Most underrated "Best Musical" of the last 15 years?- Page 2

[bear88]

Posted: 11/30/18 at 3:05am

Kitsune said: "Bekk992 said: "I would sayIn the Heights."

It's possible In the Heights was underrated while it was on Broadway. These days, I feel like *every* local theater company in the Bay Area is doing it. (And frankly, I can't complain - it's a good show that spotlights diverse voices and actors)"

I remember seeing it the summer after seeing Hamilton a couple of years ago, because I wanted to see Lin-Manuel Miranda's other musical and liked the music, and we saw it in a community theater midway between LA and San Francisco on the way back from a trip. But now, it's everywhere. As Kitsune says, if I wanted to see In the Heights almost all year round in the San Francisco Bay Area, I could.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 11/30/18 at 4:43am

I don't understand how any musical that won a Tony award for Best Musical can be underrated. It can be underattended, or unpopular, or financially unsuccessful...but underrated when it's received the hightest award there is in the industry?

[denali.fire]

Posted: 11/30/18 at 8:55am

One obcr I return to frequently is
The Goodbye Girl.

Probably more than 15 years ago but I do have some vivid memories of the sets and dance.

[Elfuhbuh]

Posted: 11/30/18 at 12:36pm

dramamama611 said: "I don't understand how any musical that won a Tony award for Best Musical can be underrated. It can be underattended, or unpopular, or financially unsuccessful...but underrated when it's received the hightest award there is in the industry?"

See, I always assumed “underrated” means something isn’t popular, but has the merits to be considered a good show and should rightfully have a bigger fanbase. Among Broadway fans, a show could definitely be considered “underrated” if it won the Best Musical Tony, but then never went on to find the wide audience it deserves. 

[stoptheworld38]

Posted: 1/4/19 at 9:27pm

I think Fun Home is quite underrated - for a show that won best musical it seems like a lot of people have never heard of it.

[Jarethan]

Posted: 1/4/19 at 10:23pm

MOST OVERRATED BEST MUSICAL:

-- Fun Home, by a thousand miles.  I hated it and  I am NOT a homophobe.

-- Billy Elliott and The Band's Visit tied for #2.

 

MOST UNDERAPPRECIATED (BASED ON ITS RUN):

-- A Gentleman's Guide.  It was just so funny, provided an opportunity for 2 great leading man roles (not common in musicals; IMO it was perfect.

[BenElliott]

Posted: 1/4/19 at 10:34pm

The Band's Visit really has a bad rep for whatever reason. It's a beautiful musical that seems to be really bad mouthed by the online "stan" crowd. I know a lot of people who know nothing about it but won't go see it because it "looks boring." For a show that won that many Tonys, it really is underrated by the public. Meanwhile, I think it's absolutely incredible.

Passion is another. I absolutely love this show. I'm probably the only person in the world that does, but I think it's gorgeous. It's weird, disturbing, gross, confusing, and yet it all comes together in a magical Sondheim soup with a dash of Donna Murphy. I would actually argue that this is Sondheim's most beautiful score (not necessarily his best lyrics, but certainly his best score). Meanwhile, I think nearly everyone in the world not only hates this musical, but loathes it.

Also, I don't think Fun Home is very underrated. I would've loved to have seen it run longer, but I believe it's one of the most performed musicals in the country right now. In my hometown, a couple of high schools did it and a major local theatre company within the same five month period.

[theatreguy12]

Posted: 1/4/19 at 10:42pm

For those who were especially fond of TBV, what was it that you enjoyed so much? I was an English major so I can usually pick up on the deeper meaning and/or nuances behind a more cerebral play or musical. But for me, while TBV was somewhat entertaining, I didnt find it particularly deep. What was I missing? Also, that one song that Ariel sang was just beautiful, but I didnt really find his part all that prominent. Or at least, prominent or evocative enough to land a Tony. My opinion, of course.

[BenElliott]

Posted: 1/4/19 at 11:09pm

I think the depth of The Band's Visit lies in the subtext. The characters never really say what they mean. Partially because of the language barrier and partially because they're scared to. It's ultimately about people's need and longing for human connection and their inability to find it. This one night is one of the most important in all these people's lives and we're told that nothing important happens. Everything happens and they tell us this because no one says what they really mean. When Dina says the opening statement at the end, you realize that, that night was important to her, but much like Tewfiq, she's unable to fully express herself. The piece also leaves us with the hope that connection is possible. There's a lot else in the piece, but It's getting late and I don't want to derail this thread too much. I guess ultimately, if you feel that The Band's Visit isn't about anything, you fell into the trap that the musical sets up for you.

[JBroadway]

Posted: 1/4/19 at 11:25pm

Jarethan said: "MOST OVERRATED BEST MUSICAL:

-- Fun Home, by a thousand miles. I hated it and I am NOT a homophobe.

-- Billy Elliott and The Band's Visit tied for#2."

 

Literally nobody asked. 

 

[JBroadway]

Posted: 1/4/19 at 11:34pm

dramamama611 said: "I don't understand how any musical that won a Tony award for Best Musical can be underrated. It can be underattended, or unpopular, or financially unsuccessful...but underrated when it's received the hightest award there is in the industry?"

 

Well, a few things about that:

1. I think a show can be lauded by critics, award voters, and hard-core theatre-goers, but never get much traction outside of those circles. As many other's have said, The Band's Visit is a perfect example. It has proven to be very divisive where word-of-mouth is concerned. 

2. "underrated" is obviously an entirely relative and subjective term. If someone, for whatever reason, thought that Hamilton was even BETTER than the hype, and deserving of even MORE praise than it already gets, they might consider it "underrated." That's an extreme example, of course, but you get my point. 

3. Something may have a lot of buzz and hype the year it comes out, but lose people's attention over time to a degree that might be undeserving. Which is part of the point of this thread, I think, since we're looking back over the past 15 years. Which shows deserve to still be talked about after all these years? Which shows should have a stronger legacy? etc. 

[yankeefan7]

Posted: 1/4/19 at 11:34pm

"Once"

[HugoP]

Posted: 1/5/19 at 12:04am

IN THE HEIGHTS was indeed underrated during its Broadway run, including by ME.    During its Broadway run, I saw it, was underwhelmed and thought it was too crowded, too episodic and way too schematic.   In this case, though, I think the production itself was responsible for under-delivering on what is really a brilliant show.

I have subsequently seen several high school, college and regional productions of the show and realize it's a big, beautiful, heartfelt look at the fabric (and heart) of a neighborhood.     What I had seen as chaotic and episodic was really a way to depict a city neighborhood that is tumultuous and multilayered.    Did that come from the cumulative effect of multiple viewings?  or did I just see better productions post-Broadway?    

The Broadway production seemed less exciting and less flavorful than the subsequent ones I saw, which made me think the Broadway version wasn't doing full justice to the show.   

Updated On: 1/5/19 at 12:04 AM

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 1/5/19 at 12:29am

BenElliott said: "...Passion is another. I absolutely love this show. I'm probably the only person in the world that does, but I think it's gorgeous. It's weird, disturbing, gross, confusing, and yet it all comes together in a magical Sondheim soup with a dash of Donna Murphy. I would actually argue that this is Sondheim's most beautiful score (not necessarily his best lyrics, but certainly his best score). Meanwhile, I think nearly everyone in the world not only hates this musical, but loathes it...."

You are NOT the only one. I didn't mention it because it played on Broadway 25 years ago, outside the delimiters of the OP's question.

But I was astonished and moved by its absolute refusal to cater to traditional musical play tropes such as "love conquers all", "love makes the lovers beautiful", "it is always better to be loved than not". Hell, even the set was (intentionally) ugly!

(You question whether PASSION has Sondheim's best lyrics, but I would counter that it has precisely the lyrics Sondheim thought it needed. Except for "I'll Say" and its reprises, Sondheim eschews the cleverness that made him famous because he believes wit makes characters sound intellectual. PASSION is about people who follow their hearts, not their reason.)

PASSION competes with MERRILY for a place in my five, favorite Sondheim scores. (Yeah, I know they are entirely different, but I'm assuming I can only take five recordings to a desert isle. After FOLLIES, COMPANY, NIGHT MUSIC and SWEENEY, that fifth slot is a tough one.)

[RippedMan]

Posted: 1/5/19 at 1:52am

To me, as a hopeless romantic, lies in the missed connections. So I resonate with that lost love. I loved it, and though it was fantastic. 

I'd say, as of the last few years, Fun Home is the most underrated. It has had success. But it is so good. 

[devonian.t]

Posted: 1/5/19 at 3:52am

In the sidebar of this thread, count me in as adoring PASSION- apart from the irritating military interludes

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 1/5/19 at 4:37am

devonian.t said: "In the sidebar of this thread, count me in as adoring PASSION- apart from the irritating military interludes"

Well, I love a male chorus, so I find those interludes refreshing rather than irritating, but there's no question they are different from the rest of the score. Even if it is OT, I'm glad to find some fellow PASSION lovers here. Everybody I know IRL (including my husband and other Sondheim fanatics) hates it!

[lightguy06222]

Posted: 1/5/19 at 9:37pm

reading through all the answers, and I think that CAROLINE OR CHANGE is the most correct answer of those above.....

 

I would also add TABOO, and HIGH FIDELITY which I freakin loved.

[theatreguy12]

Posted: 1/7/19 at 1:02am

Clearly I was overthinking the meaning of the play a bit too much.  I was thinking there was something even deeper to it than what you pointed out.   I noted the bookend comments she made about not much of importance happening, but the in between left me looking for something more complex than, again, you noted in your analysis.  But if that deep meaning was how you outlined it, I guess I didn't really miss anything.   Some shows just don't resonate as much as others, I suppose.  The performances were good, especially that of Lenk.  The music was interesting.  The plot just didn't do it for me.  I was looking for something a bit more complex than what was really there, I guess.  Or intended.

 

BenElliott said: "I think the depth of The Band's Visit lies in the subtext. The characters never really say what they mean. Partially because of the language barrier and partially because they're scared to. It's ultimately about people's need and longing for human connection and their inability to find it. This one night is one of the most important in all these people's lives and we're told that nothing important happens. Everything happens and they tell us this because no one says what they really mean. When Dina says the opening statement at the end, you realize that, that night was important to her, but much like Tewfiq, she's unable to fully express herself. The piece also leaves us with the hope that connection is possible. There's a lot else in the piece, but It's getting late and I don't want to derail this thread too much. I guess ultimately, if you feel that The Band's Visit isn't about anything, you fell into the trap that the musical sets up for you."

 

[BenElliott]

Posted: 1/7/19 at 1:52am

Perhaps, I think maybe a lot of people's issue with the musical comes from the fact that they're expecting a plot and when that doesn't arrive they're disappointed. It's really a character piece and a musical about relationships as opposed to a musical with a detailed plot. I feel as though there are really very few musicals like it in that regard, which is maybe why I love it so much.

[GeorgeandDot]

Posted: 1/7/19 at 3:21am

Count me among the Passion lovers. Just a beautiful show with a beautiful score.

[massofmen]

Posted: 1/7/19 at 12:57pm

Urinetown

Won best book, best music and best director yet SOMEHOW lost to Millie. (touring voters voted in millie because it would tour better). Seems to defy logic to win best book and best music and then lose the tony for best show. Hooray politics. 
Urinetown is a brilliant piece of art. I actually think a revival right now would do well (probably more off broadway than broadway in a disgusting nasty theatre that would emulate the environment)
 

[stevie3]

Posted: 1/7/19 at 2:10pm

Without Doubt, Honeymoon in Vegas

[BwayGeek2]

Posted: 1/7/19 at 2:36pm

Oh man, yeah. Urinetown is a wonderful show, would definitely consider it underrated!

[Babe_Williams]

Posted: 1/7/19 at 2:43pm

I am not sure that 'underrated' is the term that OP is looking for here, since many people are citing musicals that won awards for Best Musical. Maybe 'best show that didn't gain longterm mainstream popularity' is more precise.