On Your Feet

Haven't heard much about this lately.

Is there much buzz in NYC about this yet?

I've always been a fan of the MSM and Gloria Estefan, but not sure how interested I'd be in dropping dime for a ticket to see their story. I guess maybe I've read so much about them and do know a lot of their story that it just doesn't grab me at this point.

I do like upbeat shows though with good music and dance, so I'll wait to see how it fares in reviews.

Okay, thanks. Will keep an eye out.

Let's see... A recently hatched $17MM vanity jukebox musical with predictable plot and monosyllabic songbook; two vastly inexperienced leading actors; and a principal demographic that is not known for its support of the theatre. Sounds like a winning formula.

Which gets me thinking.

I know there have been a lot of shows made about the lives of other people, but how often does someone say 'I'm going to write a Broadway musical about my (our) life'? Not necessarily talking about musical/revue type shows like "The Dancer's Life" with Chita. Or the Bea Arthur one. But non-Broadway people.

Hey, if Mama Mia can make it, i wouldn't discount this show just yet.

Jersey Boys made it, so did Beautiful.

Count me in as being excited to see it. I grew up in Miami, so I am probably not the typical audience that you would expect on Broadway that would see it.

That said, I am concerned about how long of a run this will enjoy. I could see this being a smash hit, or become a major disappointment.

Certainly, I would put this in the same class as Beautiful and Jersey Boys. However, the success of the show will depend on the popularity of the music and if fans of the music will be strong enough to support a Broadway musical.

I wouldn't have thought that the life of Carol King would have been dramatically interesting, either - famous, successful, and rich before the age of 20, with the only conflict being a cheating husband and transition from writer to writer/performer. But there you have it - a big hit.

What I know of Estefan's life seems equally drama-free; her father was a bodyguard to brutal dictator Batista; I would imagine that the show, if it deals with Batista at all, will whitewash him as a benevolent democrat. She has been married to the same man since she was 20, with no reported issues. She was injured badly in 1990, but recovered within a year, even without an addiction to pain killers that would have been dramatically noteworthy.

So who knows? Maybe this mild story of almost non-stop great success will also please the crowds.

Updated On: 5/26/15 at 02:59 PM

How are you defining "dramatic?" It may not be the same way I am. In this context, I would define it as "displaying theatrical storytelling elements of interest, with character, conflict, development of both, and perhaps a beginning, middle, and end."

I would think that more people seek that in their commercial theatre experience than don't. But maybe not.

popular music is no guarantee - RIP Hot Feet; The Times They Are A Changin' and Come Fly Away

I saw a video of them rehearsing and it looked like they were in New York, but aren't they doing the show in Chicago? Why can't they find a rehearsal space here?