KIMBERLY AKIMBO Off-Broadway - Previews & Reviews — Page 2

I saw the show last night and loved it! It is off-beat, funny, heartbreaking, and just delightful. The music is terrific, particularly a song (I believe) called Anagram.The cast is excellent and it’s amazing to watch Clark as a 16 year old (she nails it) and her voice is gorgeous.

Shout outs to Milligan (with a show-stopping number), Boyer, and Mauzey. And if you're interested in seeing a newcomer with a very bright future, you’ll love Justin Cooley as the nerdy Seth. Reading his bio, this kid just graduated from HS in May! Watching his character and Kimberly fall for each other is beautiful.

Personally, I DO see a future for this show uptown. Only time will tell…but it was an excellent night in the theatre!

Congrats! I have a ticket for December and I'm looking forward to seeing this show.

Jimbo (formerly the lifecafe.com guy)

"Cute" is the word that comes to mind. I had high hopes –– and it's in no way a trainwreck –– but it needs some work if they have any hope of a life beyond the Atlantic.

This is Jeanine Tesori's worst score. That said, a bad Tesori score is still a lot better than other composers. But the music is just sort of...there. It doesn't give a great justification for why these characters need to be singing.

On a whole, the show is still having problems balancing the tone of comedy and drama. It's pretty poorly directed and designed, so any flaws in the material aren't being masked by that. The opening number/scene is clunky, so it doesn't really find its groove until Victoria Clark's I-Want song. The second act is so convoluted.

The sophistication with which Victoria Clark sings might be the biggest problem with her character. Because of that, I don't buy that she's a 15-year-old who looks 60. Acting-wise she is good considering the poor direction and has the potential to be flat-out brilliant, but this might be an inherent problem with adapting this play into a musical. Clark is 62 and looks good for her age and the young adults playing 15-16 all look like 20somethings, so the age disparity isn't reading significantly onstage...some subtle makeup and wiggery could go a long way for Clark.

Milligan is sensational. Very much in "Melissa McCarthy in Bridesmaids" or "Lea Delaria in On the Town" mode.

A mild spoiler about the act 1 finale:

The only way I see this making ANY impact on Broadway is if they do major surgery and it wins the Tony Award for Best Musical. Otherwise it closes within 3 months and loses every cent like Amelie. The subject matter, like Side Show, is going to be a detractor to try to explain to audiences in an "elevator pitch."

I was there tonight.

This was my fifth show in the past few weeks, after Fairycakes, Dana H, Jagged Little Pill and Baby. After the disappointments of Baby and Fairycakes, off-Broadway was starting to look like an unhealthy relationship, but I'm happy to say this show broke the cycle and renewed my faith in new work.

I loved every single person in the cast. Vicki is adorable and heartbreaking, Bonnie is balls to the wall Bonnie, the quartet of high schoolers couldn't be more perfectly cast, the actor who plays Seth is amazing, the duo who play the parents are great.

I have a lot more to say, but I'm exhausted. I loved this show, like, a lot. I hate to overhype things, but go see this

Jimbo2 said: "Congrats! I have a ticket for December and I'm looking forward to seeing this show."

Thanks, Jimbo! I hope we both enjoy it.

I've still got an extra $25 ticket for tonight (Sunday, November 21st, 7pm) if anyone is interested.

#1Elphie said: "Jimbo2 said: "Congrats! I have a ticket for December and I'm looking forward to seeing this show."

Thanks, Jimbo! I hope we both enjoy it.

I've still got an extra $25 ticket for tonight (Sunday, November 21st, 7pm) if anyone is interested."

where were your lottery tix? TDF put us dead center in the third row.

i enjoyed this a whole bunch. the music is nothing special and some of the lyrics are pretty basic, but it was pleasant to listen to and the book has some pretty heartbreaking moments. i laughed and i choked up, and those are both rarities for me, and make me overlook the many flaws/gripes of this production.

the set is great- simple but smart. the ensemble foursome are phenomenal, especially Nina White and Fernell Hogan. Alli Mauzey has such a unique talent: her voice is beautiful and yet inherently funny/clever. Unfortunately I think she (and Boyer) are given the worst material; did Lindsay-Abaire originally write them to be so despicable? I thought the only really weak substantive spot was how cartoon-cruel those two were to their daughter,

Bonnie Milligan is, as others have said, doing Bonnie Milligan. I expected her to belt alot but she was actually quite funny and stole scene after scene she was in. (I also wonder what Mauzey would have done with this role). But the show turns on the two leads: Victoria Clark and Justin Cooley. He is adorkable but sincere and instantly likeable. Hes a leading man that doesnt sacrifice an ounce of his character's geekdom. And Clark- I am still not 100% sure I get her casting, because its not just that she looks her age, but she SOUNDS it, with a lilting more operatic/traditional tone; maybe thats on purpose but it doesnt always fit the score. But her performance is so touching, so thoughtful, so moving. I thought she and Cooley gave us one of the more beautiful romances I have seen on stage in quite some time.

credit to them, of course, but also the whole creative team, for such a moving night.

BwayStarlette said: "I heard this is amazing --- I hope it gets great reviews so I can see it when I am in NYC. A friend told me it's going to be a smash and I should see it!"

Is it "cute" and "fun"? Yes.

Is it "amazing" and a "smash" -- that's a bit of a stretch!

The show is somewhat fine… Saw it yesterday. The score is so-so, definitely Tesori’s worst (but that’s not bad, as said above). The directing is horrendous. But the cast is talented enough to overcome that.
I truly do not understand why anyone thought this was a role for Victoria Clark. From the moment she walked onstage, it was a caricature and it never felt honest at all. The worst is when she sings… her singing voice has absolutely nothing to do with her speaking voice (and especially the way Tesori writes in general, that is a huge detriment)…. But it’s also that she has always had a break in her voice where she suddenly seems to have no other way to produce the notes than to go into legit opera soprano (again, nothing to do with her character). It severely damaged what could otherwise have been an interesting role. The only other weak link is Bonnie Milligan who is about a funny as Medea (mentioned in the show), and seems to be walking through a badly written role without even trying to do much about it. Overall the cast seems to at least be trying hard - she’s the only one who seems like she’d rather be anyplace else.
The MAJOR BRIGHT SPOT is Justin Cooley. Phenomenal from the outset - interesting, charming, funny, sympathetic, endearing. A lovely lovely NY debut from someone we’d never heard of, which for me made it worth attending. He shines the entire time.

Also, Shrek low key has an amazing score, so I wouldn't list that as a negative.

I absolutely adore Jeanine Tesori, so this is definitely on my list of shows to see. It was on TDF a lot and all of sudden it’s gone. I guess word of mouth is making sales pick up. Does anybody know if they have a rush policy?

jdrye222 said: "The only other weak link is Bonnie Milligan who is about a funny as Medea (mentioned in the show), and seems to be walking through a badly written role without even trying to do much about it. Overall the cast seems to at least be trying hard - she’s the only one who seems like she’d rather be anyplace else."

I'm still putting the rest of my thoughts together but I have to push back on this. She was the funniest part of a very funny ensemble show and probably had the catchiest song of the night. And even if you hate how the character was written, she is giving a committed performance. She's landing her jokes and belting her face off. Not for a minute did she seem bored to me. You can criticize the show without insulting her.

kwoc91 said: "I agree, VintageSnarker. Milligan was a standout and had the audience laughing (some folks arguably laughing too hard/loud/prolonged) at yesterday's matinee. I won the lottery and was seated in row D, right in the center. They were great seats.

I thought the show was good, not great. I'm a sucker for a Tesori score so I generally enjoyed the music. I thought Act 2 was weak and dragged down my overall assessment of the show. The plot doesn't really make sense and I can't figure out if that was intentional or not.

Curious if this has aspirations to transfer to Broadway.

The cherry on top of a nice matinee was bumping into Christopher Fitzgerald on my way out. His partner is the Director of the show."

I sat in Row C Seat 7 for the same performance. The draw for me was Victoria Clark who definitely didn't disappoint. A 60 something actress playing a 15 year old teen who looks to be 70 is quite an acting challenge and she did it convincingly.

Reminded me of Fun Home musically but the family story is quite bizarre and unfocused. Perhaps that was the intent - to portray that dysfunction contrasted with the perceptions of a young girl with a terrible health condition. I cried and laughed but was ultimately disappointed with too many loose ends that lacked credibility.

Updated On: 11/29/21 at 10:10 AM