#26
Posted: 10/12/05 at 8:45am
Ah okay, well I am glad Aida was reviewed badly. I must have thought it was reviewed well because it is a Disney thing (isn't it?)
MOST DISAPPOINTING SHOW(S) THAT WAS HAILED BY THE CRITICS AS GREAT — Page 2
#27
Posted: 10/12/05 at 8:55am
Having only seen thress Broadway shows, this list doesn't include shows I'm SEEN and dislike, only shows I've had no desire to see, even after critics hailed them as God-sent.
Spamalot -- The OCR bored me and I found it almost completely unfunny and more than a bit trite. It doesn't seem suitable for the stage. Like someone said, more like a long sketch-comedy than anything else.
The Producers -- I already saw the movie, found it quite amusing, and have no desire to pay 50-100 bucks to see it live.
RENT -- Just not my cup 'o' tea, I guess. Don't really like the music (save a song or two) and what I know of the storyline has always seemed forced (especially the ending).
Spamalot -- The OCR bored me and I found it almost completely unfunny and more than a bit trite. It doesn't seem suitable for the stage. Like someone said, more like a long sketch-comedy than anything else.
The Producers -- I already saw the movie, found it quite amusing, and have no desire to pay 50-100 bucks to see it live.
RENT -- Just not my cup 'o' tea, I guess. Don't really like the music (save a song or two) and what I know of the storyline has always seemed forced (especially the ending).
#28
Posted: 10/12/05 at 9:08am
I enjoyed "The Producers" but I didn't get why critics were going crazy over it--to me, it was an entertaining, decent show, but it wasn't ground breaking or unlike anything I had ever seen before. "Phantom" has always been a mystery to me--no real plot to speak of and one or two catchy tunes repeated endlessly with lots of gorgeous costumes and sets that spend most of the night in the dark (cleverly staged, though, I'll be curious to see the "reinvented" version going into Vegas...maybe they'll add some story to the show).
#29
Posted: 10/12/05 at 9:21am
Cats
Phantom
Phantom
#30
Posted: 10/12/05 at 9:25am
https://forum.broadwayworld.com/readmessage.cfm?boardname=bway&thread=841273#858296
"Smart! And into all those exotic mystiques -- The Kama Sutra and Chinese techniques. I hear she knows more than seventy-five. Call me tomorrow if you're still alive!"
#31
Posted: 10/12/05 at 9:41am
The Pillowman
The Lion King
In my opinon, the Lion King should not have been stretched to 2.5 hours. It was pretty but boring. The visual appeal even wore off after awhile I really felt like I was just watching an overdone spectacle that went on and on and on. I know I am gonna get it for this next one. As far as the Pillowman goes, I left feeling it was a lackluster experience. I saw the play after reading it. I absolutely loved it when I read it. While I jumped at the requisite moments, I felt none of the emotions towards the characters as I did while reading. Well, not true in the case of Katurian's brother. I was quite disappointed.
The Lion King
In my opinon, the Lion King should not have been stretched to 2.5 hours. It was pretty but boring. The visual appeal even wore off after awhile I really felt like I was just watching an overdone spectacle that went on and on and on. I know I am gonna get it for this next one. As far as the Pillowman goes, I left feeling it was a lackluster experience. I saw the play after reading it. I absolutely loved it when I read it. While I jumped at the requisite moments, I felt none of the emotions towards the characters as I did while reading. Well, not true in the case of Katurian's brother. I was quite disappointed.
#32
Posted: 10/12/05 at 9:42am
Urinetown
The Producers
The Producers
Something is stirring,
Shifting ground...
It's just begun.
Edges are blurring
All around,
And yesterday is done.
#33
Posted: 10/12/05 at 10:05am
pab, this is not least favorite show, this is shows that were not as good as the critics said they were.
I for one, did not like Jane Eyre, even though most reviews i read said that it was pretty good, and my german teacher (who loved musicals) saw it 13 times. I thought it would be pretty good. I mean, I love the novel and thought it would be interesting. But all the songs seemed to be exactly the same. It was a class trip and the last kid who got on the bus asked the whole bus (teachers were not on it by this point) who thought it was terrible. Everyone raised their hands.
I for one, did not like Jane Eyre, even though most reviews i read said that it was pretty good, and my german teacher (who loved musicals) saw it 13 times. I thought it would be pretty good. I mean, I love the novel and thought it would be interesting. But all the songs seemed to be exactly the same. It was a class trip and the last kid who got on the bus asked the whole bus (teachers were not on it by this point) who thought it was terrible. Everyone raised their hands.
<--- the set of A Midsummer Night's Dream that I was assistant stage manager for during the 2007 season at the STNJ outdoor stage.
-Dre- You must remember all the same that at the crux of every game is knowing when it's time to leave the table... And it's important to be artful in your exit. No turning back, you must accept the con is done... It was a ball, it was a blast. And it's a shame it couldn't last. But every chapter has to end, you must agree.
~Dirty Rotten Scoundrels~
There's a special kind of people known as show people. We live in a world full of dreams. Sometimes we're not too certain what's false and what's real. But we're seldom in doubt about what we feel.
~Curtains~
It is a far, far better thing I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest I go to, than I have ever known.
~A Tale of Two Cities ~
~Dirty Rotten Scoundrels~
~Curtains~
~A Tale of Two Cities ~
#34
Posted: 10/12/05 at 10:11am
pab --- what does that have to do with this thread?
I thought "Les Mis" was highly overrated when I first saw it in previews. The show has grown on me since, after seeing a superior (to the OBC) touring production.
I thought "Les Mis" was highly overrated when I first saw it in previews. The show has grown on me since, after seeing a superior (to the OBC) touring production.
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
#35
Posted: 10/12/05 at 10:14am
Caroline, or Change.
#36
Posted: 10/12/05 at 10:14am
Doubt...a very good PRODUCTION, elevated by fine performances all around, but I have a feeling without Cherry, Brian, Adriane and Heather, it's a TV movie scipt (IMO) and certainly not worthy of a Pulitzer.
#37
Posted: 10/12/05 at 10:17am
I dont know if DRS has been hailed by critics, but i found it extremely boring, it moved at a tediously slow pace, and if i hadn't paid so much would have left
but to be honest I only went to see Sherie and Norbert
but to be honest I only went to see Sherie and Norbert
#38
Posted: 10/12/05 at 10:21am
HAIRSPRAY - not that I dislike it. I do like it. It's cute and fun and colorful. But it's not the be all end all it was made out to be.
Dare I say it, but - MISS SAIGON. I liked this just fine. But I wasn't blown away by it as I had expected to be.
A comment on CAROUSEL - I can see why that's here. Personally, I truly appreciate it as a work of theatre. But I find it to be rather boring, and a bit corny in spots (not that it's not a smart work of theatre, just not my cup of tea - so perhaps it's just preference.)
Dare I say it, but - MISS SAIGON. I liked this just fine. But I wasn't blown away by it as I had expected to be.
A comment on CAROUSEL - I can see why that's here. Personally, I truly appreciate it as a work of theatre. But I find it to be rather boring, and a bit corny in spots (not that it's not a smart work of theatre, just not my cup of tea - so perhaps it's just preference.)
#39
Posted: 10/12/05 at 10:29am
Disliking Carousel is like saying your grandmother is old and ugly.
Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end: then stop.
#40
Posted: 10/12/05 at 10:39am
Brantley called Aida a cartoon. The reviews were atrocious. It *survived* because it was Disney. That didn't get it good reviews.
Anyway, my answer is The Producers. It just wasn't all it's cracked up to be, IMO.
A work of art is an invitation to love.
Anyway, my answer is The Producers. It just wasn't all it's cracked up to be, IMO.
#41
Posted: 10/12/05 at 10:54am
Spamalot
After a mildly amusing first act I was apprehensive yet hopeful, but the second act decended into a horrible mess and it seemed to me that no one knew how to end it so they tacked on the random marriage plot.
And yes I am a huge Python fan
After a mildly amusing first act I was apprehensive yet hopeful, but the second act decended into a horrible mess and it seemed to me that no one knew how to end it so they tacked on the random marriage plot.
And yes I am a huge Python fan
#42
Posted: 10/12/05 at 11:40am
Dreamflyer:
Just because someone dislikes Spamalot it does not make it a "Spamalot bashing thread" there were MANY other shows that people didn't give a reason for their disappointment. If I am dissapointed with a show, there may not be a particular reason, one huge one was the hype led my expectations to be too high. I was not dissapointed by many of the shows other people were on here, but I didn't decide to say "another Producers bashing thread, *headdesk*" or some such nonsense.
I was disappointed by Spamalot because I believe the staging was paced badly, half of it was too fast, while some parts drug. The songs are mostly forgetable. The story was both too abstract to be memorable, and still too structured to be "Python." Hyde-Pierce was the only actor who lived up to his hype. The "parody" of the show is overdone, there was no substance. It seemed like a series of skits and overblown musical numbers that were thrown together and did not work.
Just because someone dislikes Spamalot it does not make it a "Spamalot bashing thread" there were MANY other shows that people didn't give a reason for their disappointment. If I am dissapointed with a show, there may not be a particular reason, one huge one was the hype led my expectations to be too high. I was not dissapointed by many of the shows other people were on here, but I didn't decide to say "another Producers bashing thread, *headdesk*" or some such nonsense.
I was disappointed by Spamalot because I believe the staging was paced badly, half of it was too fast, while some parts drug. The songs are mostly forgetable. The story was both too abstract to be memorable, and still too structured to be "Python." Hyde-Pierce was the only actor who lived up to his hype. The "parody" of the show is overdone, there was no substance. It seemed like a series of skits and overblown musical numbers that were thrown together and did not work.
I stand corrected, you are as vapid as they say.
#43
Posted: 10/12/05 at 12:09pm
I don't read critical reviews---they usually piss me off if I like the show, so what critics hail or revile doesn't affect me in the least!
"NOT MY DAUGHTER, YOU BITCH!"
#44
Posted: 10/12/05 at 12:09pm
"Disliking Carousel is like saying your grandmother is old and ugly."
Amen, smaxie... and well put!
Amen, smaxie... and well put!
"Jaws is the Citizen Kane of movies."
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
blocked: logan2, Diamonds3, Hamilton22
#45
Posted: 10/12/05 at 12:14pm
About AIDA--I'd like to suggest it was badly reviewed BECAUSE it was a Disney show. The critics were so eager to prove how free-spirited and anti-corporation they are that they (excessively) bashed a show that was pretty damn good. The "New Yorker" was one of the few to dissent, saying that hating Disney was like hating a chef that kept providing good dinners.
As for my own opinion of overpraised shows--I never got LES MIZ. The music couldn't be more generic and redundant. Ditto CAROLINE, OR CHANGE, where I sat waiting (in vain) for some kind of melody. And the success of PROOF is completely incomprehensible to me. Its subject--is insanity hereditary?--is one that used to occupy Victorian melodramas, as well as dated 1950's thrillers like THE BAD SEED. Hardly an issue for our times.
As for my own opinion of overpraised shows--I never got LES MIZ. The music couldn't be more generic and redundant. Ditto CAROLINE, OR CHANGE, where I sat waiting (in vain) for some kind of melody. And the success of PROOF is completely incomprehensible to me. Its subject--is insanity hereditary?--is one that used to occupy Victorian melodramas, as well as dated 1950's thrillers like THE BAD SEED. Hardly an issue for our times.
I ask in all honesty/What would life be?/Without a song and a dance, what are we?/So I say "Thank you for the music/For giving it to me."
#46
Posted: 10/12/05 at 12:14pm
CAROLINE, OR CHANGE received mostly mixed to negative reviews. I believe there were only 4 positive ones.
And guys, SPAMALOT got a LOT of mixed reviews. Brantley damned it with very faint praise and didn't make it a "Critic's Pick."
And guys, SPAMALOT got a LOT of mixed reviews. Brantley damned it with very faint praise and didn't make it a "Critic's Pick."
"What a story........ everything but the bloodhounds snappin' at her rear end." -- Birdie
[http://margochanning.broadwayworld.com/]
"The Devil Be Hittin' Me" -- Whitney
#47
Posted: 10/12/05 at 12:19pm
Les Miserables
The book was better. Not that I'm biased or anything...
The book was better. Not that I'm biased or anything...
Like a firework unexploded
Wanting life but never knowing how
Wanting life but never knowing how
#48
Posted: 10/12/05 at 12:25pm
Margo: That is true by the time it made it here, but there were MONTHS of this is the greatest show in years reviews before that.
I stand corrected, you are as vapid as they say.
#49
Posted: 10/12/05 at 12:26pm
"About AIDA--I'd like to suggest it was badly reviewed BECAUSE it was a Disney show."
I doubt it. It simply was mostly a hodgepodge of styles thrown together centered around an operatic tale of ancient Egypt using hardly anything Egyptian whatsoever and rather miscast actors that were "hot property" at the time. Sherie Rene Scott was the only thing I liked about the show. It was like a musical Mulligan Stew that didn't taste very good to me. I'm a big fan of Disney, but I found Aida to be quite ridiculous. Especially that 70s optical illusion backdrop of the jail cells with the little sad men painted inside. I literally started giggling when I saw that.
I doubt it. It simply was mostly a hodgepodge of styles thrown together centered around an operatic tale of ancient Egypt using hardly anything Egyptian whatsoever and rather miscast actors that were "hot property" at the time. Sherie Rene Scott was the only thing I liked about the show. It was like a musical Mulligan Stew that didn't taste very good to me. I'm a big fan of Disney, but I found Aida to be quite ridiculous. Especially that 70s optical illusion backdrop of the jail cells with the little sad men painted inside. I literally started giggling when I saw that.
"What can you expect from a bunch of seitan worshippers?" - Reginald Tresilian
#50
Posted: 10/12/05 at 12:54pm
I think that was *part* of the issue, roquat. One theory holds that the critics had it out for Aida when early buzz came around, just becaues they had this sort of "f*ck you" attitude to the latest round of flashy Disney theme park-ish material, and that they were going to crush it no matter what, simply because of what it was. But there was enough wrong with it for *some* of what the reviews said to be quite valid -- how much is to be considered "correct" is obviously almost totally variable and subjective. I loved the show A LOT, and I never read the reviews until after it closed; I simply had no reason to, other than curiosity. When I looked at them, I found them sort of saddening, but not unfounded.
A work of art is an invitation to love.
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