Not Tonys: JERRY SPRINGER in Chicago

[daspazoo]

Posted: 5/15/07 at 12:29pm

Unbelievable!

My friend and I (as fans of the show from the original cast recording) went to opening night (Bailiwick Rep. in Chicago) and were pretty much delirious with joy the entire time.

To be sure, it's bound to be rather offensive to some people, but we were rolling in the aisles for almost the enitre two hours.

Only the first act is the JERRY SPRINGER we all know and love(?)--Act Two is a bit of a surprise, actually. But the score itself a phenomenal accomplishment, and Bailiwick has assembled a top-notch cast of singers with impeccable vocal technique to deliver this one-of-a-kind show. Composer Richard Thomas remarked to me at the after-party that he thought this ensemble was even stronger than the one in London.

As someone who sees almost every musical in Chicago, there isn't one in town that I recommend more highly right now than JERRY SPRINGER.
Bailiwick Rep. in Chicago

Posted: 5/15/07 at 12:53pm

It sounds great-- anyone know when the reviews are due?

[daspazoo]

Posted: 5/15/07 at 4:54pm

Unlike Broadway shows, Chicago reviews usually come out two days after opening. SO I would expect to see the reviews from the dailys (Sun-Times, Tribune) sometime tomorrow (Wednesday).

[BroadwayAbridged]

Posted: 5/15/07 at 5:49pm

I hope this does well. It was an absolute blast in London and really needs to come stateside in a New York kind of way.

[Piercemn]

Posted: 5/15/07 at 5:59pm

I saw it in London and thought it was terrific. There's a review on theatremania.com.

[BroadwayAbridged]

Posted: 5/15/07 at 6:18pm

"In the end, Springer brokers peace by reminding everyone that good and evil, give and take, yin and yang are the eternal and necessary polarities. With God and Mary looking on, Springer then "marries" Satan and Jesus, who has confessed to being a little gay."

Whoa... I don't remember Satan and Jesus marrying in the London version... am I forgetting or was it changed?

[SeanMartin]

Posted: 5/15/07 at 6:46pm

That's definitely not in the London production, at least not the one that was broadcast.

[Mr Roxy]

Posted: 5/15/07 at 6:46pm

I hope it eventually makes it to Broadway but doubt it will.

[Raviolisun]

Posted: 5/15/07 at 7:05pm

I thought this was going to be about Jerry Springer being cast in Chicago. I was thinking "God, thos casting directors really like their Dancing With the Stars people, don't they?"

[daspazoo]

Posted: 5/16/07 at 1:54am

In regards to the Theatremania review, they don't get married. Nothing of the sort. I don't know what production this reviewer was watching. LOL. But the show is seriously terrific. If you're in the area--don't miss it!

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 5/16/07 at 10:19am

It will probably get rave reviews in Chicago. Most local productions do. I can't count how many horrific shows I walked out on in Chicago that received glowing raves, including an amateurish 110 in the Shade in which the reviewer remarked that the (then) upcoming Broadway revival could not possibly be any better. Now, I'm not saying Jerry Springer will be bad or anything, I hope it is a good production and successful as well, but it's nearly impossible to trust Chicago reviews. I usually go by the advice of my trusted friends (like WindyCityActor) who actually know the difference between a good production and an awful one.

Posted: 5/16/07 at 10:38am

Gosh, makes me hesitant to post the actual reviews.

I think Chicago has good reviewers and bad, jsut like New York. I don't think there is a positive bias, but opinions can vary. Anyway, the Trib Review is by Chris Jone, whom I find excellent. He loved it.

When I first saw “Springer” in London about four years ago, it was already a big deal. The show, with music by Richard Thomas and lyrics by Thomas and Stewart Lee, was the recipient of a major National Theatre premiere, followed by a successful commercial run in the West End. Thomas’ score, an impressive mix of melodic insight and satirical smarts, was justly lauded. But stateside, no Broadway producer wanted the high-camp show — in part because the tiresome second act is weaker than the first, but more because the show was thought too crude for those who would appreciate the musical satire, and too scornful to appeal to Springer’s actual crowd. What was left was urban hipsters. And so the rights fell to the Bailiwick Repertory. And on Monday night, this progressive, non-Equity company on Chicago’s North Side staged the “opera’s” American premiere.

Bailiwick pulled it off in grand fashion.

Regular attendees of this typically low-budget theater will be blown away by the size and quality of the cast, the presence of a full band and the production values. Better yet, they’ll be impressed by Gary Powell’s musical direction and director David Zak’s staging, which manages to surround the audience with a musical attack on all that Springer represents. Thus we are indicted for his popularity, which surely is what the authors would have wanted for a production in Springer’s hometown.


Chicago Tribune

Posted: 5/16/07 at 10:45am

The Infamous Hedy Weiss reviews for the Sun-Times. I am not a fan, but the Sun-Times other theatre critic is Mischa Davenport who I think is great.

Of course, as if to prove Matt's point, the erratic Miss Hedy loved it too.

It was there, on Monday night, that this musical extravaganza -- a show that won acclaim on the London stage, proved too hot for British telly audiences to handle and subsequently lost its hope for a Broadway production -- finally received its U.S. premiere.

The production, with a cast of 29, is a monumental undertaking for Bailiwick, and it is sensational in every sense of that word. Director David Zak, in collaboration with music director Gary Powell and choreographer Brenda Didier (who has a special gift for making non-dancers look terrific, and for endowing Broadway cliches with comic freshness), has found actors with formidable vocal gifts.

And these performers not only negotiate the exceptionally demanding score, but also manage to look just right in Springer's grotesque human zoo.

As for the work itself, the first act -- which puts an operatic spin on typical Springer episodes, and climaxes with a tap dance for the Ku Klux Klan (eat your heart out, Mel Brooks) -- is the far stronger and more amusing than the long second half, "Jerry in Hell." The latter imagines the murdered host engaged in a battle between God and Satan, with the Faustian scenario becoming predictably cheesy, and moral relativism ("if it feels good, it can't be bad") all the rage.

[daspazoo]

Posted: 5/16/07 at 8:21pm

In response to the question of Chicago Critics in general, Chris Jones is the only one I read and the only one I trust.

If Hedy likes or does not like something, she has little persuasive reasoning the other way. And her laundry list of 'standouts' in her SPRINGER review? Sloppy writing. Not every single person that has a solo needs their name printed--and this is coming from someone who loves the show.

And the other critics--for online sites or alternative newspapers--frequently get it wrong in my opinion. And aren't even very gifted writers to begin with, I feel.

But critics aside--SPRINGER is one helluva show. In the future, just listen to Chris Jones.

[beyondblessed]

Posted: 5/16/07 at 11:16pm

here's the link to clips from the show.
The first one is funny, the second one i don't get.

I also saw clips from the london production a long time ago. I love that one song "I just Wanna Dance" the vocalist was amazing on the recording. How is that in this production?
Jerry Springer.

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 5/16/07 at 11:59pm

They aired it in London? Where is the tape of that!

[CATSNYrevival]

Posted: 5/17/07 at 12:05am

It's on DVD, but only in the UK on region 2. You have to get a region free DVD player to watch it here in the states, but it's worth it. The show is hysterical.

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 5/17/07 at 12:29am

Oh, that bites. Maybe I can find someone that has one. Thanks Cats.

[daspazoo]

Posted: 5/17/07 at 4:17pm

beyondblessed:

-the second clip makes a lot more sense IN the show than on Stage Channel. I think it was weird choice to pick as one of their two clips to film, because it doesn't show off the show to it's full advantage.

-the vocalist who sings "I Just Wanna Dance" in Chicago is different, but fierce. She has more of a throaty belt sound than the more trained, classical sound on the recording. Though I ADORE the song on the recording (my fave, perhaps), I think it works equally well onstage in Chicago.

To those of you interested, there are numerous clips from the BBC broadcast on a certain website that I momentarily forgot the name of...

[Mattbrain]

Posted: 5/17/07 at 4:20pm

I have GOT to get the cast recording of this show on my iPod.

[BroadwayAbridged]

Posted: 5/18/07 at 10:35am

These video clips of the Chicago production don't do the show justice (and, I hope, don't do the Chicago production justice either).

I am reminded once again that I ought to order a copy of the London DVD, then see if I can rip it on my computer and burn it region-free. Maybe I'll do that today.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 5/21/07 at 6:09pm

Philips makes a region-free DVD player that also plays MPEG and AVI video files and has a USB port which will read external hard drives and mp3 players for only $70 (plus it has HDMI upscaling for you hardcore HD nuts out there). I just bought one and it works perfectly. I love watching my UK DVDs on my television for a change.

Very small in size and only weighs about a pound. Great little machine.
Philips DVP5982 Up-Scaling DVD Player