#1
First of all, let me just say that there were so many straight men at today's show that it blew my mind. I'm sure most of them were dragged their by their wives or children, but many spoke highly of the show when they were leaving.
Today I saw the 2pm performance of Wicked in Buffalo - I was so excited to see it because I hadn't seen it since the tour actually began in Toronto with SJB, which was probably 3 years ago. When we walked into the theatre, I actually thought that the set had been scaled back again, as it felt small on that stage. After the show began, that idea went away - it all felt right after the first number was over. I also thought that the pit wasn't loud enough, but that idea went away also. The pit did sound a little empty compared to what I remembered before, but they were the right volume.
Katie Rose Clark was out, which was fine by me. Meggie Cansler took her place, and was PHENOMENAL. I'm actually glad I didn't see Katie because Maggie's performance took my breath away. I thought that she really added a whole new layer to the character, and had a magnificent singing voice. This girl needs to get to Broadway, asap. The only thing that bothered me was that she missed some of those comedic lines that I was looking forward to. I mean, she made the character her own, that's for sure. But some things that I was looking forward to just went right over the audiences head. But her transformation from first act to second act was unbelievable.
I was nervous that Carmen wouldn't go on because some people said she was on vocal rest or something, but she did go on and was amazing also. You Chicago people who had her for a while were super lucky. I thought she was great - good acting, good singing, good everything. Her Wizard and I was great and had a huge response, as did Defying Gravity (which btw, was one of the best versions I have EVER heard).
Alma Cuervo was very good. I was looking forward to her since I saw her in Titanic, and she did not disappoint. She's one of the few Morrible's who actually sings too, thank god.
Cliffton Hall was Fiyero and he was.. okay. I personally did not like his voice at all, but I did like the way he played the role. A lot of people have said that they just can't find a person who plays the role right, and I think that he made a good attempt at it. He and Carmen also had good chemistry, and ALAYM got pretty hot at the end.
Deedee Hall was Nessarose and I actually really liked her a lot. Last time I saw it, I saw Jenna Lee Green who I thought was amazing, but Deedee also did great. From where I was sitting, she looked Asian, which I thought was pretty cool casting. She sang the hell out of Wicked Witcch of the East
Brad Weinstock as Boq didn't work for me one bit and all of his funny lines didn't work at all.
The show flowed great, and the audience ate it all up. Many have said that it's no wonder that Avenue Q won the Tony, but I definitely think that Wicked has depth to it that touches people. I went on a whole bus full of judgmental senior citizens, and they all loved the show. Obviously, Wicked is doing something right.
Posted: 7/12/08 at 8:30pm
First of all, let me just say that there were so many straight men at today's show that it blew my mind. I'm sure most of them were dragged their by their wives or children, but many spoke highly of the show when they were leaving.
Today I saw the 2pm performance of Wicked in Buffalo - I was so excited to see it because I hadn't seen it since the tour actually began in Toronto with SJB, which was probably 3 years ago. When we walked into the theatre, I actually thought that the set had been scaled back again, as it felt small on that stage. After the show began, that idea went away - it all felt right after the first number was over. I also thought that the pit wasn't loud enough, but that idea went away also. The pit did sound a little empty compared to what I remembered before, but they were the right volume.
Katie Rose Clark was out, which was fine by me. Meggie Cansler took her place, and was PHENOMENAL. I'm actually glad I didn't see Katie because Maggie's performance took my breath away. I thought that she really added a whole new layer to the character, and had a magnificent singing voice. This girl needs to get to Broadway, asap. The only thing that bothered me was that she missed some of those comedic lines that I was looking forward to. I mean, she made the character her own, that's for sure. But some things that I was looking forward to just went right over the audiences head. But her transformation from first act to second act was unbelievable.
I was nervous that Carmen wouldn't go on because some people said she was on vocal rest or something, but she did go on and was amazing also. You Chicago people who had her for a while were super lucky. I thought she was great - good acting, good singing, good everything. Her Wizard and I was great and had a huge response, as did Defying Gravity (which btw, was one of the best versions I have EVER heard).
Alma Cuervo was very good. I was looking forward to her since I saw her in Titanic, and she did not disappoint. She's one of the few Morrible's who actually sings too, thank god.
Cliffton Hall was Fiyero and he was.. okay. I personally did not like his voice at all, but I did like the way he played the role. A lot of people have said that they just can't find a person who plays the role right, and I think that he made a good attempt at it. He and Carmen also had good chemistry, and ALAYM got pretty hot at the end.
Deedee Hall was Nessarose and I actually really liked her a lot. Last time I saw it, I saw Jenna Lee Green who I thought was amazing, but Deedee also did great. From where I was sitting, she looked Asian, which I thought was pretty cool casting. She sang the hell out of Wicked Witcch of the East
Brad Weinstock as Boq didn't work for me one bit and all of his funny lines didn't work at all.
The show flowed great, and the audience ate it all up. Many have said that it's no wonder that Avenue Q won the Tony, but I definitely think that Wicked has depth to it that touches people. I went on a whole bus full of judgmental senior citizens, and they all loved the show. Obviously, Wicked is doing something right.
Updated On: 7/12/08 at 08:30 PM
