BOOP! Previews- Page 2

[ChiDoc]

Posted: 3/11/25 at 11:57am

ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "EDSOSLO858 said: "As of now, there appears to be a new second-act opener and a different duet for Prince and DeRosa later in the act."

The Prince/DeRosa portion seemed to receive the weakest response out of town, right?"

Absolutely.  And this is the material that I heard was being reworked but never made it into Chicago performances.

I thought Boop! was fine, but most importantly I thought it improved immensely during their out-of-town run.  I continue to have hope that it has gotten even better, and I hope that other shows take note and actually use their tryouts to try out new material before moving to Broadway.

[mrshowbiz90210]

Posted: 3/11/25 at 1:11pm

Ensemble1665759202 said: "KJisgroovy said: "Is this a joke? I've tried to ignore this person but the last comment has really pushed this into absurdity. Has this been a dumb joke the whole time?

Who has this kind of. time on their hands?"

It's kinda crazy. Before I blocked them I would be in posts about OTHER MUSICALS and they would be like "this is great, unlike Boop"😂it's clearly a personal axe to grind like I've never seen in this forum before and I have no idea why the moderators are allowing this person to spam every single thread about one thing and ruin all discussions."

let's not be so rude darling. i saw the show in Chicago and my POV is that it was not good. My opinion. I am going tonight and will report back this evening. Do not be so critical of those that my have their own views. Broadway is for grownups, somethings succeed and some flop and until Trump takes over this website, I will express my thoughts to those are not childish to block the truth.             

[verywellthensigh]

Posted: 3/11/25 at 1:28pm

Nothing says "I'm not obsessed or fixated" quite like seeing a seeing a show you claim to not like three times. 

 

[AKarp2013]

Posted: 3/11/25 at 1:32pm

mrshowbiz90210 said: "let's not be so rude darling. i saw the show in Chicago and my POV is that it was not good. My opinion. I am going tonight and will report back this evening. Do not be so critical of those that my have their own views. Broadway is for grownups, somethings succeed and some flop and until Trump takes over this website, I will express my thoughts to those are not childish to block the truth."

I'm sure your opinion matters to someone, somewhere.

Updated On: 3/11/25 at 01:32 PM

[Ensemble1665759202]

Posted: 3/11/25 at 2:28pm

AKarp2013 said: "mrshowbiz90210 said: "let's not be so rude darling. i saw the show in Chicago and my POV is that it was not good. My opinion. I am going tonight and will report back this evening. Do not be so critical of those that my have their own views. Broadway is for grownups, somethings succeed and some flop and until Trump takes over this website, I will express my thoughts to those are not childish to block the truth."

I'm sure your opinion matters to someone, somewhere."

Zero percent chance poster is going to the show tonight either. Definitely already has a "I hated it it was terrible Jerry Mitchell personally punched me in the face as I left the theater" message typed up and ready to post two minutes after the show ends.

[mrshowbiz90210]

Posted: 3/11/25 at 2:39pm

Ensemble1665759202 said: "AKarp2013 said: "mrshowbiz90210 said: "let's not be so rude darling. i saw the show in Chicago and my POV is that it was not good. My opinion. I am going tonight and will report back this evening. Do not be so critical of those that my have their own views. Broadway is for grownups, somethings succeed and some flop and until Trump takes over this website, I will express my thoughts to those are not childish to block the truth."

I'm sure your opinion matters to someone, somewhere."

Zero percent chance poster is going to the show tonight either. Definitely already has a "I hated it it was terrible Jerry Mitchell personally punched me in the face as I left the theater" message typed up and ready to post two minutes after the show ends."

I really hope this community sees your aggressive, unhappy and insulting nonsense I will be there, 6th row aisle I don't Jerry but do know some of the cast. Like any new show, we truly hope for the best for the artists and crew, and I hope it is better than what I saw in Chicago Until then  "Ensemble1665759202", have a popsicle and chill out darling                    

[verywellthensigh]

Posted: 3/11/25 at 3:40pm

You have acquaintances in the cast but you've been trashing the show for days predicting its failure.

Weirdo. 

[mrshowbiz90210]

Posted: 3/11/25 at 3:52pm

verywellthensigh said: "You have acquaintances in the cast but you've been trashing the show for days predicting its failure.

Weirdo."

Trust me darling, most of the cast knows what they are part of. Great cast, great team and I hope a better book and few new songs     

[binau]

Posted: 3/11/25 at 6:30pm

Wow Jasmine's voice is amazing!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euYRNBq5zTw

 

[verywellthensigh]

Posted: 3/11/25 at 9:25pm

mrshowbiz90210 said: "verywellthensigh said: "You have acquaintances in the cast but you've been trashing the show for days predicting its failure.

Weirdo."

Trust me darling, most of the cast knows what they are part of. Great cast, great team and I hope a better book and few new songs"

Oh, so you're a groupie and a hanger-on.  Sad. 

 

[JudyDenmark]

Posted: 3/11/25 at 11:25pm

God, why is this thread so poisonous already.

Did anyone actually see the Boop first preview and want to share thoughts? 

[mrshowbiz90210]

Posted: 3/11/25 at 11:44pm

I did. And at peril of the haters out here who want everything to come up roses, the show is a 4/10. A very, very talented cast and some lovely choreography but you can’t escape the Mickey Rooney style fruitless book and lyrics that try so damn hard but there is just nothing original here. When 42nd St came out, you loved the freshness and sheer spirit of energy and originality. This shows reeks of nostalgia for the wrong reason, like a mothball closet that suddenly bursts open. Sorry kids, does not work. 

[Ricey2]

Posted: 3/11/25 at 11:49pm

Jasmine killed it tonight and I’m very looking forward to her Tony nomination. 

 

SPOILERS FOR SHOW BELOW!  

The show has… potential! Too much to fix in previews, sadly. It felt like nothing was happening. Both the mayor plot and Grampy’s love interest added nothing. Keep Grampy’s love in there a little, but they devoted way too much time in there. 
 

They kept bringing up how bad Betty’s world would be and how it would be destroyed with her gone… show that! They don’t bring us back to it until the very end! Show us the kooky craziness of the world going to ****. It was so fun when we were there, but they focused on a very dull NYC. 
 

I see glimpses of a good show and went in with REALLY wanting to love it, but I just thought it was fine. 

[Ricey2]

Posted: 3/12/25 at 12:01am

Sorry to double post… more thoughts. 
 

I am really just so confused on why they highlighted the mayor of NYC as the main conflict of the show instead of Betty’s whole dimension being wiped out. 
 

Also, the sister being hyperfixated on Betty Boop is very weird and not accurate for a cartoon that hasn’t had relevancy in decades. Even the world building of the show didn’t help with that. 

[FiveSixSevenEight]

Posted: 3/12/25 at 12:21am

Jasmine is a STAR and is captivating whenever she is on the stage, which is most of Act I. The second act gets bogged down in a subplot of a corrupt politician and a secondary romance in which Faith Prince is so underutilized.  

The lighting and use of colors and costumes was genius.  I have very rarely seen an audience respond so strongly to these aspects.

Personally, I found the show to be very uneven.  For every great song (mostly the act closers) there were several medicore ones.  The dancing is what you’d expect from Jerry Mitchell.  A few good tap numbers and clever staging in the opener to Act 2.

Basically this is the show you’d get if you crossed the Barbie movie and New York, New York.  

[CoffeeBreak]

Posted: 3/12/25 at 1:38am

MERCH

[KJisgroovy]

Posted: 3/12/25 at 8:38am

"the sister being hyperfixated on Betty Boop is very weird and not accurate for a cartoon that hasn’t had relevancy in decades." 

I became a high school teacher in August 2023. I saw Boop a few months after I started. I had the same thought when I saw the show then but... as the start of my first year has become deep into my second year I can tell you that even at my small school there are a handful of teens that are, indeed, hyperfixed on Betty Boop. While Sanrio dominates... for some reason Betty Boop still has her ardent fans (much to my surprise). 

 

[Ensemble1665759202]

Posted: 3/12/25 at 10:24am

Some thoughts from preview #1:

 

1. The biggest takeaway is that Jasmine Amy Rodgers is absolutely incredible. There is zero doubt in my mind she's getting a Tony nomination for this performance at the very least, and she brought the house down with the 11 o clock number. (I also think boop is getting nominations for choreography, lighting, and best musical at the very least)

2. I thought the performances were strong all around. Ainsley Melham was phenomenal in particular, along with Erich Bergen.

3. Boop is just pure fun. I think there's a place on Broadway for lighthearted fun and I think it will stick around for a while.

4. I don't really get the dislike of the mayoral storyline. Like the whole musical is about Betty empowering the people around her to follow their dreams (Trisha, Dwayne, Carol) and I liked the mirroring of the sleazy mayoral candidate with the boop comics.

5. I think the show could benefit from shaving off some of the dialogue - there were a few times a scene seemed to lose momentum before picking back up once the music resumed.

 

I'll go see it again in April post-opening and am excited to see what changes they make. My overall recommendation is that if you're looking for life changing theater or something incredibly profound, this probably isn't going to be for you. If you love old school Broadway, big dance/tap numbers and want to see a future Broadway star begin her career, definitely check it out at least once.

[vfd88]

Posted: 3/12/25 at 10:34am

Ricey2 said: "I am really just so confused on why they highlighted the mayor of NYC as the main conflict of the show instead of Betty’s whole dimension being wiped out.


Also, the sister being hyperfixated on Betty Boop is very weird and not accurate for a cartoon that hasn’t had relevancy in decades. Even the world building of the show didn’t help with that."

These were my two biggest notes after seeing it in Chicago, kinda surprised they didn’t finesse these parts of the book at all…curious to hear from someone who saw both productions if there have been any major changes at all. 

[Ensemble1665759202]

Posted: 3/12/25 at 10:44am

vfd88 said: "Ricey2 said: "Iam really just so confused on why they highlighted the mayor of NYC as the main conflict of the show instead of Betty’s whole dimension being wiped out.


Also, the sister being hyperfixated on Betty Boop is very weird and not accurate for a cartoon that hasn’t had relevancy in decades. Even the world building of the show didn’t help with that."

These were my two biggest notes after seeing it in Chicago, kinda surprised they didn’t finesse these parts of the book at all…curious to hear from someone who saw both productions if there have been any major changes at all."

The storyline with the sister didn't change since Chicago. I personally don't care about that because I guarantee if you ever go to Comic Con, you will find a few Betty Boop fanatics lol (+ it's just a plot device for a cartoon story)

It seemed to me Act 1 was mostly the same as Chicago from what I could remember, but Act 2 had several changes. The opener to Act 2 was completely new and was a cool use of costuming/lighting (I won't say more to give anything away). The mayoral storyline was also changed so that it just kinda kept flowing and things kept moving. In Chicago they had a debate scene that was cut completely + there's also a change to the decisions that one of the characters make towards the end. I wouldn't say major changes but definitely some trimming and tweaking. I may be forgetting things though so maybe others can chime in that have seen both too.

[Ensemble1665759202]

Posted: 3/12/25 at 10:50am

vfd88 said: "Ricey2 said: "Iam really just so confused on why they highlighted the mayor of NYC as the main conflict of the show instead of Betty’s whole dimension being wiped out.


Also, the sister being hyperfixated on Betty Boop is very weird and not accurate for a cartoon that hasn’t had relevancy in decades. Even the world building of the show didn’t help with that."

These were my two biggest notes after seeing it in Chicago, kinda surprised they didn’t finesse these parts of the book at all…curious to hear from someone who saw both productions if there have been any major changes at all."

Good timing - someone on the Broadway reddit with a far better memory than me posted a summary: https://www.reddit.com/r/Broadway/comments/1j9lott/boop_biggest_changes_from_chicago_run/

[mrshowbiz90210]

Posted: 3/12/25 at 11:13am

Ensemble1665759202 said: "vfd88 said: "Ricey2 said: "Iam really just so confused on why they highlighted the mayor of NYC as the main conflict of the show instead of Betty’s whole dimension being wiped out.


Also, the sister being hyperfixated on Betty Boop is very weird and not accurate for a cartoon that hasn’t had relevancy in decades. Even the world building of the show didn’t help with that."

These were my two biggest notes after seeing it in Chicago, kinda surprised they didn’t finesse these parts of the book at all…curious to hear from someone who saw both productions if there have been any major changes at all."

The storyline with the sister didn't change since Chicago. I personally don't care about that because I guarantee if you ever go to Comic Con, you will find a few Betty Boop fanatics lol (+ it's just a plot device for a cartoon story)

It seemed to me Act 1 was mostly the same as Chicago from what I could remember, but Act 2 had several changes. The opener to Act 2 was completely new and was a cool use of costuming/lighting (I won't say more to give anything away). The mayoral storyline was also changed so that it just kinda kept flowing and things kept moving. In Chicago they had a debate scene that was cut completely + there's also a changeto the decisions that one of the characters make towards the end. I wouldn't say major changes but definitely some trimming and tweaking. I may be forgetting things though so maybe others can chime in that have seen both too."

Well said - agree regarding Act 2 - new but not original.