Evil Dead: The Musical
June 3rd, 2007 by PotatoEvil Dead: The Musical is, IMHO, the best musical comedy out there. For those who don’t know, it’s a combination of the first two Evil Dead movies, with a lot of the catch phrases from the third one thrown in for good measure. Oh, and it’s also the only musical I know of where the first three rows get drenched in blood.
I saw it for the second time on Thursday, and I’ve got to say that the first show we saw (2 years ago), while the whole idea was still experimental, was more enjoyable. It’s hard to be sure after 2 years of memory fog, but some of the songs have been changed (expanded for the most part; I’m pretty sure “look who’s evil now” has a different, more up-tempo instrumental, though Wayfare thinks it’s the same). The comedic timing also seemed to be off in this one, with the dramatic pause removed from the classic “Name’s Ash [cha-chunk], Housewares” as well as a few other points. In the first version, there were a lot of squirting blood special effects, so the first few rows “may” have gotten covered in blood, but for the most part the actors managed to keep it on the stage. The current show has increased the blood volume, and now actively aims for the audience (even handing out disposable ponchos during the intermission). The new theatre space is great: there doesn’t look to be a bad seat in the house, so don’t be afraid to buy tickets in the back if you’re afraid of a little blood.
I liked the Canadian cast; Wayfare bought the CD (which is I believe recorded from the New York group), and I really think the Toronto cast is a lot better (with the possible exception of Cheryl (? — Ash’s sister)). A lot of the songs are really clever and catchy: I think “Cabin in the Woods” is going to become mandatory listening for any future cottage trips. Now, Wayfare says the singers on the CD sound better to her, sounding like “obviously trained singers” but I think that’s what I like least about the recording: they sound like they’re just belting out the lines with very little feeling or humour, and sound like they’ve been trained to project their voices (which isn’t really necessary in this day of mics and speakers).
Of course, the biggest change to the show from when we saw it first is the ending, and that I didn’t really enjoy. Wayfare had a great suggestion for that: keep the original ending, close the curtain, then use the new ending as an encore.
June 4th, 2007 at 6:15 pm
We’ll all have a ball
Organize a big pub crawl,
And spend Sundays at the mall
If you join us (Join us!)
June 4th, 2007 at 6:16 pm
(BTW – There’s an S-Mart in East York)