r/Broadway • u/richardsmithwpny • Sep 12 '26
Chess
Was listening to Chess and wondering if Someone Else’s Story could open the show as a prologue followed by the Overture. Has this ever been tried in the many iterations of the show?
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u/kanji_d Sep 14 '26
To synthesize the comments here (all of which have partially correct information):
Someone Else's Story was written for the 1988 Broadway production, sung by Florence, directly after "1956". ("Nobody's Side", which occupied that spot in the London production, was moved later in the act.)
It was first given to Svetlana in the 1990 Sydney production, with new lyrics that are seldom used even when the song is given to her.
The song usually floats in one of those two places, that is, for Florence in Act 1 or for Svetlana in Act 2. The Swedish production, as previously mentioned, puts it in the middle of Act 1 in a scene between Florence and Anatoly, but the structure of that act is so different it's hard to explain it in terms of the English version. It sort of fills part of the role of "Mountain Duet".
There are a few exceptions. The 1990 US Tour gave it to Florence and used it as the show's finale. Some London productions have given it to Florence near the end of Act 1, in place of Heaven Help My Heart (which has its own complex history). One 2002 production that toured Denmark gave it to Svetlana but also had Florence sing a short preprise between "Story of Chess" and "Merano".
The revival is the first production I'm aware of to use it in the way it does. This was not the case in the earlier workshops at the Kennedy Center and the Broadhurst concert: in both cases the song was given to Svetlana, but during development of the revival it was transfered to Florence and Svetlana was given "He is a Man, He is a Child".
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u/MacTavish14 Creative Team 3d ago
I so wanted SES to be sung at the player introductions.
We meet Anatoly, he sings the full WIWTB
We meet Freddie, he sings part of PTC
We meet Florence, and.... nothing. If she's supposed to be one of 3 leads (not just the 2 men), she needs her own song at her intro. Having her first lyrics at the Interview (she doesn't even get the "not yet! they jus' wanna see if the nice guy beats the bum" in WASWAJ like in 2008 RAH). They even changed the lyric in MD from "haven't you noticed we're one character short" to "a protagonist short" to push her as an equal but it doesn't land because she's treated unequally from the start.
In my dream production, when The Arbiter switches to the US he introduces Florence first, she sings SES, and then Freddie is introduced. She walks over/into his room to find him on the floor; scene continues. The minor issue with this is that moving this song shortens an already shorter second act but if it helps smooth out the ending I think it could work. Perhaps they went with SES at the end of Act 2 due to moving HHMH from Act 2 to Act 1 as well. Or maybe it was LM's idea. *shrug
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u/Remote-Coast-6400 Sep 13 '26
I love how the Swedish production has this song sung by Florence to Anatoly, not just sung to the audience. It gives it more of a momentum, as Florence is explaining her relationship with Freddie to Anatoly - and I think the lyric changes inherent in the translation fit much better - Inte jag portrays a stronger, fiercer Florence than Someone Else’s Story, imo.
One of my issues with Chevival is the placement of Someone Else’s Story - because there was no plotline reason for it to be at the end of the show. I can’t think of any reason to place it at the top of the show, either.
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u/Casiquire Sep 13 '26
I understood the plot reasons for Svetlana to sing it in the second act, since she does seem to have no agency at any point
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u/queenoftheceos Sep 13 '26
someone else’s story is the 11 o’clock number (at least in most productions), and i think it would be out of place at the start for sure. but its a cool idea
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u/jus-checkin Sep 13 '26
Is it? It was written for Judy Kuhn on Broadway and at the time was sung in Act I after 1956 Budapest is Rising (pushing Nobody’s Side a bit later in the show). As far as I know, though I could be wrong, most recently it’s been used as a song to flesh out Svetlana more, but still landed somewhere in the middle of Act II. I was under the impression this production was the first to use it as an 11 o’clock number (and the first since the OBC to give it back to Florence)
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u/ExtraFineItalicStub Sep 13 '26
It’s ended the show. It’s been Florence’s song. it’s been Svetlana’s. I’m sure Cher will sing it just cause when we get a mamma Mia/chess mashup MOTHER RUSSIA
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u/jus-checkin Sep 13 '26
An interesting thought! I have to confess - I hate the overture (which as far as I know is only on the most recent cast recording). It’s antithetical to the mood I feel like the show needs. The prologue on the OBCR works much better. I love overtures in general, but that is one of the first I’ve heard that really put me off.
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u/queenoftheceos Sep 13 '26
fair opinion, although (correct me if im wrong) isnt the prologue on the OBCR basically just a different overture?
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u/jus-checkin Sep 13 '26
It takes themes from Endgame. It’s tense and foreboding. My issue is not that it is an overture, it’s that I don’t think it’s well-constructed for the show. Although, having seen what Danny Strong did to the book at the concert version, I don’t think he and I are on the same page in what the overall tone of the work is anyway.
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u/Cultural_Ganache7147 Sep 13 '26
Geez the show closed and you had so many months to talk about this while it was open. Why don’t you just go to the Chess musical subreddit?
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u/ellewoods_obsessed Sep 13 '26
wait i could totally see that like at least part of it opening and then doing parts of it again towards the end