LYSISTRATA JONES Reviews

[LimelightMike]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 5:47am

Today is Wednesday, December 14, marking the official opening night of LYSISTRATA JONES -- when basketball, cheerleaders. sex, and show tunes take center court -- at the Walter Kerr Theatre.

Written by Douglas Carter Beane and Lewis Flinn, and directed and choreographed by Dan Knechtges, Lysistrata Jones is the pop reimagining of the 411 B.C. Greek play Lysistrata, by Aristophanes, about a sex strike in wartime. The story is now placed in the realm of college basketball, with cheerleaders trying to inspire their team to victory.

Here's how the producers characterize the show: "The Athens University basketball team hasn't won a game in 30 years. But when spunky transfer student Lysistrata Jones (Patti Murin) dares the squad’s fed-up girlfriends to stop 'giving it up' to their boyfriends until they win a game, their legendary losing streak could be coming to an end. In this boisterous new musical comedy, Lyssie J. and her girl-power posse give Aristophanes' classic comedy a sexy, modern twist and take student activism to a whole new level."

Posted: 12/14/11 at 11:59am

Not exactly a review -- more of a feature article that one could read while waiting for the reviews to appear tonight:

Lysistrata Jones: Broadway’s Naughty New Musical

The musical Lysistrata Jones is a delightful cross between Mean Girls and High School Musical featuring contemporary barbs aimed at everything from the iPhone’s Siri to Newt Gingrich. The director and stars dish to Marlow Stern about the best show not named Book of Mormon.

The Daily Beast, Dec 14, 2011 6:50 AM EST

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 12:19pm

After reading everyone's thoughts... I am very curious to see what the critics have to say...

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 12:25pm

How bad could the reviews be? It was received pretty well previously and it's not as if it was written by Wildhorn.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 12:47pm

If this horrid piece of garbage gets good reviews from critics who trashed a good show like BONNIE & CLYDE, it'll be proof that they're being paid off.

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 12:54pm

The reviews I have read both on here and on ATC have been all over the place. It will be interesting to see what the critics think. Looking forward to reading these reviews tonight.

[JillianSch]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 1:07pm

I so agree with Jordan Catalano. I saw Lysistrata off broadway back in may/june? and thought it was super boring/unfunny.
Updated On: 12/14/11 at 01:07 PM

[bwayfan7000]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 1:52pm

Unless the change of space to a Broadway house drastically changes opinions of the show (which has certainly happened before), I'd imagine most critics who liked the show off-Broadway will remain positive. But perhaps it's just wishful thinking on my part.

[ALittlePriest]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 2:44pm

I absolutely agree with Jordan.

This show may have exceeded expectations for an Off-Broadway musical, warranting (some) good reviews. But it simply not good enough for Broadway.

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 2:55pm

The ill will in this thread is sad.

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 3:09pm

I never quite understand the whole "not good enough for Broadway" thing. What qualifies a show for Broadway anymore. I'm simply satisfied enough that it's not a show that is based on something out of my Netflix queue.

[PopAria]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 3:14pm

I've heard great things from people outside of this thread...
Let's see where the critics stand. Can't wait!!

[ALittlePriest]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 3:18pm

It is not good enough for Broadway because it is:
a) Off-Broadway talent
b) Amateurish music
c) Not funny, amateurish jokes
d) Silly in an unimportant way.

To verify that it is not good enough for Broadway, one can simply look at the ticket sales that clearly show no one deems it worthy of paying Broadway prices.

[ALittlePriest]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 3:23pm

Godspell has a Broadway callibur cast. If only Lysistrata Jones had their ensemble it would be a different situation entirely. But then Godspell would be in the position LJ is in.

[emilyfaye48]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 3:46pm

ahahahahaha you're funny

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 4:08pm

I don't fault the cast of LJ at all. It's the material that's lacking in every conceivable way. an amateurish and forgettable score coupled with a book Beane must have written while he was drunk or high or both and you've got one of the stupidest nights ever wasted at the theater.

[bjh2114]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 4:19pm

The Financial Times is up early and is mixed (3 out of 5 stars):

"Beane’s book is the standout creative element, allowing the cast, especially a big-mama Greek chorus figure called Hetaira, given good growl by Liz Mikel, to deliver laughs you don’t hate yourself for the next morning. Unfortunately, Beane’s book also tends to lose the basic plot thread, which unravels from helping the team win a game to a fairly generic message of uplift. Musically, the show keeps an audience percolating – vanilla rap, mild funk and power balladry are the presiding genres – but the audio design sounds tinny."

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/00fa0a4a-2643-11e1-9ed3-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1gXuhiP1K

[shrekster224]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 4:49pm

What was that comment about off-Broadway talent? There are plenty of Broadway performers, or performers that have been on broadway before, in off-Broadway shows, and in the Lysistrata cast. Point not valid.

[emilyfaye48]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 4:57pm

tix still available to buy for opening tonight! that's good for me and bad for the show :-/

[ALittlePriest]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 5:08pm

The point is valid because Off-Broadway calibur performers appear on Broadway all the time, hence look at Lysistrata Jones, they are technically on Broadway.

[Smaxie]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 5:54pm

It's caliber or calibre, depending upon your preference. But definitely not calibur.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 5:56pm

What qualifies a show for Broadway anymore.

The same thing as always: money. You raise the money, you can get a show on Broadway. That is the only requisite.

If the performers are Broadway performers because they are currently performing on Broadway, but used to perform Off-Broadway, would that make them ex-calibur?

[swimmingzeppo]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 6:03pm

StageZine.com (for what it is worth) is a rave...


LJ - StageZine Review

[CurtainPullDowner]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 7:44pm

The Bonnie and Hyde fanatics should probably stop reading these reviews right now.

Why didn't that damn Bernadette Peters stay Off-Broadway where she belonged? Updated On: 12/14/11 at 07:44 PM

[husk_charmer]

Posted: 12/14/11 at 8:06pm

When I saw the show in Dallas last year, it was in good shape. It wasn't Broadway ready, per se, but it wasn't anywhere near awful. But the changes made really sound like they hurt the show a LOT...so I wonder what happened.