5 shows, 4 days: Mini-reviews

[lovepuppy]

Posted: 7/24/11 at 10:30pm

Oh, what a fantastic trip to NYC, this time around!

1) First up: "The Addams Family," Tues 7/19

I knew this wasn't going to be the cream-of-the-crop of shows, but I've been a Brooke Shields fan since I was a little girl (don't judge. :) ). So I wanted to check it out. Got tix at TKTS for $50 bucks, which was all I was willing to spend on it. She sang and danced well, I must say. Her singing voice has always been strange, but she was, in fact, *singing*. (And I've never seen her in any other stage work--I still wonder how she played Rizzo in "Grease" 10 years ago, as she doesn't have that rugged, trashy vibe that Rizzo kinda has to have, in addition to a fabulous belty voice. But she's managed to be on Broadway before, nonetheless. And I digress.) She definitely worked hard to get the choreography, and she looked great. The writing was witty enough for all of the cast to have some jokes. The sets moved in a cool way and were quite beautiful, really. My fave was Jackie Hoffman as "Grandma," though; she definitely has the best lines. The main thing that was lacking was...the story. "Wednesday is in love?" So what. Eh, not macabre enough for the Addams family. I spent most of the 2nd act admiring the sets and watching for Jackie, and didn't really get the dumb plot, or even Fester's sub-plot about...dating the moon.

The stage door was mobbed, and I have to say, I felt bad for Ms. Shields. I'm an adult and just would have been interested in having my ticket signed, but didn't. A) everyone waited at least a half hour for her to come out (she still looked gorgeous with makeup removed, btw) and b) she kind of did a round from one end of the barricade to the end, a few people caught her on the sidewalk, then her driver had to step in and force people back to get her safely into an SUV. The look on her face as she swooped in through the door and plopped down on the seat was one of half-fright and half-relief. In the words of a snotty, but smart, 10-12 year old girl behind us while we waited, "the big men with cameras in front should let the CHILDREN meet Brooke first." She was right. Who did these grown men, calling "Brooke! Brooke!" think they were? The paparazzi? It was creepy. I felt so bad for her that I didn't mind not getting a ticket signed. She's a real person who wanted to get home to her real kids and husband, for pete's sake.

2) "Sister Act" matinee, 7/20

Full house at a matinee!! Line around the block to get in...for people *with* tickets. Beautiful theatre, beautiful sets, clever staging, lighting, and the guy who played "Sweaty Eddie" is very talented. What a cutie--playing a loser who doesn't get the girl, but showing his stuff in the fantasy sequence where he dreams that he can. Whoever dreamed up having him sing his studly song while backed up by Philly bums in a stockyard, losing his police uniform, a pull-away to reveal his "dance fever" outfit, and another pull-away back to his police uniform, was brilliant. Hilarious scene, and scene-stealing actor.

Patina Miller was fantastic, and carried the show with ease. I know Whoopi's given her plenty of exposure on The View, but the woman has chops and deserves any accolades she gets. The writing was hysterical; Mother Superior (I forget the character's actual name) had the funniest lines, IMHO. Very witty book, overall. Sisters Mary Patrick and Mary Robert were perfectly cast (I forget the actresses' names, please forgive me, as I'm writing away from my home computer and don't have the program on me.). GREAT show. Fabulous, baby. Did not stage door. We're geeks, but not that much. :)

3) Evening, 7/20

My friend and I split up, as we originally wanted to see "Rock of Ages," but we went to TKTS both before the matinee and again for the evening, and even though the show is listed HERE as showing on Wednesdays, both times the TKTS staff said, "they don't have shows today." Aargh. So she went to see Daniel Radcliffe, and I checked out "Priscilla, Queen of the Desert."

It was on my B-list of options to see when planning the trip, but I'm glad I ended up there. Very fun. I can't believe Tony Sheldon's been doing the same character in this show for something like...three or more years, in a bunch of different countries. He was great. They were all great. "Adam/Felicia" has buns of steel, good lord.

I never saw Will Swenson in "Hair," but wanted to see what all the fuss was about, about him. (What is it...can anyone tell me? He's cute, but, hm. Clips I've seen of him from "Hair" just seem, to me, to be...Will Swenson in a hippie outfit, not a proper "Berger.") Now, he still managed to be a convincing angst-filled gay drag queen, nailed certain mannerisms, and I laughed a lot at delivery of his jokes, while sympathizing with his character stressing about meeting his 6-year-old son for the first time. So, he's an attractive man, and capable actor. But...still don't get the fuss about him. The kid who played the son was adorable, btw. I don't have to comment on the crazy cupcake or paintbrush costumes, or giant heeled shoe on top of the bus; the show is a spectacle and is just good fun.

At the stage door, Swenson was a bit weird and moody, unfortunately. Tony Sheldon was a doll; a couple in line behind me, the husband in which was from New Zealand and very familiar with the movie (I had never seen it), just loved him and he chatted them up quite joyfully. The kid was cute; he came out all ready with a Sharpie! (Good lord, again.) Ashley Spencer did, too, and seemed disappointed when I didn't rush to get my program signed by her, as I was talking with the couple behind me while waiting for Sheldon, at the time. The "divas" up in the air were a sight to behold--mostly because of the SFX harnesses. But come on; I didn't come to see you. Liked it for a spectacle and a good time, but I'm not sure the current cast makes the difference to what kind of experience the audience has, either way.

4) "Hair," 7/21

So, yeah, I essentially came to NYC to see this show again. Saw the current touring cast twice in my hometown earlier in the year and fell in love with it. We got tix ahead of time and got 3rd row aisle seats for $64 plus fees. My friend had never seen it, so I made sure to sit in the second seat so she could experience them coming up to her in the aisle. During "Hashish," it started already...Paris gave her a lap dance and she was hooked! It was nice for me to see Steel up close, too. :) During the rest of our vacation, my friend just kept giggling about how Nick Belton "came up to me and gave me the flyer, and leaned over and played with my hair, and said, 'but you'll have to bring your own pot!'" So I got a kick out of her getting a kick out of how interactive and friendly the cast is. I went and was looking forward to noticing things I hadn't noticed the first two times, and the drawback is, while we were close enough to see the actors' eyes, and who in the audience they were looking at, and hear there beautiful individual voices at times, I actually felt I missed out on some of the overall show experience. Lesson learned; sit close, but not too close! The production is great, and I already knew that, Paris, Steel, Kacie, et al were wonderful, and mostly I was happy that my friend, a "Hair" rookie, had a great experience.

Over the months, many on here have posted how they think Caryn Tackett is a "weak link," but she was one of the originals in he Public Theatre production, and was in fine voice when we saw the show, too. To be fair, some of Sheila's songs are just...hard to sing, and she steps up to the challenge. I had more of a problem with Katie Kiyan's "Frank Mills." I hadn't heard the song before seeing the tour in February, and fell in love with it. Whoever posted recently that she smokes and drinks soda before shows was on to something; the girl's notes were sharp more than once.

At the stage door, most of the cast was lovely and appreciative. Josh Lamon was all too happy to run out with a sharpie and stick his head between friends' heads to pose for pics, Kacie Shiek did the same (I didn't get to meet her, though, and wanted to), Paris was super-friendly and we ended up talking with him down the sidewalk after most of the crowd had gone, too. There, we ran into Larkin Bogan, u/s for "Woof," and I had seen him on the tour, too. Love his hair! Very engaging in the role. Nice guy. He was there with his brother and one of their girlfriends/friends/or wife. The girl goes, "hey, let's have a family portrait!" We all laughed and I said, "ok, but there's no one here to take it..." Paris shrugged like "what's the big deal," and goes, "hey, I'll take it!" Pretty funny. I'm sorry to say I was a little disappointed with Steel, though, after months of being (yeah, irrationally) excited about possibly meeting him after the show. (I'm in my 30's, and let me tell you, there were women MUCH older than us ogling and applauding the guy when he stepped out on the sidewalk after another really good performance.) When I said, "hey, we saw you twice in [our hometown]!" he looked up from signing, kind of bored, and said, "oh...well...thanks for coming to see it AGAIN." He obliged everyone who asked for an autograph or photo, and seemed to smile genuinely, but it's as if some of these folks are used to only hearing the fawning "heyyyy, you were soooo goooood" and that's it. There was a sweetness about him in a way, but maybe he just seems soft-spoken compared to the bombastic Berger. You'd think that someone who changes up the conversation with yet a different type of compliment wouldn't elicit such a less-than-grateful reaction. Oh well. Tired from a bad day? He's still my favorite Berger, and easy on the eyes.

Addendum: the next evening, on our way home from our last show of the trip, we were walking past the St. James on the way back toward our hotel to eat, and realized we were walking a bit behind Steel, Paris and Emmy Lampman. They separated and...Steel and Emmy walked off holding hands. (To paraphrase the "Ed Sullivan Show" when the Beatles appeared in 1964, "sorry, girls, he's taken." Hm... :) ) Anyway, we had stopped upon witnessing this cute little event, and were so hungry just went into the first little deli door we saw. We went in, and we found ourselves ordering crepes next to Paris Remillard. We said we met him the night before, and he laughed and chatted us up again. We got to talking about how he's 35, is from Minneapolis, and has been living in NYC for 8 or 9 years, and how his girlfriend is currently in a traveling production of "Aladdin" somewhere. We talked about touring and moving around with our respective careers. I asked him how the show went that night. He said, due to the extreme heat this week, "the audience was a bit soaked, but I think they had a good time!" He got his food and left, saying, "have a nice night...I have to rest...two shows tomorrow, you know." Super-sweet guy, seriously.

5) "Anything Goes," 7/22

What's to say? The audience applauded Sutton with her first entrance, Colin Donnell was super-charming, Laura Osnes has more chops than I expected, what with the "Grease" reality TV thing, and Joey Grey was on vacation. His u/s, Robert Creighton, was just as cute and charming as the shipboard gangster...though 3 decades younger, easily! During "Friendship," I imagined Joel and Sutton dancing together; it seemed made just for them. I tap dance, so the 1st act finale was fantastic, of course. Jessica Walter was hilarious as the clueless mother. Huge ship set pretty cool, and the chick who played Erma was charming and entertaining.

Great trip, great shows, by and large. I wish I was still there, but it's back to work, this week!

Updated On: 7/24/11 at 10:30 PM

[mallardo]

Posted: 7/25/11 at 12:38pm

Nice, informative, fun-to-read reviews. Glad you had a great trip!

[lovepuppy]

Posted: 7/25/11 at 1:11pm

Oh, thanks! Yep, awesome time.

I'm still waiting for someone to give me perspective on the supposed greatness of Will Swenson, on and off stage. Hm, maybe it's a "Berger" thing.

[cruisemama4]

Posted: 7/25/11 at 1:28pm

Glad you had a good trip and thanks for the reviews. Just a note on the sharpies at Priscilla Queen of the Desert... I have been at the stage door of the Palace and the door person hands the actors Sharpies as they come out.

[mee.who]

Posted: 7/30/11 at 9:15am

I don't know what to tell you about Will Swenson in Hair. He really embodied the character in my opinion. I don't think it seemed like Will Swenson in a hippie outfit any more than it seems like Steel Burkhardt in a hippie outfit now. If anything, Swenson was a little less sculpted, a little hairier and unkempt and less shiny than Burkhardt, therefore making it seem a little LESS like a costume if we're comparing the two directly.

The first time I saw Steel in the role (when he was Will's understudy) I thought he was trying too hard and that it was a little painful to watch, but he has since grown into the character so much and I really really love him in the role now.

Maybe Swenson just doesn't click with you? I don't know. I don't generally wait around at the stage door, so I don't have much opinion on either of them off-stage.

Anyway, sounds like a great trip. Thanks for sharing!

[Dave13]

Posted: 7/30/11 at 11:50am

Sounds like a great trip to NY. A trip like that once a year is fantastic.

[lovepuppy]

Posted: 7/31/11 at 2:30am

Thanks, yes, it was a fantastic trip! A week ago tonight, we were coming home on the plane. I wish I were still there... The last time I did this type of trip was 3 years ago, but sometime after that, I became long-term unemployed for a while. So now that things seem to be on an upswing, I hope to be able to do it once a year! I had no idea this thread was still on the first page somewhere.

As for the Will/Steel thing, I'll repeat that I did not see Will in the role in full, just in clips. I first saw the revival on tour and it was already Steel's. Now, there's something to the whole "you saw him first, so you like him best" kind of concept, but that's not always the case, so...who knows. And I do disagree with you about the "shiny" thing. Even though I don't have a full performance to judge Will on, in clips he just strikes me as so...pretty, and not "unkempt" at all, as you describe him. Steel's a handsome man, for sure, as well, but seems more...rugged and mangy. So yeah, maybe you're right, maybe Will just doesn't 'click' with me. I adored "Priscilla" as a whole, and even Will's performance, but something about him just doesn't sit right with me and I can't put my finger on it. (I don't usually hang around stage doors either; I just did it because my trip was a novelty given my life in the last 2 years, and I was a dork about some stuff. So be it, I enjoyed myself and my friend had a good time, too. *Both* guys were weird at both stage doors, for that matter, as I said. A friend of mine met Steel in London and said he was super-nice, but he wanted to go to Steel's alma mater and couldn't, so they at least had that in common to discuss. I didn't.)

But I do love me some "HAIR" and it will forever be a part of me now, as a result of Ms. Paulus and this cast. I wonder if they'll do another tour; Paris was telling someone that all their contracts are up in October. But, the tour dates are scheduled through early 2012. I might even have to audition that time.

Updated On: 7/31/11 at 02:30 AM

[mee.who]

Posted: 7/31/11 at 9:00am

Oh, I wasn't trying to say I was against stage dooring or that I was sooo above it or anything like that! I just never have anything to say other than "hey, you were great" and I feel awkward about it, so i never stick around.

But yeah, re: Will/Steel - I'm sure at least part of my fondness for Will maybe IS because I saw him first (and many times), but they're really both so great in the role. You can tell that Steel definitely took some of what really worked from Will's performance and incorporated it into his own, but he's not copying him entirely either. Overall his Berger is a little less manic than Will's, puts on less of a show, wears his heart on his sleeve a little more. I love that.

And I don't actually know you or anything, but if they do have auditions in the fall when contracts are up, I say go for it!

[lovepuppy]

Posted: 7/31/11 at 7:16pm

Thanks, Mee. I didn't think you meant any kind of 'attitude' about it. Everyone has their own preferences and has our own kind of fun...even if it's inconsistent. That's life. :)

Thanks for the encouragement. That's a whole other thread...'what does a mezzo with a semi-high belt sing for an audition,' for a show like that. I usually prefer to play character roles like Mom/Buddhadalirama, anyway. :) I'm told I look like a lead, but I'd "never get one unless you lose weight." Eh. Fine, make me the size 8 "fat friend." Less responsibility and could still work. Eh, one of the reasons I never tried seriously to go pro is, I'm such a terrible auditioner. Quite the paradox to know you can sing but can't be at your best in auditions. (But now I digress threadjack my own thread even more. Sorry. As you were. Haha.)

Updated On: 7/31/11 at 07:16 PM