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84 of 93 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A dark and interesting score..., November 29, 2004
...but flawed, as most of Lloyd Webber's scores since "Sunset Boulevard" have been. Granted, every score, regardless of the composer, has its flaws, but I have noticed a trend with Lloyd Webber, starting with "Whistle Down the Wind," that continues here, where several strong songs are diminished by lesser ones and occasionally dull recitative dialogue sequences.
"The Woman in White" is in some ways the most complex and interesting score composed by Lloyd Webber since "Sunset Boulevard," which I found as thoroughly enjoyable as "The Phantom of the Opera" in many respects. Here, we have a dark setting, an air of mystery, quite a few intriguing characters and many opportunities for dramatic scoring and romantic performances, all of which add up to a generally winning end result. The opening sequence is memorably spooky, and the cast's vocals shine throughout, particularly on songs like "I Believe My Heart," "Evermore Without You," and my personal favorite, "All For Laura," which is absolutely electrifying.
There are many more good tunes in the score, as well as plenty of skillfully executed recitative dialogue, but there is also quite a bit of bland recitative (the kind where you can't really put your finger on any melody, a situation not helped by occasionally medicore lyrics) and less memorable songs.
Also, it's impossible not to notice that Lloyd Webber has (yet again) ripped off his own "Jeeves" score ("By Jeeves" to those who know its reincarnated version better) as well as "Whistle Down the Wind." Numerous times you can hear the original bridge section of "Half a Moment" from "Jeeves" (a.k.a. the introduction to "Half a Moment" in "By Jeeves"), a clear and direct lift. This is made worse by the fact that Lloyd Webber had already stolen it and used it as the bridge to "As If We Never Said Goodbye" from "Sunset Boulevard," and made even worse, yet again, by his turning around and stealing it back for a revised "Half a Moment" in "By Jeeves." In other words, this melody has been recycled twice too many times... time to dig up a new melody! You will also hear, several times, a musical passage from "Whistle Down the Wind" (it's the one near the climax of "Whistle" where Swallow sings to the pseudo-Jesus/escaped convict: "No one's ever looked at me... the way you're looking at me now..."). And I cannot put my finger on it (yet), but you can definitely hear one or two "inklings" of "Aspects of Love" in this score, although these instances are less obvious than the others.
Maria Friedman gives a stellar vocal performance on this recording (and given her rather excellent track record on the stage, might she soon inherit Elaine Paige's throne?), as do the other female principles. Michael Crawford is good as Count Fosco, but his role is not as juicy as it could have been and he seems to have far too little to do. The male villain and male romantic/hero lead handle their roles well.
In all, I very much like the score to "The Woman in White." It's not as satisfying as I had hoped, but considering the hit-or-miss nature of the scores to "Whistle Down the Wind" and "The Beautiful Game"--both strong scores I liked--where a few gorgeous songs were surrounded by somewhat lesser material, this seems like a step in the right direction.
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24 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful new Gothic musical, June 6, 2005
Andrew Lloyd Webber's musicals have never been popular with the critics, but as box office records show, audiences eat them up with a spoon. They are meant to serve as entertainment, and entertain they certainly do.
"The Woman in White" is not much different from standard Lloyd Webber fare, as the dialogue is still sung through and filled with melodies that repeat over and over and over again. While this might seem annoying, Lloyd Webber manages to get away with it because if there's one thing he can do, it is create pleasant tunes that you don't mind encountering more than once. There are not as many memorable melodies as you might find in "The Phantom of the Opera", but the "Woman in White" theme, "I Believe My Heart", and "You Can Get Away With Anything" are definitely standouts.
The plot is "freely adapted" from the novel by Wilkie Collins, and is very easy to follow. Though it's a touch simplistic and perhaps even a wee bit predictable, it is executed in such a way that it propells you on to see what the outcome will be.
The performances on the CD, recorded live on opening night, are perfect across the board. Michael Crawford, who originated the title role in "The Phantom of the Opera", is at his villainous best as Count Fosco, the obese Italian who pairs with the sinister Sir Percival Glyde (Oliver Darley). Marian and Laura, the half-sisters caught in the middle of the mystery (Marian Friedman, Jill Paice) are wonderful to listen to, and the eponymous Woman in White (Angela Christian, "Miss Dorothy" in the OBC of "Thoroughly Modern Millie) simply breaks your heart.
The musical is expected to make the leap from the West End to Broadway soon. Hopefully "The Phantom of the Opera" will continue to run for years, but if not then "The Woman in White" looks to be a worthy successor.
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13 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Medicore? Flawed? What!! The best musical in years!, August 22, 2005
If Phantom's a 10, Woman in White is a 9. Woman in White has a chillingly good story (not perfectly adapted, but it suits the stage), above average lyrics, a haunting, sometimes funny, but ultimately moving score, and a great cast, including the indispensable Michael Crawford and the always-excellent Maria Friedman.
The story is far too complicated to sum up in a review, but the cut-and-dry version is: A man, Walter Hartright, on his way to instruct 2 art students, Marian and Laura, spies a woman dressed in white on his way to catch his train who says she has a secret to tell. Once he arrives, the three get caught in a web of deceit and lies...(Ominous! ^_^)
It comes nicely packaged with a libretto and a book with a note from Andrew Lloyd Webber, the production information, an overview of scenes and songs, a few photos, and the orchestra information.
It's got much more than what the tracklisting indicates -- the ENTIRE show, all the music and all the dialogue -- is on here. And thanks to technology, it's a live recording of the opening night performance, which makes the performances on the CD all the better. You can't even tell they're live! They sound like very good quality studio tracks -- but with the passion and emotion of a live performance. How they pulled it all off flawlessly is quite an amazing feat.
The music itself is just plain incredible. Forget the hype you've heard surrounding newer shows like "Wicked" "Light in the Piazza" or others, if you're looking for a good operetta in the tradition of "Phantom" or "Les Miserables," look for WOMAN IN WHITE...
GRADE: A
PURCHASE?: Absolutely!!
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An Amazon.com Best of 2005 selection.
Interact With Your Music: Discover, listen to, and buy new music, all from the pages of SPIN's digital edition, free to Amazon customers.
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~ Andrew Lloyd Webber
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