Customer Reviews

The Threepenny Opera (1994 London Donmar Warehouse Cast)

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is a marvelous recording of threepenny opera, moslty due to the wonderful new lyrics - which manage to capture all the grit and vulgarity of the characters that Brecht was trying to capture in the orignal German-language production.

I've read several customer reviews of this recording, and people seem to be missing the point of the show entirely. People are lamenting the loss of the romance and beauty of the show - unfortunatly this show is about murderers, whores and businessmen and is not meant to be a musicalization of a Bronte novel. Brecht was making strong political points with these characters, so strong a point that the show ran until the Nazi's closed it, and manged to destroy most of the prints of (horrible) film-version.

I'm not too familiar with the Blitzstein translation, but what I have heard of it is flat, colourless and boring - sans all the vulgarity of the characters singing the songs. This version (thank god!) uses the "f-word" (among others) to great affect. I actually happened to see an american company do this version. While the modernazation of the peice was pointless (and moslty unnoticable) the production stands up better when we hear "The Life's a Bitch Song" sound like life's a bitch. (In this particular performance there was an improved reference to Monica Lewensky - which, though completely inapproriate, was deliciously funny.)

Also, the Ballad of Mack the Knife (here, "The Flick-Knife Song") has been reassigned to Jenny Diver (at last we hear her last name pronounced correctly) - and it ended the first half. It was DELICIOUS to hear, and the perfect character in the show to sing it, too, who knows Mackie better than Jenny? (Also, this performers voice is amazing in the role, which is a nice change from the strage gutteral and oddly Scottish performance of Polly.)

The lyrics have bite, now, witch matches the score itself. Bad lyrics always aggravate me - and these work.

If you're looking for romance, stick to Phamtom of the Opera. But if you're looking for a great modern treatment of a strong (and very entertaining) pollitical work - then get this recording. Even if you suspect you'll dislike it, and are familiar with other recordings/traslations of the work, its truly interesting to hear the differences in interpretation from version to version.

All in all this is a great version of the show, and true to the vulgarity and humour of Brect's style. And it also includes the best recording of Mack the Knife/Flick-Knife Song, with some attitude - not the jazzed-up lounge version that was latter adapted into a McDonalds ad.

(Its also interesting to note that the score was being played the the actor/dancers in the ensemble. And the "What's the Point Song" has removed the orchestral accompaniment, and replaces instruments, note-for-note, with the esembles voices. This is the same company the debuted the revival of Caberet currently on broadway, so if you're familiar with that revival, you may notice some similarities.)

Donmar Warehouse's recording of "The Threepenny Opera" is really the ONLY English-language version of the play that comes close to Brecht's true intensions - to present social comment and criticism in a totally-theatrical, non-illusionistic way. This is the "problem" with most people's understandings of Brecht, and "Threepenny" in particular. When watching Brecht, you should be thinking, "What is Brecht trying to say to us? What is he trying to tell us by showing this story?" You shouldn't empathise with the characters - you should learn something about what they do and how it relates to you. It may sound cold or uncaring or not very dramatically engaging, but that's what Brecht was interested in experimenting with and presenting. (It must be noted, too, that "Threepenny" is an early "experiment" of Brecht's in epic, social theater, and is FAR from being a perfect theatrical experience.)

Audiences who are familiar with the old off-Broadway revival recording will notice that the romance and milieu of the story are gone - romance and milieu were NOT Brecht's goal. These were introduced by shoddy English translations of the original German. The most notorious of these translations is, ironically, the one best known - Eric Bentley's sugar-coated, illusionistic version. The only version truly authorized by Brecht's estate was penned by Mannheim and Willett, whose work can be heard on the Richard Foreman revival recording of the show starring Raul Julia and Ellen Green. Even the original G.W. Pabst film of "Threepenny" missed the point, and was disavowed by Brecht since it fell into the trap of being an illusionistic story - ie. you were supposed to "believe" what was happening and like the characters. The film version of the Foreman revival (sometimes called "Mack the Knife") fell into the same trap (don't rent it - Brecht aside, even as far as musicals go, it is embarrassing.) As for the swearing and foul language, you need look no further than Brecht himself to find it - the original German text is peppered with slang, slurs, and less-than savory language. And regarding the modernization of the piece - I think it actually works, since it is in Brecht's vain. Brecht was always modernizing and reworking classical plays (eg. "The Duchess of Malfi" and "Edward II"), and the original "Threepenny" is really an updated, contemporized, overhauled version of John Gay's "Beggar's Opera" anyway. Brecht was not always as original as some would think - he borrowed, reworked, and even stole ideas from everywhere to work into his own plays.

It was Donmar Warehouse's intention of producing "Threepenny" as Brecht wrote and intended it to be performed. Having studied the play and even directed some of Brecht's other work, I must admit they did a capable job. To people who are first being introduced to Brecht, this is the most authentic way - and the way Brecht intended you to see it. It may not be "pretty," "sweet," or "romantic," but remember - it's not SUPPOSED to be!

In the end, it comes down to this - if you want an old-fashioned musical with romance and a happy ending, watch "Show Boat;" if you want an epic theater that presents important or diverse comments on society, the hierarchical order, love, and duty, check out Brecht and "Threepenny."

The Donmar production is to be congratulated-- their Threepenny is a scream from hell. In setting this production in the present/near future, they have driven home the issues even further than the Foreman version does. Mac is no longer an orientalized rogue from the past; he is a cutting edge serial killer and rapist who works in collusion with the police. Jeremy Sams's lyrics capture the spirit of the piece perfectly-- they are harrowing. If you are looking for Brecht in its rawest, most meaningful form, it's on this cd.

Brecht and Weill would be proud of this recording, particularly Brecht. It captures all of the unsentimental nuances of the original work. This version of the "Moritat von Mackie Messer" (here, "The Flick-Knife Song") differs from all other versions, in as far as it doesn't have the air of fun to it that all of the other versions of this song have had. The English lyrics to this song (and most of the other songs) bear no relation to the original German text, however, they do capture Brecht's intentions. Mack's crimes were bloody, heartless, and with an "intention" that only he saw (indeed, Mack the Knife is not Robin Hood). This Polly can get very awful in the noises she makes, but Brecht wasn't known for casting good singers (in fact, he was known for quite the opposite), so it's okay. The "Jealousy Duet" here is hilarious. The orchestra has that "threepenny quality" that it needs, and I'm sure that this was a stupendous production. There are a few things about this recording that bug me, among them the tempos and some musical deletions, but this recording was done more as a presentation of the production, as opposed to a representation of the score. The highlight of this recording is Jenny, who is a marvel on everything she does ("The Knocking-Shop Tango," "The Flick-Knife Song," and "The Socrates Song"). She is accompanied by a very able Macheath, and a very funny Mrs. Peachum, and an accomplished Mr. Peachum.

So, over all, buy this to get a taste for this production, but not if you are looking for a straight-forward presentation of the real Brecht-Weill masterpiece, THE THREEPENNY OPERA.

I worked on this show last year, we used this translation. Imagine my surprise when I tried to download parts of it and found them to be sugarcoated! This is the only version that actually uses rhymes that arent down right silly, and captures the terror and evilness of the German. Compared to this slick, painful adaptation the other versions have no spirit.

I'm currently in rehearsals for a production of "The Threepenny Opera" based on the Donmar Warehouse production, so I bought this CD to get an idea of the original. I've heard bits and pieces of other productions, and something about this one struck me as distinctive and "right", but I could not pinpoint what. Finally I realized: The Donmar version has a distinct tone of "Englishness" -- or even specifically "London-ness" -- that all others lack. The play is about poverty and gangs in London, and frankly, in the theater world you can't get much closer to that than being an actor in London. The films tend to have a feeling of German-ness, and American productions have a feel of American Musical Theater, but this production seems to be by people who honestly know, and are the real products of, the world and environment depicted in the play. This adds an extra note of authenticity, in addition to the return to Brecht and Weill's original nastiness.

After reading a few of the reviews below, I thought I was ready to listen to this CD. But I WASN'T. It far surpassed my wildest expectations. I'm still in a bit of a shock, so pardon me if I sound a bit incoherent. This show is so raw, so human, so visceral that it will probably shake you beyond words; it's like getting to know the most intimate, forbidding side of human nature. You don't get into the story, forgetful of the reality around you. When you listen to those songs you kind of assume a clinical posture. You carefully examine what is going on, in the same way a doctor coldly examines his suffering patients during the day, only to find himself emotionally drained and exhausted at night, after getting home. He learned, he suffered and now he knows more about people. I suppose a lot has got to do with the way the songs are performed. The cast doesn't really sing the songs; they seem rather to scream them with anguished voices (note: there's no attempt to sing beautifully here; the beautiful songs are just a dramatic vehicle to convey very raw emotions.). It's a bit like contemplating Edvard Munch's The Scream. I was really shaken after I heard this recording. Suddenly, everything else sounded so 'dumb' and 'irrelevant' to me'. It seems as if you will never take any other show seriously (don't worry, I'm sure this won't happen; although you will probably get a bit more critical of shows in which you are asked to leave your brains at the box office.) I hope I made some sense here. I'm still under a certain emotional impact (the intellectual impact was enormous too, or that wouldn't be a truly Brechtian show.) Uhhh... I don't know what else to say... I'm exhausted... Great... great recording. One of the best, certainly the most impactive, I've ever got.

I was quite happy with this version of Threepenny Opera. Even though, at times, it gets a little bit more vulgar than it needs to be, the songs go back to the mood of Brecht's original German version - harsh, dark, and mean. If you're looking for the sugar-coated lyrics of the Raul Julia version, you're looking in the wrong place. If you're looking for something closer to the original German version, look no further.

I really love this cd, it is my favorite of the english language versions, a very nice translation. The modernization and the casting choices work well. But to Charles L. Cron, the reviewer below-- are you actually familiar with Show Boat? Romance, maybe. And Hammerstein and Brecht were pretty much diametrically opposed in their theatrical goals. But ummm. . .happy ending? The principal female is abandoned by her man and left to raise a child alone. The second lead is banished from the Show Boat when it is discovered she is a mulatto, and ends up working in a nightclub/brothel. Although I would ultimately call Show Boat a "racist" show, it is a dated attempt at social commentary, and hardly contains an example of a typical musical comedy happy ending. But all quibbles aside, I would recommend the Donmar Warehouse Threepenny opera to both musical theater lovers such as myself, as well as anyone whose principal interest is Brecht and his theatrical legacy.

I listen to Weill quite a bit - this is the best English version of ThreePenny I've heard. Very dark, sarcastic and sardonic. A great job - I never tire of it.