Summer Stock @ Goodspeed

The perfect tonic for a hot summer night. Saw it earlier this week, at the lovely opera house


My reservations - The stage (as always) is too small for a show like this, and the book still needs work to weed out some remaining hokum. I’d cut about 25-30 minutes (mostly of added songs) - the show is currently too long (especially act 2) at 2:45. And I’d likely amp up a number or two in each act to be the standout showstoppers.

My raves - Ah, but what remains! The glorious songs. LOTS of tap (I’m a fan!). Some great comedy from Will Rowland. And Corbin Bleu. This guy is a musical comedy dream. He’s fantastic - he sings well, has a breezy charm, and my lord, the boy can DANCE!


I’m not sure what the future holds for this premier production, but I see it’s already a NY Times critics pick and with some careful sculpting, this might turn out to be a real Big Apple crowd pleaser.

Let's put on a show! I loved the energy, heart, corn and sentimentality of this production. It could probably lose a song or two but we had a blast. The dancers are giving 300% and the choreography is just so much fun. Donna Feore does a good job with direction. There's a nice mix of comedy, dance, song and heart. Some wonderful stage pictures with the dance numbers as well. Veanne Cox is such a treasure and scene stealer. We also thought Corbin was quite charming. I may try to squeeze this in again to revisit those killer dance numbers one more time since they are such a feast. Great costumes as well by Tina McCartney.

This was nominated for 7 Connecticut Critics Circle Awards!

A producer posted on Instagram they have changed the title to “Get Happy” and are planning to bring it to Broadway.

https://ctcritics.org/2024/06/04/a-view-from-the-bridge-and-kinky-boots-top-2024-connecticut-critics-circle-nominations/