#1
Posted: 10/31/07 at 6:40pm
Well, the balcony was half empty, the mezzanine got filled with everyone who moved down from the balcony, and the orchestra looked almost full. The audience, nearly entirely papered, was half dead through Act One, but picked up considerably during the second. I've never seen so many jokes fall flat, even cheesy ones which would normally get a ho-hum laugh.
As much of a detractor as I seem, I stand-by my original comments on the show. I maintain that it's one of the best movie-turned-musicals since Hairspray, thanks totally to Jerry Mitchell, whose energetic staging and choreography made me made just watching.
The O'Keefe/Benjamin score is entertaining, though repetative and too synthesized for my taste (though that's Chris Jahnke's problem). Heather Hach's book is servicable, though nothing special.
Perhaps part of the problem is that it's a bit top heavy, too many unnecessary songs (like "Positive") which could be easily cut.
One of my biggest complaints is the product placement. My joke, besides calling it Legally Bland, is calling it "Product Placement: The Musical." From Jet Blue to Red Bull to The Apprentice, I constantly wonder how much they either paid to get their names in the show, or were paid to have their names used.
I must give the cast credit for playing to the dead audience and not going on automatic pilot after the first few jokes failed to land. The ensemble is very strong and, as I said, I get tired just watching "Whipped into Shape." Yet again, that was the highlight, along with "Gay or European" (or whatever the hell it's called).
Christian Borle is great (as usual), Kate Shindle is incredible, and Michael Rupert & Richard H. Blake are deliciously slimy. If Mary Louise Wilson and Grey Gardens weren't in the running last season, Orfeh would have won the Tony for her Paulette(especially up against people like Charlotte d'Amboise and Rebecca Luker, usually reliable performers turning in lackluster performances). Haven Burton lacks the energy that Annaleigh Ashford has. Asmeret Ghebremichael is fine in her role.
And I couldn't take my eyes off Nikki Snelson and her washboard abs, and the incredibly curvaceous Tracy Jai Edwards, a strong replacement for Leslie Kritzer.
The BC/EFA plea was cute, yet you could tell it was very poorly rehearsed. I picked up the Carols for a Cure CD on the way out, can't wait to listen.
As much of a detractor as I seem, I stand-by my original comments on the show. I maintain that it's one of the best movie-turned-musicals since Hairspray, thanks totally to Jerry Mitchell, whose energetic staging and choreography made me made just watching.
The O'Keefe/Benjamin score is entertaining, though repetative and too synthesized for my taste (though that's Chris Jahnke's problem). Heather Hach's book is servicable, though nothing special.
Perhaps part of the problem is that it's a bit top heavy, too many unnecessary songs (like "Positive") which could be easily cut.
One of my biggest complaints is the product placement. My joke, besides calling it Legally Bland, is calling it "Product Placement: The Musical." From Jet Blue to Red Bull to The Apprentice, I constantly wonder how much they either paid to get their names in the show, or were paid to have their names used.
I must give the cast credit for playing to the dead audience and not going on automatic pilot after the first few jokes failed to land. The ensemble is very strong and, as I said, I get tired just watching "Whipped into Shape." Yet again, that was the highlight, along with "Gay or European" (or whatever the hell it's called).
Christian Borle is great (as usual), Kate Shindle is incredible, and Michael Rupert & Richard H. Blake are deliciously slimy. If Mary Louise Wilson and Grey Gardens weren't in the running last season, Orfeh would have won the Tony for her Paulette(especially up against people like Charlotte d'Amboise and Rebecca Luker, usually reliable performers turning in lackluster performances). Haven Burton lacks the energy that Annaleigh Ashford has. Asmeret Ghebremichael is fine in her role.
And I couldn't take my eyes off Nikki Snelson and her washboard abs, and the incredibly curvaceous Tracy Jai Edwards, a strong replacement for Leslie Kritzer.
The BC/EFA plea was cute, yet you could tell it was very poorly rehearsed. I picked up the Carols for a Cure CD on the way out, can't wait to listen.
Updated On: 10/31/07 at 06:40 PM
