bjh- Really?! Ok well I feel completely stupid right now for being so fooled. The guy really did a good job of faking it. I had four friends there tonight and all five of us were convinced that moment was authentic. Ha, well I guess that goes to show how great Corden was at appearing spontaneous. It was such a great moment, and still is. I assume most people won't bother to read the script and will leave the theater just as tricked as I was. Thanks for setting me straight though.
Marie: Don't be in such a hurry about that pretty little chippy in Frisco.
Tony: Eh, she's a no chip!
Yes PJ! Now that you know beat the hummus guy to the punch and REALLY make Corden ad-lib!
THAT would be hilarious!
Ha, well I guess that goes to show how great Corden was at appearing spontaneous. It was such a great moment, and still is. I assume most people won't bother to read the script and will leave the theater just as tricked as I was.
Oh absolutely! It's a great credit to his performance. He makes everything look spontaneous. I was sitting next to the guy and didn't realize it was fake until he didn't show up for Act 2.
SPOILER ALERT:
Did you also think the girl in the food scene was a real audience member? She's also a cast member. She even takes a bow at the end in her bathrobe.
Yes I was completely duped with "Catherine Patterson" too until they threw the water on her and shot the fire extinguisher. She was so fricking fantastic at playing the reluctant audience participator. It was so real until that final moment. Really another brilliant performance.
And omg Alfie!! He stole every second he was on stage, and that's quite the tough task considering who he was sharing it with. Amazing.
Marie: Don't be in such a hurry about that pretty little chippy in Frisco.
Tony: Eh, she's a no chip!
I'm really worried about seeing this again. I loved it so much in London, but I feel like the best parts were the parts that I THOUGHT were improvised as I was watching it. Knowing now that those parts were scripted and that I will be expecting them, I wonder if I will find the play significantly less funny.
Oh my god, I am so annoying in this thread, but all of these comments are making me so happy! I've read the play backwards and forwards a thousand times. I just love it so much and I am SO THRILLED to hear that people here in America seem to love it too.
And YES! Oliver Chris! Obviously Corden is a gem, but OLIVER CHRIS, guys. He's got brilliant comic timing. He's done loads of television in the UK, including a major role in the wonderful series Green Wing (it's all on Hulu - look it up!) and also a part in the original The Office with Ricky Gervais. If you ask me, I'm pulling more for Chris to win the Best Supporting Actor Tony than I am for Corden for the lead.
I really enjoyed myself - and I think I would on a second viewing where I could catch more jokes, enjoy the physical setups, listen to the lyrics better, and see who gets pulled up on stage for the other bit.
I think on a second trip, I'd get the headphones to try to catch more...
Saw this in London. It's bloody brilliant. Please avoid calling Corden's show...it's everyone's, really...an amazing ensemble cast. And yes, YES, to Oliver Chris!
How to properly use its/it's:
Its is the possessive. It's is the contraction for it is...
Yep, I was at the dress rehearsal Friday afternoon, too. Haven't laughed that hard in a long, long time. The elderly waiter flying down the steps... the 'audience member' onstage at the end of the first act... that hairy back... too too much.
And you'll go crazy for 'The Craze.' Them boys are so damn adorable.
Very funny show. Very British. Traditional English fare, but oh, so wonderful 'cause it's very universal.
Broadway really needs this show to round out the wonderful season.
The invited dress audience, filled with a lot of the Broadway community, screamed in delight. The sun was shining outside on a beautiful Good Friday afternoon, but there was no better place to be than inside the Music Box.
The number of people who will not see a show they don't want to see... is unlimited.
Oscar Hammerstein
Brantley LOVED this production when he reviewed it last summer and I'm sure that's one of the reasons it's here this season on Broadway. And even if the second act doesn't fly as high as the first, this show will win over even the most self-involved critic. The elderly waiter alone will make you lose it!
Going again this week with a Manchego Cheese and chorizo sandwich in hand.
Hey, who knows? Maybe I can make my Broadway debut.
The number of people who will not see a show they don't want to see... is unlimited.
Oscar Hammerstein
An excellent piece of theatre. A funny play, with several inspired moments. Very well acted and directed. The musical numbers could/should be reduced, or eliminated entirely. They needlessly protract the play's length.
I really want to see this production but I need help with seating. My options are center orch.first row (Row AA),left orch. row M seat 1, or center mezz. row B. Any help will be appreciated.
I completely disagree. I think most Americans will find this hysterical. Also, I don't know what review you're reading, but Brantley loved the show in London. That review is practically a rave.
We didn't get to the dress rehearsal Friday until about ten minutes before it started. Much of the orchestra was roped off for the production, but the G.M. told us the show played great from the mezzanine, so up we went all those stairs to the fourth of fifth row mezzanine, house left, and it was pretty terrific. You'll have a great time wherever you sit. The Music Box is a wonderful house.
p.s. And as someone else mentioned, Brantley RAVED about the show when he saw it in London (July 2011) and without a doubt, he'll do the same here in New York. Broadway needs a good ole' show where your sides will hurt from laughing. And yep, this British humor translates perfectly. Someone told me today they hadn't laughed so hard since SPAMALOT.
The number of people who will not see a show they don't want to see... is unlimited.
Oscar Hammerstein
I can't figure out whether this is an ad lib or not: During tonight's performance, after Francis asked "Does anyone have a sandwich?," an audience member hurled a plastic bag up on stage. Francis looked at the bag and grinned, saying, "You've seen the show before." He picked it up and commented on the name of the shop, which was printed on the bag. (It was an English company I didn't recognize.) He said it was downmarket. Then he looked inside, and there was a triangular-shaped sandwich package, but no sandwich. When Francis looked up, puzzled, the audience member said, "They wouldn't let the sandwich through customs." Francis feigned disappointment that there was no sandwich, and the audience howled. A very funny bit! It seemed ad libbed to me, but then again, so did the other parts that turned out to be scripted!
Yes, I'm pretty sure he said to the audience, "Let's pretend this never happened," and then said again, "Does anyone have a sandwich?" That led into the hummus bit, which was exactly as described above.
It would be funny if something different happened every night, and to some extent, I'm sure it does!
Oh, I agree completely that theatre going Americans won't get this show at all, because, you know, that crowd doesn't get Monty Python... or Ab Fab... or Faulty Towers... or Shirley Valentine... or Dr. Who... or French & Saunders... or The Vicar of Dibley... or Shakespeare... or G&S.... or... or Burma
There were a couple of small things I think we Americans didn't get. Like, the characters kept commenting that the pub did food, and apparently that's funny because so many pubs don't. Also, a character was described disparagingly as being from the north, and I guess that's a putdown. So I'm wondering how much the script was adapted before the show was moved to the States.
I just adjusted my plans for next week to stay a few hours longer to catch this! It's the day after opening (I originally wanted tix for this, but my available day was opening night!)
Front row.
Very excited!
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.