Paradise Square or Suffs

[Jasmine Green]

Posted: 2/8/22 at 8:54pm

Since both are new musicals - which one would you take a gamble on seeing if you could only see one?

[Moreski93]

Posted: 2/8/22 at 9:27pm

Paradise Square hands down. Trust me, you DO NOT wanna miss Joaquina Kalukango pretty much earn her Tony nomination. Everything else in this masterpiece is just icing on the cake.

[JBroadway]

Posted: 2/8/22 at 10:30pm

The playing field isn’t exactly level here. Paradise Square had a previous run, while Suffs has yet to play a single performance. 
 

I’m not saying that’s anyone’s fault, or that you shouldn’t ask the question, but it seems to me that any “hands down” input should be taken with a grain of salt. 

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 2/8/22 at 10:56pm

Moreski93 said: "Paradise Square hands down. Trust me, you DO NOT wanna missJoaquina Kalukango pretty much earn her Tony nomination. Everything else in this masterpiece is just icing on the cake."

100% this. 

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 2/8/22 at 11:13pm

Where did the other PARADISE SQUARE thread go that had comments from earlier today?? Are the mods censoring again??

I would say go with Paradise, because chances are Suffs will move to Broadway too unless it's a fiasco. (In which case, you'll have probably dodged a bullet.)

[stoptheworld38]

Posted: 2/8/22 at 11:23pm

Would love to see both, but I'd go with Suffs. First of all Jenn Colella is one of my absolute favorite actresses, and second, Shaina Taub is an alum of my local community theatre company. Plus the themes/plot are of real interest to me.

[RippedMan]

Posted: 2/8/22 at 11:39pm

Paradise got mixed reviews out of town. Suffs is a brand new musical that no one has a clue what it will be like. I'd probably pic Suffs only because it's the risk and it may never been seen/heard of again. 

Updated On: 2/8/22 at 11:39 PM

[ASOOS04]

Posted: 2/9/22 at 12:11am

Suffs. Paradise Square is a SLOG. 

[JBroadway]

Posted: 2/9/22 at 9:40am

ErmengardeStopSniveling said: "Suffs will move to Broadway too unless it's a fiasco. (In which case, you'll have probably dodged a bullet.)"

 

Again, we'll have to see. The show is buzzy and high-profile for an Off-Broadway musical, but on paper it doesn't seem all that commercially viable. You say it'll probably transfer unless it's a fiasco, but I'd be more inclined to guess the reverse:

It probably won't transfer unless it's amazing (or rather, extremely well-received). And there's a lot of middle-ground between fiasco and amazing.

Plus, for all we know the show might be mediocre, but will still feature an incredible, must-see performance on par with Kalukango. 

For the record, I have nothing against Paradise Square - I haven't seen it. And I have no vested in interest in Suffs. I guess I'm just trying to make a point that it's hard to crowdsource recommendations between two shows, when one of them is a total wild card. 

My recommendation to the OP would be to go read up on the Paradise Square reviews/threads, listen to clips of the music, etc. Then read the description for Suffs and listen to some of Shaina Taub's past work. And just see which one you think you'll vibe with more. 

AND/OR - depending on when your trip is, wait until mid-to-late March to decide, so that you can read early reactions to Suffs. 

[broadwayindie]

Posted: 2/9/22 at 9:58am

Echoing to make sure to check out Paradise Square. I have never seen a midshow standing ovation in Chicago (been a Chicago theatre goer my entire life). Joaquina Kulakango got one both of the performances I was able to catch. She is the reason to see this show. Also the Bill T Jones choreo is quite incredible too! This is a must see.

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 2/9/22 at 10:47am

SUFFS has a commercial producer behind it: the very deep-pocketed Jill Furman with a good track record for new work (Hamilton, Cinderella, In the Heights, Drowsy, Freestyle..., etc).

If it gets awful reviews, they can of course say "no thanks, we don't want to move this to Bway." Plenty of nonprofit shows have had enhancement and then don't move or take a while to do so: The Honeymooners, Alice By Heart, The Visitor, etc. But I am going to assume there are plans to move it until there's an indication otherwise.

I haven't personally seen either show so I defer to those who have.

As someone once quipped, "every show is coming to Broadway until it doesn't."

Updated On: 2/9/22 at 10:47 AM

[adotburr]

Posted: 2/9/22 at 1:06pm

I also haven't seen either so I'm not going to say go with one over another. 

However, both have great casts and both will give a great performance.

If you end up seeing Suffs, Cassondra James is one to not disappoint. Having seen her many times in OOTI + tour, she was amazing each time. 

[TaffyDavenport]

Posted: 2/9/22 at 1:16pm

5 songs from Paradise Square here:

https://www.youtube.com/c/ParadiseSquareBroadway/videos

Updated On: 2/9/22 at 01:16 PM

[TaffyDavenport]

Posted: 2/9/22 at 1:21pm

2 songs from Suffs (when it was Suffragist):

 

[TaffyDavenport]

Posted: 2/9/22 at 1:23pm

 

[JBroadway]

Posted: 2/9/22 at 1:28pm

Thanks Taffy, I had no idea those videos of Suffs existed! 

[TheaterMe]

Posted: 2/10/22 at 1:26pm

We have trip planned for May.  We got tickets to Paradise Square awhile back.  I just got tickets to Suffs too because the subject intrigues me.  Just a scattering of single seats available in early May for every show I looked at.