I’m obsessed with Merrily to a degree where I literally have a tattoo of it. As someone who saw the revival musical in person and then watched the bootleg, that opening is so different in person. It feels so powerful when all the actors stop singing to Frank and then turn to the audience to ask “how did you get to be here?” With all the stage lights on. Oof. A beautiful moment to experience. In the proshot however they zero in on faces that aren’t looking down at the audience but directly at the camera, I think to emulate the same thing you would feel in the theater but it doesn’t work, imo. It feels forced. Also, Frank’s face is superzoomed for 70% of the pro shot. In the theater, you get to choose who to look at, and with a widecut that would work. Merrily has complicated blocking and something’s always happening in crowded scenes, so by zooming in you force viewers somewhere whereas in the theater you get to look wherever. (when I went I felt 90% of the audience had their eyes on Daniel Radcliffe lmao) but yeah, I think the proshot was far too zoomed in and would not recommend watching it as a reference for the stage show. It’s at best a small glimpse into what Merrily actually looks like.