BLOODY BLOODY ANDREW JACKSON, final show thoughts...

Sure. I still have "Populism! Yeah Yeah!" stuck in my head, as well as "I'm Not That Guy," "Ten Little Indians," to name a few.

Loved everything about it... and thought the introduction to DC ("Meanwhile back in Washington...") was brilliance.

Comedic gold, that show.

Don't be misunderstood, I saw and got every bit of comedy. Seems like comedy for the tweeny year olds though. I will admit I did laugh a few times. Still can't remember any song or tune from it.

I saw it last Sunday and have been singing "Populism.." since.

dry2olives, I guess you are right about the American people character. too bad most people who need to see this won't understand or get that concept the way you do(many people on this website will agree with you that they also understand the idea). Populism however, is not a novel concept except to the tweeny year olds.

I think the show is more about a set of ideas than trying to get us to empathize with anyone within it. Jackson was an endlessly flawed person and to attempt to make him or his actions sympathetic would have been a huge mistake. I think the show has more to do with Theatre of the Absurd and some Post-Modern concepts than it does Rock Opera.

As for the score, "Populism, Yeah, Yeah" and "I'm Not That Guy" run through my head often.

Though I can completely understand why this show would be unappealing to some. It's loud, unapologetic, and ugly (not the physical production, but it's the only word that seem appropriate). For me it's really smart musical theatre in the same league as Assassins.

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just curious, those of you that keep mentioning the songs "Populism" and "I'm not that Guy", how many times have you seen JACKSON?

"I loved this show and it also educated me on the some of the aspects of this presidents' life. I love a show that both educates and entertains."

Don't buy it all as fact- a lot of it isn't, or just based on truth. Jackson wasn't even born in Tennessee (the Waxhaw settlement was basically on the border between the Carolinas), and Lyncoya died before Jackson reached the White House (to name a few of the liberties taken).

"Populism however, is not a novel concept except to the tweeny year olds."

Considering that Jackson and the idea of populism forever changed American politics, I would beg to differ- and an idea that most teenaged audience members will not be grasping. The musical also manages to bring up the cost of making America what it was today, and if direct democracy is even possible or efficient.

Hopefully, the show will inspire audience members to look deeper into our nation's history, particularly the early half of the 19th century. It's what shaped America.

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couldn't agree more Kad. I'm totally on your side. The History of Jackson is skewed at best. Books and Biographies often contradict one another. Do you really think most people will truly go back and find a further interest in the History of America from this show alone? I don't. It's a cheap form of a pseudo college credit and semi-interesting entertainment.

Rad, once again I agree with you...yet I still don't know why it is a piece of theater. no wonder there isn't an intermission...would have had no reason to come back after Act 1. I wasn't connected to any of the characters and couldn't relate to them. It's as if I could have put in a DVD at home or DVR'd an episode on The History Channel. You seem to be in agreement, amongst others, to be playing into the Populist point of this show after seeing it 7 times. Once again, it's popular to be cool for the moment in time.

Updated On: 6/28/10 at 02:56 AM

To answer your earlier question--I saw it Once. I do not believe that it is the true telling of this President's story. But hopefully it will make people think and perhaps pursue additional information on this man.

And I am Not a Tweeny--rather a rapidly aging man in my 50's.

I AM a history nerd, 20-something, female and I loved the show. Easily the best thing I've seen in a very long time. Was it completely historically accurate? No. But What I loved about the historical aspect of it was it portrayed the Jackson area Presidency for what it really was....controversial. Jackson is one of the more interesting Presidents because no one can agree on his Presidency. He wasn't a uniformally "good" or "bad" President. I thought the show did a great job of portraying that.

And for what its worth, my father--age 57, who tags along to a few shows every year to please me--who very rarely likes anything he's seen (he thought Hair was meh, hated Ave Q, hated August Osage County, 39 Steps etc) absolutely LOVED BBAJ. He told me that he was hoping it transferred so he got to see it again. We saw it about a month ago and he still talks about it. My father is a huge political/history buff and thought the show was the smartest thing he's ever seen with me.

"Rad, once again I agree with you...yet I still don't know why it is a piece of theater. no wonder there isn't an intermission...would have had no reason to come back after Act 1. I wasn't connected to any of the characters and couldn't relate to them. It's as if I could have put in a DVD at home or DVR'd an episode on The History Channel. You seem to be in agreement, amongst others, to be playing into the Populist point of this show after seeing it 7 times. Once again, it's popular to be cool for the moment in time."

I would argue that empathy for the characters is beside the point- they're not there for you to connect to. The show doesn't set out to show the wildly complicated man that Jackson was in realistic, empathetic terms. It's really a series of sketches, even a parody of historical pageants (the first few scenes are or documentaries. I don't see why you keep putting such emphasis on this as a fault of the show.

I'm not a fan of the show because it's cool to be- I genuinely love this show. People actually DO love it out of their own free will.

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