Review: New musical should be called All About Yoko

Hi littledarling,

as I said before I can esteem her efforts ("Walking on thin ice" is a great song, "Every man has a woman who loves him" is great -I prefer John's version of course-, I like her "new wave" stuff, but for example her "Plastic Ono band" is unlistenable) but i do not esteem her influence on John's writing. Double Fantasy is muzak to these ears and John's Yoko-do-alike vocals on Cold Turkey or on Child of nature do not pleasure me at all. Of course he wrote brilliant stuff while beeing with her, but maybe he did write it even though he was with her and not -like in the case of Macca- because he was with her.
I'll go for "Be my Yoko Ono". Thanks for the suggestion.

Here's the San Francisco Chronicle review:

Vivid songs of 'Lennon' carry Broadway-bound musical most of the way

Imagine there's a musical biography of John Lennon with very little of the Beatles in it. You may say I'm a dreamer, but not only is that pretty much the case with "Lennon" -- the Broadway-bound world premiere that opened Tuesday at the Orpheum Theatre in the Best of Broadway series -- but it scarcely seems to matter for a good part of the show.
But then it does. "Lennon" is brightly creative, engagingly earnest, irreverent, sweet, informative and funny. It contains terrific songs and dynamic voices to match. But it never fulfills the rich promise that hovers so tantalizingly just beyond its reach.

That makes it still several cuts above most of the animated songbook musicals that have flooded the field of late, thanks to the still-astonishing richness of Lennon's output and the inventive showmanship of author-director Don Scardino. With numbers like "Imagine," "Instant Karma," "Working Class Hero," "Give Peace a Chance," "The Ballad of John and Yoko" and the ferociously honest "God," "Lennon" was already ahead of the game before Scardino even got started.

Scardino came up with the concept and acquired the blessings of the rocker's widow, Yoko Ono, along with two previously unpublished songs, the satiric "India, India" (about the Beatles' Maharishi sojourn) and an undistinguished love ballad, "I Don't Want to Lose You." He selected 28 songs, composed most of his script from Lennon's writings and interviews and packaged the material with a great selection of family photos, newsreel footage, Lennon's drawings, videos and animation.

He also did some savvy casting, putting together an engaging, multitalented, multiracial nine-person ensemble whose members trade off as the title character. That lets him dodge the pesky look-alike question and helps skirt some sensitive issues. "Woman Is the Nigger of the World" is much more clearly a feminist statement as sung by an African American woman. And a vibrant Marcy Harriell delivers it with a potent, bluesy intensity that brings down the house.

Scardino takes a story-theater approach, with the actors changing characters and Jane Greenwood's '60s-through-'80s costumes before our eyes. Designer John Arnone strips the stage to the Orpheum's walls and rigging, with a circular lighting fixture (rock concert-intensity lights by Natasha Katz) hovering above a round central platform. A lonely white grand piano sits in front of musical director Jeffrey Klitz's hard-rocking 10-piece band.

The show opens with the unmistakable, masterfully simple piano and Lennon's singing of "Imagine." Then World War II images fill the screens, while Terrence Mann mimics Winston Churchill for Lennon's birth during a 1940 bombing raid on Liverpool. Photos of Lennon's mother pop up as the cast relates his essential abandonment by his parents to be raised by an aunt (deftly depicted by Julia Murney), and his brief reunion with his mother before she was run over and killed by a drunken police officer.

Her death is marked by a fervent rendition of "Mother," sung with primal- scream intensity by Chad Kimball, Will Chase and Julie Danao. The song was written at a much later point in Lennon's career (when he was doing primal- scream therapy), but Scardino mixes chronology as he goes along. Almost the entire Beatles period is dispensed with in three songs -- including Bert Burns' "Twist and Shout," one of the few non-Lennon songs in the show -- performed by a rocking female Fab Four (a vibrant Mandy Gonzalez as John). But bits of the Beatles story recur later in the first act.

By then, though, "Lennon" has become "John and Yoko," with Danao as an attractively focused, grounded Ono. About half the first act relates the couple's meet-cute at one of her art installations ("Real Love"), the touring Bed-In for Peace and its fallout, with a rousing "Give Peace a Chance." A disjointed flashback to the "more popular than Jesus" furor leads to Chuck Cooper's stunning "Instant Karma." And the act closes with "God," Lennon's startlingly bold renunciation of every deity from Christ and Buddha to Elvis, Bob Dylan ("Zimmerman") and the Beatles, sung with richly personal dynamism by Michael Potts.

It's all John and Yoko in the second act: immigration battles and FBI persecution, some anti-war activism, their separation and reconciliation. It isn't a bad story, but it's pretty ordinary compared with the cultural history that's been given such short shrift. It's told with funny caricatures of J. Edgar Hoover, talk-show hosts David Frost and Mike Douglas (all played by Mann), Elton John (Harriell) and others, and upbeat choreography (Joseph Malone).

It's also less involving than the first act until Lennon's senseless, tragic murder (affectingly related by Cooper). Partly it's because the songs, though good, aren't as memorable as the earlier ones. Except for Chase and Harriell's rock-out "Whatever Gets You Thru the Night" and Murney's lovely lullaby "Beautiful Boy," many of the songs take on a would-be blockbuster sameness.

One of the advantages of using Lennon's songbook is the surprising frankness or depth of introspection he could achieve, as well as the timeless musicality of so much of his work. When "Lennon" taps that great mother lode, it's formidable, but it doesn't do so often enough. As Lennon observed, his creative life consisted of two great partnerships, with Paul McCartney and with Ono. "Lennon" gives us only one. Though it often makes for a rocking good time, it doesn't succeed in illuminating the man or adequately depicting the genius.

E-mail Robert Hurwitt at rhurwitt@sfchronicle.com.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/articl...pe=performance

And the Contra Costa Times:

http://www.contracostatimes.com/mld/...t/11450287.htm

Posted on Thu, Apr. 21, 2005



'Lennon' needs a retune: Lame musical makes mockery of ex-Beatle's life and work

By Pat Craig
CONTRA COSTA TIMES

IMAGINE SOMETHING awful.

It's easy if you see "Lennon," the new John Lennon musical that got its world premiere Tuesday in San Francisco's Orpheum Theatre.

The show is bad for any number of reasons, but the greatest of these is that, throughout, Lennon's life appears to have been hijacked by the likes of Up With People and the other contemptible '60s choral music groups that attempted to make pop musical palatable to moms and dads out there in TV land.

All those groups really did, though, was kill off the television variety show. And the same fate appears to be in store for "Lennon," whose wheezing and laughable production numbers add up to what amounts to an unwitting parody tribute to, say, "The Donny & Marie Show."

Actually, the whole piece is reminiscent of those Bob Hope specials where Bob, Lucy and Phyllis would don long wigs and sheepskin vests and pretend to be hippies.

It is a final indignity to the memory of Lennon -- here, for the most part, the post-Beatles Lennon. But viewed a different way, it is almost a cynical tribute to the egocentric genius the man became after disbanding the Beatles, taking up with Yoko Ono and becoming pop culture's arbiter of what's hip through a series of autobiographical songs.

It is all about John, and to a lesser degree, Yoko, as they go about the world spreading unguent, like so much Cheez Whiz, on the perceived ills of the world. And viewing it now, more than two decades after Lennon's murder, his legend looms tiny, as almost a mockery of the man who cried out for, and bedded Yoko in a now-infamous media stunt for, peace.

As an ex-Beatle, Lennon at the time was as close to divinity as you could get without sprouting wings and a halo. But what the singer failed to realize was that he was canonized not on living his life as a post-Beatles work of art, but as a former Beatle who could do no wrong.

Speaking of the Beatles, who receive short-shrift in the show, John once remarked that they were more popular than Jesus, words that were as scandalous as they were accurate, at least in some quarters.

And that is a good place to consider some of the other excesses of "Lennon." For example, when the "burn the Beatles records" movement is depicted in a short scene, the voices discussing the evil of the four mop-top lads from Liverpool are about as backwoods as you can get. It is a pattern throughout; anyone the least bit critical of Lennon sounds either like a hillbilly or an idiot.

Then there is the revisionism, which has placed events in Lennon's life out of order, and, for example, plays his ex-wife Cynthia as a sort of twit who realizes in an offhanded sort of way, John is much better off with Yoko (who contributed material to the show and was in the Tuesday night audience).

OK, there are some good points here. The show is quite young, and there can be changes made before it travels on to Boston and then Broadway.

Fortunately, the cast (as many as 10 different actors portray Lennon over the course of the show) is wildly energetic and appears to have talent to burn. And when they lose the schlocky musical numbers, there are some tremendous singers who can do justice to Lennon's hard-driving rock 'n' roll. If "Lennon" can find the heart of the tunes, as it did in "Gimme Some Truth," the show will rock.

The band is terrific, with a fine rocking sound that plays the music well. And the two new Lennon tunes introduced in the show, "India, India" (a novelty number of sorts played as the Beatles visit Maharishi Mahesh Yogi to learn transcendental meditation) and "I Don't Want to Lose You," a lovely pop ballad used around the breakup of John and Yoko.

Hopefully the producers will take a good hard look at "Lennon" and find a way to give change a chance.

THEATER REVIEW

• WHAT: "Lennon," by Don Scardino, with music by John Lennon

• WHEN: Tuesdays-Sundays through May 14

• WHERE: Orpheum Theatre, Market and Hyde streets, S.F.

• RUNNING TIME: 2 hours, 20 minutes

• HOW MUCH: $35-$85

• CONTACT: S.F. 415-415-512-7770, www.bestofbroadway-sf.com, www.LennontheMusical.com


Pat Craig is the Times theater critic. Reach him at 925-945-4736 or pcraig@cctimes.com.

Thanks susan for posting this review. I really enjoyed it and agree with the reviewer.

yes I thought the ending of the show was particularly cheesy:

The closing video of John playing "imagine" clearly demonstrates how Yoko inserts herself into John's life. Instead of just showing John playing
"Imagine" by himself which is what I would have loved to see after having sat through nearly 2 hours of Lennon songs being sung, Yoko has to be included in this video by walking around and opening doors to let light in while John is reduced to a small figure in the upper righthand corner playing
piano. Finally she is shown sitting next to John, her face taking up half the
screen along with John, as if her presence alone was responsible for his genius as a song writer and singer.

So, if you are a fan of Yoko's and John's solo works, then this is a must see show.

Actually, Katie, that Imagine video is the same one that has been around for years, if it's the one with Yoko opening the windows in the white room at Tittenhurst...as far as I know, it was the only video of that song ever made, it's on the Lennon Legend DVD and was on the John Lennon Video Collection VHS tape as well.

But...that said...um, yeah, I think the reviewer probably has something valid to say, that's for sure.

Remember, though, that shows can change DRASTICALLY by the time the production hits Broadway...out of town runs, such as the ones in San Francisco and Boston, are considered previews and testing grounds for shows before they open in New York. I don't know if or how much this will change, but it could....and one can hope, for the better.

Susan,

I remember seeing a video of just John Lennon playing "imagine" at a white piano by himself but it must have been 15 to 20 years ago.

Yes, you're right about the musical changing before it gets back East. Already they took a piano out of the "real love" scene.

I'm sure they'll use everyone's reviews (hopefully) as feedback with which they can improve the show.

but you never know and Director/creator Don Scardino was pretty set in how "he knows how John wanted this musical to portray John's life".

yoko is certainly getting alot of press overall, not just related to the musical.

Quit sniping at Yoko! It's very tiresome.

Personally, I've never seen a video to "Imagine" without Yoko...it fact the only one I've seen (many times over) is the one that was described above. I'm also pretty sure it was the only one ever made. Maybe the one you allegedly saw 15 to 20 years ago was edited by the producers of whatever you saw it on. I think it's beautiful, and it fits, being as John said, in 1980, that the songwriting credit on "Imagine," specifically, should have been Lennon-Ono. Why is it so hard for people to accept that John loved Yoko, and that she was a very important part of his life?

Also, why do journalists always mention "Imagine" in their articles. "Imagine there's a musical biography...," "Imagine Something Awful..." I think it trivializes the song.

Well, the Boston rn has been cancelled for retooling. That can't be a good sign.

Originally Posted by LovinLennon909

Also, why do journalists always mention "Imagine" in their articles. "Imagine there's a musical biography...," "Imagine Something Awful..." I think it trivializes the song.

They simply think there being clever. I don't think it takes anything away from the songs though. But I have read many awful puns in articles using Beatles songs etc.

Well, I trully DON'T LIKE Yoko Oh-No.... But let's focus here... John WAS a promiscuous son of a gun. And I can guarantee that the word "A***hole" wasn't the rudest innhis choice of language. And another very sad but very true part of his life was that he DID give Sean a bigger space in his life than he had julian, and just when Jules was getting equal attention and John was making up for lost time, he was shot dead.
Now, while I don't buy the story that Yoko was John's muse and inspiration, I certainly can't say she ruined John's work at all. (Heck, all I have to do is skip a couple of tracks when I'm listening to Double Fantasy... problem solved!). Yoko just hitched a ride and made the best of it, but John continued to be a brilliant songwriter. he claimed Yoko was his muse... and before Yoko, who the hell was his muse? he was always capable of writing a good song! so?
ok, now I'm just dead curious about that musical thingie... I'll have to see for myself and judge, that's the best way to try things out in this life.

As the Barenaked ladies once sang 'Don't blame it on Yoki'

Why do they call her Yoki instead of Yoko?

Originally Posted by HMVNipper

No disrespect intended, but the conspiracy theories about Yoko "hypnotizing" John and brainwashing him are, IMO, patently ridiculous. However, to say that SHE purposely made John put the brakes on his music to raise a child is ridiculous, John himself wanted to be a better and more hands-on parent to Sean than he was to Julian, and he could have easily handed the child off to a nanny and created music. He didn't want to, he wanted to be a father and CHOSE to raise his son. I do not believe he was forced into anything regarding that child.

I agree with this completely, I think John wanted to settle down a bit, relax and have some kind of family life, having just gotten off the roller coaster of the Beatle insanity, and the Lost Weekend, which in his own words that he repeated ad nauseum how he WAS lost without Yoko. I don't think ANYONE, May included, could have had a fair chance at a REAL relationship with this man who was still so emotionally attached to and pining for Yoko.

Originally Posted by LovinLennon909

By John's own statements, meeting Yoko WAS the most important event in his life, Beatlesfan2, and by his admission, he was miserable and lost during their separation. I think I remember a quote about how apart they were just two halves of a person, and only together were they complete. John only ever expressed his delight at their reuniting. I have the tendency to go more with what came from the horse's mouth than the jilted mistress's. May still comes across as a little bitter, to me.

I think John's words were the truth. I do not believe he "scripted" his responses about the lost weekend for the "press" or Yoko, I think the man always spoke what he really felt and had the balls not to care if someone disagreed. He said himself "I am not here for you I am here for Yoko and Sean, if you can't see that then screw you brother or sister". The man was no weakling when it came to words.

Also, I would like to make a point about Yoko mouthing the word John during #9 dream video from Lennon Legend DVD. That footage of Yoko comes from the "Making of Imagine" video, (the first one that was made in 1971, not the 1988 one) where they are calling to each other "John" "Yoko" etc on the grounds of Tittenhurst. I think folks need to realize that although May was ONE of the backup singers saying "John" on the record (the other was a Lori somebody, it is on the liner notes), there was never any footage made, video or otherwise of May appearing or singing any of Johns songs. So, in order to make a video and give a visual portrayal Yoko used OLD footage of her saying John. It is JUST a video. She did not erase May off the record, or deny that May was on the record. Any video needs visuals to illustrate the words. To insinuate that folks would be misled by this is nonsense since anyone can pick up the record and read the credits. Any Lennon fan worth their salt would try to find out as much as they could about him and therefore would not succomb to the lemming mentality of just believing what is in front of them at total face value. Everyone knows that May was rarely seen with John in public, does not appear on any film footage with him except glimpses of her working behind the scenes in the 1988 Imagine movie, she was not featured on any radio shows with him, in short he treated her like the "help", (which is what she really was, first and foremost) keeping her in the background. I have seen very few maybe 4 or 5 photos of the two of them together. Now compared to how John was filmed, photographed, interviewed, performing etc etc ALWAYS having Yoko by his side, tells me volumes about how John felt and the difference of these two relationships. I think that the more people really look at his life, what mattered to John the most was made clear by JOHN better then anyone else. I believe that how John treated the person he was with was how he really felt about that person.

Jules was getting equal attention and John was making up for lost time, he was shot dead.

I hope it's not lost on anyone that just as "John was getting close to his mother, who was making up for lost time, she was killed in a tragic accident.

On a similar note, Paul's mother died of breast cancer, which devistated him as a youth, and so did his wife.

Sometimes all I can feel is their pain, so deep is my love for the men who comprised the Beatles. We must be happy for their joys in life! I dig Yoko.

Originally Posted by beatlebangs1964

Why do they call her Yoki instead of Yoko?

Damned if I know, it probably fitted in with the lyrics or something.

LucyLennon4Me provided this link to an article about the show.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertai...rts/4150222.stm