January 3 Closing Experiences Thread

I didn't see anyone discussing going to final performances so I thought I would start a thread for all of the shows. If you attended a final performance yesterday please share your experiences with us.

I attended the final performance of Marvelous Wonderettes yesterday at 3pm. The original cast Beth Malone (BJ), Bets Malone (Suzie), Victoria Matlock (Cindy Lou), and Farah Alvin (Missy) were all in attendance as was writer/director Roger Bean. There were no differences in the performance. As many of you are aware sometimes little jokes or what not are added to the final performance but everything stayed the same. There was a brief moment where I thought Lindsay Mendez (BJ) was going to go off script. She's speaking to Christina Decicco (Cindy Lou) and says "You bi...boyfriend stealer". She paused longer than usual after the "bi" and I honestly thought she was going to finish the word and say "bitch". And with such a long pause I think she considered it. But in the end she stuck with the script.

The show was sold out and I'd heard that it had been sold out for the previous week or so. One of my coworkers went on 12/27 and she said it was sold out as well. The audience was very enthusiastic and would applaud randomly. Applause broke out after every solo of "Thank You and Goodnight" which is the show's final song and the audience was on its feet before the song was even done.

At the end of the show one of the producers (I want to say it was David Elzner but I just cannot remember now) came up on stage to give a speech. I've attended my fair share of closings and this is the first time I can recall seeing a producer come up. I've seen directors and cast members speak. He seemed really attached to the show and spoke of how people would come up to him and say that they saw the show 5 or 6 times and always came out with a smile on their face. Which is part of what I loved about the show. You could be in the dumps over something that was going on in your life and come out feeling better about things. The show has so much joy and love at it's center than you feel it as an audience member. At least I always did. Roger was brought up and he brought up the original cast. Everybody got flowers. The cast, Roger, the original cast, the stage manager...everyone. Honestly, I don't think I've ever seen a more beautiful and heartfelt closing. There are always tears and hugs but I don't think I've ever witnessed the amount of love and caring that I did yesterday.

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Updated On: 1/4/10 at 01:15 PM

I think the "you bi... boyfriend stealer" line was added before it closed. Becuase I think I heard Lindsay say it too when I saw the show in mid-December.

I saw the final performance of "The Toxic Avenger" last night.

The final show was a sell out and the audience was almost entirely made of “Toxie” regulars. The audience was so exuberant that each actor received a very welcoming round of applauds as they appeared on stage for the first time. Also, at times, the audiences laughter and applauds overshadowed the cast lines and the songs lyrics. Building on the audience's reactions the cast began to accentuate their performances even more than usual through some improvisations in facial expressions, line deliveries, dancing and holding notes a little bit longer. Diana DeGarmo, Nick Cordero, Nancy Opel, Demond Green, and Jonathan Root defiantly made the final show quite an experience.

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