TAMMY FAYE Previews

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 10/18/24 at 12:00am

Praise be!

The new musical Tammy Faye casts its first rhinestone tomorrow night (October 19), marking the first time a full-scale musical is being performed at the Palace Theatre in nearly six years. The $25 million London transfer stars Katie Brayben (reprising her Olivier-winning performance as the title figure), Christian Borle, and Michael Cerveris, with supporting turns from Nick Bailey, Charl Brown, Mark Evans, Allison Guinn, Ian Lassiter, Raymond J. Lee, Max Gordon Moore, Alana Pollard, and Andy Taylor. Tammy Faye features a rousing original score by Elton John and Jake Shears, with a book by James Graham, choreography by Lynne Page, and direction by Rupert Goold. Opening night is November 14.

“It’s the 1970s. As satellites broadcast brand-new cable programming into American homes, millions fall in love with Tammy Faye Bakker — the charismatic wife of pastor Jim Bakker. Together, they build a nationwide congregation that puts the fun back into faith. But even as Tammy dazzles on screen, jealous rivals plot behind the scenes, threatened by her determination to lead with love.”

Who’s feeling the holy spirit?

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 10/18/24 at 11:20am

$45 digital lottery is now live on Broadway Direct.

There will also be a same-day, in-person student rush, $30 with valid ID.

[theatergoer3]

Posted: 10/18/24 at 4:36pm

Surprised no general rush. Hopefully they’ll add it. 

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 10/19/24 at 11:09am

Was there an invited dress rehearsal for this last night?

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 10/19/24 at 5:07pm

Broadway Direct says 2:10 runtime, including intermission

[BorisTomashevsky]

Posted: 10/19/24 at 7:57pm

Just saw a photo posted by a friend on Instagram with the orchestra section looking quite empty. Is this show going to fill the Palace? 

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 10/19/24 at 8:00pm

BorisTomashevsky said: "Just saw a photo posted by a friend on Instagram with the orchestra section looking quite empty. Is this show going to fill the Palace?"

 

Careful, we aren’t allowed to talk about that.

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 10/19/24 at 11:21pm

What did we think, everyone?

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 10/19/24 at 11:44pm

Left the theater at 11:30. Long night. Will write more in a bit. 

[justherehanging]

Posted: 10/20/24 at 8:14am

Can someone do me a favor when they go to the theater look at the visually impaired seats and let me know how bad they are  or will they be ok

Orchestra left row F seat 1  

if you look at the map, it looks like it’s on the extreme far side

 

[theatergoer3]

Posted: 10/20/24 at 8:34am

Word on Broadway Reddit is mixed negative with most positive notices going to the performances. 

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 10/20/24 at 10:15am

This was an odd night. I saw this in London and really loved it. I looked at Theatreboard and I gave it a five star rating there. Last night, when we left and had a “debrief”, my friend and I both said it was exceptionally uneven and just not very good. And I wish I could tell you what changed but I don’t remember well enough what I saw before. Maybe others can remember better and help jog my memory about changes? 

Cast was a mixed bag for me, as well. I VASTLY prefer Rannells to Borle, though. That I know. Andrew had a fun playful side to him that you even felt a little bad for him in the end. Borle had none of that, for me. The end when he’s in prison it reminded me of like Ted Bundy locked up. Katie was good but again there was just something “missing” from what I saw before that made her performance so special. Cerveris fared best we felt, as the awful Jerry Falwell.  I don’t know if they changed the score much but I felt there was way too many “church/gospel” type songs. They all just blended together and very little of the music stood out for me. 

Again, this is so odd because for a show I LOVED last year and have five stars, now I think I’d give it two. 

[ErmengardeStopSniveling]

Posted: 10/20/24 at 10:59am

Last time Rupert Goold directed a new musical at the Almeida that transferred to Broadway was AMERICAN PSYCHO, and I recall the response to that being "it was better in London", right?

Perhaps the man doesn't have "the musical in his bones" as Arthur Laurents would say. Or he's being guided by producers with bad instincts.

Jordan, you mentioned leaving the theatre at 11:30. Did it just start super late/long intermission? Or was the show itself 3.5 hours??

Updated On: 10/20/24 at 10:59 AM

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 10/20/24 at 11:15am

It started pretty late, there was a long tech stop in act one and a long intermission that made it so long. 

And i never saw “American Psycho” in London but on Broadway, it was my favorite musical that season, but my issues with “Tammy” aren’t the direction, but who knows. 

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 10/20/24 at 11:22am

This is a weird question out of curiosity, but because I’ve been interested in seeing this musical and have been tepid about getting a ticket…

But as an American in London, did you feel like the audience being mostly from the UK and not necessarily as tied into the Tammy Faye story/lore made you feel a sense of ownership or that this comes across more as an first-time telling of that story to that audience? And maybe the audience on Broadway made you or the show feel more hyper aware of its structure and choices since we’re actually more conscious and critical of who she was?

Sorry if that question is incoherent. It is still early for me. lol. 

[ACL2006]

Posted: 10/20/24 at 11:25am

Another new musical that isn't selling. Does this last past the holidays?

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 10/20/24 at 12:32pm

Glad I'm waiting a couple weeks to see this one... I am a little surprised by the tepid and negative reactions from pretty much everyone. This one definitely has an uphill battle in terms of sales.

[nativenewyorker2]

Posted: 10/20/24 at 12:41pm

You’re telling me that out of 1600 people, I’m the only one that enjoyed it last night lol

But it’s definitely not 2hrs and 10 minutes lol

Updated On: 10/20/24 at 12:41 PM

[RippedMan]

Posted: 10/20/24 at 1:19pm

How was the physical production 

[TheatreFan4]

Posted: 10/20/24 at 1:32pm

Should have just adapted Eyes of Tammy Faye to the stage. 

[bwaylyric]

Posted: 10/20/24 at 1:37pm

The celebrated Palace reopening with two duds in a row?

[nativenewyorker2]

Posted: 10/20/24 at 2:51pm

Satellite in the sky has the same themes of Hunchbacks HELLFIRE and yes I will die on this hill

Updated On: 10/20/24 at 02:51 PM

[BETTY22]

Posted: 10/20/24 at 3:03pm

Ouch.....its early on so they can make changes.

However, Elton is not know to be that involved. Maybe with his husband producing, he can convince him to keep working.

 

[quizking101]

Posted: 10/20/24 at 3:27pm

I didn’t see it yet, but this older gay couple behind me in the WONDERFUL WORLD rush line said they walked out at intermission and hated everything about it. 

They spoke about the set looking like “a bad version of Hollywood Squares” and that “everyone looked painfully uncomfortable with the material”

I’m going on Saturday so I’ll report back

[DaveyG]

Posted: 10/20/24 at 3:41pm

Going from a 325 seat theatre to a 1650 seat theatre was probably not smart for this show. What thrills in a small space can feel very underwhelming in a grand theatre like the Palace. Sounds like they have a lot of work to do. 

 

Updated On: 10/20/24 at 03:41 PM