6-17, Joseph Matinee Review, San Diego

[Elphaba]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 11:11am

We were not amused. Amy was off for the day, and what they had playing the role of the moderator was HORRIBLE....dreadful, almost like they went into the audience, picked a blond and said sing....which she did not do well.
The entire first act stunk.....just had no oomph, and all I could think of was a really bad HS play.
The orchestra was WAY too loud, so that when the brothers introduce themselves you can't hear their names....actually you didn't hear a lot of the lyrics.

The second act had more oomph.

The guy playing Pharoh was GREAT, he was the one bright spot in a very dismal show....I can honestly say he stole the show.
The guy playing Jacob was ok.
It just was not well done, missed notes, bad choreography......and folks, I love San Diego, but they have THE most unsophisticated theatergoers I have ever seen.

Behind us are two moms, and three girls, one sick, and they whispered through the whole thing. I would turn-around, glare....they didn't care. In front of us were there women, maybe in their 30's, a bit drunk and talking through the whole thing.....and then of course the 'Candy-Wrapper Crowd".

I will go see Doubt here, and if the audience still sucks, we'll only go to LA in the future.

It doesn't help that the acoustics in this venue are just terrible.

For the first time in a long time, I was sorry I paid money to see a musical.........it basically stunk

Patrick was ok, certainly built like a stud.......but just didn't like him much, and I agree, his sons stunk....and did no justice to that wonderful childrens choir.

Updated On: 6/18/06 at 11:11 AM

[neddyfrank2]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 12:58pm

That review is pretty acurate. But I heard from my family who saw it yesterday that the understudy from the narrator was way better then Amy Adams.

Also- I noticed that Amy Adams now sings with a British Accent, and I asked her if she ever listened to the Jason Donovan recording, and she said Yes (I didn't tell her why I was aksing- I made something up like I thought there recording was better) and I think it is because she learned the music like Linzi Hatley sings it.

[EponineAmneris]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 1:04pm

I'm sorry to hear this JOSEPH is one my very favorite shows of all time. Such a sad thing that the performance was not that good.

The tour is here in October. Can't wait!

[otis33]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 1:19pm

I'm not surprised by your review. JOSEPH has never been one of my favs. I've always found the show kind of silly. That being said, nothing wrong with silly entertaining theatre...just sounds like they don't really achieve the 'entertaining' part.

Yes, the Civic is an awful cavern of a theatre. The orchestra is generally too loud there. As for the audience - let's chalk it up to this show. Maybe it's the people it's attracting. I've never experienced a night like you described Elphaba. I'm sorry to hear that...giving San Diegans a bad name. I hope the trip to beautiful city itself made up for poor behavior.

I'm off to the matinee. I hope Amy Adams is back in. Seeing her a Patrick Cassidy's chest are really the only things I'm looking forward to.

[Elphaba]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 3:15pm

Neddy, your family must have a different version of good than I do(no insult intended) but the understudy was horrid.

Otis I also love the show, just not this production. And sadly we experienced the same type of audience at Little Women........why people think they can eat nachos and hotdogs DURING a show is beyond me.

We still had fun, got to see a friend I haven't seen in 20+ years, went up to Hillcrest, and also La Jolla.

[mlsheehan]

Posted: 6/18/06 at 3:55pm

I really try to avoid the Civic because of the acoustics. I won't subscribe to the Broadway series for that reason. (Well that and a lot of the shows are 2nd or 3rd rate productions.) We either see shows at the Old Globe or La Jolla Playhouse or venture up to Los Angeles to stay away from that barn.

It's too bad that the touring shows are always there.

I hadn't really noticed a difference in the audiences in SD verses elsewhere, but then maybe we've been lucky when we have attended at the Civic. I will say that there has been a general deterioration in audience behavior in the 20+ years that I've been seeing shows, though. I don't think you can expect better anywhere, certainly not on Broadway. Just read the (rather hilarious) threads here about awful behavior in the theatre in sophisticated New York.

[neddyfrank2]

Posted: 6/19/06 at 2:20pm

I saw the understudy yesterday and like her better than Amy Adams and EponineAmneris the tour is not going to you in October because it is closing in July in Omaha Nebraska. Also there was word backstage that it was going to MAYBE transfer to Broadway. It isn't going to happen but the producers were playing around with that idea.

[otis33]

Posted: 6/19/06 at 3:13pm

I saw the understudy and expected the absolute worst because of what I had read at the top of this thread. I thought she was okay. A little shrill at times, not a star, but certainly not as bad as I was expecting.

Patrick Cassidy sounded great, but I felt like he was trying to put on a younger man voice at times, if that makes any sense at all. I also found him to be too slick. He lost a lot of the humbleness that I've seen in other Josephs.

Sadly, yes, I think audience behavior is deteriorating in general. It saddens me that you've had a couple awful experiences in San Diego. At least the rest of the trip was enjoyable Elphaba!

And, I don't care if they're Patrick's kids or not - get them off the stage! Bravo to our San Diego kids who looked great, sounded great, and acted professional!

[Elphaba]

Posted: 6/19/06 at 3:58pm

San Diego is always enjoyable Otis.......I lived there from 1976-1984.......love it there.
We will come down to see Doubt there....

[neddyfrank2]

Posted: 6/19/06 at 4:11pm

I thought that the audience at the matinee's were rude, they evening audience's were not that bad. And Jack and Cole (Patrick's kids) were not only bad onstage, but offstge Jack was also a jerk, he made several of the kids cry.

[neddyfrank2]

Posted: 6/19/06 at 4:12pm

Double Post Updated On: 6/19/06 at 04:12 PM

[Stexer1974]

Posted: 6/19/06 at 4:52pm

FYI, yes and no that the tour is closing the end of July. Yes, the equity show is closing so no Cassidy and Adams then, but the non equity show is starting in September. A little birdie has told me that Clarissa Grace will be the narrator in the non eq version. She has been in Starlight Express in both the U.S. and in Germany as well as Cats and she was in the Vegas version of Saturday Night Fever as Annette back in '04 before it closed.

[neddyfrank2]

Posted: 6/19/06 at 5:56pm

Are they using the same sets?

[Stexer1974]

Posted: 6/19/06 at 6:22pm

That I do not know. It is still through Troika so I would assume so. Updated On: 6/19/06 at 06:22 PM