"Little Women" Tour Review, 3/26 Ft Lauderdale

[somethingwicked]

Posted: 3/27/06 at 5:54am

I saw the "Little Women" tour yesterday, and figured I would give a brief little review for anyone that was interested.

I went into the show with very low expectations. I was waiting for it to be boring and uneventful, but fortunately, I was proved very wrong.

I found the show quite charming and eventful, the complete opposite of what I thought it would be. You just can't help but be enthralled by the characters and the story... and most of the songs are pretty good too!, my favorite's being "Astonishing" (of course,) "Five Forever," and "Days of Plenty."

Julie Foldesi (the alternate on tour who stood by for Sutton on Broadway) was on as Jo. A friend of mine had seen the show last week and saw the normal Jo (Susan Spencer) and hadn't liked her at all, so I was happy that I would be seeing someone different. Julie turned out to be incredible. She was very similar to Sutton, and had an extremely powerful voice. All of her solos ("Better," "Astonishing," and "The Fire Within Me") got a thunderous reception from the audience, particularly "Astonishing" (which closes Act 1 for anyone not familiar with the show.)

Also not to dissapoint was Maureen McGovern. Going in not being familiar with the show really, I did know that Maureen was a legend and that she had originated Marmee on Broadway, so I was expecting alot from her performance, and she lived up to (and exceeded) my expectations. She is just a commanding force on stage, and emotes this motherly sense about herself that is perfect for the role. She truly embodies Marmee. "Days of Plenty" was big and booming and beautiful, as was her other solo number, "Here Alone."

The other cast members worked well together as well, and the chemistry (particularly between the March sisters) was incredible. It had to be to drive a show like this, and it certainly was.

The show deffinetly has it's problems (particularly the book, which is a little underdeveloped in regards to some major plot points that I won't spoil here,) but the strengths in other areas outnumber the weaknesses.

All in all, "Little Women" proves to be an endearing and heartwarming few hours of theater, packed with "astonishing" performances and a riveting plot. If it comes to your town, I would HIGHLY reccomend it.

Updated On: 3/27/06 at 05:54 AM

[cturtle]

Posted: 3/27/06 at 4:50pm

very glad to hear you liked it! we are looking forward to seeing it here in atlanta tomorrow.

[FosseBoi]

Posted: 3/27/06 at 5:01pm

Glad to hear this since, like cturtle, I'm seeing it in Atl!

[dancingthrulife04]

Posted: 3/27/06 at 5:06pm

Sounds good! I didn't know Susan Spencer had taken over for Kate Fisher.

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 3/27/06 at 5:14pm

Only temporarily. Kate Fisher is having knee surgery.
http://littlewomen.typepad.com/show/2006/03/big_update.html

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 3/27/06 at 6:41pm

oh okay, i was wondering the same thing, thanks Liz. I can't wait to see this show here in April.

Also, isn't Marueen's first big number "here alone" Or did they change it?

[somethingwicked]

Posted: 3/27/06 at 6:44pm

"Days Alone" is her first big number.

[dancingthrulife04]

Posted: 3/27/06 at 7:56pm

Unless they changed the name for the tour, the song is called "Here Alone."

[somethingwicked]

Posted: 3/27/06 at 8:31pm

Sorry. It is "Here Alone."

[muscle23ftl]

Posted: 3/27/06 at 8:34pm

Susan Spencer was great on friday night, and so was Maureen Mc Govern, the show had good sets and the orchestra of 12 sounded well. Unfortunatly the audience wouldn't even clap after the songs. No one clapped for Mc Govern when she showed up on stage, and i mean not a single person. It was sad. Susan sounded a lot like Sutton and her voice was extremely strong and she seemed very comfortable on stage, maybe even better than Sutton IMO. The show was as boring as the one on Broadway, only this time around i knew better and left before intermission!

[LizzieCurry]

Posted: 3/27/06 at 8:54pm

No one in Sacramento or San Jose clapped for her entrance, either, but I didn't expect them to.

They were completely enthusiastic and appreciative otherwise. I don't think a lot of audiences are neccessarily entrance applauders.

[spiderdj82]

Posted: 3/27/06 at 9:47pm

I saw Mrs. McGovern during the pre-broadway run in North Carolina and thought she was the best part about the whole musical. GOD BLESS THAT WOMAN!!!