You're best surprises of B'way theater?

I'm sure we have all attended dozens of theater productions over the years (in some cases, hundreds...but I'm not in that league yet), and I'm sure there were quite a few surprises for each of us - both good and bad.

But I'm curious about the 'good surprises' - mainly the best surprises for you. What musicals / plays have you seen where you were really surprised of how great it was - and why?

Here's my brief list:

1. Tyne Daly in GYPSY - as I mentioned a few weeks ago, I had no intention of seeing this show and only saw it by 'default' in May, 1991. I honestly was not too familiar with GYPSY, and I couldn't picture myself sitting through a performance with Tyne "Maribeth Lacey" Daly singing. Best night of Broadway in my life.

2. Cherly Ladd in ANNIE GET YOUR GUN - Like Daly in Gypsy, I had no intention of seeing this show. Didn't know the show, and couldn't picture Charlie's Angel on a Broadway stage. However, I was staying at a hotel across the street at the time, NY was in the midst of a January blizzard (I think it was 2001) and my friend and I wanted to see anything rather than sit in the lounge of the hotel. Off we trotted to the Marquis Theater, where tickets were 1/2 off and we sat fifth row center orchestra (yes, the weather really kept people away). The show was good, but Ladd was great. She had fun with the audience, and gave a wonderful performance (why she has never been in any other B'way production is beyond me).

3.TOMMY (tour) - When the B'way musical was touring, my friend and I had season tickets to our local theater and this was part of the subscription. Neither one of us liked The Who (sorry), neither one of us liked the movie (though we were about 10 when it came out), neither one of us wanted to see this musical on a raw winter's night. We did everything we could to give away these tickets - with no takers. We went to dinner and even asked some regular patrons at the restaurant if they wanted our seats - no takers. So we made a plan to go and leave after ACT 1 if we hated it. By the end of ACT 2, we were on our feet cheering and bought tickets to the next day's evening performance - which was just as great. Talk about a great surprise!

Updated On: 8/22/17 at 08:01 PM

Titanic the Musical. I was set to hate it. I didn't. Not even close.

August: Osage County. I was just in awe, entirely. It was even better the 2ne time when I brought students and they came rushing over at each intermission so brimming over with excitement and NEEDING to talk about it.

Updated On: 8/22/17 at 09:13 PM

WAR HORSE!

On one trip to NYC, I saw Book of Mormon, Catch Me If You Can, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying and War Horse. I thought War Horse was the show which left such an impact on me, which was totally unexpected. I didn't even see the film adaptation by Spielberg because I read that it did not compare favorably with the stage production and I didn't want to ruin my impressions of the live staging!

amazingamandakate said: "Xanadu. I was 12 at the time, and it was the only thing we could get at TKTS. This was before my theatre obsessive stage and I knew absolutely nothing about the show. I was literally crying in front of the TKTS booth. It's very embarrassing now, as the show was hilarious and fun and made a lifelong Kerry Butler out of me.

Newsies. My school went and I was not super interested, especially since the other option was the OBC of Pippin. But the show really won me over in the end.

ALSO: I asked my mom for tickets to see On the Twentieth Century (with Cheno) for my birthday. After we saw it, she admitted that she thought it was going to be boring, but instead had a great time!"



As a fellow Okie (KC hails from Oklahoma), I love that you called her Cheno. Lol

I think some of the best surprises I've had with Broadway theatre, over the past few years, are

1. Hedwig and the Angry Inch - I knew nothing of the show, but my friend and I tried the lotto for the first preview performance with Neil Patrick Harris and we won, and after seeing it the first time, I fell in love. I was lucky enough to see it 2 more times after that with Michael C. Hall and John Cameron Mitchell. Also, the energy in that room for JCM's first performance on Broadway was so palpable and so surprising, it will be something I never forget.

2. The Light in the Piazza - I moved to New York only a few years ago so I never got to see the Broadway production and I wasn't into theatre back when the tour was still open, but when they announced the 10th Anniversary Concert I felt I had to go. I had no idea what to expect, but honestly it was amazing. It was such a beautiful show even in concert form.

3. Sunday in the Park With George - Another show I didn't know much about, but I was able to get a ticket to the New York City Center Concert and experience the Act 1 Finale for the first time was something I can't put into words. It was amazing and beautiful. I was able to see it on Broadway a few months later and I swear the Act 1 Finale left me speechless once again. I don't know what it is about that song, but it always leaves me speechless.

Those are 3 of the best memories that stick out. Some honorable mentions are seeing the set for Great Comet and the recent She Loves Me revival, the helicopter in the current production of Miss Saigon, the boat in the recent revival of The King and I, the costume changes in Cinderella.

Given that I had high expectations (that were met) by great productions of everything from HEDWIG to A CHORUS LINE (original cast) to SWEENEY TODD (every cast), there have indeed been other times when my expectations were beyond exceeded. A few of my best surprises:

-- Michael C Hall as the Emcee in CABARET. I was disappointed that we had missed Alan Cumming (saw him a few years later in the revival of the revival), but the replacement was Hall and he was extraordinary. It was a completely different take on the character and he was mesmerizing.

-- GROUNDHOG DAY. I wasn't a big MATILDA fan, and I didn't particularly love the original film, so it was lower on my priority list (basically, I went because there were good half-price seats available and I was determined that this year-- for the first time-- I would see every Tony-nominated Musical). GROUNDHOG DAY blew me away-- moved me profoundly and made a huge impression. Went back and saw it again and was equally impressed. I loved this production and everything about it.

-- PACIFIC OVERTURES-- actually, the pre-Broadway run in Boston. I was 15 and visiting my grandparents and was given an afternoon to do whatever I wanted. Since I was getting interested in live theatre, loved history and was already aware that a new Sondheim musical was a very, very big deal, I went and got a seat-- rear mezz, all by myself. Probably the most galvanizing moment of my theatre-going life: I realized musical theater could be transporting, provocative, funny, spectacular and very moving. And "Someone in a Tree" still floors me.

Matilda. Easy. I had little to no desire to see it and I was just blown away. The music, the lyrics, the story, the whole thing was just phenomenal. I know its cheesy, but there really is nothing like confetti and the end of a show. That alone might prompt me to see Charlie.

Easy for me, too. Groundhog Day and (surprise, surprise) Honeymoon in Vegas. Two flops that are very, very dear to my heart.

PRISCILLA, QUEEN OF THE DESERT (tour production)

A friend wanted to see it and offered to buy my ticket. I never decline a free ticket so I accepted, expecting to be lightly entertained at the most. I loved it! I appreciated it didn't take itself seriously, and just solely wanted the audience to laugh and have fun. Well, I did. And my friend whose idea it was to see it? He hated it. LOL

What great memories everyone is sharing - thank you so much for participating in this thread.

I have to add one more to my response - one that happened just a few weeks ago:

THE GREAT COMET - I had no idea what the story was going to be about, or the music; just that my friend had a friend who was one of the stars and the tickets were good and affordable. (Mind you, right after the tix were bought the whole casting drama erupted). Again, it was one of those experiences where I was totally 'blown away' from beginning to end, and could have sat through the next performance had they offered a Sunday night show! Definitely racks up with one of the 'great surprises' in my theater attending history.

Ivo van Hove's recent Broadway revival of A View from the Bridge remains as one of the best experiences I've had on Broadway (after about 10+ years of seeing shows), truly took my breath away

My best surprises are usually when I have low expectations. Shows I've gone too and had low expectation but ended up loving include:

-A Chorus Line

-Gypsy

-In The Heights

-Hello Dolly

Actually, all the above shows I perceived to be fluff, and was taken aback at how meaningful they were.



1984 surprised me in that I was not expecting the final scene to affect me that much.

Off the top of my head without much thought:

Noise/Funk - humbling because I'm the exact same age as Savion, but I was a little intern at the same time he created his own show. Beyond that, it was just so completely different than anything I had seen before. The show may not have been perfect, but it blew my mind.

Boeing Boeing - I knew nothing other than it was on TDF and had a couple of actresses who I liked a ton. I was delightfully surprised and laughed for two hours straight.

The Who's Tommy - I have a tech background and it just opened my eyes to so many things. I especially loved that when they turned the entire theatre into a pinball machine, it was done is such a low tech, but effective way.