First of all, I want to begin by saying how excited I was to watch this show. I am a big fan of both musicals and of the Vampire Chronicles. I intentionally did not listen to the previewed songs sung by Elton John bec. I wanted to hear the songs from the characters' mouths. It is with great sadness that I say that the show was a disappointment based on the third preview that I saw.
Like the first two previews, the director appeared at the beginning of the show announcing that it was a work-in-progress and to excuse the production should they pause in the middle of the performance. According to him, some changes were made to the show earlier in the day.
The first act was quite boring. The only song which really stands out is "Crimson Kiss" sung by Gabrielle and that doesn't come till near the end of the act when Lestat's mother decides she wants to move on without him. Most of the songs are slow and ballad-like. Almost like a chamber-musical. This means that the regular NY tourist who is not the traditional theater-goer will definitely be out cold and snoring within 30 mins. I was hoping for the typical Elton John songs and though I commend him for trying something new, hardly any of the songs in this show are memorable.
Hugh Panaro, when he is singing, is good. However, he recites Lestat's lines as if he were reading poetry. It makes the whole production seem very fake and unnatural. This sort of delivery makes Lestat very distant and uninteresting or cold. Since the show starts with "The Vampire Lestat", we are not given any reason to like or relate to Lestat... he is arrogant and full of himself... as he should be. Unfortunately, he is the main character of the show. He is on the stage for most of the production except for a brief performance by the Theater of the Vampires. Physically though, he is Lestat... tall, goodlooking and blonde. Not a lot of guys can pull of that long-haired blonde look without looking like Fabio.
I feel like we could have done without the character of Nicholas, Lestat's childhood friend. The duet between Lestat and Nicholas about their desire to go to Paris is so unmemorable and dull, my mind was wandering throughout the whole number. Bernie Taupin could've written better lyrics than these. I believe Nicholas is in the musical to facilitate Lestat experiencing loss after his best friend goes crazy as a result of his receiving the dark gift. However, I think Gabrielle leaving Lestat is enough to show that Lestat has lost someone he loves. This results in him having difficulty of letting Louis and Claudia go.
Gabrielle was ofcourse performed very well by Carolee. It would have been interesting to see more of her relationship with Lestat... the true closeness between them (if it ever existed) and this would have been a great counterpart to Lestat's relationship to Louis. I can't really say much about the character of Armand. Though his is a prominent role, he was sort of just in the background. That is however, the nature of Armand... he was never much a participant in the current world but merely an observer. I would have loved to hear a really good and hummable duet between Lestat and Armand.
Marius was enough of a presence that even though some folks have complained that he is bald, he is authoritative enough that he could be accepted as Marius. He is, vocally, Marius. Wish he looked more Roman though. His entrance was a lame attempt for some stage wizardry expected to get oohs and ahhs. Unfortunately, there are so many more interesting stage effects on Broadway right now, this one attempt at a showstopper at the end of Act 1 fails.
Louis is definitely a role that could be expanded more. The "Interview with a Vampire" portion of the musical is definitely more interesting bec. there are more relatable characters. Yes, it is with Louis and Claudia that the audience can relate more and not to Lestat since they are more "human". Louis definitely needs a solo, perhaps to explore his initial despair and/or his conflicts as a vampire. His anguish is just as much as Claudia's and hers is definitely the best role in the show. She also gets the loudest applause during the curtain call. The main reason for this is that her songs are the most interesting and are the only songs in the show that actually express emotion. This portion of the show could definitely be expanded instead of seeing "6 mos. later" or "30 years later" so quick in succession.
I'm a big nerd when it comes to seeing my favorite characters brought to life. Whenever a Batman movie comes out, I'm excited to see even the most minor characters show up on screen. In this case, as excited as I am to see Akasha and Enkil in 3D, they are irrelevant to the show and just take up precious time which could be dedicated to other characters and events. When they appear in the end, I believe the main purpose is to show that all the vampires are inter-related. However, I think through the course of the show and through Lestat's experiences, I believe that message has already come across. It is unnecessary to show the "family tree" at the end with all the characters to achieve this purpose. The last number is actually good so if there could be some other way of bringing back all the characters in the end without having to explore the Akasha and Enkil angle, then that should be done.
Like I said earlier, the biggest issues with the show is that it is boring and that there aren't very many relatable characters until Louis and Claudia show up in the second act. The musical opens with Lestat in SF, then flashes back to France before he was a vampire and then proceeds from there. My solution to making the show flow better and be more interesting is to start with the "Interview with a Vampire" portion. Let us fall in love with Lestat through his relationship with Claudia and Louis. The flashbacks can begin right after Claudia attempts to kill Lestat and when Louis sets the house on fire. Then we can go with Lestat's childhood and transformation into a vampire. That way, we see the reasoning as to why he holds on to Louis and Claudia later on. We can also see why he gave Louis the choice to accept the gift bec. he himself didn't have that choice. The flashbacks can end right after Marius tells Lestat to go to the new world. It will pick up where Lestat is on the ship where the audience would assume that he in on his way to the new world when in fact, he is on his way back to Europe bec. we are now where we left off. The first act can perhaps end when Gabrielle becomes a vampire. Structuring the show this way would also allow most of the performers to appear in both acts. Louis and Claudia in the beginning, then again in the end when they are captured in the Theater of the Vampires, and Gabrielle appearing towards the end of the first act and into the beginning of the second act. This would also spread the more boring parts of the show into the two acts so people can actually sit through most of the show.
The sets were the best part of the show. Unfortunately, that is not saying much. The projections are most interesting when Lestat bites into his victims and you see their lives flashing. It also works to great effect when Lestat is being trailed by Magnus or Armand. It's very creepy and one of the few times in any musical where I got goosebumps. However, in most other occasions, the projections are either unnecessary or distracting. We go to these shows to watch the magic of theater and not watch pre-recorded movies. We want to see things live. The few 3D sets that actually exist are very "Beauty and the Beast" in style and do not seem to match the visual design of the show. My favorite set is Lestat's New Orleans mansion just bec. the projections look grand. My favorite costumes are of Akasha and Enkil but I've already mentioned how I feel about their inclusion in the show.
Overall, I wish they do make improvements to "Lestat". I want it to succeed mainly bec. I have loved Elton John's previous three musicals and bec. I like Lestat as a character. Unfortunately, with a limited amount of time from SF to NY, I doubt they can make "Wicked"-type changes before the show opens.