#1
Posted: 4/8/09 at 10:40am
Dolly Parton's baby, Broadway's brand-new musical 9 TO 5, has the words "monster hit" all over it. While it doesn't carry a girth of substance, it's certainly not as fluffy as one would expect it to be. Certainly, it would qualify as "fluff," but it does have weight and it does have something rather important to say.
There is no better way to say this, so I'm just going to be very basic: I had SO. MUCH. FUN. I frequently found myself smiling like and idiot and wanting to jump up and dance in my seat. The songs are brilliantly Dolly. Her hands are all over this score and it shows in a very big way (which is a great thing). Patricia Resnick's book is, at times, very rushed and a little more complicated than it needs to be. But when the laughs come, they REALLY deliver. This is not a "light chuckle" show. When you laugh, you LAUGH. And Patricia's new ending (as opposed to out-of-town) is MUCH better, giving Janney a chance to really shine in a brilliant monologue.
Now... the girls: Allison Janney is a great Violet. Is she a strong contender for Best Actress like everyone claims she is? Not quite. Though that's not her fault. The part just isn't written strong enough and she never really has that "leading lady" moment like she should (save for the ending; but all the girls have that moment somewhere in the show). But this girl (sorry... "wom-Y-n") knows a joke when she sees one, landing every single punchline like a pro. And it will only get tighter and funnier from here. Stephanie J. Block is brilliant as Judy. It's pretty much a given, but "Get Out and Stay Out" is absolutely STUNNING. I'm not an SJB fan, but she really wowed me throughout the entire show. Perhaps she plays up Judy's wilted-flowerness a tad too much, but it's never over-the-top. Her transformation between acts is excellent, empowering herself in order to believably deliver the showstopper "Get Out..." at the end of the second act. Megan Hilty really was the best of the three for me. At the beginning, it seems as if she is going to deliver a carbon copy of Dolly's Doralee, but then takes off in her own direction, in some ways becoming the strongest-willed of the three women. In less capable hands, "Backwoods Barbie" would be overwhelmingly cheesy. But under Hilty's care, it becomes touching and poignant while still having that shmaltzy, traditionally Dolly feel to it.
Marc Kudisch doesn't have enough to do in his role as Frank Hart. His new song "Always a Woman" is the one of the only two moments that fall completely flat. But he manages, in his poorly written role, to make Hart absolutely disgusting. Kathy Fitzgerald is absolutely hysterical as Roz. "Heart to Hart" is unbelievably funny and she sells every single joke. I can't say enough good things about her. She steals every scene she's in.
The set will surely win a Tony. There is really nothing more to say about it. It was as good as everyone expected it to be. And for anyone worried about them downscaling it, it works. There were only a few minor malfunctions. The elevator didn't open in one scene, which prompted Megan to shout "LET'S JUST TAKE THE STAIRS!" Also, a part of the garage door opener fell from the fly as it was being taken off and almost whacked Allison in the head, landing directly behind her. All three of the women looked behind them. Very funny. A file cabinet didn't roll off and some stagehands came and rolled it off. Overall though, this was a pretty tight first preview for such a massive show. My only issue, set-wise, is that during some quieter moments, set pieces can be heard clinking around backstage while they're being put in place. I found it especially distracting during the act one number "I Just Might."
This was some of the most fun I've had in a theater. Seriously. Go see this show. Not only will it be a massive hit, but it actually deserves to be. An insanely fun show with an extremely talented cast and creative team that has a big heart to back it all up. Could it beat BILLY and N2N out for Best Musical? It's possible. But it'll be a bigger hit than both of them, so it doesn't really matter in the end.
There is no better way to say this, so I'm just going to be very basic: I had SO. MUCH. FUN. I frequently found myself smiling like and idiot and wanting to jump up and dance in my seat. The songs are brilliantly Dolly. Her hands are all over this score and it shows in a very big way (which is a great thing). Patricia Resnick's book is, at times, very rushed and a little more complicated than it needs to be. But when the laughs come, they REALLY deliver. This is not a "light chuckle" show. When you laugh, you LAUGH. And Patricia's new ending (as opposed to out-of-town) is MUCH better, giving Janney a chance to really shine in a brilliant monologue.
Now... the girls: Allison Janney is a great Violet. Is she a strong contender for Best Actress like everyone claims she is? Not quite. Though that's not her fault. The part just isn't written strong enough and she never really has that "leading lady" moment like she should (save for the ending; but all the girls have that moment somewhere in the show). But this girl (sorry... "wom-Y-n") knows a joke when she sees one, landing every single punchline like a pro. And it will only get tighter and funnier from here. Stephanie J. Block is brilliant as Judy. It's pretty much a given, but "Get Out and Stay Out" is absolutely STUNNING. I'm not an SJB fan, but she really wowed me throughout the entire show. Perhaps she plays up Judy's wilted-flowerness a tad too much, but it's never over-the-top. Her transformation between acts is excellent, empowering herself in order to believably deliver the showstopper "Get Out..." at the end of the second act. Megan Hilty really was the best of the three for me. At the beginning, it seems as if she is going to deliver a carbon copy of Dolly's Doralee, but then takes off in her own direction, in some ways becoming the strongest-willed of the three women. In less capable hands, "Backwoods Barbie" would be overwhelmingly cheesy. But under Hilty's care, it becomes touching and poignant while still having that shmaltzy, traditionally Dolly feel to it.
Marc Kudisch doesn't have enough to do in his role as Frank Hart. His new song "Always a Woman" is the one of the only two moments that fall completely flat. But he manages, in his poorly written role, to make Hart absolutely disgusting. Kathy Fitzgerald is absolutely hysterical as Roz. "Heart to Hart" is unbelievably funny and she sells every single joke. I can't say enough good things about her. She steals every scene she's in.
The set will surely win a Tony. There is really nothing more to say about it. It was as good as everyone expected it to be. And for anyone worried about them downscaling it, it works. There were only a few minor malfunctions. The elevator didn't open in one scene, which prompted Megan to shout "LET'S JUST TAKE THE STAIRS!" Also, a part of the garage door opener fell from the fly as it was being taken off and almost whacked Allison in the head, landing directly behind her. All three of the women looked behind them. Very funny. A file cabinet didn't roll off and some stagehands came and rolled it off. Overall though, this was a pretty tight first preview for such a massive show. My only issue, set-wise, is that during some quieter moments, set pieces can be heard clinking around backstage while they're being put in place. I found it especially distracting during the act one number "I Just Might."
This was some of the most fun I've had in a theater. Seriously. Go see this show. Not only will it be a massive hit, but it actually deserves to be. An insanely fun show with an extremely talented cast and creative team that has a big heart to back it all up. Could it beat BILLY and N2N out for Best Musical? It's possible. But it'll be a bigger hit than both of them, so it doesn't really matter in the end.
