Hairspray0901 said: "I’m not sure where to begin with this one. I will say, the actors are doing their best with the material they have been given. I do realize this was only their 4th or 5th performance and they are still in previews, and this is similar to an “out of town tryout”, so this could be a completely different show in a few weeks, a few months, or a few years - or by the time it transfers (if it transfers). So - my review is solely based on what I saw last night 02/22/23 at Paper Mill and it contains SPOILERS.
The good: The Muses. Absolute scene stealers. Each muse has a powerful voice and I loved each and every one of their performances. Charity Angel Dawson did stand out as my favorite, which didn’t surprise me as I’ve seen her in several other shows - she is always fantastic and is an absolute power house.
Isabelle McCalla as Meg. Loved her rendition of “I Won’t Say (I’m In Love)”. Also - loved the subtle Disney Easter egg, giving her the middle name “Susan”, presumably after Susan Egan who voices her in the movie. I don’t remember the movie’s character having a middle name but I could be wrong and it’s not an Easter egg after all. Lol.
Pain and Panic. Jeff Blumenkrantz and Reggie DeLeon had perfect comedic timing. They had the audience cracking up with their corny and sometimes clever jokes.
The puppetry. Fantastic. It did make me wish they kept Pegasus in though, they could have done wonders with that one!
The statue effect for Zeus and Hera - thought that was cool.
Great Bolts of Thunder. Thought it was the most fun out of all the numbers. Could be a show stopper with a little more work.
The Okay:
James Monroe Iglehart as Phil. The talent is obviously there and he was certainly giving his all but it’s as if the people involved saw him in Aladdin and said “he’s great, let’s give him another role where he can do this same exact schtick”. The problem is - Phil isn’t like the Genie but James is playing him like the Genie and I can’t help but think that’s the direction he was given.
The costumes. Some good, some bad. Another Disney Easter egg I thought was funny was at some point dressing 3 characters similar to Fauna, Merryweather, and Flora.
The bad:
Shuler Hensley as Hades. Again - the talent is certainly there but his material, his wig, and his costumes were so god awful and cartoonish. It also made me realize how iconic the voice of James Wood is as Hades for the movie. Similar to Robin Williams as Genie and James Earl Jones as Mufasa, his voice makes the character so evil. I didn’t get that with Shuler. His lines were half cringe and half good.
Again - not really his fault.
Hercules. Bradley Gibson certainly has the muscles for Hercules but I thought his acting was so over the top - again - unsure if that was his decision or the creative team.
The book. Yikes. Nearly every line everyone had was incredibly cringe worthy. It felt like bad community theatre. It needs ALOT of work. I thought Act 1 should have just ended with “Zero to Hero”. Speaking of “Zero to Hero” - it’s my favorite song in the movie and I felt they slowed it down a beat or two for the stage show. Unsure why they did that but I was disappointed in that choice.
The choreography. All over the place. WHAT was that last number? Seemed like a curtain call but then it wasn’t. It was several little groups on stage with flags. Seemingly all in their own world. But then they eventually danced together. It was weird and misplaced.
Additionally - they stopped about 20 minutes into the show for about 10 minutes. Looks like Hercules’ Mom’s house got stuck. Curtain came down and an announcement was made. After Hercules “lost his strength” a child in the audience near me cackled and everyone else near me laughed. I overheard someone say that was the best part of the night. Do with that as you will… lol."
i unfortunately have to agree with all of these criticisms. You might guess that I had high hopes for a Menken stage adaptation, but wow. This was not good. Joke after joke fell flat. Couldn’t understand most of the Muses’ lyrics, the book was hard to follow, great performers were embarrassingly wasted, new songs weren’t great, classic songs were not done well, and it felt soooo long.
Also, do not sit in the first row. They have raised the stage, and I only saw the top 1/4 of the performance. The seats were not sold as partial view, but they were some of the worst seats I’ve ever been in. I was happy to give a standing ovation at the end so I could see what their legs looked like.
I give it a V out of X.
