SUNSET BLVD. Reviews — Page 32

MezzA101 said: "Orchestrating The Haunting Sound Of ‘Sunset Boulevard’



https://www.forbes.com/sites/darrynking/2024/12/27/orchestrating-the-haunting-sound-of-sunset-boulevard/"



Wow - after hearing what I thought was ever piece of gossip ever associated with this show, this was the first time I heard that Cullen had been cut and then rehired as orchestrator for it...

bwayphreak234 said: "Made a return visit last night to the house on Sunset (my 4th time seeing this production). I stillcan't get over the glorious symphonic sound of the orchestra backing the vocal pyrotechnics... It's truly just wave after wave of glorioussounds for 2 and a half hours.

Nicole continues to astound with her performance - the stamina and force she exudes nightly is not human. The fact that they are pulling off the act 2 opening night after night with such precision is extremely impressive. Can't wait to go back next weekend to see Caroline Bowman take on Norma!"

Was Tom Francis back last night?

I was there last night too! Scherzinger is giving one of the best performances I have had the privilege of witnessing on the Broadway stage. Francis, Thaxton, and Hodgett-Young were also incredible. The direction and lighting were striking. The show felt like a horror film towards the end, which is something I have never experienced in live theatre. I was genuinely scared by Scherzinger and Thaxton. I don’t have anything to complain about for this production besides the St. James sight lines, which are well established as bad anyway.

I did however notice some bizarre audience behavior. There was a person in the front mezzanine who was using binoculars at one point during the show. Not opera glasses, but binoculars. I only noticed it once, but it was still pretty bizarre as their seats were close and the use of camera/projection blows everything up.

Regardless, great production and would love to see it again.

BwayinVan said: "For those who have been I was wondering what would be a better seat. Front row of balcony or row E orchestra on the right partial view? Aviewfrommyseat says partial view missed some stuff at the back of the stage. Balcony just seems really far away based on pictures I’ve seen. Other options are last 2 rows of orchestra in right or 3rd row of mezz on left. With the seatgeek discount these are the only ones I can afford. The Canadian dollar exchange is killing my theatre options!"

I've seen the show from front row balcony, towards the back of the orchestra on the side, a partial view orchestra seat close to the stage, and from the center of the front mezzanine. I would definitely recommend the front mezzanine for this one.

The balcony, as you mentioned, is very high up, and even the front row feels miles away from the stage. The partial view orchestra seats at the St. James are definitely pretty partial in my experience.

Saw Mandy Gonzalez and Tom Francis perform. Gonzalez is a very capable actress. But her performance is not larger than life. Norma felt like a supporting character. Francis dominates the show. He’s an intense, self-loathing, vulnerable Joe. He makes the guy interesting, when I’ve often found him dull. (Poor Betty is still dull.)

I can’t say I “get” Lloyd’s production. The show feels like a concert for much of the first act. Act two puts some striking images on the video monitors. But they take me out of the story. I can’t tell if he’s trying to “say” something or just look cool. I was waiting for the “ah-hah” moment, where it all made sense. But it never came. Maybe it would have if I’d seen Nicole.

Scaling down the show like this reveals the flaws in the libretto. I never see Joe’s attraction to Norma, or Betty’s for Joe, until they abruptly tell us it’s there. Without a star Norma, or Hollywood iconography, it feels like a slight melodrama about unrequited love.

Looking forward to seeing Caroline’s Norma today. Her voice is spectacular and I’ve always wanted to see her in something, so I snagged a rush ticket on TodayTix. It was much easier than usual, but still took me a couple taps to get through.

Based on her Insta, she seems over the moon to be performing it this (probably) one time before she leaves for Smash. That combined with the general energy boost casts get from supporting a first-time understudy, it should be a great show.

Third time seeing this production. Caroline is was incredible. Very different than Mandy and Nicole, but equally incredible.

Does anyone know why half of the audience was in red? Were they showing their support for her

Caroline was very very good, particularly in Norma’s madder moments. She reminded me instantly of Demi Moore in The Substance, which feels particularly timely and of the same anxieties that sparked this production. Her voice was a bit hesitant during “With One Look” but got more confident as the show went on, and I thought her final scene was incredibly powerful.

This is my first time seeing the show without Nicole, and while the energy in the audience and on stage (especially during the bows) was excellent - thrilling, even - something is definitely missing if you don’t see Nicole. This production’s conception of Norma is singular to Nicole’s peculiarities and unique instrument, and incredibly hard to live up to in only one public performance.

That is not to detract from how solid Caroline was. It will live fondly in my memory as one of those ephemeral moments you can only experience with live theatre. I’m glad I saw her.

I really enjoyed Caroline today and the crowd really felt like a party (in both a good and a bad way). I think it's interesting to see how she plays the role, especially considering that this is probably her only time doing it. It did seem a bit as if she was finding her footing through some of the early scenes but she knocked it out of the park by the second act bits (I loved her As If We Never Said Goodbye and the ending), and I think she succeeded in more of the over-the-top-ness than Mandy did when I saw her. That said, I agree with the poster who said this is Nicole's show (which makes sense since it's literally built around her)--the other two ladies are excellent and I relished the chance to get to see them and what different choices they made, but it's interesting to see how some things that probably originated from Nicole herself (like some of Norma's choreography and mannerisms) sit on other people. Though I think it would've been interesting to see how Caroline could've developed the role if she had multiple chances to go on.

Small thing, but it was kind of disappointing they didn't have a little notice stand or placard with Caroline's picture for the "and if I'm honest I like the lady" part of the title song and instead did a full frame of Tom's face. And the picture Max looks at in the dressing room is of her as Elsa if anyone's curious.

I thought Austin Colby hyping up the mezzanine before the show started was pretty cute and a fun vibe to be there for, but the cheering and applauding in the middle of Norma's breakdown I found to be overdone.

In general I loved seeing the show again, I always find more rabbit holes of different interpretations to jump down whenever I see the show and notice new things (anyone have any idea for the change from "she's been stood up by some uppity hack" to "out of work hack"?). Are there any murmurings of who the new standby would be once Caroline leaves?

I would like to shout out the man two rows behind me in the mezz yesterday, loudly wondering to his friends at intermission if the response to Caroline was because she was that good or if the people in the audience knew she was going on in advance.

And also for (again, loudly) pointing out that this would likely be her only performance, as she would soon be leaving to be in STOMP.