"Legally Blonde" San Francisco Reviews- Page 2

[Brooklyn Bound]

Posted: 2/8/07 at 12:56pm

Where's Margo???

[legallyblondemusical]

Posted: 2/8/07 at 2:13pm

If it was a bomb they wouldn't have been able to get here fast enough. I'm sure we will hear more about the NY critics being far less forgiving, yada yada yada...

[rich700]

Posted: 2/8/07 at 2:30pm

When I said the show was "easy to like but hard to love," it was because it reminded me of a couple of other shows: "Thoroughly Modern Millie" and "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels," both of which had good, though not outstanding, runs. Yes, the show will be tightened, mostly I think through the excision of a few of the endless parade of reprises that conclude most of the numbers, and a shortening of the Greek Chorus cheerleader routines. Cutting the snap-and-bend number entirely wouldn't hurt either. The question is: Can youthful exuberance and high energy take the place of emotional impact, and turn this show from an obvious hit (which it will be) to a megahit? In other words, is "Legally Blonde" another "Millie" or another "Hairspray"? I go back and forth on this one.

By the way, the Daily Cal review is a laugh. The author seems to have minimal knowledge of the history of Broadway musicals. Linking Rodgers & Hammerstein and Lloyd Webber with Cameron Mackintosh as if the latter was a creative force rather than a producer (let alone Lloyd Webber's producer, a bit of unintended redundancy) sets the stage for the repeated idea that "Blonde" is somehow original for mocking Broadway conventions while using them --- a concept that lies at the heart of probably half the musical comedies that have hit the stage for the past fifty years (and is now represented on Broadway by "The Producers" and "The Drowsy Chaperone" to a greater degree, and "The Apple Tree", "Spamalot" and "Mamma Mia!" to a lesser extent. It's a sad state of affairs when this is the best critic that UC Berkeley can find for its school paper.

[legallyblondemusical]

Posted: 2/8/07 at 3:43pm

Talkin' Broadway Regional Review - Richard Connema

Legally Blonde
A Musical for the 21st Century

Legally Blonde, with a score by Nell Benjamin and Laurence O'Keefe and book by Heather Hach, is currently having its pre-Broadway run at the Golden Gate Theatre in San Francisco. It follows in the footsteps of such energetic musicals as Wicked, The Wedding Singer and Hairspray. These musicals remind me of the fluffy musicals of the '50s where there was no message to impart upon the audience. O'Keefe's music in the first thirty minutes of the piece is very zippy, sounding a lot like contemporary pop music. I doubt if you could hum any of these, but you will remember the lyrics of Nell Benjamin on the song "Omigod You Guys," with "omigod" repeated over and over and over again during those first scenes. We finally get a melody when Michael Rupert sings with his commanding voice, "Blood in the Water." It's an interesting melody and the lyrics by Benjamin are very clever.

I am not a great fan of movies being made into musicals (with the exception of Hairspray). Legally Blonde is based on the silly and charming 2001 MGM comedy of the same name, and it comes close to being a nice transition from film to stage. The opening scenes strike me as exactly what Lestat accomplished in its tryout here - too much information in too time time. The action is frantic and the sound system of the theatre did not help (at the performance reviewed) since many of the voices were shrill. Once there is trimming of these opening scenes there should be a great audience friendly fun musical for the summer tourist in Manhattan. The second act has an excellent compact story to tell. The composer gets away from the pop style and gives us some darn good Broadway show songs.

Legally Blonde follows the storyline of the film closely. Elle thinks only of fashion, which appears to be mostly pink, and she has a perfect grade point average. Her other interest is her pretentious boyfriend Warner Huntington III, who is off to Harvard to attend law school. Warner is not all that interested in perky Elle since he wants a wife who can help with his career aspirations, to be a Senator. Apparently, poor Elle does not cut it, which make our heroine very unhappy. But she is not about to give up on marrying the eligible bachelor and she somehow gets admitted to the prestigious Harvard Law School where she shows up pretty in pink, dressed like she just got off a Minsky's burlesques runway. She even has a cute little dog that enters the stage on cue. These scenes fly by, resulting in a jumble of mundane songs sung by sorority girls with shrill voices.

The musical picks up with the introduction of characters played by Michael Rupert, Christian Borle, Orfeh, Kate Shindle and Nikki Snelson. No-nonsense young law student Emmett Forrest is played splendidly by Christian Borle. His silver-toned voice is terrific in the song "Chip on My Shoulder," one of the best songs in this two and a half hour production. We also meet the beauty parlor owner/operator Paulette, played by Orfeh. She has a lilting voice singing the comical song "Ireland." Kate Shindle is very good as the prim and proper Vivienne (appropriate as the future wife of Warner.)

Legally Blonde's second act is compact and very entertaining with the introduction of Nikki Snelson as Brooke, who is on trial for murder. Snelson has a striking voice with a wide range when singing "Whipped Into Shape." The choreography by Jerry Mitchell, who also directs the musical, is filled with energy, especially in the opening of the second act, with the cast jumping rope and doing athletic movements in orange jumpsuits. This scene shakes and bakes the definition of a Broadway show. The audience get a wonderful eclectic group of melodies ranging from a Riverdance-type number, with the dancers doing a wonderful parody of the Irish dance, to a soulful ballad sung beautifully by Laura Bell Bundy as Elle Woods. The high point of the evening has to be the fantastic, hilarious musical question "Is he Gay or European?" referring to a witness in a court of law. The scene involving Laura Bell Bundy and Christian Borle at the Hansen-Harkness Department store where the duo sing "Take It Like a Man" is rousing.

Laura Bell Bundy is cute and ditzy, especially in those opening scenes. She knows how to shake her body, and her voice reminds me of Kristin Chenoweth's. Her movements early on are much like Kristin also. Later, she turns into a very good singer and actress when she dons more conservative clothes to become a legal assistant in the big trial scene in the second act. She proves to be an accomplished singing actress rather then a cartoon caricature of ditzy blonde.

Christian Borle is a standout as Emmett Forrest with smooth vocals. He shows great thematic resonance when singing "Take it Like a Man" and "Chip on My Shoulder." Michael Rupert with his powerful voice is outstanding playing Professor Callahan, especially in the "Blood In the Water" number. Orfeh and Nikki Snelson are great assets to the musical, especially when singing. Orfeh is delightful on the humorous "Ireland." Richard H. Blake is great as the ego-driven Warner Huntington III. He has an authoritative voice when singing.

Director/choreographer Jerry Mitchell still has some work ahead of him before the show opens at the Palace in New York in April, although the dancing is dazzling, sexy and exhilarating. There is enough energy coming from the stage to light San Francisco for months.

A lot of money has been poured into this show and David Rockwell's sets show it. There are so many set changes that you lose track of what is going on the stage. The stage is enclosed by three sets of plastic frames, like a box in a box in a box. Lights behind the frames change with various bright colors thanks to Ken Posner and Paul Miller's lighting design. Everything is colored in pinks, greens and maybe a little blue. The set for the courtroom scene and the law school is massive and very detailed. Costumes by Gregg Barnes are bright and cheery even with that outlandish pink outfit Elle wears when entering the sacred halls of Harvard. However, the cast in those orange jumpsuits in the opening of the second act number reminded me of prisoners in the county jail. The orchestra under the direction of James Sampliner is first class.

There is no doubt in my mind that, with proper trimming and a little cutting, this musical will be a hit with summer Broadway audiences. It a fun, entertaining musical that people will be seeking in these troubled times.
http://www.talkinbroadway.com/regional/sanfran/s877.html

[WalkOn]

Posted: 2/8/07 at 4:52pm

Did Margo say it was going to "bomb?" Or, did Margo say that he didn't like what he saw?

Updated On: 2/8/07 at 04:52 PM

[somethingwicked]

Posted: 2/8/07 at 5:01pm

Margo said something along the lines of what he saw in the press reel was amongst the worst things" he'd ever seen, comparing it to such legendary bombs as "Carrie" and "Urban Cowboy."

While I don't think Margo has to eat his words quite yet, I'm very happy to see this show being so well recieved.

Updated On: 2/8/07 at 05:01 PM

[WalkOn]

Posted: 2/8/07 at 5:26pm

I still don't see why Margo would ever have to eat his words on this?

He didn't like what he saw. It reminded him of terrible shows he'd seen in the past. Period.

I'm perplexed. Why Margo would have to eat crow... unless, of course, he sees the show and finds it throughly delightful.

[legallyblondemusical]

Posted: 2/8/07 at 6:01pm

Bloomberg - Stephen West

`Legally Blonde,' Broadway Bound, Gets S.F. Debut

Feb. 8 (Bloomberg) -- Given the frothiness of the 2001 movie ``Legally Blonde,' I was prepared to hate ``Legally Blonde,' the Broadway-bound musical that made its debut this week in San Francisco. Instead, the $12 million show won me over by virtue of sheer high-spiritedness.

The show offers plenty to make it a commercial success: an attractive young cast, nonstop dance numbers, flashy sets and costumes, and occasionally a clever lyric or line of dialogue -- even if the music is generic at best, and the story is an absurd fantasy.

Elle Woods (Laura Bell Bundy, a sexier version of Reese Witherspoon's willful character in the movie), is a California blonde and clotheshorse who manages to get into Harvard Law School to chase after her snooty boyfriend. As in the film, she faces hostile classmates, intimidating professors and rejection by the boyfriend, yet she triumphs over all in this fairy tale of girl empowerment.

``I may be in love, but I'm not stupid,' she declares early in the first act.

Even Elle's Dad has his doubts: ``Law school is for boring, ugly, serious people,' he observes, ``and you are none of those things.'

Yet sure enough, after some quick and apparently painless hitting of the books, Elle leaves behind the girls of the Delta Nu sorority at UCLA -- her ``Greek chorus' -- and finds herself in Harvard Yard.

Further challenges remain: surviving the criminal-law class taught by Professor Callahan (Michael Rupert, evocatively threatening and smarmy); making over his nerdy teaching assistant, Emmett (Christian Borle), so he can become her next boyfriend; and being recruited to Callahan's team of interns working on a murder case.

Nonstop Numbers

Jerry Mitchell, a veteran Broadway choreographer (``Hairspray,' ``Dirty Rotten Scoundrels') in his directing debut, keeps the action moving at a breakneck pace, with one massive production number followed immediately by another. While the singing is over-amplified and the overlapping lyrics are sometimes hard to follow, the dancing is sheer, high-energy pleasure, especially the scenes that involve Paulette the trailer-trash beautician (Orfeh) and Kyle the UPS man (Andy Karl).

The show, at 2 1/2 hours with intermission, features music and lyrics by Laurence O'Keefe (``Bat Boy') and Nell Benjamin and a book by Heather Hach, based on the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer film and Amanda Brown's novel.

David Rockwell's constantly changing set -- with doorways rising from the floor, walls flying down from above and furniture rolling in from the wings -- moves seamlessly from the sorority house to the law school to the courtroom. Gregg Barnes's costumes, with plenty of pink for Elle and an ocean of skimpy outfits for the UCLA girls, are bright and amusing.

Graduation Day

Soon enough it's graduation day, with Elle at the top of her class and all challenges tied up with a neat bow. The chorus reprises ``Omigod You Guys,' and it's hard not to feel a boost.
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601088&sid=ahYLZ1Z9SXpQ&refer=muse

[songanddanceman2]

Posted: 2/8/07 at 6:19pm

its reviews have been very positive

well done LB

[TWSFan4Ever]

Posted: 2/8/07 at 6:24pm

It's doing fantastic! I'm happy that a lot of people are being proven wrong. They all said it was going to suck and be a complete bomb, but it's turning out to be the exact opposite

[allofmylife]

Posted: 2/8/07 at 6:44pm

Sounds like they need a few major trims and a new song or two. It will be interesting to see if old-fashioned show doctoring is still taught at medical school.

Where is George Abbott when you need him?

[HumATune]

Posted: 2/8/07 at 6:51pm

Glad to see the positive reviews. It's a fun show and there's nothing wrong with fun. Serious and fun shows can co-exist.

[carymetorent2]

Posted: 2/9/07 at 1:16am

https://www.broadwayworld.com/viewcolumn.cfm?colid=15701

[legallyblondemusical]

Posted: 2/9/07 at 12:23pm

'Legally Blonde' sizzles, steams and satisfies
Marin Independent Journal - Charles Brousse

Like, wow!

Worried we're gonna run out of oil? Afraid the lights'll blink off because of a shortage of power? Chill out, dudes and babes, 'cause "Legally Blonde" is in town! Yes, the book that became a movie, that became a mega-musical is shakin' and rattlin' San Francisco's staid old Golden Gate Theatre in a month-long tune-up before it blasts off to Broadway for an April opening.

Folks, I gotta tell ya - this is one monster of a show. Between the first "Omigod!" to the final "Omigod!" roughly 2 1/2 hours later, if you put together the nonstop singing, dancing and set changes there's enough energy generated on that humongous stage to keep the Bay Area buzzing for at least the next 24 hours, when the cycle starts all over. All that's needed is some way to store it and delay the show's departure, currently set for Feb. 25. Any ideas?

In case you're wondering, the first-night audience was totally with the program. Sometimes they even cheered and clapped BEFORE a number ended, which is a sign of true appreciation. And, when the final note sounded, they leaped up and cheered like high school football fans celebrating a touchdown. I tried my best to hold out, but the only way to see the curtain call was to stand with them, a move that made the ovation unanimous.

As enthusiastic as everybody was, there was one place where things got a little weird. This "legally blonde" chick, Elle Woods, who used to be an airhead UCLA cheerleader but now, overnight, has transformed herself into a super-sharp Harvard Law School student just to make the ex-love-of-her-life want to take her back - are you following? - is helping to defend a fitness guru charged with murdering her wealthy husband. One of the key prosecution witnesses is a good-looking dude whose testimony that he had been sleeping with the defendant provided the familiar "crime of passion" motive. Elle, whose intuitive powers are immense, doesn't buy it. She confronts him with a move that female cheerleaders know is guaranteed to get a rise out of their male followers - you bend over, show your panties, plop on the floor, then spring up with bosom thrust forward (i.e., T&A in reverse order). When he doesn't respond, she exposes him as a completely unreliable É HOMOSEXUAL! No way such a despicable character would be making it with the accused.

In San Francisco, that's a dangerous place to go. All of a sudden, the theater got awfully quiet.

So - what is the show really about? It's about love. It's about finding yourself. It's about living the American Dream by getting it all right now - without having to work for it and without sacrificing your lifestyle choices. That's for starters.

Heather Latch's book for the musical version of "Legally Blonde" is based on the MGM movie, which was based on the novel by Amanda Brown. The conceit that underlies all of these is that we fortunate millions who live in this great country can be (as the U.S. Army's recruitment ad proclaims) "the best that we can be" if only we have the courage and the will to do it.

In Elle's case, she's quite content to be an airhead member of Delta Nu sorority at UCLA until her boyfriend, Warner, dumps her to go to Harvard Law as the first step to his fame and fortune. Does the poor girl accept defeat? Not a chance. She prevails on her wealthy daddy to cough up the dough for tuition, aces the LSAT exams with practically no preparation and then overwhelms the Law School's admission officers by showing them a video of her and the Delta Nu "guys" performing breathtaking cheerleading routines. From that point on, helped by a sympathetic teaching assistant whose motives are not entirely dispassionate and occasional morale-lifting visits by a nine-member "Greek chorus" of sorority sisters, she is unstoppable.

Along the way to academic stardom, Elle learns some important lessons: That she doesn't need Warner, that it's OK to wear conservative suits instead of flouncy pink dresses, that you can use your intellect rather than your body to achieve worthy goals, that it isn't necessary to allow a famous professor to hit on you just to gain his favor and, finally, that it's possible to find love and make friendships with deserving people.

All of this is commendable, except that she never has to work very hard to achieve anything. In fact, she eventually manages to have it all, wowing judges and juries while doing everything her way in - yes - a flouncy pink dress.

Laura Bell Bundy is an unbelievably perky Elle. A supple dancer and a reasonably good actress, she also has that Broadway-style nasality in her singing. Richard H. Blake and Christian Borle provide strong support as ex-boyfriend and friendly tutor, respectively. Vivacious Kate Shindle, who knows how to sell an uptempo ballad, is Elle's buddy at the beauty salon. Michael Rupert is a convincing Professor Callahan, the much-feared trial lawyer who can't keep his hands to himself. He also has the show's best song, the sardonic "Blood in the Water" (music and lyrics by Lawrence O'Keefe and Nell Benjamin). The remainder of the large cast displays the kind of talent and zest you might expect in a New York-bound show.

For many, including myself, "Legally Blonde" evokes memories of "Hairspray," another frothy musical that achieved some popularity before it prematurely flamed out. The linkage isn't surprising, given that several of the performers and production team (including director/choreographer Jerry Mitchell) were involved in the latter. But "Blonde's" voltage is a notch higher.

Could pink energy be the Next Big Thing?

http://www.marinij.com/lifestyles/ci_5189901 Updated On: 2/10/07 at 12:23 PM

[shesamarshmallow]

Posted: 2/9/07 at 12:31pm

The Daily Cal's article is pretty horrendous. I'm minoring in theater at UC Berkeley, and I can state pretty definitively that there are about three people at the school who really follow the broadway scene (especially regarding musicals - either the kids in the theater department love only Avenue Q or musicals just "aren't their thing") and that the Daily Cal writer is not one of them. UC Berkeley produced Cradle Will Rock at the mainstage last year which is the only musical we've done in my three years. It's just not a musical theater school, sorry to say.

[citi79boy]

Posted: 2/9/07 at 12:52pm

HMMM???? RAVES in Variety and other real papers, don't think the Producers or creative team/cast give a flying F*** what a college newspaper says,LOL!!!!
No need to be sorry marshmellow girl.
Updated On: 2/9/07 at 12:52 PM

[shesamarshmallow]

Posted: 2/9/07 at 12:56pm

I was replying to the earlier post post complaining about it and belitting the school on the basis of the review.

[SporkGoddess]

Posted: 2/9/07 at 1:41pm

So in the musical Elle doesn't find out he's gay because he recognized that her shoes were Prada? Aww.

I'm surprised by the number of positive reviews, but then again, I'm still waiting to hear the Broadway ones.

[carymetorent2]

Posted: 2/9/07 at 2:01pm

um in the review from the independent journal, did they confuse kate shindle with orfeh?!

[theaterdude87]

Posted: 2/9/07 at 2:03pm

haha it seems that way.
although after ireland vivienne is there. also isnt LB remix also there?

Updated On: 2/9/07 at 02:03 PM

[TheBlonde]

Posted: 2/9/07 at 6:42pm

um in the review from the independent journal, did they confuse kate shindle with orfeh?!

Sounds like. Apparently it's very hard to look at your playbill to fact check, lol.

[carymetorent2]

Posted: 2/10/07 at 4:03pm

LegallyBlondethemusical, is there a link to the review you copy/pasted?!

[legallyblondemusical]

Posted: 2/10/07 at 4:18pm

http://www.marinij.com/lifestyles/ci_5189901

[Jovie24]

Posted: 2/10/07 at 4:37pm

It will be interesting to see how it will do in NYC. I know that the fan base will love it, but dont know for sure if the critics will be very kind. I mean they will not hate it, but I feel they will not love it like SF is. I think this show is great. Fun and sweet and that is what is should be. I invited all my friends to go see it and we all bought our tickets already, it will now be my 5th time going to see the show.

I did get to meet the cast (a few) after the show and one cast member said that it is going to be a totally different show when it goes to NYC, so, I am very curious what is going to change once it hits NYC!

Updated On: 2/10/07 at 04:37 PM

[carymetorent2]

Posted: 2/10/07 at 6:18pm

The basic sentiment among the cast members that I spoke to was that there would be major changes seen by the first preview in NY. I am excited to see it, but hope that they don't cut the wrong things, as I have seen shows do before.

I also don't know if the NY critics will be as kind, but I am hopeing for the best.