NYMF STARTS TODAY

[shesamarshmallow]

Posted: 9/15/08 at 8:18am

Who's excited? What are you seeing?

I severely cut down my list this year since I quit my job, they're not doing volunteer ushers, and I'm rebelling against the ridiculous service charge, but I'm still excited for TWILIGHT IN MANCHEGO, WOOD, CYCLONE, ABOUT FACE and BEDBUGS.

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 9/15/08 at 8:27am

I'm seeing Jerusalem Syndrome and Idaho! next week.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 9/15/08 at 10:18am

Is there an actual location you can go to buy tickets, or do they have to be purchased online with the ridiculous service fee?

[shesamarshmallow]

Posted: 9/15/08 at 10:38am

Unless you want to wait until the last minute, I believe they have to be purchased online. I'm really mad about it.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 9/15/08 at 10:43am

That really sucks. With the Fringe, at least there's the Fringe Central location where you can go to buy tickets and avoid the fees.

[Kicks8567]

Posted: 9/15/08 at 11:22am

I have a single ticket for College the Musical this Saturday, 9/20 at 1 PM and a ticket for twilight in Manchengo on Monday, 9/29 at 8 PM that I cna no longer use. If anyone is interested, they are $20 each, no subcharge fees. just e-mail me at [e-mail].

Thanks

Kris

[wickedrentq]

Posted: 9/15/08 at 12:19pm

According to NYMF's website, starting today, you can purchase tickets at several of the venues:

"Starting September 15, you can buy tickets for any NYMF show in person at one of the following advance sale box offices:

* 45th Street Theater - 354 West 45th Street (between 8th and 9th Avenue)
* ATA - Chernuchin Theater - 314 West 54th Street (between 8th and 9th Avenue)
* MMAC - 248 West 60th Street (between 10th and 11th Avenue)
* TBG Theatre - 312 West 36th Street (between 8th and 9th Avenue)

Box offices open an hour before the first show of the day at that venue

[FeelingElectric]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 11:05am

I started my 10 day, 23 show NYMF vacation yesterday. I just want to give you some brief thoughts of the shows I saw.

Bedbugs!!

Absolutely insane rock musical!!! The score is amazing, full of 80's style rock and power ballads (and an homage to Metallica's Master of Puppets).

All of the performances were outstanding, but Brian Charles Rooney really steals the show for me as an over-the-top parody of a certain French-Canadian pop star (complete with her over-bearing older husband!).

Just a well put together show, and a lot of fun!


About Face

Beautifully adaptation of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing.

The score is reminicent of Golden Age Broadway, and performed by a very talented cast.

Barbare Walsh is nothing less than stunning, and Pamela Myers puts in a very funny performance.

I will be seeing two more shows today. I will give you my thoughts on Midnight Madness and Thr Road To Ruin later tonight.

[notabb]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 1:43pm

BONNIE AND CLYDE
It needs another rewrite or two but is on it's way to being a fun , light evening. The score , at it's best , is tuneful and good , goofy fun. The script is pretty funny. The best staged scene for me was the first car chase which ends with a delightful visual , which I won't spoil for you. The cast is pretty good. Some things are confusing. It seems like they ARE going to make Clyde gay and yet late in show he and Bonnie suddenly get together. It came out of nowhere for me. Kevin Cahoon took what could have been a one joke part and was endlessly inventive with it. Please give him a song of his own. There are moments when you can't help thinking of URINETOWN especially when they have the villain J. Edgar Hoover on the catwalk looking down on the action.The smart ass tone of the show is very much URINETOWN. This is NOT a serious look at Bonnie and Clyde but a lot of fun on it's own terms.
ABOUT FACE
The 2 best songs are on the NYMF website....A GOOD BOOK and BILL BENEDICK IS GONNA BE A SPORT. If only the whole show rose to that level. It's very lame. Not very witty considering the source.Very obvious and juvenile and in the end , forgettable. I'd skip it.

[AlgonquinProd2]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 1:58pm

I have friends doing "Cyclone" and "Bonnie and Clyde" so I am a bit prejudiced, but I think both of these will be worth seeing. I've seen "Cyclone" in development for quite some time and I think it's in great shape.

[toomeytwopiece]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 3:43pm

BEDBUGS has had 2 extensions added... they aren't on the main "Bedbugs" page of the NYMF website yet - but they ARE on the calendar and available for purchase:

SUNDAY 9/21 @ 1:00PM
SATURDAY 9/27 @ 11PM
(YES, 11pm - but with this show - THAT is the show you will want to come to lol... and you may dress up in bug-like costumes if you wish... or like demented Canadian pop-singers... your choice).

https://www.ovationtix.com/trs/cal/52

[musicandtemiror]

Posted: 9/18/08 at 4:14pm

Go see Midnight Madness, I have a friend in it and its great!!

[FeelingElectric]

Posted: 9/19/08 at 1:10am

Midnight Madness

I have to say that I was very impressed by this production. It's a very creative adaptation of A Midsummer Night's Dream, with a classical and swing influenced score. The closing number was worth the price of admission alone!

It amazes mt that the NYMF peformance with the fewest "professional" actors has the best choreographed and solid performances. A lot of these performers are going to have a bright future on Broadway.


The Road To Ruin

I liked this show, but it could be so much more. For a mostly jazz scored exploitation/sexploitation based musical (think Reefer Madness meets Chicago), it isn't raunchy enough for my taste.

I did love Brooke Sunny Moriber and Ann Morrision's performances a lot.

Next up for me is a 4 show day with Love Jerry, Sophia's Fall, Bonnie & Clyde and College The Musical.

[Vespertine1228]

Posted: 9/19/08 at 10:11am

I really loved About Face, even though it was a little old-fashioned and obvious. Even if you don't know the source material, it's incredibly obvious what will happen, but it was just so charming. It's worth going to for Walsh and for the "I want to be bad" number. Both were really terrific.

I thought Bedbugs!!!, while fun, was WAY too long. The concept did not have 2 hours and 20 minutes in it. A nice 100 minutes without an intermission would've been fine, although the musical is definitely not to be missed for fans of crazy high Rocky Horror-style belting. The show needed to be in a bigger space.

[wickedrentq]

Posted: 9/19/08 at 10:55am

Does anyone know the running time for Bonnie & Clyde? (And perhaps more importantly, if there is any part of the NYMF website that mentions running times?)

[notabb]

Posted: 9/19/08 at 11:24am

I got out about 10:30pm BUT it started late so 10:15-10:30

Posted: 9/20/08 at 7:54pm

My sister and I laughed out loud at Wood, but it also has a heart. It reminded us of Little Shop of Horrors in style (especially the fairies -- Twink, Down Low, and Bear), but one could hear the influence of Wm Finn. Performances were great all around. A contender for fan favorite in our view.

About Face -- we didn't make it to the second act. While the music was complex and enjoyable, we were expecting a little more "wink wink" in the script. For us it was "High School Musical -- When your Parents were there."

Tomorrow is Castronauts. Next week - Jerusalem Syndrome, Bedbugs and the earlier maligned Road to Ruin. The final week is Fancy Boy Follies...although Jm J Bullock does give us cause to pause....and Jason and Ben. We are thinking about the Kathie Lee musical...who knows.

As for last year -- our top pick was Boy in the Bathroom. Die Hard the Puppet Musical was funny and while the Beastly Bombings started out strong....it withered pretty quickly....we might have left that one early....but in some ways it was SOO bad it was like watching a train wreck.

[Anakela]

Posted: 9/21/08 at 12:34am

First NYMF show tonight, The Hatpin. It was *brilliant*- dark, funny, moving, just everything in one- I loved it.

Oh small story: they're selling the cast recording there at the venue, and when the fact that they're selling "the soundtrack" was made in the opening announcements I *swear* I heard a "mumblecastrecordingmumble" go thru the house.

I'm also seeing Twilight in Manchego, Bonnie & Clyde, and College: The Musical right now, trying to figure out when/what else I want to see...

[zepka102]

Posted: 9/21/08 at 12:48am

I'm so upset... wanted to get tickets for PLAY IT COOL but theyre sold out of all but one performance which I can't go to

[FeelingElectric]

Posted: 9/21/08 at 1:12am

Anakela,

I am sure you heard me mumbling when I heard that tonight. I kringe when I hear somebody say that.

I have to agree that The Hatpin was absolutely breathtaking. It is the of the 45 productions I have seen in my 4 years of attending the NYMF.

I loved all of the performances, but Gemma Ashley Kaplan was out of her mind. When she finally lets go, it is shocking. Why is this incredible actress not in a Broadway show yet?

There are a few tickets available for the 1 PM show today. I HIGHLY recommend seeing it.

I couldn't confirm this, but I was told that Carole King was at the show tonight. If it's true, that sure beats the hell out of Karen Ziemba being at About Face yesterday (which I can confirm).

I will come back with thoughts on the other shows I saw this weekend soon, but I had to put this post up immediately.

Updated On: 9/21/08 at 01:12 AM

[Anakela]

Posted: 9/21/08 at 1:38am

I loved all of the performances, but Gemma Ashley Kaplan was out of her mind. When shw finally lets go, it is shocking. Why is this incredible actress not in a Broadway show yet?

Completely. Agree.
The whole show was great, but when she has her number I thought I was all ready for it because duh, it's called The Hatpin, but my jaw legit *dropped* by the end of that song. Such a brilliant, brilliant cast, and yes easily the best show of my, well, only two years of attending NYMF.

I'm slightly regretting not picking up the cast recording on my way out, and might go back for it...

[Dad'sOldRecords]

Posted: 9/21/08 at 1:50am

I saw Bedbugs tonight and thought it was hilarious, campy fun. I was actually pretty surprised... it's something that I thought I wouldn't care for but was happily surprised at how invested I got in the characters. The best parts were when the show embraced its campiness with the 80's cliches and references. The dialogue dragged in some areas, but the music is pretty great and the performers definitely play it to the hills. Rooney was a standout and Chris Hall was oddly alluring. I agree it could have been cut down a little... the beginning of Act two was particularly a little awkward pacing-wise, but overall it's definitely worth checking out.

[Center Orchestra]

Posted: 9/21/08 at 8:36am

Saw 'About Face' yesterday afternoon...bought tickets on seeing the words 'Jeffrey Lodin' under the title as composer. I had the most stunning evening at his '100 Years Of The Heart' at the NYMF a few years ago and went to this one with hopes of the same kind of magic.

First off, I was so pleasantly surprised to see an old-fashioned, traditional musical being staged by the NYMF.
Of course, the fabulous Barbara Walsh takes control and total command of that tiny stage every moment she's on it, she's in WONDERFUL voice, and leads a company of fresh young faces, Mark Christine and Rebecca Weiner were terrific, and there's considerable eye candy... (Mark Christine ain't too hard to look at, but Andrew DiConcetto...OMG!) And it was great to see Pam Myers up there!

Although it's an absolutely DELIGHTFUL show, it made my heart sink to find the book not living up to the quality of the music. At first, I thought the jokes were supposed to be intentionally lame, as if this was a parody of the 'Good News' traditional genre musical, but realized about halfway through,that the music isn't doing that. The melody and lyric are so first rate. I had to look again on the website to make sure that the author, David Arthur, wrote both book AND lyrics. Because some of the lyrics are actually quite good. But my partner and I both felt like the cast was trying way too hard for laughs as if they sense the jokes should be funnier.

If it seems like I'm being too hard on the show, I don't mean to be, I highly recommend it as a really lovely and entertaining evening of theatre! And I know that the NYMF audience are well aware of the limitations of the festival, staging wise. Just some punch up work on the book, please please please and this show could be PERFECT!

Roger
On The Aisle

[FeelingElectric]

Posted: 9/22/08 at 4:00pm

I just wanted to follow up on a few more of the shows I have seen:

Love Jerry

Positively shocking. Even though I knew the contreversial subject at the center of the show, I wasn't prepared for the experience. It was a great show, but very uncomofortable. If you see it, be prepared.

The six member cast were all wonderful. Three of them act as the band, performing the show's score. It's only fitting that Donna Lynne Champlin (who is not one of the three musicians) is in a show that is so Doyle-esque.



Sophia's Fall

I loved this production a lot. It is a musicalization of the story Paradise Lost.

The show had a brillant score, and amazing dance numbers. The two batles between the angels during the show were incredibly choreographed.

I particularly loved the performances by Danielle Erin Rhodes in the title role, and those of Nikki Van Cassle (Sin) and Phillip Deyesso (Death) who give the show a bit of comic relief.



Bonnie and Clyde

I thought this show was clever and hilarious. Diane Davis and Jason Wooten are wonderful in the title roles, but Kevin Cahoon steals the show. He is absolutely nuts throughout, and it's brillant. I loved the paralells drawn between J. Edgar Hoover and George W. Bush throughout the show.


College The Musical

Frivolous but fun. It's a really fun and silly musical without any real relevance, but it's a great escape for 90 minutes.


Max and the Truffle Pig

Cute little kid's musical. It reminds you of an episode of Dora or Diego (I have a six year old nephew, which is how I know that). Jenn Albano is adorable as Suzette, the Truffle Pig.



Chocolate Soup

Think of it as pre-13. It features a pre-teen cast dealing with issues including the divorec of parents, the war in Iraq, peep pressure and the central topic of global warming and the threatened polar bears.

To borrow a line from one of my favorite movies "I thought it was a beautiful lie". I love the songs and the performances, I don't perscribe to it's gloomy outlook of global warming. Like George Carlin once said " The Planet is Fine, the people are messed up" (not his exact words, but close enough).

Castronauts

Huh? Very entertaining, but very weird. I am not sure what else to say.


I will be at the opening of To Paint The Earth tonight, and seeing three more shows tomorrow. I will give you my thoughts soon.

[Labashier]

Posted: 9/24/08 at 4:10pm

When the NYMF site says a performance is sold out, do you guys think there's any chance of being able to get seats at the box office?