LA Times pans the non-Equity MUSIC MAN tour -- fair critique?

The LA Times review of the MUSIC MAN tour at the Ahmanson didn't just pan the production - it made a point of the fact that it's non-Equity, called it "second-tier," and scolded CTG for booking it.

That raises a question that comes up constantly: is non-Equity automatically lower quality? Plenty of talented young performers do non-Equity tours as a first big job. On the other hand, non-Equity tours often mean shorter rehearsal periods, cheaper physical productions, and lower pay.

Has anyone actually seen this MUSIC MAN, was it as bad as the review says?

https://www.google.com/url?q=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2026-10-29/music-man-review-review-theater-ahmanson&source=gmail&ust=1793704216324000&sa=E

I saw the music man tour last spring at the state theater of Nj. It was fantastic, so much nicer than the last Broadway production. The two leads were absolutely perfect in those roles, and the choreo by Josh Bergasse was amazing! I don’t understand the criticism of the tour when it was of higher quality than even most equity tours.

We were one of the first stops for this and a friend of mine gave me her tickets, so I figured what the hell? I wouldn’t have spent money on a non-eq tour but since they were given to me..

I enjoyed it MUCH more than what I saw at the Winter Garden a few years prior.