Show Reviews:7 Shows/3 Nights Dec. 2014

[Phantom4ever]

Posted: 12/31/14 at 2:08am

Just finished my whirlwind New York theater trip and I'd like to share some thoughts with you all:

By the way, the audiences at these seven shows were all very well-behaved. Worst offenders were parents answering young children's questions. Those were never intrusive though. Not a cellphone or candy wrapper anywhere!



SPOILERS MOST LIKELY AHEAD!!!!!!



IT'S ONLY A PLAY Saturday, Dec. 27 matinee
Nathan Lane made this show enjoyable. I would not see it without him in it. And I was more excited to see Mullally and Channing because I'm a fan of their past work. Yes Stockard Channing's plastic surgery was a huge distraction, but it fit her character perfectly, and it ultimately made her funnier.
I thought it was interesting that they referred to internet "chat rooms" when they were wondering how the reviews went. It would have been a lot more topical to mention this board than to say "chat rooms" like it's 1995.
One of the highlights of the show for me besides Lane was Mullally's character getting angry every time the cast of a B-way showed up to the cast party (unseen offstage). To hear her scream in a Karen Walker voice "No I did not invite the Book of Mormon!" was classic. Speaking of....why did she have to use Karen Walker's voice? I was looking forward to hearing her use her natural voice.
If you like theater in-jokes, this is the show for you. Side note: the seats at this theater were the tightest of all seven shows, in terms of seat width. The two men on either side of me and I all had to sit with our arms crossed because we would be caressing each other's arms all night otherwise.


THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME Saturday, Dec. 27 evening
Wow this was a show that didn't hit me until after it was over because it was so overwhelming the whole time. First of all, the tech of the show was simply peerless. You should sit in the mezz to get the full effect of the tech. The scene on the subway platform in Act 2 had me in tears all due to TECH. Unbelievable. Alex Sharp possessed his character so fully and deeply. There was some direction that I didn't care for that called attention to the play-within-a-play element. It just wasn't needed and it muddled the tone of the show. Otherwise, a wonderful production that I eagerly look forward to seeing again.

A DELICATE BALANCE Sunday Dec. 28 matinee
I did not enjoy this show as much as I wanted to, but I read the NY Times review afterward, and that changed my opinion of it. The show made me uneasy and borderline stressed-out because of its existential nature--its refusal to name the "terror" that the family's friends experienced. Somewhere deep down inside I hoped that it would turn into some sort of Unsolved Mysteries episode I suppose. But the NY Times review made me realize that Albee wanted to make his audience uneasy about the delicate balance of family life and the worthless struggle to try and find meaning in life. Depressing stuff. But it sure will come in handy when I teach existentialism to my seniors next week.
Martha Plimpton and Clare Higgins were the highlights for me. When Clare Higgins first walked in and her eyes darted all over the set....my gosh I could not wait to find out this woman's story. And she had he hooked every moment she was onstage. Plimpton as well played a down-and-out 30-something with the right mix of childishness and a fierce desire for independence (in her childhood bedroom). Glenn Close played the role of the snobby suburban mother/wife very well, but it just didn't seem like a stretch. It seemed like she could have sleptwalk through her part if she wanted.

INTO THE WOODS (off-Broadway) Sunday, Dec 28 evening
Ok I have to admit that I JUST saw Into the Woods for the very first time at the movie theater last Friday night. Loved it. So this play was my 2nd time ever seeing the title, and the first time seeing it on stage. I read somewhere in an advertisement that this is supposed to be a stripped down Woods; just a ladder, ten actors, and a piano. Sure, it is stripped down, but there is a heck of a lot more than just those things on stage. I'd rather not give away some of the inventive things that they did. But they did an excellent job with this show. The direction was flawless in every way. Some of the voices did struggle with some of the belting however. But that did not take away from this production. I hope to see it again and again.

LES MISERABLES Monday, Dec. 29 matinee
Got to see tons of understudies. This was probably the most emotional time I've ever had at Les Miz, and I've seen it over 25 times. I wish i knew what made this performance so emotional, perhaps it was how the actors just connected with the material in a way I've never seen and it was deeply effective. Aaron Walpole as Valjean wasn't afraid to let his vulnerable side be on display. Erin Clemons as Eponine was a godsend. Eponine is my favorite Miz character and I judge my Eponines harshly. I was not happy with Nikki James' Eponine because she did not capture the distinct combo of hopelessly lovestruck yet also hopelessly optimistic yet hopelessly resigned to a short life of unrequited love. She instead often looked like she was thinking "how do I get this boy to like me" when it is so much more than that. Erin Clemons captured Eponine's complexities, and she belted the heck of On My Own. I sincerely hope this production does not close anytime soon. I need frequent Les Miz in my life.

THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA Monday, Dec. 29 evening
This was my 51st time seeing POTO on Broadway. Yes, I realize that will make 99% of you completely dismiss all of my opinions but so what. Anyway, Kaley Ann Voorhees was Christine and she was a delight. She legitimately seemed as if she could be hoodwinked by a masked man who lives in a basement. She just had that innocence about her. There was an understudy on for Firmin and he made the conductor work extra hard. He struggled to keep up with the orchestra and the conductor was frantically waving his baton at him and even his hands sometimes in a fruitless effort to get him back on beat. I'm sure that actor will get a stern talking-to. Then there's Norm. I love Norm. He's great. Best acted Phantom ever. When he screams for Christine to leave at the end, he will melt your evil, Sondheim-loving, ALW-hating heart every time. (BWW in-joke right there). He clearly has reflected on the Phantom's obvious arrested social development and how that would make him act around a girl like Christine. However.....just like the other times I saw him, Norm simply could not sing this score....fully. One of my favorite moments in Phantom is the final note of Music of the Night (not because the song is over you bastards) but because the actor holds out the note over the final chords and there is a brief moment at the end where you hear him still singing and hitting the T in night hard. Norm 110% can't do this. Sometimes it sounds like his voice could do it but he just needs vocal rest, and other times it sounds like he simply does not have the right voice for the part. I'm really not sure which one it is.

ON THE TOWN Tuesday, Dec. 30 matinee
I love shows like Anything Goes, Nice Work, etc. so I was hoping I would like this too. And I did. The first act though, was lumbering. The exposition went on far too long. Act 2 was zippy, zany, funny, sexy, and memorable. This show has one of the most unique openings I have ever seen in theater. Jackie Hoffman. I saw her in Xanadu and she was hysterical. Here, in her first scene as the music teacher, she was very funny. The perfect send-up to untalented music teachers. But then each subsequent time she appeared onstage it was almost like we were supposed to laugh just because it's her. Sometimes people say "oh so-and-so could read the phone book on stage and people would love it". Well, that is not true for Jackie Hoffman. My heart went out to her when she was greeted with silence while trying to force the same joke on us for the umpteenth time. She did have the best line of the show when she said "I'm so confused! Why is there a matinee on a Tuesday!!" So funny. Can't wait to see the show again and hear what the line is on another performance time. Tony Yazbeck was a dream in his role. Alysha Umphress and Allison Gunn stole the show for me. They were so effortlessly funny, which was the exact opposite of Hoffman despereately hamming it up for laughs.

[gleek4114]

Posted: 12/31/14 at 2:40am

Glad you had a good time! I think Jackie changes that line every show. I went to the first preview and she said, "AHHH! First preview!!"

[Phantom4ever]

Posted: 12/31/14 at 3:09pm

Thanks. Yeah I wonder if she changes it nightly or weekly or what.