A STRANGE LOOP On Broadway - Reviews & News Thread- Page 15

[bwaylyric]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:35pm

What is this word to which Oleksinski is referring?

"However, there also is a word beginning with 'P' I hope to never hear uttered on a Broadway stage again."

[MayAudraBlessYou2]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:36pm

Oleksinski makes me want to rip out my hair. I can't believe they let him write that crap. I mean, I can because its the Post and they have no integrity, but still. It's awful. 

And yes, my jaw dropped to the floor when I read the part in the Chicago Tribune about how "in a few years he wont want to be the center of his own story. But he's just too young and too silly and too naïve to realize" WOW. wow wow wow. 

Some critics out here embarrassing themselves. And as @forfivemoreminutes delightfully points out, they play right into Michael's hand. Amazing how the show TRULY went over their heads.

[Rakesh Natarajan]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:36pm

Kad said: "Oleksinski’s review is remarkably juvenile."

Yeah... I'm not really a fan of how he dedicated two paragraphs of his review to complaining about how the show uses profane language:

"Prepare your ears: The musical is also absolutely filthy. If “Spring Awakening” or “The Book of Mormon” had you reaching for your rosary, best bring along some holy water and frankincense for this one. On the language front, Jackson goes overboard.

The amount of beyond-vulgar sex talk in this show is really through the roof. And not in any kind of brave, “to boldly go” way. One term — to find a euphemism for it would take a supercomputer — said during a hookup with a racist white guy almost made me lose my lunch."

I also don't think his critiques about how the show doesn't give us a break from Usher's misery are entirely valid (or representative of the show's actual message either):

"There’s no respite from Usher’s misery, since even his art is, well, about his misery. The show amounts to a series of disappointments leading to the conclusion that life is nothing but a series of disappointments. So, grin and bear it."

EDIT: I should clarify that I do think it is important to point out that the show uses (for lack of a better term) profanity, but I do think that he focuses too much on it. He literally ends his review by saying, "However, there also is a word beginning with “P” I hope to never hear uttered on a Broadway stage again." Personally, I just think that there are more important parts of the show that he could have spent that space focusing on. Obviously though, he's entitled to write whatever he wants. If he truly feels that strongly about the language, then I'd just disagree with him.

Updated On: 4/27/22 at 10:36 PM

[forfivemoreminutes]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:36pm

bwaylyric said: "What is this word to which Oleksinski is referring?

"However, there also is a word beginning with 'P' I hope to never hear uttered on a Broadway stage again.""

Does he mean Popeye’s?

[YvanEhtNioj]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:38pm

forfivemoreminutes said: "bwaylyric said: "What is this word to which Oleksinski is referring?

"However, there also is a word beginning with 'P' I hope to never hear uttered on a Broadway stage again.""

Does he mean Popeye’s?"

Yes. His entire review feels VERY anti-black. 

[Rakesh Natarajan]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:38pm

Washington Post is positive:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/theater-dance/2022/04/26/a-strange-loop-broadway/

"The composer-lyricist already has that Pulitzer, but now he deserves the Tony. Spivey should get one, too. Heck, give “A Strange Loop” a lot of Tonys. That’s only just, for the best Broadway musical of the season."

Updated On: 4/26/22 at 10:38 PM

[jkcohen626]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:38pm

So Maya Phillips does like theatre! I had no idea based on her recent reviews!

Anyways, glad this show is getting the praise it 100% deserves! Hopefully, this will get it the boost in sales it definitely needs! 

[TaffyDavenport]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:38pm

bwaylyric said: "What is this word to which Oleksinski is referring?

"However, there also is a word beginning with 'P' I hope to never hear uttered on a Broadway stage again.""

Doesn't someone say "prolapse?" Or am I making that up?

Updated On: 4/26/22 at 10:38 PM

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:39pm

Helen Shaw in Vulture is a rave:

A Strange Loop Moves to Broadway, Its Furious Energy Changed but Intact

https://www.vulture.com/2022/04/theater-review-a-strange-loop-broadway.html

"Perhaps there’s a universe in which Jackson could have widened the show’s own representative spiral, to include the perplexities of being rewarded by the Establishment. Or maybe fame and attention change that Loop forever, wrenching it into a new shape, which would be unrecognizable here. My answer to the musical’s very few frustrations is to cast my mind back to its first 20 minutes, which, each time I hear them, still seem eternally surprising and brand-new. In his first song, Usher is still wrestling with what to write about, his Thoughts trying to get his attention and bickering with one another. “Some say write from exploration / Some say write from what you know,” he sings, wondering which way to go. Usher still sounds unsure in these moments, like he might choose another path than the one he follows next. We know what happens to Usher because we know what happens to Michael R. Jackson. But the musical doesn’t know that yet — and at this point, the fabulous, piety-smashing Loop still feels as exhilarating as your first trip on the merry-go-round."

[forfivemoreminutes]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:40pm

Rakesh Natarajan said: "Kad said: "Oleksinski’s review is remarkably juvenile."

Yeah... I'm not really a fan of how he dedicated two paragraphs of his review to complaining about how the show uses profane language:

"Prepare your ears: The musical is also absolutely filthy. If “Spring Awakening” or “The Book of Mormon” had you reaching for your rosary, best bring along some holy water and frankincense for this one. On the language front, Jackson goes overboard.

The amount of beyond-vulgar sex talk in this show is really through the roof. And not in any kind of brave, “to boldly go” way. One term — to find a euphemism for it would take a supercomputer — said during a hookup with a racist white guy almost made me lose my lunch."

I also don't think his critiques about how the show doesn't give us a break from Usher's misery are entirely valid (or representative of the show's actual message either):

"There’s no respite from Usher’s misery, since even his art is, well, about his misery. The show amounts to a series of disappointments leading to the conclusion that life is nothing but a series of disappointments. So, grin and bear it.""

The comment about there being no respite from Usher’s misery is something that would never be said about a play about white people written by a white person. Has this dude never seen Les Miserables? It’s literally called THE MISERABLES. There is no respite from misery there either…and yet that kind of show doesn’t get the same critique. Because it’s only *Black* men who have to be strong all the time and can’t be vulnerable throughout a 100 minute musical.

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:42pm

DTLI Consensus: A big, Black, and queer-ass American Broadway smash. 

15 positive (including the NYT), 1 mixed. 

And the Tony for Best Musical goes to...

https://didtheylikeit.com/shows/a-strange-loop/

[YvanEhtNioj]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:42pm

TaffyDavenport said: "bwaylyric said: "What is this word to which Oleksinski is referring?

"However, there also is a word beginning with 'P' I hope to never hear uttered on a Broadway stage again.""

Doesn't someone say "prolapse?" Or am I making that up?"

Yeah during Inwood Daddy

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:43pm

This is quite the pull quote from Maya P:

"Remarkable. Radical. There is no measure of praise that could be too much."

I'll be very curious to see how the box office is tomorrow, and if these reviews can convince the crusty old whites to go see it...or if they'll feel more like Johnny O.

[forfivemoreminutes]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:45pm

YvanEhtNioj said: "forfivemoreminutes said: "bwaylyric said: "What is this word to which Oleksinski is referring?

"However, there also is a word beginning with 'P' I hope to never hear uttered on a Broadway stage again.""

Does he mean Popeye’s?"

Yes. His entire review feels VERY anti-black."

Agreed. And personally I am very much looking forward to A Strange Loop Part II, a musical about a Black gay man reading racially-tinged reviews of his musical about a Black gay man reading racially-tinged reviews of his musical about a Black gay man reading racially-tinged reviews of his musical…

[forfivemoreminutes]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:47pm

YvanEhtNioj said: "TaffyDavenport said: "bwaylyric said: "What is this word to which Oleksinski is referring?

"However, there also is a word beginning with 'P' I hope to never hear uttered on a Broadway stage again.""

Doesn't someone say "prolapse?" Or am I making that up?"

Yeah during Inwood Daddy"

That seems like such a highly specific word to have a problem with if that’s the case. I didn’t even know what that word meant - I had to Google it.

[YvanEhtNioj]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:47pm

I definitely think that these reviews paired with the word of mouth that it’s getting around the gay community will definitely help. 

Re: Best Musical. 
It’s been so long but didn’t Six get just as good reviews? I’m trying to imagine, based on reviews hypothetically , who will take the Tony. 
 

 

Updated On: 4/26/22 at 10:47 PM

[ANewBrainn]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:47pm

forfivemoreminutes said: "bwaylyric said: "What is this word to which Oleksinski is referring?

"However, there also is a word beginning with 'P' I hope to never hear uttered on a Broadway stage again.""

Does he mean Popeye’s?"

Poppers?

[stlrod]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:48pm

It seems like people are focusing a little too much on a few outlying reviews all of which also have positive things to say about the show.  Overall, these reviews are fantastic and all involved are to be congratulated!

[forfivemoreminutes]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:50pm

ANewBrainn said: "forfivemoreminutes said: "bwaylyric said: "What is this word to which Oleksinski is referring?

"However, there also is a word beginning with 'P' I hope to never hear uttered on a Broadway stage again.""

Does he mean Popeye’s?"

Poppers?"

I suppose the fact that we’re all trying to figure out what word he’s referring to means the reference he’s making is too obscure and whatever word it is can’t be THAT bothersome to the vast majority of viewers.

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:54pm

Incredible reviews as predicted for this brilliant piece of art.

The amount of beyond-vulgar sex talk in this show is really through the roof. And not in any kind of brave, “to boldly go” way. One term — to find a euphemism for it would take a supercomputer — said during a hookup with a racist white guy almost made me lose my lunch."

This person is a hack who voted for Trump. Also, he would never say this about straight, white people having sex and talking about it. Despicable. 

[forfivemoreminutes]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:55pm

stlrod said: "It seems like people are focusing a little too much on a few outlying reviews all of which also have positive things to say about the show. Overall, these reviews are fantastic and all involved are to be congratulated!"

Absolutely - most of the reviews are glowing (as well they should be). I think some of us are focusing on the outliers just because they are *so* ridiculous and emblematic of the argument the show itself makes, not necessarily because they’re the majority. Personally I’m quite heartened and pleasantly surprised that the majority of reviews have been so positive, given the bleak reality the show itself satirizes re shows about Black people’s experience. This show is unapologetically a “big Black queer-ass American Broadway show” and very purposefully does NOT cater to white audiences, and I think that should be celebrated, and I’m glad most of the critics seem to be on the same wavelength. But the ones who aren’t go on to prove the show’s point.

[forfivemoreminutes]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 10:58pm

I also think it’s pretty meta that a show that’s explicitly about resisting the white male gaze is being judged (whether positively or negatively) by predominantly white male critics within the mainstream media and that this show will likely live or die based on what these white critics (and Tony voters) think about it. Whether the “Caucasians” are pleased by this show or not (and it looks like they mostly are), it still goes to the show’s point that “if you can’t please the Caucasians you will never get the dough.” The fact that this show might succeed at “pleasing the Caucasians” doesn’t negate that reality.

[jkcohen626]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 11:11pm

One hilarious (and revealing) distinction between the Times and Post is that Philips called the "friendly piece of advice" scene (L. Morgan Lee's solo) her least favorite part of the show while Oleksinski said it was his absolute favorite scene. 

Definitely revealing about the two writers'... backgrounds and VERY reminiscent of some people saying that King George's numbers in Hamilton were their favorite when he is "coincidentally" the only white lead and his songs are "coincidentally" the only songs with a more classic musical theatre sound. 

[Rakesh Natarajan]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 11:14pm

YvanEhtNioj said: "I definitely think that these reviews paired with the word of mouth that it’s getting around the gay community will definitely help.

Re: Best Musical.
It’s been so long but didn’t Six get just as good reviews? I’m trying to imagine, based on reviews hypothetically , who will take the Tony.


"

Six definitely had near the same number of positive reviews. However, I feel like the positive reviews for A Strange Loop are probably more vocal/overwhelmingly positive, giving it the edge. When reading the reviews for Six, I didn't really remember seeing any phrases like: 

"And yet, it seems as if there is no measure of praise that could be too much"

"May “A Strange Loop” run as long as “The Lion King.”"

"Not only does “Loop” belong on Broadway, it is by far the best new musical to open during this very strange theater season."

"But I’ll end with this: his stated aim in “A Strange Loop” is to amplify, with music and ideas, what it feels like to be a young, Black gay man in the creative melee of New York City, ever more removed from much of the rest of America. In that, he succeeds as no one has before."

"The saying “You’ve never seen anything like this before” is often overused in reviews. But when it comes to A Strange Loop, the shattering, electrifying debut musical from Michael E. Jackson that opened Tuesday at New York’s Lyceum Theatre, the phrase would be an understatement."

"The result is a triumphant assertion of individuality in a world that increasingly defines us by demography, largely for the purpose of selling us products and politicians. That makes A Strange Loop the best new musical of the Broadway season."

“WOW!” I thought to myself as my body leapt to its feet on its own volition to applaud A Strange Loop. “This must be how people who saw the first performances of Show Boat, Oklahoma!, Company, Rent, or Hamilton felt.” Though I’ve witnessed and studied the innovations in each of those musicals, none of them are as revolutionary as what Michael R. Jackson has accomplished with his Pulitzer Prize-winning musical, now making its Broadway debut."

 

However, I think the thing about this show... is that it is completely right about needing to appeal to white audiences. That's what (unfortunately) happens in commercial theater and the Tony voting audience is likely no exception to this. I still think the Tony race is undetermined, but I'd say A Strange Loop definitely has the edge on reviews.

Updated On: 4/26/22 at 11:14 PM

[MadsonMelo]

Posted: 4/26/22 at 11:14pm

YvanEhtNioj said: "I definitely think that these reviews paired with the word of mouth that it’s getting around the gay community will definitely help.

Re: Best Musical.
It’s been so long but didn’t Six get just as good reviews? I’m trying to imagine, based on reviews hypothetically , who will take the Tony.


"

I dont if Six had so many reviews, but they were all very good/raves, didnt even remember a mixed one from a good paper.

That Being said, the reviews for “Loop” makes very clear that its a “piece of art” in a way that cant be comparable to any other show (let alone musical) in this Broadway season.

Im very sad that I didnt get to see, but Im rooting for the show to take that Tony!