I also saw the matinee today. I liked the show, but didn't love it. Just some thoughts:
- Choreography (as others have said) was a strong point. The ensemble in general was very strong and provided excellent support to the principals.
- My biggest issue is probably that the script and look is SO similar to the film. Kathy Fitzgerald also looks almost exactly like Roz (Elizabeth Wilson) in the film. While the film script is great, I think it could have been opened up and expanded a lot more than it was. And of course, this is only the first week the show has been in front of an audience, so I'm sure things will change.
- For me, the strongest overall performance was from Stephanie. Her character changes the most through the story, and also has some new comic lines that she made work very well. Allison Janney has a surprisingly strong singing voice, and it was easy to tell that she was having the time of her life all through the show. Megan was great, but she didn't really get a number that was just hers that let her really show off (Allison's was One of the Boys, and Stephanie's was Get Out and Stay Out). The songs for Hart were probably the weakest, but Marc really made an impression whenever he was on stage.
- It felt like the show just ended, with no real finale per se. Maybe a reprise of Shine Like the Sun or a curtain call reprise of the title number could help. I definitely did love the Bush joke at the end, however .
The audience definitely loved the show, and it should definitely do quite well. Since I really have enjoyed Megan and Stephanie in the past and have been hearing all the hype about the show, I was expecting to come out loving it, and I found it to be slighty better than OK. I would recommend checking it out if you're in the LA area.
Was at the matinee today as well. Fantastic show. The set design is crazy. Always changing, stuff coming down from above, actors and things coming up from the stage. Its pretty wild. And even a mini "Celine Dion" LCD screen behind. IMO the best part of the show was the fantasy sequence. All 3 numbers were cute. Megan couldn't quite get the lasso around Hart and lost her hat jumping the last rope. Very cute. And how about the bathroom scene and ROZ singing Heart to Hart? So funny. The ensamble did a great job from beginning to end and am looking foward to the cast recording soon.
My always critical friend caught the show last night and absolutely loved it.
She said it has VERY minimal problems when put on the same of most out of town openings lately. She predicts it will give the juggernaut BILLY ELLIOT a run for the Best Musical Tony and it definitely has a good chance at winning.
She noted that it is both well put-together and entertaining, a rarity nowadays, and that the three female leads each give phenomenal performances.
She said Megan is wonderful. Funny, beautiful, and sings the hell out of her songs. Alison is hilarious, bringing a lot of dry humor to this very peppy show and she balances out the humor nicely. Best of all, she said, was Stephanie. Now my friend has never liked Block's voice or acting at all. She saw her as Elphaba and said she was not very good, ditto to her Liza, and said she was serviceable if underwhelming in THE PIRATE QUEEN. Here, my friend notes, she gives a star-making performance. She fits the character beautifully and is charming and she said the audience was crying and on their feet after GET OUT AND STAY OUT, a number that she said should alone get her Tony buzz.
She loved the score, thought the book needed a little work, said the entire ensemble was brilliant, and had a lot of fun.
She predicts a lot of Tonys and positive reviews in New York. And this is from someone who hardly ever raves about anything.
Fabulous, fabulous, fabulous show. Some quick thoughts:
- Allison Janney IS Violet. She's always had that demeanor about her, but hearing her knock those killer one-liners out of the park was a joy. She was just fantastic, and a great surprise. I wasn't sure she could carry the show, but she blew me away.
- I've never been a big Stephanie fan, but you know what, this is a good role for her. I've always seen her as a "weak, vulnerable" actress, meaning I never understood why she kept being cast in these power-to-the-women roles in WICKED and PIRATE QUEEN. She's a fantastic actress, but she just never had that spunk to me. As Judy, though, she's perfect, because Judy is a little weak and a little vulnerable. And when "Get Out And Stay Out" brought down the house, I decided that I could only buy Stephanie as a strong rebellious female if I saw her transformation into one, and I definitely did.
- Megan Hilty was FLAWLESS. Absolutely FLAWLESS.
- Kudisch was great, but heavily underused. "Here For You" is a great song, and I've been singing it for hours and hours (though it seems a lot of people here dislike it), but "Mundania" and its reprise can absolutely be taken away. He needs a better number to replace "Mundania," and then I think I'd be happy with his role. Either way, he's fantastic, and he continues to be one of my favorite Broadway actors.
- The score was great, and I found myself singing a whole bunch of songs after the show (and even now). "Around Here" is such a damn fun number (particularly because I love quick-rhyming verses, which is what the entire song is made of). I must say, I was VERY impressed with Dolly's work here. Some songs had a slight country twang to them in the orchestrations, but the score is fabulous and very accessible. "Shine Like The Sun" is by far one of my favorite show tunes to date... I already can't wait for the cast recording. I do have to say, though, that the songs in Act Two just bored the heck out of me. With the exception of "Get Out and Stay Out" and a couple little parts of some of the others, I really found myself waiting for a few fantastic songs in Act Two, and I only got one, unfortunately. (EDIT: Oh, and "Tattletale" is my new guilty pleasure. What a damn fun song, and so traditionally Dolly.)
Set, great. Choreography, great. Potential for a great run on Broadway (in my mind), great. Updated On: 9/14/08 at 05:36 PM
WiCkEDrOcKS - thanks for posting on behalf of your friend. It sounds like her and I would probably agree to disagree on a few things so it just goes to show that if one keeps an open mind (like your friend did) they might be pleasantly surprised to find something in common with the person they'd least expect to enjoy something with :) On a side note... you're breaking my heart with how harsh you're being in the "13" threads. Wow, makes me glad you have good things to say about this show! As far as cult followings and Tony nods go, it's too early to tell but I'm totally rooting for the show to do well!
Volleyballer - I totally agree with you about Megan. She was the pleasant surprise of the show for me. I really liked her Glinda a lot so I was excited to see her branch out, and she totally delivered!
I'll be checking out the changes so I'll report if they do anything different with Hart before they leave L.A.