#1
Posted: 3/28/08 at 12:36pm
I will start by saying that message board reports of CRY-BABY being the worst show to hit Broadway in years have been greatly exaggerated.
To the contrary, much of the show makes for fun fifties fodder. Unfortunately, it is also severely misguided, and the end result amounts to conflicting visions sinking something with tons of potential.
The storyline remains the same from the movie on which it is based: the titular rocking rebel shakes up a conservative town, and the battle between "the squares" and "the drapes" ensues until everyone just decides to get along in the end.
It is clearly evident throughout that the creative team is having an inner battle between making the show family-friendly (ala Hairspray) or staying true to the raunchy spirit of John Waters. The storyline and a lot of the framework already put in place lend itself much easier to the latter, but with it being previews, there is only so much that can be fixed, and a complete tone overhaul is unlikely, even though that is the key thing needing to be worked on.
The show is at its best when it is going completely over the top, such as the finale, where the company sings the over-exuberant "Nothing Bad's Ever Gonna Happen Again" with over-enthusiasm. Likewise, the cast members who go larger than life also score the best, particularly Alli Mauzey, who plays a teen obsessed with Cry Baby with the requisite amount of zany abandon that is lacking elsewhere. Her number, "Screw Loose," is a riot, but I can't help but think she would be less impressive if everyone else were on the grand-scale level they should be.
The leads are good, if a bit bland. Elizabeth Stanley again uses the same bereft charm that made her such an appealing April in John Doyle's COMPANY last season (this time with a killer belt) as Allison, and James Snyder's natural charm cannot be ignored as the title character, even if he looks much more "square" than "drape" in appearance.
The supporting players are all uniformly talented, though severely underused. Chester Gregory shined in the minuscule amount he was given to do (he clearly has the right idea by bailing to play Donkey in SHREK in a few short months), and the trio of Tear Drops who make up the core unit of Cry-Baby's posse were great, as was Christopher J. Hanke as Baldwin, the clean-cut conservative in love with Allison.
Harriet Harris steals the show as Mrs. Vernon-Williams, Allison's prim and proper grandmother with a few skeletons in her closet. Her ballad of exposition, "I Did Something Wrong Once," was great, and her singing wasn't nearly as bad as I'd heard elsewhere.
Rob Ashford’s choreography was excellent, as were costumes by Catherine Zuber and a set by Scott Pask.
Cuts certainly need to be made to the score. "Squeaky Clean," the number given to Christopher J. Hanke and the Whiffles, his group of straight-laced singers, was painfully awful, as was "I'm Infected," the love duet sang by Cry-Baby and Allison as the cast are receiving polio vaccinations. A lot of the music was enjoyable though, with the standout number being "Misery, Agony, Helplessness, Hopelessness, Heartache, and Woe" at the top of the second act.
Overall, CRY-BABY ends up being a mixed bag that, with the proper work, could have been great, but only registers as mildly good.
Reviews to come of AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY, SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE, SOUTH PACIFIC, and IN THE HEIGHTS.
To the contrary, much of the show makes for fun fifties fodder. Unfortunately, it is also severely misguided, and the end result amounts to conflicting visions sinking something with tons of potential.
The storyline remains the same from the movie on which it is based: the titular rocking rebel shakes up a conservative town, and the battle between "the squares" and "the drapes" ensues until everyone just decides to get along in the end.
It is clearly evident throughout that the creative team is having an inner battle between making the show family-friendly (ala Hairspray) or staying true to the raunchy spirit of John Waters. The storyline and a lot of the framework already put in place lend itself much easier to the latter, but with it being previews, there is only so much that can be fixed, and a complete tone overhaul is unlikely, even though that is the key thing needing to be worked on.
The show is at its best when it is going completely over the top, such as the finale, where the company sings the over-exuberant "Nothing Bad's Ever Gonna Happen Again" with over-enthusiasm. Likewise, the cast members who go larger than life also score the best, particularly Alli Mauzey, who plays a teen obsessed with Cry Baby with the requisite amount of zany abandon that is lacking elsewhere. Her number, "Screw Loose," is a riot, but I can't help but think she would be less impressive if everyone else were on the grand-scale level they should be.
The leads are good, if a bit bland. Elizabeth Stanley again uses the same bereft charm that made her such an appealing April in John Doyle's COMPANY last season (this time with a killer belt) as Allison, and James Snyder's natural charm cannot be ignored as the title character, even if he looks much more "square" than "drape" in appearance.
The supporting players are all uniformly talented, though severely underused. Chester Gregory shined in the minuscule amount he was given to do (he clearly has the right idea by bailing to play Donkey in SHREK in a few short months), and the trio of Tear Drops who make up the core unit of Cry-Baby's posse were great, as was Christopher J. Hanke as Baldwin, the clean-cut conservative in love with Allison.
Harriet Harris steals the show as Mrs. Vernon-Williams, Allison's prim and proper grandmother with a few skeletons in her closet. Her ballad of exposition, "I Did Something Wrong Once," was great, and her singing wasn't nearly as bad as I'd heard elsewhere.
Rob Ashford’s choreography was excellent, as were costumes by Catherine Zuber and a set by Scott Pask.
Cuts certainly need to be made to the score. "Squeaky Clean," the number given to Christopher J. Hanke and the Whiffles, his group of straight-laced singers, was painfully awful, as was "I'm Infected," the love duet sang by Cry-Baby and Allison as the cast are receiving polio vaccinations. A lot of the music was enjoyable though, with the standout number being "Misery, Agony, Helplessness, Hopelessness, Heartache, and Woe" at the top of the second act.
Overall, CRY-BABY ends up being a mixed bag that, with the proper work, could have been great, but only registers as mildly good.
Reviews to come of AUGUST: OSAGE COUNTY, SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE, SOUTH PACIFIC, and IN THE HEIGHTS.
Tonya Pinkins: Then we had a "Lot's Wife" last June that was my personal favorite. I'm still trying to get them to let me sing it at some performance where we get to sing an excerpt that's gone.
Tony Kushner: You can sing it at my funeral.
Tony Kushner: You can sing it at my funeral.
Updated On: 3/28/08 at 12:36 PM
