Help me pick a show
Help me pick a show
#1Help me pick a show
Posted: 4/14/23 at 4:22am
Hi everyone! Long time I haven’t written on here, but I finally made it back to NYC after a five year absence (first with my own health issues, and then we all know what happened for the past few years).
Anyway, for this trip, my sister and I knew there were a few shows we wanted to see (Sweeney, Funny Girl, Camelot, A Beautiful Noise), but we were unsure of the other shows. We originally left some of our slots blank in case a show got cancelled and we had to reschedule (thankfully nothing has happened yet), but now I have a couple of extra slots where we can fit in a show.
is there any musicals or plays, Broadway or off-Broadway, that you highly recommend? Our only caveat is that we are fairly averse to gunshots/loud sudden noises, but we can handle almost anything else.
Xanadu! Can't cry on cue!
#2Help me pick a show
Posted: 4/14/23 at 4:52am
PARADE!!!
"You can't overrate Bernadette Peters. She is such a genius. There's a moment in "Too Many Mornings" and Bernadette doing 'I wore green the last time' - It's a voice that is just already given up - it is so sorrowful. Tragic. You can see from that moment the show is going to be headed into such dark territory and it hinges on this tiny throwaway moment of the voice." - Ben Brantley (2022)
"Bernadette's whole, stunning performance [as Rose in Gypsy] galvanized the actors capable of letting loose with her. Bernadette's Rose did take its rightful place, but too late, and unseen by too many who should have seen it" Arthur Laurents (2009)
"Sondheim's own favorite star performances? [Bernadette] Peters in ''Sunday in the Park,'' Lansbury in ''Sweeney Todd'' and ''obviously, Ethel was thrilling in 'Gypsy.'' Nytimes, 2000
#3Help me pick a show
Posted: 4/14/23 at 4:55am
binau said: "PARADE!!!"
I know Parade is a good show (I saw an excellent regional production in Seattle a few seasons ago that I still think about to this day), but I’m not necessarily the biggest fan of Ben Platt, so that keeps me from wanting to pay full Broadway prices for this. It’s still on my short list right now, though I have to choose soon as my open slots are tonight and a Sunday matinee
Xanadu! Can't cry on cue!
bear88
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/26/16
#4Help me pick a show
Posted: 4/14/23 at 5:28am
It obviously depends on whether this is a play that would appeal to you, but I was very impressed with Leopoldstadt, the Tom Stoppard play. One potential advantage is that the play, which has run for months, isn't as pricey as it used to be, so good seats are easy to come by. I ended up with four row center orchestra seats buying from a TKTS booth. It's a moving play - just don't get too caught up on how everyone is related.
Shucked isn't a masterpiece, but it's a funny, old-school musical comedy that’s as light as a feather.
#5Help me pick a show
Posted: 4/14/23 at 5:39am
What I'd say about Ben Platt in Parade is that he doesn't really stand out and I don't mean that as a negative thing about him or the show - I think it's a true ensemble effort, he has an incredible scene partner and everything around him is done so beautifully done that it's not the case he is carrying the show or overbearing or anything like that (cf. DEH of course where it was the Ben Platt show). The cast recording is out so I suppose you can listen to "How Can I Call This Home?" "It's Hard to Speak My Heart" and "This is Not Over Yet". If you really don't like what you're hearing fine but personally I think he is doing great work, and "It's Hard to Speak My Heart" in particular I think is a perfect example of someone who knows how to act while singing, and the strength of his voice just adds a little bit more magic than I can hear from the OBC or Donmar versions.
"You can't overrate Bernadette Peters. She is such a genius. There's a moment in "Too Many Mornings" and Bernadette doing 'I wore green the last time' - It's a voice that is just already given up - it is so sorrowful. Tragic. You can see from that moment the show is going to be headed into such dark territory and it hinges on this tiny throwaway moment of the voice." - Ben Brantley (2022)
"Bernadette's whole, stunning performance [as Rose in Gypsy] galvanized the actors capable of letting loose with her. Bernadette's Rose did take its rightful place, but too late, and unseen by too many who should have seen it" Arthur Laurents (2009)
"Sondheim's own favorite star performances? [Bernadette] Peters in ''Sunday in the Park,'' Lansbury in ''Sweeney Todd'' and ''obviously, Ethel was thrilling in 'Gypsy.'' Nytimes, 2000
#6Help me pick a show
Posted: 4/14/23 at 6:56am
FWIW, I can't stand Ben Platt, and he didn't bother me at all in Parade. I actually thought he gave a solid performance. I would also recommend Parade. Solid choices on the other shows you have listed, too, btw!
"There’s nothing quite like the power and the passion of Broadway music. "
yyys
Broadway Legend Joined: 6/29/14
#8Help me pick a show
Posted: 4/15/23 at 7:13pm
Thanks everyone. My sister and I ended up seeing “& Juliet” and we had a really fun time. It was pretty well done for a jukebox musical, and we gre up listening to almost all the Max Martin pop songs wipe growing up. It was also a fun thing to see Paolo Szot become basically the Kevin Richardson of a boy band, something I would have never put on any “bingo card”.
We ended up seeing seperate shows on Saturday night. She wanted to see the Harry Potter show. I didn’t. But I found out that a smalller theatre company is doing “Woman of the Year” at theatre Row, and it’s a Kander & Ebb show I have never seen before, so I’m checking it out.
we still have one more free spot on Sunday, so I guess we’ll see if we can decide on something.
Xanadu! Can't cry on cue!
#9Help me pick a show
Posted: 4/15/23 at 7:17pm
Kimberly Akimbo
Prima Facie w/ Jodi Comer
"Anything you do, let it it come from you--then it will be new."
Sunday in the Park with George
dramamama611
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/4/07
#10Help me pick a show
Posted: 4/16/23 at 1:36am
Kimberly Akimbo...not to be missed with this cast.
If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it?
These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.
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