Reviews: Spring Awakening, Little Mermaid, Legally Blonde, Phantom LV and Wicked LA!

[Robert Taylor]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 3:33pm

SPRING AWAKENING- BROADWAY

Holy crap this was a great show!

I had already had the soundtrack for awhile before seeing the show, but to see how brilliantly it was played on such a sparse set with a cast of brilliant young actors giving it all they’ve got. I was blown away on all accounts, from the fact that the show “went there” in terms of dealing with abuse, abortion and sexuality, and even moreso that those subjects were handled so beautifully. It might just be the best Broadway production I’ve seen. Like ever.

My tickets were at the very center of the front row, which only added to the excellence of the production. So when I say that Jonathan Groff and Lea Michelle were singing to ME, I mean that literally, eye contact and everything. I could feel the trembling of the stage when the boys were stomping in “The Bitch of Living.” It was a one-of-a-kind experience, and the only way I can describe it was that it was magical.

And as if that were not enough, the cast is, by far, the nicest I have ever met at the stagedoor. They didn’t mind taking a few minutes with every person in line (and there were so many…these guys are rockstars!) and didn’t mind posing for pictures. Plus, it can’t get much better than hearing Jonathan Groff say “Wasn’t I singing to you all night?” as soon as he sees you, can it? I don’t think so.

I’d give it five stars.

THE LITTLE MERMAID- BROADWAY

Let’s start with the admission that this show is far from perfect, shall we? Yeah, some of the costumes (Flounder in a t-shirt!?) are abnormally awful, the climax is a terrible letdown and the male lead is flat and not charismatic enough to make us care.

But, and this is a big however, despite all these reservations I still loved the show. The new songs were incorporated near-perfectly with the originals (the standouts were “I Want the Good Times Back” and “If Only,” but the others are quite good as well) to make a musical cohesive whole that has never quite been pulled off by a Disney show before (and yes, I’m looking at you “Lion King”). Sierra Burgess is a knockout as Ariel, as was Tituss Burgess, who played Sebastian.

The sets, staging and choreography (yes, I am one of the few who loved the wheelies) were all top-notch, a great mix of old-school theater tricks (Ariel’s fin falling off like a piece of cloth, body doubles for transitions) and brilliant new tricks (Ursula’s lair and the tentacles).

So yeah, I loved it. And if the standing ovation at the end is any indication, so did almost everyone in the audience. It’s not going to reshape our views of what Broadway can be, as “The Lion King” did, but I sat there the entire time with a stupid grin on my face, and it’s still there when I think about the show.

I’d give this one three-and-a-half stars.

LEGALLY BLONDE- BROADWAY

Like most everyone reading this, I watched the special on MTV, so I wondered whether or not I should waste a hundred bucks on seeing the same thing on Broadway.

Boy I’m happy I did.

The show is HUGE, energetic and fun, but I knew that already. But seeing it live, with an audience who feeds off the leads’ energies, made for an amazing night. I would have never thought a light comedy production would work well in the gigantic Palace theater, but it did. Seeing the show live also gives you a chance to pick up smaller moments that were lost in the broadcast, like half the supporting cast in most musical numbers. I am honestly flabbergasted that the cast can keep up this level of energy every night, and hugely happy that the show is doing so well and will hopefully have a healthy run. The theater was PACKED.

My main problem wasn’t with the show itself, it was that those who wanted autographs and a moment of time with the stars after were herded AGAINST the building and told that no photos were going to be taken. Only about 30 percent of the cast actually took time to sign, the rest escaping without a wave or smile.

I’d give this one four stars.

PHANTOM- LAS VEGAS

I like “Phantom of the Opera” quite a bit, though I’d always felt like the Broadway incarnation was way too long and needed a bit of tinkering to fix accidentally humorous moments (I’m talking about the magically playing piano in Act 2).

Well, talk about my prayers being answered, because the Vegas version of “Phantom” is trimmed to a perfect 90-minutes. All the fat is gone (and forgotten), and everything is bigger and more beautiful than before. Here the chandelier actually FORMS over the audience during the overture, and later the Phantom actually gets ON the chandelier. And when it falls, let’s just say it’s totally a different experience than Broadway, and left at least two women screaming their heads off. The auditorium is full of mannequins watching the spectacular along with the audience (eerie effect), and there are updated effects and pyrotechnics in almost every number.

My only complaint is that, by adhering closer to the film than the Broadway production in terms of plot, much of the show’s logic is thrown out the window. Why the hell would the owners of the Opera House do the Phantom’s musical if he had not done anything to frighten them into it, like dropping a chandelier? Ah well.

The cast was also, on the whole, magnificent, and I preferred them to the Broadway cast I saw.

I’d give it four-and-a-half stars.

WICKED- LOS ANGELES

Aside from the monkeys not flying out over the audience like on Broadway, this is almost exactly the same production as you would see in NYC, and since I loved it there, I loved it here.

The cast was, however, just not up to par with what I saw on the East Coast. It was the understudy for Elphaba, so I understood that, but the dude who played Fiyero was flat and unmemorable, and couldn’t sing well. The same could be said for Boq, The Wizard and Morrible. They weren’t BAD, per se, but the acting was just on the level of a college production, nothing more.

The one standout was the woman who played Glinda, who knocked it out of the park in terms of vocals and, especially, the physicality of the role. She surpassed her counterpart on Broadway, in my humble opinion.

While I’d give the Broadway production four-and-a-half stars, I’d give the LA version three-and-a-half because of the casting.

Posted: 4/22/08 at 3:35pm

Haha! John Groff said that? Thats amazing! He's so cute.

[suicidalmickeymouse]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 3:37pm

Great reviews, thank so much!

[snl89]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 3:42pm

hehehe Groff, just TRY and get cuter, seriously. I dare you. <33


awesome reviews!! thank you for posting and I'm glad you had such a great time!

[sgv123]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 3:57pm

who did you see as brooke?

[Robert Taylor]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 4:23pm

Please don't mock me when I ask which show Brooke is in...lol

[SwtHrtBallerina]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 4:25pm

Thanks for the reviews!! Those were great! I didn't know that the LV show of Phantom was slightly different. That intrigues me and makes me really want to go see it!!!

That's too bad about the autographs after Legally Blonde. Glad to hear the show was even more wonderful in real life. I hope to see that one when I travel to NYC (this fall hopefully!).

Intresting costume on Flownder!

Was Megan Hilty your Glinda? I adore her!! Too bad about the rest of the cast, but at least she was something worth watching !

[Robert Taylor]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 4:28pm

Yeah, it was Megan Hilty.

The other thing that surprised me about the Western shows was that the audience was much less prone to lend huge rounds of applause to showstopping shows. Neither Phantom or Wicked got the applause they would have gotten on Broadway, and though some people stood up for Hilty when she took her bow, they sat back down for the remainder of the applause.

Strange...

[vinnylin]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 4:30pm

"Plus, it can’t get much better than hearing Jonathan Groff say “Wasn’t I singing to you all night?” as soon as he sees you, can it? I don’t think so."

Aah, but did he spit on you? That would be a sign of true affection.

Glad you enjoyed your shows!

[Robert Taylor]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 4:33pm

Actually, he did a little bit.

But, you know what, kudos to the guy for getting THAT into the role.

[yankees1253]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 4:40pm

thanks for the reviews. loved them...i am not a fan of flounder in a t-shirt, let them wear not short shorts but shorts and nothing else and just paint their bodies.
how did you like seeing legally blonde live then when you saw it on mtv?

[broadwayfan7]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 4:41pm

Thanks for your reviews! Sounds like you had a great trip!

[sgv123]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 4:53pm

brooke is in legally blonde, there should of been an u/s slip for her.

[SwtHrtBallerina]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 5:14pm

Robert - that's very interesting about the bows!!

I live in Minnesota, so halfway between the east and west coast. I will say for the record that all the B-way shows that i've gone to here in Minneapolis when they've come on tour - the audiences are pretty amazing! Standing ovations for all of the shows and no one has EVER sat down after applauding. Omg - i couldn't even imagine doing that! I feel like that's a slap in the face. That just doesn't seem right.
Since it is in the Hollywood area, maybe they're more accustomed to live TV performances being taped, or movies... *shrugs*... you don't applaud too boisterously during the live taping of a show, or give many standing ovations, to my knowledge at least. THat's my lame guess for it all.

[Robert Taylor]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 5:53pm

I know!

I live in Ohio and the audience is ALWAYS exceedingly kind and when they are up, they are UP.

Maybe the audience is just used to sitting down at the casino tables in Vegas?

[caitlinette]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 6:05pm

Ariel’s fin falling off like a piece of cloth

Darn! So that's still how they do it? I heard from someone that the tail somehow exploded into bits of glitter and it was much better than before.

[Robert Taylor]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 7:52pm

Nope, still a piece of cloth.

I found it rather cute the way they did it "old school," though I know many members had a problem with it on the boards.

But, in my opinion, if something isn't broken...

[Brave Sir Robin2]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 8:02pm

"Sierra Burgess is a knockout as Ariel, as was Tituss Burgess, who played Sebastian."

You mean Sierra Boggess?
"a great mix of old-school theater tricks (Ariel’s fin falling off like a piece of cloth, body doubles for transitions) and brilliant new tricks (Ursula’s lair and the tentacles)."

Um...the lair does what? And I agree about the body double, but I think it looks weird that her tail is not the same as Sierra's/

[Robert Taylor]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 11:04pm

Not so much the lair as the tentacle surprise at the end that I won't ruin here.

[yankees1253]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 11:07pm

if you read the gypsy of the month, michelle lockadoo shares a little secret about ariel transfermation. she is actually ariel's body double.

[BDavis0092]

Posted: 4/22/08 at 11:45pm

I'm glad you enjoyed Spring Awakening so much!

[Robert Taylor]

Posted: 4/23/08 at 1:10pm

Yeah, the body doubles were shockingly good. In Phantom I can always tell, but the Eric body double actually caught me completely by surprise.

[pinkngreen]

Posted: 4/27/08 at 1:41pm

I'm totally inclined to agree with you on some points but not others for Wicked LA.

Morrible has been horrible since Carol Kane departed. I hear the understudy rocks but JoAnn Worley has been terrible and I am grateful that she doesn't have a full song because it would be unbearable.

I am a bit confused as to how everyone sat back down after Glinda took her bow as the witches tend to --read always-- take their bows at the very end of the curtain call.

Also, the Elphaba understudy, if you had the pleasure of seeing Teale Wicks, absolutely blows the lead, Caissie Levy, out of the water. I have to wonder if you saw Caissie and just assumed she was the understudy...because then your assessment of Elphaba being lacking would make more sense.

If you happened to see Wicked anytime recently, there could be a number of explanations for Fiyero being subpar, ranging from the lead being on vacation and understudies covering the role to the fact that Kris Cussick had pneumonia and was hospitalized recently.

All in all, I'm sorry that you found the L.A. production lacking as we all love it out here.