About book Everything Was Possible: The Birth Of The Musical Follies (2005)
It's time to come clean. I know this will come as a shock to all of you out there in "Goodreadsland" who look to me, Rolls Andre, as a paragon of virility and male potency; but, I must step out of the shadows of my secret shame and say unequivocally that I am absolutely mad about the musical theater. I'll scream my undying devotion from every rooftop in this dirty old town ‘til my voice is as shredded and worn out as Elaine Stritch's. I am a sucker for show tunes. There I've said it. Now the healing can begin. (For the record I also enjoy a warm bubble bath, a chilled bottle of presecco and novels by guys named Evelyn. Scoff if you must philistines!)Any fans of the Broadway musical out there know that Stephen Sondheim is one of the greatest composers and lyricists who ever lived. His groundbreaking (and seat filling) shows include: “Company,” “Into the Woods,” “Sweeny Todd (my favorite musical of all time),” “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum,” “Pacific Overtures,” “A Little Night Music,” and “Assassins.” Add to this illustrious roster the titles of two shows he “only” wrote lyrics for: “Gypsy” and “West Side Story” and the man’s claim to greatness is all but indisputable.“Follies” stands apart from the other shows previously mentioned by being an artistic triumph but a commercial failure. Though it ran on Broadway for a year it lost every cent invested in it and then some. It was also the victim of an extraordinarily mixed reception by the critics. Some saw it as a harbinger of a new era in musical theater and applauded its many innovations. Others found it an elephantine bore and criticized its chilly book and (to their tin ears) pedestrian score and lyrics. Oddly, time has shown both camps to be in the right.Mr. Chapin’s book is a loving backstage memoir depicting the many birth pangs associated with the creation of this “embarrassment of riches.” At the time he was an undergraduate theater student thrown into the arena with a bevy of battle scarred Broadway veterans clawing their way to a New York opening night for the intoxicating thrill of savoring one more hit. Remarkably his detailed account of the proceedings comes across as incredibly level headed and even handed for so young a writer. He handles the task of chronicling the “who, what, where, why and how” of all the chaos swirling around him like a dyed in the wool newsman and gives you the impression that you are there.To be honest as much as I enjoyed this book I would have appreciated a little more dish on all the backstage bitchiness I know must have gone on. I can’t believe that in a cast of fifty-four (most of them women) there wasn’t even one decent cat fight. All in all though this is recommended to anyone who cares about where the musical theater has been and where it can still go.
Ted Chapin either had unique access to many levels of a Broadway show in development, or he fills in the gaps very gracefully. Either way, he produced a marvelous and rather unusual book. And no matter what you think of it (some love it, some find it disjointed, others say too depressing), I think you have to admit that Follies is an important show, one worthy of this kind of attention.The story that emerges is a great depiction of all the kinds of late changes that happen when a show is out of town, then in previews. (As an aside, I watched the last episode of the first season of Smash a couple of nights ago, which treated the same subject falsely throughout. What can you say? It's television). Anyway, if you read this, you'll get details about set construction and lighting, about casting (and sometimes firing) actors, about the rehearsal process, about designing the costumes, staging and orchestrating the songs, about how songs get changed, and so on. I do a lot of community theater, but I was fascinated by the details of how things work in a Broadway show (at least in 1971).And of course there are plenty of anecdotes about Sondheim, Hal Prince, and Michael Bennett, which make the book worth reading on their own. The actors from this production, given the subject matter of aging showgirls and their husbands returning to their home theatre before it is demolished, are mostly dead, gone, and in most cases forgotten, but their stories are told in a compelling way too.So in short, if you like musical theater, you need to read this book.
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Even though I enjoyed this book greatly, I would only recommend it if you REALLY like Sondheim. REALLY like, as in you care about the original cast members of his shows & deleted songs & staging, and you know enough about Broadway history to be able to contextualize all of the drama swirling around the original production of Follies. Also, if you haven't actually seen a production of Follies and only know it from the sadly abbreviated cast recording, then the action of the show may be difficult to follow through its visions & revisions. That said, I can't imagine a more complete portrait of the behind-the-scenes action of musical theater.
—Melissa
Last week I saw a production of Follies at the Chicago Shakespeare Theatre. The direction and ensemble was excellent with a few standout numbers and only minor flaws (the sound system). The performance so excited and intrigued me that I picked up this book at the Chicago Public Library. If you love musical theater you will not be disappointed reading it for Ted Chapin provides unique insights into the creation of a what is now, forty years later, a classic musical. Stephen Sondheim (music & lyrics), Harold Prince (director & producer), and James Goldman (book) were all in or entering the prime of their careers and Michael Bennett who choreographed the show was soon to reach the peak of his too short career. All the elements of the creation are told with fascinating detail that could not be provided by any one else, for as a production assistant (gofer) Ted Chapin had access to all and a chance to participate and listen to many illuminating conversations. From the days preparing the scenes in the very location where the scenery was being built to the tryouts in Boston and back to Broadway for the opening the Chapin shares the odyssey in which he had a close if somewhat small hand. The results of the work of the creators and cast are the stuff of musical theater history, but seeing the musical performed forty years later here in Chicago confirmed for me that this is a classic of the American theater. Ted Chapin's book is a great way to share in the birth of that classic.
—James
Complete engrossing read. The level of detail is often is almsot exhaustive. What's particularly impressive is the author's objectiveness. He gives us lots of facts, lots of background and lots of personalites and weighs in with an opinion rather than reporting from a prejudiced point of view. This makes the reader really feel like we're in on something since we can form our own opinions rather than having them handed to us. He's respectful but not worshipful. He also doesn't let anyone's future (or past) acheivement overshadow them here. A fascinating piece of theatrical history.
—Mark
