet his next challenge in the one that will follow. I don't know how he does it!

I always remember when he was shooting Van Helsing in Prague, he was taking tap lessons in between takes as well as learning the songs for BFO! Then, when he was doing BFO, Darren Aronofsky would visit him in between shows to prepare him for The Fountain, etc, etc...Through every project, he's always ready for the next (or even the one after that!). What an amazing performer!

I know he loves to juggle, but wow! ;D

[jo]

Nothing to be surprised about, after hearing this from Baz Luhrmann ( another incredibly hard-working Aussie) --

quote:

“He is the most centered, incredibly focused actor I’ve ever worked with,” Mr. Luhrmann said. “I know everybody always says that in Hollywood, but I really mean it.”


Jo

[broadwaygal]

Nevaeh, here is an overview of the Houdini exhibit at the Jewish Museum which includes
pics and audio:

www.thejewishmuseum.org/exhibitions/houdini

Enjoy!

Cheryl

[nevaeh777]

Cheryl, what an absolute gem you are! Thank you for thinking of me and sending this link. It is fascinating. I am excited for you that you actually got to be there! It was truly an amazing exhibit. Here's hoping they have another!!! ;D
Hugs to you for being so thoughtful!

[broadwaygal]

You're welcome, Nevaeh! Enjoy!

Cheryl

[perry]

I think tHe economics of Broadway musicals favor very large, very spectacular broad-appeal things that can run forever. Once is an exception(and had the advantage of name-recognition from the charming movie), but reality-based musicals are a tough sell.

I would guess (as that's what we're all doing) that the script has enough substance to attract Hugh...he would not likely be interested in a two-dimensional character, and is so A-list for Broadway that he can name his project...but that the producers want plenty of glamour and sizzle with the steak...lots of "coups de theatre" that will bring in the punters. Stuff that cannot be duplicated anywhere else...except Vegas. THink falling chandeliers, choreographed barricades, helicopter landings.....and yes, magic tricks, illusions, and atmosphere with the spiritualists aplenty.
If the spiritualists are charlatans (sorry, are there any real ones?) then a revolve/ when they fool the credulous HOudini that lets the audience in on how it's done will have the audience gasping, and feeling very smart! Smarter than Houdini even. Dramatic irony is a proven crowd-pleaser.

(sigh) at least, that's what I'D do. And like most theatre fans, what I really want to do is direct......

[perry]

ooops, me again. and i agree on not breaking the fourth wall in this one. after TBFO and the one-man show, going to the audience participation well with Hugh one more time would seem trite, or even worse, gimmick pandering. Also harder to re-cast if the show runs past his contract. not every performer has the personality and improv skills to make that work!

[carouselkathy]

Perry,
I agree with everything you said. The audience also needs to know up front that this is not about straight jackets and water torture chambers. The mother-son and husband-wife relationships are key as well. I wonder is the character of "Bess" will serve as a narrator? I'm not sure if that would be my choice in the show, but she lived until 1945, and was a source of info about her husband.

[jo]

An update from Sorkin -- part of a long interview with Vulture on his body of work ( past, current, and future) :

www.vulture.com/2012/06/aaron-sorkin-newsroom-interview.html

Here's the Houdini update part --

****************************************************
Quote:

Are you still working on the Broadway musical Houdini?

Yes! We wrap The Newsroom Tuesday night, but I’m going to stay here Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday for work sessions with Stephen Schwartz, the composer. Houdini, by the way, is not going to be a biography. It’ll be Hugh Jackman as Houdini—and it’s very much about this wild, epic struggle he had with these women who called themselves spiritualists. They packed people into theaters partly because they were wearing diaphanous gowns. But they would hold ­séances—they did all these things where they could communicate with the dead—and they drove Harry out of his mind, and Harry would delight in exposing their act in his act. In fact, there’s always been a rumor in magic circles that one of these spiritualists had Houdini killed and that’s why he died. He died of a burst appendix. But as long as there’s a rumor, we’ve got ourselves a musical!

****************************************************

LOL on his last sentence ;D

Also, in the interview - Sorkin says the very first musical he ever saw was Man of La Mancha when he was 5. I wonder if he knows that, coincidentally, the very first stage musical which Hugh saw when he was young was also Man of La Mancha.



Jo

[JH4HJ]

According to my on-screen TV guide, Aaron Sorkin is scheduled to be on Rock Center tonight. He's billed as a "screenwriter" - so will they discuss Broadway? We'll have to wait and see. Check your local listings.

[jo]

I guess not many people know that Aaron did his major in Musical Theatre in college.


Jo

[mamaleh]

According to the Jackmans' trusted family friend, HOUDINI will arrive on B'way in 2014.

[jo]

Many thanks, Ellen --

for that important planning info, especially for overseas fans like me

I guess this means sometime in the spring of 2014, assuming they are keeping to the announced opening in the 2013-2014 season ??

I wonder if he is looking at another film project for fall of 2013, after The Wolverine is released?

Jo

[birchie]

Jun 24, 2012 2:40:31 GMT -5 jo said:

Many thanks, Ellen --

for that important planning info, especially for overseas fans like me

I guess this means sometime in the spring of 2014, assuming they are keeping to the announced opening in the 2013-2014 season ??

I wonder if he is looking at another film project for fall of 2013, after The Wolverine is released?

Jo

Isn't he already scheduled to start shooting Prisoners? I thought I read that it was shooting in early 2013.

[jo]

I was thinking --

If PRISONERS is scheduled for filming in early 2013...and Wolverine promotions will likely be in late June-early July ( The Wolverine will be released on July 26, 2013) -- then, he will have some free time in late summer to late fall in 2013?

I was referring to that time period in 2013 -- if Houdini is arriving on Broadway in spring of 2014, rehearsals won't likely start until mid-winter 2014. Maybe there is room for another movie project, if Hugh is not too tired

Jo

[broadwaygal]

I met Stephen Schwartz tonight at the closing performance of Godspell. I told him how much I was looking forward to Houdini. He confirmed that he will be working with Hugh tomorrow!

Cheryl

[jo]

This must the sessions that Aaron Sorkin was referring to - a "stumble-through" with Hugh and Stephen Schwartz.

Didn't Stephen Schwartz compose GODSPELL?


Jo

[broadwaygal]

Yes, Godspell was his first show. He was sitting across from us in the same row. The director
asked him to come up on stage after the show and he got a big standing ovation.

I posted a little bit more about it on the Theater Commentary thread.

Cheryl

[foxie]

Lve it thanks Jo!!

[mamaleh]

Nifty! Glad you got to meet Schwartz.

Ellen

[jo]

From a recent Q&A with Aaron Sorkin ( this relates to his newly-opened HBO show NEWSROOM) --

connect.hbo.com/events/the-newsroom/aaron-sorkin-newsroom/

quote:


elisalorello
How do you manage projects in terms of attention? For example, do you work on one script while another is already in progress? Best, Elisa


Aaron Sorkin says:

I give 100% of my attention to the thing that's right in front of me. The last year and a half has been all Newsroom. I've been writing one script while another was being shot and another was being edited and another was being prepped. We've wrapped the first season and, obviously, I'm doing press, but now I can turn my attention to the screen adaptation of Walter Isaacson's biography of Steve Jobs and a new Broadway musical I'm collaborating on with Stephen Schwartz ("Wicked", "Godspell", "Pippin") that takes place during the last minutes of Harry Houdini's life. It'll star Hugh Jackman and open in 2013. I'll also be preparing to write the story of the Jihn Edwards trial that just concluded in Greensboro.



Maybe he was referring to the 2013-2014 season, not exactly just 2013?

Also, he says the play is focusing on the last minutes of Houdini's life -- this is getting to be more and more interesting!

Jo

[jo]

I am enjoying reading the rest of the Q&A - it gives us an appreciation on why Sorkin is considered one of the best, if not the best, of current scriptwriters. Here are a few interesting points -

_mikeschultz
Which do you enjoy writing more? Dialogue or monologues? Do they serve different purposes for you dramatically?


Aaron Sorkin says:

I love writing both. You have to pick and choose your places where you're going to have a speech. Musicals work best when characters have to sing, when speaking won't do the trick anymore..when you can't just say "Hey I just met a girl named Maria and I really like her," you just have to sing it. By the same token, a speech works best when a normal rhythm of a conversation just doesn't do the trick anymore.

EldarGrigorian
What is more important for you - plot or character?

Aaron Sorkin says:

Everything is important to me. Character only reveals itself through plot. I don't like telling the audience who a character is, I like showing the audience what the character wants.

And in case we're worried he won't have time/inclination when the show is in rehearsals/previews where it may need some rewriting --

jakewaldo2
How much do you tend to change scripts from the first draft to the final? Do you think it's more difficult to fix it once it's written?


Aaron Sorkin says:

I like rewriting more than I like writing. I hate staring at a blank page, I'd much rather be fixing a problem. With The Newsroom there's been a little more time, so I've been able to polish a script after I've written it.

His love of the theatre ( he was a musical theatre major in college) also shows - he makes references to plays he did not write - Lion in Winter ( his favorite), God of Carnage, and those he did (A Few Good Men)...and also how some musicals (Camelot, Brigadoon, Don Quixote-Man of La Mancha) have inspired NEWSROOM.

Jo

[birchie]

I think since Houdini is a period piece we probably won't hear too many of these lines but I thought this was funny: youtu.be/S78RzZr3IwI

[jo]

From a link by a fansite of Stephen Schwartz - some info on his involvement in HOUDINI. Nothing new, but there's hope he might provide the site with a report for the summer update.

www.musicalschwartz.com/houdini-musical/houdini.htm

Here's the link to his quarterly updates --

www.theschwartzscene.com/quarterly-newsletter/issue-46-spring-2012/

He’s been a big fan of the screenwriting of Aaron Sorkin (Social Network, Moneyball, A Few Good Men), and agreed to work with him on a new musical.

And maybe he came to the San Fran one-man show to check out the leading man for the stage musical


Jo