Groban & Ashford in SWEENEY TODD On Broadway - Reviews & News Thread- Page 47

[JasonC3]

Posted: 5/5/23 at 3:55am

^Your devotion to Bernadette and dreams for things that have no chance of happening is admirable.

I think at this point, we likely have to just cherish any memories we have of both Mandy and Bernadette in their previous leading stage roles.

[binau]

Posted: 5/5/23 at 4:30am

JasonC3 said: "^Your devotion to Bernadette and dreams for things that have no chance of happening is admirable.

I think at this point, we likely have to just cherish any memories we have of both Mandy and Bernadette in their previous leading stage roles."

I agree, and my Bernadette dreams have come true more times than you could ever imagine so I feel like I've already had my share (e.g. Night Music replacement, Follies, Hello, Dolly! replacement, her on-going concerts, West end Sondheim old friends etc.). So maybe I've had my time, but if the pattern continues it'll happen lol.

 

Updated On: 5/5/23 at 04:30 AM

[eugenia2]

Posted: 5/5/23 at 9:34am

Show Me said: "Dfor those asserting that the ongoing negativity about this production on BW is a minority opinion, I share the very page on this site that compares the professional critical response to those of BW armchair prognosticators. With 85% of the critics being positive, versus 30% by readers, it’s pretty clear that this particular chat board sits in an extraordinarily and perhaps actuarially unprecedented spread regarding the disapproval of a hit show. And it’s so interesting that Sondheim was aware of this phenomenon and even has a lyric to commemorate it:

I saw My Fair Lady, I sort of enjoyed it.

I would guess that this board has a lot of folks who relate to Frank. The rest of the world seem to live in a less lofty, critical and relentlessly judgmental world



"

Don't know if this happened to anyone else, but when I tried to rate Sweeney, I must have clicked on something and before I knew it, my "vote" was cast as ONE star.  Nope, should have been ten.   It would only take a couple of these missteps to totally skew the results.  

[TaffyDavenport]

Posted: 5/5/23 at 4:46pm

Ham4Ham returned today, with a Hamilton/Sweeney Todd mashup:

 

Updated On: 5/5/23 at 04:46 PM

[TaffyDavenport]

Posted: 5/5/23 at 7:34pm

Rehearsing the Ham4Ham inside the Richard Rodgers:

https://twitter.com/Vegalteno/status/1654623010614124545?s=20

[TaffyDavenport]

Posted: 5/5/23 at 9:35pm

[inception]

Posted: 5/6/23 at 9:40am

Woah! That crowd is crazy

[theatergoer3]

Posted: 5/6/23 at 9:49am

I was there yesterday and it was crazy. Tons of cheers for Lin and both of the casts. Very fun. 

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 5/6/23 at 7:00pm

I caught this again this afternoon. After being pretty disappointed when I saw this in previews, I am happy to admit that the show seems to have grown tremendously in just the last few weeks. I still have some problems with the production, but I had a much more positive experience today. I was sitting in row N of the center orchestra when I saw this the first time, and today I was row D of the the center front mezzanine. I definitely recommend the front mezzanine for this show - the view was so much better, and the sound was better too.

Annaleigh Ashford is hilarious without being outright obnoxious now. She is no longer chewing the scenery seven hundred ways to Sunday. It's a performance that I am now fully onboard with. Jordan Fisher even seemed in better form. I love Groban's Sweeney, but he's still just not *quite* scary enough. That's just a minor quibble, though.

I still think the direction and choreography are a little off in quite a few places, but I was fully swept up in the music and story today in a way I was not a few weeks ago. Anyways, I'm really glad I gave this a second chance! While a slightly imperfect Sweeney, it's still pretty solid. Also, the set and lighting design look even better sitting upstairs than they did down in the orchestra - just really beautifully designed.

[noahseestheatre]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 12:28am

Just caught the evening performance and i want to start by saying the sound issues were resolved from previews if anyone was wondering—in fact, i left thinking their nom for Sound Design was deserved, with the echos and nice mixing of orchestra and vocals.

 

I also agree ^ that Ashford had a good balance of hammy and not too much that it slowed down the pace. Groban was one of the best vocals i’ve heard, and thought his acting was up to par! Fisher was out but his understudy was great, and Gaten and Ruthie were some highlights for me (though Ruthie’s face was seldom viewable till the second act). Gorgeous lighting and set design, loved the tower and the subtle choreography.

 

And what a debut for Maria Bilbao! Incredible night at the theatre, and the best part is seeing how invested and excited the audience was. Off to Parade tomorrow, this revival race is really intense and I love it!

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 2:33pm

According to the Sweeney Todd Facebook and Instagram accounts, Groban is out of the 3PM matinee today, 5/7.

Updated On: 5/7/23 at 02:33 PM

[jkcohen626]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 2:41pm

Stranger Things filming supposedly being delayed because of the WGA strike. Lemons to lemonade, I wonder if this means we get Gaten in Sweeney for a bit longer. 

[Hopelesslydevoted24]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 2:45pm

Ugh! How disappointing. Purchased tickets earlier today and checked their socials to confirm cast was on. They just announced 35 minutes ago! 

[ACL2006]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 2:50pm

bwayphreak234 said: "According to the Sweeney Todd Facebook and Instagram accounts, Groban is out of the 3PM matinee today, 5/7."

Groban gonna cut down to 6 shows a week after the Tonys. Wait for it...

[binau]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 3:42pm

Very interesting. At this stage it’s complete speculation on my part to suggest it might be related to vocal health but if so I wonder if we might also see him pull back a little during Epiphany. I was so impressed at how much he put into that song vocally and I haven’t really heard him do that before on his recorded albums etc. but is that really sustainable especially in the context of this mammoth score? 

[ljay889]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 5:44pm

Groban announced on IG that he has laryngitis. 

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 5:52pm

All the extra events and press take a toll on a person. Perhaps also one of the reasons for Lea Michele being out of both shows on Weds (on the heels of the Met Gala, then hosting the Tony noms). It's something producers & press agents have to constantly balance when trying to promote their shows. Which was one benefit of Bette doing zero press for DOLLY and having sterling attendance (except for that one matinee).

[jkcohen626]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 8:00pm

ljay889 said: "Groban announced on IG that he has laryngitis."

Ah, ciao Jaquel Spivey parte due. If he's our too much he can kiss any chance at the Tony goodbye. 

[dramamama611]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 8:08pm

And exactly, what would you like him to do about his laryngitis?  They'll do what they can to re-seat voters.

[PipingHotPiccolo]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 10:09pm

im not entirely sure what the Jacques Spivey situation was but why the hostility/issues with someone who has laryngitis? Ive come down with it and im not someone who sings for hours a day.

[ColorTheHours048]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 11:40pm

jkcohen626 said: "ljay889 said: "Groban announced on IG that he has laryngitis."

Ah, ciao Jaquel Spivey parte due. If he's our too much he can kiss any chance at the Tony goodbye."

Huh? One was a young, twenty-something right out of college in his first Broadway contract; the other is a seasoned performer who has not only done Broadway, but tours the world as a solo artist. They are not even close to the same.

[chrishuyen]

Posted: 5/7/23 at 11:51pm

I think the reference they're trying to make (and I took this as sardonic rather than serious) is that Jaquel Spivey not winning the Tony was in part attributed to the fact that he had been in and out of the show a lot leading up to voting, especially in a tightly contested race (which it seems like this season is also shaping up to be).  Again, I doubt they meant it legitimately, more just slightly mocking (though jkcohen can feel free to correct me if that's not the case).

[ljay889]

Posted: 5/8/23 at 12:02am

The full opening "Ballad" is now streaming! Sounds absolutely fantastic. 

[jkcohen626]

Posted: 5/8/23 at 3:21am

chrishuyen said: "I think the reference they're trying to make (and I took this as sardonic rather than serious) is that Jaquel Spivey not winning the Tony was in part attributed to the fact that he had been in and out of the show a lot leading up to voting, especially in a tightly contested race (which it seems like this season is also shaping up to be). Again, I doubt they meant it legitimately, more just slightly mocking (though jkcohen can feel free to correct me if that's not the case)."

Bingo. Not 100% serious, but also not 100% not serious. I do think that Jaquel lost at least in part because of his absences. Was it a deciding factor and/or will it be again, who knows? But it seems like we have a VERY tight three-way race and there's no way that missing a bunch of performances (along with press and events) leading up to the Tonys will be a good thing for Groban's chances. 

[binau]

Posted: 5/8/23 at 6:00am

Maybe Idk. I didn’t see a strange loop (live anyway), but if the voters happened to see it off Broadway (or heard the recording) I can easily see why they might have passed - the off Broadway recording sounds like a Tony winning performance and vocals to me but the Broadway lead sounds so mediocre in comparison. Groban on the other hand is really delivering in this role vocally in my opinion, and we’ve already got a snippet of it from this new cast recording track. Still, I take the point absences can sometimes be thought to contribute to losses. I hope Groban gets well soon :).