Legally Blonde tour: worth seeing?

[Elphaba3]

Posted: 11/10/08 at 11:48pm

I'm trying to decide whether or not to see the LB tour in February. It's not ones of my favorite shows, but I enjoy it and have yet to see it live. I just don't know if it will be worth seeing without Laura and Orfeh.

[Pianolin717]

Posted: 11/10/08 at 11:53pm

i have my tickets for its stop in DC!
im so excited!
Although i was disappointed it was Becky, i heard she is great and gives it her own spin, and the Paulette looks really good :)
Plus, Margot is going to be SO GOOD!!!! :)

[Anakela]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 2:35am

I saw it on Sunday. I think if you never saw it live on Broadway (no, I don't count MTV) that the tour will be enjoyable for you. And it's funny that you specifically mention LBB and Orfeh, as Becky and NJJ were definitely two of the highlights for me.

[FeelingElectric]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 6:19am

Absolutely worth seeing. Besides fantastic performances by Becky and Natalie, the rest of the cast and ensamble is wonderful. I saw the tour three times in Baltimore, and will see it again New Year's Day in D.C.. You will have a great time.

[broadwayfan7]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 8:06am

Definitely see it! I have tickets for the show in January, and am looking so forward to it.

[ejgirls89]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 8:07am

I saw becky as an understudy last year, and didnt love her solely for the fact that it wasnt LBB. Ive seen the tour now four times, and I think she plays a fantastic Elle, so much better [no pun intended] than some of the other leads that have been on recently in the broadway show...

NJJ is great, the PMS girls are one of the highlights for me because i loooove courtney [and crystal & rhiannon!] and Ven as the UPS guy is amazing too [although I loved Spencer, who was the understudy this weekend]

[DavidPatrickS82]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 8:57am

It's not worth seeing without LBB or Orfeh. NJJ i'm sure is great, but Becky Gulsvig, oh my god. What a wreck!

[Dangerous Divine]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 9:58am

The tour is definitely worth it. Becky is an absolute dream as Elle, and tears up the vocals. The rest of the cast is so enthusiastic and having a blast on stage. Plus, with some of the restaging, the show ends up stronger than it was in NY.

[feline0favenueQ]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 10:14am

I saw the tour in Baltimore after seeing it twice on B'way, both times with Laura and Orfeh.

I preferred Becky to Laura in both ways, as her vocals are absolutley unbeatable. She seemed younger and fresher than LBB.

NJJ was more "Paulette" than Orfeh. Orfeh was "Orfeh." NJJ vocally is about the opposite of Orfeh, but they worked.

You should definitaly go. It was so fun!

[BroadwayBoy2]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 10:42am

absolutly go, if you go into it knowing your not going to see Orfeh or LBB then you will be fine!

[Glory]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 11:12am

if you have seen the Broadway show, it gives you more of a reason to go. I got more laughs out of the tour because of all the line changes that were made. Also the new staging is worth it to check out. The cast is stellar as well, so see it if you can :)

[jennamajig]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 11:47am

I saw the tour on Halloween and greatly enjoyed it. I missed the staircase, but liked the creative new staging. Becky was wonderful, though I hate that "So Much Better" appeared to be in the new lower key. I saw LBB in the show a couple of months after it opened on B'way (pre-voice strain, I suppose) and came out wishing her Elle had been more satisfying. Orfeh was amazing and has the superior vocal, but I love a lot of NJJ's acting choices. She was more crass and it worked very well. She worked the hell out of Ireland, a very weak song.

Though I will say I missed Richard Blake's Warner. I am blanking on the actor I saw in the tour, but he wasn't sleazy and pretty-boy enough for me. Blake just plays the a**hole boyfriend so damn well.

[Pianolin717]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 12:21pm

what?! there is not more staircase?!?!!?!?!?! they cant do that!!!!

[E.Davis]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 12:28pm

They had to compensate for the possibility that not all tour houses can fit everything.....SO yes the Delta Nu House is GONE!!!! GASP!!

[Pianolin717]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 12:50pm

i mean i knew that tours had to compensate set and choreography due to size variations of the stage.. but not the house!!! i never got to see it on broadway and i was SOOOOOO looking forward to seeing the stairs.. especially the girl in Omigod You Guys who has a face mask on and she goes down the fire pole and does a quick change... omg i really wanted to see that! and how are they going to do the opening?!?!?! please tell me that the facade of the house is still in it!

[taylorPHENOMENON2]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 1:42pm

No, it's pretty bare but still very fun.

See it!

[ejgirls89]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 2:29pm

the opening is just them running around getting everything ready, and when margot [rhiannon] starts singing the PMS girls are standing at a table with all the delta nu's behind them.

ps: did anyone notice the 'i grew up in the roxbury slums' turned into 'dorchester slums' ?? i didnt notice it until boston (i saw it 3 times in rhode island)

[taylorPHENOMENON2]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 3:09pm

I noticed. It was a fun surprise - but was curious if they just changed that for the tour. I saw it on broadway so long ago I couldn't remember.

[ejgirls89]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 3:18pm

its definitley just on the tour, but its weird i didnt notice it before!! i noticed all the other lyric changes of course because i used to have to have the dvd on to fall asleep at night [i cant sleep in silence!]

[Broadwaynut81]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 5:33pm

I saw it Friday night, and I thought it was great! Becky was amazing, as was NJJ. They are all so nice, too. The tour is definitely worth it. The only thing was the leads were drowned out by the ensemble at points - but I think that is more an issue with the Boston Opera House than the people.

I have to say, though, that if you go, don't listen to the CD or watch the MTV broadcast for a while before you go. I found that some of the jokes that were so good on TV fell flat, but that was because it was not Laura Bell Bundy or Orfeh saying them. Becky and NJJ definitely make the parts their own.

Also - unless they changed it for the whole tour, the "Dorchester" line in "Chip on my Shoulder" was in Boston because the Opera House where it was playing is actually located in Roxbury - so I think that may have been kind of awkward (at least that is what my friend told me - I could be wrong).

[Dangerous Divine]

Posted: 11/11/08 at 6:24pm

The lyric change (Dorchester to Roxbury) is just for Boston. I don't know why, but the composers made a specific choice.

[blondebaby589]

Posted: 12/7/08 at 12:38am

I just saw this it in Philly tonight, and I have to agree with Anakela. If you've never seen the bway production you will absolutely adore it. I was thoroughly entertained and the cast was great, but to be honest it was definitely a big step down from what I had seen before. Becky's acting was absolutely Elle, but I was sooo disappointed with "So Much Better". It wasn't the powerhouse number that LBB had made it. And while the girls playing Serena, Margot, and Pilar were brilliant, I felt the rest of the ensemble just didn't match them. But overall, it was worth seeing. (But of course I got rush tickets for $20 haha)

[WishingOnlyWounds2]

Posted: 12/7/08 at 2:22am

Becky is amazing. I was dieing to catch her on Broadway, but no such luck. I got tickets for her last show thinking she would be on for Elle... she was on for the matinee, I went to the evening show. I was so annoyed but that was the first time I really enjoyed LBB.

[misto625]

Posted: 12/7/08 at 2:34am

Hmm no one has mentioned this yet, but I thought D.B. Bonds gave a really amazing performance as Emmett, great singing voice. Becky and NJJ were great, but Emmett and the PMS girls were my favorite parts of the show.

[broadwayboy522]

Posted: 12/7/08 at 8:59am

I've heard some clips of Becky sing SMB and I don't think its as powerhouse on tour becuase of the lower key. But she still sounded great!