**Official LA CAGE ReReview Thread***

And their out and off to a pretty decent start...

1) AP - an all around positive review, especially for Goulet and for the cast!

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/T/THEATER_LA_CAGE_AUX_FOLLES?SITE=NYNYD&SECTION=ENTERTAINMENT&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

"If any singer can wrap his voice around a glorious Jerry Herman melody, it's Robert Goulet, one of the last booming baritones of Broadway's Golden Age."

"There's an affable, self-deprecating charm to Goulet's performance that gives this production of "La Cage" a gentle, heartwarming lift. You actually believe he is Georges, the well-meaning father of a heterosexual son who wants dad to hide his gay relationship so the offspring can impress his incipient in-laws."

"In an age of frantic, aggressive musical-theater performances, the laid-back Goulet doesn't push. His relaxed attitude nicely complements Gary Beach, who portrays Albin, the more flamboyant, hyper member of this union. Together, they make a perfect husband and wife, and "La Cage," which has a well-crafted book by Harvey Fierstein, milks this unusual family relationship for all its worth."

"The revival also showcases Les Cagelles, a chorus of athletic, acrobatic dancers who are surefire audience-pleasers thanks to Jerry Mitchell's exuberant choreography. They not only do drag to perfection but can execute back flips with ease."

"It's quite nostalgic to see Goulet back in New York - and in fine voice. The guy has been away from the Broadway musical theater for far too long."

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2) Broadway.com - positive on Goulet, mixed to positive on the show!

http://www.broadway.com/gen/Buzz_Story.aspx?ci=511720

"The casting of Robert Goulet in La Cage aux Folles may sound like just a desperate attempt to sell tickets--a gambit to keep this revival, which opened last December, running a while longer. Yes, the Broadway and Las Vegas veteran will sell some tickets, but he also happens to be a good fit for the role of Georges."

"While the dancing is the most entertaining aspect of this glitzy production, William Ivey Long's costumes are the most eye-popping element. Best of all are his over-the-top gowns for Zaza, Albin's stage persona. Scott Pask's sets aren't quite as fabulous, but they too are amusing--especially the campy décor for Georges and Albin's swishy apartment and its monastic makeover."

"As it happens, Goulet has spent most of the past 40 years performing in Las Vegas, so he's right at home among the gaudy scenery and statuesque dancers (who tower over him since he's not exactly tall). This staging of La Cage isn't likely to have people weeping with gay pride, but at least it delivers as splashy entertainment."

Talkin' Broadway is mixed to semi-negative I'd say, but enjoys Goulet...(Margo is better at pegging a review than I)

http://www.talkinbroadway.com/world/LaCage2005.html

"At last, the final piece has fallen into place: Robert Goulet. Newly arrived at the Marquis to take over the role of Georges from the recently departed Daniel Davis, Goulet has cachet as a star of both Broadway and Las Vegas, an ideal combination for the show's cabaret-drenched setting. And when he strides out before the curtain at the top of the show to address the audience - doubling as his patrons in the titular nightclub - Goulet is instantly recognizable, instantly likable, and instantly commanding. "

"
He doesn't, however, do much else instantly. From his stiff, lumbering walk to his occasionally forceful scooping up to high notes, Goulet gives a game but tentative performance in a role most effectively played with graceful ease. He must control both the show and the shows-within-the-show with an exuberance to bespeaks of Georges's eternal, precocious youthfulness; his show-business life - and his longtime partner, Albin, La Cage's star (as the glamorous Zaza) - keeps him young. Despite Goulet's matinee-idol looks, which are remarkably well preserved (if sometimes plastically so), he never radiates youth or exuberance, but the world weariness of, well, a mature Robert Goulet."

"And, of course, the 12-strong Les Cagelles remain on hand to provide the requisite legs-and-laughs thrills that attendees at La Cage or La Cage go in expecting. They capture the feeling and energy of the place and provide a great, glittery backdrop for Beach or, especially, Goulet. Despite the air of vaunted sexual mystery Les Cagelles provide - one of the few things not so appropriate for Vegas, where what you see is generally what you get - Goulet never looks like he wants to be anywhere else. Audience members seeing him return to Broadway for the first time in almost 10 years are themselves unlikely to feel differently."

Are the Cagelles still in the show? I'd heard the left the cast a few weeks ago and hadn't been replaced yet.

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I am astounded that some reviewers are willing to let Goulet off the hook for forgetting lines, fumbling choreography and looking lost on stage? This is BROADWAY, people. Learn your friggin lines, figure out when to step ball-change and try to relate to your fellow actors or stay the heck home and let someone who can truly handle the role do it. Sheeesh.

I saw it (see my post "Thoughts on La Cage") a few pages down. Yes, his singing voice is still there and was a pleasure to hear, but he screwed up the entire dance duet with Gary Beach, missed many lines, and offered very little in terms of either energy or presence. To me, he looked glassy-eyed, limping and lost. But that's just MY observation, of course. The show remains inherently fun, but not as fun as it COULD be. I admit, I am a bit biased: I had the pleasure of seeing the original on many occasions.

Okay, I have now died and gone to heaven! THANK YOU NY CRITICS! The big 3 are in, and while the times is a mixed bag for the show, enjoys Goulet a lot. Kissell's is extremly positive and Barnes is as near rave as it gets. Here they are...I hope somebody else enjoy's as much as I am right now :)

1) NY DAILY NEWS - Very positive
Goulet's sound can still astound

http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/theater/story/306806p-262489c.html

"Goulet, 71, has taken over the role of Georges in the revival of "La Cage aux Folles," which opened in December. He replaces Daniel Davis, who left after considerable backstage turmoil last month."

"The voice is still resonant, firm and rich. It works especially well in "Song on the Sand," the tender ballad that is one of composer Jerry Herman's best."

"As an actor, Goulet does not have Davis' assurance, perhaps because he's been doing the role only a few weeks. "

"Gary Beach, who plays the flamboyant partner, Albin, seems e
even stronger than he did a few months ago. I have never heard the first-act closing number, "I Am What I Am," sung with more wounded anger and passion. "

"Needless to say, Beach handles the campier side of Albin to perfection. The amazing thing is that he manages to do so without losing the fragile, pre-feminist femininity that gives his character a touching reality."

"It adds to the strength of "Look Over There," the song Goulet sings to his son reminding him what a good mother Albin has been. Gavin Creel remains strong as their son, though I still question the need for his ponytail."

"The show around them remains as rousing as ever. Jerry Mitchell's choreography for Les Cagelles, the troupe of dancing female impersonators, is extremely demanding, and they perform it with breezy aplomb."

"Despite its seemingly risqué material, "La Cage" is wonderfully old-fashioned entertainment. "
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2) NY POST - Rave
HIP, HIP GOULET

http://www.nypost.com/entertainment/43532.htm

"Goulet's still radiant grin is in better shape than his joints, giving his movements rather less grace than before. "

"But when sings, or even speaks, the years fall away. His gorgeous voice seems untouched by time, and his dapper presence fills the stage."

"When this revival opened last December, Gary Beach's Albin (then paired with Daniel Davis) paled in comparison with the great George Hearn's Tony-winning 1983 original. "

"Now, with Robert Goulet's new, expansively embracing Georges, Beach seems revitalized, appearing to find a passion and pathos in the role previously eluding him. "

"Les Cagelles — the show's drag-queenly chorus line — are still fine, the sweet old-fashioned score still soars, and Goulet and Beach satisfyingly demonstrate the staunchest of family values."
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3) NEW YORK TIMES

http://theater2.nytimes.com/2005/05/06/theater/reviews/06cage.html

A Trouper Embarks on a Voyage Over a Frothy Peach
By CHARLES ISHERWOOD

"Look closely, and you may see an occasional flicker of dismay cross the placidly handsome features of Robert Goulet as he strides gallantly, if unsteadily, through the Broadway revival of "La Cage aux Folles" at the Marquis Theater."


"At 71, and working with just one of his original hips, Mr. Goulet is, admittedly, not particularly agile. He merely sketches in the few dance steps he's required to perform in a brief duet with Gary Beach, who plays Georges's lover, Albin. And he rarely strays too far from a solid piece of furniture. But his infirmity is not a serious drawback. In fact it comes to invest his performance with a pleasing symbolism: he stands as a still beacon of determined restraint amid the frantic vulgarity that surrounds him."

"When Mr. Goulet performs "Song on the Sand," in which Georges recalls the experience of first love through a fog of memory that blurs the details but not the intensity of the feeling, we escape briefly from the show's antic artificiality into the realm of real experience. For Mr. Goulet's fans, the moment will surely evoke responses echoing the sentiments in the song, stirring up memories of past pleasures to take home and cherish anew."
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Updated On: 5/6/05 at 04:35 AM

Well, its going to be interesting. I am seeing it tonight with some friends in like the second row. I wonder if he learned more of his lines since a few days ago, or if he is not falling over the choreography.

Will give a review once I get back from the theatre.

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Daniel Davis was the most solid performance in that show! I can't imagine going back without him in it.

I have met the Goulets as well and they are funny and warm and delightful.....I too have long thought that Goulet would be an obvious Georges in La Cage. I am so excited to be seeing him in a few weeks. Those I know "in real life" who have seen him, all think he is incredible and elevates the whole production.

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