PRINCE OF BROADWAY Previews- Page 6

[ACL2006]

Posted: 8/12/17 at 5:30pm

I know Eric Santagata went on last night, but I don't know for who? Tony? Brandon?

[oncemorewithfeeling2]

Posted: 8/12/17 at 8:37pm

Eric went on in Tony's track and is on tonight as well.

[Mike Costa]

Posted: 8/12/17 at 10:25pm

Bwayphreak said it best, "Sadly, this an enormous misfire on pretty much all cylinders.". Also, you do not see the original sets, costumes, choreography or orchestrations since they do not have the rights for them.  The staging is reminiscent of the original in the way college productions can look like Broadway staging without being perfect.  Mr. Prince's staging was always perfect.  This is surprising since one would expect to at least get an exact replica of Mr. Prince's original staging in Prince of Broadway.

The concept unfortunately does not work and, of course, all of these very good performers pale in comparison to their legendary originators. ...except for Tony Yasbeck who can apparently do anything. 

It feels like a wonderful revue one would see on a cruise ship where they do not own the rights to anything but the songs. 

Updated On: 8/13/17 at 10:25 PM

[LuminousBeing]

Posted: 8/13/17 at 4:03pm

Thanks to everyone for the reviews and commentary! I've decided to rush this on Saturday while I'm visiting from Boston. I've heard there are $30 rush tickets. Does anyone have experience with these? How early to line up/where the seats are located? Trying to decide on rush vs. TodayTix. Thank you!

[starcatchers]

Posted: 8/13/17 at 7:19pm

LuminousBeing said: "Thanks to everyone for the reviews and commentary! I've decided to rush this on Saturday while I'm visiting from Boston. I've heard there are $30 rush tickets. Does anyone have experience with these? How early to line up/where the seats are located? Trying to decide on rush vs. TodayTix. Thank you!

"

The $30 tickets are sold in advance if you're under 30. I think you can grab them at any time. Their regular rush tickets are $42.50 ($35+$7.50 fee) and they're through TodayTix. 

[bwaylyric]

Posted: 8/13/17 at 8:25pm

I wish the performers would stop pretending to be Hal. The glasses gimmick was laughable and got tired very quickly. If they're gonna stick with this narrative, i would rather hear them talk about Hal in the third person (even though I still won't learn anything new about him and his work).

[JustAnotherNewYorker]

Posted: 8/13/17 at 9:10pm

bwaylyric said: "I wish the performers would stop pretending to be Hal. The glasses gimmick was laughable and got tired very quickly. If they're gonna stick with this narrative, i would rather hear them talk about Hal in the third person (even though I still won't learn anything new about him and his work)."

I thought that that was the part that worked the best. I would also like a better book--either thematic, lesson, or chronographic ordering with more exposition of why that particular work was so important and what Hal added to the show.

Hal, btw, was in the back at my performance. Apparently he does that a lot.

Also I did enjoy it--it gave me a chance to see the only songs I like in Phantom without having to sit through the rest,,,

[LuminousBeing]

Posted: 8/13/17 at 9:34pm

The $30 tickets are sold in advance if you're under 30. I think you can grab them at any time. Their regular rush tickets are $42.50 ($35+$7.50 fee) and they're through TodayTix. 

Thanks for the info! The "under 30" ship sailed for me, but it's good to know that this isn't an option before I arrive in NY this weekend. TodayTix it is, and thanks again for the response!

 

[getatme]

Posted: 8/13/17 at 11:28pm

There actually are $30 rush tickets available in person at the theater. Try your hand with the TodayTix rush, but if all else fails, definitely check at the box office!

[MrJNLong]

Posted: 8/14/17 at 1:39am

Does anyone know anything about why Yazbek was out this weekend? It looks like he was out Friday and Saturday. Did he perform Sunday?

Did he get injured?

[jmuep]

Posted: 8/15/17 at 2:09pm

Does anyone have any sense of how long this show is?  I've seen conflicting reports online.  Thx.

[bwaylyric]

Posted: 8/15/17 at 3:06pm

2.5 hours

[GavestonPS]

Posted: 8/15/17 at 4:14pm

Jarethan said: "...
 As for The Right Girl, Tony Yazbeck's performance aside, I have always considered that to be tied for the worst number in the show, along with Too Many Mornings.  At least with the latter, it is just that I got sick of it.  I never enjoyed The Right Girl.  

 

"

Jarethan, did you see the most recent revival when it came to the Ahmanson and Victoria Clark took over for Bernadette Peters? "Too Many Mornings", sung by Clark and Ron Raines with their huge voices, became a revelation and very nearly operatic. It actually justified the intermission which followed.

But I can't agree more with you about "The Right Girl". The exact same content is covered much more cleverly by "The God Why Doncha Love Me ... Blues" 10 minutes later. Per one of the books about FOLLIES, "The Right Girl" is only there because Gene Nelson had to have his own "book" solo, like the other three leads.

I'm glad I'm safely 3,000 miles away. This whole PRINCE OF BROADWAY project makes me very sad, even just to hear about it.

[bk]

Posted: 8/15/17 at 6:55pm

GavestonPS said: "Jarethan said: "...
 As for The Right Girl, Tony Yazbeck's performance aside, I have always considered that to be tied for the worst number in the show, along with Too Many Mornings.  At least with the latter, it is just that I got sick of it.  I never enjoyed The Right Girl.  

 

"
 


Jarethan, did you see the most recent revival when it came to the Ahmanson and Victoria Clark took over for Bernadette Peters? "Too Many Mornings", sung by Clark and Ron Raines with their huge voices, became a revelation and very nearly operatic. It actually justified the intermission which followed.

But I can't agree more with you about "The Right Girl". The exact same content is covered much more cleverly by "The God Why Doncha Love Me ... Blues" 10 minutes later. Per one of the books about FOLLIES, "The Right Girl" is only there because Gene Nelson had to have his own "book" solo, like the other three leads.

I'm glad I'm safely 3,000 miles away. This whole PRINCE OF BROADWAY project makes me very sad, even just to hear about it.

 

"

What a post.  The Right Girl was there because the authors wanted it there, not because Mr. Nelson had to have anything.  It's a great number in the right hands.  In Mr. Nelson's hands it was a hugely dramatic and affecting number, as well as very exciting.  In the last revival, which you speak of seeing at the Ahmanson, nothing was in the right hands, not one single thing, starting with the director straight on down the line.  Too Many Mornings was a "revelation"?  I have to laugh when I read pronouncements like that - the only thing missing is the word "thrilling."  The song isn't about begin operatic, BTW, and nothing, NOTHING will ever justify an intermission in this show.  The original cast and creative team understood this show perfectly - no one else has since, and that includes its book write who has watered it down over and over again - it didn't need to be "fixed" ever.  As to Prince of Broadway, it doesn't sound like it's working very well, but I'd have to see it to judge for myself.

[binau]

Posted: 8/15/17 at 9:00pm

bk I appreciate your passion but I do wonder whether your "all bad" take on the previous revival is as hard to take seriously as my "all good" take. You didn't like *anything*? Not the way Clark sang Buddy's Eyes or Losing my Mind? Not the way they did "One More Kiss"? Or the trio ending to "Broadway Baby"? Or how they managed to dress up the Marquis to make it seem rundown? (At the first preview I overheard someone claiming they need to renovate LOL). 

 

I realise you care deeply but it is a bit sad you couldn't see any value. 

[Phillytheatreguy10]

Posted: 8/16/17 at 10:36am

Anyone have experience with the Today Tix rush for this- I got ticket, curious as to seat location.

[bwaylyric]

Posted: 8/16/17 at 10:45am

Phillytheatreguy10 said: "Anyone have experience with the Today Tix rush for this- I got ticket, curious as to seat location.

"

My seats were second to last row of mezz sides.  All seats in this theatre are great.

[TheThreadMaster]

Posted: 8/16/17 at 12:25pm

Anyone who has gone as of late seen any improvement in Xavier?

[Jamesilsley]

Posted: 8/16/17 at 1:12pm

My TodayTix rush seat was at the very back mezz center. Still a great seat. 

[Wicked Fanatic]

Posted: 8/16/17 at 1:15pm

Where is WhizzerMarvin's review?

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 8/16/17 at 1:21pm

Boy do I have a strange story for this thread. Last I night I dreamt I was playing the Emcee in the cabaret section of this show and I guess I went on with barely any practice and I forgot all my lines and I didn't know how to sing the song. So a stage manager came out on stage with a karaoke thing for me to sing a long to. I still didn't know what to sing or how to sing the song so they just ended up cutting the segment short. 

[Eliza2]

Posted: 8/16/17 at 2:07pm

TheThreadMaster said: "Anyone who has gone as of late seen any improvement in Xavier?"

I went this weekend, for the first time so I didn't have any point of comparison other than the comments in this thread.

I didn't love his "Being Alive" but I did think he was very good as the Phantom. And I didn't notice a lot of hand gestures in Being Alive as mentioned here. He did speak-sing quite a bit the first part of the song but not as much the second half.

 

[Eliza2]

Posted: 8/16/17 at 2:07pm

Also, just saw that Eric is on for Tony again at today's matinee.

https://twitter.com/understudies/status/897881796590923776

[ACL2006]

Posted: 8/16/17 at 2:27pm

Eric's been on since Friday for Tony. I wonder if Tony is sick or injured?

[Eliza2]

Posted: 8/16/17 at 3:26pm

Tony just tweeted he's had a nasty cold

https://twitter.com/TonyYazbeck/status/897900600750473216