TAMMY FAYE Previews- Page 6

[quizking101]

Posted: 10/26/24 at 5:56pm

I was there this afternoon as well. It took WAYYY too long to get off the ground and things didn’t take off (for lack of a better term) until almost the end of Act I. The entirety of the show seemed almost afraid to lean into ANYTHING campy, with the exception of the song “He’s Inside Me”, which is just mile-a-minute innuendo festival.

Christian Borle looks remarkably uncomfortable and stiff. I know he can play into the clownishness of Bakker, but none of it feels genuine. Brayben also suffers from a similar issue - too much “aw, shucks” earnestness (as well as a slipping accent, having volleyed between plain American, British, a little Carole King, and a little Dolly Parton). Those small emotions do NOT register in the mighty Palace. Act II is her moment to shine, but at that point, it’s just too little, too late. The book also deviates away from her character WAY too much.

I honestly think Cerveris comes out the best here, because there isn’t anything he can’t do. He definitely knows how to lose himself in a role and I buy him as Falwell, both righteous and nefarious. In what could be a slight category, it’s possible he might slide in to Featured Actor in a Musical. (He did it for the EVITA revival). Charl Brown also is great as the AIDS patient that Tammy Faye embraces on air, but the character is underused. 

Honestly, I feel like a personality of this character requires a HERE LIES LOVE-esque treatment. Here. It feels like a smaller musical with a midlevel cast trapped in a giant theatre.

If it’s still open, I’ll go back in a month to see Autumn

[quizking101]

Posted: 10/26/24 at 5:57pm

Bumping to turn page

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 10/26/24 at 6:11pm

I’m going tonight and absolutely dreading it. Excited to see The Palace though.

[PipingHotPiccolo]

Posted: 10/26/24 at 6:13pm

TotallyEffed said: "I’m going tonight and absolutely dreading it. Excited to see The Palace though."

 

same, sorta, same.

[denou_32]

Posted: 10/26/24 at 6:26pm

quizking101 said:  I honestly think Cerveris comes out the best here, because there isn’t anything he can’t do. He definitely knows how to lose himself in a role and I buy him as Falwell, both righteous and nefarious.

This is certainly good to hear. Wasn't sure about seeing this again at Broadway prices, but a great performance by Cerveris could get me there

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[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 10/26/24 at 6:44pm

Also there this afternoon. It’s an odd show, but overall I enjoyed it. I don’t think it’s long for this world. I saw lots of issues. 
 

Katie was fantastic but as someone else said the accents are all over the place. When she’s actually doing Tammy she’s great. She does hold the audience in the palm of her hand for her big numbers. As another poster said they just come too late and aren’t enough. Another noted that it was nice to see a low key human portrayal of Tammy. The problem is Tammy wasn’t low key. I was a fan of Tammy. She was odd and quirky and she was over the top. That’s something Chastain got right. It almost seems like it’s camp, but it’s not. It’s genuinely her. Katie was way too subdued in my opinion. I feel most of Tammy’s costumes were wrong too. Like weird disco drag queen clothes. Tammy was tacky but not in the way this show designed her. 
 

The casting on this isn’t great. I don’t know what happened with Rannells but he is truly perfect for Jim. Jim was cherubic looking, coiffed, fresh scrubbed, preppy and slight. Borle looks wildly uncomfortable, is dressed and wigged horribly. He looks like a pedo used car salesman. He looks exhausted, bloated and manic. Does not evoke Jim at all. Borle is beyond talented but it seems like he hasn’t found this at all. It’s a shame. 

Cerveris does well. He’s doing the job he needs to but he’s wasted. He delivers. 
 

I believe in non-traditional casting but Jan Crouch was a garish Dolly Parton Barbie with pink cotton candy hair. The actress playing her is miscast. 
 

The big screen when used during Katie’s big numbers actually pulled focus from her and hurt the power of the numbers. Also the TV set seams on the monitor wall create distortion so you can’t  even really always clearly see her face in close up. It was a misstep. 
 

Didn’t love the ensemble. Mugging, big, over the top and pulling focus. Sloppy dancing. 
 

All that being said I liked many of the songs and overall appreciated it. I’m glad I saw it. I think it will be one of the “I was one of the few” shows only a handful will see. 
 

I think Broadway was a misstep. I think it sets the expectations too high and it all came apart. I think Katie would have fares better with a short non-profit or New World type run where her performance would be heralded without the Broadway stakes  


 

 

[corninthesky]

Posted: 10/26/24 at 9:42pm

Has the book changed much since London? As I read reviews between here and Reddit, it seems like the biggest complaint is the book. Funny how the book was raved in London. Also interesting that they list this as 2:30 runtime on the website but people are saying it runs about 2:45. Are they throwing the kitchen sink to see what lands and have major cuts coming? 
 

I do appreciate hearing all the reviews—keep ‘em coming!

[Dan6]

Posted: 10/26/24 at 9:51pm

Thanks to all for the helpful early reviews. Since slots for my upcoming November trip are precious, I' returned my tickets (bought from Broadway Direct pre-Rannells withdrawal) and am seeing Big Gay Jamboree instead. If I'm going for camp, I want good camp!

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 10/26/24 at 9:55pm

Bettyboy is dead on while still being way too kind. This is a steaming pile of dog mess. I had to leave at intermission. It commits the greatest crime in show business: it’s boring. The lead actress has a lovely voice but she looked and sounded nothing like Tammy Faye. Why was she doing a Staten Island accent? She looked much more like Amy Sedaris and I kept wishing that it was Amy Sedaris. She would have been able to turn this low camp mess into something entertaining. Maybe.

The show itself is like a painful Drag Race acting challenge that never ends. Song after song after song. Crass, cringe “jokes” that get no laughs. Tacky costumes with an ensemble working overtime to sell the mess they’re in and failing miserably. There was a “gay tap dancing Jesus” moment that was particularly humiliating.

Tammy herself is mostly lost (in the first act, anyway) and it falls on Christian Borle’s shoulders. He tries his best but it’s a bit clear he knows this is a turkey. The many screens on stage are distracting, distorted, and tacky.

The Palace renovation is a little cruise ship but still handsome. The orchestra looked mostly full (half of the audience was asleep) and when I went upstairs to see the renovations I noted that the mezz was about 1/3 full.

Next.

Updated On: 10/28/24 at 09:55 PM

[quizking101]

Posted: 10/26/24 at 10:35pm

I wanted to also say her stained glass top and wig at the top of Act II made her look like Debbie Reynolds (Will & Grace-era) to me, but also Amy Sedaris works too…

[amiyagi]

Posted: 10/26/24 at 10:47pm

TotallyEffed said: "It commits the greatest crime in show business: it’s boring."

More or less boring than New York, New York?

 

[TotallyEffed]

Posted: 10/26/24 at 11:59pm

amiyagi said: "TotallyEffed said: "It commits the greatest crime in show business: it’s boring."

More or less boring than New York, New York?”

 

Wild horses couldn’t have dragged me to that. 

[PipingHotPiccolo]

Posted: 10/27/24 at 2:13am

well, the Palace looks great!

usually when yall come out and trash a show, my lowered expectations are pleasantly surpassed and i find myself having fun despite a show's many flaws. not tonight. maybe its the fantastic movie with such compelling turns from Chastain and Garfield but oh em gee was this rough.

And by rough I mean mostly boring. The dullness is primarily the fault of the score which is mind numbingly bad until Act 2, when a few good numbers suddenly appear way too late. This might sound insane, but i thought everyone was doing a good job on stage, which somehow made it worse? The crappy music is made worse by insultingly unfunny dialogue between scenes. Its just uncomfortable--the jokes dont land, and the "moments" they were going for fall totally flat (that scene at the end with the choir members was criminally horrible). As others have said, the pace did pick up a bit in Act 2 but I actually think the show is too kind on the Bakkers, both of whom (and especially she) are portrayed as tragic heroes, even while acknowledging that they were thieving scam artists. Yes its very nice that Tammy Faye was kind to AIDS patients, but that single (and admittedly wonderful) instance is trotted out more than once it almost felt exploitative. 

Odd choices abound, and most arent successful. We open and close on Tammy Faye in a proctologists office for what seems to be the sole purpose of making butt jokes. Once every ten minutes actors enter/exit up the center aisle of the enormously long orchestra for reasons beyond my understanding. There are platforms that rise up whenever someone sings a big song, like clockwork, to the point of silliness. The video work is impressive but imperfect- the Sunset Boulevard rip off scene was marred by the fact that the borders of the 20 smaller TVs cut right across Brayben's face as shes having her moment.

Cerveris is fantastic in a thankless buffoon villain role. I quite liked Christian Borle- i actually cannot imagine Andrew Rannels in this role at all- but hes not given anything funny or interesting to do, and we dont really learn much about him except that he seems like a greedy sexual predator who may be gay which they throw in out of left field at the very end. Brayben is definitely the highlight, and her accent didnt bother me at all. There was a raspiness to her voice that I half liked but half thought might be wear/tear. 

TDF put us in the very back of the orchestra, which was mostly full (we tried to sit together in the entirely empty last row, but were scolded by the ushers that we must stay in our assigned seats). No bad seats though- we saw enough of the (handsome, pretty basic) sets. Cannot fathom whose idea it was to try to pack the Palace with this- i guess they thought Elton John's name would do the trick, but man did he drop the ball on this. 

[bigbelterbaby]

Posted: 10/27/24 at 3:16am

Really shook by the reviews coming in. How can this be nominated for Best Musical and win Katie Brayben an Olivier and then flop on Broadway? I really hope they can at least try to fix things in previews. The book writer needs to hop on a plane to NYC if he isn’t here already and get to work. I am a big Tammy Faye fan and loved the Jessica Chastain film and the documentary it was based on. There’s no reason her life story can’t work on stage. Maybe they should have tried to use her original catelog which is filled with some great songs like We’re Blest and Don’t Give Up on a Miracle. She wasn’t a trained singer but she had a great voice and could really belt it out! 
 

 

 

Updated On: 10/27/24 at 03:16 AM

[lilpunkin]

Posted: 10/27/24 at 4:39am

bigbelterbaby said: " The book writer needs to hop on a plane to NYC if he isn’t here already and get to work.

"

The book writer has been in NY all through rehearsals and previews.

[WldKingdomHM]

Posted: 10/27/24 at 5:40am

bigbelterbaby said: "Really shook by the reviews coming in. How can this be nominated for Best Musical and win Katie Brayben an Olivier and then flop on Broadway? I really hope they can at least try to fix things in previews. The book writer needs to hop on a plane to NYC if he isn’t here already and get to work. I am a big Tammy Faye fan and loved the Jessica Chastain film and the documentary it was based on. There’s no reason her life story can’t work on stage. Maybe they should have tried to use her original catelog which is filled with some great songs like We’re Blest and Don’t Give Up on a Miracle. She wasn’t a trained singer but she had a great voice and could really belt it out!

Because this generation doesn’t have a clue who she is nor do they care 

 

 

 

"

 

[inception]

Posted: 10/27/24 at 7:48am

BIG THANKS!! to all if you for putting yourselves through this & reporting back so the rest of us don't waste our money on it.

All I can think is that maybe some higher power doesn't feel that this group of crooks who used religion to totally fleece their gullible followers deserve to be remembered in a musical comedy. 

[RippedMan]

Posted: 10/27/24 at 7:59am

WldKingdomHM said: "bigbelterbaby said: "Really shook by the reviews coming in. How can this be nominated for Best Musical and win Katie Brayben an Olivier and then flop on Broadway? I really hope they can at least try to fix things in previews. The book writer needs to hop on a plane to NYC if he isn’t here already and get to work. I am a big Tammy Faye fan and loved the Jessica Chastain film and the documentary it was based on. There’s no reason her life story can’t work on stage. Maybe they should have tried to use her original catelog which is filled with some great songs like We’re Blest and Don’t Give Up on a Miracle. She wasn’t a trained singer but she had a great voice and could really belt it out!

Because this generation doesn’t have a clue who she is nor do they care

 

 

 

 

The generation that is purchasing full price tickets to this very much knows who she is. 

 

 

 

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 10/27/24 at 8:03am

Out of curiosity, I looked online at availability for the next week and damn. I know a lot of shows don’t sell out well in advance anymore but that’s just insane. I’m assuming just looking at this, that their advance is next to nothing - how long can a show of this scale go like this?

[BrodyFosse123]

Posted: 10/27/24 at 8:25am

Jordan Catalano said: "Out of curiosity, I looked online at availability for the next week and damn. I know a lot of shows don’t sell out well in advance anymore but that’s just insane. I’m assuming just looking at this, that their advance is next to nothing - how long can a show of this scale go like this?"

[lilpunkin]

Posted: 10/27/24 at 8:40am

Meh one show that’s not selling well after a couple of previews, vs being blacklisted and likely never working in the UK again.


Out of curiosity I looked elsewhere online and the response on Twitter and Instagram is near universally positive, response on Reddit is more mixed but leaning towards positive, and on the NY sub-forum of TheatreBoard, universally positive.

This board is the place where the show is being slated and this board has been an echo chamber of hate towards the show before it even started.

[Kad]

Posted: 10/27/24 at 8:47am

“Echo chamber of hate”?

the main discourse around this show was how financially viable it was- and thus far, the doubt seems to be warranted. 
 

But keep overturning stones to find the opinions to suit your narrative, I suppose. 

[bigbelterbaby]

Posted: 10/27/24 at 9:06am

My first interaction with Tammy Faye was watching her on The Surreal Life on VH1 but the main thing I will never forget is when she was dying from cancer and would go on Larry King Live on CNN and give them most heartbreaking interviews. They are all on YouTube but fair warning it’s very hard to watch. Also highly recommend the two documentaries that were made by World of Wonder (the creators of RuPauls Drag Race) they are available on Wow Presents Plus. 

[Dan6]

Posted: 10/27/24 at 9:07am

lilpunkin said: "Meh one show that’s not selling well after a couple of previews, vs being blacklisted and likely never working in the UK again.


Out of curiosity I looked elsewhere online and the response on Twitter and Instagram is near universally positive, response on Reddit is more mixed but leaning towards positive, and on the NY sub-forum of TheatreBoard, universally positive.

This board is the place where the show is being slated and this board has been an echo chamber of hate towards the show before it even started."

You might want to check Show Score, where it’s currently scoring a whopping 47% based on 51 reviews (22% positive, 25% mixed, 53% negative). 

Updated On: 10/27/24 at 09:07 AM

[lilpunkin]

Posted: 10/27/24 at 9:18am

Kad said: "“Echo chamber of hate”?

the main discourse around this show was how financially viable it was- and thus far, the doubt seems to be warranted.


But keep overturning stones to find the opinions to suit your narrative, I suppose."

Posters actively cheering and celebrating the show selling poorly are hardly hiding their bias. This forum has been longing for the show to flop since AR’s firing, if not before.

Never heard of “ShowScore”, who contributes to it?