Six Shows in Four Days! (August 13-16, 2013)

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 8/17/13 at 8:39pm

Hello everyone! I just got back from a wonderful four-day trip to the city. I saw six shows in four days. Here are my thoughts on each...

Tuesday, August 13

Phantom of the Opera
This has always been one of my favorite shows. My main reason for seeing it this time was to take my dad who had never seen it before. I was more excited for him to see it than I was to see it again! The show is in great shape for a show that's been running 25 years. Marni Raab and Kyle Barisich played Christine and Raoul. Both of them were a tad boring, and I wasn't crazy about Raab’s voice. It was a little pitchy. Peter Roback was great as the Phantom.
My problem with this show is one that has been discusses many times on here - the audience. Talking during the show, taking pictures and videotaping, etc. The show was interrupted for me a few times when the usher had to shine her flashlight on people texting and taking pictures. One of these moments was right at the part where they entered the lair too. There was also a man who answered his phone during Act 2.

Wednesday, August 14

Kinky Boots 2pm
This show is just FUN. A true feel good show with a great message and one of the biggest hearts I have ever seen in a Broadway show. Lauper's score is infectious, catchy, and delightful. The orchestrations sounded MUCH better in the actual theatre than on the cast recording. It's a shame that they cut a lot of the orchestra solos and dialogue on the OBCR.
Billy Porter was fabulous, but I honestly feel like Stark Sands stole the show. He KILLED all of his songs, and he just gave a stellar performance. As great as Billy was, I would have given the Tony to Stark Sands. Annaleigh Ashford was hilarious. Absolutely adorable and perfect.
The set was really cool and versatile. I LOVED how the factory looked and how the wheeling unit was used for so many different locations. The sound design was truly spectacular. Every word was crisp and clear, and the orchestra sounded awesome. I was in the second to last row on the mezzanine too - a great view for a great price.

Matilda 8pm
Walking into the Shubert Theatre was like stepping into a whole new world. It was like a giant exploding Wonderland of oversized Scrabble tiles, library books, and jigsaw puzzles. Definitely the most stunning set design I have ever seen. This show manages to transport you right into the world of Roald Dahl. It's so unique and stylized. The lighting, costumes, and sets were just out of this world. I have no clue how the pigtail scene was accomplished either. There were so many moments that just took my breath away.
Milly Shapiro was Matilda. She was adorable perfection. Bertie Carvel and Gabriel Ebbert were both hilarious. Lauren Ward was sensational! I was not expecting such a powerhouse performance from Miss Honey, but she owned My House. Lesli Margherita... This woman is so unbelievably funny, and had me hooked on her every step and word. She was one of my favorite parts of the show.
Now this show would have been perfect for me if it weren't for one thing. The sound. I was in row f of the mezzanine (a perfect view), and the sound was terrible. Nothing sounded loud enough except for a few moments. This orchestra sounded WAY too quiet. I could barely hear it during some parts, which was a shame since Chris Nightingale's orchestrations sound marvelous on the recording. This was rightfully not nominated for sound. The sound was just abysmal. Maybe it was my seat, but it definitely hindered my enjoyment a little bit. I LOVEDLOVED it other than that though, and I would definitely recommend seeing it. It was unlike anything I had seen.

Thursday, August 15

Pippin 8pm
This was the show I was most excited to see. I absolutely loved the production itself. Diane Paulus is a mastermind who has created a spectacle that rivals every cirque or acrobat show I have seen. That being said, I was not crazy about the show itself. I love the score, but the book is just not really my taste. I would not have loved this show as much as I did if it were not for Diane Paulus’s work.
Patina Miller. Damn. She had that audience in the palm of her hand from the minute her silhouette appeared. She was riveting, sexy, terrifying, and dazzling. I have never been so turned on by a woman in my life. Andrea Martin was everything I was hoping she would be, and she owned No Time At All. Matthew James Thomas was good. Nothing really made him stand though, but he did a great job. Rachel Bay Jones was so good as Catherine. She has been vastly underrated this season, and her performance was definitely worthy of a Tony nomination.
The set was really cool, and helped keep the circus theme rooted. I loved the simplicity of it. The finale was truly breathtaking. Breathtaking. I really loved this show, and it is definitely something that everyone should see just for the artistry alone.

Friday, August 17, 2013

Annie 2pm
The only reason I went to see this was because it was the only show I hadn’t seen that had a Friday matinee, and I could get a seat for $50. I also wanted to hear the orchestrations live and see Faith Prince. Luck would have it though that the first thing I see upon entering the Palace is the callboard saying “The role of Miss Hannigan will be played by – Dannette Holden.” I was a little bit disappointed, but still kind of excited to see an understudy. The show itself… I was not expecting to absolutely love every single second of it. I was riveted from the second that overture started to the final bow. I have never been a huge Annie fan, but this production stole my heart and was just very well done.
Saddie Sink was Annie. She was very good. She didn’t have Lilla Crawford’s voice, but she was still wonderful. Anthony Warlow is giving a phenomenal performance. Brynn O’Malley, Saddie Sink, and Warlow all had unbelievable chemistry. Dannette Holden was quite good. She did not camp up Miss Hannigan like Finneran and Lynch did. She definitely evoked more of her human side. A lot of her jokes did not land which was a little unfortunate, but she brought a new interpretation to the role that I had not seen before. Her Little Girls and the Little Girls reprise were standouts for me.
I remember reading on here that a lot of people were disappointed with the set. Based on the pictures and videos I saw it did look a little lackluster, but seeing it live was totally different. I loved David Korins’s design. The old popup book feel really worked. The scenery for NYC was a little sparse, but other than that I loved it. The orphanage and mansion sets were both stunning and very well designed, and I loved how the skyline and pillars were used in multiple scenes and tracked across the stage to establish new locations.
This production had so many poignant moments. Warbucks picking up the sleeping Annie at the end of NYC then Sandy coming out on a bare dark stage as the final note of the song was played gave me chills. Another moment that tugged at my heartstrings was when two of the housekeepers started crying and hugged each other as the lights went down when they found out Annie would be leaving. There were just a lot of little moments like this that really stood out to me.
I also want to mention the orchestra. They pounded out every note of that score to genuine and chilling perfection. One of my favorite orchestras I have ever heard. Overall, I really loved this production, and it ended up being one of my favorite things I saw. I would rank this as one of my favorite revivals ever.

Cinderella 8pm
This show is just magical. Stepping into the Broadway Theatre is like stepping into an enchanted forest. The whole production is classic Broadway magic, and I loved the stunning simplicity of it. The old fashioned special effects were so refreshing, and I much preferred them to Disney’s over the top theme park special effects.
Laura. Osnes. I do not even know where to begin. I could not take my eyes off of her. She was beautiful, gorgeous, and angelic. I could go on and on about how stunning she was in this role. Santino Fontana put the charming in Prince Charming. Harriet Harris, Anna Harada, and Marla Mindelle were all great and hilarious. Linda Mugleston was on for Victoria Clark. She was great as well.
I loved the set and lighting. Anna Louizos has a created a beautiful enchanted forest. The movement of the set pieces was so graceful. The house set looked like it came right out of the pages of a fairy tale storybook, and the transitions from inside to outside the house were so clever! I also loved the rotating half arches for the palace scenes. William Ivey Long’s costumes are worth the ticket price alone. Probably the best I have ever seen.
The book is far from perfect, and there are more than enough cringe worthy Douglas Carter Bean jokes, but I was still absolutely enchanted by this show. The cast, design, and music are worth seeing this for. I would also say Laura Osnes is giving the performance of a lifetime. This is a role she was born to play, and she is simply incredible.

Those are all my thoughts! Sorry if they are a bit all over the place. After reading about these shows all year from all of you that live in NYC, it was very exciting to get to go and actually see them for myself! I ended up loving all of them!

[justincharacter]

Posted: 8/17/13 at 9:03pm

Thank you! It's good to hear you had such a great time! Was that your first time in NY?

If I'm not mistaken, I think the sound of Matilda on the West End is "concert-loud". Maybe they wanted to lower it down for the Broadway production. Updated On: 8/17/13 at 09:03 PM

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 8/17/13 at 9:08pm

^ It was my third trip!

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 8/17/13 at 9:09pm

You saw some great shows on your trip! I was fortunate to have seen Matilda and Pippin, as well, and they were amazing. Glad you enjoyed all of the shows you saw, really. Great to read some mostly positive reviews; especially Annie.

[sephyr]

Posted: 8/17/13 at 9:11pm

What an all-encompassing review! You've definitely made me excited to see some of these shows. Thanks!!

[Mike Barrett]

Posted: 8/17/13 at 9:23pm

Great reviews and glad you enjoyed your trip! Maybe I'll see Annie next time I'm in the city. Do they usually have Friday Matinees and where were the $50 seats?

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 8/17/13 at 9:25pm

^ They do usually have Friday matinees! The $50 seats are in balcony with a code from Broadway Box. The balcony was an awesome view. You don't miss anything. You are kind of high up so you miss facial expressions and smaller details, but other than that it's perfectly fine.

[KathyNYC2]

Posted: 8/17/13 at 9:48pm

I am not sure if the Annie Friday Matinees are just for the summer when kids are off from school. Right now, the Wed night show has been eliminated.

I agree with most of your assessments. I do feel that KB is so much fun, the sound/orchestra is amazing and I too am a huge fan of Stark (no disrespect to Billy who I also loved). SS was the heart of the show in many ways for me.

As I have noted before, the sound when I saw Matilda was just so horrific, I could barely understand much of the dialogue and lyrics and it really hindered my enjoyment of the show. It was either too loud or too quiet at all times. I would like to see it again to give it a second shot.

I liked much of this production of Annie more than some - and yes the orchestra is amazing. I just heard Sadie sing at Bryant Park - I look forward to seeing her as Annie. (I have already seen Lilla and Taylor). Sadie had a real sweetness about her. I also loved the storybook part of the set...and felt the relationships between the characters work really well. The choreography is the weakest link for me.

I also agree that Pippin is not my favorite musical but I look forward to seeing the performances (I have tickets in the fall). And Cinderella (in spite of the unnecessary politically correct script updates) was utterly charming - Cinderella and the Prince were so endearing...and Laura and Santino were so talented. Loved them.

6 shows in 4 days - sounds like heaven. Glad you enjoyed your time in NYC - come back soon!!

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 8/18/13 at 7:32am

Faith Prince was out because she was doing a Friday concert with the Boston Pops at Tanglewood, FYI. Sorry you missed her!