Yes, another cry baby review. Sorry!

[dave1606]

Posted: 4/4/08 at 6:13pm

Cry-Baby seems to be the show to go crazy over this season. Whether that is crazy hate or crazy love, there just doesn’t seem to be much a medium between the reactions on this show. Going into the show last night I simply couldn’t decide whether I should be excited or scared for what was about to take place. The theater sadly nearly empty with plenty of empty seats in the orchestra and only about 4 rows taken up in the mezzanine. I was sitting in the front row mezz with a perfect view for either the awesomeness or hideousness that was going to happen once the curtain came up. And honestly, I went in with a relatively open mind and had a good time. Not a great time, but a pretty good one.
First off, this is some of the best choreography on Broadway. Rob Ashford who did the excellent choreography in one of my other favorite shows, Curtains simply makes this show. Whenever there was dancing I was simply blown away. That alone was worth the price of my 54 dollar ticket.
Secondly this show’s real problem is its closeness too Hairspray. Hairspray-lite is what kept coming to mind for me. Half the cast seems to have some affiliation with the other Baltimore show, as well as most of the creative team. Even Carly Jibson originated the lead role of Hairspray in the National Tour.(who was fantastic here) Sadly this show isn’t nearly as good, not that it is a bad show, but that it just pales in comparison.
I actually enjoyed the music, much of which has been re-orchestrated and changed since the demo that I have, for the better. The problem for me was that every time the show ended a song for dialogue, it was at a standstill. The book is the real weak link here, and I hope they can tweak it a bit more before it opens. Also, as much as I loved Elizabeth Stanely in Company she just doesn’t seem to fit here for me, and doesn’t seem to have much chemistry with James Snyder. I like Harriet Harris a great deal(loved her on Frasier), but her singing in this was just ok for me. The supporting cast is fantastic though. Chester Gregory II and Alli Mauzey were standouts for me, but overall the ensemble itself really was really impressive.
Standout scenes were the “Girl Can I kiss you with Tounge,” the finale of the show, and “A Little Upset.” The first act could use some tweaking in terms of pacing, but the second act worked a lot better for me.
Overall, Cry-Baby is not the second coming of musical theater. Its not perfect, but it isn’t the terrible mess of a show that I was hearing about. It is energetic, fun, and a pretty decent time. I don’t think this deserves to die a High Fidelity death and I encourage anyone who is on the fence to give the show a chance.

I am including a picture that once again, damn cell phone took, but it was a really neat moment, as the cast was hanging out outside the stage door of Cry-Baby, they all got together for a picture. I know its blurry, but it can give you an idea of what was really a cute picture! Also, as I said in a another thread, they all came out with a new scene that was being put in the show for tonight and Christopher Hanke came out really late, telling us he was in a meeting, so its good to know they are still tweaking things!

Updated On: 4/4/08 at 06:13 PM