THE OUTSIDERS Opening Night Critics’ Reviews- Page 5

[inception]

Posted: 5/29/24 at 11:00pm

Looking at show schedules on Telecharge & noticed that starting after Labour Day they move their midweek matinee to Thursdays.

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 5/29/24 at 11:02pm

So happy more shows are doing this. It allows tourists to fit in even more shows and it’s a great way to make sure you’re selling out performances when you’re one of the only options. 

[AKarp2013]

Posted: 5/29/24 at 11:12pm

Looks like they're actually going the Beautiful Noise route and eliminating the Wednesday evening show and adding the Thursday matinee. 4 matinees a week. I think it's a very smart move because I think school groups will be coming to see this in droves.

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 5/31/24 at 6:05pm

The company will perform on Jimmy Fallon this Monday, June 3. 

[MezzA101]

Posted: 6/1/24 at 12:46am

'The Outsiders' Director Danya Taymor on Her Violent Broadway Musical

 

https://variety.com/2024/legit/news/the-outsiders-director-danya-taymor-violent-broadway-musical-angelina-jolie-1236019626/

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 6/3/24 at 9:00am

The company will perform on The Kelly Clarkson Show this Thursday. 

[DramaTeach]

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

Brody Grant sounded great on Fallon last night. After the song was over, he turned into a little frat-boy bouncing to the music playing behind him, shaking hands with Jimmy and yelling “come thru!” He’s a kid, and it was a funny reminder of that.

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 6/4/24 at 10:06am

 

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 6/4/24 at 11:00am

He’s such a star. Just the total package. 

[hearthemsing22]

Posted: 6/4/24 at 11:01am

This cast is the next generations Newsies

 

My bad if that has been said already 

[Someone in a Tree2]

Posted: 6/4/24 at 1:55pm

Very pretty singing on that Fallon clip above, but I can't understand one word of the lyric.

Did he get locution lessons from Patti?

[MezzA101]

Posted: 6/10/24 at 3:38pm

How ‘The Outsiders’ Staged a Broadway Fight Club

https://www.nytimes.com/card/2024/06/10/theater/outsiders-rumble?unlocked_article_code=1.yk0.Nr4E.9ow5sdrwFika&smid=url-share

[broadway86]

Posted: 6/10/24 at 4:38pm

Someone in a Tree2 said: "Very pretty singing on that Fallon clip above, but I can't understand one word of the lyric.

Did he get locution lessons from Patti?"

I understood every single word, not sure what to tell ya.

[Dirty Rotten Scoundrel]

Posted: 6/11/24 at 10:38pm

This was the final Best Musical nominee I had to see and I really, really enjoyed it. While Illinoise moved me deeply and was my personal favorite, I do think The Outsiders is likely my frontrunner for the win.

There's nothing I can say that others haven't already said, but one thing I wanted to remark on was how many young (and very well behaved!) audience members there were. From what I could tell, there were four different school groups in the mezzanine and they all cheered wildly after every number.

My favorite moment came when I was exiting the theater after the show behind a group of boys who appeared to be in about 8th grade. One of them said, "I thought this would be just okay, but it was amazing!" they all agreed before another chimed in with, "That was better than any Marvel movie" and again, they all agreed. I was honestly just really excited to witness a group of young people discovering the magic of live theater. 

[pippy1]

Posted: 6/12/24 at 12:19pm

I went last night, and I also want to say that this was one of the best behaved audiences I have seen in a long while. There were several larger school groups, and it was refreshing to see them dressed nicely and knowing how to act at a show. 

I was with four others, including two college kids who were apprehensive about seeing the show because they loved the book so much. Consensus post show was that it was enjoyable but nothing special and the four out of five who read thee book were a bit disappointed with the changes. I personally left feeling ambiguous - I really wanted to like it more than I did, and in fact, I was a bit bored at times. Only two songs really captured my attention (and this doesn't say anything about the actors or their singing, as they were all very good, although when the actor playing Pony Boy was in a softer moment, I personally found it difficult to understand him - one of my college age daughters said that is the style now and is more music style than musical theater style. The choreography was great as was the staging. I am glad I saw it, but it is not a show I leave and think, wow, nor would want to see it again. Nor were any songs sticking in my head. As I said, some of the changes bothered me, but I also understand why they were done. 

[Fordham2015]

Posted: 6/12/24 at 7:56pm

I absolutely loved this. A terrific score performed by an extremely talented young cast.

On the technical side, wow the lighting. For a show set mostly in the dark, you could see everything clearly. Paul Newman projections are also really well done

And re the choreo/fight choreo- yes the rumble is fantastic, but the fire and fountain sequences also took my breath away

Updated On: 6/12/24 at 07:56 PM

[Dirty Rotten Scoundrel]

Posted: 6/12/24 at 8:41pm

Echoing what others have said regarding Brody Grant's diction. I was really struggling to understand him throughout several big numbers. At first I thought it was the sound, but quickly realized he was the only performer I was having this problem with. That was my biggest nit regarding performances in this show. Hopefully this is something he works on as he grows as a performer. 

Updated On: 6/12/24 at 08:41 PM

[kdogg36]

Posted: 6/13/24 at 11:34am

It seems to me like the three brothers have all been coached to sing in a similar, "grungy" manner (for lack of a better term), but maybe Ponyboy lays it on the thickest.

[Dkinny23]

Posted: 6/13/24 at 11:59am

It’s really interesting to me that people are having such a hard time understanding Brody. I generally have a hard time deciphering lyrics, especially when it’s new source material, but I remember when I first saw it in previews thinking to myself how refreshing it was that he was so clear and that I could understand every word he was saying and singing. Is it people who are not from New York / NJ who are having a hard time understanding him? 

[incomesabby]

Posted: 6/13/24 at 1:09pm

Interestingly, I find myself somewhere between these two perspectives.

When I first saw the show (with no recollection of the story/plot), I remember feeling very engaged with the storyline and with Ponyboy as the narrator. I didn't have any trouble following what was happening due to not understanding Brody.

However, in the months since then, and especially with listening to the album, I have found that there was in fact a lot I missed from the lyrics. Now I just view it as adding more richness to the show.

Tulsa '67 is a great example — I got the key points (names, characters, Greasers and Socs) when hearing the song live for the first time. But it's only recently that I have really HEARD lyrics like these:

"The money went west, take the grease to the east
The train ran down the belly of the beast
[...]
In the town that's torn in two
What's a Greaser from the East Side supposed to do?"

If it's intentional (which may be generous), then I do think they did a great job of emphasizing the more important lines/lyrics.

I also feel like they are intentionally trying to lean into a more unique singing sound, rather than perfect musical theatre diction. Updated On: 6/13/24 at 01:09 PM

[Dirty Rotten Scoundrel]

Posted: 6/13/24 at 11:02pm

Dkinny23 said: "It’s really interesting to me that people are having such a hard time understanding Brody. I generally have a hard time deciphering lyrics, especially when it’s new source material, but I remember when I first saw it in previews thinking to myself how refreshing it was that he was so clear and that I could understand every word he was saying and singing. Is it people who are not from New York / NJ who are having a hard time understanding him?"

I am from the tri-state area and couldn't understand a good portion of what he sang - particularly in the opening number. Nor could my friend who's from NY. 

[BroadwayAndSports]

Posted: 6/14/24 at 4:21pm

I love this show, and Brody Grant is excellent in it, but I do wish they'd have him clean up his diction a little. I totally get what they're going for, but just a notch or two down from that mumbled style of singing would do wonders.

[Dylan Smith4]

Posted: 6/15/24 at 8:46pm

Saw the show this afternoon and was not expecting it to be as good as it actually was! WOW was I surprised! Especially for that choreography! Probably one of the best I’ve Sean this year! Brody was out today, which had me a little disappointed, but his understudy Josh was incredible as Pony Boy! Other than Choreography and Best Musical and maybe Lighting Design, that’s about it for winning tomorrow but every show wants the top prize! 

[Call_me_jorge]

Posted: 6/18/24 at 5:52pm

Brody Grant is out tonight, and likely the remainder of the week!

[Fordham2015]

Posted: 6/18/24 at 6:19pm

The Tony winning banner is up, per Instagram 

 https://www.instagram.com/stories/outsidersmusical/3393410771676177500/

Updated On: 6/18/24 at 06:19 PM