My New York visit - show comments

Well I'm finally back from my USA trip - feeling totally shattered and jet-lagged to hell LOL. But I had a great trip and saw - on the whole - some great shows in New York. Here are my (humble) opinions on what I saw. I've rated them on a star basis of 1 to 5
(*Poor; **Okay; ***Good; **** Very Good; *****Fantastic!):

SHREK* - very disappointed with this. Though the production aspects were excellent, I thought the score was lacklustre and the book was dire (what passed for humour was aimed at 5 year olds). The (as always) fantastic Sutton Foster almost saved the show but only almost. I know some people will love this show but I found it utter torture to sit through.

ROOMS*** - great rock score (though the book was a little "basic") and the performances by Leslie Kritzer and Doug Kreeger were superb. Hugely enjoyable.

HAPPINESS*** - beautifully and cleverly staged by Susan Stroman and a GREAT book by John Weidman and a very strong cast (Hunter Foster and Joanna Gleason were especially brilliant). There were a few terrific songs but, though I thought Michael Korrie's lyrics were excellent, on the whole I found Scott Frankel's music nice but rather forgettable (I felt the same about Grey Gardens, to be honest). But I really enjoyed the show overall.

HAIR**** - great production of the classic rock show, bursting with energy from a top-notch ensemble cast led by Gavin Creel and Will Swenson, who were brilliant.

IN THE HEIGHTS**** - booked this last minute and it was the most pleasant surprise of my trip. I thought I would hate it and I loved it. Though the book is a little cliched and corny, the score is fantastic (I actually can't believe how much I liked the songs!). I'm just sorry I did not see it while Lin Manuel Miranda was still in it coz I thought Javier Munoz as Usnavi was pretty weak. The rest of the cast were all great and Mandy Gonzalez stole the show.

1776**** - stunning production at the Papermill. Great set, beautifully staged and a flawless ensemble cast. The standout performances were Bob Cuccioli and James Barbour, whose awesome rendition of the powerful "Molasses and Rum" number literally stopped the show.

BILLY ELLIOT***** - even better than when I saw it in London. Greg Jabarra was superb as Billy's Dad as were Carole Shelley as Grandma and David Bologna as Michael (such incredible presence for a tiny lad!) And Kiril Kulish was incredible as Billy - not just his awesome dancing but also his acting was pretty special and his vocal performance of "Electricity" was heart-wrenching.

NEXT TO NORMAL***** - actually 5 stars are not enough for this show. THIS SHOW IS WAY BEYOND AWESOME! It's right up there as one of the best musicals I've ever seen. Brian Yorkey's writing is full of genuine wit and deeply moving emotion and Tom Kitt's score is edgy and excitingly beautiful. The show is a bit like William Finn with a rock edge! Also the set is quite striking and ALL SIX cast members are brilliant. How Aaron Tweit has been overlooked in the Tony nominations I cannot believe. And the divine Miss Ripley is simply extraordinary. (If she doesn't win the Tony it will be a criminal offence!)

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Updated On: 5/22/09 at 03:55 PM

Thanks for spotting the typo, Wishing! I've now corrected the star count LOL (well I do have an excuse- I am jetlagged!).

One thing I forgot to mention - I also went to the Next To Normal CD singing at Barnes and Noble and they performed 3 songs (can't beat a free show!). All the cast were really nice too - both at the signing and when I spoke to them at the stage door after the show. (Alice was particularly charming and she spent a lot of time chatting with everyone who stopped by at the stage door.)

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"did you listen to any of the cast recordings before you went, of shows you saw?"

I knew the 1776 score and have always loved it - and Hair and Billy Elliot, of course. But the scores of the other shows I had not heard before (apart from a couple of clips from In The Heights and Shrek and some songs from NTN on the net).

Generally I prefer not to hear a score before seeing the show if possible. There is nothing more exciting than hearing a great new score for the first time while seeing a new show.

I actually bought the Next To Normal CD before seeing the show (I'd buy a CD of Alice Ripley singing the phone book! lol) - but I deliberately did not listen to it until after seeing the show. And when I was sitting in the theatre watching Next To Normal and hearing all but a handful of the songs for the very first time, each single song was totally mindblowing. Apart from the sheer beauty asd power of Tom Kitt's music, the dramatic ethos of the show is one of the most moving things I'ver ever seen in the theatre. I've even cried a few times while listening to the CD since seeing the show (played it right through 3 times on my journey home!).

And yes, I did see a show in Vegas - Phantom!!!! I enjoyed it - the theatre itself is worth seeing. Anthony Crivello was superb as the Phantom - but I'm afraid it reaffirmed my opinion that ALW's score is just so bloody boring! lol

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Thanks so much for your reviews. I am a huge fan of Hair, BE, N2N, and ITH and I am so glad that you liked them.

SADM - I agree with you that BILLY will win most of the Tonys - though I have a gut feeling that maybe Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey will win for Best Music & Lyrics. (It's happened a number of times that the Best Musical winner has not won for Best Score - eg: Phantom Best Musical but Into The Woods Best Score; Spamalot Best Musical but Light In The Piazza Best Score, etc...) And, as I said b4 - Alice MUST win Best Actress in a Musical.

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Yes, Viola - I did mean SIX cast members. Seems the jet lag is even worse than I thought LOL.

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hahahaha awwwww, its OK you didnt like N2N and didnt see how brilliant it was, its not like we are going to hunt your down and beat you to death with the Wicked Cast Recording *hides Wicked Cast Recording* lol XX

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That sounds pretty 'next to normal!'