"Honeymoon in Vegas" Preview Thread- Page 9

[musicalfool]

Posted: 12/8/14 at 10:55am

I too loved the show. Fun, silly and very entertaining. I though the score was bouncy and more complicated/interesting than folks here are giving it credit for. To each his own, but I'd easily recommend this one.

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 12/8/14 at 10:57am

massofmen, I completely agree.

[KathyNYC2]

Posted: 12/8/14 at 11:36am

I loved a lot of the show also - very funny and clever - but it's too long with two many cute (or not so cute, i.e. stupid) unnecessary scenes.

I thought both Tony and Rob were great - especially Rob - but Brynn is definitely the weak link. Granted it is not a well developed character but while I can't criticize her acting or singing or dancing per se, she is sort of devoid of any personality. With a different actress, the character could be more lovable or quirky or something that would lead me to believe there is a reason these guys are so in love with her.

The music sound was very rich, musicians were awesome and they all sounded FABULOUS but there is nothing that I brought home with me in terms of a great song or musical memory. But the band is on stage and very impressive (and I appreciated the musicians had two wardrobe changes)...and it's very LAS VEGAS when it needs to be.

I think the show has a lot going for it and I get there is almost a full month before it opens...so I would be curious to see it after it's set to see what they have done.

And maybe it's me, I loved the little hole in the stage that actors kept dropping in and out of...and used for many different things. It was a great "prop"..LOL..and worked extremely well.

[valeposh]

Posted: 12/8/14 at 12:24pm

Question- has anyone tried rushing for the show? How is the line? I'll be in town in 10 days and really want to see this. Thanks!

[neonlightsxo]

Posted: 12/8/14 at 1:46pm

Someone wrote about rush on the previous page of this thread.

[KathyNYC2]

Posted: 12/8/14 at 3:41pm

I rushed for the Sun matinee. I got there 10 mins before the box office opened...and I was about 8 in line and I think we all got tickets.

[getatme]

Posted: 12/8/14 at 3:43pm

Last Sunday the 30th, I got a rush ticket at about 2:15 and was second row center mezzanine. Pretty easy rush, it seems.

[theatregeek6]

Posted: 12/10/14 at 11:21pm

Saw this tonight

I thought Danza was the weakest link. Rob McClure stole the show and I thought that Brynn O'Malley was fine - although you could replace her with Betsey Wolfe or Annaleigh Ashford with the same effect.

JRBs score was great. The show was VERY enjoyable and the people around me ate it up. If Danza brings in the audience and the vast brings it like they did tonight they could have a good run

The supporting cast was excellent. The on stage band killed

I had a lot of fun.

[SNAFU]

Posted: 12/11/14 at 12:24am

I was there tonight as well and really enjoyed the show. I saw the invited Dress at the Papermill and there were numerous stops and holds and they hadn't finished teching from the the flying Elvises until the end. They have really tightened the script, choreography and modified the scenery (which was my major complaint at Papermill), The audience seemed to really enjoy the show. I am hoping they will find their audience. Blow your socks off theatre? Naw… just a fun mindless romp. Sometimes that is just what we need. The Orchestra was wonderful and I love how they were featured onstage.
Funny, I liked Danza. No, he is not a scary mob type, never found him to be "dangerous" at all but he comes across as a guy just wanting to be liked. There was something charming in that.

[newintown]

Posted: 12/11/14 at 9:07am

"If Danza brings in the audience..."

Like he did for the last few months of The Producers?

[Phillypinto]

Posted: 12/11/14 at 9:35am

I feel like Tony Danza just plays Tony Danza haha

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 12/11/14 at 9:47am

You were expecting him to play Hamlet? It is a musical comedy & he is a TV actor. Let's get real people

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 12/11/14 at 9:53am

"Let's get real people."

[DramaTeach]

Posted: 12/14/14 at 9:58am

Saw it last night. Thought the music itself was great, but found the lyrics to be a bit basic and sometimes crude (although I can't remember a specific example, which may be part of the problem).

Tony Danza was what I expected. He acts the character perfectly, but his voice is just serviceable. rob McClure must've been sick, because his voice kept breaking on the high notes. His energy made up for it. Brynn O'Malley's has potential, but she's not doing much with it. Like others have said, I was waiting for her to have her stand-out moment, but it never happened. I disagree with those who have said that the character is written flatly. While not fully developed, there are many moments where I thought, "This is it," but her sweet singing and acting let me down. I was wishing for a truly angry belt of a note or a shouted monologue. He sold her, for goodness sakes!! Nancy Opel was welcomed, as one of the most powerful voices (along with Josefsberg).

The sets were great, and the orchestra was my favorite part. They brought a lot of energy to the stage, and they deserved every single bit of applause they received. Overall, it was a fine night, but nothing I'd run and recommend. It pains me to say that.

[haterobics]

Posted: 12/14/14 at 4:48pm

I'm seeing one of the last previews for this show, so I haven't been yet. And I haven't read this thread yet, either, since I rather go in cold. But I watched the film last night, since I had no recollection of it aside from the Flying Elvises. Wow. What a weird movie... it does seem to lend itself to musicalization at all, given the whole movie is Elvis covers. But I guess I'll find out soon enough how it works or doesn't... but I like Danza, McClure, and JRB, and Elvis, so I'm not too apprehensive...

[mc1227]

Posted: 12/14/14 at 9:18pm

Saw this this afternoon and enjoyed it. It's fun and entertaining. Strengths are McClure with his great physical comedy presence. As with Chaplin, he shows his great stage talent here.

However, with the exception of O'Malley, the singing voices of most of the cast are pretty thin. With the two leads not having great voices, I would have thought it would doom the show, but for me, it did not. I loved the second act, it was creative, fun and engaging. The first act was the exact opposite, dull and slow.

Danza is Danza and sometimes it's hard to listen to his singing voice but other than that he is good in this role and does an impressive dance in Act two that was a crowd pleaser. Speaking of the crowd there was a great moment in act 2 where an audience member clapped after a line that stated "after she gets the ring, your life will be miserable". That prompted the crowd to laugh hysterically and a great ad lib response from McClure...

All in all, a fun day at the theater...go see it if that's your theater goal.

[JBroadway]

Posted: 12/14/14 at 9:45pm

Saw the matinee yesterday. Overall, I'm pretty unimpressed. Did I hate it? Definitely not. I thought the 2nd act was far superior to the 1st, though. The cast was great, though I think Rob McCure might be a bit under the weather? He seemed to struggle with some of the high notes, but he totally brought the energy. Danza was smooth and fun, Brynn O'Malley was great, and Nancy Opel was perfection. I really wanted her part to be bigger!

The score...what can I say? Maybe if it weren't JRB, I wouldn't have held it to such high standard, and I might have been more impressed. The man has written some really incredible, gorgeous music, and this just wasn't it. It wasn't a terrible score, and there were definitely some good moments, but this is easily his worst score to date, IMO.

Also, I didn't realize how long the preview period is! I knew yesterday that it had been in previews for almost a month, so I had guessed that I was seeing one of the late previews, and that it was close to opening. It was only just now that I checked and realized it isn't opening until mid-January. I guess it's good to know it's still being worked on.

I haven't read this whole thread, so perhaps someone has mentioned this already, but some of the behavior at the stage door was really irritating. The whole crown was a bunch of loud, pushy, handsy, Danza-obsessed, middle-aged women crowding around the stage door demanding pictures and autographs, and screaming "Tony!" and "hey big boss man, over here!" Maybe Mr. Danza is used to it and doesn't mind, but I was impressed by how patient and polite he was with this crowd.



Updated On: 12/14/14 at 09:45 PM

[musicman_bwayfan]

Posted: 12/14/14 at 10:56pm

JBroadway, I saw the show today and Rob McClure said at the stage door that he appreciated everyone's enthusiasm for the show and their compliments for him especially since he is fighting a bad cold that he's had all week.

There were a few Tony Danza fanatics there waiting for him afterwards at the stage door to get their hands on him...including some lady with a t-shirt for Honeymoon in Vegas with sequins that was only sold at Papermill (or at least that's what she said to everyone when she opened her jacket to flash the shirt at them).

[matineeidol2591]

Posted: 12/17/14 at 12:45am

I sadly wouldn't recommend this show. I spent $32 dollars on a rush ticket (which they put me in the 5th row, smack dab in the center. fabulous), and frankly I wish I'd saved my money. A whole lot of average elements add up to a mild and frustratingly unfulfilling evening. I found myself wondering 'why?' throughout the entire show. Whats the point? The Audience tonight ATE the whole thing up though. I can't see this lasting through the spring.

[VanillaIceCream2]

Posted: 12/17/14 at 3:06pm

matineeidol--how early did you get to the box office for a rush ticket? thanks!

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 12/17/14 at 3:19pm

We saw it and enjoyed it. Probably will be another early closure. In the past, this would bother me. No more. Life goes on

The only surprising thing is no one in this thread has wondered what is going in after this flops. This is the usual S.O.P.

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 12/17/14 at 3:28pm

"In the past, this would bother me. No more. Life goes on."

Oh, Roxy, you're a SCREAM.

[matineeidol2591]

Posted: 12/17/14 at 9:45pm

VanillaIceCream: I arrived at the theatre about an hour before curtain!

[Robbie2]

Posted: 12/18/14 at 2:18am

We saw it and enjoyed it. Probably will be another early closure. In the past, this would bother me. No more. Life goes on

The only surprising thing is no one in this thread has wondered what is going in after this flops. This is the usual S.O.P.

---
Nederlanders probably want Hunchback after HinV

[Kad]

Posted: 12/20/14 at 11:46am

Saw this last night and was rather unimpressed. The first act lacks the forward momentum a comedy like this needs, while the second act derails itself in Hawaii ("Friki-Friki" and the Garden of Disappointed Mothers really fall flat). It's a comedy in which everyone is the straight man until the second act, when it's a farce in a very, very heightened world. Incidentally, I thought the show worked the best from the Flying Elvii onward- it finally felt things were moving forward. Though, in the adaptation's attempt to make Danza's character sympathetic, we now have a melancholy-creepy conman / gangster who just sort of shrugs, says the game is done, and walks offstage at the end- talk about anticlimax that pretty much reveals the stakes were never high for him. A significant issue for the co-lead of the show.

Rob McClure basically carries the show on his shoulders and whenever the focus shifts to Danza or any of the ensemble members who inexplicably have songs, his absence is immediately felt. Danza, especially, I thought was not great; weak, strained singing aside, I thought he seemed generally detached from the proceedings and coasting on charm.

The score is... fine. It's JRB doing his best David Yazbek.

The projections seem like stock photography of Vegas, Hawaii, and NYC, and the physical production is generally unmemorable.

From what I can see, the show is struggling - lots of papering going on. The abnormally long preview period means that if it gets good press, it'll be in the middle of January - one of the worst times of the year for Broadway. The two-month preview run of this is just baffling to me.

Updated On: 12/20/14 at 11:46 AM