(no subject)

Well, I've been ferociously sick this week, but I think I've made it to recovery now. My fever's gone, I can mostly breathe, and (most importantly) staring at my computer doesn't give me a headache. Going to see Chess tonight with tpau, laurion, asdr83, shprintzah, and I think some other people. One wonders if too many of my friends are now on livejournal. Put subliminal messages here and the entire Western hemisphere would succumb.

(no subject)

Saw the Harvard production of Chess this evening, and overall I liked it. The acting was good, the singing was decent, and the play is an interesting work, though not brilliant. I would echo cristovau's comments that the singers were often too quiet and the orchestra too loud, but I think that is part of a more general problem. My impression was of a good show struggling through overworked production. The lighting crew used an enormous number of instruments, yet managed to leave many crucial parts of the stage in shadow. The sets were elaborate, but tossed about without interacting with the actors, making the show seem at once static and chaotic. All the actors were amplified, but little care was taken to balance the volume of competing noise. All of these things could have been done better, with less expense; they come off as sloppy. I think that if the technical side had been less jumbled, the artistic side would have shined much brighter.

Of course, I just finished a nearly bare-stage production, so the difference is jarring. I think, however, that even if I had not my criticism would be the same: just because you have a lot of toys, don't try to use them all.