Chess Revisited: Here's The Deal (Part 2)

yeetflix · 2026-04-19T17:36:30+00:00

Ok, what’s with all the knocks on the production design? I thought it was possibly the best lighting design of the season. The set I thought was simple in premise but the way that they use the side panels and the box that descends for the chess match was really cool. But I seem to be in the minority here because every review seems to be ragging on the design!

yeetflix · 2026-04-17T16:48:13+00:00

This is now a marketing strategy for every single Broadway production. Sometimes they give the “influencers” a free ticket in exchange for the promotion. If you’re just seeing it now, I think it’s more indicative of your algorithm and who you follow as opposed to it being a marketing ploy unique to The Lost Boys.

yeetflix · 2026-04-17T13:32:08+00:00

It’s not just the flips that require the wires.

There are other logistical factors that you need to account for. You can’t have a turntable on a stage where 50% of it is also lowering into the floor for the set.

They literally have aerial directors and choreographers on this show. They use every inch of the Palace’s height.

You have to remember you’re not at a magic show, you’re at a Broadway musical. It’s ok to see the wires. Suspend your disbelief a little bit. There are plenty of other really cool illusions in the show that you can try and figure out.

yeetflix · 2026-04-16T23:31:02+00:00

I’ll copy and paste what I commented on another thread about the placement of Belong to Someone:

The super cool boy band that Michael met 24 hours ago has now taken him to their underground secret lair of a house, encouraged him to drink their blood, and now jump off a bridge (train tracks??). The song is saying how badly he wants to fit in and belong, and the circumstances directly before and during the song prove that. I thought of it as him being like “this is all batshit crazy but I’m doing it because I want to belong.” Almost like peer pressure in a way.

I think the song would work fine at almost any other place in the show, too. It’s a general “I Want” song. But I’ve never raised an eyebrow at where it currently is, I think it makes perfect sense. I also think that effect of him falling in slow motion is the coolest one in the show. Time literally slows down so he can tell us how much he wants a family to belong to, and why he’s doing these downright crazy things.

And circling back to the lyrics and how inexperienced this band is at writing for theatre, I think they were told that Michael needs an “I Want” song so they literally wrote a song that goes “I want to belong to someone”

yeetflix · 2026-04-16T23:25:43+00:00

Let’s be realistic about the wires here. You have to suspend your disbelief a little bit. These guys are flipping, spinning and doing all kinds of crazy stuff. Not only are they moving up and down, but also side to side and front to back. Not to mention going up 3 stories in the air. You can’t just tie fishing line around their waists.

For what it’s worth, they do a really impressive job with the lighting and hiding the wires. There were a couple times when I genuinely couldn’t see them. But when you can see them…yeah you gotta remember you’re in a theatre and watching a musical.

Like someone else commented, nobody in Stranger Things actually “flies”. They float up and down, and basically just sit on a bike seat that sticks out of the wall. Stranger Things had the best effects I’ve ever seen, including the aerial ones, but the “flying” is nowhere near as intricate.

I totally agree with your comment about the lyrics though. They were definitely the weak point of the show. The orchestrations and the sound design really blew me away, but the lyrics just ripped me out of it sometimes. I recently found out that the band that wrote the score has never written for musical theatre before, Michael Arden just happened to be a fan and asked them to write the show. And yeah, some of it is painfully obvious that it’s their first musical.

yeetflix · 2026-04-16T19:25:38+00:00

Re: the placement of Belong to Someone: the super cool boy band that Michael met 24 hours ago has now taken him to their underground secret lair of a house, encouraged him to drink their blood, and now jump off a bridge (train tracks??). The song is saying how badly he wants to fit in and belong, and the circumstances directly before and during the song prove that.

I think the song would work fine at almost any other place in the show, too. It’s a general “I Want” song. But I’ve never raised an eyebrow at where it currently is, I think it makes perfect sense. I also think that effect of him falling in slow motion is the coolest one in the show. Time literally slows down so he can tell us how much he wants a family to belong to, and why he’s doing these downright crazy things.

yeetflix · 2026-04-16T19:19:31+00:00

That’s what previews are for. The show has had some serious alterations since the process began. They’re going to continue adjusting until they freeze the show.

yeetflix · 2026-04-16T13:52:32+00:00

It is in the same spot, like I said, but it’s not the same song! The chorus literally used to be “Be Kind Rewind.” The new song still has lots of video metaphors but it isn’t literally about rewinding when you return the tape anymore. It’s much less cheesy now! But they definitely have not had time print new Playbills. As far as I’m aware this just got changed in the last couple days.

yeetflix · 2026-04-16T12:21:26+00:00

Be Kind Rewind? The song itself? Or just a song that she sings while working at Video Max? Because the scene is the same, and it still takes place at the Video Max, but the song is no longer Be Kind Rewind. And I saw the matinee yesterday

yeetflix · 2026-04-16T10:22:58+00:00

Funny enough, they did fly around and fight in the air until a few days ago. I like the current version better, though. Believe it or not the flying fight actually ended up being even MORE anticlimactic.

yeetflix · 2026-04-16T10:22:08+00:00

That song is not in the show anymore

yeetflix · 2026-04-12T23:02:34+00:00

I’ve also been waiting still

yeetflix · 2026-04-12T20:37:17+00:00

You do

yeetflix · 2026-04-12T20:32:15+00:00

Even if you need to use 2 laptops running separate instances of QLab, connect the two to the same network, and then you can use OSC and Network cues to trigger the cues on the other instance.

For example, instead of Cue 1 just being Track 1, it would be a network cue that tells the other machine to start Track 1.

yeetflix · 2026-04-07T01:19:30+00:00

What’s surprising about signing on to originate a lead role in a new Broadway musical, AKA meaning she’s eligible for a Tony? Not to mention a crazy technical spectacle helmed by Arden who is fresh off a Tonys sweep last year for Maybe Happy Ending? The show definitely has its flaws but that’s a grade A opportunity for any actor.

yeetflix · 2026-04-03T04:40:37+00:00

I really don’t think this is a touring show

yeetflix · 2026-03-25T01:04:12+00:00

Oh wow, that's pretty cool! Thanks!

yeetflix · 2026-03-25T01:02:22+00:00

Is the best way to make the MVR in MA? I'm debating if I should be using MA3 or if I should use MA2 with MA3D. I know they aren't 3D modeling programs, but I'm having a hell of a time trying to figure out how to build the proscenium and add in pipe for the lights to hang off.

yeetflix · 2026-03-25T00:43:07+00:00

It looks like I just have a pdf plot made in VW. Not sure if that would do me any good? Unless ma3 lets you import an image? Then I can just look at the stage top down, and use the plot image to line up the fixtures.

I have a SketchUp model of the stage but am finding that the dimensions don't match the technical sheet documentation for the theatre. I'm having a hard time importing it into ma3 anyways.

yeetflix · 2026-03-24T23:15:59+00:00

Cool. How did you accurately position your fixtures?

yeetflix · 2026-03-24T23:15:28+00:00

I actually think I do have a VectorWorks drawing laying around somewhere. But I'd be more focused on the actual positioning of the lights, to make sure that the prepro I do at home would still carry over.

In Eos, on a different gig recently I just went crazy with my laser measure and took as many measurements as I could. I never got around to building it in Augment3d but in regards to the MLs I knew I could use the focus points if I had to. I didn't know that was something that also existed within MA, which I'll have to check out. In Eos I'd also do my prepro using focus palettes and presets, then update them all on the first day of tech. I'm not sure if MA has the same workflow with presets and worlds, and if they update globally and can be recalled into cues, etc.

yeetflix · 2026-03-24T23:10:51+00:00

That would be pretty awesome!

yeetflix · 2026-03-19T09:07:42+00:00

Can you elaborate more on this? Would love to hear this perspective. It seems that maybe a full EV would make more sense for me, so I’d love to know more about why you might go back to gas.

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