Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:12pm
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:17pm
Listened to the clip. Team Benko 4life.
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:17pm
Where did "I'd Rather Be Blue" end up? I'm really hoping to catch her next time I'm in NY.
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:20pm
Glad her performance was so well-received, but in my 20+ years of attending West End and Broadway shows, no one has ever merited multiple standing ovations during the performance.
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:20pm
I'm so excited to go see her in October! All of the clips/reviews I've seen so far have been nothing but raves!
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:21pm
How is that awful "Where's Fanny?' curtain call gag still in the show? It's so damn awkward, and it should have been cut in previews. This would have been a perfect time to axe it.
Updated On: 9/6/22 at 10:21 PM
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:23pm
No addition of “My Man”, from what I hear.
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:24pm
JasonC3 said: "Glad her performance was so well-received, but in my 20+ years of attending West End and Broadway shows, no one has ever merited multiple standing ovations during the performance."
This i will 100% agree with. She was wonderful but nothing merited those tonight. I wouldn’t be shocked if there were people in the audience planted to do that and “start the wave” (it’s not like that hasn’t happened a lot recently). But the standing ovation at the end was absolutely deserved.
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:27pm
smallworld said: "Where did "I'd Rather Be Blue" end up? I'm really hoping to catch her next time I'm in NY."
It's in Act II as a scene interlude. She sings the last verse at the rehearsal piano with Eddie and gets another chance to show off her belt with the final note.
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:28pm
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:29pm
They also added Ramin being drunk when he comes into the dressing room in Act Two after losing the money. I don’t think he’s ever done that before, had he? I really couldn’t pick up any other changes..
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:29pm
EDSOSLO858 said: "No addition of “My Man”, from what I hear."
Correct.
I will say there were moments during the final Fanny monologue after Nicky walks out for the last time when I really thought she was about to go into "My Man" though. She gave a very intense and emotional delivery, significantly more so than Beanie's, which made me wonder if it was coming. But alas.
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:30pm
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:30pm
Jordan Catalano said: "They also added Ramin being drunk when he comes into the dressing room in Act Two after losing the money. I don’t think he’s ever done that before, had he? I really couldn’t pick up any other changes.."
I think they also added more movement for Fanny during "Greatest Star." I remember Beanie being up on that ladder for a really long time. Lea was extremely dynamic and moved a lot during that scene, only climbing up the ladder to deliver that final verse.
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:32pm
For the ladder, I actually think they had Eddie join her a lot earlier than he had before so she wasn’t alone for as long.
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:35pm
The curtain call gag should have been fixed. It was never funny. Akward.
Updated On: 9/6/22 at 10:35 PM
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:41pm
Count me among those who loved tonight's performance! It was my first time seeing this production so I can't compare it to anything, but I was very impressed by Lea (and Tovah! and Ramin! and Jared!). I thought Lea's rendition of "People" was particularly beautiful.
The standing ovations got pretty old though...agree with Jordan that it was absolutely warranted at the end but not after almost every Fanny song in Act One!
Jonathan Groff was being very kind at intermission and chatting/taking photos with fans. And it was fun bumping into Zachary Quinto in the bathroom line.
All in all it was a VERY memorable night and I'm glad I was there to witness it.
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:43pm
I was excited to see Governor Hochul during intermission, passing by Zachary Quinto.
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:44pm
So the consensus seems to be that the show comes alive when you have a Fanny who can actually sing the score and I think we learned that on April 26th and were reminded of it all of August, but glad to have another reminder.
Also glad to hear that she's doing well in the comedy. I had been a naysayer about her going back many months because I didn't think that she'd be able to handle the comedy. Happy to be proven wrong.
As far as that clip. While you obviously can't judge a whole performance on a clip of a boot, I did find myself preferring Julie's version of the first half of that song, but Lea just absolutely nails the second half.
In the end, I still don't think it's likely I'll make it back to the AW any time soon, but I love this show and if Lea Michelle is what will keep it open, I'll be ok with that.
I just wish they'd put her face on the Playbill!!! Get rid of the Takeout bag!!!!
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:46pm
I agree the standing ovations aren't going to happen on a regular night with a regular crowd, but DAMN was she sensational.
She plays Fanny like a hungry teenager who talks a mile a minute and is truly...acting and VERY funny. I always thought she was funny on Scream Queens but this truly got me tonight, she was FUNNY. She doesn't remove all shadows of Barbra but she by no means doing line readings or vocal phrasings. The show is written in a style and she fully understands how to speak that style. She definitely had growth in the roll from that needy kid to having more power and strength in herself. Then she's a mature woman in ACT 2 (my lord, why can't we fix Act 2???) who isn't as mile a minute, but the insecurities and need are still there.
It sounded like Ramin wasn't holding back vocally tonight either. Their Who Are You Now was great and they definitely had chemistry. I agree that she plays the last couple of scenes with SUCH emotional maturity I kept thinking "ok...My Man is coming...it's coming" but alas, they haven't added it. I think it would make so much more sense for her Fanny, especially giving her a final NUMBER vs half a reprise of Parade. Her final dress is also much much better than the original, but it seems like that was the only real costume change.
Tovah was also a treasure and I can only imagine will find more and more to play as she gets a few audiences under her belt.
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:52pm
I've seen a lot of mega stars have their big moment on a Broadway stage (not that I am labeling Lea a mega star at all) and I have NEVER felt a theater vibrate from applause and whoops and hollers the way I did tonight.
And, IMHO, other than the standing ovation before she'd uttered a single word lol - it was warranted every time. (I see others disagree with that earlier in the thread, but, that's my opinion!)
(Tovah was also great!)
(No, I did not see Beanie or Julie so I am comparing to no one.)
Updated On: 9/6/22 at 10:52 PM
Posted: 9/6/22 at 10:55pm
So.....did she wear yellow roses in her hair?
Posted: 9/6/22 at 11:06pm
I have to say that my biggest reaction to the curtain call footage is that Tovah is TINY!!!! Lea is only 5' 3" and Tovah's got to be at least a couple of inches shorter!
TBH it's probably more accurate that way. Us Jews don't tend to be very tall.
Posted: 9/6/22 at 11:15pm
Any costume updates? I know the red dress is different from Julie's new one and it looks like Tovah may have had a new outfit at curtain call too? Was anything else different?
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