1991's NICK & NORA was the worst musical I have seen in over 55 years of theatregoing. The fault was in the book by Arthur Laurents. A musical mystery based on "The Thin Man" movie characters, I didn't care who done it; I just wanted it to be over. The people I went with left at intermission. I stayed hoping for some improvement in the 2nd act, but it was not to be. This was a case of the director(Arthur Laurents) not seeing the problems of the author(Arthur Laurents). As for the score by Charles Strouse and Richard Maltby, Jr., it was best left forgotten. What a mess! The only lucky person in the theatre was the person who was killed early in the first act--at least they didn't have to stay on stage for very long.
As for LI'L ABNER, I saw the OBC production in the 1950's and loved it. The acting, score, hilarious book and terrific choreography by the famous Michael Kidd kept this show running for 693 performances. It deserves a revival, with the right director and choreographer.
"Madam Rose...and her daughter...Gypsy!"
Updated On: 2/4/07 at 02:11 PM