My Cry Baby Review

[mattnyc2]

Posted: 6/17/08 at 10:34pm

Scored some comps to the 7 p.m. performance of Cry Baby tonight. Fifth row orchestra on the left; great seats!

Once the show started it was clear that something was wrong with the sound. The dialog was barely audible and sometimes the sound system drifted on and off. Harriet Harris and Carly Jibson's lines were not heard at all and lot of jokes were missed. After the first number the curtain went down (leaving the cast looking very confused) and an announcement was made that they were experiencing "technical difficulties." An usher walking down the aisle and kept saying to people "this is why we ask you to turn OFF your cell phones."

Ten minutes later the show picked up where they left off and there were no mishaps after that.

Overall I came into the show expecting the absolute worse, but was pleasantly surprised how much fun I had. Is the show perfect? No, but it's hilarious and kept me laughing the whole evening. I haven't seen ITH yet, but definitely see why the choreography was superb (and it didn't hurt that the chorus boys were extremely HOT!)

I think this production will go down in history as introducing broadway to Alli Mauzey. Someone seriously needs to write a show for this woman; she stole every seen she was in. So spastic and crazy...I'm in love with her!

So if you're looking for groundbreaking musical theatre, stick to Passing Strange or Gypsy. If you just want something lighthearted and funny then Cry Baby isn't a bad choice.

Updated On: 6/17/08 at 10:34 PM

[SNLMedia]

Posted: 6/17/08 at 10:36pm

Thanks for your review, matt. I'm going to attempt to see this on Saturday before the apparent closing.

Updated On: 6/17/08 at 10:36 PM

[morosco]

Posted: 6/17/08 at 10:40pm

...an announcement was made that they were experiencing "technical difficulties." An usher walking down the aisle and kept saying to people "this is why we ask you to turn OFF your cell phones."

Huh?

[LePetiteFromage]

Posted: 6/17/08 at 10:53pm

Updated On: 5/3/09 at 10:53 PM

[broadwayfan7]

Posted: 6/17/08 at 10:56pm

Thanks for your review! Glad you liked the show!

[morosco]

Posted: 6/17/08 at 10:58pm

The cell signals can interfere with the wireless mics, but not always.

I've never heard that before. Really?

[carderic]

Posted: 6/17/08 at 11:00pm

yes, really. but from what it sounds like, doesnt seem like it was a cell phone problem.

[LePetiteFromage]

Posted: 6/17/08 at 11:00pm

Updated On: 5/3/09 at 11:00 PM

[eliwilk]

Posted: 6/17/08 at 11:03pm

Yes cell signals can mess with the mics but most the time it doesn't effect the ones being used on stage but instead messes with the clear coms used by the crew. In college we always had to make sure our cell phones were off in the booth because if we got a call or text it would make a horrible buzzing noise over the clear com.

[LePetiteFromage]

Posted: 6/17/08 at 11:04pm

Updated On: 5/3/09 at 11:04 PM

[mattnyc2]

Posted: 6/17/08 at 11:05pm

I'm not sure what the problem with the sound was, but it was clear that the mics were not working at all. I was sitting in the fifth row and could barely hear any dialog at all (to make matters worse the people behind me started complaining loudly about the lack of sound...only adding to the problem.)

When the curtain went down the cast looked severely confused. I couldn't tell if the cast knew there were mic problems...some seemed to be trying extra hard to project while others just spoke in their normal voice and were not heard at all.

I'm just glad they were able to fix it in such a short amount of time. Ah the fun of live theater!

Updated On: 6/17/08 at 11:05 PM

[morosco]

Posted: 6/17/08 at 11:12pm

Cell phones interfering with clear coms would certainly jeopardize the safety of the cast and crew. Broadway should present this as an example of why laws should be changed in order to allow installation of cell phone jamming technology in theatres.

[Patash]

Posted: 6/17/08 at 11:32pm

In our community theatre, we once had an incident of all the stage lights suddenly jumping cues. It ended up someone was receiving a cell phone call and it somehow jammed the light board. It is amazing what problems cell phones can cause. It really makes me nervous to thing what could happen when people don't turn off their cell phones when a plane is taking off.

[matty159]

Posted: 6/17/08 at 11:54pm

Thanks for the review, matt. I am looking forward to seeing it Sunday afternoon.

[carderic]

Posted: 6/17/08 at 11:57pm

i'm also looking forward to Sunday afternoon's performance. i've never seen a show on its final day!

[matty159]

Posted: 6/18/08 at 12:01am

Neither have I, carderic. I think that is part of the thrill for me too!

[carderic]

Posted: 6/18/08 at 12:02am

yea i'm hoping it's a good crowd. looks like i'll see you at bway bares too!