Page 1 of 1

Broadway report

Posted: Fri May 19, 2017 6:15 pm
by Ritterskoop
Early March: Saw Hamilton, can die now. Also saw Come From Away during previews. It is a sweet, short show about the residents of Gander, Newfoundland, who took in 38 planes' worth of people diverted from US airspace on 9-11. The band is on stage, and it has a folky, Celtic-y flavor. The 12 actors play multiple roles of plane people and townies, putting on a jacket or glasses and accent to let us know who's who. 100 minutes, no intermission, hardly any spaces for applause.

This week's trip: The highlight was Sara Bareilles CRUSHING her own songs in Waitress. Mom, Kay and I saw Jessie Mueller in this show last year, but there are new nuances and funny bits that make the whole thing way more likable (Mueller's version of Jenna was more broken, while Bareilles' version is more sassy). Christopher Fitzgerald is back as the comic relief, and Dakin Matthews is still there as the curmudgeon (he gets one wonderful song at the end, and that may be all his voice is up for because they challenge him with some high notes!).

Spamilton is a very funny critique of Hamilton and Lin-Manuel Miranda and Broadway (it's by the same people who do Forbidden Broadway). It was scheduled for 18 shows last summer, and just keeps getting extended. If you go, ask for the $25 back-row deal. The theater is so small there is no need to pay for more.

Dear Evan Hansen is very good on many levels, but the main story is based on a well-intended lie that gets out of control, so I was never really behind it (it was like too many TV sitcom plots). Ben Platt will deserve his Tony as the lead, though I don't care for his vibrato (which I am glad he did not break out all the time). If Rachel Bay Jones wins for one song as his mom, that will be OK with me, though I am also rooting for Come From Away's Jenn Collela. I mean Jones sings more than that, but the one song near the end was the only time I might have misted up a tad. Everyone else was just bawling the whole show (but I have yet to cry during any episode of This Is Us, so ...).

OK, the last one from this trip was Natasha, Pierre, and the Great Comet of 1812 (otherwise known as The Great Comet). This is the one drawn from 70 pages of War and Peace that has Josh Groban as the lead for another month. It is a spectacle of the highest order: the ensemble is giving you pierogis and shakers, they are dancing and singing up in the balcony with you, the lighting is frenetic (there are strobes a couple of times, which they warn you about), the music is ... pop-opera? Josh is who is selling tickets but it is really Natasha's story, and Denee Benton is excellent in the part. They do not meet until three songs from the end, though they are in the same social circles. It is so hard to explain, and not that easy to follow. Pierre fights a duel, Natasha is engaged but falls for another guy, and then stuff happens. They racked up 12 nominations, and will win a bunch for lighting and orchestration and all that stuff. Any other season, Benton would have a shot, but Bette Midler won this Tony months ago when they announced when Hello, Dolly! would open (we're seeing that one in August).

Re: Broadway report

Posted: Tue May 23, 2017 9:22 am
by T_Bone0806
Thanks for the report Skoop. Seth Meyers had the cast from Come From Away on his show last night, but I dozed off during his first guest, Kyle Chandler, so I didn't see it. If I had known what the play was about, I might've fought a little harder to stay awake.

Re: Broadway report

Posted: Tue May 23, 2017 9:25 am
by tlynn78
Excellent info - thanks, Skoop!

Re: Broadway report

Posted: Tue May 23, 2017 3:19 pm
by Estonut
T_Bone0806 wrote:Thanks for the report Skoop. Seth Meyers had the cast from Come From Away on his show last night, but I dozed off during his first guest, Kyle Chandler, so I didn't see it. If I had known what the play was about, I might've fought a little harder to stay awake.
Hey, T-Bone! Does your cable provider have an on-Demand service? U-Verse keeps both Seth Meyers and Jimmy Fallon's shows around for about a month before they expire. Perhaps that is the agreement they have with all providers. The only drawback is that Fast Forwarding is not allowed in U-Verse on-Demand watching. I often start them playing and then set a timer for when the musical guest should be appearing.

Re: Broadway report

Posted: Tue May 23, 2017 3:45 pm
by T_Bone0806
Estonut wrote:
T_Bone0806 wrote:Thanks for the report Skoop. Seth Meyers had the cast from Come From Away on his show last night, but I dozed off during his first guest, Kyle Chandler, so I didn't see it. If I had known what the play was about, I might've fought a little harder to stay awake.
Hey, T-Bone! Does your cable provider have an on-Demand service? U-Verse keeps both Seth Meyers and Jimmy Fallon's shows around for about a month before they expire. Perhaps that is the agreement they have with all providers. The only drawback is that Fast Forwarding is not allowed in U-Verse on-Demand watching. I often start them playing and then set a timer for when the musical guest should be appearing.
I do have On-Demand. I also have Hulu...I CAN fast forward on that, so that is what I will do at some point tonight or tomorrow.

Re: Broadway report

Posted: Wed May 24, 2017 7:30 am
by mellytu74
Thanks, Skoop. Great reviews, as always.

We are seeing Hello, Dolly! on June 11.

I am beyond excited.