Momsicals

[poisonivy2]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 6:51am

Hi all, I like to take my mom to musicals from time to time. I call them momsicals because my mom's tastes in musicals are ... uh, conservative. We've seen Lion King, Cats (which was her favorite), and Phantom. 

My mom is hard of hearing and English is not her first language so anything with rapidfire dialogue is out for her. I've already decided to take her to see Carousel and MFL when they open. But in the meantime in the summer what do you think is a good momsical?

I've been thinking: Aladdin, Wicked, Hello Dolly! (with Donna Murphy). What do you guys think?

[dramamama611]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 8:32am

I would think Dolly.  

[ntrackbar]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 8:52am

Dolly definitely. What about Bandstand?

[poisonivy2]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 9:00am

Ooh School of Rock is a good choice! 

As for Bandstand my mom also doesn't like "disturbing" musicals. Would the subject matter be too heavy for her?

[IHeartNY2]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 11:42am

I think moms would really appreciate Waitress :)

[JudyDenmark]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 11:51am

poisonivy2 said: "As for Bandstand my mom also doesn't like "disturbing" musicals. Would the subject matter be too heavy for her?"

I would normally say no, but it sounds like your mom is particularly conservative about this stuff, so... yes, probably. There's a lot about PTSD.

I also vote for Hello Dolly! It's squeaky clean. Beautiful would be fun, too - great music, and the story is easy to follow. 

[BroadwayConcierge]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 12:16pm

Totally thought this thread was gonna be asking about the Wicked lyric, "Dearest darlingsest momsie and popsicles..."

Either way, my vote is for Dolly!, hands-down.

[reginula]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 12:51pm

I was wondering about something similar (but was feeling shy about asking). I'm taking my mom to shows in June but English isn't her first language either. I'm taking her to things I wanted to see –Great Comet, Come From Away, Anastasia and... well, Book of Mormon (here's where I'm glad her English is not as good)– but we have some free spots.

I guess Anastasia is a good one? My mom loved the movie and knows the songs (just in another language).

Poisonivy2, how was your mom's experience at Phantom? I'm thinking of making that my fifth show in hopes of that being mom-friendly. I'm also considering Beautiful or Waitress. 

[Valentina3]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 3:09pm

^ reginula, If your mom's english isn't good, I'd strongly recommend staying away from The Great Comet. The show's quite dense and not for everyone. Unless you don't live in NY and won't have a chance to see it w/o her. Same with The Book Of Mormon. It's an great show, but an expensive one to take someone who won't be able to enjoy it as much. I took my Indian mother to Wicked, she missed quite a few references but loved the talent and spectacle on stage. She did very uncomfortable during "As Long As You're Mine" haha, the cast we saw it with was very... graphic. More than your typical Elphaba and Fiyero.

[poisonivy2]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 4:26pm

reginula said: "I was wondering about something similar (but was feeling shy about asking). I'm taking my mom to shows in June but English isn't her first language either. I'm taking her to things I wanted to see –Great Comet, Come From Away, Anastasia and... well, Book of Mormon (here's where I'm glad her English is not as good)– but we have some free spots.

I guess Anastasia is a good one? My mom loved the movie and knows the songs (just in another language).

Poisonivy2, how was your mom's experience at Phantom? I'm thinking of making that my fifth show in hopes of that being mom-friendly. I'm also considering Beautiful or Waitress. 

"

I'm copying and pasting what I wrote on my blog since I think my mom's reactions are funny. Waitress is definitely too racy for my mom. She'll be upset at the Jenna/Pomatter makeout scenes and she'll dislike the adultery storyline. By the way my mom is not "conservative" about many things. She turns the channel when Donald Trump is on tv. She just likes her entertainment to be wholesome.

Mom: "That Christine is so annoying. She knows he's a stalker and still bothers him. Why does she keep pulling off his mask? It's rude. Doesn't she have parents?"

Me: "Her dad is dead."

Mom: "She has a mother though doesn't she?"

Me: "She also kissed him at the end."

Mom: "Yeah but I can understand that. She kissed him so she could get rid of him."

Me: "Did you like this better or Cats?"

Mom: "I liked Cats better. I thought it had a better storyline. The story here is hard to follow with all the scene changes. Like one minute they're in a cemetery and the next everyone is in an opera singing."

Me: "Did you like this at all?"

Mom: "I liked the music. I didn't like Christine's (Ali Ewoldt) voice. But the stalker (she's referring to James Barbour, who plays the Phantom) has a really good voice."

Later on the train home she pulled out her smartphone and tapped me. "Oh no. James Barbour is a sex offender."

[reginula]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 4:29pm

Valentina3, we don't live in NY (we'll be flying in from Mexico in June) and she felt it was best to join me than hanging around by herself in a city she's never been to. I told her she wouldn't like Book of Mormon but wanted to come as well. I'll let you know what happens. As for Great Comet, I figured I'd have some luck if I played her the BBC show. I hope that and the dancers hanging around her are enough to keep her amused. 

[JudyDenmark]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 4:42pm

Even if she doesn't understand the words of Great Comet, I'm sure she'll enjoy the spectacle. There's just SO much to look at. 

[aimeric]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 4:49pm

reginula said: "Valentina3, we don't live in NY (we'll be flying in from Mexico in June) and she felt it was best to join me than hanging around by herself in a city she's never been to. I told her she wouldn't like Book of Mormon but wanted to come as well. I'll let you know what happens. As for Great Comet, I figured I'd have some luck if I played her the BBC show. I hope that and the dancers hanging around her are enough to keep her amused. 

 

Re: Great Comet, have you considered finding her a translation of the book in her native language?  The section the show is based on is very short and not too tough to read (well, I guess mileage may vary on the latter point, but hey, even my mom got through it, so.).  We're taking my mother-in-law to see the show in June too, and she speaks almost no English, but she's seen the BBC version and we're giving her that excerpt of the book in Japanese (her native language) and maybe a bit of brief explanation before the show, and with that, I feel like it's no different from being able to follow along with an opera in a different language and no subs.  Will she understand every word?  No, but does she really have to?  She'll get the gist (more than the gist, really) and the spectacular visuals and singing, and that's plenty.  All you can do for your mom is try to give her a little preparation, and you'll get the best experience possible.  

Hope you have fun at all your shows!

 

[reginula]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 5:26pm

Poisonivy2: That's so awesome. Thanks for the retelling. It makes me want to start a recopilation of things parents would say about musicals. I did think of Cats -and even asked her- but she's triggered by that one because my dad took her to see the Mexican production before I was born and it makes her very sad. She's not very conservative, so I think there are more options. I was thinking of Waitress if I could find the movie in Spanish for her, but when she saw the Tony performance of "She used to be mine" she said "Woaaah, that just looks like a very sad show". 

JudyDenmark: Thanks! I'm crossing my fingers. We have seats in front of (?) the rear mezz runway so I hope there'll be a lot of engagement for her.

aimeric: That's a very good idea! A Spanish version should be easy to find. I've also been playing the OBCR to her in hopes she'll recognize the songs. We're also seeing Come From Away and I do wonder if that'll be the hardest one to follow for her. 

 

[VintageSnarker]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 5:33pm

I feel like Bella could go either way. I think it's listed for ages 10+. There's a bit of crassness and they have their fun (there's a strip) but it's ultimately a fairly wholesome show about family and identity and the romance is handled pretty chastely. I think she would probably like the messages behind it. The humor can be a little broad and it wears its politics on its sleeve. Perhaps she'd miss a little of the social commentary but broadstrokes, I think it would actually be fairly easy for her to follow as a non-native English speaker because it is a little broader and more simplistic. There aren't big mysteries. It's pretty straightforward. 

Thinking about next season, I would skip The Band's Visit because of the adultery. 

[Rainah]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 5:57pm

My conservative father (who once saw Les Mis and hated it but did not want his young daughter going to shows alone) really liked Wicked. He did NOT like If/Then

[freewilma]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 6:34pm

I would think Wicked would be a perfect choice.  She is probably familiar with the Wizard of Oz and may enjoy the origin story aspect; as well as the strong female relationships.  While Dolly might seem like a good fit, I wonder if Bette's faster speaking cadence would be hard for her to appreciate if English isn't her first language?   

[poisonivy2]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 9:16pm

freewilma said: "I would think Wicked would be a perfect choice.  She is probably familiar with the Wizard of Oz and may enjoy the origin story aspect; as well as the strong female relationships.  While Dolly might seem like a good fit, I wonder if Bette's faster speaking cadence would be hard for her to appreciate if English isn't her first language?   

"

That's my worry about Dolly. Actually, all musical comedies since they often rely on fast-moving dialogue and jokes. My mom has said that she's embarrassed when a whole theater is laughing and she doesn't understand what was said.

 

[cam5y]

Posted: 6/1/17 at 10:11pm

If you're seeing Come From Away, the accent will likely be tricky. Could you give her Jim DeFede's The Day the World Came to Town or Kevin Tuerff's Channel of Peace to read in advance?  

[poisonivy2]

Posted: 6/3/17 at 4:21am

I know it got bad reviews, but is Charlie and the Chocolate Factory something my mom might enjoy? Anyone seen the show?

[poisonivy2]

Posted: 6/4/17 at 4:06pm

My mom has spoken. She doesn't "like" Hello Dolly! She says the story is "silly." She wants to wait for Carousel as the next momsical.

[mpkie]

Posted: 6/4/17 at 4:52pm

Lol thread is really funny because I know where you're coming from. I love the "momsical" term! I do the same thing with my mom (we're also Asian, judging by your avatar photos). I also try to find things that would be good for my mom or my parents.

In the past I've taken my mom to Gigi (she loved it), Gentlemen's Guide (too much rapidfire dialogue that went over her head -- which I expected but she wanted to come with me), She Loves Me (went over well). My mom has seen Phantom as well and really enjoyed it.

I was considering On Your Feet! It has a simple story, strong female main character, sweet romantic story, catchy upbeat music, easy to follow, nothing racy. Pretty fun jukebox musical and don't need to be an Estefan fan. Have you thought about that? It's closing at the end of summer.

I would think School of Rock would be "too noisy" (as in, it's mostly rock music) and your mom may struggle to sympathize with the main character -- I personally wouldn't bring my parents even though I LOVE the show and have seen it twice myself.

Aladdin could work because like Lion King, it's a spectacle show, but personally I did not enjoy Aladdin nor Lion King; both were disappointing, maybe I needed to be 20 years younger lol. I imagine if she enjoyed Lion King that she would also like Aladdin. I don't think my mom would like the story in either but I may be projecting.

[poisonivy2]

Posted: 6/5/17 at 9:44pm

Having nixed Hello Dolly! I sent a few music clips of Waitress to my mom and got this email back:

-----------------------

I don't  think I will enjoy a show like this one. I like the old fashion and drama stylemshow, such as the carousel. West side story, my fairly etc

 It is hard for me to swallow a new style show. I am so looking foward to watching  the carousel. It was so dramatic and sad but the music was so emotional. It was.sad.story.but you don't  feel it was too sad.to.enjoy the show.

----------------------

LOL so I guess Carousel it is next March.

[reginula]

Posted: 6/5/17 at 10:38pm

Poisonivy2, so Anastasia was never an option? I guess it has a bit of a classic feel (?). Anyway, Carousel sounds great and I hope you both have a great time :) 

[poisonivy2]

Posted: 6/5/17 at 11:00pm

Anastasia is my thing. I heavily dislike stories based on the Romanov family and the imposter Anna Anderson and I don't think I could enjoy the show at all. My mom also doesn't like the story of Anna Anderson either.