RENT at Hollywood Bowl (with REVIEWS)- Page 4

[ACL2006]

Posted: 8/8/10 at 12:19am

Hello Nicole Scherzinger?? Yeah, this is Broadway calling, can you be her ASAP?? Thanks!!

[broadwayboy101]

Posted: 8/8/10 at 2:04am

Am I the only one that doesn't like the random duets in Seasons of Love? Those should be kept as solos...

[jimmycurry01]

Posted: 8/8/10 at 2:37am

Based on the clips alone, I didn't find Hudgens to be offensive at all, she seemed moderate at best, not terrible though. It looks like it was entertaining.

[FeelingElectric2]

Posted: 8/8/10 at 3:18am

Saw the show yesterday, nothing to add that hasn't already been said. I also, was surprised to hear Nicole, who in my opinion was the stand out. I assume posting videos is ok, since the ushers saw people taking pictures & recording and didn't say anything, at least in my section (and there were tons). There also wasn't any pre-show announcement about it at all.

Found this on youtube right now. Great video closeup of Nicole performing "Over the Moon" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JT-9DaCCgPY

(the user has also uploaded some other videos from the show in good quality)
Updated On: 8/8/10 at 03:18 AM

[chick_in_black]

Posted: 8/8/10 at 4:14am

what did everyone think of "their" version of 'ill cover you;reprise"?

thumbs down from me.

SMH Neil Patrick Harris

[teapot]

Posted: 8/8/10 at 7:14am

I saw it Friday night.
Vanessa Hudgens was not ready to take on a role like Mimi. It was obvious how hard she was trying, but her voice was not capable of handling the songs. She was unbelievably nasal in Light My Candle, and came across as a Catholic schoolgirl who stripped on the side in Out Tonight. She was often off-key, and her delivery was lacking in emotion. Her small scene where she sneaks off to get high with her friends seemed more like a trip to the mall. It was not her age that was a problem, it was her inability to play someone who had been hardened by a life where expediency often ruled. She was at best a girl experiencing drugs for the first time, not an addict who was controlled by her need. Even more appalling, she was completely unable to make you believe she was facing the rigors of AIDS.

The true surprise of the evening was Nicole Scherzinger, who stole every scene she was in. Her take on Maureen was fresh, original, and well turned. She did flub some of her lines, but her performance in Over the Moon and Take Me were stellar. She obviously surprised many in the audience, because their delighted reaction after each of her songs was the equivalent of a roar.

Wayne Brady was a good Collins but not a great one. He was a bit lackluster in the first act, but delivered beautifully in the I Will Cover You Reprise in the funeral scene. His chemistry with Telly Leung was somewhat dull, but it was there. I think it may be that Brady’s Collins just did not project the level of warmth to which I am accustomed.

Tracie Thoms was in good voice, but basically just did a slightly less energetic version of her movie/flob performance. Take Me was very good, and she played very well off of Scherzinger’s Maureen. Her tango with Mark was not impressive, in part because of the limited stage space minimized even further by the huge size of the Bowl, and more so because Skylar Astin’s tango lacked flair.

The very talented Telly Leung was a disappointment. In the past, his Angel has been heartbreaking. Here, it lacked energy. He is still effective, and if you had not seen his prior performances you might not have noticed the lack, but for those who had the Bowl version was not Angel.

Skylar Astin was a nonentity as Mark His voice was fine, his delivery was fine, his grasp of the character was fine, and all those fines added up to boring. Mark is a pivotal character. You have to totally key in to his conflict, his caring, and his own fears. If you don’t care how Mark is affected by the fabric of ALL the stories, you lose the cohesiveness of the story. Astin never held the stage, not even during La Vie Boheme. He was all right… but Mark cannot be just fine.

Aaron Tveit was underutilized and allowed to rely solely on his looks. He made an attractive and appealing Roger, but he seemed too young, and sulky rather than a grown man who sees his life as ended before he could do the things he dreamed of. There was no sense of the waste and futility, though there were hints of it. He might have been able to bring it out more with more practice. He did click with Hudgens, but in a sitcom sort of way. There was no tragedy in their love/passion. Nevertheless, the portion of the audience made up of wine-addled twenty to forty something women loved every time he flexed his impressive biceps.

Without a doubt, Collins Pennie’s Benny was a complete failure. He sounded like a teenager, his presence was negligible, his voice was weak, and he was unable to bring the necessary characterization to the role. There was nothing cold, powerful, or sexual about his Benny. He was more like a nerd accountant than a businessman ruthless enough to marry a rich man’s daughter to get ahead, or dispossess both the homeless and his friends in his search for profit. This is not to say that I think the young actor lacks talent…just that he needed much more seasoning to be able to handle this role.

Neil Patrick Harris did a good job directing the show, BUT the setting worked against him. The structure of Rent is lost in a huge space like the Bowl and hampered by the small amount of usable stage. The additional cast members stretched across the stage in an anonymous line, lost amid the three platforms, bricks and scaffolding. The Homeless were negligible, and had little effect because they disappeared into the “extra” space even while they were spotlit. The tango was so small in scope that it didn’t really matter if Mark and Joanne ever danced at all. Hudgins used a runway into the audience for Out Tonight, but it was impossible to get the impact out to the rest of the huge audience, even with projecting on to the big screens. His cuts were well thought out, and the show flowed well. As a whole, the production was mediocre. The thing about the Hollywood Bowl musical specials is that they are NOT the pinnacle of productions, but rather they are a summer package experience. It is a picnic, a party, and an often raucous interactive presentation, where the audience in jeans and sweaters quaffs bottles of wine, sways to the music, and shares bon mots (or not so bon mots) as the theatre geeks share the latest gossip about the stars on stage. It’s a wonderful way to spend an August Friday night, but it is not a treatise on how to present the perfect production of Musical X. With that in mind, Rent was worth seeing but even someone for whom musicals are not a passion noted that it was only “fine.”

[toanythingtaboo 2]

Posted: 8/8/10 at 10:12am

I feel NPH was overly optimistic with Vanessa Hudgens. She just comes across as an amateur school lead. Her voice is weak, and it would have been forgivable if her acting made up for it...which it hasn't.

Really impressed with Nicole Scherzinger. I knew she had a good set of pipes, and she obviously has the cocky sexuality thing down, but she really does seem to have left the pop star ego at the door and embraced a different style of performing.

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 8/8/10 at 10:41am

Just saw her performance of Over the Moon on "that site". I loved every minute of it! I wish I could have seen this live, even if just for her.

[singalongsong2]

Posted: 8/8/10 at 1:30pm

^^ I agree. Her "Over the Moon" was great.

[Wildcard]

Posted: 8/8/10 at 3:09pm

Overall, I thought it was an enjoyable evening. I agree with most postings so I don't need a detailed review. I did like the orchestrations and how the songs weren't sung as if the actors were in a hurry to get to the end. I felt that it seemed necessary to already know the story coming into the Hollywood Bowl. Otherwise, it would've been difficult for a newcomer to understand what's going on given the scale of the production. Most of the performances were good (except for Benny) but I felt that only Aaron and Nicole had the chops to fill the space. Wayne Brady was good vocally but he needed more emotion and acting abilities while Vanessa Hudgens was poor vocally but infused a youth appropriate to Mimi that I have rarely seen. She was however missing the sexuality and neediness that Mimi had which I feel can only come with experience. Overall a fun evening.

[suttonfoster]

Posted: 8/8/10 at 3:54pm

ugh the orchestrations really take away from the rock feel. i don't really like them

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 8/8/10 at 4:06pm

Mimi's youth is a trap in casting the role. The character's vulnerability is masked by a ferocious, almost reckless abandon and there frankly aren't that many 19 year olds who can really comand that. The best Mimis in NYC were generally a little bit older.

[kidbroadway2]

Posted: 8/8/10 at 6:59pm

Based on the videos I've seen.
----

Nicole Scherzinger is truly the standout. Just so effin talented. Her comedy chops are better than Idina, and she holds her own in comparison to her. Seeing as she's had less rehearsal time and all that stuff, I would love to see her on broadway. I completely underestimated her, just brilliant.

Brady did outstanding as well. Loved him. I already knew this about him so I was somewhat expecting this, but the dude is just so talented. Not as great as Nicole, but my 2nd favorite performer besides her.

Skylar I was expecting so much more from. I thought he would honestly break out from this. He was just alright. Nothing bad, but i had really high expectations from him. Tveit just (once again) skated on his looks again. Not a great actor, but a very solid singer. He'll be fine, and inevitably be praised for Catch me If You Can when it comes to Broadway. But he's highly overrated in broadway circles.

Telly did great but like Brady, I expected that from him. Same with Tracie and the rest.

Hudgens is terrible. Confirms to me that Corbin Bleu is the only person from HSM with enough talent AND drive, willingness to have a solid character. Hudgens is delusional that she's a solid actress, and Zac doesn't want to do what he's best at (musicals) and is somehow delusional that he can be considered a serious actor. She was just bad.

Benny was the worst. Did NPH even work with him at all? Jesus.

Overall seemed like a pretty good show. Would have loved to have seen it live.

[somethingwicked]

Posted: 8/8/10 at 7:08pm

Rachael Harris was hilarious in The Hangover. I had no idea she sang!

I assume she's playing Mark's mom and Alexi Darling?

Updated On: 8/8/10 at 07:08 PM

[MusicAngel]

Posted: 8/8/10 at 7:57pm

Wow, by looking at her videos, Nicole Scherzinger definitely surprised me! Besides bringing total hotness to the stage, she's definitely got the talent! Her "Over the Moon" performance was refreshing and I absolutely loved how she portrayed Maureen.. with such humor. She certainly can act and she's definitely got the pipes! Good for her!

[Harpz2006]

Posted: 8/8/10 at 10:04pm

I saw it last night too- I agree with what most people have said. It was cool and definitely a fun night out, but the venue was just too huge for the show, I thought. I love Aaron's voice but to me his performance in n2n was much more electrifying. Was he really playing guitar throughout the show and in the national anthem at the beginning?
Also, did anybody else catch Zac Efron on the big screens when Vanessa was in the audience in Out Tonight?

[US Asians]

Posted: 8/9/10 at 1:08am

I'm hoping that Saturday (last night) and tonight's performances were/are better than Opening Night.

It was interesting that literally the first rundown (dress reheasal) with everybody in costume and full tech crew was Friday. Don't know what this means, but with a performance in front of 18,000 people per night (50,000+ people over three days), one might think that one would plan accordingly. Hopefully it doesn't mean that the cast was having problems with their respective roles.

Having seen rock and roll operas successfully done at the Hollywood Bowl, maybe the talented Neil Patric Harris didn't have a chance to see how effectively shows can be done at a tricky venue such as the Bowl.

Kudos to Vanessa for taking on this role. After she got over her stage fright that resulted in an Ashley Simpson-like performance on her first number, hopefully she is quickly learning the great difference between doing legimate Broadway theater of substance and portraying characters in Disney films.

A New York-trained Broadway actor submitted his review (as a non-RentHead) of the Hollywood Bowl production sitting in the back part of the 2nd Promenade on the side. This resulted in experiencing a little of the performance but not close enough to get the emotional impact and intimacy that made RENT a great show. His review can be found at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4i4PZLLVjK4

Given that this was at the Hollywood Bowl, one wonders why the band and singers were not louder that provided them a fair opportunity of effectively communicating to the audience from the elite seats to the noseblead areas where the dedicated RentHeads were sitting. They must have realized that this production would turn into a concert featuring songs from Rent.

Oh, did I mentioned that it was COLD!!!! on Opening Night!

It was great Telly was blogging for this event. In addition, he participated in an interview that can be found at the following URLs (for those who love Telly):

Written Interview: http://usasians-articles.tripod.com/telly-leung.html

Video/Audio Interview: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6PyQPoh5VLI
Review of Hollywood Bowl's RENT

[MrMidwest]

Posted: 8/9/10 at 3:10am

Well, I'll say one thing for Neil Patrick Harris.
He's shrewd. This production has received tons of press.

[bluesoprano]

Posted: 8/9/10 at 3:16am

I just got back from seeing it tonight. Overall I really enjoyed NPH take on the show. While I still feel that the Hollywood Bowl is way to big of a venue for Rent, NPH does what he can with it.

I really enjoyed the cast! Telly, Nicole, Tracie and Wayne were standouts for me. Aaron was wonderful to and I enjoyed his take on Roger. My least favorite part of the show was Vanessa Hudgens as Mimi. I really wanted to like her Mimi, but I just couldn't get into it. Whenever she was on stage I felt like I was watching a high school student perform in Rent.

The sets were great and the band sounded great as well. I hope that this is not the last time we see NPH direct a musical!

[MeggilyWeggily08]

Posted: 8/9/10 at 3:22am

Tonight's performance was explosive. And was Zac the one who either gave Vanessa the money she slipped in her bra during Out Tonight or the one who gave her the rose? I think he was the one who gave her the rose, because he came out the stage door later and tossed them into the crowd.

[madame_no]

Posted: 8/9/10 at 3:22am

I've only seen clips from the Site That Shall Not Be Named, but seriously, did "Out Tonight" have any choreography? It honestly looks like the choreography was to just freestyle and try to look sexy, so she just keeps doing the same hip shake wiggle move over and over again because that's all she can think of to do. Maybe she would look like less of an amateur if she didn't look like she had no idea what to do.

[US Asians]

Posted: 8/9/10 at 4:56am

@bluesoprano:
Wondered how much you enjoyed the show when you shared that you enjoyed NPH's take but stated that the venue was too big for a show like Rent. There have been great rock and roll operas performed at the Bowl that could have served as providing tangible options that works in the large stage.

Having seen the production on Opening Night, it seem like he was only using half the stage most of the night.

It was disappointing that the band wasn't allowed to K... Butt (considering it is a rock and roll musical) that night - especially since where I was sitting, it turned into a concert since it was hard to see the stage (even with the Jumbotrons). Could this type of band prompt the singers to bring it up a couple levels while performing?

Interesting that many of the cast members have received good and bad reviews, while Vanessa has never (to what I've seen) received a good-to-great review for her performance - even from people who grew up with her on the High School Musical films. Wondered if anybody has links to reviews that raved about Vanessa's performance?

NPH is getting coverage because the show is at the Hollywood Bowl, plus he is talented and a high-profiled celebrity. Looking forward to his future projects
Calvin Jung's Review of RENT (Hollywood Bowl

[DefyGravity4]

Posted: 8/9/10 at 6:55am

Based on the clips I've seen, Nicole was clearly the standout of the cast (Over The Moon was incredible) and Aaron and Tracie were both amazing.

But really NPH, Vanessa Hudgens as Mimi. She can't act or sing, Light My Candle was just painful to listen to and Out Tonight wasn't much better.

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 8/9/10 at 9:06am

I remember when "Over the Moon" wasn't supposed to be an deliberately comedic piece.

[rorschach37]

Posted: 8/9/10 at 10:54am

Link to the site please?? PM me??