Please pardon my self-righteous spit take.
Why? You sound like a jerk.
And what have people seen?
It doesn't matter because it's their opinions, not yours.
Unless you are in LA, DC, Chicago, or Boston where shows try out, or go to previews in New York, you probably won't see them.
So, you're not familiar with other US cities. Got it.
So, OK - it's perfectly understandable that Gypsy or Follies does nothing for you.
THANK GOD WE HAVE YOUR CONDITIONAL AFFIRMATION! Oh wait...nobody wanted or needed it. People can like/dislike whatever they want for any reason. I've seen hundreds of shows, which is why I'm still not a fan of Follies. And I truly cannot stand Annie Get Your Gun.
And if you never had to sit through Carrie or the musical versions of Gone With the Wind or Doctor Zhivago, then I see where you are coming from when those experiences end up at the bottom of your list.
I've been in love with Carrie since I first discovered it in Houston in the mid-90s, where I also performed Hollywood/Ukraine, Hello Again, Sweeney Todd, a workshop of Craig Carnelia's Actor Lawyer Indian Chief, worked with Jerry Bock on one of his last original musicals before he passed, studied with the Tony-winning producer of 1776, Pippin, Chicago and M. Butterfly, and used to hand out and chat with the playwright of Who's Afraid of Viriginia Wolf, A Delicate Balance, Three Tall Women and The Goat. I also remember seeing the tryouts out Gone With the Wind, Beauty and the Beast, Jekyll & Hyde, Civil War and others, there as well. And there are thousands of others like me in all those cities across the country you so readily dismissed.
"What can you expect from a bunch of seitan worshippers?" - Reginald Tresilian