#I love you Krolock but if you promised to dance with only me and then went off and danced with others I'd be livid | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

ninallthatjazz · 6 years

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Review TdV Vienna – 07.06.-10.06.18

If you are wondering why I have been pretty absent from Tumblr last week – it’s because I was on my long awaited Vienna trip/Tanz der Vampire week. I originally had planned to see the show twice, on Thursday and Sunday. But somehow I got incredibly lucky and managed to get last-minute tickets with student discount for all the other shows during my stay, meaning I saw it 5 times (!!!) in 4 days.

And as promised I will review the show(s) for you, but since I had so little time in between, I couldn’t write up one for each performance right away. Also considering I already posted a general review of the Vienna show HERE, I will just review the roles/actors I haven’t mentioned/seen before, as well as sharing highlights from the individual shows that were particularly memorable.

I also have quite a few pictures, therefor I will put all this under a read more so you don’t have to scroll endlessly. Enjoy!

Cast lists:

Drew Sarich – Graf von Krolock I know, I have written about Drew already. I promise to keep it short. But I couldn’t write this review without mentioning how abolutely incredible Drew was once again. His Krolock is the most layered character out there in my opinion, he manages to make you feel all kinds of emotions with his portrayal. He managed to make me tear up during ‘Unstillbare Gier’ in every. single. performance. 5 times in a row! And the first and last time I was even full on sobbing and had difficulty breathing for a few minutes after the song was over - it was insane. I pray to god he will return to this role some time in the future, I can’t imagine this being the end of Drewlock.

Abla Alaoui – Sarah Chagal Abla was an incredibly sweet Sarah. I really loved her voice, might actually prefer it to Dianas even. Acting wise they are both amazing, and while they make different choices, I couldn’t say one was better than the other. I really liked the way Abla played the transformation in the end – it started out with small jerking movements and grew more prominent up to the revealing of the fangs. It was a very nice touch and made that whole scene that much more interesting. I also really enjoyed her chemistry with both Daniel Eckert and Drew Sarich (more during the highlights 😉).

Daniel Eckert – Alfred Daniel was an incredible Alfred. He was really sweet and he has a great voice, he and Raphael Groß are definitely my favourite Alfreds. Because even if I still want the Graf to succeed, they both managed to make me care about Alfred a little more and made me actually like ‘Für Sarah’ :D He was also very funny next to the Professor, which not every Alfred manages to do.

Christopher Dederichs – Alfred Christopher is also a good Alfred, and I did enjoy his performance a lot; but his voice wasn’t quite on the same level as the other two in my opinion. He still delivered on most songs, but ‘Für Sarah’ wasn’t quite as captivating. This is also due to personal preference, but I never imagine Alfred with blond and curly hair, so that took some getting used to. But all in all a great performance that I certainly wouldn’t mind seeing again 😊

Dawn Bullock – Rebecca Chagal I love Dawn as Rebecca. She is hilarious and has great comedic timing, and her voice is perfectly balanced between rough and melodic. Maciej Salamon – Yoine Chagal He was also a great Chagal, especially the comedic moments were great with him, but I think Nicolas Tenerani is definitely the better singer and showed more diversity in his singing technique – Maciej always ‘growled’ his lines which made Chagal not as complex a character as he was during Nicolas’ performance. Marle Martens – Magda Marle is an incredibly strong singer, and I was blown away by the effortlessness with which she sang. I found a new appreciation of ‘Tot Zu Sein Ist Komisch’ thanks to her.

Highlights: There are quite a few things I discovered in these shows, some of them are planned/regular moments, some just happened in one show (I will name the specific show in brackets).

· In one show, Chagal (Nicolas Tenerani that day) tries to nail the piece of wood to the door, but it wouldn’t stay on – so he just took it down and carried it back out again XD (June 8th)

· During ‘Nie Gesehen’, Rebecca searches for Chagal in her sleep, and when she wakes up, she checks under the sheets first before searching the room for him XD

· After singing ‘Gott Ist Tot’, Drew turns to look back at the moon and bares his fangs

· I never noticed that Alfred and Magda are flirting quite a bit during ‘Wahrheit’ – Magda is dropping some vegetable to have him picking it up as an excuse to start a conversation, and Alfred is totally into it!

· When Abronsius is ‘whispering’ to Alfred during Wahrheit, Rebecca wants to know what he’s saying reeeally badly and even tries to ask Magda and Chagal if they understand, only to be VERY annoyed when they don’t.

· One time, Rebecca (Tanja Petrasek) wasn’t on stage on time after ‘Rote Stiefel’ – she wasn’t there when Chagal said ‘…er hat sie geholt, hat sie uns entführt’! She came on stage right after though and just started with her line, I don’t think people noticed. (June 9th, evening show)

· When the professor and Alfred try to interrogate the villagers after Chagals death, the village idiot sits there picking his nose, and that’s why he doesn’t notice everyone else leaving XD

· After biting Magda, Chagal is howling like a wolf and then he has the hiccups; hilarious!!!

· Raphael had a hilarious way of singing ‘…das Schloss von diesem GRAFEN!’ (June 7th/9th)

· When the vampires are amongst the audience in Finale I. Akt, there were quite a few screams from surprised/terrified audience members XD

· When Drewlock seduces Alfred, he smells at the sponge, and for some reason his voice sounds really weird singing the next few words (‘…ich weiß, was du fühlst und denkst…’); it almost sounds as if he were high! (from Sarah’s scent?)

· Drewlock reacting to Herbert and Alfred meeting – glorious! During the lines “dies ist mein Sohn Herbert…” he is grinning as if to say ‘oh you poor boy, you have no idea what’s coming for you’ and when Herbert sings “Endlich jemand, der mir die Langeweile nimmt!”, he is putting a hand over his heart as if to say ‘awww, my precious boy has found a toy’ XD

· During the ‘intro’ at the beginning of act 2, there is a lonely bat flying towards the castle, vanishing through a window – that looks exactly like the one Graf stands in front of at the beginning of ToFi!

· While he is walking down the stairs during ToFi, Drewlock is stroking his bottom lip with his thumb while he is observing Sarah!

· Drewlock touching Sarah’s hair and then smelling his own hand during Totale Finsternis – that was another great detail that made his vampiric nature tangible

· In one show, Filippo forgot the lines during the beginning of ‘Carpe Noctem’ – I had to giggle a bit, but I don’t think it was very noticeable for people that don’t know the song by heart :P (June 8th)

· I noticed that the cover black vampire, Jordan Hinchliffe, was wearing an open black vest, while Arltan Andzhaev (main cast) is always shirtless. (June 8th/9th)

· In one show, the white vampire (Jasper Caransa) almost kissed Sarah (June 9th, evening show)

· After the nightmare bite, Arltan ‘shares’ some of Sarah’s blood with Herbert

· The Professor sniffed at both oatmeal bowls and gives the one that smells awful to Alfred (I am guessing that’s the one Koukol spat into 😉)

· In the crypt, Abronsius mimics breasts when he says ‘denk an Chagal’s Tochter’

· Chagal kissed Magdas foot when she stopped him from joining her in the coffin during ‘Geil zu sein ist komisch’ (June 9th, evening show)

· Herbert (Charles Kreische) had a small mishap once, his sleeve caught in his neckline. But Charles was great, stayed in character and ripped it free with a dramatic eyeroll :D

· When Krolock comes down from the pulpit in Tanzsaal, one of the vampires falls to her knees and kisses his hand

· Before the Sarahlock bite, Drewlock looks to Herbert as if to get reassurance. Only when Herbert slightly bows in response, he holds his hand out for her.

· Drewlock gave ‘Sarabla’ a kiss on the cheek before biting her (you read correctly – A KISS!!) It was Ablas last show as Sarah playing with Drew, and it was a sweet little gesture that had her giggling for a moment <3 (June 8th)

· When Sarah falls after the Graf lets go of her, all the vampires move towards her and only stop when Krolock hisses at them, as if to say ‘don’t you dare touch her, she’s mine!’

· Herbert flirting with another (male) vampire during the Ballsaalszene, dancing almost the entire thing with him, winking and waving at him

· When Graf and Sarah were towards the back of the stage, Drewlock had another taste of her by running his finger through the blood on her neck and sucking it off his finger… (not sure if this was a one time thing – noticed it on June 9th, matinee show)

· Krolock also flirting with (female) vampires during that whole scene – one moment that stands out is when there are only a few of the vampires left (shortly before they discover the human’s reflections). He changes partners, and when met with one specific female vampire he kisses his index finger and wiggles it at her (flexing and extending, not moving it side to side like some diva) – she basically turns into a teenie with a crush (as do I), giggling and legs turning to jelly. I asked Drew about it, and she is indeed supposed to be one of the many conquests the Graf had before Sarah.

· Towards the end of Tanzsaal, Drewlock starts picking his teeth, he apparently still has Sarah stuck in his fangs. When the humans ‘dance into’ Krolock, he demonstratively flicks a piece off his fingers XD

Pictures:

Last, but definitely not least, I have a bunch of photos from the stage door and all the treasures I collected etc.

On the day of my last show I brought my own fangs and I had SO much fun posing for pictures with them – every single person I met at the stage door was super sweet and kind enough to play along 😊

This was one of the most amazing experiences of my life, and I will treasure these memories forever <3

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coffintanz · 6 years

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Review Tanz der Vampire Vienna 8th and 9th of May 2018

I’m combining the shows because I’ve got a lot to say about the first show and not so much about the second, As you might have read, the show on the 8th was the best Tanz show I’ve ever seen, so here are some of my thoughts on the spectacle that were those shows.

First some random things:

I had a standing place for both of the shows, I basically stood on the same spot on both days and it wasn’t all too bad! If you know what the seating for the bad sight seats is like on the very right and very left of the theatre, then you know that your view will literally be 50% of the stage. I could see more with a standing place than with a bad sight seat. I’d recommend a standing ticket if you can’t afford the few tickets that are still left for some of the shows.

Remember that I was very underwhelmed with the audience of the Cologne show? Well, that was a whole other story here, everyone was super impressed and the atmosphere was great. The audience on the 8th was a little bit better than on the 9th, but there wasn’t a massive difference. The contrast between the audiences in Vienna and Cologne surprised me so much that needed to come back to that after last week’s review.

Consider this the Drew Sarich as Krolock review and not so much a Tanz review ;) My biggest dream ever when it came to musical related things was seeing Drew as Krolock, and that dream came true, so of course I am gonna talk about him a lot.

He is perfection, he’s simply perfection, every little thing that he does is exactly how you imagine the best Krolock to be. I’m sorry to Mathias Edenborn, Jan Ammann, Mark Seibert and Jan Kriz, I’ve all seen you live as Krolock, but there will never be someone as perfect to me as Drewlock.

There was a video a while ago when Drew said this “Die Rolle besteht aus gehen und hände” and he proved that the first second that you notice him when he’s walking towards the stage at Gott ist Tot. He doesn’t walk, he seems to glide, and he takes all the time to study his hands at the same time. Elegant isn’t the right word, but he has something elegant to him right from the start. I was already very much obsessed with Drew as a person and also with his Krolock, but now that I’ve seen his Krolock with my own eyes, I can say that I’m a bit in love with Drewlock.

Can we take a moment to talk about the way his cape sparkles? It’s so damn beautiful. I had obviously seen the costume before on Mark, but Drew wears it like it’s the most natural thing ever. That was also the case with the red coat in Totale Finsternis and the finale outfit, it doesn’t seem like a costume when he’s wearing it.

Vor dem Schloss: He is so very proud of Herbert when Herbert first appears at Vor dem Schloss. He put his hand on his own heart and his facial expression was pure pride. He was equally as proud of Christoph Apfelbeck (8th) as well as Charles Kreische (9th) and that was so sweet. I have never seen a Krolock who was proud of Herbert, I’ve seen Krolocks and Herberts who had a really good bond together especially during Tanzsaal, but this told you so much about what they are like as father and son right from the start. Krolock seduced Alfred like I’ve never seen before. There is this post on tumblr that is called something like “Drew Sarich has no sense of personal space” and I can safely say that he indeed doesn’t. There was this moment when he was so close to Alfred that he stroked Alfred on his cheeks and looked him in his eyes so deeply. If I was Alfred I would not even want to save Sarah at that point. He also sniffs the sponge and looks at it with much interest. His hand movement when he scares Alfred and the professor after he’s done with his monologue and there’s this little silence is also great. He makes a claw of his hand and hisses at them like a cat. I even saw some people make a little jump in their seat because they did not see that coming. When he receives Abronsius’ card he holds it really far away to read it. I’ve seen some people on here say that he might need to get glasses, and maybe he does need glasses 😉

Totale Finsternis: The chemistry between him and Sarah during Totale Finsternis is jaw dropping. You can see that Sarah really wants it. (Props to Diana, she was good in my opinion before, but now she’s really convinced me.) The way these two end the song with Sarah having her eyes closed and her head tilted onto Krolock’s chest made me wish I could swap places with her.

His Unstillbare Gier was perfection. He really regretted about what he did when he started singing “das Korn war golden”. His “ketten” part was as good as always, and I like it when the “doch” in “doch die wahre macht die uns regiert” is extended, and he did that.

Tanzsaal: A thing I looked forward to a bit too much was his take on “Doch sie gehört nur mir!” and to my joy he did the little melody change! He only did it in the show on the 8th though, so sometimes he doesn’t do it. But if you love that little detail as much as I do, it’s definitely something to look forward to. When Alfred “attacks” him with the candle at the end of Tanzsaal, Drew did the classic move that can be seen in the Berlin bootleg which is the “aaaaaahhhh” with his hands in the air and it was the best! He did a little cough cough at the part where they should start dancing at Tanzsaal and that was a nice touch. Another part of Tanzsaal that I LOVED was when Sarah wants to protect herself with her arm, and you could see him mouth “Hör auf” to her. He didn’t do that in the second show, but I absolutely loved that because it was a moment that you have to pay a lot of attention to to catch and I didn’t expect for him to add that little something. I have heard people say that they get chills during the bite in Tanzsaal. I had never really known what people were talking about. I thought it was a cool moment and all, but the moment when Sarah betrays Alfred by biting him always has been more interesting to me. Until the show on the 8th, when everything about that Tanzsaal moment was so perfect and my jaw dropped because this is how a Tanzsaal bite is supposed to go. For a few moments I felt like I wasn’t watching an illusion that consists of a bag of red coloured liquid being dribbled on by Drew onto Diana. I was watching the scene like someone who had never seen the show before would watch it, with awe.

After Krolock has bitten Sarah he makes sure to lick his fingers. And even when the mirrors come up and Abronsius and Alfred are “discovered” he’s still busy cleaning his fangs with his fingers. He also guides Sarah like a gentleman after she’s been bitten and they’re dancing together, he still deep down wants to make sure that she’s okay. Those little details alone make me love Drewlock just a little bit more.

At Der Tanz der Vampire he appeared onto the stage and his hands made the signs of devil horns which he crossed, and that is so cool that he did that again because I really badly wanted him to do that.

At the curtain call, he did the most humble but badass walk to the front of the stage. He’s even humble when he’s just performed a really awesome show for 2.5 hours. Shall I just say again that Drew is an awesome guy?

And now some things that don’t have to do with Drew:

The black vampire shared Sarah’s blood with Herbert at Carpe Noctem and that was awesome!

I think the professor’s favourite hobby is hitting Herbert with an umbrella. He didn’t hold back on doing it with all the power that he had in him. It surprised me that it almost seemed violent.

The beginning of Vor dem Schloss remains one of the most awesome moments of the show, I was now at rang 2, which means that some of the ensemble will appear there to sing standing right next to the audience. I knew they would approach, and then to see those scared faces of unknowing people suddenly seeing a black figure standing next to them is thrilling. The way the theatre is lit at that moment adds so much to the atmosphere. I will never get tired of Vor dem Schloss, especially in the Ronacher.

Lastly I want to say props to Dawn Bullock who was in the show on the 8th. She has a knee injury going on for the last weeks and she was still as good as she was when I saw her back in February. She doesn’t have a role in which she needs to do much, but to still be on stage while it might be more sensible to give her knee some rest makes me respect her even more.

I didn’t even touch on why the show of the 8th was the best Tanz show that I’ve seen yet. Well, I was incredibly thankful to be able to see the Vienna show again. I basically cried the whole first act out of pure happiness. Having Drew as Krolock also obviously made the show very special. Everything just felt right, it was everything I could have hoped for when I returned to Vienna just to see Tanz.

I know that a few of my followers are going to Vienna in the near future to see Tanz starring Drew, to those people I want to say: If you’re not already massively excited, get massively excited. Drew is my favourite Krolock for a reason and you’ll surely be blown away. Tanz in Vienna is already a great experience no matter which cast you will see, I’ll promise you that.

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gdelgiproducer · 6 years

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DOTV AU: An Exercise in Alternate History (Part V)

Parts I, II, III, and IV offer more detailed context. (To briefly sum up why these posts are happening: alt history – as in sci fi, not “alternative facts” – buff, one day got the idea that DOTV could have turned out hella different if Jim Steinman looked for a star lead in other places, decided to reason out how that might work.) This is still getting a good response, so I’m gonna keep the train rolling.

Parts of the AU timeline established so far: instead of stopping at recording two songs from Whistle Down the Wind on a greatest hits compilation, Meat Loaf wound up taking more of an interest in Steinman’s new theater work than he did in our timeline, and through a series of circumstances found himself volunteering to play Krolock in the impending DOTV when Jim poured out his woes to him about needing to find some sort of star to attract investors. At a loss for any better ideas, Jim accepted Meat’s impulsive proposal, but not without resistance from his manager, David Sonenberg, who proposed Michael Crawford as an alternate candidate. Through quick thinking on Meat’s part, and inspiration on Jim’s, Crawford left the room accepting an entirely different role than he walked in hoping to get, leaving Krolock still open for Meat. There was a brief speed bump, when Meat disliked Jim’s English script for the show, but after meeting with the original German author Michael Kunze and convincing Jim to compromise, things were on the road to being back on track... at least until 9/11 occurred. Following a brief hiatus, everyone involved is meeting to re-assess their options.

Continuing the alternate DOTV timeline:

February 2002: After completing the Night of the Proms tour and taking a holiday break, Meat Loaf requests a meeting with co-star Michael Crawford, composer Jim Steinman, co-author Michael Kunze, and the other creatives on DOTV to assess where things are at. Obviously, people have other commitments, so the creative team may not shape up exactly the same as initially planned, but at least they’ll see who’s still coming along for the ride and get a bead on where the show is at. A dinner is planned at Café Carlyle, a cabaret space housed within the hotel of the same name, on the Upper East Side of NYC.

The dinner begins as any dinner involving Jim begins: with Steinman’s ordering disorder on display, and his manager, David Sonenberg, smiting his own forehead so hard it turns purple. Imagine the headwaiter’s surprise when he takes everyone’s order and hears Jim say, “For starters, we’ll have the entire left half, plus two each of the chicken hash, Dover sole, and seafood salad.” “Excuse me, sir... the entire left half of the menu?” “That’s correct. And for the second course, I’ll have another order of the roasted halibut and the filet mignon. What looks good to you guys?” Meat is not at all surprised; with Jim, you get everything and then everything else. “And for dessert, sir?” says the headwaiter, anticipating the massive tip. “Well, why don’t you bring us some New York cheesecake. And, heck, how about an order of the chocolate opera cake? And profiteroles. For everyone to share.” Meat can only laugh at the incredulous expressions of everyone who doesn’t already know Jim. He orders the table a round of fifty dollar Côtes du Rhône. This’ll be a long one.

First order of business: is the new script ready? “Not quite,” says Jim without even missing a bite. Meat rolls his eyes; typical Jim. His method is seduction. Jim has ideas for new stuff; he doesn’t always have the results to back them up. If he can talk you into it, he can do it -- eventually. “Don’t roll your eyes at me, it’s a cut and paste job anyway. I do have a synopsis so everyone can see what the show will be like. Rest assured, everything’s back the way you want it.” Steinman gestures to Sonenberg, who passes pages around the table.

We now pause to read said synopsis:

ACT ONE

Some time in the late 19th century, Professor Abronsius, a rather intensely wacky vampire killer, stands trial before the Governors of the University of Heidelberg. He has made a mockery of the school’s good name with his “ridiculous writings and insane theories,” insisting that he can prove vampires (and other supernatural creatures) actually do exist. For this “crime against science,” he is sent packing by his colleagues. His assistant Alfred, handsome if sweetly dim, with an ardent and Byronic underbelly, resolutely stands by his mentor and guide. Now gifted with -- however unwelcome -- free time, they set off on an excursion, hoping to prove the professor’s theory correct, and become lost in a blinding snowstorm (Overture).

We are now in a dark forest, three nights before Halloween, near a remote Transylvanian village somewhere in the Carpathians. Sarah, the beautiful teenage daughter of the local innkeeper, is out picking mushrooms with her easily frightened friends when they come upon an abandoned graveyard in a clearing. To reassure them all is well, she says a prayer (Angels Arise). Suddenly, a pack of very cool young vampires appears out of the mist, dancing with rapturous abandon (God Has Left the Building). Sarah is entranced as a coffin rises from the ground containing the mesmerizing and extremely cool Count Von Krolock, an immortal suitor whose call she finds strangely irresistible. The Count introduces himself to Sarah in a most charming way, sings to her seductively telling her of another world (Original Sin), and promises to return for her at the total eclipse of the moon. The lure of the night is strong, as is the promised deliverance from the mundane world she knows.

Back in the village, at the inn, we meet Sarah’s father, Chagal, his long suffering wife, Rebecca, and his beautiful voluptuous chambermaid, Magda, whom he spends most of his free time lusting after, much to Rebecca's disdain. Together with the local villagers, they demonstrate that nothing perks up men like wine, women and song -- and Garlic. Into the midst of the hustle and bustle burst two strangers, the first in twenty years: Abronsius and Alfred, who have nearly frozen to death in the nearby woods. Although the villagers deny any knowledge of vampires in the proximity, the professor cannot be fooled and becomes increasingly suspicious.

After exploring the rooms upstairs in which they are staying, Alfred meets Sarah. He is instantly smitten by her and vice versa, but having noticed the attraction between them, Chagal, very protective of his child, literally boards-up the door separating them (Don’t Leave Daddy). Since the budding passion of the young is highly flammable his solution proves to be as effective as spit on a forest fire. Unable to sleep, Alfred and Sarah sing of their newly awakened desire for each other (There’s Never Been a Night Like This), but they are not alone in their yearning: Chagal sneaks away from Rebecca -- who swiftly knocks Abronsius on the noggin in a case of mistaken identity -- to pay an unwelcome visit to Magda, and the Count returns to invite Sarah to a grand ball at his castle, offering her a chance to make her wildest dreams a reality, an opportunity to quench her thirst for more (The Invitation). How can any small-time girl resist?

The next day, the idyll of a winter mid-afternoon (Everything’s Fair) is broken when Abronsius witnesses a small business exchange between Chagal and Koukol, a hideous hunchback who lives somewhere in the woods. He inquires about the odd fellow, but Chagal refuses to discuss the matter. This does not deter the professor (Logic). For every question there is an answer and no truth that defies understanding -- or so he believes.

But no law rules the human heart and desire is quite an immeasurable emotion. Alfred also offers Sarah a way out: he begs her to run off and make a new start with him (Braver Than We Are). Too little, too late. Unbeknownst to Alfred, Krolock has sent a gift for Sarah -- a pair of red boots and a vision. Alfred leaves Sarah alone outside for a moment and she puts on the boots; she has a fantastic reverie about dancing with vampires (Red Boots Ballet) and can no longer control herself, try though she might (Say a Prayer). Torn between Alfred and the Count, Sarah runs off to Krolock’s castle, pursued by Chagal, who is in turn pursued by Rebecca and Magda who are concerned for his safety, who are in turn followed by Alfred and Abronsius, reasoning that they will be shown the way to the Count’s lair.

At the giant castle in the woods, they are greeted by watchful eyes in the darkness (Something to Kill (Our Time)), and by the mysterious Krolock and his flamboyant son, Herbert, who is instantly attracted to Alfred (Bless the Night). In the same breath, Krolock taunts Alfred and invites the two men into his domain (Come With Me) and the two reluctantly accept his invitation.

ACT TWO

In the great hall of the castle, Sarah reconciles what was once just a fantasy with her new reality, seduced by and embracing her inevitable indoctrination to this family (Vampires in Love (Total Eclipse of the Heart)). Sarah is entranced as Krolock makes his way down the staircase toward her. What has long been just a notion inside her is now a man before her. She willingly offers him her throat, although he resists the urge to bite her there and then.

Meanwhile, given a room, Abronsius sleeps soundly while Alfred is tormented by a nightmare (Carpe Noctem) that is a peculiar reflection of reality. In the dream he is a creature of the night. The following morning Alfred bravely swears that above fear and beyond doubt he will stay there in the hope of saving her (For Sarah).

But Abronsius is more concerned with capturing the Count and his son as specimens to prove his theory. Alfred and the professor make their way to the crypt, hoping to locate the two vampires, but instead they encounter the freshly dead Chagal. Before Abronsius can think of something else, Alfred hears what he believes to be Sarah singing and the hapless duo flee the crypt just as Rebecca and Magda arrive. Encountering Chagal's bitten body, Rebecca grieves while Magda gloats (Death Is Such an Odd Thing). In death she finds him to be far more bearable than in life. Chagal wakes-up and bites them both.

Truly, love is in the air. As Chagal cements his eternity with the women he loves in tow, Alfred has a close encounter with Herbert, who has set his sights on him. The smitten Herbert waltzes with an unwilling Alfred singing a song of love and longing (When Love Is Inside You). Herbert’s attempt to draw blood from the young man is thwarted by quick thinking, but to add insult to injury, Alfred then finds Sarah bathing in preparation of that evening’s ball. He begs her to flee with him, but his plea falls on deaf ears -- she is dying to go.

Meanwhile, Abronsius’ search through the castle has taken him to the library, which he enthusiastically discovers is stocked with every book ever written (Books, Books). The Count, who initially pretends admiration for the professor and offers him eternal life, confronts him, taking the opportunity to boast that the the battle for Alfred’s soul is already complete and that he is the victor.

To his horror, Abronsius, joined by Alfred, watches as, in throngs, the vampires crawl from their coffins, cursing the redundancy of their existence and eager to devour (Eternity). At the same moment, stung by Abronsius’ rejection, Count Von Krolock laments the truth of his being (Confession of a Vampire) and makes a bleak prediction: before the turn of the next millennium mankind, overcome by greed, will know only one god -- the god of appetite.

Speaking of appetite, the moment has arrived! The Count and his brethren are eager to proceed (The Ball: Never Be Enough). Sarah is presented while a disguised professor and Alfred wait for an opportunity to rescue her -- a chance that unfortunately comes only after she is willfully and gloriously bitten. In the midst of the climactic vampire dance (The Minuet), they take hold of Sarah and run.

Stopping in the woods to rest, Alfred once more professes his love to Sarah and the two lovers embrace, singing of their born-again freedom (Braver Than We Are (Reprise)). He believes all is well until the second she sinks her teeth into his neck. Once bitten the couple takes off to begin a life that will know no end. Meanwhile, oblivious to what is happening around him, Professor Abronsius revels over the information he has unearthed about the existence of vampires, unaware that their numbers have grown. As the Reign of the Undead begins, everybody somehow manages to find happiness... Transylvania-style (The Dance of the Vampires).

Back to our regularly scheduled program:

Meat is forced to admit Jim’s right. Based solely on this synopsis, it would be a cut-and-paste job, and it does answer all of the objections he had. Moving the Heidelberg scene to the top of the show reorients things just enough so that at least the focus is shared between Alfred and Sarah. On top of that, every song is where it should be, “Is Nothing Sacred” has been cut from Act II (it appeared in both earlier versions as a duet between Alfred and Sarah lamenting the loss of their love, but for once everyone was in agreement that it slowed the show down and there was no way to make it work), and no climactic shape-shifting transformation to be found (Jim has never been one to hide spoilers). As soon as the actual script is put together, this could be a working product.

Crawford is momentarily rattled by the Alfred-and-Abronsius prologue. “Bit like Phantom to start with foreshadowing and then plunge in?” he mutters under his breath. But Meat counters, with a grin: “I think it’s more like the opening of Psycho, wouldn’t ya say, Jim?” Meat, of course, knows what’s coming. Jim has seen Psycho 23 times; he thinks that if you’re learning about film, you don’t have to go beyond Psycho, because you can watch it a thousand times and find something new each time. All he has to do is settle in and let Jim talk Crawford’s ear off: “Psycho begins, if you watch it, with a long shot of Arizona, a satellite view of the whole state of Arizona, or at least the city of Phoenix. Long shot of the whole city. And then, the camera goes into one area. Then one block, and then one building, and then through the window of that building, to Janet Leigh and John Gavin in bed, nude, having sex. You start at an extreme distance, and it keeps getting closer and closer until it ends up where the story begins.”

Crawford is flummoxed. “...but... how is that...” Before he can get another word in edgewise, Jim is off on a stream-of-conscious flight of fancy: “Lost inside a blinding snowstorm, an innocent boy and a man of science... an unspoken certainty -- where something is shattered, something is breaking through... then their suspicions are proven correct... the wilds of Transylvania... the shadow of a dark knight looms large... you set up the hero first, and then right at the beginning, you need the big horror scene, like when the shark attacks the girl in Jaws, and then in the next scene everything is fine and you go on to tell the story.” Twenty minutes of free association from film to film later, his head spinning, Crawford stops Jim: “Jim, I, uh... I think I get it. Sounds grand. Let’s move on, shall we?” Meat, with a grin: “Waiter? More Côtes du Rhône for my English friend here.”

It’s Sonenberg’s turn to speak about the financial picture, and unfortunately, he is pretty much the bearer of bad news: “We’ve got nothing.” “What about your share of the investment?” Jim shoots back. “I raised my share, but that’s all I raised! Andrew Braunsberg threw in his share, too, but ours combined won’t bring you this show! This is gonna cost at least 12 million, it’s not like either of us has a small fortune tucked away! Do you know how much it will cost for that fucking coffin to rocket out the floor? And let’s say we keep the designs from Europe, which -- by the way -- we can’t afford to do even if we get investors, who’s paying for the six-ton graveyard to come down from fifty feet in the air? Shows cost four times as much on Broadway as they do in Europe! And this is before we get into the fact that we had readings and workshops that didn’t come cheap, even though we had other people shouldering the burden with us. When they walked...” “When they walked, I did what you said! You said we needed stars to boost the box office -- we have two of them! You said we needed the show to have more of a balance between horror and comedy -- we’re nearly there! We’ve done readings, we’ve done workshops, there should be a list of interested investors by now! You’re telling me I followed every instruction you gave me and we couldn’t attract producers?!” “Jim, that happens. The odds of failure in any show biz endeavor are astronomical. You know this. I have this conversation with you time and time again.” “So basically you called this meeting to raise our hopes and then tell us it’s a wash, is that it?!”

Meat can’t bear to see Jim like this. He never could. Jim is always within steps of achieving his dream and never quite getting there, and it’s usually due to Sonenberg’s interference. “Guys, guys, before things get too heated and we say stuff we might regret... look at who is at this table. We’ve got a major arena rocker, two Grammy-winning songwriters, we’ve got the biggest box office star in musical theater, we have a music manager with a list of clients as big as my ass. We know promoters, theater owners, rich people with cash to burn, we make more contacts shaking hands at industry parties than we know what to do with. Between all of us, we’ve got to be able to rustle up some investment coin!”

Meat turns to Crawford. “Michael, I know you were up for my part for, like, twenty seconds. Were you bringing any investors to the table for that?” “Now that you mention it, yes, there were a handful.” “Call them. Explain the situation. Tell them we’re looking to cut costs and bring this show in tight, so they can look at our numbers, offer suggestions for a way forward.”

He swivels in his seat to the other Michael at the table. “Mr. Kunze, was there any interest from other American producers before the show started on this path?” “We had this husband-and-wife couple who were major producers book tickets to opening night in Vienna, but they canceled last minute.” “Any chance you remember who they are?” Sonenberg cuts in: “Barry and Fran Weissler, but...” “The Weisslers? As in the Weisslers who did Chicago? The license-to-print-money Weisslers? We need a meeting with them ASAP.”

Meat now focuses on Sonenberg. “Look, Jim is pissed at you right now, and understandably so, but we need all hands on deck. David, is there anybody you can think of that might come to the table?” “Well... I am about to have lunch with Jerry Weintraub about a film project. You win an Oscar, they all come knocking.” “I remember Jerry, he started in talent management and concert promotion. Theater is a good way for him to combine those interests. He may not bite, but bring up the project anyway.”

Jim weakly tosses in, his engines beginning to rev again: “I could talk to Leonard Soloway. He’s never been major on Broadway, mainly a house or company manager, but he’s produced before, and he’s been looking to move back into that sector. He was very interested in this at the reading last April. He called it a gem.” “The worst that he can say is no, and we’re already starting a list to go down, so give him a buzz,” Meat says.

“As for me, I’m gonna talk to Michael Cohl.” Sonenberg is skeptical: “The concert promoter?” “He’s handled packages as big as this, you know who he’s worked with, it’s practically an encyclopedia of the business. Maybe he wants to move into producing.” “He also wants to put his hand in the till. He’s a chiseler. A bunch of managers complained about him a few years back; he was working this scheme where he told their clients playing this festival in Toronto that there was a sales tax that was coming out of their pay, and a gate charge reflected in the ticket price. Festival’s exempt from that tax and the organization that runs it has no gate charge. He was putting hundreds of thousands in his pocket.” “So,” interrupts Jim, “you’re saying he has money to spend, and he knows how to cut corners and get more.” “Oh sure, Jim, because we want to line up with a whiff of anything illegal on a high risk investment. I’m just saying, if we bring him on, there have to be stringent safeguards. We’ll need to double- and triple-check every transaction that comes through him.” “Well,” says Meat, momentarily unable to check his inner self-control, “he can’t do any worse than the advice I was getting in 1981.” “Oh sure, dig up that dead horse and start beating it again!” Sonenberg fires back.

Before the conversation can get out of control, Meat somehow manages to rein himself in: “Alright, look, let’s not get off the subject at hand here. We thought things were hopeless only moments ago, but now we have a list of... Michael, how many investors were interested again?” “Three.” “Okay, and that plus Cohl, Jerry, Leonard, and the Weisslers -- not to mention Braunsberg and David -- puts us at 10, if everyone signs on. Even if some of them say no, we should still be farther ahead than we were on the producing front. This project is not dead.”

“It might as well be,” Sonenberg grouses. “John Caird’s off attending to other commitments, Ezralow’s doing a Josh Groban TV special, and we need a new set of designs. You tell me where we’re gonna find a whole new creative team.” “David, I don’t have the highest opinion of you, but I know you’re not stupid. You’re not seriously implying that this production only looked into one person for each position, right? Surely we can look around at a few people and get some opinions.” “Besides,” Jim chimes in, “the director problem is already solved. I was co-directing, now all I have to do is call Barry [Keating, Jim’s right-hand man and a Tony-nominated composer in his own right] in to be my assistant and we’ll whip this into shape.”

A deathly silence descends upon the table. Meat is brave enough to be the first to speak: “Actually, I think we need to interview some directors, too.” “Why go to the trouble? I have it under control.” For once, Sonenberg agrees with Meat and says so: “You think you have it under control. Things have been pretty serious in this conversation so far, let’s be real right now: you’ve never directed a musical this big in your life. You and Barry are fine for a workshop, but this is a spectacular with a lot of moving elements.” “I can’t believe I’m hearing this! Half the show in Vienna I had to talk Polanski into doing. Or did it behind his back. A lot! He had a totally different vision.” “Jim, giving notes and making contributions that people agree with is not the same thing as directing.” “I’ve directed music videos!” “You’ve story-boarded music videos.” “What about that one I directed for Bonnie that was nominated for seven Billboard Video Awards?” “Did it win any?!” Meat once again has to halt the argument brewing: “Look, Jim, we need to be serious about this if you want it to work. It can’t hurt to just talk to a few other people. We’re not committing to them.” Steinman is momentarily silenced, but his sour expression betrays he’s still displeased with the present turn of events.

“Now, as for the choreographer...” Meat says. Jim perks up again: “Barry could...” Sonenberg slams his fist on the table: “You shut up or you lose a toe! Go on, Meat.” “Alright, we’re not opening till October, and that means we’re not starting in earnest until August. That’s after the Tony Awards. Let’s see if any real talent emerges this season, and if worse comes to worst, we’ll just hire whoever won.” “That doesn’t solve our problem with the design team, though. Even if we get them signed by June or July, that’s not nearly enough time to design, approve, and execute a whole show.” “Well, we can start talking to people now, and maybe they’ll even give us some clues about a choreographer or director, if there’s someone they’ve worked with who they really liked.” At a loss for any other way to proceed, Sonenberg nods gravely.

At meeting’s end, everyone is in concurrence on the next course of action: actually finish the script, schmooze with potential investors or producers, and put together a new creative team. Preferably not all at the same time, but with the crunch on, they’ll do whatever needs to be done.

Didn’t expect this to be so short or focus on one event, but our heroes have lots of ground to cover. Catch you next time!

#tanz der vampire #Taniec Wampirow #Vampyyrien tanssi #tanzblr #tanz network #tanz discourse #Dance of the Vampires #le bal des vampires #Vampirok Balja #bal vampirov #vampiiride tants #vampiru no dansu #Jim Steinman #Roman Polanski #Michael Kunze #Michael Crawford #meat loaf #alternate universe

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tanzdervampires · 6 years

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ALRIGHT everyone buckle in for a long one, its totale finsternis time

so a HEADS UP! i LOVE total eclipse. the song is GOOD and i love it a lot. So i struggled with writing it in a way which keeps it close enough but also different enough to not just think of bonnie tyler and blasting it on a roadtrip.

so off we go!

(Be prepared)

Okay. We CAN NOT do turn around seriously. it doesn’t make sense, it sounds too much like like the original song. so its be prepared now. sei bereit or whatever

SARAH: Sometimes in the night I get a little bit lonely but I don’t know what I miss

Nothing much has changed here, except i changed every now and then to sometimes in the night. It sounds cooler, further separation from total eclipse yada yada

Sometimes in the night I get a little bit terrified And drawn in by what I cant understand

Now, ive seen that recently they tend to cut a lot of the first section out in tanz, and im reflecting that here, instead of 8 every now and thens there’ll be 4. That also means that i jump around a lot in the lyrics to make it flow better than bway did.

…I get a little bit terrified But then I see the look in your eyes

From actual total eclipse. in this part of the song krolock’s little jingle plays and sarah turns to face him (well, she actually turns to face him after the next bit but. in my ideal show she does it now)

(Be prepared, starlight)

OH! i LOVE that Krolock calls her star child, i think its cute, but also a bit weird? and i dont know if its intended or a translation thing, so i settled for making it less weird and writing starlight. Cute, not weird.

KROLOCK: To be free is to loose your mind To your soul I am the mirror You can live out all your dreams If you stay with me forever Caught between the abyss and the light where we both can be strong

This part felt a bit like trying to shove a foot into a shoe that doesnt fit. i loved how poetic the german translation sounded, and i tried my hardest to emulate that in the chorus. I dont know if id call it a success, but i TRIED.

Together we can take it to the end of the line my love is like a shadow on you all of the time I don’t know what to do and im always in the dark SARAH: My heart is like a powder keg awaiting the spark

Aaaaaaand back to total eclipse.

BOTH: Ive been awakened to life

OH! i love ive been awakened to life! its one of the parts that i lost my shit when i saw translated, like its so cute! POETIC CINEMA. so its here now

SARAH:Once upon a time I felt like falling in love but now I feel im falling apart there’s nothing I can do a total eclipse of the heart

Once I believed that love could break the spell and now its breaking apart my world there’s nothing I can do a total eclipse of the heart

Another section which is just a mish mash of translation vs the original total eclipse. I needed to show sarahs naivety as well as her clinging on to hope in these lines.

Sometimes in the night I think that I should still run from you before its too late

But now when you call I know that I would follow you to anywhere, even to hell

… I know there’s no one in the universe As magical and wondrous as you

…I know there’s nothing any better I would destroy myself for you

I dont know where i saw the clip, but i saw a recording of totale where Krolock looked super sad after the chorus, and when sarah sang “Selbst zur Hölle würd’ ich fahren mit dir!” He turned to face her and looked so hopeful, and ive loved that idea since. This is a turning point song for both of them.

BOTH: And I need you now tonight To [my/your] soul [you/I] am the mirror

i just really like it when they sing the different perspectives with the my/your business, its one of the only parts of bway dance of the vampires that i really liked.

KROLOCK: No! I cant drink yet For I know it’s not right Even though it’s what You most desire For every Moment that we wait Makes the hunger more dire I’m willing to suffer For the good of the ball

I really didnt like in the bway version how at the end of vampires in love krolock just said “no! at the ball!” I thought it sounded so bad, and much preferred the ending in the german version. So, i took that and tried to make it flow in enlish, and it went ok.

You’ll be the goddess At the ball tomorrow night

This is just a callback to einladung zum ball, with the youll be a goddess. Krolock is fufilling his promises. And thats it for totale, full song below

(Be prepared) SARAH: Sometimes in the night I get a little bit lonely but I don’t know what I miss

(Be prepared) Sometimes in the night I get a little bit terrified And drawn in by what I cant understand

(Be prepared) Sometimes in the night I get a little bit curious Of what its like to be a woman and free

(Be prepared) Sometimes in the night I get a little bit terrified But then I see the look in your eyes

(Be prepared, starlight) Sometimes in the night I hear a voice (Be prepared, starlight) Sometimes in the night I hear a voice

KROLOCK: To be free is to loose your mind To your soul I am the mirror You can live out all your dreams If you stay with me forever Caught between the abyss and the light where we both can be strong Together we can take it to the end of the line my love is like a shadow on you all of the time I don’t know what to do and im always in the dark SARAH: My heart is like a powder keg awaiting the spark

BOTH: Ive been awakened to life Forever’s going to start tonight

SARAH:Once upon a time I felt like falling in love but now I feel im falling apart there’s nothing I can do a total eclipse of the heart

Once I believed that love could break the spell and now its breaking apart my world there’s nothing I can do a total eclipse of the heart

(Be prepared) Sometimes in the night I think that I should still run from you before its too late

(Be prepared) But now when you call I know that I would follow you to anywhere, even to hell

(Be prepared) Sometimes in the night I know there’s no one in the universe As magical and wondrous as you

(Be prepared) Sometimes in the night I know there’s nothing any better I would destroy myself for you

(Be prepared, starlight) Sometimes in the night I hear a voice (Be prepared, starlight) Now I know I never had a choice

BOTH: And I need you now tonight To [my/your] soul [you/I] am the mirror And if you’ll only hold me tight We’ll be holding on forever Caught between the abyss and the light where we both can be strong Together we can take it to the end of the line [your/my] love is like a shadow on [me/you] all of the time KROLOCK: I don’t know what to do and im always in the dark SARAH: My heart is like a powder keg awaiting the spark

BOTH: Ive been awakened to life Forever is going to start tonight

SARAH: Once upon a time there was light in my life But now there’s only love in the dark BOTH: There’s nothing I can do A total eclipse of the heart

SARAH: Now I believe that love can break the spell KROLOCK: And its breaking apart your world BOTH: There’s nothing I can do A total eclipse of the heart

SARAH: A total eclipse, A total eclipse of the heart A total eclipse, A total eclipse of the heart

#tanz der vampire #tdv #totale finsternis #total eclipse of the heart #translation #krolock #sarah

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