HARMONY previews — Page 6

Saw this again tonight and I just love it so much. Performances have only gotten stronger since the first preview and everything is much tighter now. I do still think act one could be trimmed a bit more but it’s now a minor criticism for me. I have no clue what reviews are going to look like for this one next week but I do hope they’re positive. For me, this is just a very special show - which as I said before shocks me since i was so “meh” on it off Broadway.

BETTY22 said: "I thought all the reviews were embargoed until Monday evening?


Will this outlet get in trouble with the shows PR agency?


https://simonparrismaninchair.com/2023/11/10/barry-manilow-harmony-review-broadway/"

Simon is based in Australia so I’d imagine he bought his own ticket if he was here to see shows. I’d be surprised if the publicist even knew his name, but I could be wrong and maybe his tickets were indeed arranged through the production.
But as it’s a foreign blog it could just as easily be a tourist or fan writing their own review.
He praises it, so maybe they won’t mind.

Finally caught this. While I admire the efforts to tell this story, the final product is quite hammy and cheesy. Sure there are some genuinely affecting moments in Act 2 (thanks to an always wonderful Chip Zien), but it’s hard to fathom that this has been worked on for 20+ years. The music is serviceable, but the real problems lie in the book and lyrics: way too much anachronistic dialogue, 20-20 hindsight, unrealistic situations and hypotheticals (specifically the scene on the train in Act 2), and emotional manipulation. The cast is game and does well, but the material does them a disservice in many places.

I fully agree with posters who were confused about how the harmonists became so famous. They went from singing in a hole in the wall to international stardom. Also curiosity as to why they seemed to sort of gloss over the comedy part of their name, and why it felt like so much of the tight harmonies they’d speak about seemed absent from the songs they were given to sing. I went and listened to recordings from the 1930s and was astounded by the sound they produced.

Yes it’s an unfortunately topical right now, but I do wish the material were much more honest and grounded.

I was so moved by this show, I need to go see it again.

I don't think musikman was critiquing the historical accuracy in the train sequence, but rather the dramatic weight the musical gives it - as if Chip's character reasonably had the foresight to know how the rest of history would pan out (in 1935!) and that he was uniquely capable of altering the course of history, amongst all the other people present on that train.

Updated On: 11/11/23 at 10:54 PM

The show makes a Telephone Wire moment out of probably the most well-trodden and cliched what-if of all time, and it does it in a way that, at least on the cast album, comes across to me as campy. Obviously, this is an important and timely subject matter, but just because it's based on a real event doesn't mean a depiction of it can't be flawed, or is immune to criticism. I'm still very curious to see the full work onstage, but some of the reviews I've read reflect the impression that the cast album and clips have given me with regards to how this show approaches its material.

muscle23ftl said: "Charley Kringas Inc said: "The show makes a Telephone Wire moment out of probably the most well-trodden and cliched what-if of all time, and it does it in a way that, at least on the cast album, comes across to me as campy. Obviously, this is an important and timely subject matter, but just because it's based on a real event doesn't mean a depiction of it can't be flawed, or is immune to criticism. I'm still very curious to see the full work onstage, but some of the reviews I've read reflect the impression that the cast album and clips have given me with regards to how this show approaches its material."



Why don't you go see it and generate your own opinion instead? If you can, not trying to be bitchy. But this show, like many others I have been seeing, well, like art in general, which is subjective. This is a show to see in person. It's fabulous! Brought me back to the old Broadway. An old fashioned Broadway show filled with A-list talent.

"

Oh, of course, and I’m planning on it! It’s why I try to hedge my comments - I’ve seen so many shows unexpectedly bloom in the theatre, just as I’ve seen well-intentioned and serious theatre come off as laughable because it’s so over-the-top. I can see where the comments come from, is all.

I want to ask you something here. Did you ever read a book that can change your life? If yes, which one would be better for me? I got a few articles online. Some of them were really good enough and informative at the same time. This one for example https://www.bookishelf.com/most-powerful-books-that-will-change-your-perspective-on-life/ I really need your honest opinion. Thank you so much!

Updated On: 11/13/23 at 10:08 PM

Robbie2 said: "muscle23ftl said: "I was so moved by this show, I need to go see it again."

Agree especially the last 15minutes....Moving and beautifully staged! Chip Zien gives a superb performance and will be nominated for a Tony and Blake Roman as Chopin is someone to watch. He's a bright star. Unfortunately, we saw the Josephine Baker understudy and she was terrible! Act 2 starts off sloppy and rough with her performance as the first-rate Harmonists try to keep things entertaining."



Harmony Comes to Broadway, Nearly 30 Years in the Making

“We never gave up,” Barry Manilow said of the show he cocreated with Bruce Sussman, because “we knew what we had.”

https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2023/11/harmony-broadway-barry-manilow

Updated On: 11/13/23 at 08:37 PM

How different is this from the production I saw a decade ago? I’m sure some things have evolved…but is it essentially the same, or improved?