I was thinking about the reviews of MEAN GIRLS from DC and how most of the reviews lamented the lack of a strong song for Cady. Out of her songs which would be the most “I Want” in your opinion? Would it be It Roars or Stupid with love?
“6 AM. The sky glows. Somewhere a bird chirps. I want to shoot it.” ~ Jonathan Larson, Tick...Tick..BOOM
I still don't understand the hate for the score. It's not incredible, but it plays very well in the theatre and on the cast recording.
"Oh look at the time, three more intelligent plays just closed and THE ADDAMS FAMILY made another million dollars" -Jackie Hoffman, Broadway.com Audience Awards
I never heard "Wild Life", so perhaps that's the reason I seem to be the only one who likes "It Roars"? Yes, I agree that Cady could be better showcased here (Although I would argue that "I See Stars" was built to be Cady's big solo). Nonetheless, the song really helps to build Cady and illustrate the transition from Africa to Chicago, and I think it does that really well. Again, I haven't heard the other song, but I really like what they did with "It Roars".
Her wants: school, skateboarding, rapping, and Starbucks chai lattes.
Why these things? Why these lyrics? Why is Cady a cartoon alien who has apparently never met another human being in her life? (She actually utters the words “Hi, teens!” )
I don't know. Maybe I'm the only person who prefers "It Roars" to "Wildlife". And its the same "I want" as pretty much any Disney princess; some bigger "something" out there mixed with a desire for acceptance. Sondheim it isn't, but for a musical version of a teen comedy hit, it more than works.
To anyone that saw the DC production at the National, were any of the original songs (Wildlife, Justice, Bossed Up, etc.) "better" than the songs we got in the Broadway production? Stop is super counterintuitive, and has no place in the show at all! Fearless and I See Stars are fine, but meh. I do understand the hate for It Roars though; the thought that that song is supposed to be the "I Want" song kind of makes me cringe.
I saw both DC and Broadway and I personally believe they improved. "Wild Life" didn't leave much of a mark on me and at least "It Roars" is catchy (plus the ensemble kills it). "Bossed Up" was my least favorite part of the whole production, so contrived and boring. I spent that entire song thinking "hurry it up, let's get back to the plot." I was ready to get to Act 2 and I had to wait through 5 minutes of that to actually get to it.
I don't have strong opinions on Fearless vs. Justice (they're practically the same), but I love Regina's "Someone Gets Hurt" reprise at the end of Fearless. It works better dramatically than Justice, which just ended on the ensemble throwing their fists up in the air and a quick blackout.
"Stop" is much better than "Bossed Up." By miles. I don't really care if it's basically "Turn it Off" because at least it's copying a song I like and Grey Henson performs the hell out of it (as he did "Turn it Off," funnily enough).
On a slightly different note, I seem to be the only one who dislikes Cady's Disney princess vibe. Everyone seems to love how much she reminds them of Anna from Frozen, but I personally really don't like it and wish she was more of a real girl. I think this mostly has to do with Henningsen's performance, though.