ON THE TOWN Reviews- Page 7

Posted: 4/17/15 at 11:09am

David Alvarez, one of the original Billy Elliots on Broadway, joined the cast the night we saw this show last week.

[jkstheatrescene]

Posted: 4/17/15 at 1:19pm

^^

Is it any wonder OTT has no buzz and poor attendance?  They have a TONY AWARD winner joining the cast, and there are NO articles about it, not even a quick note in a New York paper.

 

Billy Elliott fans would love to know this, I think, even if he is in the ensemble.  AND he spent his time away in the American Armed Forces!  If that's not a logical tie-in to the show, I don't know what is.

 

Have they given up?  Or are they just skating on the hopes that the Tony noms will generate interest? While it is egregious that Riedel doesn't mention OTT in his latest stupid article, it's no wonder he "forgot it."  No one knows it's there anymore.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 4/17/15 at 1:46pm

Wow, that's a lot of outrage. He's a swing. They don't want to say something like, "Come see now-grown, Tony Award-winning David Alvarez, but only if someone else is out!"

http://www.playbillvault.com/Person/Detail/56409/David-Alvarez

 

[PalJoey]

Posted: 4/17/15 at 1:50pm

Good for David! It's not easy being a former child star--and it's not easy being a dancer either. I hope he has a lot of fun dancing all that wonderful choreography.

[jkstheatrescene]

Posted: 4/17/15 at 2:04pm

Ahhh the drama of we theater folk! Outrage?  Really?  Statements of fact and legitimate questions. Nothing more.

And I didn't realize he was a swing, as the "Official" OTT website lists him as an Ensemble member.  So, you are right.  Why write anything about that?  And boo to OTT for potentially misleading Billy Elliott fans into thinking he'll be in every performance.  (Not everyone looks at the Playbill Vault.)

 

I had to laugh at your use of "outrage," which I admit it could seem like it - it's hard to read tone on a computer screen, after all.  I laughed because as a show I don't think i could care less about what happens to it.  It was, as they say, "meh" to me.  But before you inevitably ask, "If you don't care, why did you bother to reply?"  It is simple: the business (and it IS a business) side of things fascinates me.  A struggling show  and/or its fans shouldn't be surprised when that show is overlooked or lacking in buzz when that show's producers/press people are apparently doing little to "keep it out there." Whether I like it or not doesn't matter - I adored The Visit, and it struggles.  If the public at large has forgotten it, then it can't be a surprise that it is struggling at the box office, or that a columnist has left it out of an article about the Tony race.  And if people aren't lining up to see it now, will Tony nominations REALLY make that much of a difference long-term?

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 4/17/15 at 2:12pm

I mean, PBV could be wrong, but in my experience it's usually more likely that an official site would get a detail in a cast list wrong.

You used a lot of alternating caps. It seemed like outrage. But I guess you're just enthusiastic.

[jkstheatrescene]

Posted: 4/17/15 at 2:19pm

I keep forgetting (as I just pointed out to someone else on another thread) that you can now easily use italics and bold and underlining to emphasize words.  My bad!

 

(And I appreciate the civilized banter we are sharing here!  Seriously!  )

[Tigger]

Posted: 4/17/15 at 6:18pm

I'm always puzzled when I read that a show is "Meh!" or doing badly or such as when I do go to see a show, often the contrary seems true. Last friday I went to see OTT (for the second time and to see Rudy who won If You Think You Can Dance last year) and the house was packed to the rafters. I honestly did not see an empty seat except one or two at the very sides of the front rows. I was in E row on the aisle and so had a great view of the two packed balconies. I also had a chat with the friendly usher who showed me to my seat and who informed me that the houses had in fact been very good of late. I know the show is on discounts, nevertheless with a house that big even at a discount the show should be able to maintain.

The reaction at the curtain call was explosive with standing and much cheering and lots of positive and laudatory comments were overheard as I exited the theatre. Unless the house was filled with an extremely large group of hypocrites, I would think and hope that this would signify positive word of mouth.

I also went to see the last preview of An American In Paris after reading many less than kind comments on this board and was enchanted. The audience reaction was positively mindboggling at the curtain call again suggesting that this is the best show in town.

The one show I did not care much for, Finding Neverland, I noticed had a more muted response but went stratospheric when Morrison and Grammer took their bows. That I must attribute to their star power and also maybe to the fact that most people were grateful for having gotten discounted tickets, as I was.

[gypsy101]

Posted: 4/17/15 at 9:43pm

For my upcoming trip to NYC, I'd been deeply considering seeing On the Town but had been wary of purchasing the tickets (between May 28-June 1) for fear of the show closing before I arrived and leaving me with an empty slot in my schedule. With An American in Paris opening and getting the raves it has, should I just see AAIP and skip OTT?

[Phillypinto]

Posted: 4/17/15 at 9:56pm

No you should see Living on Love

[gypsy101]

Posted: 4/17/15 at 10:08pm

What the heck is it about?

[Phillypinto]

Posted: 4/17/15 at 10:13pm

a comedy with fabulous singing!

[gypsy101]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 12:09am

Like a play within a play? It's about a comedy?

[HorseTears]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 3:04am

UGH. 

[sctrojan65]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 3:42am

Go with your gut feeling and add to it what you consider to be of personal interest.  

When I was researching these same musicals prior to my trip to NYC last week, I found split feelings on almost every show.   For every person who thought OTT was a bore and dated, there were others who loved it.  For every person who fell asleep in Neverland, there were others who liked it.  I found the same to be true with Paris, Visit, Rotten and even OTTC.

The only one that seemed to hold the predominant percentage of favorable reviews from the people on the boards was Fun Home.   

I ended up liking them all in their own ways.

The one thing I can say is every show was very well-received by the audience. I concur with the poster who observed much the same.

I'm sure there were individuals in the audience who didn't like this one or that.  But overall, the theaters for all the shows I saw were almost completely full in the orchestra and mezzanine and the shows were highly appreciated by the audiences.

 

[dramamama611]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 6:03am

Gypsy,philly hadn't even seen the show. He's hawking a show he WANTS to be great...even though it's failing what seems like most levels.

OTT is quite lovely.the dancing is superb and it's full of energy. More than wworthy of your Mo eye and time.  (Although I understand your concern.)  

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 5:25pm

For my upcoming trip to NYC, I'd been deeply considering seeing On the Town but had been wary of purchasing the tickets (between May 28-June 1) for fear of the show closing before I arrived and leaving me with an empty slot in my schedule. With An American in Paris opening and getting the raves it has, should I just see AAIP and skip OTT?

 

See On The Town. It is an absolutely glorious production.

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 5:43pm

"I'm always puzzled when I read that a show is "Meh!" or doing badly or such as when I do go to see a show, often the contrary seems true. Last friday I went to see OTT (for the second time and to see Rudy who won If You Think You Can Dance last year) and the house was packed to the rafters."

 I don't know what other shows you have experienced this with, but using a Friday or Saturday night performance as your baseline isn't necessarily going to provide the best picture. Many shows that are struggling will still do good business on the weekends. But that's only three or four shows, depending on their schedule, out of eight.

That being said, the show has been seeing some gains over the past few weeks. If they are able to get some good exposure from the upcoming awards season it may lead to a decent summer of sales for them.

[tazber]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 8:36pm

See On The Town!!!

It's so good. Everything about it is perfection.

Don't miss your chance to see this amazing production.

[Robbie2]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 10:04pm

Get tix for OTT...when I saw it last month, the house manager told me that the producers plan on keeping it open till summer but who really knows?

It's a beautifully heavily danced show and the fabulous Bernstein score is played by the glorious 30 piece orchestra...sounding simply lush. A bit dated but still a fun evening, you won't be disappointed.

Updated On: 4/18/15 at 10:04 PM

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 10:12pm

A lot of shows were doing well last week, including On The Town, as it was an Easter week holiday for a lot of folks. I'm sure most shows fell off to their regular levels this week.

That said, I've seen the show five times, with varying degrees of capacity, and I will say even with the theatre half full, you'll never see a crowd show so such much love for a show that you'd swear the theatre was filled to the gods. It's simply a wonderful show that I think really surprises people, who feel they are rewarded for coming into a show without familiarity, a star or a gimmick or fall in love with it.

[tazber]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 10:25pm

It's one of those shows that when you walk out all you want to do is get tickets to see it again.

[PalJoey]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 11:18pm

The first time I saw it I said at intermission that I didn't want to go back in and see the second act--I wanted to go back in and have them start the first act all over again from the beginning and then do the second act.

[miss pennywise]

Posted: 4/18/15 at 11:35pm

ON THE TOWN. No contest. I saw AAIP. But I saw OTT THREE times. It's glorious on every level.

[ACL2006]

Posted: 4/19/15 at 12:00am

just noticed this on Ticketmaster, but does anyone know why OTT is dark from May 7 - 12??