ELTON John is about to descend on his much-maligned new musical “Lestat,” and the cast and crew are gnawing their nails.
Tomorrow night, the Elton John flotilla – which usually includes a squadron of bodyguards, assistants and a wardrobe supervisor – will sail into the Curran Theater in San Francisco, where the superstar composer will get his first look at this troubled Broadway-bound show.
The tension backstage at the Curran will be palpable, since John has been known to fly off the handle if he’s not pleased.
He famously stormed out of his “Aida” on Broadway because he didn’t like the way one of his songs had been orchestrated.
The problems at “Lestat,” which is based on Anne Rice‘s “The Vampire Chronicles,” run much deeper than the orchestra pit.
Figuratively speaking, the critics did to this show what Van Helsing did to Dracula – drove a stake through its heart, cut off its head and stuffed garlic in its mouth.
Their complaints ranged from the music (bland) to the direction (disjointed) to the script (cluttered).
John’s visit comes at a time when the other members of the creative team – director Rob Jess Roth, book writer Linda Woolverton and lyricist Bernie Taupin – are under intense pressure to fix the show before it begins previews in New York in March.
A production source says Warner Bros.,
which is producing the $12 million musical, has told the creative team that, unless the changes are sweeping and effective, the lid on the “Lestat” coffin will be hammered shut in San Francisco.
“They’ve been given an ultimatum: Solve the problems, or you’re not coming in,” says a source.
Gregg Maday, Warner Bros.’ point man on the show, says “ultimatum” is too strong a word.
“We all know there are certain things in the show that aren’t working,” he says, “and we are making significant changes. But sometimes you have to remind people what the schedule is. There is pressure to get what we’re trying to accomplish finished so that we can make our dates [in New York].”
Adding to the pressure is the fact that changes to the script will require some new sets and costumes – to be designed and built in less than a month.
Choreographer Jonathan Butterell has joined the team at Roth’s invitation.
Butterell, whose credits include “The Light in the Piazza” and the revival of “Nine,” isn’t exactly Jerome Robbins, and one wag cracks: “I’m having a heart attack. Thanks for the Band-Aid.”
But Maday says Butterell “brings a great deal of talent” to the production as well as “an objective point of view.”
As for Elton John, Maday says that even though the composer has yet to see “Lestat,” he’s very much involved in the retooling.
“He’s been completely informed about everything. He’s dedicated to the show, and he’s willing to do whatever is necessary to make it better.”
But a person who knows John well says the “Lestat” crew has good reason to be on edge.
He points out that John’s track record in the theater so far is unblemished, amounting to a trifecta of hits: “The Lion King,” “Aida” and the wonderful “Billy Elliot.”
“Lestat,” at least at this point, is not in that league.
The question, as this person frames it, is: “Is Elton going to give the go-ahead to a show that could be his first flop?”