My granddaughter was at our house last night and wanted to watch it, so I ceded control of the remote. Very pleasantly surprised; most of the cast was terrific (with the exception of Julianne Hough and Aaron Tveit) and director Thomas Kail (creator of “Hamilton” on Broadway)deserves credit for very innovative—and impressive— staging of the production.
But the unsung hero was a gentleman named Alex Rudzinski, the director who was actually calling the shots in the control room. Directing a large-scale, live event like a sporting event, political convention, awards show or a televised musical is one of the hardest jobs in television, and it’s event tougher when the cast and crew are shuttling between multiple stages. Rudzinski did an outstanding job; even the best staging and performances mean little if the camera isn’t in the right place at the right time.
The irony, of course, is that television was built on live productions in the era before videotape. A number of talented film directors (including John Frankenheimer and Robert Altman) cut their teeth in live TV. If you watch some of the episodes of GE Theater and Playhouse 90, it’s remarkable what they accomplished with technology that was crude by today’s standards.
Julianne Hough, FWIW, had the personal endorsement of Olivia Newton-John.
But Julianne Hough is primarily a dancer. Singing and acting aren’t her forte. I thought she had a nice singing voice, but not a strong one.