rOcKS @ 'Adding Machine'

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 7/13/08 at 11:18pm

I'll try to keep this short but I went over to the Minetta Lane theater this afternoon to catch a performance of this highly praised show before it closed. And while I enjoyed myself, I was not really enthralled. The first half hour or so of the show is so unique and so wonderfully wraps the audience up in the story (I got so lost in the beautiful story and the great way it was unravelling) and the final hour is less successful. The score is not really memorable but it is very different and effective in the moment. The book is fine if uneven (the whole heaven scene was really odd, in my opinion...but the scene that followed was really great). I was frustrated by some aspects of the show and some moments that were really inorganically off-kilter if that makes any sense. In other words, some scenes felt a bit pretentious and forced in their statement-making or their story-telling motifs.

Nothing about ADDING MACHINE made me jump with excitement. It's nice to see that it's a completely original musical with strong performances and some nice moments, but I was sort of underwhelmed. I enjoyed it but I wasn't amazed by it and I certainly didn't think it was the best show I saw this past season (on or off Broadway). It was well worth the $35 I payed for a ticket, but it was just sort of a letdown for me. I know I'm in a very small minority but while I liked it, I didn't love it.

**1/2 out of ****