Memphis the most underrated musical ever!

[BwayLB]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 12:34am

Who agrees with me Memphis is the most underrated musical ever? I’ve seen the Fathom Events proshot, then the 2012 national tour and a regional production in Long Beach. The music is epic, the themes are emotionally timely and the dancing is high energy.

[teddy1996]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 2:02am

i’m still waiting on the film adaptation 

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 3:04am

I hated it and thought American Idiot deserved Best Musical.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 5:52am

One of my least favorite theater experiences, ever. 

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 7:21am

Oof. It was like a bad Lifetime movie. The book and score were pretty abysmal, in my opinion.

[JanMaxwellsBag]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 7:46am

Memphis to me was just a whole lot of meh. Not particularly bad, not particularly good. 

If we’re talking DiPietro/Bryan, I’m much more partial to the camp fest train wreck that is Diana (look no further than my signature for my favorite bad lyric), but that’s a subject for another thread. 

Updated On: 1/28/23 at 07:46 AM

[BwayLB]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 10:22am

teddy1996 said: "i’m still waiting on the film adaptation"

I’ve waited since 2011 for it. But I’ve seen more stage to screen adaptations than ever in the last two years. In the Heights, West Side Story, 13, Tick Tick Boom and Matilda.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 10:31am

The only good thing to come from that show existing is the song “Colored Woman”.

[SouthernCakes]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 10:36am

The lyrics in every song are so obvious and cliche. Awful. 
 

gorgeously staged but otherwise awful. 
 

Toxic Avenger is their best work. Stick to camp. 

[HogansHero]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 10:49am

To each their own but to me this exercise in mediocrity is certainly not underrated. Aside from matters of taste, how can something that won the Tony be considered underated?

[thirtythirtyninety]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 10:58am

Not a fan. At all. One of my very least favorite musicals. Sorry 

[DaveyG]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 11:28am

Memphis is IMHO the most overrated musical ever. The fact that it won Tonys for Best Musical, Best Score and Best Book is laughable. What a lame season. 

Updated On: 1/28/23 at 11:28 AM

[binau]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 11:52am

I always found the dichotomy between this board vs public on Memphis interesting and something that doesn’t happen often. If I recall posts on here we’re predicting the show would close on opening night. Yet it won best musical, was filmed, had a west end run etc. 

[Jarethan]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 12:17pm

I enjoyed it when I saw it the day after it opened, driven by a lot of very good reviews.  My son and I happened to be in NYC looking at colleges.  
 

There was a certain excitement in the theatre because no one was expecting it to get good reviews.  Undoubtedly, that electricity added to the fun.

The think I remember most was the choreography, which I thought was excellent.  The cast was also very good.   Oth of us left the theatre having enjoyed the show.

That said, I never had any interest in seeing it again.  It was fun and forgettable.   I also never purchased the cast recording, which is telling.


 

The fact that it ran almost three years, although to a lot of discounted seats, says to me that it’s audiences as a whole liked it, but didn’t love it.

[SpookyFish13]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 2:39pm

Memphis was my first ever Broadway show, so it definitely holds a special place in my heart.... But it's not good. It also hasn't aged well at all. The songs are forgettable (I'm sorry, even "Colored Women" is dull and somewhat problematic) and the story is so bare-bones. It's basically paints Huey as a hero for simply not being racist..? Common... 

I also have issues with how Felicia is portrayed. She's so meek and spineless and seems to be written into the typical archetype of how racists wanted a "well behaved" women of color to act. (Ugh.) She saves up all her money to record a single on vinyl and then Mama smashes it in front of Felicia and so Felicia... apologizes?? To her??? For... intruding????? It's wild. In my opinion, this scene possibly could have been saved by having Felicia sing "Colored Women" TO Mama, thus thawing her frozen heart and making her realize her racist ways... Instead, she just leaves and sings it outside. And Mama's big (breakthrough) only comes in act 2 after she goes to church and sees... that they really *are* good christians.. and can sing?? I'm sorry, but that's garbage. 

It's no surprise that this musical came from the same creative team as Diana: The Musical. And Diana is pure camp, thus fun to watch - especially with a glass of wine. Memphis, on the other hand... Is just not fun to watch. Act 2 is a complete mess, start to finish. There's like 4 songs just shoe-horned in at the end that do nothing to advance the narrative, thus making the last 25 minutes SO drawn-out and boring. 

As I said before, this was my first ever Broadway show, so I still sit down and watch the pro-shot at least once per year (for nostalgia reasons) but rarely ever make it past the mid-point in act 2 because every time I watch it, I'm reminded of how bad it was. 

[Broadway61004]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 2:47pm

I got a comp ticket for this show and still wanted to ask for a refund. Although Montego Glover was excellent, so at least there was that.

[Robbie2]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 2:59pm

DaveyG said: "Memphis is IMHO the most overrated musical ever. The fact that it won Tonys for Best Musical, Best Score and Best Book is laughable. What a lame season."

 

 Underrated - epic? LOL. Agree 100% hated it and to think that Joe Dipietro still gets works is so laughable! I would say he's ''overrated''!

 

Updated On: 1/28/23 at 02:59 PM

[BwayLB]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 3:08pm

SpookyFish13 said: "Memphis was my first ever Broadway show, so it definitely holds a special place in my heart.... But it's not good. It also hasn't aged well at all. The songs are forgettable (I'm sorry, even "Colored Women" is dull and somewhat problematic) and the story is so bare-bones. It's basically paints Huey as a hero for simply not being racist..? Common...

I also have issues with how Felicia is portrayed. She's so meek and spineless and seems to be written into the typical archetype of how racists wanted a "well behaved" women of color to act. (Ugh.) She saves up all her money to record a single on vinyl and then Mama smashes it in front of Felicia and so Felicia... apologizes?? To her??? For... intruding????? It's wild. In my opinion, this scene possibly could have been saved by having Felicia sing "Colored Women" TO Mama, thus thawing her frozen heart and making her realize her racist ways... Instead, she just leaves and sings it outside. And Mama's big (breakthrough) only comes in act 2 after she goes to church and sees... that they really *are* good christians.. and can sing?? I'm sorry, but that's garbage.

It's no surprise that this musical came from the same creative team as Diana: The Musical. And Diana is pure camp, thus fun to watch - especially with a glass of wine. Memphis, on the other hand... Is just not fun to watch. Act 2 is a complete mess, start to finish. There's like 4 songs just shoe-horned in at the end that do nothing to advance the narrative, thus making the last 25 minutes SO drawn-out and boring.

As I said before, this was my first ever Broadway show, so I still sit down and watch the pro-shot at least once per year (for nostalgia reasons) but rarely ever make it past the mid-point in act 2 because every time I watch it, I'm reminded of how bad it was."

If there is one more recent musical that I have second opinions after rewatching bits of Act Two on YouTube, it’s Dear Evan Hansen. So I know how it feels

[Fosse76]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 3:14pm

It's like they fed the books and scores to Hairspray, Dreamgirls, and Ragtime into a computer to write a new musical and this is what it came up with. 

[Mr. Wormwood]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 4:22pm

I saw it on tour and had a good time. I think it's an average musical, not worthy of some of the hate it gets but also not "underrated."

Steal Your Rock 'n' Roll is quite the banger though.

[Mike Barrett]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 4:37pm

Mr. Wormwood said: "I saw it on tour and had a good time. I think it's an average musical, not worthy of some of the hate it gets but also not "underrated."

Steal Your Rock 'n' Roll is quite the banger though."

I think this is the best assessment. It’s average to above average, but maybe didn’t need tony love. I loved the show when I saw it. Underground, Music Of My Soul, Colored Women, and Steal Your Rock and Roll are all bangers. 

[hork]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 4:59pm

Agreed that it's underrated. I saw it on my first big theater trip to New York and it was a highlight for me, probably the best show I saw in terms of technical craft. I don't get the hate for it.

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 5:19pm

The only song I like is Memphis Lives in Me and after a few weeks Chad couldn’t sing it anymore.

[Dollypop]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 5:21pm

My least favorite musicals;

1. In My Life

2. Thou Shalt Not

4  A Doll's Life

5  Molly

6. Home Sweet Homer

7. Kelly

8. Rockabye Hamlet

9  Into The Light

10 Memphis

 

[dramamama611]

Posted: 1/28/23 at 5:25pm

I'll add to my above statement: I really liked Glover....but simply could not bear Chad  Kimball.  I simply wanted him to go away.  (I remember even being quite wary of seeing Come From Away because of his involvement - but liked him very much in that.)