A Tale of Two Cities- 11/2 Review

How can a show with a repetitive score, bad lyrics, and that was hard to follow at times still get a 9.5 out of 10?

I'm so glad you enjoyed it! It's so nice to hear when people liked it, especially when they figured they'd hate it.

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Glad you enjoyed it !!! Agree that Barbour and Toro are excellent.

<< How can a show with a repetitive score, bad lyrics, and that was hard to follow at times still get a 9.5 out of 10? >>

Maybe the those aspects that were not liked only accounted for .5 of the overall grade? Just guessing.....

Agree, Wat !! I have suggested this show to so many people that I work with, and they all wanted to go back !!!

We have been going every Tues for weeks now.... sort of a guilty pleasure !

I can listed to Barbour sing "I Can't Recall" for hours !!!

"Brandi Burkhart- very young, but has the voice of an angel. I cannot believe that this is only her Broadway debut! I'm hoping to see her in new things in the future. "

Brandi is awesome, but don't worry you'll hopefully see her a lot if Frank Wildhorn (the Frank she mentions in her playbill bio) can get some of his shows up and running over this side of the Atlantic, other than Germany.

Glad to see you enjoyed it, as did I.

Watch out as you will now be labeled a shill for liking ATOTC.

Enjoyed it also.

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I'm just going to piggyback onto this thread rather than starting another one.

I saw the show Friday night (10/31). I sat in the orchestra below the mezzanine so I couldn't see how full it was up there. There were some empty seats but not a large amount. But I guess that's to be expect on Halloween night. I doubt too many shows had packed houses that night.

Before I talk about the show I just want to note that I'd never been in the city on Halloween and it was pretty interesting to see people on the train and in the streets in various costumes...including one woman whose costume consisted of panties and little stars on her nipples. There were a lot of little kids treat-or-treating at Penn Station and along 8th Avenue.

Anyway, I'd seen the show in Florida and had enjoyed it. And I enjoyed it for a second time. I'm still not overly fond of the name of the show being projected on the scrim but what can you do?

I'd like to note that each playbill had a "coupon" to come back and see the show again for $79 inside of it. Once woman near me remarked that she didn't understand why someone would see a show more than once. I explained to her that I'd heard the show was getting a lot of repeat business and that people often will see a show more than once because when the cast changes the whole show changes. It's hard to see the EXACT show more than once simply because of the magic of live theatre. When the show was over the same woman remarked that she understood why people were coming back to see TOTC.

Previously, I had gotten my hand slapped for not liking Jessica Rush in the role of Lucie. Well, I think they found a wonderful replacement for her. Brandi's looks remind me of a porcelain doll but her depth not porcelain at all. I enjoyed her portrayal of Lucie very much and, for me, it connected to how she was described in the book.

I enjoyed Aaron Lazar as Charles as well (I know how shocked you must be lol) as well as all of the other new cast members.

Natalie Toro had been a standout for me in the Florida production and I have, previously, stated I would not be shocked if she got a Tony nod. Not predicting a win - just that I think she has a very good chance to be nominated. Her performance is even stronger than it was in Florida. Her Therese is a force to be reckoned with. "Out of Sight, Out of Mind" got applause and even a few hoots and hollers when she was done.

And James Barbour is captivating as Carton. I heard many people around me muttering about how much they enjoyed his performance and his voice. One woman even described his voice as "pure velvet".

The audience was not on it's feet as soon as the show ended. I was actually the first person up and that wasn't even until Natalie took her bow. I felt her performance that night truly deserved it. A few other people stood after I did but once James came out the rest of the audience rose to its feet to cheer for him.

I, too, recommend this show. I enjoyed it as did everyone around me. It's not a "perfect" show but how many shows are truly flawless? It provided entertainment to the audience for 2+ hours and everyone I spoke to went home feeling that their money had been well spent and would be recommending it to others.

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I'm so glad to hear so many people loving this show! It certainly deserves the praise.. I am going back in December and I can't wait!

I loved it. So sad to close. Barbour and cast is just plain spectacular.


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