Chicago / New York Round Up

Chicago

Billy Elliot***** One of the greatest musicals around at the moment or even ever? Best movement you are likely top find in any show.

Story of my Life* I vaguely remember the plot, which wasn't very exciting in the first place. Easy to understand why this flopped on Broadway.

The Lion King**** Disney at its best, wonderful score and best costumes you are likely to see in a show. In Chicago for 2 months, first visit to Chicago for 5 years. House packed to the rim, I guess The Lion King gets this where ever it goes?

New York

Next to Normal***** Third time I have seen this on Broadway, sadly it will be my last time as it is closing in January. Great musical, great to see this again.

La Cage Aux Folles***** The Menier Chocolate factory makes it to Broadway, in a more glitzy way, been kind of airbrushed for New York. Great musical which I adore. Douglas Hodge is still sublime, Kelsey Grammar is very good, but not as good as Denis Lawson or Philip Quast.

The Addams Family***** I think I was the only person to enjoy this show when I saw this in March and pleased to say I enjoyed this again. I hope this comes to London.

A Little Night Music**** Great to see Broadway royalty in Bernedette Peters and Elaine Stritch, but this pairing was not as good as Catherine Zeta Jones and Angela Lansbury, but a classic Broadway show and worth seeing.

Radio City Christmas Spectacular*** a show that makes more money than all the shows on Broadway does all year put together, a amazing feat, however I feel I haven't seen anything new since I saw the show in 2007, I got a good discount on this show, but from thanksgiving until after Christmas this show will be packed, not sure why New Yorkers would want to go back every year. Still very cleverly done and entertaining.

Brief Encounter**** First play I have seen on Broadway, I really enjoyed the show and admired the ingenuity behind this production.

Promises, Promises***** Sean Hayes maybe not be the best singer on Broadway, but he can certainly act, a really enjoyable show, that I doubt we will see in London.

Woman on a Verge of a Nervous Breakdown** not a awful or terrible show, just a star ridden, set heavy bad show.

Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson*** Intriguing show, didn't have a interval as only lasted an 1:40 min, a well put together show, what a shame of the over use of profanity.

Scottsboro Boys**** A very enjoyable 2hr show, a show that is well directed, that shows a horrid stain in American history, which is interesting, wonder if this will last as Americans do not like self criticism? some great songs in the show, that is very well acted.

Overview

Only three new musicals to see on Broadway, with Spiderman being postponed, I probably would not of gone this time, would of opted to sit on a beach somewhere, whoops just done that in The Maldives.

With Bob a lot of the time, great company, knows his shows inside out.

Pick to come to London

Trip June 2009

Next to Normal

Trip March 2010

The Addams Family

November 2010

The Scottsboro Boys

"Americans do not like self criticism?" Huh?

It's criticism from outsiders that (wrongly) gets to Americans. They are endlessly self-critical as a look at the last fifty years of film, television and theatre amply demonstrates. If Scottsboro Boys ultimately fails it won't be because audiences don't agree with it but because it's just too depressing to dwell on.

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No, I didn't take it personally, I just thought your analysis was mistaken. Enron I can't explain but I know it wasn't because it was critical of American corporate greed.

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I don't think that Enron really flopped because Americans don't like self-criticism--from what I heard, there were too many people who just got frustrated to relive the corruption that happened under the Bush administration. I was too young to understand what was happening at the time, so I don't know exactly the impact it had, but that was the theory my dad had. Americans are open to criticism, especially with something like Scottsboro Boys that deals with a very dark part of history. Rather than not accepting the criticism, we are taught to acknowledge those things to ensure that they won't happen again. With Enron, most American audiences distinctly remember what happened and how corrupt it was, so I'm thinking there wasn't as much impact as the British audiences who, I'm guessing, didn't know as much about what happened. I think most Americans (especially the ones who regularly attend the theatre) accept that the country hasn't had the cleanest past. I guess that maybe American audiences just felt like with Enron that they'd seen the scheme unfold already in real time, and once was enough. Of course, I haven't seen the play myself, so I guess I'm not the best judge.

AwesomeDanny - good point.

mallardo - I guess the all powfulful New York Times, that used to close a production very quickly with a bad review, does not have the same weight it used to for musicals, but still holds that power over plays?

The Story of My Life - LMAO

The only reason I can see that Enron flopped on Broadway, is because of the harsh home truths it told about a American corporation.

American television and cinema do exactly that constantly. I think Enron was probably more of a novelty to the British than it was to Americans. When it comes to that particular story, which had already been revealed in depth in a bracing documentary (and countless television news features and books), perhaps Americans were hoping for something that might shed new light on the subject rather than gloss over the basics of which we're already well familiar.

But it's not a big deal. Both plays and musicals often don't get the same reactions when crossing the pond in either direction for whatever reason. The audiences are very different. Look how long A Chorus Line and Rent ran on Broadway compared to the West End. Or Buddy and Canterbury Tales in the West End compared to Broadway. Sometimes it's a matter of taste, sometimes it's a matter of timing. In the case of Enron, I don't think it had anything at all to do with self-criticism. You can see that every day on TV.

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I don't understand how you think Scottsboro Boys is anti-American.

Updated On: 11/30/10 at 03:09 PM

Well it is Kander & Ebb! :P