It was extraordinary in every single way, and very polished all things considered. Were all of the performances definitive? Of course not! But nobody came even close to "bomb"ing. The 30-piece orchestra led by Joey Chancey sounded sensational in that hall, even if the sound balance wasn't perfect at times (Carnegie Hall isn't made for theatre music, sound design is tough for a one-nighter, and the 7-piece brass section goes HARD in some of those numbers. Sitting close is the only way to enjoy a musical at CH, in my experience.)
No set, no costumes, no choreo aside from the two numbers noted below. The only prop was John McMartin's cane from the original, which was used in Live Laugh Love.
Going by memory, here was the setlist:
- Overture/Prologue: Orchestra
- Weissman: Hal Linden!!
- Beautiful Girls: Christian Mark Gibbs
- Don’t Look at Me: Katie Finneran & Marc Kudisch
- Waiting for the Girls Upstairs: Stephen Bogardus (Ben), Thom Sesma (Buddy), Carolee Carmello (Sally), Barbara Walsh (Phyl) + Julie Benko, Hannah Elless, Grey Henson, Ryan McCartan as the young quartet
- Rain on the Roof: Klea Blackhurst & Jim Caruso
- Ah, Paris!: Isabel Keating
- Broadway Baby: Adriane Lenox
- The Road You Didn’t Take: Alex Gemignani
- In Buddy’s Eyes: Christine Ebersole (OMG)
- Who’s That Woman: Karen Ziemba + a multigenerational ensemble of dancers (choreography by Michael Bennett re-staged by Mary Jane Houdini)
- I’m Still Here: Jennifer Holliday (O M G)
- Too Many Mornings: Norm Lewis & Nikki Renee Daniels
- The Right Girl: Michael Berresse (choreography by Mary Jane Houdini adapted from the Michael Bennett original)
- One More Kiss: Harolyn Blackwell & Mikaela Bennett
- Could I Leave You: Beth Leavel
- Loveland: Ensemble
- You’re Gonna Love Tomorrow: four youngsters from Kimberly Akimbo.
- Buddy’s Blues: Santino Fontana
- Losing My Mind: Kate Baldwin (OMG!)
- Lucy & Jessie: Alexandra Billings
- Live Laugh Love/Finale: Kurt Peterson (OMG)
and before anyone asks, no, they did not do the Bolero.
Updated On: 6/21/24 at 12:04 AM