How the heck did GLORY DAYS make it onto Broadway?!- Page 3

[Theatreboy49]

Posted: 4/25/08 at 10:18pm

that analogy completed my night. That was hilarious!

[defyingravity11]

Posted: 4/25/08 at 10:21pm

I just got home from seeing it. At least Grease isn't the worst show on Broadway. People in the audience were laughing at it and leaving.

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 4/25/08 at 11:25pm

Doesn't any opinion have spoilers in it? Don't read a long post expecting it to sugar coat the plot. If he was vague, people would say he wasn't explaining his point clearly enough.

And the "Bitter/Hate Everything" excuse for people not liking this show is bull. Anyone with any taste is calling this turkey out.

[TooDarnHot]

Posted: 4/25/08 at 11:55pm

"I just got home from seeing it. At least Grease isn't the worst show on Broadway. People in the audience were laughing at it and leaving."


Defying - you were there tonight?? I was too. I went because it was free and thought I should give it another chance since I already saw it at Signature.

what a terrible mistake...

I know exactly what you're talking about, Defying.

people think I'm negative and nasty? just stand around after the show and listen to the audience as they're leaving. YIKES!

no big chances and it was as bad as I remember it. though there was a new energy there, from the performers, that made the show tolerable. love Steven Booth!!

[defyingravity11]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 12:24am

I went cause it was free too! And I know what you mean; some of the things people were saying after the show were pretty brutal. Everyone around me was trying to keep from bursting out with laughter at some of the lyrics. It almost seemed like a Forbidden Broadway skit. I don't intend to be unnecessarily mean, but the material is extremely weak. I really can't see how it's on Broadway. Although the concept and plot points aren't unique, the show could be interesting, or at least entertaining, if it was written better.

[bythesword84]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 8:29pm

I went this afternoon...and it was less than half full. Two older couples actually got up and left in the middle of it.

I think the problem with Glory Days is that it's so bland. It isn't so-bad-its-offensive like some other shows, but there's nothing redeeming about it. The actors are fine enough but no one stands out. I got sick of those bleachers after about five minutes. The music was forgettable. The book was like a bizarre after school special. I felt like even if the actors were amazingly talented, you wouldn't be able to tell with what they were working with. Given how sparsely populated the audience was today, I give them credit for not just frowning at us and leaving themselves.

If I saw this show Off Broadway, I would be a little disappointed. Seeing it on Broadway just made me feel like there must have been a mistake when someone deemed this worthy of a Broadway theatre. It lacks depth, spark, creativity, and good writing (both in terms of dialogue and music)

[DidYouReallyHearMe]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 11:06pm

Just saw it tonight. I feel like the intimacy in the space was good, but it would have been better suited Off-Broadway.

The score is monotonous and I didn't see a difference in any of the songs.

The only surprise in the show, was indeed, no surprise at all. And the song that it was revealed in was the best in the whole show.

[Amneris]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 11:14pm

I honestly overheard tourists talking about seeing GLORY DAYS the NEW Bruce Springsteen musical..um ok? lol... maybe he should get in on it to boost ticket sales haha. I agree that this theater season is weak. Barring the plays. I think every other year we get a really great season. And next year will be it.

[bythesword84]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 11:23pm

"The only surprise in the show, was indeed, no surprise at all. And the song that it was revealed in was the best in the whole show."

I wholeheartedly agree about that song. It was the best one in the show. I don't even remember most of the others.

[DidYouReallyHearMe]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 11:35pm

Amneris! HAHA that is priceless. Bruce Springsteen...that would be great.


Bythesword, the confrontation between Jack and Andy, and Jack's solo were the only memorable songs for me.


I hate to do it, but I feel this show is the High Fidelity of this years season. It'll open after previews and last a few days, then we'll be hearing songs from it being sung at events like "Flopz n Cutz".

[bythesword84]

Posted: 4/26/08 at 11:57pm

The confrontation was alright, I didn't hate it, I just thought Jack's solo was the only "good" song. I sort of hoped the score would be better because two songs does not a good musical make.


...and another thing that is just my opinion- High Fidelity was much better than this.

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 2:25am

I feel bad for the performers. It must be hard to work with such bland material, knowing that you can't possibly make any huge strides to improve it.

[TooDarnHot]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 2:30am

YESS!! I AGREE WITH ALL OF THIS. GOOD TO KNOW THERE ARE OTHER SANE PEOPLE OUT THERE WHO AGREE WITH ME

[DidYouReallyHearMe]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 2:39am

The confrontation was in fact all right, it's just one of the 2 songs i can slightly remember, i just remember them singing about feelings and human beings lol.
But the Open Road song that Jack sang really was a fantastic song.

But to continue on with my thoughts from before, the music was so monotonously poppy and all sounded the same it gave me a headache.


Oh and the best line in the show..."We can trade girls like Pokemon Cards".

[shesamarshmallow]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 4:07am

It's "trading bitches like pokemon cards". :)

[DidYouReallyHearMe]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 4:34am

Sorry Marshmallow.

[KChenowethfan]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 8:22pm

The Washington Post did a piece on Blaemire and Gardiner today:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/25/AR2008042500925_2.html

Not a fan of the show, but it does shed a little light on how it came to be.

[theaterboy]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 9:18pm

Some of the DC critics (by which I mean me) weren't quite so enamored:

Familiar Fodder Updated On: 4/27/08 at 09:18 PM

[iluvtheatertrash]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 9:43pm

I barely got through OTHER HUMAN BEINGS alive. I thought my sides would burst from trying to contain my laughter.

[magic8ball]

Posted: 4/28/08 at 2:51am

I rarely post reviews here of the shows that I see, but this thread makes me really angry so I'm going to. First of all, people COME HERE to read reviews that will help them determine what shows they should spend their $100+ on, and not all "pieces of art" (that made me laugh out loud) deserve their cash. If I can steer someone away from wasting a ton of money to see this disaster, then I consider it a public service.

Here is what I think of the new musical "Glory Days":

1) No, the sets and costumes are not good. Well, the costumes are fine, I guess, but ultimately unremarkable. The set is completely thoughtless: a wall of lightbulbs, the only purpose of which is to occasionally backlight the actors in corny tableaus, and huge metal bleachers upon which the actors scurry like retarded chimps in a maddeningly unnatural manner throughout the show's duration.

2) No, the score is not good. It's monotonous, and most of the lyrics are contrived; often, they don't even suit the melody and seem to be stuffed awkwardly into a preconcieved and ill-fitting musical structure. And JESUS CHRIST! THE MUSICAL DIRECTION! This show merely confirmed for me that I am completely over pop-Broadway vocal stylings. I'd have payed anyone in that theatre $20 to sing a single note with vibrato. And/or without an unnecessary riff.

3) No, the book is not good. There is no real plot or conflict, and, honestly, no one cares about the issues that these people are whining about. The pop culture refences and "19-year-old" lingo fall flat, and the humor is absolutely anti-witty. Somehow, this piece manages to stride headlong into EVERY SINGLE pitfall of young writing: incomplete themes, forced dialogue, erratic structure, generic characters, the inability to create depth in a "slice of life" piece. And what sucks is that there IS a way to correctly portray this demographic and stay true to its inherent angst, immaturity, and confusion. There were pieces in my freshman year Playwrighting course that were more deserving of a Broadway production.

4) And finally, no, the acting wasn't good. To be honest, the actors didn't have much with which to work. But they also didn't go out of their way to rise above the material, which has proved time and again to be the saving grace of shows with some similar issues (read: "Bare"). Most notably, Andrew Call was so spastic that I couldn't even look at him without feeling overwhelmed with irritation; sucks because he's pretty and has a nice voice. (Now that I think about it, he probably snorted some lines before he went on; I know that that would be the only way that I'd make it through this show.)

In any case, I think that ITF's rant on the second page has valuable points. It's certainly a testament to the indefinitive nature of a single critic's views; however, I don't buy the whole "don't come on the board and trash a show because someone from a different background might see things that you didn't". No. If I think a show is an utter waste of time and money, then I have the right to tell people for (in my opinion) their benefit. And the sooner this amateurish trainwreck leaves Circle in the Square in lieu of a more deserving show, the better.

Updated On: 4/28/08 at 02:51 AM

[autopilot2]

Posted: 4/28/08 at 3:21am

hey 8ball, you didn't like the show (i haven't seen it) your review said why quite nicely,

but saying that actor must have taken drugs is a bit much...

[DidYouReallyHearMe]

Posted: 4/28/08 at 3:33am

8Ball, watch those drug comments...that was just rude.


autopilot beat me to it.

[Insider2]

Posted: 4/28/08 at 11:16am

I only wish I had read all of these reviews before I decided to trust the Washington DC critics and plunk down hard earned bucks for the first preview last week. I agree that this show is getting ripped to shreds on here, and whether or not that is fair is open to debate. However, if these negative reviews (all accurate) save one person from wasting money on this garbage, it is worth it.
Updated On: 4/28/08 at 11:16 AM

[Dolly_Levi]

Posted: 4/28/08 at 11:45am

OTHER HUMAN BEINGS
the absolute worst song in the show.
laughable.

[WaltSummersPI]

Posted: 4/28/08 at 11:46am

Oh, come on, the opening number is way worse. Did it even have a title?