Posted: 9/28/15 at 1:24pm
I was more than a little disappointed in its execution from an event management standpoint. The massive VIP seating section - largely empty even an hour into the show (hopefully it filled up??) - was at least 20 yards deep so general admission was so far back. I was in the 3rd row of GA and it was a running joke about being too short, etc. I get that it was GA, but eesh.
Posted: 9/28/15 at 1:32pm
ChildofEarth said: "I wish Laura or Aaron would have taken a page out of Darren & Leslie's books and tried to change up the songs. I personally thought Darren doing harder versions of the songs or acoustic versions made it more fun."
I doubt the fans of Laura or Aaron were disappointed they put their great BW voices to use with showtunes. I"m sure the "Starkids" gave their fans all the pop music they wanted, whereas BW fans don't need the songs changed or tweaked to have a good or fun time.
Updated On: 9/28/15 at 01:32 PM
Posted: 9/28/15 at 2:36pm
Anyone care to give a set-list?
Posted: 9/28/15 at 2:56pm
I missed the earlier performances, but here are the later setlists:
Laura Osnes
How "Bout a Dance - Bonnie and Clyde
When Will My Life Begin - Tangled
Part of Your World - Little Mermaid
Hopelessly Devoted to You - Grease
I Will Never Let you Know - Nashville
Cinderella Medley
Falling Slowly (duet with Aaron Tveit) - Once
The Bandstand preview
Aaron Tveit
I'm Alive - Next to Normal
Young Girls - Bruno Mars
I've Been - Next to Normal / Tom Kitt Band original version
Billie Jean (bluesy version) - Michael Jackson
Why God Why - Miss Saigon
As Long As You're Mine (duet with Laura Osnes) - Wicked
Boyfriend intro / We Are Never Getting Back Together - Justin Bieber / Taylor Swift
Fix You - Coldplay
Goodbye - Catch Me If You Can
Leslie Odom Jr.
The Room Where It Happens - Hamilton
Cry For Me - Jersey Boys
Walk Like A Man - Jersey Boys
The Guilty Ones - Spring Awakening
Good For You - Selena Gomez
Cheer Up Charlie - Willy Wonka
What You Own (duet with Aaron Tveit) - Rent
Darren Criss
I'll Make a Man Out of You - Mulan
One Fine Day - Carole King
Animal (ft. Tyler Glenn of Neon Trees) - Neon Trees
This Time - Darren Criss
The Long Grift - Hedwig
Brotherhood of Man - How to Succeed
I Dreamed a Dream - Les Mis
Beauty and the Beast (ft. A Great Big World) - Beauty and the Beast
Not Alone - Darren Criss
Teenage Dream - Kathy Perry
Back to Hogwarts (ft. Starkid) - A Very Potter Musical
Cabaret (punk version) - Cabaret
Updated On: 9/28/15 at 02:56 PM
Posted: 9/28/15 at 2:57pm
Just curious. Can anyone talk about what Seth did or link to a video?
I've been to a concert at Pier 97 once before. I unintentionally skipped the opener because of some confusion about the actual start time so I only stood through two sets. I think the issue with no outside food or re-entry is that this was an all day event for some people.
Posted: 9/28/15 at 3:00pm
edited to add to post above
Updated On: 9/28/15 at 03:00 PM
Posted: 9/28/15 at 3:38pm
Is there video or audio of Leslie Odom, Jr. singing Cheer Up, Charlie, because that is weirdly a thing I need in my life right now.
Posted: 9/28/15 at 3:46pm
I saw tons of Periscope videos and the VIP section always seemed full to me. In earlier sets I maybe saw like 5 or so empty seats but that was it. My friends who were in the first row of the GA section also said it was very full.
Jordon Roth always showed the crowd after a song so you could see the whole VIP section and parts of the GA crowd.
Posted: 9/28/15 at 5:18pm
givesmevoice said: "Is there video or audio of Leslie Odom, Jr. singing Cheer Up, Charlie, because that is weirdly a thing I need in my life right now.
https://soundcloud.com/sydneynicole96/cheer-up-charlie-leslie-odom
By the way, Leslie's voice on Cheer Up Charlie, so beautiful, so emotional. Just love how he sings this song!
Someone has an audio or video of Leslie singing The Room Where it Happens (Hamilton)?
Does anyone know the set list for Lea? Also, does anyone know if I could buy some T-shirts online somewhere? Couldn't go to the concert, but would love some of the T-shirts. I saw ChildofEarth mention Aaron's t-shirts, did Lea have one too?
Updated On: 9/28/15 at 05:18 PM
Posted: 9/28/15 at 5:49pm
Off the top of my head Lea's set was: Les Mis medley, Reflection, A Whole New World (feat. Darren Criss), I'd Give My Life for You, a song from Allegiance the name is escaping me at the moment. And I might be forgetting one. She kept trying to get people to sing along but no one was able to keep it up for more than a minute before they just stopped to listen to her.
Posted: 9/28/15 at 6:14pm
I'm sure there will be extra t-shirts, so I'm guessing it is a waiting game to see where they will pop up. There was a Lea shirt, but I'm blanking on what the specifics were.
The VIP section was full on and off all day. There was an entire section of seats (I'll say 20 or so) that they kept empty but put people in who needed medical help or who looked to be having problems standing. That was SMART in my opinion.
Listening to Leslie again and I just have to say that he's an absolute star. Charisma, style, and talent to back it all up. I am stunned.
Posted: 9/28/15 at 7:37pm
Lea Salonga Set-List
- Les Mis mash-up (IDAD/OMO)
- Reflection from Mulan
- Still Hurting from L5Y
- I'd Give My Life For You from Saigon
- A Whole New World with Darren Criss
- Higher from Allegiance
Posted: 9/28/15 at 8:37pm
givesmevoice said: "Is there video or audio of Leslie Odom, Jr. singing Cheer Up, Charlie, because that is weirdly a thing I need in my life right now."
Aside from the link above, this song is on his album. If you like him singing cheer up Charlie, the whole album is something you need in your life right now.
Posted: 9/28/15 at 10:39pm
Thank you, Laugaurd! I was in L.A this weekend and really wanted to see this!!
Posted: 9/28/15 at 10:49pm
I was tempted to go but was outraged by the $275 price tag. Did yesterday break even/profit enough for a second Elsie Fest?
Posted: 9/28/15 at 10:53pm
jsg03jd said: "I was tempted to go but was outraged by the $275 price tag."
GA was $60 and it was $30 on Goldstar...
Posted: 9/28/15 at 11:17pm
Oh, ok. When I looked for the tickets when I first learned about this and Lea Salonga's participation, I saw the $275 and didn't really pay attention to the other sections. I was too taken aback by the top price.
Posted: 9/29/15 at 12:00am
$275 is a lot, but I heard a few people in GA talking about how they wished they had gone for it, and even more people talking about definitely doing it the next time around. It's also worth noting that it seems like some people who bought the VIP also bought multiple meet and great packages so there are those who willingly dropped at least $675 for their ideal Elsie expectance.
Posted: 9/29/15 at 3:17am
Thanks for all the reviews of those who went. I watched some videos and some audios, and really enjoyed it!
I would have it on a different day than Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS Flea Market, since the times of the two events overlapped enough that it meant some people missed the first act or two of the festival, plus there is the issue of carrying around your stuff from the Flea Market to the festival.
Lea sounded unbelievable, from what I heard. Her voice is that rare combination of emotion, tone, control, and range. Glad she sang one of the songs from Allegiance. Thanks AppleSunday, ChildofEarth, and grayarea for your answers. ChiTheaterFan, I will look up Leslie’s album!
I think Lea, Leslie, Laura, Aaron, and Darren did a great job, based on the videos and the audios. This is the kind of thing that I find to be innovative, because it covers music and performers from different genres: musical theater, pop, and a little punk music too. In terms of different music genres, Aaron did a good amount of mixing pop songs (Boyfriend, Fix You, Billie Jean) with musical theater songs, which I found cool, and Leslie did one of Selena Gomez’s songs, along with The Room Where It Happens from Hamilton, and songs from Jersey Boys, Spring Awakening, Willy Wonka. The younger crowd of Broadway fans, based on what I saw in the videos, seemed to be eating up this mixture of musical theater and pop songs
So this is my first time seeing Darren sing outside of Hedwig. If there are any suggestions I would have about Darren as a performer, and I say this with respect, because I really do respect his creativity and talent, it would be to be careful to not drop out of the tone of a song sometimes (such as when he becomes overly zealous), and to continue to work on strengthening his vocal control (since his voice isn’t as trained as the other Broadway performers in this line up). But overall, I really liked his performances here. I liked Darren’s interesting performance of some Broadway songs, like the punk version of Cabaret and the acoustic version of I Dreamed a Dream. While watching the videos, his performances captured my attention because I found them to be creative, as well as finding his voice unique and interesting. I can feel the emotion in his voice, and that is really important to me. There is just something very fun and interesting about him as a performer.
My thoughts are that it was an impressive achievement that he brought together this great group of performers in this music festival, that was an inventive mix of Broadway tunes and pop/punk music. It looked like so much fun, so good for him and everyone who went! I hope he and Jordan decide to do this again next year.
Updated On: 9/29/15 at 03:17 AM
