SHUCKED On Broadway - Reviews Thread — Page 6

Matt Rogers said: "Why don’t you peoples allow New York, New York to open before you hand over the Best Musical award to Kimberly Akimbo?"

KA is universally acclaimed and fits the mold for the type of show the Tonys have been rewarding in the last decade. It’s not exactly a stretch to consider it the clear front runner right now, particularly as NY NY’s first impressions have been shaky and Stroman hasn’t had a hit musical in a very long time. Who knows, it could surprise.

Does anyone know what the current running time is?

On Saturday the 2:00 matinee was done at 4:23.

We had someone talking back to the actors in the audience. It was annoying until somewhere in the second act it something she said was funny. But it was still annoying.

There were quite a few school groups last night at least in the back mezz where I was. Sometimes they are well behaved, sometimes they are not. But everyone was having a good time

The Distinctive Baritone said: "Alex Newell sounds like a typical Tony nomination lock, but…as featured actor or featured actress? Or will they decline consideration?"

In a perfect world, they will submit for featured Actor and come Tony night, Alex and J Harrison, will walk up on that stage in all their fabulousness saying"We are Queer, we are Here, get used to it!" At this point I don't know, but if they submit for featured actor Alex is definitely the front runner.

Pretty sure BROADWAY is used to queer individuals, this is about the Tony (and every other award show that separates due to gender) figuring it out. No easy answer, as the many discussion here about it have shown.

Also saw it last night and have to agree with pretty much everything uncageg said. The whole show is a delight and a bundle of laughs, and while some songs slowed down the show a little, they were still entertaining enough and I'd say the majority of the songs incorporated the jokes well enough to feel fairly seamless. In particular, I think the opening number and act 1 closer do exactly what you need them to do, and Hee Haw is definitely the highlight of the second act (the staging of that is just incredible), with some great vocal showcases for Andrew Durand and Alex Newell in the first act.

The story harkens back to the Golden Age while making it a bit more progressive, but it never felt like it was trying too hard to be "woke" to me (there's a joke about diverse pilgrims that made up their ancestors but it was played as more tongue in cheek rather than preachy). I really have to commend them on making just about all the characters likeable or endearing in different ways, especially as they're basically all completely new characters (I don't know how much of the original Hee Haw material was retained, but I certainly wasn't familiar with that show beforehand). The jokes are quite a wild mix, some of them so outlandish or out of pocket that I couldn't help but laugh (though some took a second for me to get), and I enjoyed how each character kind of had their own schtick--I just wish we had one more round of "I think"s from Peanut.

The love stories are a little tidy by the end and I wish Alex Newell had a second act song for Lulu that showed where she changed her mind about love, but it didn't bother me too much considering that this isn't exactly meant to be a deep character study of romance. There were a couple of scenes that played as slightly clunky (like when the corn first starts dying), but I'm sure those can be smoothed out over the course of previews.

My main issue was actually in the sound design, which was very naturalistic and let me hear everything pretty well, but the thing is that with so many jokes, there's a lot of laughter or applause from the audience that it would drown out the next line, and sometimes the orchestra overpowered the singer a bit as well, so I would've preferred if the mics were turned up just a smidge.

The audience was VERY enthusiastic and while I do think some of them were friends of the production, others really seemed to be genuinely enjoying it. I don't think it would necessarily displace Kimberly Akimbo for Best Musical, but I do think it would be a solid second, and I liked quite a bit of the score as well (something that I didn't really feel during the first watch of Kimberly).

I saw Shucked Tuesday night and wanted to like it more than I did. With the usual caveats that it’s the first week of previews and all, here were my qualms:

- Maizy, the lead character, and Gordy, the love interest/would-be villain, were mostly dull unless they were interacting with other people. I don’t blame Caroline Innerbichler and John Behlmann for that, as it feels more like a writing problem. Shucked is a silly musical comedy so that shouldn’t be fatal but it hurts the musical because they spend most of it as types instead of characters - even for a fable. I wasn’t expecting a deep character study but I was hoping for more.

- Andrew Durand is underused. There’s a short sequence in the second act when Durand - who plays Maizy’s estranged beau, Beau, gets to do some physical comedy as he goes over the top trying to get her attention. It’s hilarious and character-driven, and what the show feels like it’s missing. Instead, Durand spends much of the show stewing and singing ballads (I agree with the commenter who thought the second one is unnecessary) until he finally gets to have fun during a big guys’ song in the second act. This felt like a lost opportunity, which I noticed during a cleverly written scene with Maizy which gave Innerbichler more to do. As he proved in Head Over Heels, Durand can spin comic gold even with thin material. He should be given an opportunity to do more.

- Jokes in lieu of everything. There are some funny jokes in Robert Horn’s book and there are a lot of them. But I thought the book emphasized jokes sometimes to the story’s detriment. There’s a plot twist involving two key characters that Horn doesn’t even try to explain. Alex Newell gets the short shrift here, as she is the most interesting character in the show. It is perhaps telling that Newell and Durand get a second act duet even though their characters are singing to other people.

- The score lacks cohesion. There are some funny songs in Shucked, and Newell’s big Act One showcase, but much of the score is devoted to pretty but earnest country-pop ballads. The show is based on a ridiculous premise; too many of the songs don’t reflect that.

There are plenty of things to like - Newell is a powerhouse (and we needed more of that character too), Kevin Cahoon is hilarious as Peanut (and sells some of Horn’s more off-the-wall jokes). The narrators are very funny. My wife enjoyed the show more than I did. The Nederlander was full and the audience was enthusiastic. At its best, the musical displays a winning charm and silliness that almost overwhelms any ‘serious’ critique. Perhaps my gripe is that the mechanics of this musical comedy (topical jokes, too-earnest score) got in the way of the fable. It’s an old-fashioned show with a cast that is clearly having a lot of fun performing this show, and that covers a lot of flaws. And the ending, despite its jokes, does snap into place.

Updated On: 3/15/23 at 01:26 AM

Saw this tonight and had a good time. Let’s be real - it’s a STUPID show but stupid can be a lot of fun. The show is interesting in that its going to be a lot more entertaining with a full audience looking to laugh at the multitude of nonstop “corny” puns and jokes but when these first preview heavily discounted audiences end and the houses aren’t as full it could get very awkward.

Was anyone in the left rear mezz tonight? Was there a fight? I was right up front but there was commotion up there and sounded like some shouting and I couldnt tell what was going on.

Have the members of this board completely lost their collective minds??? I was at the show Wednesday night. What is going down at the Nederlander Theatre under the guise of “Shucked” is nothing less than an unmitigated disaster. What’s worse it’s an insult to the heart and soul of country music with a score that is truly duller than dishwasher. I live in Nashville, so I have some idea of what the best of country can be.

Robert Horn’s book has a few sharp lines, but not nearly enough to make up for the idiotic story he concocted to support his brand of humor. It’s too dumb and — yes — corny to even summarize.

Sadly, this show is a harbinger of what most of Broadway is fast becoming — a catch-all for dreck that does nothing more than appeal to the lowest common denominator of audiences who are simply out to hoot and holler. These people could care less if they were in a Broadway theater or a 70,000-seat football arena. They are there to party. Period. And unfortunately, savvy money-grubbing producers see this situation for what it is and are pandering to it in the worst possible way in order to make a buck.

As for the talent on stage, there is just one real standout Alex Newell. She has comic timing and a voice to die for. I kept thinking she would make a phenomenal Effie in “Dreamgirls” if anyone is up for a revival. As for the rest, a couple have decent voices but zero stage presence. What’s worse, they really have no clue how to sell what little humor there is in Horn’s script. Director Jack O’Brien seems to have been asleep at the wheel.

And were the producers of this corn fest really too cheap to pop for a decent orchestra? What there was sounded god-awful, and Jason Howland’s orchestrations do nothing to lift up Brandy Clark’s and Shane McAnally’s instantly forgettable score. And to think these two musical bigwigs are considered hotshots in Nashville.

Well, well, well, well, well well, one thing is certain. They sure haven’t struck oil with this sorry excuse for a musical.

What's wrong with a fun night at the theater? Not everything has to be so serious. Not everything has to be a Hamilton, or Les Miserables, or anything. People can have those shows, and then others, who are smart too, can have this sort of show as an escape from the seriousness that seems to be the norm. There's more to the show than just gags to "hoot and holler" at. Get over yourselves and let people enjoy things! People want original shows, but there are always critics. I am NOT saying people are not letting people enjoy things. I'm just saying like...goodness. You don't have to have an opinion on every show.



I also saw the show last night. I thought I heard some sort of commotion at some point but it went away pretty quickly. I was too engrossed in the show

People are paying a premium price for shows like Moulin Rouge, MJ, Six, The Lion King, Book of Mormon, & Juliet. All shows that are light entertainment.

People pay to be entertained. What award shows reward is irrelevant here.