LEGALLY BLONDE*CURTAINS and ,thank god, MEET JOHN DOE
LEGALLY BLONDE*CURTAINS and ,thank god, MEET JOHN DOE
notabb
Broadway Star Joined: 5/12/03
#1LEGALLY BLONDE*CURTAINS and ,thank god, MEET JOHN DOE
Posted: 4/29/07 at 7:20pm
I won't go into much detail on the first 2.They both have wonderful casts doing the best they can with average material.Debra Monk , Christan Borle were my favorites in their respective shows. The scores to both never rise above a certain level of competency. Thataway in CURTAINS and There,Right There in BLONDE were my favorite numbers.BUT if you can get to D.C. to Fords Theater a wonderful new musical is playing. The score to MEET JOHN DOE far surpasses both CURTAINS or BLONDE.A beautiful adaption of the Frank Capra movie with a much better ending then the movie had. I had seen a staged reading of it with Donna Lynn Champlin BUT any producer would would be crazy not to bring Heidi Blickenstaff to Broadway as the star. What a talent. She blew me away.And what a voice. There's a song in the 2nd act called THANK YOU that made me cry. Best score since GREY GARDENS and SPRING AWAKENING. It's been extended til May 20 ...if you can...go see it!
#2re: LEGALLY BLONDE*CURTAINS and ,thank god, MEET JOHN DOE
Posted: 4/29/07 at 7:23pmyay meet john doe! heidi really is great.
MasterLcZ
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/12/03
#3re: LEGALLY BLONDE*CURTAINS and ,thank god, MEET JOHN DOE
Posted: 4/29/07 at 7:47pm
I am so cranky I can't make it to DC for this.
Not surprised to hear about Heidi's fabulousness - and in production photos she looks breathtakingly '40s glam!
#4re: LEGALLY BLONDE*CURTAINS and ,thank god, MEET JOHN DOE
Posted: 4/29/07 at 7:51pm
the costuming is great too! very authentic looking.
well hopefully it will move past dc 
StageFan2
Broadway Star Joined: 4/8/07
#6re: LEGALLY BLONDE*CURTAINS and ,thank god, MEET JOHN DOE
Posted: 4/29/07 at 7:53pm
John Doe was/is a good show that could easily be fantastic, but is hampered by some TRULY awful musical numbers. For starters, cut the biggest piece of sh*t ever: Lighthouses. talk about a truly awful moment. It cancelled out the entire first act which had been really good. Another problem, too much exposition in the second act- it should've been spread out over the two acts.
Ihave other critiques, but I won't post them so as not to bore you all-
a very good start with some really solid numbers!
#7re: LEGALLY BLONDE*CURTAINS and ,thank god, MEET JOHN DOE
Posted: 4/29/07 at 7:55pmI'd actually be really interested in hearing your critiques tboo. personally i thought that they needed to flesh out the ending a bit more. it was too abrupt. but i think it has a lot of potential and i would like to see where it goes.
#8re: LEGALLY BLONDE*CURTAINS and ,thank god, MEET JOHN DOE
Posted: 4/29/07 at 7:59pm
Woohoo Heidi! I'm glad to hear about her usual fabulousity.
-Kad
"I have also met him in person, and I find him to be quite funny actually. Arrogant and often misinformed, but still funny."
-bjh2114 (on Michael Riedel)
#10re: LEGALLY BLONDE*CURTAINS and ,thank god, MEET JOHN DOE
Posted: 4/30/07 at 6:54amI really did not like Meet John Doe. I thought the storyline was dull and the music was below par. Heidi was fine, but really, the show just does not do the cast any justice. The slow motion scenes with ensemble clapping and waving their arms were laugh out loud embarrassing and funny. Also songs like "gotta get the picture" and that cander just brought the show down.
youngone
Swing Joined: 11/19/05
#11re: LEGALLY BLONDE*CURTAINS and ,thank god, MEET JOHN DOE
Posted: 4/30/07 at 3:05pmI LOVED Curtains despite it's flaws!
#12re: LEGALLY BLONDE*CURTAINS and ,thank god, MEET JOHN DOE
Posted: 4/30/07 at 3:50pm
thank you tboo! i saw the final dress so it has been a long time since I have seen it as well, therefore I'm a bit rusty. Or my memory is just awful. So it's good that I can't remember lighthouses?
Vocally I thought that overall the cast was excellent. Some standouts in the ensemble as well.
I didn't like the baseball song either.
I really liked the concept of the ending as well, it worked, it just seemed like BAM and we're done. For lack of a more succinct way of putting it.
I think with some reworking it could be great.
#13re: LEGALLY BLONDE*CURTAINS and ,thank god, MEET JOHN DOE
Posted: 4/30/07 at 7:46pm
The Lighthouses demo is available at: http://www.johndoemusical.com/downloads.html
And yes, I agree, it was not the best song in the show. I also agree that Blickenstaff was a standout and the ensemble was strong. It is also true that some of the musical numbers needed to be cut and that the show suffered from too much exposition. However, it has gotten better every time I have seen it and despite its faults, has potential.
It was not my favorite show this season in DC by far, but was better than a lot of others.
#14re: LEGALLY BLONDE*CURTAINS and ,thank god, MEET JOHN DOE
Posted: 4/30/07 at 8:40pmthanks for the link!
wicked_mimi
Leading Actor Joined: 11/24/04
#15re: LEGALLY BLONDE*CURTAINS and ,thank god, MEET JOHN DOE
Posted: 4/30/07 at 10:48pmI LOVED Meet John Doe. I saw it last weekend as it has entered it's extended run. There are some parts and songs to it that could use a bit more work, but I think it is one of the best stories I have seen on stage in a little while. There is a lot going on but it isn't confusing. There are surprises and I think it is just a great show. I'd love to see it make the transition to Broadway, obviously with some changes, but I think it is better than many shows that have or are on Broadway right now.
notabb
Broadway Star Joined: 5/12/03
#16re: LEGALLY BLONDE*CURTAINS and ,thank god, MEET JOHN DOE
Posted: 5/1/07 at 4:25pmNice editorial by Eddie Sugarman in the sunday New York Times
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