I had a whole post written up, then I accidentally deleted it. It was sad. *bangs keyboard*
Starting over!!!!!
For our family Halloween isn't just about the monsters and candy. Halloween is actually a Holy Day in the Church, the Eve before All Souls Day, when we honor all the triumphant in heaven. Because of this, my family has always done more of a Catholic slant to the Holiday. When I was growing up I would pick my favorite martyr or saint and I would dress like him/her for Halloween. All of my sisters did the same thing, it was this cool tradition that started with the big kids and just went on down the line. We a long time we were known in the neighborhood as "The Saints." Now, the past few years we've had a little bit of a costume update. We've started to dress up in other things besides Saints, like fictional characters, for example.
I don't think Halloween should be as creepy or dark as it is today. but I honestly don't think there is anything wrong with little kids dressing up, even if their costume is some kind of monster, like ghost or a vampire or something. It's just a costume and it's fun for the kids to feel dangerous or scary. This doesn't apply to just kids, I think it applies to everyone who dresses up, even adults. The only time I don't like the whole 'monster' thing is when the costume get's too creepy. I hate it when there is too much blood or too much horror in the costume. I don't mind if you want to be scary or whatever. Just don't go way overboard and get really creepy and horrible. There is no need to make a costume so twisted that it's no longer fun.
So, do you wan to hear about our Halloween??
Here are the costumes.
We were all sorts of things. We had a Steampunk Witch, a Daredevil, a Jack the Skeleton, a Twilight a tiger, a Batgirl, a Tintin, a Sort-Of-Indiana Jones, a Eowyn, a Merida, a Tintin, a Devil, oh and then there was me. Ten points to anyone who can guess who I was.
OOOOh pumpkins!!! (we had like, twelve of these suckers. They were fabulous. Tiny, Kat and I did one together that said GRIMM. It looked so good 8-D )
aren't they so fun???
This child who was a freakin' adorable tiger.
Some of me....unfortunately all the singles of me were taken before I put my hair up and had make-up on... but you get the idea.
Do you know me yet?
How about now?
I'm not sure what that face is, but I think it's "I am so done with the world.
I like this picture, and it looks good in black and white so it had to be. I loved my costume so very much. I still have it out. I think I am going to keep it handy so I can wear it whenever I feel the need.
Can you guess yet???
Okay, I'll tell you. I was Sydney Carton. (Didn't see that coming, right?) And I got really into it. I even carried around a bottle and gave myself some scruff. And then when we were trick-or-treating or certain sister dared me to quote "It is a far, far, better thing I do than I have ever done..." at one of the houses. So I did. I stood there and I quoted Carton, and I was all brave.... AND THEY DIDN'T GET IT. I was so mad.
Beside this serious dissapointment, trick-or-treating was fun. We danced. We sang. We howled. We did random sections from musicals. We yelled happy Halloween. We talked and got loud because no one cared. We acted crazy and it was fun.
After trick-or-treating we crashed out the house and watched Halloween movies/cartoons while munching on this delicious Carmel Corn. Kat makes the best Carmel Corn I have ever tasted. It is warm and sticky, and it has just as many peanuts as popcorn, and when it is cooking you can see the Carmel melting in and bubbling delightfully, and you can just tell it is going to be epic. There is nothing like that Carmel Corn. Nothing.
We watched things like The Halloween that Almost wasn't (Super corny, but fun) and Sleepy Hollow with Bing Crosby narrating, and Disney Halloween Cartoons that are short and goofy but well worth the watch.
*Speaking of Sleepy Hollow, The night before Halloween Tiny and I watched a version of that with Johnny Depp as Icabod. It was pretty good. It was kind of disturbing. Really disturbing actually. But I enjoyed it.
When Johnny Depp is normal he is kind of cute.... so Icabod was kind of cute, and he was awkward and sweet and I liked him a lot. I really appreciated the fact that he reacted like a normal person when it came to blood, creepy dark forests, weird bridges, and ghosts. He freaked out when he saw the Headless Horseman, just like any normal person would. But he pulled himself together and made himself be brave. He went into the horrible forest and he dug up graves and he chased down leads, and he stood up to the Horseman, even though he was obviously scared and nervous to do it.
The only thing I would warn is that there is a lot of blood, it is pretty creepy, and there is one part that is kind of a scene. You don't see much cause it is so fast, and at first you don't realize what it is, then the lady cuts her hand, and you realize the guy on top of her isn't dead... and it's over. It's very awkward.
I just realized how long this blog post is. I should go now. I have NaNo to do. But I will blog again tomorrow. MUSICALS!
How was your Halloween??? Did you have an epic costume? Do you have any traditions?
You all know how much I love Sydney, In fact you're probably sick of him by now. I've already posted about him here andhere, so you're probably like, "Bella we knooooow." But I can't help it! He is such a sad potato. He can see nothing good in himself. All he sees is a pathetic drunk who fails at everything he does. But he is just a very broken man. He wants to be better but that he thinks change is impossible for a man like him. Everyone in his life views him badly, everyone treats him badly, and his boss seems to make it his point in life to bash Carton whenever he gets the chance. And Carton believes all the horrible things said to him, so he has completely given up on himself.
Carton tries to be better after he meets Lucy. He tries to be his best whenever he is with her. He doesn't drink as often, and he never drinks when he visits her or her family. Underneath the careless attitude his is really very kind, gentle, and he has a soft spot for children. After Lucy marries Charles, Carton asks if they might be friends, and Charle's agrees, welcoming Sydney into his home. He becomes sort of a godfather figure to Lucy's daughter, and that inspires him to change all the more. He has a slow, steady character ark, and in the end he sacrifices himself to save his friends. It is beautiful and horrible and it makes me cry. Carton is a very sad, sweet potato. I adore him.
Raoul was my first Musical Theatre hero. He is a severely under-rated character, since most POTO fans love The Phantom, and therefore hate Raoul. I really don't understand the hate. He is such a cool person! You meet him as this charming young man who really fancies the Chorus girl, Christine Daae. He is all shy cause they haven't seen each other in ages and he is kind of afraid she might have forgotten him, but then he brings her in a flower, and Christine is all happy and she remembers him, just like he remembers her, and that old spark fires up again and.... *flails.*
Raoul is a very gentle sort of man. (can you sense a pattern here? I like gentle guys.) He is kind and sweet, and he is incredibly protective. (And the pattern continues.) When he realizes that the Phantom is a real danger in the Opera House, he does everything he can to stop him and make Christine feel safe. He defends her and stands by her, through thick and thin. He calms her down when she is practically hysterical with fear, and he supports her even when he doesn't understand what is going on and Christine is acting kind of crazy.
Raoul is also very brave. He stands up to the Phantom and refuses to step back, even an inch. He braves fire for Christine, he braves drowning for her, he braves death for her. When the Phantom kidnaps Christine and takes her down to his lair, Raoul risks his life to go down and save her. When the Phantom strings him up with a noose and tells Christine to either stay with him forever or watch Raoul die, Raoul begs Christine to say no. This is only one of many times when he put Christine before himself. The man is a hero in his own right. He's fabulous. 3.) Percy Blakley. (The Scarlet Pimpernel.)
I couldn't find any good pictures of Percy on Broadway, so I had to use the actor from the movie. I love the movie too, so I don't really mind using this Percy. He's great.
I couldn't post about my favorite male character without at least mentioning Percy. Percy is a very iconic character, if you don't know him you should start rethinking your life choices
Percy is one of those characters who is incredibly unique and mysterious. He's quite remarkable, really. He spends most of his day pretending to be an fainthearted idiot, but underneath his clever mask he is a strong, reckless leader who tears through France saving "aristocrats" from the Guillotine. He is ingenious, rebellious, reckless and practically fearless. There is nothing that Percy can't do, and you are never really sure what to expect from him. He fools everyone, he always finds a loophole, and he always has a second play to the second plan in case plan B failed. He even manages to play a trick on someone who knows the truth of who he is, and furthermore, was waiting for him! And he wins! The guy is fabulous!!
Seriously, if you don't know who Percy is it is time to find out. The Scarlet Pimpernel as a musical is really good, and I would also recommend watching the 1982 film, which is the one my pictures are from. That Percy is amazing, perfect for the role.
I really love Cowboys and the whole "Wild West" aspect of American History, so Curly is very special to me. Plus, I saw version where Hugh Jackman was Curly and that basically sold me on his character. He's a rugged, redneck American with a dangerous, reckless streak in him that you don't see in most men nowadays. He is the kind of guy you could see having a showdown with someone he really didn't like. (for example, Jud Fry.)
Curly is rough-around-the-edges, stubborn and a little crazy. He doesn't like losing or backing down. He captures the spirit of men back in those good ol' days and it is incredibly fun to watch.
Curly may be a hard nut, but he has a big heart and he is very protective of those he cares about. His relationship with Laurey is sweet, if a little odd, and I adore.how cute and awkward he gets when he proposes. Like... Curly.
Since I've already done a long and extensiveposton this particular character, I won't say too much about him. Rochester is a bitter, cynical man when the story begins, but he finds Jane and, slowly, he comes to realize that not everything is lost. There is still good in the world, maybe even in himself, and there is reason to hope. He starts out broken and full of anger but as the musical goes on his character goes through an ark and he becomes kinder. gentler. He's a rough man who has a lot of love hidden behind his walls and he is one of my favorite characters in Theatre... and literature.
Who are some of your favorite male characters? Have you ever seen Oklahoma? Do you like Hugh Jackman? Have you read/watched the Scarlet Pimpernel? Do you think he is Faaaabulous?
Well. Once again it's been over a week since I've blogged. I feel terrible. I'm not even that busy. I had a birthday gift I was working on for my sisterAmyand that took up a lot of my time - and it's still late. Which sucks. It should have been done - it would have been done if the stupid freakin colors would work out right.
(On that note you guys, I really hate coloring videos. I can never get mine to look like I want them to and it ticks me off.)
ANYHOOSEL. I was tagged byIvy Miranda. It seemed like a good tag, and I knew I'd forget if I didn't do it soon, so here it is!
FIVE MALE CHARACTERS TAG
Rules:
1.) List 5 of you favorite male characters (book or screen)
2.) Tagging other people is optional
3.) If you are tagged link back to the person that tagged you
4.) Link back toRevealed In Time(preferably using the link to this post)
I have lots of male characters I like.... this is going to be really hard. I'm going to feel guilty when I do this. I hate picking favorites.
1.) Hero.
Holy crap. There are so many heroes that I love! How can I narrow this down?? *grinds teeth.*
Okay. I think one of the most heroic characters ever is Sam Winchester. He always tries to do the right thing, even when it's hard. When he screws up he blames no one but himself and does anything and everything he can to fix the mistake. He lay down his life and surrendered himself horrible torture forever to save the world. He didn't know there was any way out. He didn't think he'd ever be saved. He did it anyway. He will sacrifice everything for his brother. He would die for his brother. He would rip the world apart for his brother. When it comes to family and friends (and almost everyone) Sam Winchester is unceasingly generous, kind, gentle and forgiving. Like he literally forgave his 'friend' for breaking open his mind, causing all sorts of hallucinations that drove him almost to insanity and practically killed him because the nightmares and visions made it so he could barely eat or sleep for weeks. He didn't just forgive him either - he stayed his friend and tried to help him! The guy is incredible!
If Sam is selfish, its when he thinks of others - his family, his friends, or even strangers. He hardly ever thinks of himself. Like, the one time he was selfish for himself that sticks out in my mind was when he went to college. But I don't think that was really selfish. He was getting out of a toxic situation and finding some freedom. He just wanted to get a job, get married and be happy. I don't think that should be considered selfish. Sure, he has his bad days. (And sometimes those are very bad days,) but at his core he is a good, strong man who is incredibly optimistic and always tries to see the best in people and in the world. He is very brave, very kind and very gentle. He protects people. He never gives up and he does what's right.
*other heroes that I love are Dean Winchester, Sydney Carton, Steve Rogers, all the Avengers, Michael Scofield, Matt Murdock, Fred and George Weasley, Rory Williams....the list goes on.
2.) Villain.
Hmmm... Villains. I don't think Loki qualifies as a Villain. He's more like an Anti-hero/Anti-Villain, Sooo... Let me think. *cracks knuckles*
I like the Master from Doctor Who. He is clever and funny and he acts a lot like the Doctor but evil. He's a really good villain and I hate what they did to him in Season Eight. I also really like Saruman from Lord of the Rings, chiefly because I like the parallel Tolkien drew between Lucifer and Saruman and Michael the Archangel and Gandalf. I think it was cool how he showed that Saruman, this incredible, powerful, beautiful wizard with all this potential, got corrupted and fell into darkness; just like the devil did. He wanted too much and he thought himself better than all the other creatures of Middle Earth. He wanted to be a god and was willing to do anything to make that happen. Another villain that I think is really good is Julian Verrers from The Masterful Monk. He is a rabid Atheist who hates God and His Church, and he is super creepy and crazy and I hates him. He has a ton of charisma and this unnerving ability to gain the trust of others. He is like one of those horrible politicians with the hidden agendas, but way, way worse. He is a very good villain. He's the kind of villain you wish you could drop kick down a cliff.
Okay. I don't think I have a favorite villain. Julian Verrers is horrible and evil so let's go with him.
3.) Anti-Hero.
I'm guessing the Anti-Hero is the hero who works for good but has serious flaws and isn't completely 'pure' in his intention.
"These darker heroes can be jerks, pathetic, hard, jaded, or mean..." - source.
Severus Snape. Snape is one of the biggest fictional 'heroes' ever. Almost everyone knows about him. Whether you are a Potterhead or not, you will hear about Snape.
I'm going to be frank here. I didn't care much for Snape in the books. I liked him in the movies. I watched them before I read the books and I thought he was a good character. He was a jerk, but that wasn't all he was. When I read the books though, I didn't connect with him the same way. I felt bad for him but I didn't really like him. Yes, his death was sad. Yes, he had a hard back story. No, I didn't hate him - how could I? But I do think J.K. Rowling wrote him way too dark. Alan Rickman did a good job with the character because he brought out a very sympathetic, human side to him. He's the reason I like Snape.
Snape is a very complex character. He isn't the type of person you could get close to easily, if at all. He is cold and distant, spiteful and sharp. He isn't very nice to the students at Hogwarts and he picked on most of them, especially the popular ones, like Harry. But Snape was dealt a bad hand in his life. He grew up in an abusive home. He didn't have friends because he was so quiet and odd. Even at Hogwarts he didn't find the safety that it brought most children. He was a Slytherin, so he was instantly hated and bullied. James Potter and his friends made his life miserable. He had one real friend, Lily. She was a girl at school that he eventually fell in love with, but he lost her after an especially bad day when he called her a dirty name. Lily never forgave him and terminated their friendship. Then she married James, the very man who had tormented him his whole childhood.
Snape was with Voldemort for a short time, but turned on him and joined Dumbledore. He tried to protect Lily and her family from the Dark Lord and even asked Dumbledore for help, but he lost her all the same. He then dedicated the rest of his life to protecting Harry (who, by the way, looked just like his dad.) And he didn't stop there either. He played spy for Dumbledore and took the fall for Hogwarts over and over again. He allowed himself to be framed as a traitor to protect the school, the students and Harry. He gave up his reputation, his home, and the few teachers whom he counted as friends, all in the name of love and loyalty. He never defended himself against the lies or the hate. He stayed on the outskirts, watching over the students and teachers from afar, and he defended them against all the attacks he could. And he took care of the children, even when it seemed like he hated them. (I actually think some of the reason he acted like a jerk was because he had to play the role of the traitor, and kids like Draco reported back to Voldemort.) Severus Snape was an angry, bitter man, but he loved and sacrificed himself for love, and ultimately lay down his life to protect others. And that is pretty heroic.
One of the best book-to-screen adaptations I've ever seen is Aragorn, from Lord of the Rings. I think Peter Jackson did a really good job writing his character for the movie. No one else could have been Strider. No one could have done Strider better. He was Strider. He wasn't quite as ridiculous as he was in the book, but who could be? Tolkien was ridiculous, and sometimes that kind of ridiculous can only be read, not acted. (Could we really have Aragorn pulling out his sword every two seconds to say "this is the blade that was broken! Rawr!!") He made him a little more serious, but otherwise he was shockingly accurate to the book. I absolutely LOVE Aragorn in the movies. He was so perfect. From the minute he appeared in the Prancing Pony, he was perfect. He was noble and strong, but hesitant to take his rightful place on the throne. He was brave and kind, with a wry sense of humor and a cranky sort of attitude, but a soft, kind gentle side. And Peter Jackson didn't do anything in the movies to blemish his character.
I'm not sure... I'm guessing this means a character who has the best (or most accurate) idea of himself? Like, a character who doesn't really change but is simply revealed as who he really is.
Alright. Sydney Carton. (you knew that was coming didn't you?)
Sydney Carton is one of the best characters that has ever been written. When he is first introduced, (especially if you don't know the story) he comes off as a very careless and rude character. He has a lazy sort of attitude and he seems like the type of man who doesn't bother about anything. He seems to have no respect for anyone, including himself, and he appears to take way too much liberty with pleasure. You wouldn't think Sydney was a good man at first. You might think he was kind of a lowlife. Pathetic, yes, but still a lowlife. This is, in fact, how Carton views himself. He thinks he's pathetic, rude and a failure at everything he does. He's a filthy drunk with no worth and no friends. This attitude and rough idea that he has of himself projects very loudly and it is what the audience sees; A lost man who really needs to sober up and get his act together. But as the story goes on, the audience starts to see more of who Sydney actually is. They see how he is treated. They see how he is abused by his boss and his 'friends.' They see how much he wants to be better but that he thinks change is impossible for a man like him. As the story continues, the audience realizes that their first idea of Carton was wrong, and slowly their view of him starts to change. They see a kind man, a gentle man. They see a man full of courage and love who has so much to give, so much to share. They see a man who cares deeply and viciously and who wishes to be better if only he wasn't a failure, if only he was 'stronger.' They realize he is flawed, but behind his flaws there is a man who would sacrifice anything in the name of love and friendship, a man who is strong and brave, a man who will fight on when everyone else gives up.
Sydney does go through a character ark, but it's more like character fulfillment. We see him make friends with Lucy and her family. We see him drink less and less - and he never drinks when he is at Lucie's home. We see his flaws start to pull away and the man inside become more and more clear. At the end of the story, when he gives his life to save Charles Darnay, it isn't really a shock or a change for his character. You realize that this is who Sydney was all along. He always had the potential to be stronger and better than he was.He always had the goodness in his heart, he always had the courage in his character, it was just hidden behind his anger and self-hate. His sacrifice for Charles, Lucy and their child was just a fulfillment of who he was. You guessed what he was going to do before it even happened; Oh. Sydney Carton is going to die for Charles. Of course he is. He's Sydney. Ack!!!
Yes, Carton does change, but I think all characters do. He tried to be better for Lucy, he tried not to drink so often, he tried to see the world as it could be, not as it was. He never saw the goodness in himself, but the audience saw it very well. He was always a bit of a brat, but when he was sober and himself he was also very kind (and he had an obvious soft spot for children.) And he took care of others. When he went to Paris to help Charles, he spent the last days of his life comforting everyone else, all of Lucie's friends and family that had somehow become his too. He never asked for any comfort himself. He never told anyone about his plans. He never boasted or showed himself as the heroic martyr. He was quiet about his sacrifice. And up until his death, he still thought he was rather worthless and ridiculous, and he actually believed that no one would miss him when he was gone. It wasn't until he was walking up to the Guillotine that he finally saw the good he was doing, and the man he had finally become; the man the audience had seen all along.
You are under no obligation to do the tag, of course. I know you are all busy. But if you do, I bet it would be lots and lots of fun. And of course, if anyone else wants to do this tag, feel free! You won't regret it. Now I have cookies to make, so I bid you all a very fond farewell. PEACE OUT Y'ALL!
Do you give up? Alright, I suppose I will tell you then. This week I undertook the great, bold and slightly daunting quest of reading A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickons.
*CAUTION! There will be much fangirling and ranting in this post! There will be spoilers!
*It is also pretty long.
Why did I choose to undertake this task? Well there were lots of reasons. First of all, I have wanted to read ATOTC for quite a few years, but every time I picked it up the first chapter was so hard I couldn't get through it. This drove me nuts because I pride myself on being able to read anything I open, regardless of writing style or feel. But Charles Dickons stumped me and I could NOT get through that first chapter. It was exhausting and boring and it did not grip me in any sort of way. What was the point in reading something that wasn't gripping?
There was no reason. I proceeded to hunt down a different, more enjoyable story to read.
So what was different this time?
My older sister owns the soundtrack for A Tale of Two Cities; The Musical. It is the Original Cast Recording (because we have a thing for *original recordings*) and every now and again she listens to it. I heard it for the first time a few years ago and I fell in love with the music, the story and - you guessed it - Sydney Carton. He was such a sad pitiful person and he quickly rose to the rank of fabulous. He was right next to Raoul as my favorite male character in Musical Theater. We listened to it a couple times over the next three years or so, but since Kat was the only one who owned it (and it wasn't on youtube at the time) I didn't hear it half as much as I wanted to.
Then my sisters hit their musical high, and we listened to all the musicals again - including, for the first time in ages, A Tale of Two Cities. And I found the soundtrack on youtube (the Original Soundtrack!!) and listened to it four times in the same week. I got teeny bit obsessed, and that obsession has not ENDED. It's still going! It's been over a month - As I am sure most of you know :) I can't help it. I love Sydney, and his story hit me even harder this time. He is such a sad mashed potato :( He breaks my heart. When I am not listening to Phantom I listen to ATOTC.* I am starting to memorize a lot of the songs and can now sing along with most of the musical. (I can sing along with ALL the songs that have Sydney in them 8-D )
*Let me just say, musical theater is the bomb-diggety. It is so fabulous. It makes everything better.
Basically, the more I listened to it, the more I wanted more Sydney. I was on such a high that I decided now would be the perfect time to try ATOTC - The book - one more time.
And I did. I actually picked it up, started the first line and just kept reading.
I read the whole book in two days (give or take a few hours) and when I finished, at I wasn't sure if I had actually enjoyed it or not. I gave it some thought and finally come to a conclusion:
I liked the book. But I LOVED Sydney Carton, and I really read it for him. I would tell myself, "It's okay. Three Chapters and we get some Carton." So much of that book is just descriptive world building and excessive use of adjective and adverbs of every kind, repeated four or five times in a paragraph. That made the story hard to read - you really have to be in the mood and be committed. There were sentences nearly a page LONG in that book. I'm not even kidding! A Page. LONG. I have never seen so many semicolons and commas! It was kind of exhausting to read so much. There were so many words and just so much everything that it got overwhelming. The characters all tended to be too dramatic (especially Lucie) and the whole story was just a bit too emotional. And in this instance, I don't mean like a FEEEEEEEEEEEELZ! emotional. (though there was that kind too) More like "OH EVERYONE IS SO OVERWHELMED, WHATEVER SHALL WE DO???"
Whenever the story revolved around Sydney Carton, it was Brilliant. I loved all of Sydney's scenes. He is the saddest Mashed Potato. Reading his story made his character even more painful because you learn all this other stuff that you don't really see in the musical - at least not as much. Like, he and his boss had gone to school together, and his boss was obviously a huge bully and really used Sydney and made him feel useless and pathetic. Stryver (the boss) was a Slime-Bag and he treated Sydney like dirt. He had no self-esteem and no one in all the world cared about him. He made me so sad!!!!!!
SO! Back to the reason I started this post. LOL. I didn't stop at just listening to the musical. I bought a copy of it in CONCERT on DVD.* They were on a stage. And acting. And it was fabulous! Sydney was the saddest of mashed potatoes!!
*I wanted the stage production but there wasn't one. So I settled for the Concert edition. It was an abridged production, and it wasn't as good as it could have been on a real stage, but it was still good.
When I finished that (And then listened to the whole musical again,) I decided that I still like the musical better than the book. But there were elements in the book I liked better.
The musical is more from Sydney's point of view, and I LOVE that. There is more Sydney in the musical. In the book it is usually other people meeting Sydney and/or mentioning him in passing. You rarely get a chapter from his point of view, and when you do it seems too short. I think the whole story would have been ten times better if it had been Sydney's story and not Lucie's and Charles'.
In the book I really liked Charles. I liked him in the musical too, but I liked him more in the book. He had a lot of really sweet moments in the book that I don't believe were in the musical. (But then I haven't seen the full thing yet either.) I don't know why so many people think he is flat and silly .... Well okay. When he was in love he was kind of a dope. But he was a sweet dope. And and he was nice to Sydney. Even when Sydney was drunk (and insulting!) he was nice to Sydney. He welcomed him into his home after his wedding to Lucy. He let Sydney act as a godfather toward his children. He called him his friend and never judged him too harshly, even though he had seen him at his worst. I really liked Charles for that.
In the musical, I really liked Lucie. She was sweet and cute and she was really good to Sydney. But in the book she drove me In.sane. I know she was nice to Sydney and that was all fine and good, but seriously that women was all over the place. She was constantly Over-flowing With Joy, or Completely Distraught about something or other. and usually it was just sooo overwhelming.
I think the Lucie in the musical was more what Charles Dickons was going for in the book, he just never quite made it. They did a good job of highlighting her kindness without making her too good and they filled her out with all these cute little quirks that made her likable. Unfortunately the book didn't do this.
She was annoying okay? Really annoying.
I liked that in the musical they built more with Sydney and Little Lucie's relationship.* I like that they drew that element out and actually showed Sydney with the little girl - and how gentle and different he was around her then with anyone else. Because that was adorable.
This being said, I loved the scene in the book where Sydney talked to Lucie about his feelings for her, and how much she inspired him to do good and that for her, and for any dear to her, he would sacrifice anything; including his life. I love this moment, and sadly I don't know if it was in the stage production (Since I can't freakin' see it.) I think something similar must happen because at the end of the musical Sydney writes a letter to Lucie and it's exactly the same as the one he writes in the book, and it was in regard to that conversation.
I really love the scene in the musical where Carton comes over for Christmas (on Lucie's invitation) and receives a present from Lucie. And he is really touched and because he was not expecting a gift, especially not one from her, and he says thank you with this shy little kiss ... and it's so. freakin. sad. BECAUSE SHE IS IN LOVE WITH CHARLES AND HE WILL NEVER EVER BE HAPPY.
So... There were a few elements from the book that I wish they could have kept in the musical. Like the bit near the end where Sydney is walking and praying.... "I am the Life and the Resurrection,.." That whole sequence was heartbreaking and I think it would have been cool to do something with it in the musical.
On the other hand though, I loved the song "Let Her Be A Child," which took the place of that. It was essentially the same thing. Sydney is all alone and he is faced with a frightening decision and he is scared and unsure ... and then it's like he hears Little Lucie saying her night prayers and he remembers why he has to follow through with his plans. And he prays with her for courage to do what he has to in order to keep the ones he loves safe. It is SAD. IT HURTS.
Overall, I enjoy listening to the musical rather than reading the book. It is a lot more fun to witness the story on stage then it is on paper - and I think this is the way with a lot of classics. They work better as a play or a movie. I was lucky because I heard the musical (many times) before reading the book and I was already familiar with the story, so it was easier for me to follow along. But there were still moments where I got confused and had to re-read a few paragraphs. And there was one scene where this character suddenly appeared in the room and I had no idea when he had shown up or why he was there - but at this point I was getting close to the sad Sydney parts so I decided it didn't matter and kept reading.
SO! What it all comes down to is this; I really liked the the book, I liked it a lot. It was a fantastic story and I would definitely read it again. But it helped that I had heard the musical and already loved the story. Otherwise I don't know if I would have enjoyed it so much. (Because the musical is the greatest thing ever. I LOVE IT SO MUCH!)
I think it is a shame that not many people have read A Tale of Two Cities. And I think it is even a bigger shame that is closed on Broadway so fast. I firmly believe it deserves a second chance. It would be fabulous to see it return to Broadway and I would go see it in a heartbeat. ( But could we also please get James Barbour back as Sydney? Thank you.) .... Maybe I'll start a petition for the release of the Stage Version on DVD.
Oh. That is a good Idea!
What are your thoughts on A Tale of Two Cities? Have you ever listened to it or read it? Do you know the story? What do you think of it?
With that I leave you with this FABULOUS trailer over which you can drool.....
And then you can watch this trailer (Which is the copy I have) and you will understand why I want to start a petition and get another DVD.
