Young Frankenstein...Why?- Page 2

[ErinDillyFan]

Posted: 9/10/08 at 10:09am

It is rather strange that people tag Mel Brooks as a newcomer to broadway. The Producers was his 4th broadway show having written the book for 3 shows in the 50s and early 60s.

[HBBrock]

Posted: 9/10/08 at 10:56am

I've said it before and I will say it again. Young Frankenstein is one of the best (if not the best) show on Broadway right now. It has everything you could hope for in a show.

[Scarywarhol]

Posted: 9/10/08 at 11:04am

Wow, this was some major bump.

I still think Young Frankenstein was one of the worst nights I've ever spent in a theatre.

[Steve2]

Posted: 9/10/08 at 11:34am

^
|
|
|
Agreed, ScaryWarhol!

[cantstandbrody]

Posted: 9/10/08 at 2:37pm

thats funny the post came from you !!! i thought HIgh Fidelity was the worst thing to hit broadway since BIG

[cantstandbrody]

Posted: 9/10/08 at 2:44pm

well said allofmylife

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 9/10/08 at 2:44pm

THEIR!

[Hanna from Hamburg]

Posted: 9/10/08 at 3:06pm

I was expecting a total disaster when I went to see YF. I had an enjoyable evening. I think the show pays enough tribute to the original source material, but provides enough new bits to entertain fans who know every line from the film.

The performers (for the most part) are quite good . . . Roger Bart TO ME does the best he can in a role that's not suited to his talents . . . Sutton was very under-utilized. Megan, Christopher and Andrea are amazing.

Sets / lighting are amazing, but I don't think appropriate for the show. One of the things that made the move work so well was that b-rated horror film feel it had. Going to bright, neon colors for the lab makes it all look to slick to me. I appreciated what was pulled off, but didn't think it worked for this material.

Overall, felt YF was a good show, but not great . . . DEFINITELY not the bomb that it was made out to be. It just got trashed because of things that were done by Mel and the producers leading up to the opening (changing theatres, no financials released, price of premium tickets).

[blaxx]

Posted: 9/10/08 at 3:07pm

Young Frankenstein is one of the best (if not the best) show on Broadway right now. It has everything you could hope for in a show

Wow, I should hope for different things from now on, then.

[defyinggravity42694]

Posted: 9/10/08 at 3:57pm

I actually did not enjoy that show, well not so much the show, but the music. I feel like I would have enjoyed it a lot more if it was not a musical.

[Scarywarhol]

Posted: 9/10/08 at 4:04pm

defyinggravity, I'm with you. I think I said months ago in this same thread that Young Frankenstein could have been brilliant if it were done mire in the style of 39 steps. The movie and its style just doesn't lend itself to being a musical. Having it filled with bad songs also lessens the impact and absurdity of Puttin on the Ritz.

[mc1227]

Posted: 9/10/08 at 4:18pm

I saw this last December, a month after it opened. I thought the show was good and most of the performances great. I didn't care for Roger Bart much because I didn't think he fit the character and I hated the shouting. I certainly don't think it should have been panned as much as it was. Chris Fitzgerald deserved the Tony for featured actor without a doubt.

I don't believe it was anywhere near as good as The Producers. Where I really feel the difference is in the quality of songs. The Producers had much more heart and soul and all around laughs. There are no comparisons to the music and lyrics of the Producers but taken on its own, without comparison, it is a very entertaining show. Certainly deserved more respect that it has gotten.

[sally1112]

Posted: 9/10/08 at 4:31pm

I was really enjoying this thread before the bump. I love YF too and was happy to see some people that agree, which isn't the norm around here.

[QuiteSo]

Posted: 9/10/08 at 7:58pm

I really, really wanted to enjoy YF - I am a huge fan of Mel's movies, and Young Frankenstein certainly is one of the tops for me. The sad truth is, the material just did not lend to the stage as well as The Producers did. The movie of Young Frankenstein was made to parody the Golden Age of Hollywood horror movies, and that's why it was brilliant. Had they made more allusions to that central conceit, I think the musical would have fared better - or, as Gil Varod of Broadway Abridged figured, had they made it a parody of the big, flashy gothic musicals of the 80s with a different composer, for that matter.

I also wanted to enjoy Bart and Foster, two performers whom I respect very much, but both were very, VERY miscast and completely all over each other from the show's beginning - there was no build up in their relationship and the comedic elements of it were massacred as a result.

Christopher Fitzgerald, Shuler Hensley, and Megan Mullally were all brilliant - as was Andrea's understudy, whose name I have forgotten.

With the budget they had, I was hoping for much more in the way of creativity and energy...but alas. Let's hope Blazing Saddles doesn't turn out like this one.

Updated On: 9/10/08 at 07:58 PM

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 9/11/08 at 7:59am

It wasn't funny enough. I have heard this quite often.

I think the voters went in with some very high expectations, with all the hype surrounding the show. When it didn't exceed anything, they were disappointed.

I don't think there was anything truly special about the musical. Granted, I liked it overall, but I can see why voters overlooked Young Frankenstein when casting votes. The music, aside from a few songs, was somewhat forgettable, in my opinion. The choreography was your typical old-fashion/tap-dance show choreography. The three really positive things about the show (Christopher, Andrea, and the sets) were nominated, even though they didn't win.

[log13124]

Posted: 9/11/08 at 8:41am

I agree, expectations for the show hurt it greatly. I'm a huge Mel Brooks fan and while I enjoyed the show greatly, I found myself at a couple of times feeling like I knew what was coming because it was fitting in the cookie-cutter mold of The Producers. Let me say, I enjoyed the show and was shocked that it didn't get a best musical nomination (Cry-Baby... really?). Walking out that night I turned to a friend and said that Christopher Fitzgerald won the Tony as well and others might as well not even attend. When the nominations came out, I was shocked. Its a good show, a show that was a little forced and could have used another few months of workshops, IMO, to refine it a little more.

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 9/11/08 at 10:43am

i thought HIgh Fidelity was the worst thing to hit broadway since BIG

Then I guess High Fidelity wasn't that bad. Now, if you were talking about the tour of Big, then I would understand where you're coming from.

[Jonna]

Posted: 9/20/08 at 9:20pm

Sorry to bump this guys. I just bought tickets to this for a matinee in October. I was curious how the cast is right now? Also I was wondering if any cast changes would be happening before October 15th? I have left orchestra seats row BB how are these seats? Any info would be appreciated! :)

[musicman_bwayfan]

Posted: 9/21/08 at 1:35am

This show was fantastic. I saw it 2x with the original cast - once in December and once in April. I plan on seeing it again in December with the 3 new replacement girls. YF actually deserved more nominations than it ended up getting, and I'm surprised that Andrea or Chris didn't actually get picked for the Tony award. Anybody other than myself notice that there were 7 new big musicals last year (Cry Baby, In The Heights, Passing Strange, A Catered Affair, Xanadu, Young Frankenstein and Little Mermaid)? Now Cry Baby closed after a matter of weeks, Passing Strange and Catered Affair closed after a few months. Xanadu is now closing on October 12 out of the blue (along with the brand new Title of Show which has been open since June or July). The only things left are In The Heights, YF, and Mermaid. In the Heights is still around because it won 4 Tonys. Yes, it was a good show, however it did not deserve all of the Tonys that it won - no offense to any In The Heights fans. I base my statement off the fact that out of the 30 something shows that were nominated for any Tony awards, there were only 4 that I did not get to see - Passing Strange, Mauritius, Augst Osage County, and one other drama/non-musical. Back to YF...it is one of the only 3 new musicals that actually survived a year. I seriously think the the critics were too harsh in the reviews and that the people who nominated shows for Tony's this year were incredibly high and drunk out of their mind...it should have been up there with the flops for best musical.

[justafan2]

Posted: 9/21/08 at 10:51am

Jonna---I've sat in left orch BB (against the wall) and saw everyone just fine. I normally hate those seats, but in that theater---the stage isn't too high and so, you'll be ok.

I think this show grew on me---I liked it ok the first time I saw it (last November in the middle of the strike---it was one of the few shows that wasn't affected--I already had the tix). Each time I've seen it since---I've enjoyed it more and more.
I LOVE Fred Applegate who plays the Insp. Kemp/hermit---he's wonderful!