I was there last night. Somehow I stumbled on this show earlier this year and become obsessed with the score. I thought it was so catchy and fun and loved the Tony performance which I have watched quite a bit.
The performance was introduced by NBC’s Bob Greenblatt who apparently became a fan of the show as a teenager on a trip to NYC when the top ticket price was $21.50! It was nice to hear just how many people had reunited including a few of the original voices (though sad Donna Murphy could not join!), hairdressers, Ann Roth even made a tribute costume to her original work, and several members of the orchestra were from the original Broadway run.
I think the best thing about the evening was hearing the score played by a full orchestra which sounded fantastic. The Entracte, in particular was a highlight. I thought that Lucie Arnaz and Robert Klein were fantastic, with Klein nailing those Neil Simon one liners and Arnaz in great voice (Just For Tonight and I Still Believe in Love were fantastic!) These two still have lots of chemistry 40 years later and it showed.
There was a fun bit of improve when for some reason Robert Klein was delayed from coming back onstage after “Just for Tonight” and Lucie Arnaz had to vamp. “Maybe I’ll sing the ballad again” she said, and finally when Robert came back onstage she said “No Bathroom breaks till intermission!”
Overall I think this show is a delight and wish Encores or some other company would produce a limited run. In the meantime I’ll be playing the cast recording on repeat!