Tag: Musical

Important background information required to put this review in context.  I was born in New Jersey and was in middle school when Born to Run was released.  Bruuuuuce was listened to and worshipped.  I saw two different tours, The River (1981, South Bend, IN – Go Irish!) and The Rising (2002, Madison Square Garden, NYC).  Along with the E Street Band, Bruce Springsteen was one of the greatest, most entertaining rock concert performers I have ever seen.  To be clear, I would put myself in the category of general fan.  I don’t travel in the online circles that discuss the playlists at every single performance.  That is the level of intense devotion and huge expectations for those lucky to have tickets for Springsteen on Broadway.

If you come to this show expecting genius, you will be rewarded.  If you come expecting a feel good sing-a-long concert while you continually keep trying to swig white wine out of a long ago drained plastic cup (seat next to me), then you might not get the experience you imagined.

Springsteen on Broadway is EXACTLY what the title promises.  Bruce Springsteen not as he would be in an arena but in a musical he wrote and directed.  At 68 years old, it is a career retrospective for sure but intimately rendered in exquisitely detailed, poetic storytelling.  Yes he performs his music but it’s the book of this show that is spellbinding.  He covers everything from personal relationships to career development to the symbolic tree in his front lawn as a child.  All of this is riveting, gorgeously written and exceptionally performed.

Mr. Springsteen elevated his brand of rock n’ roll to the top of the music business.  In this production, he has now elevated himself into some kind of philosophical priest (perhaps a nod to the Catholic upbringing).  What really struck me was how he has transformed the depth of book writing for a Broadway jukebox musical.  This show is not a piece of throwaway fluff like Summer:  The Donna Summer Musical.  Instead the show is a solo piece by one of the most thoughtful, open, imperfect, real and talented musicians ever.

I can imagine this solo piece working for other actors in the future, the monologues are that good.  It will be impossible for me to ever hear Born in the USA the same way again.  Having seen Bruce himself make this scripted affair sound like casual off-the-cuff conversation is a testament to the brilliant staging.  Springsteen on Broadway is a very, very, very expensive ticket.  Isn’t it nice that the show exceeds expectations on every level?

www.brucespringsteen.net/broadway

www.theaterreviewsfrommyseat/summer

Broadway is filled with magical wonders this spring.  There is the literal magic performed by wizards within the groundbreaking stagecraft of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.  Elsa’s got a way with ice in Frozen.  There is the spectacular watery wonderland of SpongeBob SquarePants.  Now I can add Carousel to this list.  The magic here, however, is defiantly and ingeniously old school.  Santo Loquasto’s scenic design harks back to Broadway magic from when this show originally ran in 1945.  This version is a scintillating combination of placing both the story and its staging in the past (cleverly painted backdrops) but adding some modern flourishes (opening carousel).

Time magazine named Rogers and Hammerstein’s Carousel the greatest American musical of the 20th Century.  Having never seen this show before, I’m glad I waited for this avalanche of greatness.  The book, music and lyrics are so well integrated from light-hearted comedy to the broodingly darker scenes.  The melodies are gorgeous while the words give insight into these characters and their complicated feelings.

Joshua Henry (Violet, The Scottsboro Boys) plays the tightly wound but irresistible carnival barker Billy Bigelow.  Jessie Mueller (Waitress) is our comparatively innocent Julie Jordan who falls for him right from the start.  Both sing beautifully and the acting is so natural and detailed that these character’s personalities are heartbreakingly alive and electrically charged.  The chemistry on display propels all of which follows.  And that chemistry extends across all the principal performers and a superb ensemble.

Carousel and its predecessor Oklahoma are famous for their Agnes De Mille ballets.  The show opens with a prelude “The Carousel Waltz” choreographed by Justin Peck.  The dancing in this show is extraordinary.  It’s original yet harkens back to its ballet heritage.  The movement from these dancers precisely aligns with the musical notes while embracing emotion and never breaking character.  Hands down the finest choreography in years.

Another big highlight is Lindsay Mendez (Significant Other) as Julie’s best friend Carrie Pipperidge.  Carrie has great songs and the best jokes.  Ms. Mendez nails everything perfectly in character.  The first song in the show is her duet with Ms. Mueller called “You’re a Queer One, Julie Jordan.”  I found it remarkable that these two actresses sounded like they were singing in a long ago style.  When you add in the visual surroundings of this old school musical, the rewards are seemingly endless.  We just have to thank director Jack O’Brien (The Coast of Utopia, Hairspray) for an awesome revival of a masterpiece of American musical theater.  This Carousel is essential viewing and a very special brand of magic.

www.carouselbroadway.com

The Academy Award winning song “Let It Go” from the colossal hit movie Frozen closes Act I.  Memorably staged and sung by Cassie Levy (Les Miserables, Wicked, Ghost) as Elsa, the moment is hugely successful.  The audience comes alive and the enormous expectations are fulfilled.  I did not see this movie so my review comes largely from a place of fresh discovery or new fallen snow.  Overall, I’d say Frozen was just ok.

This musical adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale The Snow Queen has enjoyable and fun stretches.  Both of the non-human animated characters Sven (the reindeer) and Olaf (the snowman) are cleverly rendered and performed.  The young men in the center of the story are nicely played by Jelani Alladin (Kristoff) and John Riddle (Hans).  Both developed great chemistry with the other sister Anna, who despite being less magical has the far more interesting storyline.  In the performance I saw, understudy Aisha Jackson was confident, funny and heartwarming as sister Anna.  “Love Is an Open Door,” the duet sung by Hans and Anna is a high point.  

Some of the effects that turn our Norwegian town of Arendelle into a frozen winter are quite cool.  Given the visual competition this year on Broadway, notably from the watery wonderland that is SpongeBob SquarePants and the magical wizardry of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, the scenic design and projections of Frozen suffer a bit by comparison.  There are certainly good moments executed.  The whole experience though falls a touch flat as if  we are watching a really well-executed theme park experience.

Frozen’s creative team is normally top notch, from Director Michael Grandage to Choreographer Rob Ashford.  I just wasn’t sure if they committed to the important decision of which cartoon style they were showcasing.  The trolls from the movie here are outfitted as the humans from the movie Planet of the Apes with tails added on.  Their song “Fixer Upper” would not be out of place in a Lion King spinoff.  In that scene, I could not sense Norway anywhere.  The ensemble here sing and dance without representing much of anything.  They are boring save for the second act opening which was truly surprising and very witty.

All of that puts a lot of pressure on our sisters to carry this show.  Ms. Levy is a beautiful singer but Elsa’s brooding needed a bit more sparkle (and edge?) to help enhance what is oddly the far weaker side of this tale.  Her sister Anna’s more mortal adventure with her cartoonish companions was clearly the journey I wanted to be on.  One sister has the better adventure.  One sister has the magical visuals and gets to belt the big song.  Frozen never quite pulls everything together.  So I have to firmly land on “just ok.”

www.frozenthemusical.com

This news will come as no surprise to anyone with even a fleeting knowledge of the undisputed Queen of Disco.  The final song in this show is “Last Dance.”  At that moment, the disco balls drop, the lights start spinning, the audience leaps to its feet and, well, it’s sort of theme park Studio 54.  Thank goodness that time arrives because our Queen needed some adoration in the dully titled Summer:  The Donna Summer Musical.  I mean, come on.  With song titles like “Hot Stuff” and “She Works Hard For the Money,” certainly a tad more creativity could be expected.  How about I Feel Love: The Donna Summer Story?

The title is about as deep as this show gets.  Summer is a biographical journey of a woman who defined an era.  She had a string of Top 40 hits every year from 1975 to 1984 with one twelve month period where she had four Billboard number one singles.  Also on the plus side, she is a fascinatingly complicated person.  Ms. Summer’s life was filled with controversies and conundrums.  Orgasm singing in “Love to Love You Baby” followed by born again Christianity.  Her alleged anti-gay comments during the AIDS crisis which alienated her fans.  All presented here by scratching the surface and quickly moving on.

Everyone I attended this show with liked it immensely if not absolutely loved it.  Sorry, someone left the cake out in the rain.  Long stretches of boredom are not, not, not my imagination.  There are reasons to enjoy parts of this show notably the familiar songs (How could I have forgotten “Heaven Knows”?) There are three actresses portraying Donna, all superb singers.  Storm Lever is Duckling Donna, our young talent in the gospel choir but not immune from evil.  Ariana Debose is Disco Donna and brings life to everything she touches.  However, it is La Chanze as Diva Donna that commands our most rapt attention.  As quasi-narrator, we see Donna Summer through her.  All three have knockout numbers which make this musical at least float and occasionally soar.

Now for more of the disappointing news.  How can Sergio Trujillo’s choreography not be amazing?  I saw Saturday Night Fever too but the oft repeated hand spinning and pointing upward was frankly not enough to encapsulate the disco era.  The set was a distracting mess of literal projection squares moving around.  When Duckling Donna tries on lipstick, the projection shown is a tube of lipstick.  Much of the stage is oddly dark and cavernous.  Except for the costuming (Paul Tazewell), little feels representative of the era.  Enough is definitely enough.  Then it’s time for “Last Dance” and sparkly fun.  I so wish Summer would have turned up the old Victrola so we could dance the night away.

www.thedonnasummermusical.com

Sometimes all the stars align and a show arrives on Broadway perfectly timed.  Mean Girls is one of those shows.  More importantly, this new musical also manages to be highly entertaining.  Adapted by Tina Fey from her own screenplay, there are plenty of laughs.  I have never seen her now cult classic film so I approached this material with few preconceived notions.  I left the theater certain I just saw the third Best Musical Tony nominee this year after The Band’s Visit and SpongeBob SquarePants (with Frozen and Summer yet to follow).

The familiar territory is high school, a cesspool of insecurity and bullying with a thick layer of hormonal angst.  What makes this show top drawer is a cast in which every performance excels.  Rare is the musical where this many different characters have finely executed moments in the spotlight.  That includes the interestingly cast ensemble, many of whom steal our focus now and again to great effect (Collins Conley, you know who you are).  Director and Choreographer Casey Nicholaw keeps the action moving creatively, transitioning scenes from Kenya to classroom to lunchroom to bedroom with the lightness of youth.  Who says you cannot have a person singing and dancing while tossing set pieces off-stage?  Unlike the mean girls’ motto, there are no rules here other than slickly executed Broadway professionalism combined with teenage verve.

The visual projections are also terrific and give the show a witty modern gloss; #finnross #adamyoung, impressive work here.  Social media was not a thing back in the heyday of Mean Girls, the movie.  Ms. Fey has nicely updated the story and made this element important as it would be now.  The music and lyrics are fittingly in the style of “high school musical,” with a few standout songs.  Costume Designer Gregg Barnes outfitted our bad girls memorably.  Special prop awards go to the cafeteria trays.

Now let’s praise the exceptionally well-cast actors.  Taylor Louderman is the “Apex Predator” Regina who seethes venom and sings beautifully.  Her companions are the outstanding Ashley Park (insecure Gretchen) and the simply hilarious, loved every second of her performance Kate Rockwell (the ditzy Karen).  Erika Henningsen is Cady, the new student who tries to fit in, admirably making her story arc believable and central amidst a phalanx of quirky characters.

All of the featured roles are richly played and humorous, notably by Kerry Butler (multiple bullseye characterizations) and Cheech Manohar (one of the “mathletes”).  As our part-time narrators, Greg Henson (Damian, the gay one) and Barrett Wilbert Weed (Janis, the “space dyke”) open the show with “A Cautionary Tale.”  Mean Girls delivers on its title promise but with acerbic wit and bitchy fun without being hideously cruel.

The talented Ms. Fey does not waste her opportunity to say what’s on her mind, aiming her messaging directly at the young women in the audience.  In this #metoo era, women are boldly standing up and fighting for themselves.  Wicked may still be playing a couple blocks away but the pleas for the right kind of girl power are deafeningly louder here.  I sincerely hope they can be heard amidst the enjoyable snarky pink frivolity and bountiful merchandise for sale in the lobby.

www.meangirlsonbroadway.com

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