Camelot comes to vibrant life once again with a new version of the classic tale, reimagined for the 21st century by Aaron Sorkin and Bartlett Sher. Based on The Once and Future King by T.H. White, Camelot is a story about the quest for democracy, striving for justice, and the tragic struggle between passion and aspiration, between lovers and kingdoms. This epic and timely tale features the iconic characters King Arthur, Queen Guenevere, and Sir Lancelot as well as the beloved original score with lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe.
Once again, Lincoln Center Theater shows that it knows how to amplify a musical. The real singing voices and the real playing of 30 musicians in the pit can be heard. Marc Salzberg and Beth Lake’s sound design merely supports the music; it doesn’t replace the original sound. It’s ironic because when the Vivian Beaumont opened in 1965, the venue was lambasted as the acoustic nightmare of Broadway theaters. Today, it is the last refuge of experiencing Broadway musicals as they were meant to be heard.
Filling up all that empty space, however, are some of the American theater’s finest talents. Burnap and Soo are crisp conductors of Lerner and Loewe’s vocal score. Donica as Sir Lancelot is a revelation; Sher architects for him one of the sexiest Broadway entrances I’ve seen all year. Lancelot’s devout zeal for serving the king is complicated by his attraction to Guenevere, sparking a love triangle that earths the fantastical tale in the most human of impulses: desire, jealousy, lust. Lancelot, restrained by his allegiance to the throne, sings “If Ever I Would Leave You” — an aching aria of yearning — to Guenevere, conjuring a level of heat matched only by the balmy, 75-degree weather outside Lincoln Center’s doors. It helps that this song, and the remainder of them, is in the prodigious hands of music director/conductor Kimberly Grigsby and her 30-piece pit orchestra. Grigsby keeps firm control over the spritely percussive swells and thunderous drum rumbles driving the action of “Camelot” forward.
Digital Lottery:
Price: $39
Where: http://CamelotBwayLottery.com
When: Entries will be accepted online to available performances beginning at 12:01am EST the night before. Winners will be chosen at random and will be notified by email and text message by 10:00am for matinees and 3:00pm for evening performances on the day of the performance.
Limit: Two per customer
Information: Tickets are subject to availability.
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