Anything Goes or Sister Act

[RemlapLBC]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 4:32pm

Hey,

We are flying from left coast in December to see Book of Mormon and How to Success with Daniel Radcliffe, and just bought tickets for Sleep No More.

We could fit in one more show on Friday night, if our coming in flight isn't delayed too much.

My question is: Sister Act or Anything Goes?

Both have announced they are touring, and I assume will make it to LA (where tickets cost much less) I'd like a slightly different criteria since I'll eventually see both.

"spectacle of NY production" ie: is either a big show like Phantom, Spiderman (Sleep no More) etc that would be scaled back for the road.
(I don't believe either falls into this category.)

and/or

Does either Sutton Foster or Patina Miller rise to the level of must see such as Nathan & Mathew staring in The Producers, or will the next talented person cast in the roll most likely also shine.

Lastly, and probably most important, chance of Rush, TKTS, SRO, etc about 6 PM on a Friday night. Flying SoutWest with a stop over, so not buying tickets in advance. For $100+, I'll go to MOMA and free Friday nights and then use the $$ for a nice dinner. :)

Thanks. Getting excited for the trip.

[ReggieonBway]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 4:48pm

Anything Goes, definitely. Sister Act is not particularly good.
Updated On: 10/23/11 at 04:48 PM

[AlfieByrne]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 4:52pm

Sutton Foster isn't THE Reno Sweeney, but she's very good. However, I find Patina Miller to be irreplaceable; just my two cents. On a Friday night, I'm sure you'll have a better chance seeing A Sister Act.

[philly03]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 4:52pm

Sister Act - Patina is n her star-making role, and she is worth it alone. She is great, it's also very funny, good-hearted show!

[shrekster224]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 5:06pm

If you don't come often, Sister Act. It's such a fun show, and Patina Miller is a star. Sure, it might not completely change your life, but neither will Anything Goes. Do see the Anything Goes tour, though, when it goes through, as it's also a quality show.

[BroadwayFan12]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 5:31pm

Anything Goes. Cole Porter, Sutton Foster, Joel Grey. Need I say more? I did enjoy Sister Act, but was underwhelmed by Patina's performance. She was good, but not great IMO. The stars of Sister Act for me were Victoria Clark and Sarah Bolt.
Updated On: 10/23/11 at 05:31 PM

[rougeduck]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 5:56pm

Anything goes. End.

[TheHappyPhantom]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 6:07pm

Anything Goes is terrible. Sutton Foster has made a career of absolutely terrible shows that pollute Bway. If you like your theatre to have any ounce of depth or meaning, then between the two at least go with the satirical aspects of Sister Act. I would have said, neither, go see Follies or Billy Elliot and get some real theatre in your trip.
Updated On: 10/23/11 at 06:07 PM

[ReggieonBway]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 6:15pm

... you hold Billy Elliot and Follies in the same regard?

[binau]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 6:17pm

God, you are so bitter TheHappyPhantom. Anything Goes is an archetypical Broadway musical..I mean it's just so strange you would say it 'pollutes' Broadway when I feel it IS 'Broadway'.

[michellek45]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 9:15pm

I haven't seen Sister Act, but I would say go see Anything Goes if you're not looking for a serious night, and if you don't mind a completely ridiculous over-the-top. It's worth it just for the music, in my opinion, but the story is also quite funny. And the dancing. If you like dancing, Anything Goes is the best bet.

Also, I'm not the biggest fan of either Billy Elliot or Follies, but really? They're nowhere close to comparable.

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 9:23pm

I love Sister Act. I couldn't recommend that show enough.

Anything Goes...not so much. Let's just say, that show and I have a history. Granted, this isn't the same version they're doing but just doing A version of Anything Goes has kinda scarred me for life.

[wicked4l]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 10:39pm

I've seen both several times. Just went back to Sister Act after going home for the summer. I was expecting it to be much less energetic than when it first opened. I couldn't have been any more wrong. The show is in the best shape yet. Every cast member was on fire. It was fantastic. Go! Anything Goes is good too, but it's what I expected when I walked into the theatre. Nothing more. Go see Sister Act, it's something you can't see at a local high school.

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 11:05pm

Anything Goes. Do not listen to the pointless rant about Sutton Foster's shows "polluting" Broadway. She is fantastic in the role, and it is a great production.

[ACL2006]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 11:18pm

Sister Act has always been on TKTS for either 50% or 40% off. Anything Goes is usually available, but not a guarantee. If it is at TKTS, it's usually for either 40% or 30% off.

[AC126748]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 11:21pm

Not sure of when you're going, but this coming week is Patina's vacation week, so she'll be out of the show until November 1. So if you're coming this week and you only want to go to SISTER ACT for Patina, then see ANYTHING GOES instead.

[lovepuppy]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 11:45pm

Whoever said "'Sister Act' is not particularly good" is full of beans.

Both shows are good, but "Anything Goes" is fluffy, and "Sister Act" has just...more content. (No tap dancing--which, make no mistake--I love, as I used to tap dance--but still.) And while Sutton is talented, she's not the be-all-end-all in that or any role, and I don't get why she gets all the hype she gets, sometimes.

Patina Miller gives the performance of her life, and so do all the other less-famous actors and actresses in "Sister Act." Anything Whoopi Goldberg touches is gold, you ought to know that. Catch the AG tour; see SA in New York.

[ACL2006]

Posted: 10/23/11 at 11:52pm

RE: Patina's vacation - I'm actually seeing Sister Act on Thurs., so it should be interesting seeing her u/s go on. Was hoping for Patina, but what can you do??

[BroadwayFan12]

Posted: 10/24/11 at 12:03am

Sutton is one of the best performers I've ever seen, and I've seen some of the greats.

[pinoyidol2006]

Posted: 10/24/11 at 1:37am

Anything Goes.... any day of the week.

[muscle23ftl]

Posted: 10/24/11 at 1:42am

Anything Goes, I hope never to see these 2 shows on the same sentence ever again!

[AvenueQResident]

Posted: 10/24/11 at 11:37am

Both are entertaining, terrific productions, with two fabulous leading ladies. You wouldn't go wrong with either.

I'd say go for Sister Act, but you won't regret it if you choose Anything Goes.

Updated On: 10/24/11 at 11:37 AM

[AC126748]

Posted: 10/24/11 at 11:48am

ACL--since Patina's understudy hasn't been on, I don't know what you're in for. But it's a fun show either way. I have a definite soft spot for it.

[broadway_show_fan]

Posted: 10/24/11 at 11:53am

ANYTHING GOES by a long shot.

Fantastic show (classic Broadway) with a stellar cast (leads, featured characters and ensemble all-around). Wonderful direction and choreography - the title number tap sequence is enough to justify a full-price ticket. A gorgeous set with beautiful costumes to boot. The whole production is just top-notch. There's a reason Kathleen Marshall won for that choreography and the show won for revival! Also, I happen to think that Sutton Foster is a fresh and inspired Reno Sweeney who absolutely deserved that Tony.

SISTER ACT is a poorly written tourist-geared movie-to-musical. The production will give you a headache with the glitter and sequins overdose, which made me feel like everything was trying to be snazzy but came off as dollar-store cheap. If you're going in expecting something similar to the movie, you'll be disappointed. There are all these extra plots and characters, often accompanied by pointless, unengaging numbers (Dolores' high school classmate turned cop, the backstory about the novice nun, the gang of bad guys, etc.). I found Patina Miller to be underwhelming: a poor actress, so-so vocals and not able to carry the production as the big star. The biggest star is Vicki Clark, but she could only do so much with a bad book and mediocre at best show.

[beagle]

Posted: 10/24/11 at 1:58pm

I haven't seen Sister Act, but I saw Anything Goes last week and thought it was wonderful. I saw Tari Kelly as Reno and Robert Creighton as Moonface and they were great, as was the rest of the show. If you like Cole Porter and lots of dancing, I don't think you can go wrong seeing this show.