Steven Soderbergh will direct a play about Casey called "Tot Mom"

[butwhatif?]

Just got back from seeing tot mom..will post more about it tomorrow since the performance was followed by a few glasses of champers, then a late dinner with more champers by the harbour.
Gotta say that the woman playing NG did a fabulous job. ....They all did.
and I really don't think that a US audience would be as offended by it as has been suggested.
was a great night out, and despite the comedic side of things there was also a sombre quality at times, giving Caylee the respect she deserves.
Although the focus was on the media side of things rather than the case itself.
Time for bed .....

 

[BeckySharper11]

I, too, was at the Tot Mom play last night and found it very moving. Essie Davis playing Nancy Grace was amazing. the article in the washington post is filled with errors....Soderbergh is definitely not 'testing the waters' with the play in Australia with the thought of bringing it to the states. it will only show in sydney.

 

[butwhatif?]

I, too, was at the Tot Mom play last night and found it very moving. Essie Davis playing Nancy Grace was amazing. the article in the washington post is filled with errors....Soderbergh is definitely not 'testing the waters' with the play in Australia with the thought of bringing it to the states. it will only show in sydney.

Ok...I'm gonna have to check out the WP article.

Essie was Amazing, Awesome, Brilliant!!! Except no shiny shirts....lol....well the blue one was kinda shiny. The pen flicking, the eye-rolling, cutting off her guests, the accent, the attitude - she had everything down to a T.
And the mannerisms of MN and KK were spot on.

Where were you seated? At one point I was looking around at the audience wondering if any were my fellow WS'ers. I would have loved to have a chat afterwards. I was in the second row, right in front of the suburban scene....gave me chills.

I thought the only thing an American audience would be upset by was the portrayal of TM.

Lots of U.S folks find Nancy's 'bombshells', repetition , and attitude off-putting, and make some posters here downright furious.
Loved how they even mixed up the names a few times as has often happened in the media in this case.
I loved how it had moments of humour, that would then cut to the real audios from the 911 call and KC's jailhouse tapes that just changed the mood completely.

I'm not sure if you were around for the discussion a while back where of few of us here were going over KC's audio where she says she feels that Caylee is 'close to home'. Some of us heard 'close to hope' (hopespring). Last night the audio was so loud and clear that I'm positive now she said 'hope', even though the transcript on the screen showed it as 'home'.

The only thing I was a little disappointed by was the portrayal of LP. He just wasn't as OTT, and egotistical as he really is on NG and in RL. I was expecting to hear the 'Lee is the daddy' claim.

But overall I was really impressed with the whole thing. Particularly the fact that all profits are going to the US centre for missing an exploited children, and they aren't cashing in on Caylee like so many others.

JMO

 

[cyberborg]

Are you going to see it? I see that you're in Sydney too.( BWI waves to Galina)
I posted a while back saying no way would I go to see it. But I just got a text from my sis who knows how closely I've followed the case, who says she wants to buy the tickets for me for Christmas.
I started to reply by saying 'no way', but then changed my mind.
I think one of the reasons I often have different opinions to others here is because I don't watch all the media carp, so i'm not influenced by it.

I'd say the things that won't be favourably accepted by a US audience is that they are mocking their tendencies to accept media reports blindly.(not my fellow sleuthers though, who take the time to read the docs), and their agression and 'annihilation' of the defendant based on sensationalised media reports.

I'm sure you'd agree that our media is very different here. We will hear about a case on the news when it happens, then we don't hear another word about it until the trial is over...then we hear 'guilty' or 'not guilty' on the news, and that's about it.

So next week I'm off to see the pay I swore I wouldn't see....and I'm actually looking forward to it now.

O/T As a Pommie B...... from Liverpool I lived in Melbourne for just over a year and love the accent, love the people, love the socializing and, Tasmania. Thanks for the news from Down Under.

 

[butwhatif?]

Here's a great article from a couple of days ago in the Sydney morning herald re: tot mom.
snipped-

Steven Soderbergh isn't part of the Nancy Grace cheer squad but the self-confessed fan of court TV is a regular viewer. Which is good news for the Sydney Theatre Company, since Grace's show provided the inspiration for his play Tot Mom, the STC's final production for the year.

Soderbergh says he has been both fascinated and repelled by the case, but is most interested in the way such stories are told.

"That's one of the things I'm really attempting to do in the piece, to always be a reminder that there is a child involved in this. It's easy to get drawn into the complexity of the case and the legal questions and forget that there was a two-year-old at the centre of this," he says of Tot Mom, which has its first preview on Friday.

"Maybe that's why these cases [of child death] are so compelling for people, because it really is the ultimate transgression . . . But I'm really interested in this debate about how stories like this should be covered."

He describes the cast, which includes Wayne Blair, Zoe Carides, Essie Davis, Darren Gilshenan, Glenn Hazeldine and Rhys Muldoon, as spectacular.

Soderbergh has used transcripts from Nancy Grace, police documents, jailhouse interviews and emergency calls as the basis for Tot Mom. The fact that the case is unfamiliar to Australian audiences is a plus for him because they are coming to it fresh and will hopefully want to know more.

Like many who followed the case, Soderbergh found himself ping-ponging back and forth on the question of Anthony's guilt or innocence – a sensation he hopes the audience will also experience.

"I hope that people will find themselves whipsawed back and forth by the various opinions. Your feelings about the case should shift as the evening goes on," he says.
Despite recent speculation that Tot Mom might play in the US, Soderbergh is adamant it is a one-off.

"When I was negotiating for the rights and talking to the STC, I made it very clear we were doing the show for one run," he says. "We're not taking it anywhere else and certainly not taking it to the States. I feel that you wouldn't get a clean response to it in the States; the whole thing would be too coloured by events."

He certainly achieved what he set out to do, imo.
More at link:

http://www.smh.com.au/news/entertai...ace-in-the-dock/2009/12/16/1260639218006.html

 

[A_News_Junkie]

I had forgot about this! I found a few articles I don't think were posted here yet.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/entertai...the-panel-shows/2009/12/25/1261243941160.html

and
http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/en...r-tot-moms-focus-on-ghoulish-nancy-grace.html

Wonder if that is why Nancy has been repeats? Anyone know if she is down under????? LOL:croc::croc:

 

[Kentjbkent]

http://www.smh.com.au/news/entertai...the-dock/2009/12/16/1260639218006.html?page=3

"When I was negotiating for the rights and talking to the STC, I made it very clear we were doing the show for one run," he says.

THAT is the statement I am most interested in......negotiated with WHOM for the rights?????

 

[sleutherontheside]

http://www.smh.com.au/news/entertai...the-dock/2009/12/16/1260639218006.html?page=3

"When I was negotiating for the rights and talking to the STC, I made it very clear we were doing the show for one run," he says.

THAT is the statement I am most interested in......negotiated with WHOM for the rights?????

HOLY CHIT.....I want to know.

 

[Kentjbkent]

HOLY CHIT.....I want to know.

And interesting that these "negotiations" apparently began taking place in October.....and someone may possibly have made a long trip in November!

 

[sleutherontheside]

And interesting that these "negotiations" apparently began taking place in October.....and someone may possibly have made a long trip in November!

I like where you are going............

 

[butwhatif?]

I had forgot about this! I found a few articles I don't think were posted here yet.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/entertai...the-panel-shows/2009/12/25/1261243941160.html

and
http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/en...r-tot-moms-focus-on-ghoulish-nancy-grace.html

Wonder if that is why Nancy has been repeats? Anyone know if she is down under????? LOL:croc::croc:

BBM-
God I hope not! LOL.... But on the 11th or 15th of Jan for the final show they have a meet and greet with the actors and creative team afterwards.....so she could make an appearance if she is here. I'd love to see her and Essie alongside each other...And to see nancy's reaction how well Essie plays her.
I almost booked tickets for the finale, but I'm too broke and exhausted from the holidays to go a second time.

 

[sleutherontheside]

I would be interested to see if any names not listed on the STC site are there the last night, and for the meet and greet. Certain media names and players that may not be credited formally but really "should be".....wink wink.

 

[butwhatif?]

Well I can tell you for a FACT that members of the media who were portrayed in the play were not involved in the production side of things at all. They didn't even know that they were making into a show 'down under'. (except for NG)
My 'source' was pretty excited to know who of his collegues were included, and he couldnt wait to tell them that their names and personas had made it all the way to OZ.
I'll leave it at that.:innocent:

 

[sleutherontheside]

I think it is a strong possibility that a few particular Orlando media / film professionals were heavily involved and I'll leave it at that.

 

[Formynextnovel]

Man, I want to see this play. Art should critique popular media. That is part of it's purpose.

 

[A_News_Junkie]

Man, I want to see this play. Art should critique popular media. That is part of it's purpose.

Agree and agree! I want to see it but I am just a few thousand miles too far away. Maybe it will come out on video! I know........ I am dreaming again!

 

[butwhatif?]

I think it is a strong possibility that a few particular Orlando media / film professionals were heavily involved and I'll leave it at that.

I'm sure that some were, but several that are discussed on this forum were apparantly not aware that they were in the play.

I'll change the word I previously used from media to 'reporters' involved in the case. I will not post the emails I exchanged with an Orlando journo (he contacted me so he could do a piece about the play), but if verification is needed I'm happy to show them to Tricia.

 

[sleutherontheside]

I'm sure that some were, but several that are discussed on this forum were apparantly not aware that they were in the play.

I'll change the word I previously used from media to 'reporters' involved in the case. I will not post the emails I exchanged with an Orlando journo (he contacted me so he could do a piece about the play), but if verification is needed I'm happy to show them to Tricia.

Wow...makes one wonder why they were not aware that they were portrayed. I find that not only unethical.....but a possible copyright violation of their work if not properly cited, quoted, or credited. I believe you....but it just goes to show that some media have no scruples.

 

[sleutherontheside]

Here is a review not seen here in the US.......

http://www.stagenoise.com/reviewsdisplay.php?id=395

written from another perspective....as in this quote....


That so much of the proceedings provoke uneasy laughter is a testament to Soderbergh's ear for the ironic and incongruous; it's also a cultural thing - Americans are not like us and despite celebrity worship and the seeping prevalence of US daytime TV, we are not growing like them. At least I hope not: it could be a boiling frogs moment.

Wow...insulting Americans.....yet capitalizing on an American crime. Profits......to be paid to Missing and Exploited children ......yet what do they consider profits???

 

[A_News_Junkie]

Here is a review not seen here in the US.......

http://www.stagenoise.com/reviewsdisplay.php?id=395

written from another perspective....as in this quote....


That so much of the proceedings provoke uneasy laughter is a testament to Soderbergh's ear for the ironic and incongruous; it's also a cultural thing - Americans are not like us and despite celebrity worship and the seeping prevalence of US daytime TV, we are not growing like them. At least I hope not: it could be a boiling frogs moment.

Wow...insulting Americans.....yet capitalizing on an American crime. Profits......to be paid to Missing and Exploited children ......yet what do they consider profits???

Oh my!
A few more snips from this: Tot Mom is a perfect Christmas gift for theatregoers as well as fans of true crime and tabloid TV.
----> Since when are true crime fans (their word choice) and tabloid TV viewers of the same likings? Speaking for myself, I hate tabloid TV!
Then this: As is so often the case in such events, the victim (of the media trial) is not given the time of day in the hullabaloo while the murder victim, of course, has no voice at all
----> Love her or not, one thing I have never felt was that Justice for Caylee or any crime victim was not the reason behind NG passion and for me the only reason to watch is in that quest.

Meanwhile, the afternoons were given over to the making of an improvised movie (that Soderbergh was completing with a small handheld camera in the foyer on opening night). <------------ does that mean there is going to be a movie released????? Or was the 'writer' trying to tell us the tools the director used to get the results he wanted?

Thanks for linking us. Whewwww :waitasec: :banghead: :waitasec: