Sunday night's performance of "The Wedding Singer"

[Demitri2]

Posted: 2/7/06 at 2:25pm

Given the smiles and jubilant atmosphere after the curtain fell at Seattle's 5th Avenue Theater, I'd say we have a real potential hit with "The Wedding Singer". Having seen both the pre-Broadway editions of "Hairspray" and the ill-fated "Princesses" at this theater, there's no doubt in my mind that "A Wedding Singer" will gracefully transfer to Broadway. I was amazed at how together this show already is having premiered last Tuesday (the reviews should be out in Friday's local newspapers). With the great advantage of not only having the show already in place but the luxury of at least a month or so of fine tuning and possible new added material, I predict "The Wedding Singer" will definitely find the audience they're looking for. You don't even have to have been an adult in the eighties to enjoy the humor involved (cell phones with battery packs the size of a suitcase and anyone remember McDonald's McRibs?). I liked the music and its' period sound.
What I truly enjoyed about the show is how the individual performers are showcased. Everyone seems to have at least one big number of their own. The three featured women all have at least two big numbers each and they are wonderful with the material given. First off there's the original Bianca from the "Kiss Me Kate" revival, Amy Spanger. Playing the role of the best girlfriend, she already has the character down. She's hilarious and I admired her tenacity. In one of her dance numbers at one point as she parted the chorus from rear stage and walked to stage front center, a dancer spun around and off mark forcefully slammed her hand in Ms. Spanger's face (gotta love previews). Ms. Spanger didn't flinch nor did she miss a beat as she sang.Bless her! As the lead character Robbie's former fiancee Linda, Felicia Finley does a hilarious Madonna/Material Girl takeoff. Her second act solo "Let Me Come Home" is also a highlight. Now let's discuss the female lead Laura Benanti. Recently there was a totally off the mark post by someone who had seen the show and not only blamed Benanti as being the weak link in the ensemble but also suggested that she be replaced for the good of the show. His post was followed by others who made a point of aggreeing that Benanti has an "ice princess" quality and is basically "cold" as a performer. Luckily one poster disagreed and wrote, "Did we see the same show?". The reason I'm not saying IMHO is because not only did the people I attended with love Ms. Benanti but so did the entire audience. She's wonderful in the part. Not quirky and self effacing as Drew Barrymore portrayed the character in the film version, but instead more the sweet unaffected type of girl that your mother would want you to marry. Understand sweet/ordinary can also easily come off as bland which Benanti is able to overcompensate for with her pureness and likeability. As far as a "cold" performer, sitting in the first row there were tears in her eyes during certain scenes and during the curtain call tears of joy were also evident. Her jumping up and down for star Stephen Lynch's solo curtain call erased any evidence of a "diva" quality. Trust me, Ms. Benanti will stay in the show if she chooses and will be very well received in the role of Julia. As for Stephen Lynch as Robbie, he already has the character nailed and will only get better in the part. A special mention to Kevin Cahoon who had scared me as the child catcher in "Chitty". Well, his adrongenous quality at first was creepy but he won me over in no time. Kudos also to Matthew Saldivar as Robbie's best friend. Rita Gardner seemed
to be having a ball on stage as the "hip" granny. In conclusion the score kind of reminded me of "They're Playing Our Song" in that there was a late seventies/eighties quality to the music. The humor to me was reminiscent of "The Full Monty". All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed the show. As far as a movie adaptation, I enjoyed it so much more than "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" and believe it will have a wide audience appeal. Good luck to "The Wedding Singer".

[bially082]

Posted: 2/7/06 at 2:45pm

thanks for that review!

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 2/7/06 at 4:33pm

Good to hear. I can't wait to see this show!

[TheQuibbler]

Posted: 2/7/06 at 4:48pm

I can't wait to see this because I love Laura Benanti and Amy Spanger.

[WickedOne2]

Posted: 2/7/06 at 4:57pm

Awesome. I cannot wait for this show!!

[almostxfamous]

Posted: 2/7/06 at 5:18pm

Wonderful review. I was completely thrown off by the 'diva' and 'ice princess' comments,because in the Broadway Beat video, she seems SO bubbly and fun and personable. I can NOT wait to see this show.

[Roninjoey]

Posted: 2/7/06 at 5:22pm

Thank you Demitri for that positive review! I was behind Laura in the last thread and remain confident that she's wonderful