Steve Schwartz writes of 'Amadeus':

>Actually, it's a play that purports to tell you something about the
>nature of genius vs.  talent.  Of course, it does nothing of the sort.
>It cops out along the way and winds up with "it's a mystery." ...
>
>It is also pretty short on ideas, especially ideas that haven't been
>recycled to far better use.

I personally found the premiere (though superbly acted by Paul Schofield
and Simon Callow) one of most offensive evenings I've ever spent in the
theatre, for the reasons Steve puts his finger on.  "Amadeus" glorifies the
middlebrow, and works by providing undemanding audiences with feel-good
self-justification.

It patently does not pass what I call the 'Joe Bloggs' test:  if it was
about Mr Anonymous instead of Herr Mozart if would fall totally flat.  The
film was (just about) rescued by the lavish operatic extracts, and more
good performances.

The unmentionable thing is the way Schaffer shamelessly rifled Pushkin's
"Mozart & Salieri" for ideas, subjecting them to prettified bio-pic
processing before spitting them out again wholesale.  The pity is that
disregarded Pushkin was so much more suggestive in his 15 minutes than
Schaffer managed in ten times that span!

Christopher Webber,  Blackheath, London,  UK.
http://www.nashwan.demon.co.uk/zarzuela.htm
"ZARZUELA!"