Jekyll & Hyde (Broadway Previews!) — Page 11

Not to rain on anyone's parade, but the Monday and Tuesday performances were HEAVILY papered.


I've never been a fan of J&H, but watching the video of the original production, and having seen several regional/college productions, I can at least see why many people grabbed on to this show and enjoy it so much. A few of the songs have even been guilty pleasures over the years as well. Therefore, I'll try to be as respectful as possible, but it's hard to when I was left absolutely dumbfounded how anyone would allow what went on on the stage of the Marquis to happen.

Of course this is all opinion, but I have a really difficult time understanding how anyone involved with the show could sit and watch the confrontation scene and not think it looked utterly ridiculous and unintentionally hilarious. The "Murder! Murder!" scene contained some of the worst (best?) camp moments since the dancing skeletons and huge lemon set piece from "In My Life." There were some pretty vocal laughs directed at the production from several sections in the audience during both songs.

It didn't help that accents were all over the map, and song lyrics were mostly unintelligible. The new song arrangements were mostly for the worse (what was up with that 80s porn music version of Dangerous Game?). "A New Life" was the highlight of the evening and was rewarded with the loudest and most appreciative applause of the evening. The woman next to me exclaimed "oh FINALLY" after the song as if it were a relief to hear something worth cheering for.

Then again, the guy sitting in front of me was loving the show and was totally into it, so what do I know? If the show pleases at least that one guy, then who am I to say it's not worth it?

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I saw the final preview last night. Let me preface and say that this being my third Frank Wildhorn musical I have seen on Broadway, I actually like him quite a bit. I loved the concept recording to Wonderland, and enjoyed aspects of the very, very incoherent Broadway production. I really enjoyed Bonnie and Clyde as well. I even bought the new concept album to Jekyll with the current cast and have enjoyed that too. All of this being said, I can’t imagine anyone seeing the current production and not being severely disappointed.

First off, I was in one of the rush seats in the mezz. There was no one there. There were three rows in the front filled a one row in the back and a few other sporadically there, but otherwise it was EMPTY. A ghost town.

The show went down exactly the same path that Wonderland did. It clearly has been re-written to the point of incomprehension. I had no idea what was going on in the first ten minutes, largely in part to the muddled lyrics (I couldn’t pick out any from the first two songs). The sound design is aggressively loud to the point of distortion, and the orchestrations were so painfully thin that it just echoed the cheapness of the show.

Aside from the egregious re re-writes, the biggest mistake the producers of the this show made was casting Constantine in the lead. He just isn’t up to the challenge of this role. Yes, he can belt a note, but has no control over anything he sang. In fact he mostly just screamed at the audience. On top of that his accent sounded like he was Irish (when it was there).

Deborah Cox fared the best in my opinion, though her acting and accent were also lacking. That said, she was in great voice last night, and a true highlight for me. I loved “A New Life” and “Someone Like Me.” Yet “Bring On the Men” seemed like it could be such a fun song, why is it reduced to a dirge in the show?

Teal Wicks was fine. She has a great voice, but such an
underwritten part that made very little impression on me. “In His Eyes” with Deborah was lovely though.

The opening “Murder Murder” number in act 2 verged on bad community theater, only to be outdone by “The Confrontation.” I can see how this could be a powerful, theatrical moment in a good production, but instead this wound up being one of the worst moments of the current theatrical season. The projections in general were awful, but in that moment especially they were laughably bad.

I recently saw the tour of Sister Act in Philadelphia and was reminded how great a tour can be. In fact, I preferred it to the Broadway incarnation. Yet this just felt cheap and wrong.

My rush ticket was row H in the mezz. I saw from the online rush tickets that they were offering a few in rear orchestra, but the box office gave us Row H in the mezz.

The "Murder" scenes are written intentionally to be campy, but I will admit how incredible it is that lines that got laughs in every other incarnation fall so flat with this one. (The Lord Savage bits come to mind)

Who would think a black comedy camp number about murder would seamlessly fit into a show that is essentially melodrama? Intentional comedy or comedy by accident, the number is ridiculous, out of place, and poorly written. And it's not like the bar is set remarkably high, lyrically- I mean, there's a verse in one of the "Facade" reprises that literally gives the definition of an architectural facade.

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I LOVE discussion. I find it confusing when people try to invalidate someone else's review by presenting subjective information as "proof" that their perception was in any way "off" or "wrong".

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While its hard to top Eder, Cuciolli and Noll... the new cast still sounds terrific. I think highlights for many would definitely be "A New Life" and "In His Eyes." I like the new arrangement of the latter.

The two are directed that way, rather unfortunately. This revival is "all about the stars"... but I think the "stars" are miscalculated draw-wise.

I was baffled at how Maroulis breaks the fourth wall for "This is the Moment" for his glory moment. "Someone Like You" is kind of always directed that way.

Toxic? Just wait until the reviews come out.

I don't think that the "Jekkies" have an agenda. They just have... a thoroughly incomprehensible level of taste. It's like trying to understand someone who is speaking in Mayan.

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Sure it's incomprehensible, in that I am unable to understand it. Just as my total devotion to cats is probably incomprehensible to someone who hate cats.

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The fact that bothers me is Wildhorn never shields his intentions and people seem to dislike him for that reason that he writes "pop music" for the theatre

Right, it's all about the genre. Nothing to do with him writing crap.

I think most people leave out that "Jekkies" (perhaps myself) are notoriously delusional for thinking this musical is among the best.

The best what?

In any case, the show will get panned, it will flop badly. The Wildhoners will blame the flop on the critics and haters and next season he will open a brand new show.

And that new show will get panned, it will flop badly...

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It's not so much the pop; he can definitely write in other styles besides pop.

It's that almost no song he writes, in collaboration with whatever lyricist is called up for the project, advances the plot at all. More often than not, the songs stop. the. show. cold (and not in a good way).

That's why the recitative that has been cut is so missed. Those were the primary moments where the show moved forward while people were also singing.