I'm seeing it on the 8th and I'm quite excited. The LA Times review was mixed, but I hear that audiences Re enjoying it. Apparently, the book is pretty week so it's a shame they didn't have Sorkin on board. Perhaps, they will get him if the show moves on after La Jolla. In any case, The Flaming Lips always put on a spectacular stage show and I know that Wayne was involved in this so I am expecting at it to be visually stunning at the least.
This show seems to be well-handled. The band seems fairly involved and supportive, it's being taken in interesting directions, the pedigree is pretty solid.
People rag on the existence of jukebox musicals all the time, but the well-structured plot-based book musical took years to become the dominant form over plots with song slots, where bits could be shuffled without any real harm. They're not such a bad thing, really, at least when they aren't utter ****. I don't think Yoshimi is going to be utter ****.
There's an interview about the project with Des McAnuff. I wouldn't call it a jukebox musical, though I suppose a case could be made for it being one...
I saw this while it was in previews, and had exceedingly high expectations (As I was expecting a collision of two maximalistic aesthetics [Des's and Wayne's]). The analogy I'll give is I was expecting the second coming of Christ, and all I got was an obscure 14th century saint. As far as reviews, I agree almost entirely with Bob Verini's rather eviscerating review in Variety.
Rather than giving a line by line complaint list, I'll give a couple bullet points...
1: If you go in expecting a remarkably three dimensional Flaming Lips show, you'll likely be disappointed with how much of the show feels trapped within the proscenium arch. So much of the show feels remarkably pulled back and surprisingly understated.
2: My constant line is the narrative is a lifetime movie of the week about a girl with a rare form of lymphoma. Yes there are some explosions of fantasy around that (and that is where the show succeeds the most), but there are nowhere near enough of them, and you're left with swaths of banal scenes where the staging blandly illustrates the lyrics.
I will admit that the last quarter of the show is more successful and emotional (If you know the lyrics, it won't take a rocket scientist to figure out what happens in that part of the show [starting at Feeling Yourself Disintegrate onwards]), but by that point I was well past the point of no return for not liking the show. Bob Verini's review in Variety
Wow, that's a shame that it doesn't employ the 3-D tricks that you get in a Lips show. I guessim thankful to know this as I will try to lower my expectations a bit...
First, I should say that those who go to the show expecting a Flaming Lips concert will undoubtedly leave disappointed. The Flaming Lips have gone on record saying numerous times that they view their concerts as a giant birthday party, full of costumes, confetti, and fun - which is quite ironic considering the actual content of their music. The Lips tackle pretty big issues in their songs, mostly dealing with death and mortality, but distract from their actual meaning with the spectacle of their shows.
Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots (the musical) takes a much more direct approach to their music. The story is about a young girl dying of cancer (the pink robots represent the cancer cells), and so songs like "Vein of Stars," "Goin' On," "Feeling Yourself Disintegrate," "It's Summertime, "All We Have is Now" and "Do You Realize?" all take on a much more literal meaning. I think it is wise that McAnuff chose not to incorporate elements from the Lips show as it is a very different experience. McAnuff did not stage a big birthday party with confetti and colorful costumes. He staged a very serious and intimate drama that directly addresses and explores the issues raised by the Lips lyrics. Had he incorporated more elements from the Lips, I feel like it would have detracted from the story the musical tells.
With that said, the show could benefit from a book writer - some of the "dialogue" is cringeworthy and some of the cast is grossly underused (*cough* Tom Hewitt *cough*) But I thought the show was a bold experiment in showing what a "jukebox musical" can be. If he perfected the concept album production with Tommy, and the Vh1 documentary with Jersey Boys, he is on his way to redefining what a jukebox musical can be with Yoshimi. The songs are not carelessly thrown together to highlight the music or the talents of the cast. But are rather meticulously placed in a way that tells a complete story with a dramatic arch.
Those who go into Yoshimi expecting a new musical inspired by the music of the Flaming Lips (not their aesthetic) will undoubtedly leave pleased.
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joined:11/5/05
Posted: 3/15/12 at 12:05pm