#1
Posted: 8/13/08 at 1:23pm
While “Legally Blonde” opened to mostly positive reviews, seven Tony nominations and has consistently grossed excellent numbers for The Palace Theater, when the show crossed the one-year mark in April, a bit of the glitter and gloss had been shaken from the production. Some of the original cast were becoming visibly tired in their performances (understandably, the show has one of the hardest working ensembles on Broadway), and there was no reason to believe the replacements brought in would do anything other than stand as placeholders in the production until closing notices were posted.
But then a funny thing happened: Baily Hanks took the stage. And now the sugar-coated show that was beginning to crash faster than a four-year old on Halloween has found a yummy, chewy chocolate center in the middle of its Tootsie Pop. And yes, that will be the last metaphor involving candy in this review.
If you didn’t know the story of Elle Woods (Hanks) from the movie or the sequel or the books or the MTV broadcast or the reality show or the show under original Elle Laura Bell Bundy (phew!), it is as follows: Blonde loves boy (Richard Blake). Boy wants to be JFK so he breaks up with her. Girl says “Hell to the no!” and follows boy to Harvard. Girl gets chip on shoulder and realizes (gasp!) that you should not define yourself by who you are with and how you look. Lots of dancing ensues.
If you are looking for depth in characterization (aside from the lead), shocking twists or sex on a swinging platform look elsewhere. “Legally Blonde” aims to be nothing more than a sweet, funny energetic “you go girl!” production where you sit through number after number, eyes aching from ingesting all the pink around you, with a stupid grin on your face.
That isn’t to say the show isn’t smart, because it can be. The show is filled to the brim with well-placed, witty pop culture references and fun lyrics played to catchy tunes. It’s stylish in the way it embraces the air-headness of several of its characters, never quite becoming mean-spirited in its pokes. When the show is firing on all cylinders, which is more often than not, it is a magnificent Broadway beast that you find yourself embracing wholeheartedly.
The amount of energy put forth into some numbers still astounds this audience member. You actually may be out of breath just watching the dance ensemble jump, jump and jump some more rope in the act two opener “Whipped Into Shape,” despite the fact that the cast is doing all the work and you are in your seat eating Twizzlers. The choreography, while nothing groundbreaking, is still infectious, and you may find yourself toe-tapping to the point where you want to get up in your seat and groove during “Bend and Snap” and “Positive.”
But sadly, the excellence of most of the show puts an even larger spotlight over the duds in the show, and there are a few. Some of the sorority dialogue falls far from the “so dumb its smart” and is just plan dumb. And the black hole that is “The Harvard Variations” and “Blood in the Water,” which encompasses all of eight minutes in the show’s just-right two-and-a-half hour running time, feels like three times that length, especially coming off of the high the audience is feeling at the finale of “What You Want,” a hugely energetic, fast and nigh-perfect mix of song, dance and chuckles.
And, with all the energy and devotion necessary to sustain the show’s energy, it is no wonder that the show was beginning to tear at the seams. But the addition of Hanks to the cast has not only revitalized the lead role, but it seems to have re-energized the show as a whole. There is a new coat of paint on “Legally Blonde,” and of the three times I’ve seen the production, I had the most fun with Hanks.
Hanks (who won the role on an MTV reality show) is a revelation in what is, aside perhaps from Patti Lupone’s magnificent turn in “Gypsy,” the hardest lead female role on Broadway right now. She sings, she dances, she jokes, she cries and she triumphs, all while making it look shockingly easy. What a find, and here’s hoping she has a long, successful career on Broadway when she retires Elle’s wig.
And the rest of the cast seems motivated by her lead to do the best work I’ve seen from them. Orfeh especially seems to have gotten her second wind as the feisty, lovable Paulette, and brings down the house with her “Ireland” and “Ireland Repise.”
The huge Palace Theater was filled to the brim with a diverse group of patrons, many of whom have probably never shelled out $100 for a Broadway show before. The overwhelming appeal of the show to all types of fans, specifically those who don’t normally see Broadway productions but may see more in the future, certainly is a good thing for the Great White Way as a whole.
Thanks to the captivating performance of Hanks, “Legally Blonde” has gotten a second lease on life. It’s still light as air and bending and snapping its way to applause every night, and here’s hoping it retains this energy in the future.
Rating: **** (out of 5)
But then a funny thing happened: Baily Hanks took the stage. And now the sugar-coated show that was beginning to crash faster than a four-year old on Halloween has found a yummy, chewy chocolate center in the middle of its Tootsie Pop. And yes, that will be the last metaphor involving candy in this review.
If you didn’t know the story of Elle Woods (Hanks) from the movie or the sequel or the books or the MTV broadcast or the reality show or the show under original Elle Laura Bell Bundy (phew!), it is as follows: Blonde loves boy (Richard Blake). Boy wants to be JFK so he breaks up with her. Girl says “Hell to the no!” and follows boy to Harvard. Girl gets chip on shoulder and realizes (gasp!) that you should not define yourself by who you are with and how you look. Lots of dancing ensues.
If you are looking for depth in characterization (aside from the lead), shocking twists or sex on a swinging platform look elsewhere. “Legally Blonde” aims to be nothing more than a sweet, funny energetic “you go girl!” production where you sit through number after number, eyes aching from ingesting all the pink around you, with a stupid grin on your face.
That isn’t to say the show isn’t smart, because it can be. The show is filled to the brim with well-placed, witty pop culture references and fun lyrics played to catchy tunes. It’s stylish in the way it embraces the air-headness of several of its characters, never quite becoming mean-spirited in its pokes. When the show is firing on all cylinders, which is more often than not, it is a magnificent Broadway beast that you find yourself embracing wholeheartedly.
The amount of energy put forth into some numbers still astounds this audience member. You actually may be out of breath just watching the dance ensemble jump, jump and jump some more rope in the act two opener “Whipped Into Shape,” despite the fact that the cast is doing all the work and you are in your seat eating Twizzlers. The choreography, while nothing groundbreaking, is still infectious, and you may find yourself toe-tapping to the point where you want to get up in your seat and groove during “Bend and Snap” and “Positive.”
But sadly, the excellence of most of the show puts an even larger spotlight over the duds in the show, and there are a few. Some of the sorority dialogue falls far from the “so dumb its smart” and is just plan dumb. And the black hole that is “The Harvard Variations” and “Blood in the Water,” which encompasses all of eight minutes in the show’s just-right two-and-a-half hour running time, feels like three times that length, especially coming off of the high the audience is feeling at the finale of “What You Want,” a hugely energetic, fast and nigh-perfect mix of song, dance and chuckles.
And, with all the energy and devotion necessary to sustain the show’s energy, it is no wonder that the show was beginning to tear at the seams. But the addition of Hanks to the cast has not only revitalized the lead role, but it seems to have re-energized the show as a whole. There is a new coat of paint on “Legally Blonde,” and of the three times I’ve seen the production, I had the most fun with Hanks.
Hanks (who won the role on an MTV reality show) is a revelation in what is, aside perhaps from Patti Lupone’s magnificent turn in “Gypsy,” the hardest lead female role on Broadway right now. She sings, she dances, she jokes, she cries and she triumphs, all while making it look shockingly easy. What a find, and here’s hoping she has a long, successful career on Broadway when she retires Elle’s wig.
And the rest of the cast seems motivated by her lead to do the best work I’ve seen from them. Orfeh especially seems to have gotten her second wind as the feisty, lovable Paulette, and brings down the house with her “Ireland” and “Ireland Repise.”
The huge Palace Theater was filled to the brim with a diverse group of patrons, many of whom have probably never shelled out $100 for a Broadway show before. The overwhelming appeal of the show to all types of fans, specifically those who don’t normally see Broadway productions but may see more in the future, certainly is a good thing for the Great White Way as a whole.
Thanks to the captivating performance of Hanks, “Legally Blonde” has gotten a second lease on life. It’s still light as air and bending and snapping its way to applause every night, and here’s hoping it retains this energy in the future.
Rating: **** (out of 5)
Updated On: 8/13/08 at 01:23 PM
