NYMF 2011?

[tking001]

Posted: 9/27/11 at 4:42pm

Any Must sees?

[tking001]

Posted: 9/30/11 at 10:05pm

bump
thinking about catching a show tomorrow suggestions would be great

[siny]

Posted: 9/30/11 at 11:43pm

I saw "Crazy, Just Like Me" yesterday with 2 other people and we all loved it !

[Ryanmercy]

Posted: 10/2/11 at 6:44pm

I just wanted to put in a vote for my show, Just Like Magic. It's going to be really great. We're so proud of it, and it's really hard to stand out in NYMF without a broadway star. Especially because we are a special event. So yes, I'm shilling, but I hope you'll forgive me. Just trying to get the word out about our show. We open Friday. Check it out, and please come see us. I promise you'll have a great time! Magic, Music, adult themes... who could ask for anything more? :)

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 10/2/11 at 7:12pm

Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice is pretty delightful and feels a lot further along in the developmental process than most NYMF shows. I think the run is sold out but well worth trying standby for.

[Luv2goToShows]

Posted: 10/2/11 at 10:18pm

I agree, really enjoyed Pride and Prejudice, talented cast and the story is nicely told.

[Ryanmercy]

Posted: 10/2/11 at 10:40pm

Oh, yeah, PM me for the discount code for our show..

[walkedthroughmany]

Posted: 10/3/11 at 12:38am

Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice was a pretty excellent production.

Klea Blackhurst's performance makes The Big Bank a very entertaining piece of theatre.

I would call This One Girl's Story a must see.

[CRS14]

Posted: 10/3/11 at 10:14am

So far I've seen: Crazy, Just Like Me; Ghostlight; Time Between Us; Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice

Crazy, Just Like Me: A very fun and enjoyable 90 minutes. The writing is very contemporary and relatable which made the scenes run smoothly. Andy Mientus turns in a great performance as Simon, the heart of the show. The book could use a bit of tweaking to make certain scenes more memorable/not as rushed, but that's what this festival is for. Definitely worth checking out.

Ghostlight: My friends and I had very mixed emotions on this one. I was on the side that liked it more than they did, but i'm still a little reserved. There was nothing inherently WRONG with the show, but nothing made me love it. The music wasn't catchy and the book led to some confusion, but the premise is good enough to have something there...it just needs to be cleaned up a bit.

Time Between Us: Oh my. I'll start by saying that the two leads were great vocally. Beyond that there isn't much there. The book was all over the place, there was 1 minute of 1 song that was memorable, and I struggled to connect with either character enough to get me to feel for them. There is also a 3rd character in the show that was 100000% unnecessary and was more distracting than he was helpful to the plot. Y-I-K-E-S.

Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice: As someone previously mentioned, this show is much further in the developmental cycle than other shows (it doesn't hurt that they have donors supplying $75K+ as they proudly show in the program). The integration of the characters from P&P and real-life Jane Austen was flawlessly done. It led to some great dialogue and was oftentimes extremely funny. The music was good, helped by some great lead performances (Darcy and Jane Austen really stood out for me). All in all it was an extremely well put together show.

To recap:

Crazy, Just Like Me: Go see it. Fun, upbeat, funny, and touching.
Ghostlight: A little too long winded for my liking.
Time Between Us: Don't.
Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice: A must-see for any theater fan.

Kissless, Date of a Lifetime, Les Enfants de Paris, and one TBD show still on the horizon.

[PopAria]

Posted: 10/3/11 at 11:16am

This One Girl's Story is an incredible musical based on a true story.. The ladies are such good singers!! And the songs are some of the best you'll ever hear, seriously! The girls who played Cee-Cee and Patrice (Angela Grovey and Zonya Love) had the most incredible voices on that stage. it's like their voices are effortless. I loved every second of it until the bad guy comes out because then you're literally crying your eyes out until the end.

Spoiler:

I felt like his rap needed to be changed into a big belting number because those ladies could totally take him on. Her death wasn't believable based on the fact that he was outnumbered and -comparing just by voices and his song- he just seemed too weak. Besides that 5 minute part of the show, I loved it.

[Ariella]

Posted: 10/3/11 at 7:04pm

I thought Cyclops was fantastic - some Hedwig, some Rocky Horror mixed with Percy Shelley and Euripides. Great energy and momentum.

Jane Austen's P&P was incredibly well done - probably the most "professional" looking production at NYMF this year. Some very strong performances there too.

[CRS14]

Posted: 10/5/11 at 2:00pm

Just saw Kissless

The good: all of the actors are so young (16 had to be the median age) and there were a few standout voices. Favorite song was the duet between one of the rednecks and the dorky kid. Though my favorite part was the Dr. Pepper hat one of the "redneck" characters wore. Gotta get me one of those.

The bad: Tough to judge a show filled with young kids, but it just didnt compare to the others. There was no band, 90% of the jokes fell flat (i.e. "Seriously, what IS Facebook!?!?!"), and the book rushed through some parts.

Happy for the kids but it's not worth seeing

[massofmen]

Posted: 10/6/11 at 9:07am

so p&P is the only standout so far? I heard this "the boy who would be POPE" is good.
which shows have moved on from NYMF?

Altar Boyz, Tralier park musical, Next to Normal...is that it?

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 10/6/11 at 9:13am

Title of Show and Play It Cool also moved on

[massofmen]

Posted: 10/6/11 at 9:43am

no i meant successes. but I guess trailer park wasn't really a success either..

[notabb]

Posted: 10/7/11 at 12:33pm

saw the first act of HISTORY OF MARRIAGE. It would have been at home with THE FIG LEAVES ARE FALLING , HOW NOW DOW JONES and OH CAPTAIN. I love David Shires music but the songs were so mediocre. It never seems to pick up speed. Even with their flaws PRIDE AND PREJUDICE and GATSBY were so much better than this.

[broadway_show_fan]

Posted: 10/7/11 at 3:39pm

I really liked all 4 of the shows I've seen:

1st performance of GHOSTLIGHT - great concept and story. Decent music/lyrics with nice variation between types of songs. There were some great "Follies" type numbers. Rachel York's numbers were blow-you-away fantastic, though she could make my multipage renter's lease sound thrilling. Daisy Eagan has a nice part but the real star is the lead - she was excellent and could really be the new star on Broadway. She reminded me a bit of both Lea Michele and Laura Osnes. Similarly, I kept wanting the man playing Ziegfeld to be Nobert Leo Butz, but the person with me suggested Tom Wopat and I thought that was brilliant. I could imagine the show going further if it can do some serious cuts and changes (the 1st act was incredibly long, there were some issues with clarity, pacing, etc.) I think it has so much potential and could really see it as a great work in continual development at something like Second Stage.

THE KID WHO WOULD BE POPE - cute and fun show. Like 13 in a Catholic School with some adult characters and not just tweens. The lead boy, Kyle Brenn who was the boy soprano soloist in WEST SIDE STORY has tons of stage presence and a beautiful voice. Rachel Resheff is proving to be a strong triple threat with dramatic skills that stretch from emotional book scenes to well-timed delivery like a musical comedy vet. Another strong lead was Jillian Louis as the nun teacher. She was a delight and her first number reminded me of the Act II opener in Shrek as sung by Sutton Foster. I could see this one going further too.

1st performance of KIKI BABY - Jenn Colella is hysterical and charming. Her Kiki gets just a tad annoying (she is a brat, after all) but on the whole incredibly well done. Jill Paice is also a stand-out, and the ensemble is talented but I feel like they were just made to march out on stage and trudge or run off time after time. They were kind of like one character unit, reminding me of the troop in The People in the Picture. There were a few underused, underdeveloped parts and the show ends a bit abruptly. With some hard work it could go from a pretty good to a great show.

1st performance of GREENWOOD - the crowd just ate it up and the cast was electric. Andrea McArdle is showcased beautifully as the center of the show's universe, but there were several other brightly shining stars too. Mary Mossberg has a beautiful voice. I kept thinking I had seen her in something before but when I found that I hadn't I wished that I had and that I would sometime soon. Cary Shields was well-suited to his role. I thought his voice sounded much like Adam Pascal's, appropriately enough. Felicia Finley was, as always, stellar. Three standouts in the younger cast were Andrew Redlawsk, Jenavene Hester (commanding stage presence and gorgeous voice) and Alexis Kalehoff (McArdle's daughter). I was eagerly anticipating Alicia Morton (from the Annie tv movie) and she didn't disappoint with a clear-as-a-bell sweet voice. She seemed perhaps a bit nervous at times but she was so natural and her talent really showed. There were some fantastic songs (a real showstopper whose title was something about "Wings of Fire" or something), a funny but kind of too much romantic duet, and a lot of reflective ballads. It was very well staged though and shows so much promise.

[Ryanmercy]

Posted: 10/8/11 at 6:42pm

I'm dying for someone to come see Just Like Magic and post on here about it. It's been a dream of mine as a composer for years. Tix available still at the door for tonights 10:30 performance. Any takers??

[Ghandi722]

Posted: 10/8/11 at 8:08pm

Saw Date of a Lifetime this past week and it was funny, fresh, and touching. The actors were both incredible and the book/music/lyrics are fantastic. I don't know if there are tickets still available, but it's definitely worth it!

Enjoy!

[sunnyleo]

Posted: 10/11/11 at 6:48pm

Saw 10 over the weekend + Columbus day. Each show has it's stellar moments.

Cyclops
Date of a Lifetime
Ennio
F**king Hipsters
Jack Perry
Just Like Magic
Ma Femme
The Brain that wouldn't die
This one girl's story
Time between us

I'd recommend "This one girl's story" as the best of the lot even with it's problematic/episodic plot. The opening number is mind-blowing and characters are awesome/relatable coming from somebody who is neither an African-American, lesbian, nor a woman.

"Time between us" has some strong emotional moments in the latter half (think Last Five Years mixed with Will and Grace), but is a bore for the first half. "Just Like Magic" and "Ennio" and "The Brain that wouldn't die" are pure riots. Don't expect poetic waxing - just laughs. I liked "F**king Hipsters" more than I probably should and hated "Date of a Lifetime" more than I should (it's a watered down "I love you, you're perfect, now change" - funny but bland)

Cyclops was crazy... ya gotta love your 70s rock.

[broadway_show_fan]

Posted: 10/12/11 at 2:58pm

I agree with Ghandi 722 and disagree with sunnyleo about "Date of a Lifetime." It was absolutely hysterical. I loved the premise and the characters are the kind where you think to yourself "I KNOW that person! You're JUST LIKE my friend so-and-so." You just couldn't help but love every quirk and flaw of both Katie and Marvin. The songs were so varied in style, wonderfully written and witty. I loved it and would go back if it were to hit the small off-Broadway theaters, in the same vein as "I Love You, You're Perfect..." or "Tony and Tina's Wedding." This was the perfect romantic musical comedy for the iPhone singles generation.

[sunnyleo]

Posted: 10/12/11 at 6:40pm

To be fair, "Date of a Lifetime" did receive a partial standing ovation (half the audience) as did "Ennio" and "The Brain that wouldn't die" (about three quarters).

Depending if you believe in wisdom of crowds, "This one girl's story" was the only show out of the 10 that received a full standing ovation.

My favourite song was "Hypothetical Girl" from F**king Hipsters followed by "Liberation Party" that opened "This one girl's story"