#26
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:03pm
#27
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:06pm
What? He didn't like Christine Ebersole in Grey Gardens (who recieved across the board raves from every critic, despite what they thought of the show itself) but he liked...Xanadu?
#29
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:09pm
Tee hee another good one. (joy!)
"All I ask of you is one thing: please don't be cynical. I hate cynicism -- it's my least favorite quality and it doesn't lead anywhere. Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard and you're kind, amazing things will happen."
Conan O'Brien
#30
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:11pm
TALKIN' BROADWAY is POSITIVE. I wouldn't call it a complete rave:
Yes, Xanadu is now on Broadway, at the Helen Hayes. Perhaps the least-expected and least-anticipated of all film-to-stage adaptations is delivering more good times (and lower risk of injury) than you could have found at a roller rink back in the day. Librettist Douglas Carter Beane, whose play The Little Dog Laughed was seen on Broadway last season, and director Christopher Ashley might have set out to make fun of the misbegotten 1980 Universal picture, but have instead succeeded in making 90 minutes worth of fun unequaled by most of New York's other recent musicals.
#################################################################
Gone, though, are most hints of the pretentious historical allusions and grander cosmic significance that made the movie such an unintentional hoot. In their place are any number of jokes about the ridiculousness of the 1980s (leg warmers occupy a crucial plot point), the idiocy of the film, and the pointlessness of musical theatre. (Lord Lloyd-Webber, for example, receives a major name check.)
#################################################################
Ashley's created a true frat-drag party atmosphere that defuses this somewhat, but the show could well make do with less winking. The better titles of this type use such things sparingly but use them big, and never strictly for their own sake; Xanadu starts wearing out on this after about 30 minutes, which isn't an especially noteworthy record.
Luckily, the show compensates with considerably more talent than it needs, in every department.
#################################################################
The stage is populated with even crazier personages, especially in shameless scene-stealers Jackie Hoffman and Mary Testa, who make a series of uproarious appearances as two ne'er-do-well muses who want only to thwart their sister Kira in her earthly pursuits. It's nice that their oversized comic faces, voices, and mannerisms for once fit into their surroundings instead of jutting away from them. Curtis Holbrook is an electric presence in the few featured dance spots he's been granted (including an especially charming turn as a young Danny, opposite both Roberts and Butler). The rest of the cast, which includes Anika Larsen, Kenita Miller, André Ward, and stunt skater Marty Thomas can't supply all of the spectacle the film's enormous dancing corps did, but is so full of spirit and personality you don't much mind.
It's less clear that the three leads supply everything required, but they work well enough
#################################################################
Such feelings are easily understandable. It often seems as though the show will implode long before the integral paper streamers and cavalcades of mirrored balls have come and gone, but through sheer force of will the musical becomes what the movie couldn't: a delightful, smile-forcing summer night out. It's anyone's guess what will happen in August, when the Fringe Festival unleashes on New York its annual bevy of musicals just like this one. But for now, strap on your skates and get rolling - Xanadu has wild entertainment to spare for as long as it's here.
http://www.talkinbroadway.com/world/Xanadu.html
Yes, Xanadu is now on Broadway, at the Helen Hayes. Perhaps the least-expected and least-anticipated of all film-to-stage adaptations is delivering more good times (and lower risk of injury) than you could have found at a roller rink back in the day. Librettist Douglas Carter Beane, whose play The Little Dog Laughed was seen on Broadway last season, and director Christopher Ashley might have set out to make fun of the misbegotten 1980 Universal picture, but have instead succeeded in making 90 minutes worth of fun unequaled by most of New York's other recent musicals.
#################################################################
Gone, though, are most hints of the pretentious historical allusions and grander cosmic significance that made the movie such an unintentional hoot. In their place are any number of jokes about the ridiculousness of the 1980s (leg warmers occupy a crucial plot point), the idiocy of the film, and the pointlessness of musical theatre. (Lord Lloyd-Webber, for example, receives a major name check.)
#################################################################
Ashley's created a true frat-drag party atmosphere that defuses this somewhat, but the show could well make do with less winking. The better titles of this type use such things sparingly but use them big, and never strictly for their own sake; Xanadu starts wearing out on this after about 30 minutes, which isn't an especially noteworthy record.
Luckily, the show compensates with considerably more talent than it needs, in every department.
#################################################################
The stage is populated with even crazier personages, especially in shameless scene-stealers Jackie Hoffman and Mary Testa, who make a series of uproarious appearances as two ne'er-do-well muses who want only to thwart their sister Kira in her earthly pursuits. It's nice that their oversized comic faces, voices, and mannerisms for once fit into their surroundings instead of jutting away from them. Curtis Holbrook is an electric presence in the few featured dance spots he's been granted (including an especially charming turn as a young Danny, opposite both Roberts and Butler). The rest of the cast, which includes Anika Larsen, Kenita Miller, André Ward, and stunt skater Marty Thomas can't supply all of the spectacle the film's enormous dancing corps did, but is so full of spirit and personality you don't much mind.
It's less clear that the three leads supply everything required, but they work well enough
#################################################################
Such feelings are easily understandable. It often seems as though the show will implode long before the integral paper streamers and cavalcades of mirrored balls have come and gone, but through sheer force of will the musical becomes what the movie couldn't: a delightful, smile-forcing summer night out. It's anyone's guess what will happen in August, when the Fringe Festival unleashes on New York its annual bevy of musicals just like this one. But for now, strap on your skates and get rolling - Xanadu has wild entertainment to spare for as long as it's here.
http://www.talkinbroadway.com/world/Xanadu.html
"If there was a Mount Rushmore for Broadway scores, "West Side Story" would be front and center. It snaps, it crackles it pops! It surges with a roar, its energy and sheer life undiminished by the years" - NYPost reviewer Elisabeth Vincentelli
Updated On: 7/10/07 at 08:11 PM
#31
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:14pm
Personal opinions of Ebersole (who I loved in G.G.) and Xanadu(which I thought was a waste of time) aside, it's just weird that Murray, who pretty much dislikes everything he sees, did not like such a lauded performance, but was even remotely possitive about such a ridiculous musical. Really, it is rather ridiculous. Entertaining or not, it is.
Updated On: 7/10/07 at 08:14 PM
#32
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:19pm
Yes, isn't it just ridiculous to spend an evening at the theater having fun.
#33
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:22pm
No. I like fun. I liked Curtains. I liked The Producers. I liked Hairspray. I don't think Xanadu is really entertaining or fun, though. I did admire the skating.
#34
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:23pm
Yes, isn't it just ridiculous to spend an evening at the theater having fun.
Amen, brother!
Amen, brother!
"Y'know, I think Bertolt Brecht was rolling in his grave."
-Nellie McKay on the 2006 Broadway production of The Threepenny Opera, in which she played Polly Peachum
-Nellie McKay on the 2006 Broadway production of The Threepenny Opera, in which she played Polly Peachum
#35
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:25pm
HAHA, I just find it funny that you just named 3 of my least favorite shows. Oh well.
#36
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:28pm
THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER is NEGATIVE:
Unfortunately, such self-consciousness is not likely to increase your enjoyment of this slipshod enterprise, which belongs more in a fringe festival than on Broadway. Despite running a mere 90 minutes, it quickly proves wearisome in its one-note camp attitude.
#################################################################
Although the satirical book has its flashes of wit, it doesn't manage to transform the horrific source material into anything theatrically viable, at least not in a way that hasn't already been done countless times before. (At one point, there's an insulting reference to Andrew Lloyd Webber, but musicals in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.
#################################################################
Butler, wearing the character's trademark leg warmers, is certainly perky enough, even if she never seems quite comfortable on her roller skates. Jackson, a last-minute replacement for original star James Carpinello (he had a skating malfunction), well displays his hunky attributes in tight shorts and tank tops. Veteran performer Roberts handles his rather humiliating chores with the grace and good humor of a true professional, and Jackie Hoffman and Mary Testa deliver some hilarious moments as Kira's fellow muses
#################################################################
But for all their efforts and those of director Christopher Ashley, who has staged the proceedings with a suitably hokey silliness, "Xanadu" should have stayed in the DVD bargain bin.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070711/review_nm/stage_xanadu_dc;_ylt=AmPLyaO8b6x47VZ57cJdThI9FRkF
Unfortunately, such self-consciousness is not likely to increase your enjoyment of this slipshod enterprise, which belongs more in a fringe festival than on Broadway. Despite running a mere 90 minutes, it quickly proves wearisome in its one-note camp attitude.
#################################################################
Although the satirical book has its flashes of wit, it doesn't manage to transform the horrific source material into anything theatrically viable, at least not in a way that hasn't already been done countless times before. (At one point, there's an insulting reference to Andrew Lloyd Webber, but musicals in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.
#################################################################
Butler, wearing the character's trademark leg warmers, is certainly perky enough, even if she never seems quite comfortable on her roller skates. Jackson, a last-minute replacement for original star James Carpinello (he had a skating malfunction), well displays his hunky attributes in tight shorts and tank tops. Veteran performer Roberts handles his rather humiliating chores with the grace and good humor of a true professional, and Jackie Hoffman and Mary Testa deliver some hilarious moments as Kira's fellow muses
#################################################################
But for all their efforts and those of director Christopher Ashley, who has staged the proceedings with a suitably hokey silliness, "Xanadu" should have stayed in the DVD bargain bin.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070711/review_nm/stage_xanadu_dc;_ylt=AmPLyaO8b6x47VZ57cJdThI9FRkF
"If there was a Mount Rushmore for Broadway scores, "West Side Story" would be front and center. It snaps, it crackles it pops! It surges with a roar, its energy and sheer life undiminished by the years" - NYPost reviewer Elisabeth Vincentelli
Updated On: 7/10/07 at 08:28 PM
#37
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:29pm
Oh my gosh ! I just got back & turned my computer right away.. I cant even look at the REVIEWS..
I am starting to read one by one now-
mominator-thanks for the tidbits!
I HOPE the reviews goes well !! I really betting my neck on this musical !
J*
I am starting to read one by one now-
mominator-thanks for the tidbits!
I HOPE the reviews goes well !! I really betting my neck on this musical !
J*
Updated On: 7/10/07 at 08:29 PM
#38
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:38pm
I don't get Schenk's comment about how Kerry doesn't look comfortable on skates. It seems like he is just finding mean things to say without giving good criticism. He doesn't have to like the show, but at least say something that is more than "I HATED IT".
#40
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:51pm
Let's tally ! (All the Reviews you guys included here) as of 9:45 pm EST
***********************
1. Word of Mouth (Audri, Cindi & Randi)- RAVE
2. NY1 News (Roma Torre)- POSITIVE
3. NY Variety (David Rooney) -RAVE
4. Talkin' Broadway (Matthew Murray)- POSITIVE
5. Hollywood Reporter (Frank Schneck)- NEGATIVE
6. Associated Press (Michael Kuchawara) - RAVE
****
RAVE-3
Positive-2
Mixed-
Negative-1
J*
***********************
1. Word of Mouth (Audri, Cindi & Randi)- RAVE
2. NY1 News (Roma Torre)- POSITIVE
3. NY Variety (David Rooney) -RAVE
4. Talkin' Broadway (Matthew Murray)- POSITIVE
5. Hollywood Reporter (Frank Schneck)- NEGATIVE
6. Associated Press (Michael Kuchawara) - RAVE
****
RAVE-3
Positive-2
Mixed-
Negative-1
J*
Updated On: 7/10/07 at 08:51 PM
#41
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:53pm
When will the Times chime in, and the New Yorker?
"All I ask of you is one thing: please don't be cynical. I hate cynicism -- it's my least favorite quality and it doesn't lead anywhere. Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard and you're kind, amazing things will happen."
Conan O'Brien
Updated On: 7/10/07 at 08:53 PM
#42
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:56pm
The times is usually pretty late...
SondheimGeek: Is it slightly pathetic that you guys get to be Jedi bitches, and I'm Bitchy the Hutt?
LizzieCurry: No, you're more memorable
LizzieCurry: No, you're more memorable
#43
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:57pm
Who did they send?
"All I ask of you is one thing: please don't be cynical. I hate cynicism -- it's my least favorite quality and it doesn't lead anywhere. Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really hard and you're kind, amazing things will happen."
Conan O'Brien
#44
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:58pm
From the TalkinBroadway review: It's anyone's guess what will happen in August, when the Fringe Festival unleashes on New York its annual bevy of musicals just like this one.
Maybe someone here can help me understand what this reviewer is saying. Does he mean the Fringe Festival shows might impact Xanadu somehow? Surely he doesn't think they'll steal enough audience away to threaten it long-term. The Fringe Festival has a pretty brief run, right? Maybe I'm just not understanding him. Does this make sense to anyone?
Maybe someone here can help me understand what this reviewer is saying. Does he mean the Fringe Festival shows might impact Xanadu somehow? Surely he doesn't think they'll steal enough audience away to threaten it long-term. The Fringe Festival has a pretty brief run, right? Maybe I'm just not understanding him. Does this make sense to anyone?
Updated On: 7/10/07 at 08:58 PM
#45
Posted: 7/10/07 at 8:59pm
So far, reviews are great!
1 Rave / 3 Positive / 1 Mixed
1 Rave / 3 Positive / 1 Mixed
#46
Posted: 7/10/07 at 9:01pm
erm and 1 negative -The Hollywood Reporter
Namo i love u but we get it already....you don't like Madonna
#47
Posted: 7/10/07 at 9:01pm
The Associated Press is a rave:
"'Xanadu' on stage: when good things happen to bad movies" is the title.
"Is the apocalypse closer than we think?
Xanadu, the jaw-droppingly awful 1980 film that sank Olivia Newton-John's movie career yet couldn't kill roller disco, has been turned into a fast, funny little stage musical. Quite a transformation.
It may not start a new fad for leg warmers, headbands and the thump-thump sounds of the Electric Light Orchestra, but the 90-minute show, which opened Tuesday, July 10, at Broadway's Helen Hayes Theatre, cheerfully (and with camp to spare) does a bang-up job at entertainment.
The sweetly appealing Butler, decked out in flowing blond hair, does double duty. She sings with ease as she speeds around designer David Gallo's vaguely ancient Grecian setting. The actress knows how to slyly snare a laugh, too, and Beane has given her plenty. There's even another homage of sorts to Newton-John - this muse comes equipped with an Australian accent.
Yet the evening's major giggle getters are Mary Testa and Jackie Hoffman, Kira's jealous sisters who plot her downfall. Muses are forbidden to fall in love with mortals, so naturally the two concoct a plan to make romance blossom between Kira and Sonny.
Hoffman, another Hairspray alum, literally chews the scenery with hilarious results, and Testa, a brassy lady with an equally brassy voice, knows how to take a song and shake it to the rafters.
But size doesn't matter. Director Christopher Ashley has invested the musical with a sure sense of what it wants to accomplish. There is a unity of performer and purpose that is enormously ingratiating. Xanadu doesn't take itself seriously - except in its desire to deliver a good time.
http://www.azcentral.com/ent/arts/articles/0710xanadu.html
"'Xanadu' on stage: when good things happen to bad movies" is the title.
"Is the apocalypse closer than we think?
Xanadu, the jaw-droppingly awful 1980 film that sank Olivia Newton-John's movie career yet couldn't kill roller disco, has been turned into a fast, funny little stage musical. Quite a transformation.
It may not start a new fad for leg warmers, headbands and the thump-thump sounds of the Electric Light Orchestra, but the 90-minute show, which opened Tuesday, July 10, at Broadway's Helen Hayes Theatre, cheerfully (and with camp to spare) does a bang-up job at entertainment.
The sweetly appealing Butler, decked out in flowing blond hair, does double duty. She sings with ease as she speeds around designer David Gallo's vaguely ancient Grecian setting. The actress knows how to slyly snare a laugh, too, and Beane has given her plenty. There's even another homage of sorts to Newton-John - this muse comes equipped with an Australian accent.
Yet the evening's major giggle getters are Mary Testa and Jackie Hoffman, Kira's jealous sisters who plot her downfall. Muses are forbidden to fall in love with mortals, so naturally the two concoct a plan to make romance blossom between Kira and Sonny.
Hoffman, another Hairspray alum, literally chews the scenery with hilarious results, and Testa, a brassy lady with an equally brassy voice, knows how to take a song and shake it to the rafters.
But size doesn't matter. Director Christopher Ashley has invested the musical with a sure sense of what it wants to accomplish. There is a unity of performer and purpose that is enormously ingratiating. Xanadu doesn't take itself seriously - except in its desire to deliver a good time.
http://www.azcentral.com/ent/arts/articles/0710xanadu.html
#48
Posted: 7/10/07 at 9:04pm
Jay, Talkin' Broadway was definitely positive. What review were you reading? Murray liked it.
#50
Posted: 7/10/07 at 9:07pm
OOps. I made a typo ! I mean Hollywood Reporter- sorry about that !
J*
J*
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