THE LOST BOYS Previews- Page 13

[Auggie27]

Posted: 4/23/26 at 6:55pm

It’s back on TDF for 5 shows next week. That is how I saw it, and would’ve missed it otherwise. It’s a decidedly powerful evening of state of the art musical theater, whatever the nitpicks raised, my own included. The first act and final 20 minutes alone are genuinely thrilling. The craft and tone discussions here - and I own my preferences as subjective takes - should not dissuade anyone from attending. 

[Ensemble1665759202]

Posted: 4/23/26 at 7:14pm

CoffeeBreak said: "Sutton Ross said: "You slammed this show for months and now you have reviewed the performance you saw like 14 times. We GET IT."

I've seen multiple performances now and will be there Sunday. you're welcome."

What kind of kink is this? Usually if I don't like a show I just don't go see it again and stop talking about it lol. 

"Hey want a free tickets to see X?" "No, I already saw it and it's not for me"

[Ensemble1698878795]

Posted: 4/23/26 at 7:45pm

Sutton Ross said: "No oneis thanking you for your rambling, constant negative reviews of this production. No one.

Hating Lost Boys is their entire personality. They can’t eat breakfast every morning until they log on to remind us how much they hate it. We stopped caring weeks ago and yet… 

 

[CoffeeBreak]

Posted: 4/23/26 at 11:30pm

No, it's not.  It's the only part you care about - and comment on.  The things I enjoy or dislike in other threads you aren't taking account for.  Good try.   You'll be okay.

[CoffeeBreak]

Posted: 4/23/26 at 11:58pm

Ensemble1665759202 said: "

What kind of kink is this? Usually if I don't like a show I just don't go see it again and stop talking about it lol.

"Hey want a free tickets to see X?" "No, I already saw it and it's not for me""

Oh yay, both Ensemble 02 and Ensemble 95 are back on the tag team.  The Lost Boys creative team or PR folks are back.

[jazzicat]

Posted: 4/24/26 at 3:06am

Good, bring back the PR team- it’s a great show and I hope to be seeing it for a very long time. As someone who is not in the industry, but who sees at least a show a week, often more-  I am emotionally invested in this show. if I have to post about it daily, I will to combat the naysayers. Now as the show is probably mostly frozen - here is my final wish list:

I have seen several soul-bearing videos addressing the Frog  brothers scenes and jokes about “Brothers” and if I can rally for one more change it is to remove the use of the joke altogether. It cheapens the narrative, it’s 2026. Maybe put the emphasis on Frog-  frogs are funny to everyone. The FROG brothers? Why keep in a lame gender identity joke that will only solicit laughs from frat boys and MAGAs and awkward laughs from everyone else. You know what to do. 

2) David needs that song or something similar, haunting- one more song. 2-3 lines even of a haunting song before he …You know what I mean, you know what to do. You have the $$. Don’t make the beaches mistake. Get the IP or write him something now.

3) Favor - can you have Patrick Wilson be more vocal about his attachment. So many people adore him, he is truly beloved. I just saw he was linked to this due to those session recordings. Don’t underestimate his influence.

4) Pacing, pacing, pacing- saw a video for dancers do you count beats or steps. Count the beats and the steps.Take one hard last look at your timing - if anything lags, cut it. 

5) I keep hearing this on tik tok- check in with LJ- are the ballads too much, is he straining every night? Ask what will make his load bearable and he will shine. Cut a song if you have to. I keep seeing words like straining, screeching, make the role bearable for the future, too.

6) Do not cut Michael- it is beautiful, do not underestimate the # of boomer moms with Michaels. It brings them in.

Overall, only have positive things to say. Thanks for listening and making some lifelong fans who are not on Insta. 

Can’t wait to go back next week.

 

 


 

 

[Ensemble1698878795]

Posted: 4/24/26 at 3:29am

Oh yay, both Ensemble 02 and Ensemble 95 are back on the tag team. The Lost Boys creative team or PR folks are back."

You’re really sad. I literally said earlier in this thread I don’t think Lost Boys is the strongest musical of the season. Wouldn’t I be tooting its horn and trying to get everyone to buy tickets if I was involved? I’m not. We’re all just tired of you. Email yourself and have a conversation about Lost Boys. Take us out of the chat. Please! 
 

 

[Kad]

Posted: 4/24/26 at 3:35am

CoffeeBreak said: "Ensemble1665759202 said: "

What kind of kink is this? Usually if I don't like a show I just don't go see it again and stop talking about it lol.

"Hey want a free tickets to see X?" "No, I already saw it and it's not for me""

Oh yay, both Ensemble 02 and Ensemble 95 are back on the tag team. The Lost Boys creative team or PR folks are back."

It’s deeply weird that you have spent the better part of a year gleefully spreading negative word about this show on here, particularly when you are apparently connected enough to someone involved to be invited to the workshop, multiple performances, and also apparently opening night. Do your friends know you’ve spent a lot of time cheerleading the failure of the production they’re involved with while apparently availing yourself of their invitations? 

[TheatreMonkey]

Posted: 4/24/26 at 4:33am

CoffeeBreak said: "Sutton Ross said: "You slammed this show for months and now you have reviewed the performance you saw like 14 times. We GET IT."

I've seen multiple performances now and will be there Sunday. you're welcome."

So...just curious -- if you've seen this multiple times, not to mention the workshops you've been supposedly privy to, why are you going yet again on Opening Night, of all nights?! (Which, as you remind us in every other non-Lost Boys related thread, had the "most combined rehearsal/tech/preview time of the season"...) If Michael Arden has always been your Emperor with No Clothes, why subject yourself to such an unpleasant thing? You have to admit, it's a little odd. 

I can think of better ways of spending my night than a repeated viewing of something I know I'll hate. That is, unless you're going to just gloat at your own sense of superiority.

Updated On: 4/24/26 at 04:33 AM

[jazzicat]

Posted: 4/24/26 at 6:59am

I now think they are a plant who keeps the conversation going in here. The negativity is driving a response and keeps this thread semi-controversial. Or perhaps they are jealous and are trying to limit the success of those who are including them and bring down a show. It’s a game. 

[CoffeeBreak]

Posted: 4/24/26 at 8:20am

Skimbleshanks the railway cat.

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 4/24/26 at 8:25am

If it hasn't been pointed out yet, that poster did the same thing in the Maybe Happy Ending Previews Thread and early in the Reviews thread, constantly criticizing the show and predicting doom and its imminent closing, while also repeatedly saying they had comp tickets and were seeing it multiple times. I believe some may have suggested then the poster was purposely making negative posts to keep the fans riled up and keep the discussion about the show going. And here we are again, with another of Arden's shows (and it seems to be working...). Perhaps someone in Arden's circle (if not MA himself, which would be hilarious, though I would have to believe he's too busy to do so. An intern or assistant seems possible).

Updated On: 4/24/26 at 08:25 AM

[ER765]

Posted: 4/24/26 at 9:40am

I mean - the difference (and it’s a huge one) is that MHE cost around $15M while THE LOST BOYS cost at least $25-30M…

And to be clear (while I’m sure it will) MHE still hasn’t recouped.

[WldKingdomHM]

Posted: 4/24/26 at 9:48am

MemorableUserName said: "If it hasn't been pointed out yet, that poster did the same thing in the Maybe Happy Ending Previews Thread and early in the Reviews thread, constantly criticizing the show and predicting doom and its imminent closing, while also repeatedly saying they had comp tickets and were seeing it multiple times. I believe some may have suggested then the poster was purposely making negative posts to keep the fans riled up and keep the discussion about the show going.And here we are again, with another of Arden's shows (and it seems to be working...). Perhaps someone in Arden's circle (if not MA himself, which would be hilarious, though I would have to believe he's too busy to do so. An intern or assistant seems possible)."

I mean clearly the show is not selling well starting next week so they better call the tik tokers again

[inception]

Posted: 4/24/26 at 9:48am

I think it's been pretty obvious that they work for a company with ties to Broadway productions. I think their beef with Arden seemed to start when the producers of MHE decided to work with a different company instead of the one this individual works for.

Edit: But it looks like Lost Boys is using their company - so why they are hating on it? I dunno?

I actually have enjoyed Swesty Oracles rants against Lost Boys more this past week.

Updated On: 4/24/26 at 09:48 AM

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 4/24/26 at 11:50am

ER765 said: "I mean - the difference (and it’s a huge one) is that MHE cost around $15M while THE LOST BOYS cost at least $25-30M…

And to be clear (while I’m sure it will) MHE still hasn’t recouped."

I was just saying they were using negative comments to keep the conversation going (which is better than the alternative). Nothing about recoupment or its ultimate future.

[Auggie27]

Posted: 4/24/26 at 12:43pm

The song stack in the program seems to be from early to mid-previews (I was there Wednesday afternoon). Is Lucy's new song something like "Plot Twist?" It still says "Be Kind, Rewind," and when Bean began, I thought it was the same song until the lyrics never arrived containing the title. The phrase "I need a plot twist" or something like that landed. It's very short, not a power ballad, and neither adds nor detracts, since it merely introduces the store setting. 

Updated On: 4/24/26 at 12:43 PM

[Kad]

Posted: 4/24/26 at 4:38pm

I just don’t think a song is necessary in that moment at all. I get wanting to give that character a song to beef the role up, but it’s just not that moment. The concept of characters breaking into song when spoken dialogue will no longer be sufficient is a bit of a cliche, but it’s generally a true one. What makes her break into song in that scene, exactly? She’s working her first day at a video store. There’s no real impetus for her to sing and it feels like a moment is being manufactured for her to do so.

Updated On: 4/24/26 at 04:38 PM

[veronicamae]

Posted: 4/24/26 at 6:40pm

I had a great time at this show! Felt very cinematic, and having not seen the movie, that feels like a really big success. I actually gasped at the set, and loved the lighting (though from my left front mezz seat, I got blinded a few times). I did feel like there were 2-3 too many songs, like...why are we singing about Topic X one more time...but for my TDF ticket, I got an incredible entertainment value.

And I shall be watching the film this weekend.

[theatrekid3302]

Posted: 4/24/26 at 11:46pm

Kad said: "I just don’t think a song is necessary in that moment at all. I get wanting to give that character a song to beef the role up, but it’s just not that moment. The concept of characters breaking into song when spoken dialogue will no longer be sufficient is a bit of a cliche, but it’s generally a true one. What makes her break into song in that scene, exactly? She’s working her first day at a video store. There’s no real impetus for her to sing and it feels like a moment is being manufactured for her to do so."

Completely Disagree, I feel that song was so important to the plot as it was the first time we got to feel what Lucy was feeling and her regrets. I think this was the best new musical I have seen in years and it should get the Tony for Best Musical.

[Auggie27]

Posted: 4/25/26 at 9:47am

"I just don’t think a song is necessary in that moment at all. I get wanting to give that character a song to beef the role up, but it’s just not that moment. The concept of characters breaking into song when spoken dialogue will no longer be sufficient is a bit of a cliche, but it’s generally a true one. What makes her break into song in that scene, exactly? She’s working her first day at a video store. There’s no real impetus for her to sing and it feels like a moment is being manufactured for her to do so."
 

I agree with Kad's point here. The show introduces Lucy at the top as almost a co-protagonist, "No More Monsters" makes a case, and then has a tough time finding pivotal moments for her to sing about. The video store, other than being Max's nocturnal domain, doesn't figure in the plotting. The set brought up another adjacent topic: this is a story set on the very edge of the Pacific Ocean, the family from land-locked Arizona. No one much notices the beach or associates the boardwalk with the mystery of all that pounding water. Lucy, ex-hippie, on the shore would've at least given her a place for yearning comparable to her son's. It's romantic, solitary, a place to sing. The show is obsessed with video arcades and cramped interiors (I kept flashing on Big.) A bit of breathtaking nature - this is a tale about nature's cruel abnormalities - would've given us a more sense of geography.  

Updated On: 4/25/26 at 09:47 AM

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/25/26 at 11:44pm

Went back to the show tonight to see what kind of work has been done on it and amazingly, Arden and the team have actually done quite a bit. About 16 minutes or so has been removed - I compared the song list from the March playbill and tonight and they were the same, so I'm not sure of all the music changes. I'm sure the May Playbill will have the revised song list. I was sad to hear "Be Kind Rewind" was gone, mainly because I'm a sucker for anything set in a video store or related to that but the song that replaced it is in the same setting and was a pretty decent song, so I was happy. They even expanded the video store set a bit.

Funny enough, some of the things I thought were questionable at the first preview, like the tone of the show and the amount of ballads are still present but much less bothersome to me than before. In fact, I didn't even notice or think of either of those while watching like I did last time. I think the flow of the musical is much better now so the tone doesn't really come off AS uneven and that would be due I'm sure to cuts that Arden has made. Damnit, I even shed a tear (just a little one) at the last number.

But I want to talk about the audience. Watching this crowd shuffle in before the show and they were LOUD. Really excited and rambunctious and well, not your typical theater crowd. Which is fine. But I'll be god damned if that didn't turn out to be the most respectful audience I've been in, in years. No phones. No wrappers. No ice shaking. No talking. But that doesn't mean they were silent - I haven't heard a response to a show like this since I don't even know. The only way to describe it is saying it was electric. Response to many of the songs and scenes (and not in an annoying over the top way) had me looking around thinking "Oh my God, this show is gonna be huge". Quality of the show aside or whatever the critics are going to say tomorrow night, I just have a feeling it won't matter. These people LOVED IT and again, I can't remember a time I saw that many people of pretty much all ages, file out of a theater loudly saying how much they loved a show and "OH MY GOD IT WAS AMAZING!" Even in the pouring rain tonight, hundreds of people were lined up by the stage door outside. 

Obviously, I could be wrong but it's just that feeling that this thing could really have some staying power and word of mouth is going to make this one last.

[blaxx]

Posted: 4/26/26 at 12:06am

Is it actually selling well? I feel it was destined to be a flop from the get go, losing its whole investment.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 4/26/26 at 12:07am

I think it was at around 90% last week? And I’m with you, it sounded like a huge flop. 

[broadfan327]

Posted: 4/26/26 at 12:45am

When I saw it a couple of weeks ago, the crowd was into it as well.  As someone the other day posted, there was a sense of coolness that I have never felt in a theater before, flawed as the piece is.  The staging, special effects (I know, I could see the wires from where I was sitting as well, but so what?), the actors, especially the leads, all brought a level of hipness that is not the norm for Broadway (Cats: The Jellicle Ball also has this hipness, but in a different way).  I thought many of the scenes are visually stunning, something I was not used to in today's world of more minimal sets.  I would not be surprised if this wins Best Musical, in the same way The Outsiders did, without winning book or score.  This is the best new production of a musical this year, in my opinion.