#1
Posted: 11/3/08 at 11:49am
There are so many people on here shilling for ROCK OF AGES, and my disgust for shills is right up there with Monday mornings, crowded subways, and Sarah Palin.....so I really hesitate to say anything good about this show...but I can't help it. It's a fantastically fun time.
That said, your enjoyment of ROCK OF AGES will be proportional to how well you know and enjoy the jukebox music that makes up the evening. And a few cocktails before (and during) won't hurt either.
I think I read one review that said ROCK OF AGES should suck, but it doesn't. That's exactly how I felt. It has a stupid book, a ridiculous storyline, and jokes that are not all that funny, and yet.......the actors and signers, with one exception, are fantastic and the band is amazing. Couple that with fierce rock concert lighting, and add hit songs by Joan Jett, Styx, Journey and Survivor, etc., expertly performed. Sprinkle with generous servings of booze, and you have a flat out fun night in the theatre.
The only weak link in the cast is really Constantine Maroulis, ironic, since he is probably responsible for selling a good number of tickets. Unfortunately, while he is an adequate musical performer, he can't seem to act his way out of a paper bag. Forunately, this isn't Shakespeare, and his role is not that demanding.
Will Swensen is hysterical, and Kelli Barrett and Michele Mais are both standouts in a nearly uniformly excellent cast.
The book is paper thin. It is really just a clothes line on which the creators have hung a couple of dozen well known, power rock anthems from the '80's and '90's, but it somehow just gels together and works. Kudos to Ethan Popp, musical supervisor/arranger/orchestrator. The way he has blended some of these songs together borders on genius.
Is this going to win a Pulitzer? Of course not.
Is it for the Caroline or Change crowd? Yeah, right.
Is it worth the full $80.50 tickket price? Not on your life.
Is it a ridiculously fun and funky night out with a ticket bought with a discount code and a couple of drinks? Hell yes. My ticket was around thirty bucks, and it was worth every penny.
P.S. - A question - does anyone happen to know why the song list is not included within the program? I assume it has something to do with the grant of rights, but if anyone knows, I'm curious. Thanks.
That said, your enjoyment of ROCK OF AGES will be proportional to how well you know and enjoy the jukebox music that makes up the evening. And a few cocktails before (and during) won't hurt either.
I think I read one review that said ROCK OF AGES should suck, but it doesn't. That's exactly how I felt. It has a stupid book, a ridiculous storyline, and jokes that are not all that funny, and yet.......the actors and signers, with one exception, are fantastic and the band is amazing. Couple that with fierce rock concert lighting, and add hit songs by Joan Jett, Styx, Journey and Survivor, etc., expertly performed. Sprinkle with generous servings of booze, and you have a flat out fun night in the theatre.
The only weak link in the cast is really Constantine Maroulis, ironic, since he is probably responsible for selling a good number of tickets. Unfortunately, while he is an adequate musical performer, he can't seem to act his way out of a paper bag. Forunately, this isn't Shakespeare, and his role is not that demanding.
Will Swensen is hysterical, and Kelli Barrett and Michele Mais are both standouts in a nearly uniformly excellent cast.
The book is paper thin. It is really just a clothes line on which the creators have hung a couple of dozen well known, power rock anthems from the '80's and '90's, but it somehow just gels together and works. Kudos to Ethan Popp, musical supervisor/arranger/orchestrator. The way he has blended some of these songs together borders on genius.
Is this going to win a Pulitzer? Of course not.
Is it for the Caroline or Change crowd? Yeah, right.
Is it worth the full $80.50 tickket price? Not on your life.
Is it a ridiculously fun and funky night out with a ticket bought with a discount code and a couple of drinks? Hell yes. My ticket was around thirty bucks, and it was worth every penny.
P.S. - A question - does anyone happen to know why the song list is not included within the program? I assume it has something to do with the grant of rights, but if anyone knows, I'm curious. Thanks.
Updated On: 11/3/08 at 11:49 AM
But Insider2, I feel your pain...I got "shilled", if you will, into seeing "The Perfect Crime". Ugh. However, I've done my share of what I more lovingly refer to as "street teaming" or supporting my favorites over the years. Politely, of course....and have met some really wonderful people along the way. 
