SMASH Previews- Page 11

[BdwyFan]

Posted: 3/22/25 at 10:40am

Was also there and the full cast was in the show! IMO Sublime cast and great performances.  Thought the whole production was great fun (very funny) and the musical score just fantastic.  I was thinking that while there are definitely cult Smash TV followers, the vast majority of the public didn’t even watch the series so have no benchmarks/story comparisons walking in. The people around me never saw the TV show.  My takeaway is that the audience very much enjoyed the show. Robyn and Brooks are standouts! Definitely want to go back after it opens to see the changes. Love love the music. 

[Dolly80]

Posted: 3/22/25 at 10:44am

I saw this last night too and wow, when a huge mess it is

Deeply unfunny- totally different to the tv show, and with no likeable characters at all. 
Zero show stopping moments, and an act 1 finale where a character gets to belt out Let me Be your star, even though she’s said 2 words before that. 
The whole thing is a huge folly and I fear they will lose everything.

The only bright spots were Robyn Hurder, Nielsen and Bowman- whose character is almost entirely sidelined for most of the show. 

[JHughesPSPB]

Posted: 3/22/25 at 12:30pm

Have they been making many changes throughout the preview period?

[MCW1227]

Posted: 3/22/25 at 10:25pm

Agree on that storyline being unnecessary. They could have just had Ivy turning into a diva but having a change of heart in Act II. The teacher looked like the YaYa in My Big Fat Greek Wedding! So weird.  I also thought the soup scene stalled the show and seemed out of place. That being said, Robyn and Brooks were phenomenal!! Robyn was Marilyn but was also Ivy. I’ve followed her for several years and I got chills when she came out for the curtain call. Her talent has always been impressive but this was another level! I think with some strategic tweaking, this show will indeed be a Smash! 

[Dolly80]

Posted: 3/22/25 at 10:47pm

MCW1227 said: "Agree on that storyline being unnecessary. They could have just had Ivy turning into a diva but having a change of heart in Act II. The teacher looked like the YaYa in My Big Fat Greek Wedding! So weird. I also thought the soup scene stalled the show and seemed out of place. That being said, Robyn and Brooks were phenomenal!! Robyn was Marilyn but was also Ivy. I’ve followed her for several years and I got chills when she came out for the curtain call. Her talent has always been impressive but this was another level! I think with some strategic tweaking, this show will indeed be a Smash!"

There is no way this will be a smash, it’s going to get crucified. 

[MCW1227]

Posted: 3/23/25 at 7:27am

We all have our opinions. I think there will be lots more tweaking before critics start  sharpening their knives.

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 3/23/25 at 7:47am

That soup scene should have been cut after the first reading. The fact that it is still intact this late in the game is indicative of the fact that none of the (**DESPERATELY**) needed changes or cuts are going to be implemented to this hot mess.

It sounds like very little, if anything, has changed during the their preview period - which is not uncommon these days so I get it... but if any show could have used some trimming and tightening, it's Smash.

[BETTY22]

Posted: 3/23/25 at 7:48am

I saw the show again last night and was shocked at how few changes have been made. Is it possible that the creative team does not see any problems?

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 3/23/25 at 9:55am

This is one of the most frustrating Broadway disasters I’ve seen in a while. Frustrating, because the problems are so blatant and the material has so much unrealized potential.

The cast isn’t to blame. They sing well but are given no playable book material or character arcs or direction –– how could they possibly be good? The songs and orchestrations/arrangements remain enjoyable but they have so little to do with the actual story. Occasionally there’s life during musical numbers.

It is blatantly obvious that the authors and lead producers — white men in their 60s-70s — have no interest in a musical about women in their 30s-40s. If they were interested in that, they would have given these ladies *something* to play. I was not expecting Brooks Ashmanskas to be the lead of this show, but he’s in almost every scene and has the closest thing to a character arc. And guess what his role is? A lonely, bitter, 50-something gay man who’s been burned by the industry too many times, and who is ok with stepping away from his job for a chance of sex & love with a young man.

I didn’t expect to have praise for the TV show, but at least those characters actually exhibited human emotion occasionally and had lives outside of the rehearsal room.

Congrats to everyone who’s getting health insurance and a few months’ pay from this show.

[Kad]

Posted: 3/23/25 at 10:20am

I don't think I've ever seen such a critical assessment of a show from you before, ESS. Yikes

[mrshowbiz90210]

Posted: 3/23/25 at 12:12pm

Huss417 said: "mrshowbiz90210 said: "so wellsaid and a well writtenreview. I can'twait for your review of Boop!"

How many threads can you make a Boop reference in?"

Don't be a baby darling, I just love how it was written and look forward to their thoughts      

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 3/23/25 at 1:46pm

Kad said: "I don't think I've ever seen such a critical assessment of a show from you before, ESS. Yikes"

ohhhhh I've hated plenty of things, maybe I just had a more articulate moment here 🙃

[Jjohansan]

Posted: 3/23/25 at 7:20pm

I went back last night and had a blast! They're definitely making changes (and should keep going in the direction theyre moving). Don't overthink it, people! It's a truly fun time at the theatre with some of the best voices singing some of the best songs there are.

[MCW1227]

Posted: 3/23/25 at 8:25pm

I was at the 2 pm matinee yesterday and was out of the theater at 4:45, so I estimate the show and curtain call was over by 4:30-4:35. I even thought the intermission was extended as the bathroom lines were ridiculous so the show is about 2.5 hrs long. Needs a bit more cutting. 

Updated On: 3/23/25 at 08:25 PM

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 3/24/25 at 11:47pm

I went again tonight to see if any work had been done on it. Nielsen was in so it was nice to see her in the show and much like Brooks, she makes the most out of what she does and is great fun to watch. And that’s the only improvement from the first preview. A few funny line changes and but absolutely nothing substantial has been done to address the problems “Smash” has and I suppose there’s really no way to do that without closing it to rewrite it. 

At least they didn’t take out the locker room number. 

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 3/25/25 at 10:36am

This was really, really rough. Not much to say that hasn’t already been said, but damn. Unfunny, unfocused, too long, poorly directed (WTF happened to Susan Stroman?!), cheap-looking… all of the big no-nos are on display here. 

Brooks Ashmanskas is working so damn hard to make the whole thing work, you can practically feel his flop sweat from the mezzanine. 

Didn’t think I’d prefer BOOP over this, but here we are. 

[mrshowbiz90210]

Posted: 3/25/25 at 10:52am

sadly I think both shows will be 2025 roadkill. One had potential, both had stellar creative teams and casts. But it always amazes me how so many talented people can bake a bad cake          

[LucyEth]

Posted: 3/25/25 at 11:44am

With all due respect, Stroman has never been (IMHO) a great director.  Contact was, of course, a dance show, which accounted for its deserved success.  The Producers was a smash (but she had Nathan Lane, Mel Brooks and bulletproof material), and The Music Man was fun (and a Tony-winning, proven show). To be fair, The Scottsboro Boys was innovatively conceived and executed.  But the others, all new shows: Thou Shalt Not, The Frogs, Young Frankenstein, Happiness, Big Fish, Bullets Over Broadway, POTUS, New York, New York?  Not to mention Little Dancer, which never made it past DC and Seattle?  Not what I'd call directorial blockbusters.  As a choreographer there's no-one better, but a director needs a spark of genius, endless creativity and an iron fist.  And I don't think that's Stro.

[malcs98]

Posted: 3/25/25 at 11:54am

They should’ve brought back Theresa Rebeck (the person who created the TV show) I mean Bob Martin’s great but having Rebeck on as a co-book writer would’ve really pleased the fans of the TV show…

[BroadwayNYC2]

Posted: 3/25/25 at 12:21pm

“They should’ve brought back Theresa Rebeck”

 

they absolutely should not have. The writing was the worst part of Smash. 

[Wayman_Wong]

Posted: 3/25/25 at 12:28pm

In Susan Stroman's defense, it should be noted that she's a 15-time Tony nominee and 5-time Tony winner, which is nothing to sniff at. Anyone who's worth their salt and has worked on Broadway for decades is likely to have their share of hits and flops. Even the legendary Hal Prince. Surely, everyone wants a hit (unless you're Max Bialystock), and everyone wants to see a hit, but creating a Broadway smash is such an incredible challenge, especially when there are so many moving parts.

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 3/25/25 at 12:29pm

malcs98 said: "They should’ve brought back Theresa Rebeck (the person who created the TV show)I mean Bob Martin’s great but having Rebeck on as a co-book writer would’ve really pleased the fans of the TV show…"

Nope.

[JSquared2]

Posted: 3/25/25 at 12:30pm

malcs98 said: "They should’ve brought back Theresa Rebeck (the person who created the TV show)I mean Bob Martin’s great but having Rebeck on as a co-book writer would’ve really pleased the fans of the TV show…"

 

There's a better chance of reuniting the Beatles!  Rebeck and the rest of the SMASH Team did not exactly part on the best of terms.

Updated On: 3/25/25 at 12:30 PM

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 3/25/25 at 1:48pm

malcs98 said: "They should’ve brought back Theresa Rebeck (the person who created the TV show)I mean Bob Martin’s great but having Rebeck on as a co-book writer would’ve really pleased the fans of the TV show…"

😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣

Thank you. I'm having a really bad day, and this was the high point. Really, thank you.

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 3/25/25 at 1:49pm

Also, never forget:

https://www.buzzfeed.com/kateaurthur/how-smash-became-tvs-biggest-train-wreck

https://web.archive.org/web/20140827040304/https://www.buzzfeed.com/kateaurthur/smash-creator-theresa-rebeck-emailed-me#3pvutlk