"Luck Be A Lady Tonight" with the official GUYS & DOLLS revival love thread

How did Nick's Chippendale cop work?

And I am glad to hear positive things!

Ahhh!!! I have been waiting all day for these reviews!!! Thank you!!!

I am glad to hear it was worth it. How was Oliver??

Lauren Graham was PHENOMENAL, my personal favorite to ever play the part. The entire production was so much better than I could even have hoped for. Kate was radiant and Mary Testa's small part was enough to keep me laughing the entire night. I really hope this show does well. It deserves to be standing room only 8 shows a week for as long as it runs.

Don't have much more to add than what dramadude has said. Though I will say Oliver Platt (I'm a OP fan too) was the weakest out of the main four I thought. Craig was the most solid.

Also thought that Lauren started out probably with the most nerves at the beginning but once Adelaide's Lament came along those nerves had definitely disappeared and definitely overpowered Oliver in their pairing. The Sue Me scene with Adelaide eating the ice-cream for two cracked me up.

Mary was freaking hilarious.

Updated On: 2/5/09 at 11:49 PM

The orchestra sounded beautiful. And I counted, there were 17 pieces.

Nice to hear about the orchestra. Did the orchestrations sound much different at all from the 92 orchestrations?

Watching Oliver Platt in most of the show, I thought he was trying to do an impression of Jon Lovitz. It was quite odd at times.

Updated On: 2/6/09 at 12:04 AM

Well, I'd call the show 'uneven'. The orchestra is upstage, housed in a 3-tier structure, visible during the Hot Box numbers, but hidden behind a screen during the rest of the show. Projected on the screen are distracting and annoying CGI graphics (left over from WOMAN IN WHITE?) that do nothing but take away from the actors on stage.

Another gimmick by director Des McAnuff is to have actors arriving out of the orchestra pit like sea creatures in a bad 1950's Japanese 3-D horror movie.

You are correct about Craig Bierko and Kate Jennings Grant having the best chemistry, since Oliver Platt and Lauren Graham have none. As Nathan Detroit, Platt seems to be alternately channeling James Cagney and Fred Flintstone. As Miss Adelaide, Graham avoids any of Vivian Blain's iconic characterization, but fails to come up with a memorable one of her own. You never understand what attracts them to each other.

Yes, "Sit Down You're Rockin' the Boat" just about blows the roof off the Nederlander (despite the idiotic clouds being projected on the screen), but neither of the Hot Box numbers really get off the ground. The Crapshooters Ballet is nothing short of thrilling, and the big, creamy Loesser ballad "I've Never Been in Love Before" simply soars. Perhaps as the cast gets more comfortable in their roles, they'll relax and simply enjoy the fact that they're in one of the best musicals ever written. If that happens, I think we'll relax and enjoy it more too.

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I agree with hushpuppy. It's their first preview. By March all will be good. I have no idea how Mary could top tonight, after what I've read, but all will be better.

iluvtheatertrash, I didn't see any today. They've got the merchandise going though.

The problem I had with the Oliver/Lauren pairing was more to do the way Oliver was playing the role. I don't know, they just need to change his interpretation on the role.

But I think they'd be happy they got through their first preview in front of an audience without any major hitches. After the previews, etc they'll have all the kinks eliminated by opening night.

Must also add the video screens were incorporated into the production really well and the Nederlander is absolutely gorgeous.

Ok, so this is going to get asked anyways, so I guess I will do it. Anybody go to the stage door? If so, what was it like/who came out?