#1
Posted: 10/15/08 at 4:55pm
I saw 13 last night. I got a $25 student ticket. Great seat, Row J, right on the aisle. I was kind of excited. I didn't know much about the show as far as plot and score go. I knew the whole "idea" behind the show, but I didn't know any of the songs or anything. Well, the show was entertaining.
SCORE: I think Jason Robert Brown got some backlash from his score, but it's pretty sound. I think the orchestrations are a little weak, but then again they had to fit in with the whole "young people in the band" thing, so I guess they couldn't have more than just a guitar, drums, and piano. But after a while all the ballads sound repetitive because of the same sounding orchestrations. However, I thought the songs themselves fit perfectly with the show. They weren't complex like his other shows, yes, but they worked well for the show. My favorite was the song with the girls on the phone - towards the end. I'm still curious to know what the DDR song was, but whatever. And I'd say the best song was the last song, or the first song.
ACTORS: The actors were fine. I mean, yeah, some of they were way overacting, and some of them were perfect. They all had pretty damn good voices for their ages, and they brought a TON of energy, which meshed well with the over-excited crowd. The little white boy with the braces, and the black boy (sorry I don't know names) were by far the standouts for me. They pulled my focused in every scene, and I was cracking up watching them.
SETS: Boring. This show has got to be easy to run from day to day. There aren't many sets, and they're all on wheels. The "indiana" set was interesting, but other than that it was pretty damn boring. I wish some thought and detail had been put into the design of the show.
Questions... Was the boy playing the terminal illness kid suppose to have a weird voice? I mean, his singing voice was great (probably the best guy singer in the bunch), but his speaking voice had a weird tone to it. Was that a character choice? Also, why does the main character only have an alternate on the weekends? Would he in turn need one on Wednesdays? Do children actors on Broadway get paid more or less than the adults? Also, it was cool to know Tom Kitt was the music director for the show!
I think this show will have a life on Broadway. If the producers are smart they'll look for some new Disney kids to exploit to help the show run longer, but I can't imagine it's a costly show to run.
SCORE: I think Jason Robert Brown got some backlash from his score, but it's pretty sound. I think the orchestrations are a little weak, but then again they had to fit in with the whole "young people in the band" thing, so I guess they couldn't have more than just a guitar, drums, and piano. But after a while all the ballads sound repetitive because of the same sounding orchestrations. However, I thought the songs themselves fit perfectly with the show. They weren't complex like his other shows, yes, but they worked well for the show. My favorite was the song with the girls on the phone - towards the end. I'm still curious to know what the DDR song was, but whatever. And I'd say the best song was the last song, or the first song.
ACTORS: The actors were fine. I mean, yeah, some of they were way overacting, and some of them were perfect. They all had pretty damn good voices for their ages, and they brought a TON of energy, which meshed well with the over-excited crowd. The little white boy with the braces, and the black boy (sorry I don't know names) were by far the standouts for me. They pulled my focused in every scene, and I was cracking up watching them.
SETS: Boring. This show has got to be easy to run from day to day. There aren't many sets, and they're all on wheels. The "indiana" set was interesting, but other than that it was pretty damn boring. I wish some thought and detail had been put into the design of the show.
Questions... Was the boy playing the terminal illness kid suppose to have a weird voice? I mean, his singing voice was great (probably the best guy singer in the bunch), but his speaking voice had a weird tone to it. Was that a character choice? Also, why does the main character only have an alternate on the weekends? Would he in turn need one on Wednesdays? Do children actors on Broadway get paid more or less than the adults? Also, it was cool to know Tom Kitt was the music director for the show!
I think this show will have a life on Broadway. If the producers are smart they'll look for some new Disney kids to exploit to help the show run longer, but I can't imagine it's a costly show to run.
