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how beautiful

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Vanessa and the cast of Gigi on Good Morning America

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Review: Gigi

In 1791 President George Washington commissioned architect Pierre Charles L’Enfant to design the capital of the United States. The French-born architect sought inspiration from some of Europe’s most beautiful cities including Milan and Amsterdam, but most of all Paris. Considering the romance evoked by Washington D.C.’s architecture, the majesty of its monuments, the beauty of its tree-lined avenues and the sense of possibility that attracts people to visit every year, it makes sense that producers would choose the breathtaking American capital as the place to hold the pre-Broadway run of the Paris-set Gigi.

The production currently being shown at The Kennedy Center cleverly combines the sense of romance evoked by Paris with the idealism suggested by D.C. Inspired by the Academy Award-winning musical (itself an adaptation of a novella by Colette) and tells the story of the title young woman (played by Vanessa Hudgens), a feisty, vivacious student perplexed by Parisians’ obsession with romance. Her grandmother Mamita (Victoria Clark) reluctantly sends her to her Aunt Alicia’s (Dee Hoty) where she is to train in order to become a high society courtesan. But Gigi mostly wants to learn about the world, and if she doesn’t understand love, she’s even more baffled by the limitations society has imposed on her gender.

She sees how family friend Gaston Lachaille (Corey Cott) gets to spend his time romancing and dumping as many women as possible, even leading some to suicide attempts, and wonders why are her options so limited? Of course things get complicated when Gaston realizes he might have feelings for the young woman. Unlike before, this Gigi isn’t sassy just for the sake of it, she is now a full fledged, self-aware human being. This seemingly slight alteration in the book, is what makes this Gigi one of the year’s essential musicals. The book has been heavily adapted by Heidi Thomas (Call the Midwife and Upstairs Downstairs) who moved around the position of the songs, altered the importance of the characters and turned what was basically one of the most misogynistic theatre pieces of all time, into a bona fide feminist musical.

For starters Thomas has reduced the appearances by aging lothario Honoré Lachaille (Howard McGillin) and most importantly has taken away from him the privilege of singing “Thank Heaven for Little Girls”, a song which as performed by Maurice Chevalier and Alfred Drake in the previous versions, was downright pedophilic. Instead, now the person singing this is Mamita, who laments the inevitability of Gigi’s impending adulthood, and seems to ask the angels for just a little bit more time to spend with her beloved child. As performed by Clark, the song is effectively heartbreaking, the actress evoking her character’s entire history with just a few notes. We don’t even need to know what happened to Gigi’s parents to understand how devoted her grandmother is to her.

Honoré and Mamita get more scenes together, in which the book suggests a torrid love affair decades before, but even there, Thomas doesn’t give Honoré the pleasure of the last word, instead she uses this affair to showcase Mamita’s intelligence in having chosen to spend her life with a man who would bring her more good than passion. Interestingly enough, this is the same reading one could apply to George Cukor’s version of My Fair Lady(coincidentally also featuring a book & music by Frederick Loewe and Alan Jay Lerner). Unlike Vincente Minnelli who directed the film version of Gigi, Cukor understood that by the end of the story what Eliza Doolittle (Audrey Hepburn) feels for Henry Higgins (Rex Harrison) is more akin to economic loyalty than unbridled romantic devotion. It was a bold, if misunderstood move back then (people instead complained about the lack of chemistry between the leads), and it’s a bold move now as well.

In keeping up with the feminist changes, the delightfully dark “The Contract”, shows Alicia effectively turning around the greedy intentions of a group of lawyers, going as far as having the lawyers’ dance moves (choreographed by Joshua Bergasse) be submissive, to the point where Alicia looks like she came out of a Madonna video. While intelligent and complex, all the changes to the book have retained the romance of the plot, except they have changed its axis. Gigi is no longer just an object of affection and admiration, now she’s realized that what will determine her transition from girl to woman is how much dignity she grants herself.

When Gaston confronts Gigi and asks her if she thinks he has an easy life because he’s rich, without hesitation she replies that the reason why his life is simpler is “because you’re a man”. Hearing those words coming out of a former Disney starlet who had mostly been at the service of mediocre productions is downright subversive, and Hudgens makes the most out of it. Those who doubt her ability, will be pleasantly surprised to discover she is the kind of generous star who knows just how and when to turn off her scene-stealing, to allow other actors to shine. Her voice sounds absolutely pristine, and when she first opens her mouth, few would even expect such vocal prowess to come from such a petite package. As one of many singers in “The Night They Invented Champagne” she is effectively effervescent, all giggles and squeals, while in the touching “The Letter” she uses her instrument to show how much Gigi has changed in so little time.

Clark and Hoty are equally wonderful, the former exuding the warmth she has accustomed us to (be prepared to take out your hankies when she sings “Say a Prayer”), the latter, bringing a comedic relief performance for the ages. Cott is suave and charming, while McGillin plays the first version of Honoré that won’t repulse audience members.

Gigi features breathtaking scenic design by Derek McLane and the costumes by Catherine Zuber are so spectacular that audience members often burst into applause each time Hudgens appeared in a new design (the curtain call look is simply astonishing!) If there is one minor flaw in the production is that both the end of the first act and the eventual conclusion seem anticlimactic, but under the direction of the wonderful Eric D. Schaeffer, a few tweaks will most likely have it ready by the time it reaches Broadway. With an updated book set to inspire young women and fantastic performances by the ensemble, this Gigi is something one can really thank heaven for. It will send you out of the theatre in a magical daze, feeling as sophisticated and smart as the Paris envisioned by its revolutionary heroine.

via http://stagebuddy.com/reviews/gigi-broadway-review

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Vanessa and some of the cast of Gigi hittin' up SoulCycle!

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Theatre Review: "Gigi" at The Kennedy Center

Thank heaven for grand old musicals. A brilliant score and a new production polished like a jewel give this revival of Lerner and Loewe’s Gigi the attention it deserves.

It is Paris in 1900, when a rich man can pick a prize paramour at will as long as he is willing to pay for his passion. Young Gigi (Vanessa Hudgens) is being groomed to become just such a prize by her loving grandmother (Victoria Clark) and calculating great-aunt (Dee Hoty). Gigi’s youthful exuberance delights Gaston (Corey Cott) a bored young buck in the process of discarding one mistress and searching for a replacement. In the intermission between the first and second acts, Gigi “blossoms like a flower” and Gaston falls in love with her.

In this new, more politically correct version of the story adapted by Heidi Thomas (Call the Midwife), Gigi bemoans her lack of occupational options, and Gaston’s aging roué uncle Honoré (Howard McGillin) doesn’t get to sing the show’s anthem “Thank Heaven for Little Girls”—it’s instead performed by Gigi’s grandmother and great-aunt. In fact, Honoré doesn’t seem to be having much fun—a pity to those of us who remember Maurice Chevalier twinkling in the Oscar-winning 1958 movie version.

Talent will out in this production. Victoria Clark and Dee Hoty steal the show to a degree that often makes the Gigi-Gaston romance seem like a subplot. Hudgens and Cott are fair of face and sweet of voice, but they can’t compete with the powerful performances of the old pros.

Still, Gigi is a feast for the eye as well as the ear. The costumes (by Catherine Zuber) are sumptuous, the sets (Derek McLane) are gorgeous, and the lighting (Natasha Katz) is magical. Director Eric Schaeffer capably helms this old gem, and casting Hudgens, the star of High School Musical, is bound to attract younger audiences. See it before Gigi picks up her picture hat and moves to Broadway.

Gigi is at the Kennedy Center through February 12.

via http://www.washingtonian.com/blogs/afterhours/theater-review/theater-review-gigi-at-the-kennedy-center.php

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'Gigi' at The Kennedy Center

Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe‘s Gigi, the Oscar-winning 1958 film musical that was later adapted for the Broadway stage over 40 years ago, premiered for a pre-Broadway engagement in the Eisenhower Theater at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, officially opening last night.

Directed by Eric Schaeffer (Follies, Million Dollar Quartet) — in a revitalized, re-envisioned modernized adaptation by British playwright and Emmy-nominated screenwriter Heidi Thomas (Call the Midwife, Cranford, Upstairs Downstairs) — the polished production, featuring High School Musical series star Vanessa Hudgens, is set for a Broadway bow, beginning on March 19th at the Neal Simon Theatre.

Based on the 1944 novella Gigi by Colette and the 1958 hit romantic comedy film of the same name, Gigi (Vanessa Hudgens) is a bubbly, free-spirited teenager living in Paris at the turn of the 20th Century being groomed by her Aunt Alicia (Dee Hoty) as a courtesan consistent in her family’s tradition. To Alicia, love is an art, and a compulsory accomplishment in order to safeguard Gigi’s social and economic future. Fortuitously, before she is deemed ready for her social debut, she encounters the bon vivant bachelor Gaston Lachaille (Corey Cott), whom she progressively captivates as she is transformed into a charmingly poised young lady.

Set on a magnificently, intricate stage complete with glistening iron-lattice architectural exteriors and dazzling, eye-catching interiors, the magnitude of Derek McLane’s aesthetically-appealing scenic design is vastly astounding. With an Eiffel Tower in the distance and a sweeping, spiral staircase that serves as a versatile backdrop, the resplendent stage continuously abounds with a wide array of bright, opulent costumes from five-time Tony Award-winning designer Catherine Zuber — glamourous gowns and beautifully-embellished hats for the lavishly accessorized ladies, sharp white tie and tails for the gentlemen, including timeless classic top hat. Later, in Act Two, the luxurious formal wear are supplanted with colorful pastel parasols and casually-chic bathing suits at the beach.

Under Eric Schaeffer’s well-balanced direction, the star-studded cast shines, employing a methodically melodramatic style, accentuated with dynamic choreography by Joshua Bergasse, especially in the closing number of Act One: “The Night They Invented Champagne.”

Bergasse’s creative composition is replete with dances that run the gamut of enthusiastically-energetic to more subdued and intimate. Noteworthy numbers include the “Opening” and the spirted scene in Act Two in which Gigi’s guardians, Mamita (Victoria Clark) and Alicia (Dee Hoty), unwittingly challenge a team of attorneys in “The Contract.”

On the whole, the 29-member ensemble executes a striking show. Hudgens, in her Broadway debut, delivers an outstanding performance, physically and emotionally transforming Gigi from a naïve, bright-eyed teenager to a sophisticated young woman. Showcasing skilled vocal range, acting and dancing ability throughout the production, including “The Parisians” in Act One and “The Letter” in Act Two, Hudgens proved that she is indeed a triple threat on stage.

Corey Cott, as Gaston, is convincing as the town’s most sought after bachelor, displaying comfortable confidence with aplomb. Cott’s robust tenor voice is controlled yet spirited, which is particularly underscored in the iconic title tune, strategically sung in the third scene of the second act as Gaston explores his emotions and ascertains his adoration for Gigi.

Tony Award-winning Victoria Clark’s rendering of Mamita as Gigi’s protective grandmother and caretaker was resounding. In addition to her fantastic acting talent, Clark’s voice was sensational – her vocal prowess was truly remarkable and incredibly enjoyable to hear, especially in Act One’s “Thank Heaven” and her soothing subdued solo, “Say a Prayer” in the latter half of Act Two. Likewise, Dee Hoty was fabulous as the penetrating and passionately positioned Aunt Alicia who was devoutly devoted to keeping Gigi focused on family tradition.

Howard McGillin takes a more low-keyed, refined posture as Honoré Lachaille, Gaston’s uncle. However, he comes alive in his two musical numbers: Act One’s “I Remember It Well” and Act Two’s “I’m Glad I’m Not Young Anymore.”

Bold, fresh and reinvigorated, Gigi is a charming and visually-stunning show that, like champagne, bubbles and simmers, flowing effervescently with splendor and elegance.

Running Time: Approximately 2 hours and 30 minutes,with one 15-minute intermission.

Gigi plays through February 12, 2015 at The Kennedy Center’s Eisenhower Theater – 2700 F Street, in Washington, DC. For tickets, call [phone], or purchase them online.

via http://dcmetrotheaterarts.com/2015/01/30/gigi-kennedy-center/

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Gigi Review

In the panoply of theater and film heroines, Gigi has always been made to stand behind Eliza Doolittle, as No. 2 in the lineup of musical theater's most beloved central characters. Yet with the Kennedy Center's bold new Broadway-bound Gigi, that may change.

The story of a young girl growing up in Paris in the early 1900s, the original Gigi appeared in 1944 as the heroine of a novella by Colette. This Gigi was charming and insouciant, a child being groomed to become a courtesan. The novella inspired various adaptations on stage and screen, including the famous 1958 film with screenplay by Alan Jay Lerner and score by Lerner and Frederick Loewe (the movie won 9 Academy Awards) and the 1973 Tony Award-winning musical.

The Kennedy Center's Gigi has a new book adaptation by Heidi Thomas and uses Lerner and Loewe's music and lyrics to present a fresh look at the girl who grows up to be an intelligent, sensitive, and sexually charged young woman and who knows how to make wise decisions on her own. Thomas deserves much of the credit for this exceptional new Gigi, as does its director, Eric Schaeffer. Together they have created not only a new character in Gigi but also a nuanced interpretation of the influences around her, factors that help shape her identity and create her community.

The musical begins in the Bois de Boulogne with a cheerfully aging Parisian bon vivant, Honoré Lachaille (Howard McGillin) extolling the pleasures of life, while his spoiled nephew, Gaston (Corey Cott), looks at the same landscape and finds everything in it boring. The only things Gaston enjoys are thinking about the future industrial age and visiting with Mamita Alvarez (Victoria Clark) and her bubbly ward, Gigi (Vanessa Hudgens).

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After a departure from Paris for several weeks, Gaston returns to find that Gigi has blossomed into a young woman. This realization leads Gaston to ask Gigi to be his mistress, which she reluctantly agrees to. However, over the course of their relationship, she realizes she is falling in love with him. Gaston has a similar realization that leads to him proposing and marrying Gigi.

Hudgens is charming as Gigi. Her voice is a light but powerful soprano, and she seems to have boundless energy, making the most of Joshua Bergasse's inventive choreography. From the beginning, she is credible as a young woman who wants to have happiness, rather than find a wealthy husband.

Cott is superb as Gaston. His role calls for many numbers to be acted, danced, and sung with Hudgens, and they are well matched on every score.

Victoria Clark and Dee Hoty play the two women who are in charge of Gigi's education, her grandmother Mamita Alvarez (Clark) and Aunt Alicia (Hoty), and both actresses are exceptional. Mamita is gentle and concerned for Gigi's soul, while Alicia is more concerned with making sure Gigi can pour a cup of tea without spilling it in the saucer.

This new adaptation of Gigi features four songs written and added to the score by Lerner and Loewe in 1973: "Paris Is Paris Again," "I Never Want to Go Home Again," "The Contract," and "In This Wide, Wide World." And it includes all of the songs from the movie, such as "The Parisians" and "Say a Prayer for Me Tonight."

All the physical elements make the Kennedy Center's Gigi appealing. Derek McLane's clever set features a huge gray wrought-iron structure, reminiscent of the Eiffel Tower, where set pieces are simply flown in and around. The precise dancing of the extraordinary ensemble is highlighted by Natasha Katz's sumptuous lighting design.

Catherine Zuber's costumes begin with quiet, bustled pastel gowns and matching parasols, then explode into purple and magenta dresses for the dancers at Maxim's. Gigi's evolution from girl to young woman is also highlighted through Zuber's creations, starting with her blue schoolgirl dress, then later a form-fitting white gown with black trim, and finally a stunning white evening gown.

What makes this production particularly noteworthy is its willingness to see Gigi as an independent creature, which is a marked divergence from the original plot. Without the slightest bit of preachiness, this Gigi suggests that by not following the usual routine, she and Gaston just might find a world that makes sense for their independent natures, rather than a wonderland where a woman like Gigi is measured only by her jewels and furs.

via http://www.theatermania.com/washington-dc-theater/reviews/gigi-kennedy-center-review_71586.html?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=04feb2015

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Pre-Broadway Review: ‘Gigi’ Starring Vanessa Hudgens

Can a polished chestnut best-known from a 57-year-old film capture the modern theater audiences that it failed to woo in 1973? That’s the operative question for producers of the spiffy but risky revival of the Lerner and Loewe staple “Gigi” that has bowed at the Kennedy Center en route to Broadway. Teen fave Vanessa Hudgens (Disney’s “High School Musical”) toplines a cast of Broadway regulars that gives its all for the cause.

A long-time project for lead producer Jenna Segal, the show is slated to open in April at the Neil Simon Theater, where it replaces the recently shuttered Sting musical “The Last Ship.” Eric Schaeffer, a.d. of Arlington, Va.’s Signature Theater, directs.

Segal and colleagues are banking on broad acceptance of their $12 million investment, which has clear strengths and weaknesses. On the plus side is the luscious Frederick Loewe score, containing some of the most iconic melodies written for the stage. But their fingers are understandably crossed that Hudgens’ youthful fan base and other first timers will be drawn to the book’s melodramatic tale of a Belle Epoque Parisian girl being groomed as a courtesan. (The original Broadway production in 1973 lasted just three months.)

Screenwriter Heidi Thomas (“Call the Midwife”) has made some shrewd adaptations to the book, based on the 1944 novella by Colette. Importantly, she has addressed the lecherous aspects of the story by adding several years to Gigi’s age and subtracting about a decade from the wealthy playboy Gaston (Corey Cott), who is her paramour. Not only are the two now age-appropriate, but the assertive rule-breaker Gigi also gains greater control of the relationship thanks to the Thomas rewrite.

In the same vein, the tune “Thank Heaven For Little Girls” has been taken away from the elderly Honore (Howard McGillin) and placed in the capable hands of the show’s two principal adult women, the ever-watchful grandmother (Victoria Clark) and the assertive Aunt Alicia (Dee Hoty). It’s an effective change that presents the song in a loving embrace while demonstrating how the duo lives vicariously through their beautiful young charge.

The show has enormous visual appeal thanks to Derek McLane’s impressive set, dominated by a graceful iron canopy clearly inspired by the Eiffel Tower in the distance, and a sweeping staircase that serves as a functional backdrop for several locales, especially the elegant Maxim’s. Lighting by Natasha Katz makes the mood, from subdued to outlandish.

The open set is constantly filled with an eye-popping array of lavish costumes from Catherine Zuber — vibrant gowns and hats for the ladies, white tie and tails for the gentlemen, and always the top hat. Contrasting the formal wear are the parasols and colorful period bathing suits at the beach.

Director Schaeffer has stretched the cast to adopt a melodramatic style, at times employing exaggerated movements and an effete style of speech, especially in the introductory scenes. The technique can be wearing at times, especially in Act One scenes involving the two strident guardians. Thankfully, the forced French accents employed in the 1958 film have wisely been dispensed with.

Joshua Bergasse’s choreography is a consistent delight with dances both boisterous and intimate. Standouts include the lively opening number and the delightful Act Two scene in which Gigi’s two guardians match wits with a cadre of buffoonish lawyers in the sublime number “The Contract.”

Performances on the whole are sturdy. Hudgens delivers a solid performance in a challenging role that requires a transition from impetuous brat to mature young woman. A strong singer, Hudgens nails both her vocal and dancing duties, with the former especially showcased in Act One’s spunky “The Parisians.”

Cott convinces as the self-assured playboy and his strong tenor voice impresses in the title tune, carefully placed in the second act as the character discovers his true feelings for Gigi.

Clark has the cast’s strongest voice and displays it throughout in numbers like “Thank Heaven” and her tender solo, “Say a Prayer.” Hoty remains in high gear throughout as the possessive aunt wedded to tradition.

In the role associated with Maurice Chevalier, made less prominent here, McGillin takes a nuanced approach as a perpetual girl-watcher with a heart. He savors his big numbers, “I Remember It Well” and “I’m Glad I’m Not Young Anymore.”

Producers and creatives have smartly crafted a polished production for this revival — but in a competitive Broadway season, the show may need some luck, and the critics’ blessings, to ensure it survives longer than the musical’s first visit to the Rialto.