SWEPT AWAY Previews — Page 2

Would anyone who has a ticket to Nicole in Sunset and no longer want to go after they found out she is MAGA want to swap their ticket for my Swept Away ticket?? I can't say these reviews are making me believe I made the right purchasing decision!! 

The worst musical on broadway right now, and maybe the worst jukebox musical ever?

binau said: "I will still go in with an open mind. It sounds like nothing I've ever seen before, and even for that reason alone I do have to see it. I appreciate that Broadway theatre even in continued economic struggles will take risks. Sometimes they don't always pay off and that's ok to..."

Just saw this and it’s insufferable. Not really a story there. Cool songs, talented cast, but it felt like a staged 54 Below concept album with a big budget. 

I didn't love this. I didn't hate this. I DID "like" it in that there is a lot to admire - beautiful design and stagecraft, phenomenal cast, great vocals and performances, solid direction... The book is this show's biggest downfall. It's slow and has a lot of lulls. I liked the relationship between the two brothers.

I thought I would dislike this more than I did, and I had very low expectations going in. I was happy they were exceeded, but this is still not a perfect show by any means.

Also, if you're looking for a feel good show, just know that this is NOT it.

keen on kean said: "I am clearly in the minority so far as I saw this last week and found it moving and incredibly staged. I want to see it again.

I didn't know the Avett Brothers music, and during the first song my ear kind of went "Wait, what?" And then it worked for me. This is the kind of music that working men and sailors in the 1880s would have created and used. A sailor's life on a whaling ship was an odd and complicated fraternity.

The four principals know their characters so well after all their timer working this production through to Broadway. They aren't acting anymore. They seem to be projecting their own strengths and weaknesses, and the brothers in particular OK are like brothers: struggling against each other but so alike in important ways. Stark Sands blew me away in JOURNEY's END and he is just as good in this.

But the comment by someone earlier on this thread astounds me, something about "What's the point?" If you don't get the point of a major human ethical issue, maybe you should go see a musical that does not address anything important. It is true that this show is not going to appeal to many typical musical audience members, but it isn't GYPSY. But that does not mean it is not valid and effective."

The point of this show may be reaching the creatives and cast, but not all of us in the audience are on the ship. Part of any good show is character development and sadly this has a lot of character circumstances. It’s very much a jukebox of songs that comment on the plot but don’t advance it. 

They could’ve taken a note from Jersey Boys or Beauitful. At least those characters were striving for something. 
 

 

akhoya87 said: "You have to give the creatives credit -- they do a great job of making the audience feel as if they're trapped on a boat going nowhere."

The stage craft is 10/10 across the board. That’s non negotiable, but the craft of the script and story leaves much to be desired. 

NYT: How the Tale of a Brutal Shipwreck Became a Broadway Musical

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/11/theater/swept-away-broadway-avett-brothers.html?unlocked_article_code=1.ZE4.wIww.6WOuCzCkElsG

yyys said: "The worst musical on broadway right now, and maybe the worst jukebox musical ever?"

From what I'm gathering from the NYT article, it's based on the Avett Brothers album already about the sunk yacht. Thanks to jukebox part, it's technically out of the running for worst jukebox musical ever.

keen on kean said: "Striving for something? So I guess you totally missed why the two brothers end up on a whaling ship?

And your references to Beautiful and Jersey Boys is oddly appropriate: this isn't a juke box musical. It is not the story of a singing group. Anyone who goes to see an Avett Brothers concert at this show needs to pay closer attention before buying a ticket."

1. Do you know the definition of a Jukebox musical? I’ll give you another shot. 
 

2. An audience shouldn’t have to research a music group for a musical to be good. That falls on the creative team. The show should be a good for  a stranger walking in off the street. 
 

Some Jukeboxes work. Some don’t. Don’t blame us that this doesn’t. 
 

 

My bad if I was not clear. You cited JERSEY BOYS and BEAUTIFUL which are both very specific types of juke box musical because it is a musical about people who write the music being used in the musical. In the case of SWEPT AWAY, the Avett Brothers created an album years ago only a portion of which was inspired by the shipwreck story and John Logan got permission to look at the entire Avett catalogue for songs to incorporate. So it is not just using an established song set and writing around it.

I don't usually do this much "homework" for any musical but I did not know the Avett Brothers at all before seeing this musical and I was so intrigued that I went back and read up on the development of this work.

I guess I was struck by how appropriate the sound and content of the songs were for a story of the crew of a hard luck commercial whaling ship. Very simple, poignant and earthy.

Watching this felt like *I* was stuck at sea for 16 days - but my salvation wasn't land, it was an exit sign.
 
Razor thin book. Misguided and self-congratulatory direction. Repetitive music. Poor performance from JGJ. I will not be recommending this to anyone I know. 

Updated On: 11/14/24 at 09:54 PM