Profile for BritCrit

I'm guessing that Kiss My Aztec will open in the Summer/Fall in one of the smaller Broadway theatres, or wait for one of the November 2022 intake to close before taking their theatre...

So only a few theatres left - the Hudson, the Marquis, the Barrymore, the American Airlines, the James Earl Jones, the Lyceum and the Golden have productions closing in January with no replacement announced*, and the Broadway still seems dormant. What would you expect/hope to see in those venues?Personally, I'm still crossing fingers for Lempicka simply because I want to see Eden Espinosa succeed on Broadway. But this is shaping up to be a really competitive season, so I wouldn't be too upset...

In a season with several blockbuster revivals (Into The Woods, Sweeney Todd, Camelot, 1776) Bob Fosse's Dancin feels like it won't make much of an impact. There are enough Fosse fans to keep it going a few months, but it just feels like it has taken the Music Box from a smaller original musical (The chance of getting Sing Street and/or Lempicka on Broadway grows smaller by the minute, which frustrates me so much!) ...

fashionguru_23 said: "DramaTeach said: "3) I actually really enjoyed the secret relationship between May and Frankie, but “I’m Not a Girl (Not Yet a Woman)” and “I Kissed a Girl” was confusing, but maybe that’s my own misunderstandings. If May is non-binary, why would they keep referring to her in the feminine (I understand it’s in the lyrics)"I've heard this comment before, people saying that &Juliet doesn't really adknowledge the sexuality of May. I guess my question is, why do we need to k...

Scarlet Leigh said: "POTENTIALLY you could have a lot of things, but the things either with the most creditable rumors or would be most ready to arrive at this point: Broadway Vacation, Sing Street, Dancin', Lempika, Once Upon a One More Time, Devil Wears Prada, The Notebook, and then possible transfers of the West End's version of Cabaret, Encore's Parade, and Merrily We Roll Along."I'm rooting for Sing Street and Lempicka, but with the Autumn season already being so busy, I think a few prod...

With the new Paper Mill production of Hercules announcing licensing plans rather than Broadway ones, I wonder if more musicals are going to take advantage of the licensing route - It makes far more money, far sooner, and is less reliant on waiting for a small group of large New York theatres to open up.Several musicals based on well-known brands/individuals have held pre-Broadway runs but have failed to announce further plans (The Karate Kid, Once Upon a One More Time, Lempicka, etc). With ti...

I have actually had professional colonoscopies. And trust me, & Juliet is 1000x better than a Colonoscopy, even at its worst...

Hamilfan2 said: "Also fwiw I remember Frozen in Denver was specifically marketed as “pre-Broadway” so the fact that they haven’t used the same language for Hercules tells me that at the very least they are waiting to see what the reception to it is like before making a decision.And while I agree this cast doesn’t scream “pre-Broadway tryout” neither do most Disney OBCs which for the most part cast unknowns/up-and-comers and rely on the show’s name recognition to sell the tickets."True, but He...

To respond to a few things -1. David Bedella already had two Oliviers when he won for & Juliet (for Jerry Springer: The Opera and In The Heights). I never got to see him in the show, but the actor playing Lance was pretty fun to watch - I agree that most of the other characters are more interesting, but Lance's boisterous, French-accented comic energy is really enjoyable.2. I don't really think & Juliet is a "Smash the Patriarchy" play, but I can see why Click Here To Toggle Spoiler ContentFe...

Listened to more of my fave songs from the soundtrack. Lorna Courtney doesn't have the same inner fire as Miriam Teak-Lee, but the singing is generally excellent. The "magic" that this musical relies on is still there...

CATSNYrevival said: "I listened to the whole album. I like it well enough but I didn’t listen to the London cast album enough times to really notice any differences between the two albums other than the cast of course. The Since U Been Gone bonus track is sung by Kelly Clarkson and Lorna Courtney. That’s likely why it says Juliet’s Version so as not to confuse it with Clarkson’s original recording."I'm starting my listen with my fave song from the soundtrack, "Show Me Love". They added some o...

ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "OLIVER doesn’t really lend itself to star casting. Not a ton of guys who mean A LOT at the box office are gonna be rushing to play Fagin for two weeks; maybe you get a Tony nominee/winner for Nancy at best.Any speculation of casting will also depend on how they are handling it racially — if some roles will be deliberately people of color, or vs. “colorblind” casting across the board. (I would assume the former.)Would be shocked if we get anyone close to Sara B o...

I saw & Juliet a couple of days ago in the West End and really enjoyed it. As you can expect, the songs are the best bit. The performances are excellent, as they really capture the bombastic energy of Max Martin's songs and even find emotional depth in them. The songs generally fit the narrative really well, and the choreography and staging are pretty fun. My top five numbers are "Larger Than Life", "Show Me Love", "I'm Not A Girl Not Yet A Woman", "That's The Way It Is" and "Roar"I will ackn...

TheQuibbler said: "blaxx said: "RippedMan said: "Is it a workshop or a full production? If it comes, it wouldn't come until the spring, so she could do both."I see, definitely a workshop. I hope it's not a conflict of interest to play two painters so close to each other."I'd say two isn't enough; I want to see her as Rothko in Red, Seurat in Sunday..., maybe she can replace Paul Bettany in The Collaboration."As I discussed earlier in this thread, Espinosa seems to specialize in "Frustrated Ma...

Dollypop said: "I wish they would revert to their original intent: to present classic musicals AS THEY WERE ORIGINALLY WRITTEN. Although THE SOUND OF MUSIC had its flaws, it was the original stage version of the show and I enjoyed it. When they started tinkering with the shows--like that God-awful PETER PAN, the material suffered and the ratings tanked."I feel like that claim that the NBC Live adaptations are too loose is a little unfair - many of the modifications were necessary to update th...

Wayman_Wong said: "I disagree. I like British performers to get a chance to play Broadway, and American ones to get a chance to play the West End. Sharon D. Clarke got to reprise her Olivier Award-winning performance in ''Caroline, or Change,'' and Sutton Foster got to reprise her Tony-winning role in ''Anything Goes'' in London. ...And while we're on the topic, Olly Dobson created the role of Marty McFly in ''Back to the Future: The Musical'' and got an Olivier nomination for it. But for the...

HogansHero said: "David10086 said: "If they announced the closing for this Sunday, then last week's box office must've really been beyond devastating and brought them to their senses. I'm curious to see what's reported tomorrow."The show has never had a week in which the box office was not beyond devastating. But yes someone finally came to their senses."We all knew this wouldn't last very long despite its Tony Awards success, but closing with less than 7 day notice is always a terrible sign....

Wayman_Wong said: "Did ''& Juliet'' ever consider bringing Miriam Teak-Lee to Broadway? After all, she won the Olivier Award for it. Or was it just assumed the show would be recast for NYC? I also would've liked to see Jordan Luke Gage reprise his Romeo role."Not sure, but I think that a different cast is a good thing for the production - it shows that & Juliet has something going for it beyond its stars and soundtrack. When you're taking a West End hit to international audiences, I think it ...

EDSOSLO858 said: "3.5 / 4 from theToronto Star: "Max Martin's latest guaranteed hit"https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/stage/review/2022/07/07/-juliet-is-pop-king-max-martins-latest-guaranteed-hit.htmlThe Globe and Mail: "The jukebox musical is back from the dead"https://www.theglobeandmail.com/arts/theatre-and-performance/reviews/article-broadway-bound-juliet-brings-a-shakespearean-heroine-and-the-jukebox/"I find it amusing that the Globe and Mail review is the more critical, but gets the...

This sounds like a fun little search, but it may be tricky, esp. as a lot of the "historical interest" for Smile is to do with Howard Ashman and the "Disneyland" song he created for the show...