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Re: Urinetown: The Musical

Author: mikeW
Date: 2007-09-11 17:52

last weekend was opening. They've got a very strong cast (there are 6 significant singing roles - 7 if you count the senator - and the ensemble gets plenty of space, too) & the opening weekend pretty much sold out. My wife also loved the dance sequences (while we're in a loft and can see a lot of what's going on, I always seem to be busy during the dance bits...).

There IS a lot of really good writing in the score. As you (CharlestonDoubler) observed, there are no impossible instrument changes and it lays well on each horn. Clarinet goes up to the E (with some F#'s and G's and one G#), so there's some work on the klezmer inspired bits. I also liked the bass clarinet in "Don't be the Bunny" (most of this is in unison with the trombone). Alto has some nice underscore bits in 'Freedom" and one of the dance sequences (and it lays pretty well for Gb...). The soprano parts are nice: The opening and bows are sort of soprano-led bookends on the show.

The orchestration is good and the way the brass and reed are combined provieds a lot of different textures. I think that's why it's surprising there are only two wind voices. I suppose it's ultimately a financial constraint on the production, but this may be a trend: I played "Grand Night for Singing" earlier this year and it was scored for reed and cello with piano, bass and drums. (It has some nice orchestrations from Jonathan Tunick and Michael Gibson. I also really like some of Tunick's work on Sondheim shows. I think his writing for bass clarinet is great.)

We didn't think we were going to play any music beyond the bows so we hadn't looked at it. So opening night was interesting when we had to play the exit music...

Thanks to Finale and Sibelius, modern books are generally readable. This one goes even further, and a lot of the cues and so forth are already notated in the book. I think I have made only 3 or 4 notes in the whole book. Wow! Perhaps that doesn't fully convey my appreciation: WOW!!

I just wish I had some more time to practice some of the clarinet bits. I think I'm playing or rehearsing something every night for the next month or so. My wife is not amused.

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