Hugh Jackman to hold 12-performance concert series at Radio City Music Hall- Page 2

[Danasi]

Posted: 1/25/25 at 1:41am

My mom and I went to the first show tonight. I didn't take notes, so apologies if I miss anything. It started around 8:15, and while it said sold out outside, based on what I saw on ticketmaster the other day and in person  tonight it wasn't.  But it was pretty full. Hugh started singing, then gave the agenda and estimated running time (he said about 1 hour 45 min, maybe a bit longer depending on how much he talked). He also said no encore. It was 10:02 when we got up and headed out. There wasn't an intermission, and he even made a couple jokes about how those over 50 might be regretting it, and how towards the end there was only two songs left. He chatted and told some stories between songs. The big special guest was Ryan Reynolds, during the "ask me anything" segment he had. They were filming, and projected it onto the big screens on the side and occasionally the big screen in back. The rest of the time it either showed patterned, art deco style backgrounds or sometimes clips from his movie. Hugh went into the audience a little, at the front of the orchestra.

We enjoyed the show. We've only seen him on stage in musicals and in movies, so I don't know how this compares to his show in 2019. I'd consider going back again, but not for the pre-sale price we paid (my mom expressed interest). It'll be interesting to see how the show changes.  my theory is that each month's three shows will be similar, and some of the songs will carry over to all of them.  We were in the front row of the first mezz and I'd get those seats again.

For merchandise, they had window cards, some different shirts and jackets, a drink container, a puzzle, and a bracelet set (reminded me of Taylor Swift). No magnets or keychains.

Here's the songs I remember. It's not complete - I may have the order wrong, and might've missed something, since again, I didn't take notes

Oh what a beautiful morning (first line)
Neil Diamond song - Hugh noted it was his birthday today
Greatest Show (Greatest Showman)
Come Alive (Greatest Showman)
You got Trouble (Music Man)
I think there was another from the music man
Sweet Caroline
You will be found (Dear Evan Hanson)
Stars (Les Mis)
 Valjean's Soliloquy (Les Mis)
Other Side (Greatest Showman)
Jump rope dance number (to NSync)
Rockettes nod
AMA -Ryan Reynolds
All My Days (Real Steel opening number)
Peter Allen medley
Thank God I'm a Country Boy, reworked to thank God I'm an Aussie
Never be enough (guest singer, can't remember her name, Greatest Showman)
*can't remember if there was another song here*
Fly Me to the Moon
??? He sang something here but I can't remember
New York New York
*can't remember if there was another song here*
A million Dreams (Greatest Showman)
Once before I Go (seems to be his usual final song)
 

 

Updated On: 1/25/25 at 01:41 AM

[Tom-497]

Posted: 1/25/25 at 6:00pm

I saw this afternoon's show, which looks pretty similar to the above - to add a couple of specifics, the first Neil Diamond song was Crunchy Granola Suite, and the other Sinatra song was That's Life. There was no AMA, and no Ryan Reynolds, though there was a cute faux bitchy quip about Reynolds' lack of dancing ability.

A back up singer named Lauren, I think, was asked to do a solo song very last minute (10:30 this morning) and was very well-received. Hugh spoke glowingly of her onstage and, when the show ended, the curtain was down, and the audience leaving, he asked, still on mic, Where's Lauren?, presumably to congratulate her further.

I thought the whole show was pleasant and likeable, but it also had a random one-thing-after-another quality, seldom building momentum.

 

[Melissa25]

Posted: 1/25/25 at 7:31pm

That's the beautiful Lauren Blackman most recently in Lempicka. She was also in The Music Man with Hugh and was a Marian Paroo understudy who went on once or twice.

[PipingHotPiccolo]

Posted: 1/26/25 at 7:30pm

Gabriella Carrillo, who has been playing Catharine Parr in SIX tour/Broadway for years at this point, was chosen from a bunch of audition tapes to sing Never Enough- but then got sick and had to bow after the first night, Must be crushing but the show must go on, so good for Lauren Blackman. 

 

 

[quizking101]

Posted: 1/28/25 at 12:41am

I just finally cobbled my review together from the Saturday night show.

https://open.substack.com/pub/songanddancern/p/review-hugh-jackman-from-new-york?r=2q8kzj&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

[inception]

Posted: 1/28/25 at 6:37am

A blog on substack?  When we've all been waiting for an OnlyFans?

Just kidding.

Nice! 👍

[MezzA101]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 8:19am

Hugh Jackman’s Team ‘Scrambling to Save Face’ Amid Broadway Debacle: ‘Sources’

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/articles/hugh-jackman-team-scrambling-save-130022401.html?

[DramaTeach]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 8:51am

While I don’t condone what he did when he cheated, that has no affect on my opinion of his performance, and the performance itself was so lackluster.

There’s a desperation where he’s trying to hard with random jumping jacks and every song from Greatest Showman under the sun to be “hip.” A couple of songs from that? Fine. The entire soundtrack? Ridiculous. Jumping jacks to NSync? No. I’m aware the song was in Deadpool, but there was a dance in the movie that went along with that which seems like it would make more sense. And no unique song choices because his voice just isn’t great.
 

My guest was King Princess and I saw her open for someone last year. Not sure why the music industry is pushing her. She’s not good. His backup singers and dancers were also just okay. Nothing and nobody was “wow” worthy. THAT is why tickets aren’t selling.

[nealb1]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 10:40am

Saw the show at Radio City over Memorial Day weekend and loved it.  So wonderful.  His special guest was Melissa Etheridge, and the venue was 85% full.  Saw him 2 weeks later at The Hollywood Bowl.  The show was pretty much the same, with Melissa E in the audience.  He pointed her out during the performance.  

The Yahoo article attached here certainly has a "I don't like Hugh" tone to it, from it's writer.  It's always the articles that say "reliable sources," that are suspect.  Perhaps had Hugh's residency at Radio City been just a few months, rather than almost a year, ticket sales would be better.  Who knows?  
 

[JSquared2]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 11:50am

MezzA101 said: "Hugh Jackman’s Team ‘Scrambling to Save Face’ Amid Broadway Debacle: ‘Sources’

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/articles/hugh-jackman-team-scrambling-save-130022401.html?"

 

Why would you waste our time and post an AI-generated assortment of words (calling it an "article" is being too kind)?  Not only does it not contain a single "on the record" comment (everyone is an "unnamed source"), but the basic facts aren't even correct.  AI claims that tickets went down from $200 (when the average price was closer to $400-$500) to $20 (which is what the scalpers were settling for as the shows were starting and they needed to dump tickets.  It's true that sales have not been as strong as expected -- which means they probably would have been better off doing fewer shows).

[Jonathan Cohen]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 1:26pm

I went to Ticketmaster to what's going on for tomorrow's show and the thing that struck me is there's the most scarcity of tickets left in the third mezzanine section. Only 17 tickets left at $86.45. In comparison, there are over 600 tickets left in orchestra section. 

People taking the bad tickets before the good ones, is a pretty good indicator that there's significant demand to see Jackman, but ticket prices are higher than what many fans are able or willing to pay. 

Also, I'm not claiming this is the biggest factor, but Sexual Misconduct of the Middle Classes just closed off-Broadway and the get-in price to see Hugh Jackman was significantly cheaper. I paid $35 to see him in a small theater. Radio City Musical Hall is a totally different type of show with totally different overhead, but there have been significantly cheaper ways to see Jackman in New York recently.  

[RippedMan]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 1:29pm

Does his show fill the space? Like is there a big production value?

[DAME]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 1:59pm

nealb1 said: "Saw the show at Radio City over Memorial Day weekend and loved it. So wonderful. His special guest was Melissa Etheridge, and the venue was 85% full. Saw him 2 weeks later at The Hollywood Bowl. The show was pretty much the same, with Melissa E in the audience. He pointed her out during the performance.

The Yahoo article attached here certainly has a "I don't like Hugh" tone to it, from it's writer. It's always the articles that say "reliable sources," that are suspect. Perhaps had Hugh's residency at Radio City been just a few months, rather than almost a year, ticket sales would be better. Who knows?
"

I saw the show at the Bowl as well.  But I thought it was awful.  I thought he sounded like crap. I just couldn't believe how bad his vocals were. He has never had the best voice.  But it was enough for him to get away with it.  Not now. The orchestra and background singers sure tried to help.   He also has looked better. His choice of Neil Diamond songs to open with did not serve him well and set the tone for a weird evening.  

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 2:11pm

I think there’s a subconscious Hugh Jackman-fatigue going on now. The Greatest Showman was everywhere for a long time, The Music Man was in the headlines for over a year, and now it’s perpetual updates about the divorce and “dating” (lol) Sutton Foster. And it sounds like he’s tired/losing his touch. 

[ACL2006]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 2:20pm

He's not highly regarded anymore due to him cheating on his wife for years with Sutton Foster. I don't think Foster would be warmly welcomed back on Broadway after this scandal, either.

[DAME]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 2:26pm

I don't think anyone really gives a poop about that.  And if they do then they need to get a life.  The show was just not good.  BTW.. the Bowl was packed. 

Updated On: 6/19/25 at 02:26 PM

[JSquared2]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 2:35pm

ACL2006 said: "He's not highly regarded anymore due to him cheating on his wife for years with Sutton Foster. I don't think Foster would be warmly welcomed back on Broadway after this scandal, either."

 

Oh gurrrl, unclutch those pearls and let us know when (if ever) you come back to reality.

[nealb1]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 2:54pm

DAME said: "I don't think anyone really gives a poop about that. And if they do then they need to get a life. The show was just not good. BTW.. the Bowl was packed."

Exactly.  Hugh Jackman's love life is just that - his business and nobody else's.  Yes, Opening Night at The HB was jam packed.  I took my mom for her 86th birthday, and we had fantastic box seats, way down front.  It was a wonderful evening.  

Regarding the earlier comment, Sutton will always be welcome to come back to Broadway.  

 

[DAME]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 3:39pm

Sounds like a beautiful evening out with your mom.

[Kad]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 3:57pm

Jackman was even just in a small off-broadway play with good reviews and word of mouth and it wasn’t an immediate hot ticket at all.  That would be unthinkable just a few years ago. Something has definitely shifted there in terms of his ability to be a draw. 

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 4:03pm

Kad said: "Jackmanwas even just in a small off-broadway play with good reviews and word of mouthand it wasn’t an immediate hot ticket at all. That would be unthinkable just a few years ago. Something has definitely shifted there in terms of his ability to be a draw."

True. I think it’s over-saturation. And maybe post-pandemic discernment, more care about where people are spending their money. 

[DAME]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 4:06pm

The novelty has worn out for now.  

[Wayman_Wong]

Posted: 6/19/25 at 4:23pm

''Something has definitely shifted there in terms of his ability to be a draw.''

Or maybe folks aren't that interested in seeing Jackman in an Off-Broadway play. If he came back in a well-known Broadway musical, the results might be different.

This reminds me of Daniel Radcliffe. When he's in a play (like ''The Lifespan of a Fact'' or ''The Cripple of Inishmaan'' ), he's not a draw, and the box office is ho-hum. Unless he's getting naked in ''Equus.'' But put Radcliffe in a musical, like ''How to Succeed'' or ''Merrily We Roll Along,'' and he's a hit. 

Updated On: 6/19/25 at 04:23 PM

[Jonathan Cohen]

Posted: 6/20/25 at 12:06pm

BorisTomashevsky said: "I think there’s a subconscious Hugh Jackman-fatigue going on now. The Greatest Showman was everywhere for a long time, The Music Man was in the headlines for over a year, and now it’s perpetual updates about the divorce and “dating” (lol) Sutton Foster. And it sounds like he’s tired/losing his touch."

For the people are sick of Hugh Jackman narrative to make sense, you have to overlook he was a title character in a Marvel movie that made $1.3 billion dollars at the box office just 11 months ago. 

Jackman tries a bunch of different things, at least relative to other A-List movie stars, and I think it's pretty normal for there to be uneven levels of interest in those projects. For example, The Music Man was a huge family friendly hit. There's no reason to think him playing a professor in a coercive relationship with one of his students Off-Broadway is going to bring in the same audience. 

If he decided to play Wolverine again or agreed to do Les Misérables on Broadway the interest level would be huge.

I'm not sure there is a star people will go and watch no matter what. For example, Tom Cruise is probably the most bankable star in Hollywood, but a big part of why is because he's spent the last 20 years, making variations of the same movie over and over.  

Updated On: 6/20/25 at 12:06 PM

[Kad]

Posted: 6/20/25 at 12:16pm

His show off-Broadway was in a house that had fewer than 400 seats, in a very limited run, with more accessibly priced tickets- and it wasn't an event at all. The idea of a notable celebrity like Jackman doing something like that, regardless of what else they've done, and it not being a slam dunk is wild no matter how one tries to explain it. 

Updated On: 6/20/25 at 12:16 PM