Your Theatre Year In Review 2018 — Page 2

I love this!

How many shows have you seen this year? 5 in Broadway (I don't even live in the US : My Fair Lady, Mean Girls, The Band's Visit, Waitress, Anastasia. I also saw Ghost Quartet in Seattle and the Mexican productions of Les Mis, Hello Dolly! and The Last 5 Years.

Show you liked/loved the most? My Fair Lady. I just adore everything about it. Tied with Ghost Quartet.

Show you liked least/hated most? The Mexican production of Hello Dolly!. It needs A LOT of work.

Show that surprised you the most (good or bad)? Mean Girls. I thought it was going to be an ok show, but I was amazed. It moved me and as someone who grew up with the movie, I loved how they translated a lot of things.

Favorite male performance? Harry Hadden-Paton in My Fair Lady

Favorite female performance? Nicolette Robinson in Waitress

Favorite New Song "I'd Rather Be Me" from Mean Girls. (Unless you count music from revivals, then "I've Grown Accustomed to her Face" with its current arrangements)* This is just music released this year, right?

What announced show are you most looking forward to next year? Hadestown, and I'm still praying for a Company transfer

I saw 40 productions in New York, plays and musicals.

Shows that I liked the most were: The Boys in the Band, The Band's Visit, Lifespan of a Fact, My Fair Lady.

Shows that I liked the least were: Oklahoma, The New One. Saint Joan, Bernhardt/Hamlet, Apologia

I was truly surprised by how funny and smart The Lifespan of a Fact was; I also think Daniel Radcliffe gave one of the best performances of the season. That ensemble and The Boys in the Band, for my money, were the best ensembles of the season. I was snookered in the second act of The Nap- you had to stay with that one but it was fun. And I thought Lobby Hero was a worthwhile evening in the theatre, very well done.

And I was surprised how stale Harry Potter seemed. I had seen it in London and loved it.

Favorite male performance: Daniel Racliffe and I hope at long last he gets a Tony nomination; Bryan Cranston in the disappointing "Network" (that production throws everything at you and little of it really pays off); James McArdcle so excellent in "Angels in America"; Lucas Hedges in "The Waverly Gallery:

Favorite female performance: Kerry Washington, a revelation in the powerful "American Son"; Glenda Jackson and Laurie Metcalf so brilliant in "Three Tall Women"; Elaine May's marvelous return to Broadway in the depressing and well done "The Waverly Gallery"; Cherry Jones as thoughtful yet feisty editor in "The Lifespan of a Fact"

"Answer Me" from "The Band's Visit" has genuine staying power

"Company" and the all-female "Glengarry Glen Ross"

How many shows have you seen this year? 65

Play you liked/loved the most? Angels in America, Torch Song, The Boys In The Band

Musical you liked/loved the most? Oklahoma!

Show you liked least/hated most? Skintight

Show that surprised you the most (good or bad)? St. Ann’s Warehouse productions for me really rivaled that of many broadway shows this past year with three magnificent works : People Places and Things, Oklahoma!, and The Jungle.

I was also pleasantly surprised on how wonderful and accessible Hunter Project’s production of Uncle Vanya was.


Favorite male performance? Andrew Garfield, Nathan Lane and James McArdle for Angels in America

Favorite female performance? Denise Gough in People Places & Things and Billie Piper in Yerma

Favorite New Song? Unfortunately there are not much songs that I like from the new musicals that I have watched this past year. But I guess if I should pick the best it would be “Answer Me” from The Band’s Visit. If I can include revivals then I have to say that I love love love Jessie Mueller’s “If I Loved You” from Carousel

What announced show are you most looking forward to next year? While there is no announcement yet, I am so excited to see The Inheritance. And I know this is just wishful thinking but I would really really love for another London Show to transfer here in New York - Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake. I have watched it before some 10 years ago in San Francisco but I hope this revival crosses the pond. I miss it so much.

How many shows have you seen this year?
48

Show you liked/loved the most?
SpongeBob, Once on this Island, Come From Away

Show you liked least/hated most?
Waitress, Beautiful, Wicked Frozen

Show that surprised you the most (good or bad)?
I was disappointed at how much I didn't care for Waitress after meeting so many fans of the show. Dear Evan Hansen also felt surprisingly distant to me (saw the touring production).

I actually really enjoyed Carousel--it was my first experience with the piece, but I didn't have super high hopes going in based on the buzz around it and turned out to be pleasantly surprised. Even after having listened to the cast recording, Come From Away just blew me away more than I ever could have expected.

Favorite male performance?
Ethan Slater in SpongeBob, Joshua Henry in Carousel, Adam Jacobs in the Aladdin tour, Ben Levi Ross in the Dear Evan Hansen tour, Jefferson Mays in A Christmas Carol (regional)

Favorite female performance?
Solea Pfeiffer in Songs for a New World, Taylor Louderman in Mean Girls, Samantha Barks in Pretty Woman, Katrina Lenk in Band's Visit, Beth Leavel in Prom


Favorite New Song?
Monster from Frozen, the whole cast recording of Once on This Island, My Petersburg from Anastasia

What announced show are you most looking forward to next year?
Tootsie, Moulin Rouge

Because I don’t live in NYC most of what I saw has already been around for a year or more, and doesn’t really fit into what most of you are reporting in “new theater”. But since this is about 2018, and not necessarily about “new”...

In 2018 I only saw 15 productions (which is actually a good year for me ), including one show that I repeated: 11 shows that I saw were National Tours, and 4 were on Broadway.

Show you liked/loved the most?

“Wicked”, although “Hello, Dolly!” is the only one I repeated, seeing it 4 times (twice on Broadway, twice on tour). Also really enjoyed the new tour of “Fiddler on the Roof”.



Show you liked least/hated most?

If I had to pick one, it would be “Rent” on its 20th Anniversary Tour. I was fine enough, just wasn’t my favorite of the year. Next least enjoyable would have been “My Fair Lady” at the Lincoln Center. It just didn’t rock my world like I thought it would.



Favorite male performance?

Loved Gavin Creel, but damn, Charlie Stemp in “Hello, Dolly!”. Period. Loved this guy. Next would be his successor in the tour, Jess LeProtto.



Favorite female performance?

Although I loved Katrina Lenk in “The Band’s Visit”, the performances from the female combination of Ginna Claire Mason and Mary Kate Morrisey in the “Wicked” tour were unmatched.



Favorite New Song

Although these aren’t brand NEW new, some were new to me as it was the first time I’d heard them while seeing the show on National Tour in 2018, or are a favorite from a show I saw this year (just because):

“She Use To Be Mine” - “Waitress”

“On The Street Where You Live - “My Fair Lady”

“Beneath A Moonless Sky” - “Love Never Dies”

“Put On Your Sunday Clothes” - “Hello, Dolly!”

“Tradition” - “Fiddler on the Roof”



What announced show are you most looking forward to next year?

“Moulin Rouge” hands down. Still hoping to make it to NYC to celebrate my 60th birthday with this one.

Updated On: 12/23/18 at 08:54 AM

Here is my SF Theatre Broadway Top 40!

I'll answer the questions/survey when I gather some energy.

Updated On: 12/23/18 at 10:38 PM

Show you liked/loved the most?

The Band's Visit, Angels in America, Hello, Dolly! (Bernadette Peters), Oklahoma!, Once on This Island.


Show you liked least/hated most?

Carousel. It's one of my favorite musicals and it starred some of my favorite performers and included some of my favorite creatives. Somehow it turned into a hot mess.

Show that surprised you the most (good or bad)?

Good- The Waverly Gallery. I went in with no expectations and I was blown away by an absolutely beautiful play that deeply resonated with me.

Bad- Carousel. The Ferryman. It's unfair of me to say that I thought The Ferryman was bad. It's a very enjoyable play, but I still had serious issues with pacing and writing. I was expecting something on the level of an Albee, Williams, or Miller classic and it did not deliver. Three Tall Women. At 18, I think I may just be too young to fully understand and grasp the impact of this piece. I knew I was seeing something special, but I also knew that I wasn't seeing it at the right moment in my life. My Fair Lady. I was disappointed by this production. It just felt very low stakes and somewhat tired. When I returned to see it with Laura, I felt that it had improved and I walked away obsessed with Laura's performance.

Favorite male performance?

Andrew Garfield- Angels in America, Nathan Lane- Angels in America, Tony Shalhoub- The Band's Visit

Favorite female performance?

Elaine May- The Waverly Gallery, Katrina Lenk- The Band's Visit, Laura Benanti- My Fair Lady, Bernadette Peters- Hello, Dolly!

Favorite New Song

Omar Sharif and Answer Me from The Band's Visit

What announced show are you most looking forward to next year?

Plays- Gary and Hillary and Clinton

Musicals- Hadestown and Oklahoma! (Looved it off broadway)

How many shows have you seen this year? 223 (in NYC, New Jersey, Philadelphia, Delaware, Washington, Boston, Williamstown and Chicago)

Show you liked/loved the most? Lewiston/Clarkston, Girl from the North Country, Three Tall Women

Show you liked least/hated most? Carousel, The Waverly Gallery, Long Day's Journey into Night (BAM)

Show that surprised you the most (good or bad)? The Ferryman (not a fan of Jez Butterworth's previous plays, but I loved it)

Favorite male performance? Bryan Cranston, Network

Favorite female performance? Glenda Jackson, Three Tall Women

Favorite New Song? "Stillness" from Lempicka

What announced show are you most looking forward to next year? King Lear

Updated On: 12/24/18 at 09:26 AM

How many shows have you seen this year? 48.
Show you liked/loved the most? Mean Girls, Once on this Island, The Prom.
Show you liked least/hated most? SpongeBob, Pretty Woman, Anastasia.
Show that surprised you the most (good or bad)? I did not expect to like Mean Girls as much as I did, and I definitely did not expect to be in love with the understudies in Mean Girls as much as I am.
Favorite male performance? Brooks Ashmanskas in The Prom.
Favorite female performance? Katrina Lenk in The Band's Visit.
Favorite New Song? "Answer Me" from The Band's Visit.
What announced show are you most looking forward to next year? Beetlejuice, Hadestown, Be More Chill.

How many shows have you seen this year? 71

Show you liked/loved the most? The Homecoming Queen; My Fair Lady; Three Tall Women; Our Lady of 121st St.; Harry Potter; Conflict (Mint Theater); Fiddler on the Roof (in Yiddish); Uncle Vanya (Hunter College); Oklahoma! (St. Ann's); School Girls; The Other Josh Cohen; All Is Calm (Sheen Center); A Chorus Line (City Center)

Show you liked least/hated most? The Low Road; Paradise Blue; Fire in Dreamland (Public); The Nap; plus some others, but I feel bad calling out small, Off Broadway shows and passion projects

Show that surprised you the most (good or bad)? How disappointed I was in This Ain't No Disco. I was hoping for something with the genius of Hedwig.

Favorite male performance? Edmund Donovan in Lewiston/Clarkston (the Clarkston half). All the performances were unbelievably good, but he stood out even in that company; Paul Sparks in At Home/At the Zoo (Signature); Sydney James Harcourt in Girl From the North Country (he was magnetic)

Favorite female performance? Lauren Ambrose in My Fair Lady; Anika Noni Rose in Carmen Jones; Mare Winningham in Girl From the North Country; Kate Wetherhead in The Other Josh Cohen

Favorite New Song Slow Train Coming/License to Kill from Girl From the North Country; Imogen Heap's score for Harry Potter

What announced show are you most looking forward to next year? Tootsie; Superhero (2nd Stage); Kiss Me, Kate; I'm hoping that Barber Shop Chronicles makes it to NYC

Updated On: 12/24/18 at 11:12 PM

This thread is making me so sad that I missed Angels, I wasn't able to make it up to NYC this year. That being said, I still need to watch the Nat. Theatre proshot of it, so I guess I have that to look forward to hahah!

How many shows have you seen this year? 21

Play you liked/loved the most? Angels In America, Torch Song

Musical you liked/loved the most? The Prom, Oklahoma!


Show you liked least/hated most? Anastasia, Natural Shocks


Show that surprised you the most (good or bad)? I didn't expect to fall in love with both The Prom, and Oklahoma!, and well I did.

Favorite male performance? Andrew Garfield in Angels, Michael Urie in Torch Song, Ethan Slater in Spongebob, Brooks Ashmanskas in The Prom.

Favorite female performance? Beth Leavel in The Prom, Rebecca Naomi Jones in Oklahoma!, Donna Murphy in Hello Dolly, Katrina Lenk in The Bands Visit, (Not sure if this counts but I still saw this in 2018 so.....Rachel Bay Jones in Dear Evan Hansen)


Favorite New Song: "Unruly Heart" from The Prom, "Answer Me" from The Bands Visit.


What announced show are you most looking forward to next year? Oklahoma!, Hadestown, Hillary and Clinton.

Updated On: 12/26/18 at 01:39 AM