#1
Posted: 4/13/08 at 2:55am
Hey everyone - I saw the matinee of Passing Strange today. I initially had no interest in seeing this show, as I had listened to the clips on the website and didn't really care for them. But after reading all the rave reviews, including one from a close friend whose opinion I trust and usually agree with, I decided to give it a shot. I wasn't exactly disappointed, as my initial reaction to the music carried over to the rest of the show.
I did not like the show. Sure, there were moments that I thoroughly enjoyed. And I'll admit that when it was good, it was GREAT. But I feel like this show only really worked when it was a rock concert. The story was unoriginal (a coming of age tale on Broadway - who knew?) and although its method of storytelling was fresh, I also found it a bit pretentious. At the show's start, I was thrilled that I was enjoying myself. The scenes in Los Angeles were my favorite in the show, but once Youth left for Europe my interest went too. It's hard for me to say exactly what it was that turned me off, but by the end of the first act I was on the fence about whether or not I liked it. By the time the first song of the second act began ("May Day"), I hopped the fence onto the negative side. The second act really cemented the fact that I just didn't like the show. I hated the second act. I wanted to leave after "Surface." It was messy, too long, and isolating.
Before people start attacking me and saying "You just didn't get it," I don't think there's really much to get. It's pretty clear what the message of the show is when Stew recites lines like "Life is a mistake that only art can fix" or something very similar and "The real is a construct." The problem is that (and here's where I think it becomes pretentious) I felt the show tried too hard to drive this point home by intentionally being unconventional and different, in my opinion to a point alienating itself as a strange jumble of ideas rather than a cohesive piece. But that's just my opinion.
I will say that Stew was captivating, Daniel Breaker was phenomenal, and the music was much better than I expected. Unfortunately, I cannot recall any of the melodies (except "Just as it was starting to feel real") but I did like the score as a whole nonetheless. I thought Colman Domingo's performance was heinous and each character was overacted. Chad Goodridge and Rebecca Naomi Jones were both very good. I wish De'Adre Aziza's "Keys" was better. And the volume of the band was appropriate, even from where I sat in the second row.
Edited for grammar.
I did not like the show. Sure, there were moments that I thoroughly enjoyed. And I'll admit that when it was good, it was GREAT. But I feel like this show only really worked when it was a rock concert. The story was unoriginal (a coming of age tale on Broadway - who knew?) and although its method of storytelling was fresh, I also found it a bit pretentious. At the show's start, I was thrilled that I was enjoying myself. The scenes in Los Angeles were my favorite in the show, but once Youth left for Europe my interest went too. It's hard for me to say exactly what it was that turned me off, but by the end of the first act I was on the fence about whether or not I liked it. By the time the first song of the second act began ("May Day"), I hopped the fence onto the negative side. The second act really cemented the fact that I just didn't like the show. I hated the second act. I wanted to leave after "Surface." It was messy, too long, and isolating.
Before people start attacking me and saying "You just didn't get it," I don't think there's really much to get. It's pretty clear what the message of the show is when Stew recites lines like "Life is a mistake that only art can fix" or something very similar and "The real is a construct." The problem is that (and here's where I think it becomes pretentious) I felt the show tried too hard to drive this point home by intentionally being unconventional and different, in my opinion to a point alienating itself as a strange jumble of ideas rather than a cohesive piece. But that's just my opinion.
I will say that Stew was captivating, Daniel Breaker was phenomenal, and the music was much better than I expected. Unfortunately, I cannot recall any of the melodies (except "Just as it was starting to feel real") but I did like the score as a whole nonetheless. I thought Colman Domingo's performance was heinous and each character was overacted. Chad Goodridge and Rebecca Naomi Jones were both very good. I wish De'Adre Aziza's "Keys" was better. And the volume of the band was appropriate, even from where I sat in the second row.
Edited for grammar.
Updated On: 4/13/08 at 02:55 AM
