Cast: Moya Angela (Effie Melody White), Syesha Mercado (Deena Jones), Chester Gregory (James "Thunder" Early), Chaz Lamar Shepherd (Curtis Taylor, Jr.)
For complete info, check out the Dreamgirls website.
I'd never seen Dreamgirls live before. I knew the music and had seen the movie, but hadn't seen the live show. The most important thing in Dreamgirls for me is that Effie has a great voice, since And I am Telling You I'm Not Going is my favorite song from the show. I thought Moya Angela did well, but I definitely wasn't wowed by her performance.
Judging by the reaction in the crowd, a lot of people were really impressed with Chester Gregory. I think he played the character well enough, but his performance didn't blow me over. The story of Dreamgirls, loosely based on Diana Ross and the Supremes, is fairly interesting, though it's not super gripping. If you want a lively and highly exciting show, this is probably not it. However, the music is really good and the cast of the touring production does a good job, so if you haven't seen Dreamgirls it's worth checking it out on tour. If you have, you can probably skip this one.
Grade: C+
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Nick Gabriel (Warren), Deborah S. Craig (Deb), David Burnham (Jason), & Nancy Andrews (Claire)
I almost missed this great show, since I moved on the 15th and things were crazy before and after the move. I didn't have time for Facebook (or I would have seen David's status updates about the opening of the show, etc.) and when I got the email from David about this show I saw the dates and immediately filed it away in my "I can't go to that" pile and tried to forget (pretty successfully) what I'd be missing.
Thankfully, Goldstar emailed me and though I'd been ignoring most Goldstar emails because of lack of time, I happened to see this one at South Coast Rep and noticed that it was the show David was doing there. That was it, I was in and got a couple friends to join me. I'd first seen David Burnham in The Light in the Piazza and became an instant fan. We met and became friends, too, which makes it even better to get to see him in shows. I had heard of the others in the cast, but hadn't seen them in anything personally. The show interested me, since it's based in New York City, my home town.
Ordinary Days has wonderful music and the cast at South Coast Rep was great. The scenic design, projection design, & lighting are all very well done. I was very sad that I didn't get a chance to see Ordinary Days until closing night. If I'd seen it earlier, I could have bought tickets to see it again (and I definitely would have done that). I'm hoping it will make its way back to New York or perhaps to LA so I can see it again. My friends in New York would really enjoy it and Warren actually reminded me a lot of my best friend still living in NYC.
The four different stories overlapped and worked together to form a very interesting and cohesive show. I highly recommend seeing Ordinary Days if you get a chance. I hope it will go on to do well and that there will be a cast album available. It's one of those shows where I might have bought the album at the show so I wouldn't have to wait for it to ship from Amazon, but the cast recording doesn't exist yet. Hopefully, it'll be available at some point and I'll be able to own the music and listen to it any time.
Grade: A
Labels: comedy, David Burnham, Deborah S. Craig, drama, musical, Nancy Andrews, New York, Nick Gabriel, theatre
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:45 PM show | 0 screams
Cast Elizabeth Stanley (Clio/Kira), Max Von Essen (Sonny), & Larry Marshall (Danny Maguire, Zeus)
For complete info, see the official Xanadu on Broadway website.
Xanadu is just a fun musical. They added more plot than the movie had, yet it's still a short one act musical that's fun to enjoy. The music is still great and the tour cast is very good. Larry Marshall made Danny Maguire/Zeus much more enjoyable to watch. I'm a big fan of Kerry Butler, so I don't think anyone could live up to her performance, but Elizabeth Stanley does a great job. Max Von Essen also does well as Sonny, though Cheyenne Jackson seemed to fit perfectly in that part, in spite of the fact that he wasn't originally supposed to play Sonny on Broadway.
If you get a chance to see the show and you enjoyed the music from the musical, it's a lot of fun and a nice light musical night out. :-)
Grade: B-
Reviewed by Kat at the 6:30 PM show | 0 screams
Cast:Anthony Rapp (Mark), Adam Pascal (Roger), Gwen Stewart (Seasons of Love Soloist & others), Justin Johnston (Angel Schunard), Nicolette Hart (Maureen Johnson), Lexi Lawson (Mimi Marquez)
For the rest of this wonderful cast, see the official Rent The Broadway Tour website.
As almost all fans of Rent know that Anthony Rapp & Adam Pascal (the original Mark & Roger) are still touring with the show along with original cast member Gwen Stewart and a bunch of other amazing performers. I'm sure it's needless to say that I still love the show. I wouldn't have seen it so many times if I didn't love it. I'll simply comment on the things that were different this time around, since everyone knows I love Rent and would recommend it to anyone and everyone (as long as you're not too prejudiced) - especially when it has three of the original cast members touring with the show.
I still need to look up who Lisa is... as many of you may know, they had always intended to change the names of those attending the life support meeting based on friends/family members of those in the show who had been lost to AIDS. The way I've heard it reported, due to Jonathan's death the show got pretty much frozen where it was and no one ever wanted to change the names of those attending life support with Angel, Collins, & Mark. As of the time I went back to see Rent on Broadway with Anthony & Adam (August & September of 2007), they had changed the last name (originally Sue) to Lisa. I figure she has to be someone pretty important, or they wouldn't have made the change that late in the run of the show. They are still using Lisa on the tour.
The sound was the best I've heard in Rent since Adam and Anthony returned to the show. When I saw it on Broadway the mics kept going out and the same was true (even more) at the Pantages last year. This year they managed to get it right in the most unlikely of places (there are often sound problems with other shows at the Orange County Performing Arts Center). It was great to hear this cast with the sound well done for a change. :-)
The current cast is really amazing - they're basically the same cast I saw earlier this year in the tour, which explains why they all work so wel together. If you haven't seen Rent yet, see it before Anthony Rapp & Adam Pascal leave the cast - they're amazing and so is the rest of the cast!
Grade: A+
Labels: Adam Pascal, Anthony Rapp, Best Musical, Broadway, comedy, drama, musical, theatre, tour
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:30 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Sutton Foster (Princess Fiona), Brian d'Arcy James (Shrek), Chris Hoch (Lord Farquaad), Daniel Breaker (Donkey)
For complete information, see the official Shrek the Musical site.
I had no interest in seeing this. My best friend didn't either, but he had never seen Sutton Foster (she was sick when we saw Thoroughly Modern Millie and had left The Drowsy Chaperone & Young Frankenstein by the time he saw it. The one scene with the three Princess Fionas as Fiona grows up was okay. Other than that, I thought the show was horrible. James has blocked out every part of the show that didn't include Sutton Foster. No offense to the rest of the cast, who definitely worked very hard, but none of them were really remarkable except for Sutton Foster.
I really recommend that unless you have young children (the girl a few rows back from us was giggling at parts and clearly really enjoying herself) you skip Shrek, the musical. The costumes and Sutton Foster aren't enough to make it worth seeing a show like this. Sutton Foster will be in another show that's guaranteed to be better than this one. Wait for that and see her then. If you want to see the sets and costumes, look at the program in one of the many Broadway merchandise stores in midtown. Skip the show.
Grade: D+
Labels: Broadway, comedy, movie, musical, Sutton Foster, theatre
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Alice Ripley (Diana), J. Robert Spencer (Dan), Aaron Tveit (Gabe), Jenifer Damiano (Natalie), Adam Chanler-Berat (Henry), Louis Hobson (Dr. Madden/Dr. Fine)
What a show! This was definitely (by far) my favorite of this year. The cast, music, lighting, story, direction, scenic design, etc. are all amazing! Though I haven't seen Billy Elliot, I am still surprised that the show was able to beat out Next to Normal in so many categories. I'm glad Alice Ripley won the Tony Award for her portrayal of Diana, but I'm amazed that she was the only one to get an award in the cast. I was also surprised that the lighting and scenic design didn't win. I think the show was incredibly well done.
The set is three stories high, so I'd recommend sitting where we did (front of the mezzanine) for Next to Normal. The orchestra would be painful for those of us with neck problems and probably fairly uncomfortable for almost anyone by the end of the show unless you're far enough away that you might miss some of the expressions.
Next to Normal is not the stereotypical Broadway show, which is one of the things I love about it. However, if you want a happy show with sunshine and no tears, this is not the show for you. See Rock of Ages or another upbeat show. I cried (a lot) while seeing Next to Normal, but I ordered the album the second I got home (I would have ordered it while still in New York, but I had a gift code for Amazon at home). I've listened to it a lot and it's bumped Wicked and The Last Five Years out of their position as tied for 3rd.
As long as you can handle a musical with drama and some sad parts, Next to Normal is a wonderful show that you should rush to see. We got discount tickets because of Theatre Mania, which meant I could buy them days before we saw the show, we paid less than we would have at TKTS that day, and got better seats. In spite of not having the soundtrack to remind me of the songs, I was still singing Next to Normal music days later. There are a lot of catchy tunes. I recommend not listening to the show or reading too much about it until you see it, since I think some of the songs and many of the summaries I've read give away a bit much and it's more enjoyable not to know.
Grade: A+
Labels: Aaron Tveit, Adam Chanler-Berat, Alice Ripley, Broadway, drama, J. Robert Spencer, Jenifer Damiano, Louis Hobson, musical, original, tear jerker, theatre
Reviewed by Kat at the 2:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Constantine Maroulis (Drew), Kerry Butler (Sherrie), & a wonderful cast.
For complete information, see the official Rock of Ages Broadway site.
Whe I first heard about Rock of Ages, it sounded like a pretty stupid show and one that didn't interest me at all. Having seen it (and purchased the soundtrack, which says something), I'd still say it's a pretty stupid or silly show (almost no plot, completely predictable), but that's the charm of the show. I think Rock of Ages is a very fun show. They hand out little LED lights in the shape of lighters so you can hold them up and sway and the whole show is designed like a rock concert.
The narrator even tells the audience that the show has a weak plot. They make fun of themselves throughout the show and do great arrangements of earlier rock hits. If you like 80's music and musical theatre, you should see this show. I'm sure I'll see it again. I mostly went to see Rock of Ages because of Constantine & Kerry, but as soon as I entered the theatre I had a feeling I was going to enjoy myself.
I'm sure this show will go on tour and do very well, since it's a fun show with great music. If it's near you or you head to New York, I highly recommend it.
The only down side of the show is that since it's set up like a concert some people (including the drunk and off key women to the left of us) think they can sing along at any time at the top of their lungs. There are points where those on stage ask you to sing along, but if it's not one of those times please be respectful of those around you and the money they paid to see and hear the stars on stage perform. I had to talk to the women next to us at intermission, since none of the looks we (or those in front of them) threw them got through. Thankfully, they were much better behaved for the second act.
Grade: B+
Labels: Broadway, comedy, Constantine Maroulis, Kerry Butler, musical, rock, romance, theatre
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Cheyenne Jackson (Woody Mahoney), Kate Baldwin (Sharon McLonergan), Jim Norton (Finian McLonergan)
For complete cast info, see the official Finian's Rainbow site.
I'd never seen Finian's Rainbow before and I really enjoyed seeing Cheyenne Jackson in Xanadu, so I was interested in this production. I'm glad I saw it. The cast is wonderful, the sets, costumes, lighting, etc. are all very well done. There's good dancing and pleasant music. It's a very good old-time musical. A simple plot with a happy Broadway ending that everyone is able to enjoy.
If you're looking for a deep show, this isn't it. If you want to have fun and just enjoy a light, happy musical, this may be the perfect show for you.
Grade: B
Labels: 2009, Broadway, Cheyenne Jackson, comedy, dancing, Jim Norton, Kate Baldwin, musical, revival, romance
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast John O'Hurley (King Arthur), Merle Dandridge (The Lady of the Lake)
For complete info on the touring cast, see the Monty Python's Spamalot tour cast page.
The cast of the tour is wonderful. Were they all as good as those I saw in the Original Broadway Cast? No, but that's an unfair comparison - that cast was definitely an all star cast.
I was looking forward to hearing The Lady of the Lake sing the original lyrics to the Diva's Lament, since I'd only seen Sara Ramirez in Spamalot after she had won the Tony award for her role as The Lady of the Lake. For whatever reason, they opted not to change the lyrics back, so the only changes in the show were those to update it a bit more to current events.
I still think Monty Python's Spamalot is a hilarious show with some really good music. I also think that it's a show one can enjoy even if he/she isn't a huge Monty Python fan. I liked Monty Python in high school and college, but can't quote all of their movies and I really like the show. Even more telling, my sister, who really isn't a fan of Monty Python at all (and rarely found them funny) had a great time at the show when she saw it. Monty Python's Spamalot makes fun of musical theatre (including their own show) and takes itself as irreverently as the Monty Python team always did the rest of their comedy.
If you haven't seen Monty Python's Spamalot and enjoy funny shows, I can't imagine what you're waiting for... get tickets to see it on tour.
Grade: B
Labels: 2009, Best Musical, comedy, musical, tour
Reviewed by Kat at the 6:30 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Kay Panabaker (Jenny Garrison), Naturi Naughton (Denise Dupree), Megan Mullally (Ms. Fran Rowan), Bebe Neuwirth (Ms. Kraft), Debbie Allen (Ms. Angela Simms), Kelsey Grammer (Mr. Martin Cranston)
For complete info, see IMDb's Fame (2009) page.
When I heard they were going to remake Fame, I was worried that they might use too much of the original and try to copy the movie. Thankfully, they didn't do that. The new movie is a different group of (mostly unknown - at least to me) actors playing the students and teachers that (for the most part) people will recognize. I'm glad Debbie Allen was in the movie, since she was in the original movie and the TV show based on the original movie. Clearly, her part isn't nearly as focal as it was in the TV show, but I liked seeing her in the new movie.
The cast is a very talented group of performers and I think they did a good job selecting everyone for the movie. The music is very good and almost all a different style - even the remake of the song Fame, which had to be included in the remake, was very well done and updated.
If you like the performing arts, I definitely recommend renting this one. Do you need to see it in a theatre? No, but it wouldn't hurt. It's a fun movie. It's not quite as good as the original or the TV show, but that's to be expected. As long as you're not expecting it to be the most amazing movie you see, I think you can enjoy the movie and the performances.
Grade: B-
Labels: 2009, comedy, dancing, drama, family, movie, musical, remake, romance
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Jimmy Page, The Edge, & Jack White
For complete info on this great documentary, see IMDb's It Might Get Loud page.
Since I love U2 and like Led Zeppelin, I was very interested in seeing It Might Get Loud as soon as I found out about it (not long before it opened in LA, surprisingly). We went to see the documentary late opening night and the theatre was packed. This is a very well done documentary. I'll probably end up owning it, though I've already added it to my Netflix list to at least rent it to watch all the special features. I'm sure they cut a ton of footage from the film and I hope they put a lot of it on the DVD when they release it.
I was surprised that I found the parts about Jack White the most interesting. He's an intriguing guy and I didn't really know anything about him, since I'm not a fan of The White Stripes. I found the parts about The Edge and Jimmy Page great, too, but I knew a lot of the information on them. I liked the locations of the documentary and was amazed by some of the old footage they dug up. There were some great early shots of all the bands. Seeing the three musicians play each other's songs together was really cool.
If you like Led Zeppelin, U2, or The White Stripes; I highly recommend seeing It Might Get Loud when it gets to your area (I believe the wide release is August 28th). It's already playing in LA, OC, & NYC.
Grade: A
Labels: 2009, documentary, Led Zeppelin, movie, musical, The White Stripes, U2
Reviewed by Kat at the 10:30 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Steve Wilson (Caractacus Potts), Kelly McCormick (Truly Scrumptious), Zachary Carter Sayle (Jeremy Potts), Aly Brier (Jemima Potts)
For complete info, see the official Chitty Chitty Bang Bang tour page.
Perhaps it's because I wasn't a huge fan of the movie or because I expected very little from the stage musical version of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, but I thought it was a cute show. The car was really amazingly designed. The music isn't very good, but it's not as bad as I expected. I talked to a friend who saw it and she ranked it among her 5 worst shows of all time. It's not even close to mine. Of course, she hasn't been unfortunate enough to see The Black Rider, 3hree, and the other horrible shows I've seen over the years.
I think if you go without expecting much, you can enjoy the predictable and sappy story. The cast is great, the car is amazing, and the costumes and the rest of the sets are very well done.
Don't expect it to be the best show you've ever seen, but I don't think it'll be too high on the list of the worst shows, either.
Grade: C
Reviewed by Kat at the 6:30 PM show | 2 screams
Cast: Josh Groban (Anatoly Sergievsky), Adam Pascal (Frederick Trumper), Idina Menzel (Florence Vassy), Kerry Ellis (Svetlana Sergievsky)
For complete info, see IMDb's Chess in Concert page.
As a huge fan of the musical Chess (and a firm believer that the potential in the show has never been realized in a full production), I was really excited about the new concert version. Sir Tim Rice was involved in this production and said he wanted it to be the definitive version.
This version of Chess has gotten some very harsh reviews and I definitely see many of their points. The graphics in the show are pathetic, there's a huge flaw in the only real set piece, and cheerleaders for merchandise? Ridiculous! However, I think they did a very good job for the most part. I knew they would change a lot of the lyrics and many other aspects of Chess. Most of the horrible reviews seemed to want everything exactly as it was in the original concept album. Not only is that unrealistic, but there are some changes that really improved on that concept album.
Some of the lines being changed from one character to another really helped the show. Clearly, a lot of the changes in the lyrics were not for the better. However, a lot of the changes in the show were for the better - even some of those made to the lyrics. Some of them make a little bit more sense now. I'm so glad they finally had Svetlana sing Someone Else's Story (my best friend and I always thought it would make more sense for Svetlana than Florence). Enjoy the latest version of this great show. It's difficult to hear new lyrics to songs we know so well, but I think they did a very good job with this one. If you like the musical Chess, give this version a chance.
The only problem I had with the cast of this show is that they chose three people with musical theatre backgrounds (Adam Pascal, Idina Menzel, & Kerry Ellis) and one who's a singer and has never acted (Josh Groban) as the main four characters. The rest of the cast also seemed to have acting experience. I think with some acting lessons Josh Groban could have done a good job with the acting needed for Chess. However, since he didn't seem to have the time for lessons and hasn't really acted in the past, Groban ended up looking like he didn't belong in a musical theatre cast. If you can get past his lack of acting skills, the cast is wonderful and the story of Chess is better than ever.
Grade: A-
Labels: 2009, Adam Pascal, chess, concert, dancing, drama, Idina Menzel, Josh Groban, Kerry Ellis, musical, romance, sports, theatre, Tim Rice, TV
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:00 PM show | 4 screams
Cast: Neil Patrick Harris (Billy), Nathan Fillion (Captain Hammer), Felicia Day (Penny)
For complete info, see IMDb's Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog page.
I had heard a lot of wonderful things about Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog and I love Joss Whedon and the cast, so I was very excited about seeing it. I didn't realize that it was free online or I would have seen it a long time ago. I had it first on my Netflix list as soon as it was coming out and had to wait a while for it because of the timing and my trip. Now, I have it on my Amazon.com list and will buy it the next time I place an order on Amazon.com.
Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog is wonderful! It's classic Joss Whedon and the cast is amazing! It's so funny and witty. Even if you don't enjoy musicals, I think you'd enjoy the blog for the humor. It's wonderfully done. If you missed this, watch it online, rent it, or buy the DVD now. The tunes are catchy and the plot is perfectly ridiculous. I bought the soundtrack almost immediately after watching Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog the first time. One of the commentary tracks is even sung. Incredibly entertaining and a lot of fun.
Grade: A
Labels: 2008, comedy, drama, Felicia Day, Joss Whedon, musical, Nathan Fillion, Neil Patrick Harris
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 1 screams
Cast: Jennifer Paz (Cathy) & Michael K. Lee (Jamie)
The Last Five Years is one of my favorite shows of all time and I think it always will be. This production was the 4th time I saw the show and I know I'll see it again.
The cast, sets, and props were very well done. The Last Five Years is a very interesting show where Cathy starts the story (about her relationship with Jamie) at the end and Jamie starts it when he's just met Cathy. They meet and actually interact with each other at the same time and space only for their wedding in the middle of the show. The idea is very unique for a musical and works amazingly well. This production did a very good job of being sure the gift Jamie gives Cathy is worn at the appropriate times and not worn before he gave it to her when she gets there moving backwards, etc. The costumes and sets are also very good. I was amazed at how much work they did on two completely different sets for these shows when they're showing at the same time.
I highly recommend seeing this production of The Last Five Years. The show by Jason Robert Brown is amazing and the David Henry Hwang Theatre did a great job with the production.
Grade: A
Labels: 2009, comedy, drama, Jason Robert Brown, musical
Reviewed by Kat at the 3:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Mike Dalager (Man) & Jennifer Hubilla (Woman)
I'm reviewing Marry Me a Little & The Last Five Years separately, since they're definitely not the same show.
The cast of Marry Me a Little is wonderful and I will definitely attend other shows by this company at the David Henry Hwang Theatre in LA. Unfortunately, there's a reason Marry Me a Little was one of the only Sondheim shows I hadn't seen yet (and why very few companies perform it). The little I'd heard about Marry Me a Little really does perfectly describe it. Sondheim tossed a bunch of songs that didn't get used in other musicals together and made them a show with no plot and with songs that don't really fit together well. Some of the songs are very good. Some of them are okay. None of them necessarily make sense together.
That being said, the cast is good and the choreographed movements in the apartment are well done, so it's worth seeing - especially since The Last Five Years is shown after intermission.
Grade: C
Labels: 2009, comedy, musical, Stephen Sondheim, theatre
Reviewed by Kat at the 2:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Eric Schneider (Danny Zuko), Emily Padgett (Sandy Dumbrowski), Allie Schulz (Betty Rizzo)
For complete info, see the official Grease on Broadway site and select the touring cast.
I suspected, the cast (as a whole) was better than the cast of the revival with Max Crumm & Laura Osnes as Danny & Sandy. Grease is still Grease and there aren't many people who like musical theatre who don't know about the show or that the show varies from the movie in a few ways. The revival put songs that had only been in the movie version into the stage version for the first time on Broadway and they kept these in the touring production.
Unfortunately, the touring production did a couple of things the Broadway revival did not... These are the parts that lower my grade of the show. I'm grading the show including the pre-show and post-show entertainment, since it's impossible to separate these from the show - they were things one had to experience (to some extent) in order to see the show on tour.
Before the show, Dominic Fortuna (as Vince Fontaine, his character in the show) did a pre-show DJ sort of thing as if he were already playing music for a party or event of some kind. He encouraged audience participation (including singing along, which can be pretty painful with some of the audience members not being in tune). This bothered me a little (not as much as it bothered a friend of mine who saw the show on a different night), but the house lights were still up and I was able to read. I blocked out those singing along as much as possible (too bad I didn't have my ipod with me) and survived until the show.
The show was well done. The cast was very good (definitely better, as a whole, than the only time I saw Grease on Broadway, so that was positive. They did add some terrible references to American Idol and Taylor Hicks' voice was definitely bad, but it wasn't completely unbearable.
The cast sang during the bows, as they did in the Broadway revival. This is always fun for fans and gets people up and dancing some as they leave the theatre. Unfortunately, after this, they dimmed the lights. Thinking it was something collecting for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS (a charity I support regularly), I sat back down. Sadly, I was mistaken. This was for a completely unannounced (to my knowledge - I talked to many other patrons who had not been aware of this horrific event) concert by Taylor Hicks (who played the Teen Angel in the touring production).
Tolerating Taylor Hicks' voice for his small part as the Teen Angel (especially with the horrible added American Idol references) was bad enough. I did not pay my good money for a show I enjoyed to be trapped in my seat and tortured with my idea of hell (country music sung by a horrible singer). The way the Orange County Performing Arts Center is designed, those of us with good seats (I wasn't that far off center) are very far away from the only aisles. In spite of this, I fought my way out of the theatre, so I would not have to be tormented by the entire post-show concert by Taylor Hicks. On my way out, I heard many fellow guests who were fleeing the theatre saying things like "Oh, HELL no, I don't want this" to each other. Clearly, I was not alone in feeling that I had been trapped and had a concert forced onto me. One of my friends (who saw the show on a different night) has some elderly subscribers between her and the nearest aisle, so she had to stay in her seat with her fingers doing their best to plug up her ears and endure the torture of the Taylor Hicks concert.
If you're going to see Grease live - beware! There is a Taylor Hicks concert afterwards and no matter how rude it may seem to the performers, if you want to escape before people sit down, you must do so near the end of the bows.
I think the theatre should allow time for people to exit or at least tell them that after bows the lights will dim again for a concert. Many of us did not want to see Taylor Hicks. I even considered not seeing the touring production of Grease because of him (even though the Teen Angel is a fairly small part of the show. I ended up seeing it in spite of him, but certainly didn't want to hear any more of his voice (especially if it's country music) than absolutely necessary.
Grade: C- (without the extra stuff, this would probably have been a B or B-)
Reviewed by Kat at the 6:30 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Anthony Rapp (Mark), Adam Pascal (Roger), Gwen Stewart (Seasons of Love Soloist & others), Justin Johnston (Angel Schunard), Nicolette Hart (Maureen Johnson), Lexi Lawson (Mimi Marquez)
For the rest of this wonderful cast, see the official Rent The Broadway Tour website.
As almost all fans of Rent know that Anthony Rapp & Adam Pascal (the original Mark & Roger) are currently touring with the show along with original cast member Gwen Stewart and a bunch of other amazing performers. I'm sure it's needless to say (when I saw Rent for the 13th & 14th times this weekend) that I loved the show. I'll simply comment on the things that were different this time around, since everyone knows I love Rent and would recommend it to anyone and everyone - especially when it has three of the original cast members touring with the show.
I still need to look up who Lisa is... as many of you may know, they had always intended to change the names of those attending the life support meeting based on friends/family members of those in the show who had been lost to AIDS. The way I've heard it reported, due to Jonathan's death the show got pretty much frozen where it was and no one ever wanted to change the names of those attending life support with Angel, Collins, & Mark. As of the time I went back to see Rent on Broadway with Anthony & Adam (August & September of 2007), they had changed the last name (originally Sue) to Lisa. I figure she has to be someone pretty important, or they wouldn't have made the change that late in the run of the show. They are still using Lisa on the tour.
The only change they made that I did not like was making parts of the funeral scene like a Greek chorus (where everyone says certain portions). Since this is a funeral and clearly each person came up to talk about their own thoughts and share their memories of Angel, the rest of the cast saying exactly the same thing while the person in question (Mimi, Mark, then Maureen - the three M's, never really noticed that before...) is talking about their own memories. I would give that scene (only because of this change) a C.
The sound board was a mess the last two times I saw Rent on Broadway. In August, I was surprised to see Anthony Rapp have to start "La Vie Boheme" twice (once on time and once rushing things in late, since his mic hadn't been on). This time around, the sound was amazingly well done. They didn't seem to miss any major queues, which is really amazing for songs like "Christmas Bells," which also had a lot of problems the last couple times I saw it on Broadway. In fact, Sunday afternoon Anthony Rapp's mic went out at a horrible time (after Benny tells the pastor he'll pay, everything Mark said was a bit garbled - he then had to go on to do the end of his Buzzline broadcast and sing "What You Own" with Adam Pascal - no time between scenes for them to fix the mic) and they ran a hand held mic out to him very quickly so only a couple of his lines were a little garbled, and "What You Own" sounded perfect (as did most of his sign off to Alexis on Buzzline). Anthony had to deal with holding a mic throughout the one song, but clearly he knows how to hold a mic and this wasn't a problem. When Anthony went off stage, they replaced his regular mic, but I was impressed with how quickly they fixed the problem so everyone there could fully enjoy the show without interruption.
The current cast is really amazing and this weekend's shows were probably the best I've seen due to a combination of the cast and the fact that all the sound issues were gone. I think a few people in the cast were a bit better the last time I saw the show on Broadway, but the overall effect was much better on tour in spite of the Greek chorus aspects of the funeral and the fact that for some reason they kept the house lights on FULL force until Mark said "Smile." in the beginning. This was really annoying for those of us in the rear of the orchestra, since there were very bright lights above us. Personally, my eyes took a while to adjust once the lights went off, since I'd been focusing on stage with the lights above me initially. If you haven't seen Rent yet, see it before Anthony Rapp & Adam Pascal leave the cast - they're amazing and so is the rest of the cast!
Grade: A+
**Note: This review encompasses the 1:00 p.m. show on 3/8/09 & the 8:00 p.m. show on 3/7/09
Labels: Adam Pascal, Anthony Rapp, Best Musical, drama, musical, Rent, theatre, tour
Reviewed by Kat at the 1:00 PM show | 0 screams
Cast: Michael Arden & Tyrone Giordano (Pippin), Ty Taylor (Leading Player), Sara Gettelfinger (Fastrada), Harriet Harris (Berthe)
For complete info on this wonderful cast, see the Pippin program on the Center Theatre Group website.
I knew that I'd appreciate the Deaf West Theatre production of Pippin, since I loved Big River when they did it and I'm not really a fan of that show (or the story). If they could make me enjoy a show I didn't like, clearly seeing their production of a show I actually like was a good idea. Pippin isn't Stephen Schwartz's best music, but there are some very good songs and this production makes everything work better than I've seen it before.
The cast of Pippin is amazing! The costumes, sets, and lighting are very well done. One of the best things about this production is they shortened it a bit so that Pippin is only one act. They only took out one full song (and it's still in the score) and added a couple things to the versions of Pippin I had seen before and really improved the show. I hope this production makes it to Broadway so my friends in New York will be able to enjoy it!
The way sign language was incorporated into Pippin was even better than what they did in Big River. I think Pippin really lends itself to the interpretation because of all the dancing that is already a part of the show, the magic, etc. and this show was designed very well.
I highly recommend catching Pippin at the Mark Taper Forum while you can (it runs until March 15th). I know I'm going to do my best to see another performance of this production of Pippin before it leaves LA in case it doesn't come back.
Grade: A-
Labels: comedy, Deaf West Theatre, drama, Harriet Harris, Michael Arden, musical, romance, Stephen Schwartz, theatre, Ty Taylor, Tyrone Giordano
Reviewed by Kat at the 8:00 PM show | 1 screams
Cast: LaTonya Holmes (Celie), Rufus Bonds, Jr. (Mister), LaToya London (Nettie), Felicia P. Fields (Sofia), Angela Robinson (Shug Avery), Stu James (Harpo)
For complete info, see the The Color Purple musical site.
I had no desire to see this musical. The reasons for that were the fact that the official title is Oprah Winfrey Presents The Color Purple (I'm totally NOT a fan) and the fact that I really like the movie. I couldn't picture it as a musical and I wasn't sure they can do a good enough job.
Since The Color Purple was a part of my season tickets at the Orange County Performing Arts Center, I decided to check it out. I found that they really did a good job with the musical. I didn't buy the CD and I don't plan on doing so. I probably won't see the musical again, but the stayed true to the story (as far as I recall, it's been years since I've seen the movie) and the music is very good.
I saw the understudy for Celie, which was definitely disappointing, but (as usual) the understudy was amazing and I can't imagine the regular Celie doing any better. The cast is very good, so if you didn't see The Color Purple yet, you may want to think about seeing it on tour.
Grade: B-
Reviewed by Kat at the 7:30 PM show | 0 screams