Profile for djdan1079

Jaglin- the show was an abomination, but worst of the past 15 years? You clearly didn't sit through Lysistrata Jones.

Most of the sex was cut from the show, most notably when "Come with Me" was inexplicably turned into "You and Me". All of the other edits just felt like change for the sake of change. There wasn't a single rewrite that enhanced the material. My question is if the version at City Center was Lippa's way of trying to mainstream a polarizing show for a possible second life? Or was this a way to attract Sutton Foster, who had alluded in an interview with being uncomfortable with some of the seedie...

I really expected to be a vanity piece that would misfire, but I enjoyed it ten times more than "The River". Cooper gives a fantastic performance, hampered only by the fact that he's Bradley Cooper. During Act 1, as they showed the projections of the real life Merrick side by side a shirtless Cooper (with his pecs and well conditioned hair), there is no amount of contorting his body that he can do for the audience to NOT see a movie star rather than a grotesque, deformed, man. To his credit t...

I saw the Saturday matinee. A few observations: It was obvious the cast was fatigued between Macy's Parade obligations and the condensed holiday 2 show a day schedule. Danza's voice kept failing him as the show went on (although prior posts lead me to believe maybe that might just be his singing voice). Even McClure was struggling to hit his top notes through the first half of act 1. I got to intermission and felt the show could be the sleeper of the season. Even with the vocal issues, Rob Mc...

Lysistrata Jones. No question. I've seen shows that have ranged from bad (On a Clear Today), to just flat out boring (Arcadia, and more recently, Violet), but no show has ever made me angry about the time and money that I wasted like LJ

Listen, friends- I don't claim my thoughts on the show are the gospel here. It's an opinion. Nothing more, nothing less. I understand and respect the creative process. I know this show will change a lot between now and it's official opening. I reread my post last night and I don't think I was scathing or unfair. I tried to offer up thoughts on moments and performances that worked as well as what I thought didn't. If you saw the show and loved it, then more power to you. At the end of the day,...

Capnhook- And that is why I said I understand why they thought a human in a dog costume would work. Peter Pan, as a show, embraces the fantasy of Peter Pan. The tone of Finding Neverland is different, which IMO, made it a bad choice. I'm reading tweets tonight from people in attendance who seemed to love the show. So maybe as a straight, mid 30's male, I'm just not in the demographic. Those audience members clearly saw a different show than I did. And such is the beauty of live theater. We al...

Just got home from the first preview and will just give you a very brief overview of my thoughts. I will preface by saying that I never saw the movie and am unable to compare this to the source material. The show just didn't work for me. Conceptually, it feels like there are a lot of cooks in the kitchen and they have not found a cohesive theme for the production. The moments that do work are when the show embraces the fantasy elements of the story. Towards the end of act one, we begin to see...

The only reading I was able to catch this year was "For Tonight", which I though had some really beautiful music. Anyone else catch it?

I will be there for tonight's performance. Any other posters going to be in attendance? Tweet me @djdan1033.

If it were up for best revival, Hedwig would have been the only competition. While I enjoyed Hedwig, I preferred Lady Day. I kind of feel like the NPH PR machine would still have steamrolled to a Hedwig victory though

Welcome, Liz! Our passion for theater is what brings us all here. Be warned, everyone else's need to be right is what will end up getting you berated the moment you dare voice a dissenting opinion. Brace yourself, Effie. Seriously though, welcome to the board!

No- NPH would not have beat Jessie. And I only ask because there was some discussion around the opening of Lady Day of what category it should belong in. Clearly, it was ruled a "play with music" and I don't necessarily disagree with that. My point was that it was more enjoyable than any musical this season. Carry on.

The last 20 minutes was as spectacular and creative as anything i've seen. the first two hours was a snooze though. Ahrens and Flaherty haven't written a worthwhile score since "Ragtime". When people ask me what I thought of Rocky, I tell them all they need to know is that there is a song called "My Nose Ain't Broken". They sing this song TWICE in the show because they feel a need to reprise a song called "My Nose Ain't Broken" All that being said, it's always unfortunate when people lose the...

Was in the city Saturday to support a friend who wrote a show that was in NYMF. Wasn't planning on going to a show that night until my dinner plans fell through. I stopped by the box office and ended up scoring one of the cabaret seats right beside the stage. The following 90 minutes was one of the most devastating, heart-wrenching, and amazing performances I've had the pleasure of seeing in my lifetime. It's not often that I leave a theater feeling like it was a privilege to witness a show. ...

Haterobics- Hey, screw you for not "getting" LoF, ok? Kidding. Your points are well taken. Cheers!

As for ROCKY, I just don't see it. The Tonys have never been kind to shows that emphasize spectacle first, and the ONLY redeeming thing about Rocky was the last 20 minutes of spectacle. Don't get me wrong, it was exciting as anything i've seen onstage, but the two hours leading up to it were a snooze.

Haterobics- Not saying that bdn is wrong for liking the show (Hell, I'm the guy that actually enjoyed Leap of Faith). I just find it a strong statement to say everyone who didn't like the show is "missing the point". If that many people are "not getting it", one could assume that the writers haven't made the point clear in the first place???

bdn223- If all of the reviewers and more than half of the message board comments are all saying the same thing, perhaps it's safe to assume there are inherent problems with the material.

For those who saw the show in DC as well as NY, did the LaChanze role get cut down over time? Maybe she thought the role would be more significant than it turned out to be. I really thought she was great in a pretty underwritten part. Also, let's remember that N2N took MANY years and MANY rewrites to get it right. Think of how many incarnations that show went through from the "Feeling Electric" days to off broadway, and then eventually to a Pulitzer. It's a shame that every show can't get tha...