Cast: David Hyde Pierce (Lieutenant Frank Cioffi), Jill Paice (Nikki Harris), Karen Ziemba (Georgia Hendricks), Jason Danieley (Aaron Fox), Debra Monk (Carmen Bernstein)
For more info about the production, check out the Curtains page at the Ahmanson Theatre website.
Curtains is a really cute musical and I think it will do very well on Broadway. The cast (headed by David Hyde Pierce) is truly amazing. The music by Kander & Ebb is very good. The show is about a cast performing a show within the main show called something like "Robbin Hood" and how they deal with all being suspects of a murder. The cop that comes in to sort it out (played by David Hyde Pierce) is someone who's always wanted to be in the theatre and really longs to join them on the stage.
Is the story predictable like the old musicals of Broadway (like Oklahoma)? Definitely. However, it still has a bit of a twist with the murder mystery thrown in, which is a nice change of pace. The musical the cast is putting on within Curtains is a lot like Oklahoma and other musicals of that time, so the predictability seems easy to forgive.
Curtains is very funny and I definitely recommend catching it now. It's in LA at the Ahmanson until September 10, 2006 and plans to go to Broadway in the late Fall of 2006 or Spring of 2007. I'd recommend checking it out before it gets big if you wait until NYC, so you can get better seats and perhaps even find it at TKTS before it gets too popular for that.
Grade: A-
Labels: 2006, crime, David Hyde Pierce, musical, premiere
Reviewed by Kat at the 2:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Renee Zellweger (Barbara Novak), Ewan McGregor (Catcher Block), Sarah Paulson (Vikki Hiller), David Hyde Pierce (Peter MacMannus)
For complete cast, see IMDb's Down with Love page.
This period piece (set in 1962) about an author of a feminist advice book and a playboy journalist trying to get the scoop of a lifetime is very well done. The costumes are wonderful. The whole movie has an updated 60's feel. I thought it was a very enjoyable way to spend some time and well worth watching, though I can see why some people don't find it entertaining enough. It's not for everyone, but I think this is a good examination of the battle of the sexes and stereotypes of the 60's.
Grade: B+
Labels: 2003, comedy, David Hyde Pierce, Ewan McGregor, movie, Renee Zellweger, romance
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:40 PM show | 0 screams