Santino Fontana and Judy Kuhn in I can get it for you wholesale — Page 3

Just went shopping for tickets. Is $207 (the Classic Prime tier) a new high for Classic Stage pricing? Seems a tad ambitious.

Was anyone there last night for the first preview?

A Justified Bean said: "Was anyone there last night for the first preview?"

Can someone post the running time when they see it? Thank you

I was there last night. It was definitely a first preview (Both Santino and Judy Kuhn stumbled over lines, but they handled it well), I felt like the lighting department left during act 2 as most of the scenes had people almost completely in the dark. I’ll be curious to hear how this changes during previews.

Julia Lester was the headline for me. She delivers in the Barbra part, Mrs Marmelstein was a complete delight as was her act 2 number. Santino was very strong, a few line flubs, but he's got a bit of a thankless task given that he has one of the most unlikeable characters I've seen in musical theater.

Joy Woods really delivered and while I enjoyed Rebecca Naomi Jones, she feels miscast here, and sang her first some in a strange falsetto that did not work.

Overall, this wasn't the show I expected, Mrs Marmelstein is a lighthearted fun number, as is several other of the big numbers in this show. However, this is a heavy show that is both about the Jewish experience and the cost of success. I found it quite bipolar at times, not sure how much is due to the re-write and changes they made. That said the final tableau is goregous and powerful.

I can't imagine this goes anywhere after this so I'd definitely recommend catching this now, even with its flaws for a show that just isn't done often with an all star cast.

What is the running time? Is this 2 acts?

betyourass said: "Is Santino Jewish? Harry Bogen is an unlikable character, who is also Jewish. To have a non-Jew in the role seems so misguided and upsetting. Especially in these times."

No, he doesn't appear to be (unless he converted since 2015, such as when he got married).

The director, book adapter, producer, and most of the other principal cast all appear to be Jewish, so they may feel it's a non-issue –– and those who take issue with it could choose not to go.

A good piece by Mark Harris re: the recent Bradley Cooper non-controversy: when I hear “Only Jews should play Jews,” what rings in my ears is overanxiety from some members of my religious cohort and ignorance from outside it. I won’t belabor the anxiety here. ... I’ll just say that I don’t think any argument about the systematic denial of opportunity to Jews in [checks notes] the Hollywood entertainment business is going to stand up very well to scrutiny. We are not so direly mistreated by movies and television that we need a category of role reserved for us, and as for having the right to tell our own stories, we tell them (and many others, as everyone should have the opportunity to do) all the time. It’s the righteous certainty that I find cringe-inducing, containing as it does the assumption that all Jews share some deep, ineffable, biographical commonality, some ooky-spooky cross-generational muscle memory or psychic bond that hyper-qualifies us for certain acting assignments and should at least move us to the front of the line.

betyourass said: "Is Santino Jewish? Harry Bogen is an unlikable character, who is also Jewish. To have a non-Jew in the role seems so misguided and upsetting. Especially in these times."



Ridiculous.

Overall, it's a once in a lifetime chance to see this show revived with a talented cast in a very intimate venue.

Co-signed. 100%

Some performances require masks, just an FYI for people.

I was in the 100s and it was perfectly fine, though I'd recommend sitting closer to the 200s side of the theater, as most scenes are specifically directed in that direction. There wasn't anything I felt like I missed in particular and the 100s and 300s should be fairly comparable. I suppose a lot of entrances are made on the house left side, so it might be easier to spot from the 300s section, but that's a pretty minor thing. I'd recommend sitting around 3 rows up so you're high enough to see over the actors in case someone is directly blocking someone else, and the theater is intimate enough that even the last row feels very close.

I really loved this show, knowing basically nothing about it going in. I thought the songs were great and suited the actors very well (I really didn't have an issue with Rebecca Naomi Jones that a previous poster mentioned, but it did seem like she might have been a tiny bit sick). Sarah Steele was a definite standout to me, but I also liked Joy Woods quite a bit too, and of course Judy Kuhn gives a great performance.

I think Santino really suits the role of Harry well, with a lot of charm and smarm and smooth talking where you can see why people go along with him. There are a few moments of direct address (which I believe were added in this production) that could've felt clunky and unnecessary (they never really resolve to anything), but they really worked as a way for him to win us over to his side again (though how much of that was Santino and how much of that was Harry, I couldn't really say). I had forgotten how glorious his voice was, so it was a treat to hear it again, especially in the company of such a great all round cast.

I thought the direction was terrific and really utilized the space well. The set is really simple, mostly made up of a bunch of tables and chairs that get moved around with some other pieces that have a nice payoff in the end. There's no stage deck so it really gives the feeling that you're in a workshop or "on the ground", so to speak. The staging specifically for What Are They Doing to Us Now? was fantastic between the movement, lights, and set, definitely a big highlight of the show, and there are certain things they leave in place after the number that affected later scenes in a really subtle way. I'm not sure if it's customary but there's an opening dance sequence performed by Heshy that I thought was beautifully done as well.

I'm not sure how much of the book was revised, and I'd love to hear from someone who knows the original show better, but I thought there were a lot of really smart moments and the story flowed really well. Harry Bogen makes some pretty terrible choices from a moral standpoint, but I think it's clear how he came to make those choices. I also really enjoyed the roles of Ruthie and Martha and how they felt like they could've been stereotypical love interests but broke the mold just enough to feel fresh. And based on the Wikipedia summary, it seems like the ending might have a slightly different touch (also staged beautifully), but the summary is ambiguous enough where I'm not completely sure.

There are no discounts for this, correct?

I saw it tonight. Julia Lester is a goddamn star and I will see her in anything, Santino Fontana could play this role in his sleep but he does it so so well there's a reason you hire him. Truly the whole cast is uniformly excellent, and worth seeing just for the performances. Overall I liked the show's old fashioned charm and it certainly resonated with current events (there's a moment at the beginning which cut like a knife). I just feel like this is a show that needs spectacle (I mean it's literally about a con man), and so while I love Classic Stages because of how intimate it is, this is the kind of show where getting stripped down and up close really shows the seams. I almost wonder if they're trying for a Broadway transfer because I feel like if you get some glitzy sets and costumes and dance numbers it's a hit (or at least I'd be willing to forgive a lot more).

I don't think we will ever have a chance to see this show ever again, so I recommend anyone interested to go see it.