i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Sporti2005
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/13/04
#0i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:00pm
holy lord!! it was SO funny!! norbert leo butz was INCREDIBLE!!! seriously amazing and totally hilarious. i have never seen full body comittment to acting like that in my life!! sherie rene scott was fabulous, her high note (not quite sure what note it was...) at the end of "here i am" was spot-on and gorgeous!!
the scenery was pretty jazzy (and REALLY sparkly!) - the middle of the stage rotated and they were always walking around on it, which must have been so hard!! i wouldn't have been able to keep my balance! especially in the stilettos the chorus girls wore sometimes!!
john lithgow was well, john lithgow, enough said.
i was a little disappointed with joanna gleason. she just wasn't that interesting to watch. everything about her acting looked very...calculated and precise, but not "in the moment"
i went to the stage door after and got john lithgow (who was so sweet) and gregory jbarra to sign my playbill :). norbert (whose i REALLY wanted) was already gone by the time i got back there, and sherie had to leave quickly so she only signed a few, but she said hi and was very nice about everything.
overall, i would DEFINITELY recommend DRS!! it was really awesome!! and i would especially recommend sitting in the stage left box second from the front. norbert comes through there in act 1....sadly, i was only sitting there during act 2.
the only drawback to the show - no REALLY memorable songs.
TheGaIsSilent
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/25/04
#1re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:10pmNo memorable songs? You don't have the three words "GREAT BIG STUFF" drumming in your head???
#2re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:11pm
Or Chimp in a suit
Like Zis Like Zat (ok, not so much)
Dirty Rotten Number
Give Them What They Want
All About Ruprecht
Updated On: 4/21/05 at 07:11 PM
jjdude2000
Broadway Star Joined: 12/1/04
#3re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:12pmWhen I saw it, I had GBS and Dirty Rotten Number stuck in my head for a looooong time. There were a couple of other lines and little tunes that I kept in my head, like "The fries are french!" and the "Give them what they want" Mostly the tune to the names of the songs, if any.
Sporti2005
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/13/04
#4re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:15pm
no those were all memorable...i'm saying REALLY REALLY memorable...like the ones that you can't stop thinking about for 5 days after.
(great big stuff was memorable, dirty rotten was too)
my favorite line was:
"i'm tired of you telling me what to do; walk this way, talk this way, don't snore at the opera"
"it was wagner!"
"it was 6 HOURS! i can't have sex and eat bacon for 6 hours!!!"
and the ruprecht scene was hilarious, as was norbert with the beef jerky.
#5re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:16pmThe music is pretty solid
#6re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:16pm
I'm in love with this show. And with Norbert. And with "Great Big Stuff."
Oh, and Ruprecht.
#7re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:17pmI am in love with Joanna...
TheGaIsSilent
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/25/04
#8re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:19pm"Little people... going away. Be one of them."
Sporti2005
Broadway Legend Joined: 12/13/04
#9re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:20pmthe music was definitely solid..it didn't detract from the show at all. i'm just saying, if you're looking for a "defying gravity-", "la vie boheme-", or "one day more-" esque showstopping type of a song, there isn't really one definite one.
#10re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:20pm
Sure, the songs may get stuck in your head...
That doesn't mean that they're good.
musicnmath
Broadway Legend Joined: 2/13/05
#11re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:21pm
ditto, Emcee. I made the trip to NYC 2 weeks ago specifically to see DRS and even more specifically to see Norbert and this cast. I posted a review when I went, so I'll censor myself here. Glad you (Sporti) enjoyed :)
I personally love the self-referential lines: "Did I miss a scene here?" "Is this balcony moving?"
Updated On: 4/21/05 at 07:21 PM
#12re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:21pm
I really want to catch this again before I ship off for the summer. Oh well, at least I'll get the CD next Wednesday (fingers crossed), so that's better than nothing.
I totally agree w/ you about Joanna Gleason btw. Am I the only one who doesn't get her?? This is two performances in a year that I just down right didn't like her in (DRS and The Normal Heart). There's something about her that just rubs me the wrong way. Her delivery almost seems like she's running lines rather than actually doing the show "for real," if that makes any sense (coming from a non-actor who doesn't really know what she's talking about other than what sounds and looks good to me).
#13re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:24pm
Joanna was awesome in this show. Period.
Her delivery is perfect in DRS. "they may need me in Act 2."
jjdude2000
Broadway Star Joined: 12/1/04
#14re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:27pmThenardier - I was just thinking about that.
#15re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:29pm
I like Joanna better in The Normal Heart, actually. Her delivery in something so dramatic just felt more real to me. She's great in DRS, and does very well with the comedy, but there were points where I felt her to be a little bit stiff, which may just be part of the irony of sorts with which she's interpreting the character. Muriel is a totally serious woman, yet such a funny character for the audience to watch. I love the way Joanna carries herself on stage, though. She's so poised, and really sings quite beautifully.
#16re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:29pm
Yet Butz running around and jumping all over the place isn't "acting." For heaven's sake. You can see him acting in every little thing he does - doesn't make him not funny.
Joanna has her own style which hearkens back to a time when theater acting was more - well - theatrical. I think she's one of the greats.
#17re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:32pm
YEs, I agree with Em.
First off, her character in the movie (As was Jbara's Andre) was very minor. I think what makes Joanna funny is that she is this seemingly typical gullible American vacationer.
#18re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:33pmI guess I agree w/ Emcee saying she comes off as rather stiff. I'm sure it's a character choice/her style or whatever, but there's just something about her that I don't care for. Takes all kinds, right? I totally realize I'm in the minority on this, which is totally fine.
#19re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:34pmI will admit mabel, that her voice takes getting used to. Not her singing voice - which is beautiful, just her voice. I was listening to her in Into the Woods - and took a while to get used to it. She has a very stiff voice. But then you realize, that's what's so great about it.
#20re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/21/05 at 7:35pmI dunno, I didn't have a problem with her. She wasn't stunning, but I found her to play a classy lady very well, very very classy.
BWayBoy88
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/23/04
#21re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/22/05 at 12:34amI LOVE Joanna Gleason. I think she was wonderful in DRS, but nothing can ever compare to her, in my opinion, perfect performance as the Baker's Wife.
#22re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/22/05 at 12:46am
I really enjoy Gleason's performance in DRS, I agree she comes off as stiff, but that really seems to be a character choice. I love the coment that she "harkens back to a time when theatre was more, well Theatrical" thats what I love so much about it. Along with the voice.
Norbert (and John Litgow) really impress me with the acting, the timing that makes a lot of jokes I wouldn't like otherwise hysterical. I love the physical comedy, but there is so much going on in the silences and interactions that really throws the performance into the range of "greatness."
Then Great Big Stuff, Ruprecht, and Dirty Rotten Number I can never get out of my head at all.
I won the lottery again tonight, third time seeing the show, and can't wait to see it again. All of this from a usually VERY critical little me. 
#23re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/22/05 at 12:48am
I just love DRS and David Yazbek
Updated On: 4/22/05 at 12:48 AM
#24re: i saw DRS!!!!! (and here 's a little mini-review)
Posted: 4/22/05 at 8:42am
"i have never seen full body comittment to acting like that in my life!!"
He was funny, but... Really?
Videos