CHESS Previews- Page 8

[JSquared2]

Posted: 10/22/25 at 1:15pm

GirlFromOz68 said: "Jarethan said: "Finally saw this tonight.

I have only seen 4 productions of this (original London, original NYC, Signature in VA, and tonight. I far enjoyed this far more than any other version.

Major plusses:

The four lead performances, including Bryce Pinkham. I thought the narration worked much better than a lot of prior posters did. Part of the reason was that it did help to lend clarity to a story that has always been as clear as mud at times. The other factoris that Pinkham is a very charming performer (although I wish they would get him a better suit...his suit looked ugly to me).

All three leads sang at the top of their game, with Christopher's held note in Endgame as thrilling asany of Nicole Scherzinger's last season. That said, I actually was most impressed with Aaron Tveit's overall performance. His singing was on par with the other two IMO, but I thought his acting was more impressive (this coming from someone who has never been a huge fan). I genuinely felt sorry for Freddie in a way I have never felt before. for the very first time ever, I felt he was charismatic on stage.

How often do you see a show in which each of the three leads had at least two genuine show-stoppers. They brought down the house deservedly in all cases, with the two biggest ovations going to Anthem and Pity the Child.

The orchestra did justice to the score, amazing with only 17 people. That score remains to me one of the all-time greats; to have such strong singers was a huge plus.

I felt that the book helped the show a lot, even if there was quite a bit more dialogue than I ever would have expected.

I enjoyed seeing the orchestra on stage and like the basic set and projections.

Quibbles:

Don't remember the title off the top of my head, but I missed the 'Oh my dear, how boring, he's defecting' song. It added humor, although the narrator did provide a good amount.

I did not remember hearing two of the songs before(one Svetlana, one Florence) and would need to hear them more to assess whether they are in the same league as the rest of the score; but on first hearing, they did not seem memorable.

Act 2 started a little slow. IT was not helped by the fact that the actress who played Svetlana was very shrill in her first song; and, although she got better, I was unimpressed by her.

There were a couple of really stupid choreographic choices in the first act. The wave had been mentioned by a number of posters; I thought the choreography for that entire number was awful, although it did not have much impact on my overall enjoyment...just as some stupid touches in SB last season did not keep me from finding the overall show thrilling.

Bottom line: Loved it!



PS -- I was in front mezzanine A401 and 402, which was pretty far to the side, if not extreme. Not once did we feel that our seats were deficient, since the action was really kept pretty stage center. IF the seats further to the side are cheaper, I would definitely buy them. All you will miss IMO is seeing part of the orchestra on the side of the stage in which you are seated.

PPS -- Perhaps I was having a senior moment that lasted awhile, but I do not remember any dance in the second act that reflected the triangle. There was dancing in One Night in Bangkok that occasionally had three people dancing together. It was the closest thing the show has to a traditional production number and no trio stood out among the crowd. IF anyone else was there tonight, was I looking at something else when this dance was happenin?. IF I saw it, it made no impression."

According to others the ballet in Act 2 was cut on Saturday."

 

Thank GOD!

 

[itsahopi]

Posted: 10/22/25 at 2:12pm

THDavis said: "EvanHansen said: "The ballet was indeed cut."

Any decision to deprive the audience of Casey Garvin in a “flattering” costume is, in fact, a hate crime."

You guys are super weird sexualizing this actor in literally any show he’s in.

[Zeppie2022]

Posted: 10/22/25 at 2:23pm

Got tickets yesterday in front mezzanine for early next March, very excited!!

[Auggie27]

Posted: 10/22/25 at 2:31pm

It just made it to the TKTS booth for the first time (I believe), Wednesday night, 10/22. Affordable, $89-161. I'm beginning to think the booth will ultimately be the way to see this for those of us unwilling to take out a second mortgage. Curious to see how the Wednesday matinees sell when they begin.

Updated On: 10/22/25 at 02:31 PM

[Matt Rogers]

Posted: 10/22/25 at 5:45pm

Auggie27 said: "It just made it to the TKTS booth for the first time (I believe), Wednesday night, 10/22. Affordable, $89-161. I'm beginning to think the booth will ultimately be the way to see this for those of us unwilling to take out a second mortgage. Curious to see how the Wednesday matinees sell when they begin."

It was on TKTS last night as well. 

[Matt Rogers]

Posted: 10/22/25 at 10:34pm

The show is very good, even though it is staged like an Encores concert. The people who have claimed this is not a concert presentation are blind. It’s still good but it is not anything more than Encores does. The sound currently sucks, but I assume this will be worked out in previews.

In any case, it’s a very enjoyable production. 

Updated On: 10/23/25 at 10:34 PM

[quizking101]

Posted: 10/23/25 at 10:14am

I won the lotto for last night and was in the rear orchestra (last row). It was a bit partial view because sometimes the screen backdrops, especially during the Act II interview, aren’t fully visible.

I agree with the previous posters that this is very much a bossed-up concert style presentation, although considering how often the setting changes, I’m not sure what other way would be conducive to the storytelling, as well as the orchestrations (which create a nice “wall of sound” effect).

The score remains an absolute treasure trove of bangers, including the addition of the “new” songs, and to hear the score live for the first time (I have the concept album and OBC on vinyl) was absolutely thrilling. Going in with only a cursory understanding of the story (because it has changed so much), I can’t really compare to other versions, but I think it worked well enough where I didn’t have many issues or questions with the through-line of the story. I did have a little bit of an issue with the Arbiter using his otherwise effective fourth wall breaks to remind us that this is “a Cold War musical” because it took me out of the action (albeit briefly). The choreography was also serviceable, with “One Night in Bangkok” being the only true production number (although I missed the fluid sexuality from the 2018 staging - in this, all the couplings were heterosexual)

The performances are all on the spectrum of good to absolute knockout. Sean Allan Krill’s role is kind of thankless but he makes the best of it - since it’s hard to be the only principal who doesn’t have a song when everyone around you is doing vocal pyrotechnics. Bradley Dean was an EXCELLENT Molokov, and made “The Soviet Machine” into a highlight; same with Hannah Cruz and “He Is Man, He Is A Child”.

Bryce Pinkham’s Arbiter is very much a scene stealer, although the topical jokes (see box) he uses at times are a bit pandering to the audience and I don’t know if they are written or ad-libbed, but he can do without them. Otherwise, I would put him in contention for a possible Featured Actor nomination.

 

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There was a joke about RFK Jr. and his brain worm, one about the name “Trumper”, and also one about Joe Biden running for re-election

Now for the core three. First, it’s nice to see Lea Michele playing an adult. I don’t think she is 100% settled into being the apex of the love triangle just yet, but I can see she is getting there - I mostly just need to see more fire in her angrier moments since it feels like she is holding back. Vocally, her tendency to finish musical phrases ahead of the actual music irritated me since it sounded like she was skipping notes/talking through parts of her songs. The only time she didn’t do this was “Someone Else’s Story” and that’s when she sounded her best.

Tveit was a much better Trumper than I anticipated. I don’t think he had the louche and smarmy a-hole inside him but he absolutely did and it paid off in spades, especially when it came to showing the cyclical nature of his bipolar disorder and how he’s basically self-destructing in real time. They did lower the keys for multiple songs though, so “Pity The Child” wasn’t necessarily the blistering indictment of a lost childhood I was hoping it to be.

This show belongs to Nicholas Christopher. This is a man who is able to convey a weary and sad existence through a carefully moderated affect and gallows humor. Watching him navigate the agendas that other characters attempt to impose on him was masterful, leading to some of the most thrilling moments of the night in both “Anthem” and “Endgame”. Even “Where I Want To Be” set the tone that he was going to be a force to be reckoned with. If this show walks off with any assured Tony nominations, it will be him because this is a star making performance in every sense.

Overall, I think they are in good shape but have plenty of room to adjust throughout previews. Whenever you want to go, I don’t think you will leave disappointed.