Reviews - Wicked, LITP, Spamalot (Long - 1st of 2)

[mlsheehan]

Posted: 6/23/05 at 11:41pm

Part 1 of 2

Just returned from a one week trip to New York (June 15 - 21). I saw 7 shows over 5 days. This was my first trip to NYC in ten years so I had a lot of catching up to do. I must say that I enjoyed all the shows that I saw and was pleasantly surprised at the quality of all productions. (That hasn’t always been the case in the past - Blood Brothers and Miss Saigon come to mind as past disappointments.)

As has been my policy for a long time, I didn’t listen to the OBCR before the shows. I find that I enjoy the shows better if I don’t have any preconceived notion of the music or how it might be staged. Below are my capsule reviews in the order that I saw the shows:

Wicked
I know a lot has been written about this show - both pro and con. So I was a little concerned about what to expect. Well, I must say that I was captivated. I had read the book a while back, and I, personally, was not a fan. I found it hard going and not a particularly enjoyable read. The musical is, of course, completely different. I liked the changed plot elements and thought the creative team did a very good job of taking the concept of the book and retooling it. I must say I was surprised by the ending, as it is quite different than the book. (I know it’s been discussed on the boards quite a bit, but I do try to avoid reading anything that even has the scent of a spoiler.) So the end was quite unexpected to me. I must say I liked it. For a musical, I believe it works quite well. I thought the physical production was quite handsome and impressive. The book for the show seems to lose some of it’s momentum in the 2nd Act, but overall I thought the production quite good.

We saw Soshana Bean and Megan Hilty, who were both quite wonderful. I must say that I loved Ms. Bean’s performance and vocally she nailed the part. Ms. Hilty was a lot of fun and played the comedy quite well. Rue McClanahan’s Mde. Morrible was perhaps a little under-whelming vocally, but she definitely has the character firmly in hand. Ben Vereen was terrific in the rather small-ish Wizard role. It’s a shame there isn’t more for him to do. I had some quibbles about David Ayers’ Fiyero. He certainly looked the part (and is quite handsome), but he played it a little too loose for me (especially during “Dancing Through Life”). I liked Jeffery Kuhn as Boq. He took a rather two dimentional part and played it with a lot of heart. ( My rating is 4 stars out of 5. )

The Light in the Piazza
What a lovely show. I have to say that I was quite moved by the end. I can’t fault anything about the much lauded physical aspects of the production - lights, sets, costumes are all exquisite. I found the music quite lovely and interesting. A bit operatic, but very approachable. I’m looking forward to getting more familiar with it from the cast recording. I had a minor quibble with the concept of the love at first sight element of the book. That never quite rings true to me, and I didn’t quite completely buy it here either. At it’s heart this is really a very intimate story, and I have to believe that this is the best overall physical production that I could image.

I saw all the original cast members. I want to single out 4 of the performers for high praise. Victoria Clark was absolutely terrific. Truly deserving of all the accolades. Sarah Uriarte Berry and Patti Cohenour were absolutely superb it their supporting roles. Both have beautiful voices. Ms. Berry has a terrific stage presence and brought a lot of flair to the sister-in-law role. Matthew Morrison was a delight in his role. Not only is he beautiful to look at, but his voice was terrific. He brought a tremendous amount of conviction to his part and navigated a role that in lesser hands could be unconvincing. (It’s not the best written part in the show.) I must say that I wasn’t captivated by Kelli O’Hara in the Clara role. She sounded absolutely divine (no problem there), but to me she didn’t hit the right aspect of the role. She seemed to be too knowing at times. It’s a difficult part to play, and for me, she wasn’t completely successful in the acting department.( My rating is 4 and 1/2 stars out of 5. )

Spamalot
What can I say? This is the funniest show that I have ever seen. (Bar done.) I started laughing during the overture and basically didn’t stop until the final curtain. Is it high art? Definitely, not. Will it raise the level of the theatre? No. But it is a delight, and I found it extremely well executed. I haven’t seen the movie in probably twenty years, but it was quite the hit in my circle of friends when I was in Junior High. I was surprised how well the bits played on the stage. I don’t believe it’s as easy as it appears to put together a show of this sort. I loved all the poking fun at Broadway conventions and thought most of it was up to the rather lofty caliber of Forbidden Broadway (but with much better production values). For me everything worked in this show. I will admit that Act III (excuse me, I mean Act II) wasn’t quite as funny as Act I, but Act II by itself was still funnier than almost every comedy that I’ve seen.

Tim Curry was terrific, of course. It was a delight to see him live. David Hyde Pierce has probably the funniest number in the show, and he was quite wonderful basically underplaying until his big moment to shine. Christopher Sieber was a delight. (It was so nice to see him again, my last stage sighting was Into the Woods . ) Alan Tudyk was great. I’d have liked to have seen Hank Azaria, but Mr. Tudyk was no let down. (He looked quite hunky in final costume.) Christian Borle was out, but his standby, James Ludwig was excellent. He brought down the house as Not Dead Fred. I loved him in all his parts. I can’t image anyone being better. Michael McGrath was touching and hilarious as Patsy. This brings me to Sara Ramirez. (I was praying that I’d be able to see her.) The woman is a force of nature. She has a belt that is not to be believed and tremendous sense of comedy. I’d see ANYTHING this woman was in. Totally deserving of the Tony. Can you tell that I loved her performance?
( My rating is 4 stars out of 5. )

Reviews of All Shook Up, Hairspray, Broadway Bares 15, and John Tartaglia, AD-LIBerty to follow...

[Ladyofthe Lake]

Posted: 6/23/05 at 11:58pm

Great job - and, biased soul that I am, I was particularly pleased to see someone who could appreciate both "Piazza" and "Spamalot" (when I read that you enjoyed "Piazza", I was fully expecting to see you trash "Spamalot", and was thrilled when it didn't happen ). I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the reviews!

[bronte311]

Posted: 6/24/05 at 12:07am

Thanks for the great reviews! 7 shows in 5 days, I am insanely jealous!

You forgot Steve Rosen in your Spamalot review...poor Steve!

[mlsheehan]

Posted: 6/24/05 at 12:14am

Steve Rosen was good in the show. Everyone is! I must say that his light was a little eclipsed by the wattage of some of the other performers for me. Though, he doesn't have the same type of showy roles that the other performers have. So, perhaps, it isn't a fair comparison.

[bronte311]

Posted: 6/24/05 at 12:21am

I understand, I wasn't being too serious. I just have noticed that Steve gets left out of the reviews here a lot! The overlooked knight, lol...

[GiantsintheSky]

Posted: 6/24/05 at 2:07am

Great Reviews.
Wasn't Victoria Clark AMAZING!?

I met Steve Rosen at the stage door. No one else came out and he was so nice. He posed with everyone who wanted a picture. . . even though most people didn't know who he was.

I found this site for Steve:
http://members.aol.com/starlightdreamer/


Does Michael Mcgrath have a fan site? Patsy was my favorite.

[Ladyofthe Lake]

Posted: 6/24/05 at 6:33am

"Does Michael Mcgrath have a fan site? Patsy was my favorite."

I don't believe he does. I did a Google search and came up empty-handed.

[mlsheehan]

Posted: 6/24/05 at 10:19am

Giants,
Yes, Victoria Clark was amazing. You can tell she loves the part. She has a glow about her. She totally nails the part without overdoing it - a lovely nuanced performance. It just grows in my memory.

Lady,
Yes, I have to admit...I love me some Patsy. I couldn't find a Michael Mcgrath site either. I, of course, am partial to performers named "Michael".

-Mike

[sassypanz]

Posted: 6/24/05 at 1:34pm

Love the reviews~ Well done. `Cant get over the Sara Ramirez dress thing at the Tonys!! My Brother made me return adress lables with that "Up we go!!" picture on it! lololol

[bronte311]

Posted: 6/24/05 at 5:05pm

My friend and I actually started that Steve Rosen site after seeing Spamalot. We thought Steve did a great job in the show but were particularly impressed by how kind and friendly he was to those waiting outside the stage door (many of whom were, I have to admit, expressing puzzlement over who he was). He seems like a great guy and sent us a very sweet e-mail thanking us for the site. So if you go to see Spamalot and meet Steve afterwards, be sure to tell him how awesome he is!

Michael McGrath was also wonderful in the show but didn't come out the stage door that night...If he had, maybe we would have made him a site too!

I also wanted to note that the Sir Bedevere picture GiantsintheSky is using as an avatar was done by our site artist Karen Wilkins, and more of her artwork can be found at https://unluckylucky.sillylittlehumans.com/ She did the art for us without having met Steve or having seen the show, so I want to be sure she gets credit for her work!

[GiantsintheSky]

Posted: 6/24/05 at 6:34pm

Great job on the site bronte. . .

Didn't you love that Sara thanked claritan in her speech? They should give her as much claritan as she can use. I'm sure every diva in the country is going to use it when they have a cold now.

My friend saw Wicked recently and said that she thought it looked really tired and everyone was marking. . .

[mlsheehan]

Posted: 6/25/05 at 2:05am

Can't say everyone was marking in Wicked. A lot of the cast are pretty new. Rue Mc & Ben V have only been in a few weeks. Megan H and Shoshana B haven't been in that long. They seemed engaged when I saw it. David Ayers is the only one that seemed a little stale to me.

I love the link to "Why Steve makes the show". Nice web site for him.