#American utopia reviews update
#American utopia reviews series

It’s a message, bluntly stated by Byrne more than once, that few messengers could pull off, but somehow this awkward man with the robot moves and eccentric voice does just that. Weaving the classics with the new, American Utopia emerges as a complete, consistent work, as Byrne ties them together with purpose: No visible wires, no props to distract, the show seems to call for a dismantling of the barriers, walls and distractions that keep human beings from connection.

The solid offering of Talking Heads songs – “This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody),” “I Zimbra,” “Slippery People,” “Once in a Lifetime,” “Born Under Punches (The Heat Goes On),” “Blind,” “Burning Down the House,” “Road to Nowhere” – are performed faithfully to the originals while sounding as fresh as they did on first listen. Stand-outs include “Every Day Is A Miracle,” “Gasoline and Dirty Sheets” and “I Dance Like This,” with a chorus that seems to answer another of the long-standing questions around the man: Pumped through an excellent sound system, much of the set list is drawn from his latest album, a terrific collection co-written, almost entirely, by Byrne and Brian Eno.

While the Byrne of Rhode Island School of Design attends to the show’s look, Byrne of CBGB doesn’t let the music get short shrift. His new show, he suggests, is intended to give the people what they want (the compelling dancer Chris Giarmo practically stages a side show, his face coated in Dylan’s Rolling Thunder white and always in motion with eye rolls, head shakes and tongue pokes). In one song introduction, Byrne notes that humans like to watch other humans even more than they like to look at colorful bags of potato chips. Enclosed within three silver beaded walls, exposed in a flood of white light or dwarfed by tall shadows, Byrne and his marching-band-style ensemble scuttle about the set in choreographer Annie-B Parson’s constantly shifting formations of rows, groupings and chess piece moves. The starkness of American Utopia is Byrne’s latest method of shrinking his head, demanding our focus where he wants it: On 12 barefoot human beings, each in an identical normal-sized gray suit (Byrne, like late-career Bowie, seems perfectly comfortable sharing the spotlight with his past, tossing his body in Burning Down The House contortions, his hand at one point manipulated by dancers into the famous arm chop). No cables connecting guitars to amps (in fact, no amps), no mic stands, no monitors, no props (once he ditches the rubber brain that accompanies show opener “Here”) and not a stick of furniture save a momentary small desk at which Byrne makes his introduction – I can’t imagine the flourish isn’t intended to remind of Spalding Gray, the late monologist and central figure of the downtown renaissance that gave rise to The Talking Heads – and, later, a solitary light-bulb-exposed floor lamp carried onstage but slinking off by itself once usefulness expires. He has eliminated all but the necessary from his stage. Annie-B Parson provides choreography and musical staging.American Utopia (no credited director but Alex Timbers listed as production consultant) finds Byrne still exploring concepts of perspective and stagecraft in determining where, exactly, he wants his audience to focus. Under the guidance of production consultant Alex Timbers ( Moulin Rouge!), the show features lighting design by Rob Sinclair, sound design by Pete Keppler, and musical direction by Karl Mansfield and Mauro Refosco.

#American utopia reviews series

It won two Creative Arts Emmy Awards: Lighting Design/Lighting Direction for a Variety Special and Sound Mixing for a Variety Series or Special. Oscar winner Spike Lee filmed the theatrical concert during the tail end of its Broadway run it premiered on HBO October 17, 2020. READ: How David Byrne Redefines the Broadway Concert Experience With American Utopia The production recouped its initial $4 million investment in mid-December, 10 weeks after opening. The initial run opened October 20, 2019, and continued into 2020.

#American utopia reviews update

Playbill will continue to update this list. New York Theatre Guide (Joe Dziemianowicz) New York Stage Review ( Frank Scheck and Steven Suskin) The company standbys are Renée Albulario, Alena Ciera, Chris Eddleton, Evan Frierson, Abe Nouri, and Natalie Tenenbaum.Ĭritics have begun filing their reviews read them below. Between its original Broadway run and now, the acclaimed production earned two Emmy Awards (for its HBO film capture) and received a Special Tony Award.īyrne is joined by returning band members Jacquelene Acevedo, Gustavo Di Dalva, Daniel Freedman, Chris Giarmo, Tim Keiper, Tendayi Kuumba, Karl Mansfield, Mauro Refosco, Stéphane San Juan, Angie Swan, and Bobby Wooten III. David Byrne’s American Utopia, which returned to Broadway September 17, officially opened at the St.