A new attempt to revive the tragic tale of F Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald on stage has arrived in London, but unfortunately, it falls short of expectations. Hannah Corneau's poppy score and Michael Greif's direction fail to capture the essence of the iconic couple's tumultuous marriage.
The musical follows the life of their daughter Scottie as she delves into her parents' archive, offering a glimpse into their infamous rise and fall in the Jazz Age. While Lauren Ward shines in her performance as a young Zelda, the show's narrative is marred by a lack of depth and exploration. The framing device of Scottie's search for answers raises questions that are left unaddressed.
The cast delivers strong vocals, particularly David Hunter as F Scott Fitzgerald, but the lyrics often feel shallow and repetitive. The musical's attempts to convey Zelda's emotions come across as forced and melodramatic. The stage adaptation lacks a nuanced understanding of the couple's complex relationship, focusing instead on a simplistic portrayal of their love-hate dynamic.
The show skirts around more serious topics, such as Zelda's mental health struggles, in favor of a more dramatic conclusion that prioritizes the feminist narrative over historical accuracy. Despite this, fans of the Fitzgeralds will find some nostalgic moments, particularly in the tender scenes between F Scott and Zelda during their Alabama meeting.
While there may be some hope for future adaptations, Beautiful Little Fool feels like a missed opportunity to truly capture the essence of this fascinating couple's story.
The musical follows the life of their daughter Scottie as she delves into her parents' archive, offering a glimpse into their infamous rise and fall in the Jazz Age. While Lauren Ward shines in her performance as a young Zelda, the show's narrative is marred by a lack of depth and exploration. The framing device of Scottie's search for answers raises questions that are left unaddressed.
The cast delivers strong vocals, particularly David Hunter as F Scott Fitzgerald, but the lyrics often feel shallow and repetitive. The musical's attempts to convey Zelda's emotions come across as forced and melodramatic. The stage adaptation lacks a nuanced understanding of the couple's complex relationship, focusing instead on a simplistic portrayal of their love-hate dynamic.
The show skirts around more serious topics, such as Zelda's mental health struggles, in favor of a more dramatic conclusion that prioritizes the feminist narrative over historical accuracy. Despite this, fans of the Fitzgeralds will find some nostalgic moments, particularly in the tender scenes between F Scott and Zelda during their Alabama meeting.
While there may be some hope for future adaptations, Beautiful Little Fool feels like a missed opportunity to truly capture the essence of this fascinating couple's story.
. I think the biggest issue is that it tries to cram too much into the narrative and ends up skimping on the details 
. The cast is talented, don't get me wrong, but the writing felt shallow and forced at times 
. I also feel like they missed an opportunity to really explore Zelda's mental health struggles - those are some heavy topics that deserve more attention 
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, but in this case, the Alabama scenes were the highlight for me 
. It was clear that Lauren Ward brought her A-game as Zelda, though! Maybe with some tweaks and more focus on the storytelling, we could've had something special 
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n whats w/ da lack of depth in da story? dey skipped over so many important tings like zelda's mental health struggles which is kinda weird considering dat's a big part of her life lol 
. The cast did seem pretty talented, especially Lauren Ward as young Zelda 
, but yeah, the narrative just felt a bit flat for me. And David Hunter as Scott was alright, I s'pose 
. I mean, come on, "falling short of expectations" is way too harsh, especially considering the complex task of bringing F Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald's tumultuous marriage to life on stage. It's not like anyone expected a straightforward, feel-good musical 
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. I think this musical tries too hard to include every aspect of their lives, resulting in a disjointed narrative. And don't get me wrong, I love Lauren Ward's performance as Zelda 
, but the other characters feel like cardboard cutouts 
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. The show did have some lovely moments, particularly in the tender scenes between F Scott and Zelda, but overall it felt like a missed opportunity to truly capture the essence of this fascinating couple's story 
, but the script just didn't capture the complexity of their relationship. And what's up with glossing over Zelda's mental health issues? That's so not in line with her actual story 
.
. I love Scottie and Zelda's story so much, but it feels like they just skimmed over all the important stuff. like mental health is such a huge part of their story and to gloss over it like that is just not right 
. and don't even get me started on how they handled their relationship... it felt like they were trying too hard to make it all sappy and romantic, when really it was so much more complicated 
. I mean, I loved Lauren Ward as Zelda, but she deserved better than a shallow script 
. maybe next time they'll get it right though 
. It feels like they took every cliché from the Jazz Age and mashed them all together into a mess 
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. Newsflash: it's not just about the clothes, folks! It's about the complexity, the nuance, the actual human experience 
. And Beautiful Little Fool fails on all fronts 
it was so hyped but honestly i was kinda meh about it the music was cute but not really my thing idk what they were going for with zelda's character she was like a caricature of herself lol david hunter as scott fitzgerald was decent tho 
but yeah the whole thing just felt kinda flat and shallow