Take Flight review
Take Flight Review - Broadway musical
At the heart of the musical are real stories of the pioneers of aviation, who made their exploits in the beginning of the era of regular use of aircrafts. As the authors of the production originated from USA, they took fates of legendary American pilots to tell them from the stage. Three stories were divided into pieces and fragmentary presented to the beholders. Mosaic, composed of different years and destinies, devoted to one – passionate desire to climb onto the sky to enjoy unrestrained flight in a blue vastness. Music by David Shire managed to convey an airy ocean’s depth and ease of soaring on airplane under the guidance of the pilot. Staging includes three different stories: about tight-knit brothers, seeking to overcome the force of gravity; about the aviator-loner, opposed to the rest of the world; and about a woman who did not want to stay within specified by the men of her family limits. Comedy scenes with elements of conversations by Wilbur and Orville Wright were delightfully conveyed by duo of S. Kenyon & E. Levey. According to many critics, it is this part of the musical the liveliest and most interesting. In the melodies that sound during the heroic mission of Charles Lindbergh, you can hear the fatigue and exhaustion that have captivated a pilot due to long non-stop transatlantic flight. In life, Amelia Earhart tried to make a choice between the passion for the sky and the love to her husband. But nothing could stand on the way of implementation of desire of woman to fly in the air vastness. S. A. Triplett managed to convey to the public the uncontrollable desire that was burning in a heart of a brave heroine.The musical received various reviews. According to critics, production remained to dwell on the land, although it tried to climb into the sky. Despite the experience of the founders, the production got somehow ragged – disparate fragments of the fates of airmen failed to be tied together on the stage. Some reviewers complained about the fact that, in spite of overall good-quality music, the show did not have a single song hit. They also noted the lack of dramatic effect of the plot. Romance between Amelia Earhart and George Putnam seemed to many too cloying and distracting from the overall context of the play. Some critics perceived the show as a history lesson, conducted with the use of music. Despite the existence of such shortcomings, the musical has found its audience. The staging was especially loved by those who obtained flying license and knew everything about the skies. The audience reacted well to the performance, as the story about pilots is quite rare for a music shows (well, there are maybe 1 or 2 other shows about pilots in the history of Broadway and that’s it). Despite the fact that since the inception of the aircraft mastery, a long time has passed, people should not forget about the origins of the thing that is now perceived as something very usual. Thanks to this spectacular, audience will be able to recall well-known facts of history and even to meet them for the first time.
Last Update:July, 18th 2016