My "Brooklyn" Review- 9/24- AKA "It Aint No "Rent"!!!

[Testing1232]

Posted: 9/24/04 at 11:29pm

SPOILER ALERT !!!!!! ******* ... and, if you are looking for an "OMG, Eden Rocks My Socks.. she is SOOO hot" review..., then read no furthur.. this is the not the one for you !!! (Ok.. so, maybe she is hot, but anyway.....)

Let me start off by saying that I REALLY wanted to like this show. REALLY !!! Was very excited all day, and couldnt wait for my work day to end.

Ok, some housecleaning issues... theater was packed and buzzing. (Kevin Bacon was there) All ages and backgrounds represented.

At 7:45, I knew we were in for trouble. Karen Olivo, in character, climbs thru a set "window", changes the hand on a "clock" to show 15 minutes left till curtain, and says "Hey, look at me.. show is starting in 15 minutes, and once we start, we aint stopping". Looked at wife at that point, and knew we were in for it. It was totally cheesy, and needs to be cut immediately !!!

Show started on time, few mins after 8PM (normal these days)

Ok... positives:

Cleavant Derricks as the Streetsinger is awesome !! Great voice, and he puts a lot of passion into the role. Could have listened to him all night. His "Magic Man" was one of the highlights of the night. Definite Tony Nom.

Overall positives... Cast as a whole can really sing !

Negatives:

Where do I begin??? The idea to make Eden play Brooklyn herself as a child (complete with stupid over-sized bow in her hair) is a big mistake. She looks and sounds ridiculous !! They would have been much better served getting a child to play this part.

The score is extremely forgettable. Yes, there are a number of solid numbers, but they are few and far between. Edens ballads all seemed to be ripped off from any Disney animated movie. (and throw in a non-Disney "Anastasia" as well)

Ramona Keller- Loved her in "Caroline or Change"- Did not like her in this, but she has by far the worst lines to work with. I felt like I was watching Wanda Sykes with a great voice. Her "Raven" was also a highlight (my fave song of the night), but the whole storyline between her character (Paradice) and Brooklyn's character is utterly ridiculous and comes out of left field. I have no problem with the whole "estranged/missing" father thing, but this part of the story....?? I just dont know what the writers were thinking !!! The ending when they are in the "boxing ring" having a "sing-off" was moronic !

Kevin Anderson- Loved him in "Saleman", and wondered if he could sing. Pleasantly surprised by his voice, (although he is given the worst songs to work it... talk about skipping tracks on a CD !!!), but he is so out of place here. How can I say this and still be PC??? He is not soulful enough.... hows that? He looked so uncomfortable in the dance numbers that I felt bad for him.

Karen Olivo- As "Faith", her character tries so hard to be "street" (complete with hand gestures and slang) that it really got annoying. She was trying way too hard !!!

Ok, Eden.... great set of pipes (although, she does have this shrill at times.. I like Idina's voice better), but if anyone thinks this is a Tony winning role, think again. NO WAY !!!

For those that did not like "Wicked" that much, or Idina's performance... go see "Brooklyn". My guess is that you will appreciated both a lot more.

For those that were "comparing" "Brooklyn" to "Rent" (before "Brooklyn" even opened !!!), forget it. "Brooklyn" has neither the heart, warmth, and most of all, the intelligence, of "Rent".

Dont get me wrong.. I am not a "theater snob". Yes, I loved "Caroline or Change", but I have also seen "Wicked" 15 times, and love it as well. I consider myself someone that likes good, entertaining theater. I dont need to be mentally challenged every time I go to the theater. Just dont insult my intelligence. To me, this was a snow job by the writers/producers. Put a catchy tune in the beginning ("Once Upon a Time", and some good ones at the end "Raven", "Streetsinger", and hopefully, the audience will forget the 60 minutes of waste in the middle. I think thats what happened here. Standing O at the end, and the crowd seemed to eat it up. I really hope the show does well. Honestly ! There might be an audience for it...I think it might have a very nice run, but... "on the 3rd day... Caroline went away... and she didnt come back"... and I just dont understand it !!!

[Gypsy2]

Posted: 9/24/04 at 11:36pm

I appreciate your opinion, and am sorry you didn't enjoy it as much as you could have.

[Tiny-Toon]

Posted: 9/24/04 at 11:46pm

I'm very sorry you didn't like it..
But still i really hope the show will do well on Bway.
Do you think they will cut and change during previews?
What about the NO intermission thing?
How was your seat?
Sorry for all of these questions :)

Updated On: 9/24/04 at 11:46 PM

[Ebonic_Singer]

Posted: 9/24/04 at 11:48pm

Thanks for an honest review!

[Amneris]

Posted: 9/24/04 at 11:54pm

they cut alot out since the invited dress wednesday...last night was different...every show will be different. thats what previews are for...to get honest opinions from audience members and cast..crew..etc and they are going to keep re-writing,re-working...

im tired good nite

[Tiny-Toon]

Posted: 9/24/04 at 11:55pm

Yes.. it really look like they are doing what Amneris said. I hope you'll like it when you see it again in nov.!

[Testing1232]

Posted: 9/24/04 at 11:58pm

I dont really know what they can cut. Show ended at around 1:45 tonight (no intermission), which really didnt bother me (but I did have an aisle seat). We say "MOLM" 27 times, and that was 2 hrs with no intermission, so I am okay without a break.

I hope it does well too !!! I always want new shows to do well. I love the cast. They are very talented, but I think the book and score are a bit weak. I would minimize the whole Paradice/Brooklyn thing, and play up Brooklyn's part more of a child without parents. Also, I would get a child to play Brooklyn as a child. Think it would be a lot more believable and would tug at the heartstrings a bit more.

[Tiny-Toon]

Posted: 9/24/04 at 11:59pm

What was the thing you said about 15 minutes to curtain?

[Testing1232]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 12:03am

"Faith" comes out and changes a set clock (its on the wall with a big green hand) to show 15 mins till curtain. She yells "hey, look at me... were starting the show in 15 mins, and once we get started, we aint stoppin". I guess it was another way to remind people of no intermission, but it was real cheesy !!

[Tiny-Toon]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 12:04am

yes.. ohh.. im really sad you didn't like it, and i hope i will.
So, how was your seat? :)

[NYSinger1]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 12:05am

Okay. My review of Bklyn. I think Testing1232 and I saw two different shows. I am a self proclaimed theater snob, who has seen Wicked twice! I thought Bklyn was AMAZING. I thought the characters were rich, the plot had a lot of amazing points, and the music was perfect for the show. I personally think this show will have a similar life that Rent has.

They do need to do a little work before it opens. I think there are a few to many numbers for "belters". They need to soften some of the songs up. I personally think they could put an intermission in, add an Entr'act and the show would be a little better. They also could end the show stronger, get the house roaring again.

Eden: great. She'll grow into the roll more, and will be even more fantastic. I personally DID like the fact that she played herself as a child. I think it made you feel for the character a little bit more.

So, for the people comparing it to Rent. I don't want to go there. They are two seperate types of shows (with similar sets). Brooklyn has a lot of different meanings if you look into it. I would be happy to get into them, if people want.

But, I'd rather stick with: I thought it was amazing! I think it will have a long life, and gain a lot of popularity. (Plus I think it will have a large cult following)

[NYSinger1]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 12:09am

I failed to mention I saw tonight's performance as well...

The cast was very gracious at the stage door. They ALL stayed and signed every playbill. The writers were there too, and spoke with the whole crowd. (Kevin Bacon however, slipped out the back, as did John McDaniel)

[Testing1232]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 12:10am

NY,

I am very curious as to what you think of the whole Paradice/Brooklyn "showdown" ?

[Tiny-Toon]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 12:11am

Thank you for that review, NYSINGER1

[NYSinger1]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 12:13am

I thought it was okay. If the show has a downfall, that is definitely it. HOWEVER, it plays into the whole "reality-tv" pop-culture thing. Meaning, people like to see competition, and it would fill seats. It also shows off Brooklyn's moral character. It also was a tool to resolve a lot of the suspense and drama.

[Testing1232]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 12:16am

Its funny.... the majority of the people of BWW seem to favor the show, while the ATC'ers didnt like it ... Weird !!!

from ATC:

BROOKLYN: Fair to Poor


Posted by: 10:52 pm EDT 09/23/04

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Music: RENT sound all over again (isn't it time to move on?)
BIG TALENT: Ramona Keller ... mostly wasted
COSTUMES: Amusing
STAGING: all kind of cutsey busy, busy things
AUDIENCE: went wild ... I can't figure it out

That's All Folks

[Tiny-Toon]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 12:16am

we ARE different :)

[Testing1232]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 12:18am

Agree... definitely the downfall. Would like to see it downplayed a bit, for sure.

[VivaBohemia]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 12:25am

Just curious, why are we comparing Brooklyn to Rent to begin with?

[chinkie azn jai]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 12:51am

Because from the logo, and they way it was promoted, people just assumed because of the urban setting, they compare it to rent.

[umgeoboy]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 1:23am

I tend to agree with Ny on his review but then again we saw it together. As for the comparison to rent, I honestly think there are tons. It has the same unpolished "street" feel as rent but in this case I think it has much more heart. What rent has is a songg that gets stuck in your head for days and days.

On other notes I think there are many tony nominations waiting for this show, as for who will win that really depends on whatelse opens this season.

The part I thought was the weakest was the song brooklyn in the blood. I thought the song came out of no where and really did very little to add to the show. They have been using it as a marketing pitch and that really needs to stop as that song has absolutely nothing to do with the rest of the show.

Overal I loved it! I loved meetingg jeff calhoun, the cast, and the writers after they are all wonderful people!

[Tiny-Toon]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 1:27pm

"On other notes I think there are many tony nominations waiting for this show, as for who will win that really depends on whatelse opens this season."

Oh.. yes..

[ponine24601]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 1:28pm

i'm sorry that you didn't enjoy it.

[Al Dente]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 1:39pm

Tiny-toon, I'm actually starting to feel pity for you more than anything. Do you realize what a disservice you're doing to your show? Anyone over the age of 15 *knows*. Let it run it's course. And please, let's not do the Tony nod nonsense before it's even opened!

[popcultureboy]

Posted: 9/25/04 at 1:54pm

Wait, Brooklyn is performed without an intermission? Not a bad idea as this means people can't leave during it, I guess.