WICKED - why did the critics give it mediocre/bad reviews? ?

Having just seen Wicked for the first time several weeks ago and going AGAIN August 12.. I started reading every "wicked" article from the press. Don't they feel Stupid now? They said Cheno was the only good thing about it..they said Idina had a powerful face but deserved better. they said the songs were pop-ish and not broadway enough..

Were they drunk or WHAT? I feel like writing to each and every critic who said Wicked would NOT take off... Don't you?

I think you'll be surprised by the responses some people on this board may give to this post. While I love Wicked as much as the next, I do accept that it has several weaknesses and flaws. If you read some of the posts about Wicked here, you'll see that there are MANY people who absolutely HATE it (as well as die-hard fans). It has great audience appeal, but isn't necessarily a "masterpiece".

FinnFanatic - Thanks for the reply. I don't go much to broadway shows thus I'm just your average joe and can appreciate the responses from people like you guys that have more experience in art, music, broadway.

Figures...I LOVED Pippen, hated CATS and last show I saw before Wicked was Lion King which was just a "visual" beauty but kinda boring....(sorry LK fans)

Pippin not Pippen. Sorry that just really annoyed me.

G - I appreciate your honest response. I wonder why I loved it so much?!! lol...I honestly think its the songs or perhaps because The wizard of Oz was my favorite as a child.. oh well..

.what play has been critically acclaimed AND a commercial success lately? What play is considered "The true artform of broadway" today?

but Titanic wasn't re-tooled, it just wasn't finished.

Wicked has some good numbers, none of them put to justice on the album, but the book is really good!! i think the chagne from Book to Musical was horrible! (sry) The book was amazing (though at times perverted) but the musical doesn't do it justice!

They didn't say that it wouldn't take off. They gave it mediocre reviews because it is, in truth, a mediocre show. Though the fans are/were passionate about Idina and Kristin and built the show up to be the most fabulous thing ever placed on a stage, the production is very flawed. Yes, it is an enjoyable show, but the book, score, choreography, blocking, etc are exceptionally mediocre.

Yes, but they are musicals. Not plays.

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Oh - When wickedfan2 asked about "plays," I assumed (s)he meant musicals (rather than "straight plays"), since that's what the topic is about. So about straight plays:

Raisin in the Sun is both critically acclaimed (except for the lukewarm response to P. Diddy) and commercially successful.

I don't remember the reviews for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, but I do know it recouped its investment.

About the "true artform of Broadway": it's been over a decade, and the theatre community is still feeling the artistic repercussions of Kushner's Angels in America (it helps that it's now an HBO movie). People have and will continue to look back on it as an landmark on Broadway's straight-play scene.

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Updated On: 7/22/04 at 12:51 PM

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof got not-so-good reviews for its Maggie and Brick, Ashley Judd and Jason Patric. But they recouped because they're, you know, Ashley Judd and Jason Patric.

Les Mis got bad inital reviews? Huh. I'll have to look that up.

Updated On: 7/22/04 at 01:10 PM

I'm a huge Les Miz fanatic, so I can answer this:

The story about Les Miz getting initial bad reviews isn't quite true. When it opened in London (with no big marketing hoopla, mind you), a few major London newspapers dismissed the show, saying it was a butchery of Victor Hugo's novel - that was their main criticism (that a musical version of Les Miz shouldn't be attempted), and they didn't really review the show itself.

Cameron Mackintosh thought this would kill the show, but instead ticket sales boomed due solely to word-of-mouth (so much so that they had to move theatres, from the Barbican to the Palace).

When Les Miz got to New York, it received universal acclaim from all the major newspapers and became a Broadway phenomenon, winning 8 Tony Awards.

So in summary, Les Miz was "dismissed" by London critics (not really the same as a pan), and received rave reviews from New York critics.

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Updated On: 7/22/04 at 01:24 PM

LOL, Avenue Q is definitely a musical, and I recommend you see it! It's hilarious and heartwarming at the same time.

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