METROLINE
by James Hall
A Walk Down the Infamous Boulevard
Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical, "Sunset Boulevard," based on the classic 1950 movie of that name by legendary director Billy Wilder, evokes the glamour of the bygone era of the silent movies. The musical closely follows the story told in Wilder's film and draws the audience into the forgotten world of Norma Desmond, famed but faded star of the silent screen, ousted from the spotlight by the advent of the "talkies."
The story is told as an extended flashback and sets the destinies of its three major characters: Joe Gillis, Betty Schaffer and the "maybe the greatest star of all," Norma Desmond. All are set forth on a collision course along the infamous boulevard. Initially, Wilder wanted to tell a story that contrasted the glamour of the 1920s with the sharp realities of the film industry of his own time - Hollywood in the late 1940s.
The story is told as an extended flashback and sets the destinies of its three major characters: Joe Gillis, Betty Schaffer and the "maybe the greatest star of all," Norma Desmond. All are set forth on a collision course along the infamous boulevard. Initially, Wilder wanted to tell a story that contrasted the glamour of the 1920s with the sharp realities of the film industry of his own time - Hollywood in the late 1940s.
Wilder made films that matched the persona of the celebrities involved. With Boulevard, he created the role of Norma Desmond. Who was to play Desmond, but a faded silent film star herself, Gloria Swanson? Swanson arrived in Hollywood in 1916 and made a series of popular romantic comedies. In 1919, under the direction of Cecil B. De Mille, she was catapulted to stardom , by being cast as the lead in "Don't Change Your Husband." She now became the epitome of Hollywood glamour, her extravagant lifestyle idolized by her fans. She became the unrivaled queen of Paramount.
The grandeur of Swanson's Hollywood past and the parallels between the character of Norma and herself gave "Sunset Boulevard" an unexpected depth and earned the actress an Academy Award nomination. At the first Hollywood preview for the movie, the audience erupted when Barbara Stanwyck knelt in adoration at Swanson's feet.
Norma Desmond's story lives on in Andrew Lloyd Webber's acclaimed musical of "Sunset Boulevard." Lloyd Webber's magnificent score brings yet another dimension to this timeless tale of Hollywood's past.
SUNSET BOULEVARD: BEFORE & AFTER
Two years ago, the initial beginnings of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Sunset Boulevard proved to be unsuccessful, causing the composer's company to loose anywhere from 10 to 12 million dollars. Earlier this year, the show started a new cross-country journey.
The show was a Broadway hit when it first opened with Glenn Close in the role of Norma Desmond. But while it never actually flopped without her, it couldn't cover the running costs of its spectacular production. And, with the departure of Close, there was no headlining star.
Then, Petula Clark agreed to take on the leading role in this US tour. Now, we have star power! Financially, this scaled-down version is only one-fourth as expensive as the $12 million original, inspiring renewed faith from touring organization Pace Theatrical Group.
This new budget does dictate some conceptual changes. People aren't questioning the sense of spectacle so much as how accessible the character of Norma is to middle America.
Newly appointed director Susan Schulman describes Norma as "nobody I know, but she's everybody who lives in a fantasy world." Schulman has created a more intimate concept in which all of Sunset is set on a filmstage that exists only in Norma's narcissistic mind.
Behind this hidden revisionist mentality lies the same initial fear that the critics initially wrote about - that it's far from Lloyd Webber's best work. Besides a new director, a new lyricist Don Black was brought in for a few changes.
It all comes back to the star power as the most curtail part of this equation. Several fine actresses portrayed Norma, but Schulman liked Clark. At 66, "Clark has been through all of this," says Schulman, "and she's still here."
Well, the changes must have worked. Now, the show has been hailed as "Andrew Lloyd Webber's Masterpiece" by the Wall Street Journal.
PETULA CLARK
Sunset Bboulevard's newest leading lady
With more gold discs to her credit than any other British artist and after fifty years in show business, international film and music star Petula Clark is still one of the most sought after recording artists and concert personalities in the world today. Petula became a household name with a string of top ten hit records, including "Downtown."
Petula was born in Epsom, Surray and became one of Britain's most established child stars, thanks to her appearances on the BBC and the shows she did for the troops during World War II at Army Camps. She made her screen debut at age twelve in "A Medal for the General," which led to a contract with the Arthur J. Rank Organization. Throughout the late 1940's and early 1950's, she appeared in more than two dozen films, including "The Card."
However, her period as a contract artist held its frustrations as well as its rewards. "The Rank Organization were anxious to prolong my little girl image for as long as possible, while I desperately wanted to grow up. At 17, I was still in ankle socks, but yearning with all my heart to become beautiful and mysterious like Ingrid Bergman!" she recalls.
Petula pursued new singing horizons by traveling throughout Europe where her big fifties hit "With All My Heart" delighted audiences throughout the continent. By now, she had rid herself of her little girl image forever, and under the wing of her husband and manager Claude Wolff, with an international appeal that sent her soaring to the top of the charts in Denmark, Belgium, Holland, France, and Italy. In America, she won awards for "Downtown" and "I Know A Place."
Her love for music and acting would soon come together in musicals for both the stage and the screen. On screen, she starred in Coppola's "Finians Rainbow" and the musical adaptation of "Goodbye Mr. Chips." In the early 1980's, she starred as Maria in Ross Taylor's smash hit revival of "The Sound Of Music," in which she achieved a great personal success and great critical acclaim throughout the entertainment industry.
"If I never see 'The Sound of Music' again, this is the way I want to remember it - and I want to remember Petula's performance as the greatest performance of Maria." In the following years, Petula completed successful tours of Canada, Australia and America, where she had sell-out shows.
Petula opened in an original stage musical "Someone Like You," a passionate love story set in the aftermath of the American Civil War, in October of 1989. She not only starred in the show, but composed the music, wrote the lyrics and co-wrote the book with Fay Weldon.
In late 1992, Petula undertook a national tour of the UK for the first time in many years, followed by dates throughout Europe. It was while in Paris that she caught the eye of New York producers and was invited to see the newly opened production of "Blood Brothers." With this, Petula made her triumphant return to the stage in the lead role of Mrs. Johnston.
It was in July of 1995, in London, that Petula accepted the role of Norma Desmond in "Sunset Boulevard." Her first performance was in September 1995, staying with the production until its closure in April 1997. It was that final curtain that Petula received one of the greatest standing ovations ever seen in London's West End.
Petula calls the show "powerful and quite complicated musically, every move is timed to incidental music,as if you are watching a movie." To prepare for the role of Norma, Petula did not watch the original Wilder film, "the initial director wanted me to do it just the way I felt it."
Petula thinks of Norma as "quite funny. So many other people have tried to hate her or make her a monster. I like her. When I was given the chance to do the show again on tour, I felt I have my friend back, Norma."
Sunset Boulevard continues its run thru May 2 at the Shubert in New Haven. Ticket prices range from $33 to $65. Tickets are available through Advantix by calling 800-228-6622 or the Shubert Box Office at 203-562-5666. The production is being sponsored by Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Connecticut and part of the Bell Atlantic Mobile Broadway Series.
Two years ago, the initial beginnings of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Sunset Boulevard proved to be unsuccessful, causing the composer's company to loose anywhere from 10 to 12 million dollars. Earlier this year, the show started a new cross-country journey.
The show was a Broadway hit when it first opened with Glenn Close in the role of Norma Desmond. But while it never actually flopped without her, it couldn't cover the running costs of its spectacular production. And, with the departure of Close, there was no headlining star.
Then, Petula Clark agreed to take on the leading role in this US tour. Now, we have star power! Financially, this scaled-down version is only one-fourth as expensive as the $12 million original, inspiring renewed faith from touring organization Pace Theatrical Group.
This new budget does dictate some conceptual changes. People aren't questioning the sense of spectacle so much as how accessible the character of Norma is to middle America.
Newly appointed director Susan Schulman describes Norma as "nobody I know, but she's everybody who lives in a fantasy world." Schulman has created a more intimate concept in which all of Sunset is set on a filmstage that exists only in Norma's narcissistic mind.
Behind this hidden revisionist mentality lies the same initial fear that the critics initially wrote about - that it's far from Lloyd Webber's best work. Besides a new director, a new lyricist Don Black was brought in for a few changes.
It all comes back to the star power as the most curtail part of this equation. Several fine actresses portrayed Norma, but Schulman liked Clark. At 66, "Clark has been through all of this," says Schulman, "and she's still here."
Well, the changes must have worked. Now, the show has been hailed as "Andrew Lloyd Webber's Masterpiece" by the Wall Street Journal.
PETULA CLARK
Sunset Bboulevard's newest leading lady
With more gold discs to her credit than any other British artist and after fifty years in show business, international film and music star Petula Clark is still one of the most sought after recording artists and concert personalities in the world today. Petula became a household name with a string of top ten hit records, including "Downtown."
Petula was born in Epsom, Surray and became one of Britain's most established child stars, thanks to her appearances on the BBC and the shows she did for the troops during World War II at Army Camps. She made her screen debut at age twelve in "A Medal for the General," which led to a contract with the Arthur J. Rank Organization. Throughout the late 1940's and early 1950's, she appeared in more than two dozen films, including "The Card."
However, her period as a contract artist held its frustrations as well as its rewards. "The Rank Organization were anxious to prolong my little girl image for as long as possible, while I desperately wanted to grow up. At 17, I was still in ankle socks, but yearning with all my heart to become beautiful and mysterious like Ingrid Bergman!" she recalls.
Petula pursued new singing horizons by traveling throughout Europe where her big fifties hit "With All My Heart" delighted audiences throughout the continent. By now, she had rid herself of her little girl image forever, and under the wing of her husband and manager Claude Wolff, with an international appeal that sent her soaring to the top of the charts in Denmark, Belgium, Holland, France, and Italy. In America, she won awards for "Downtown" and "I Know A Place."
Her love for music and acting would soon come together in musicals for both the stage and the screen. On screen, she starred in Coppola's "Finians Rainbow" and the musical adaptation of "Goodbye Mr. Chips." In the early 1980's, she starred as Maria in Ross Taylor's smash hit revival of "The Sound Of Music," in which she achieved a great personal success and great critical acclaim throughout the entertainment industry.
"If I never see 'The Sound of Music' again, this is the way I want to remember it - and I want to remember Petula's performance as the greatest performance of Maria." In the following years, Petula completed successful tours of Canada, Australia and America, where she had sell-out shows.
Petula opened in an original stage musical "Someone Like You," a passionate love story set in the aftermath of the American Civil War, in October of 1989. She not only starred in the show, but composed the music, wrote the lyrics and co-wrote the book with Fay Weldon.
In late 1992, Petula undertook a national tour of the UK for the first time in many years, followed by dates throughout Europe. It was while in Paris that she caught the eye of New York producers and was invited to see the newly opened production of "Blood Brothers." With this, Petula made her triumphant return to the stage in the lead role of Mrs. Johnston.
It was in July of 1995, in London, that Petula accepted the role of Norma Desmond in "Sunset Boulevard." Her first performance was in September 1995, staying with the production until its closure in April 1997. It was that final curtain that Petula received one of the greatest standing ovations ever seen in London's West End.
Petula calls the show "powerful and quite complicated musically, every move is timed to incidental music,as if you are watching a movie." To prepare for the role of Norma, Petula did not watch the original Wilder film, "the initial director wanted me to do it just the way I felt it."
Petula thinks of Norma as "quite funny. So many other people have tried to hate her or make her a monster. I like her. When I was given the chance to do the show again on tour, I felt I have my friend back, Norma."
Sunset Boulevard continues its run thru May 2 at the Shubert in New Haven. Ticket prices range from $33 to $65. Tickets are available through Advantix by calling 800-228-6622 or the Shubert Box Office at 203-562-5666. The production is being sponsored by Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Connecticut and part of the Bell Atlantic Mobile Broadway Series.