Thanks to the wonders of Google, I was lucky to be able to purchase from overseas one of the rare 3-disc sets of the Bare studio album, the third disc being the DVD Navigate This Maze. But, although the clamshell case was still in factory wrapping, the DVD inside wasn't in good condition. I couldn't actually play it in any DVD player without it skipping, stalling, and ultimately quitting. Looking at the shiny part of the disc, you could see it was wavy where it should have been smooth. It also had a dimple. Maybe this poor manufacturing is why they stopped selling them. Soon, with any luck, DVDs will be a thing of the past. So, be brave guys -- release it on YouTube. Fortunately, ((a magic wand appeared)), and I got it to play. Mostly.
It was worth the wait.
The first half of the documentary is likely mostly of interest to people already fans of Bare. It's not bad, but knowing what they're talking about in advance is going to help you understand why you want to know all these people. We meet composer Damon Intrabartolo, lyricist Jon Hartmere, producer/arranger Deborah Lurie, vocal director/producer Eric Anderson, executive producer Jon Ottman, director Kristin Hanggi, assistant stage manager Daniel A Miles, and producer/engineer Casey Stone.
They talk about the concept album, the June 1999 concert, the double album of the concert. And then about a quarter of the documentary is about the LA (Hudson Mainstage) production, which is interesting to see, with its unique set. Then there's brief discussion of the Public Theater/MTV debacle, and the NYC (ATA - American Theatre of Actors) production.
The last half of the documentary is more accessible to people with no experience of Bare, because it deals with producing the Bare studio album. On the other hand, it will spoil the ending for those who haven't seen or heard Bare, so keep that in mind. You get a lot of singing, as well as the studio cast explaining their characters and the themes. It's a bit like watching a compressed version of the musical. The music is beautiful, and it is wonderful to be able to see the faces behind it. You'll love their smiles.
We see and hear from Jenna Leigh Green (Ivy), Keili Lefkovitz (Nadia), Stephanie Andersen (Sister Chantelle), James Snyder (Jason), Matt Doyle (Peter), Christopher Johnson (Matt), Kaitlin Hopkins (Claire), and Jim Price (Priest).
I was struck particularly by James Snyder, whose character has the hardest road to travel in Bare, and it seemed to hit him pretty hard.
I do wish more attention had been given to the band. They're on the CD too...
Some nitpicks...
Some singers mention the difficulty of recording their pieces alone in a booth, but later on singers are shown in a single frame singing together in the booth. So why did some get to sing together and others didn't? Another odd thing is that we hear about the crowds at the Hudson theatre, and how people would have to sit on the stairs between the seats, and they do show people sitting on the stairs, but the seats are empty. In that case, it would have been better without that picture.
But overall, this is an entertaining and informative documentary. Just like Bare itself, it deserves to be seen by more people.
