The Broadway Musical Blog – Musical theater news and gossip from the Great White Way
Dishing out daily (or almost daily) Broadway musical news and gossip. The companion site to The Broadway Musical Home (broadwaymusicalhome.com), a directory of Broadway musicals with the story, songs, merchandise, video clips, lyrics, tickets, rights & awards for almost 200 shows.Archive for On Broadway
The 2012 Drama League Award Winners
The Drama League Awards, the only major theatergoer awards chosen by audience members, have been announced and Once, Follies, Audra McDonald, and Alan Menken took home the big prizes for musical theatre. Each of them also won the Outer Critics Circle Award in their respective categories. Will they get the Tony nod as well?
DISTINGUISHED PRODUCTION OF A MUSICAL
Ghost the Musical
Leap of Faith
Mission Drift
Newsies
Nice Work If You Can Get It
Once
Queen of the Mist
DISTINGUISHED REVIVAL OF A MUSICAL
Carrie
Follies
Evita
The Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess
Jesus Christ Superstar
DISTINGUISHED PRODUCTION OF A PLAY
Clybourne Park
The Columnist
The Intelligent Homosexuals Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures
The Lyons
One Man, Two Guvnors
Other Desert Cities
Peter and the Starcatcher
Tribes
Seminar
Septimus and Clarissa
Venus in Fur
DISTINGUISHED REVIVAL OF A PLAY
And God Created Great Whales
Death of a Salesman
Gore Vidal’s The Best Man
How I Learned to Drive
Look Back in Anger
The Maids
Wit
DISTINGUISHED PERFORMANCE AWARD
Jane Alexander, The Lady From Dubuque
Nina Arianda, Venus In Fur
Annaleigh Ashford, Rent
Angela Bassett, The Mountaintop
Simon Russell Beale, Bluebird
Tracie Bennett, End of the Rainbow
Christian Borle, Peter and the Starcatcher
Matthew Broderick, Nice Work If You Can Get It
Kim Cattrall, Private Lives
Heather Christian, Mission Drift
James Corden, One Man, Two Guvnors
Michael Cristofer, The Intelligent Homosexuals Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures
Tyne Daly, Master Class
Jesse Eisenberg, Asuncion
Linda Emond, The Intelligent Homosexuals Guide to Capitalism and Socialism with a Key to the Scriptures
Raúl Esparza, Leap of Faith
Santino Fontana, Sons of the Prophet
Andrew Garfield, Death of a Salesman
Russell Harvard, Tribes
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Death of a Salesman
Samuel L. Jackson, The Mountaintop
Jeremy Jordan, Newsies, Bonnie and Clyde
Steve Kazee, Once
Celia Keenan-Bolger, Peter and the Starcatcher
Christine Lahti, Dreams of Flying, Dreams of Falling
Angela Lansbury, Gore Vidals The Best Man
John Larroquette, Gore Vidals The Best Man
Linda Lavin, The Lyons
Norm Lewis, The Gershwins Porgy and Bess
Judith Light, Other Desert Cities
Ricky Martin,Evita
Jan Maxwell, Follies
Jefferson Mays, Blood and Gifts
Marin Mazzie, Carrie
Audra McDonald, The Gershwins Porgy and Bess
Ellen McLaughlin, Septimus and Clarissa
Cristin Milioti, Once
Jessie Mueller, On A Clear Day You Can See Forever
Carey Mulligan, Through A Glass Darkly
Cynthia Nixon, Wit
Leslie Odom, Jr., Leap of Faith
Kelli OHara, Nice Work If You Can Get It
Denis OHare, An Iliad
Lily Rabe, Seminar
DaVine Joy Randolph, Ghost the Musical
Molly Ransom, Carrie
Condola Rashad, Stick Fly
Matthew Rhys, Look Back In Anger
Alan Rickman, Seminar
Elena Roger, Evita
Jeremy Shamos, Clybourne Park
Kevin Spacey, Richard III
Stephen Spinella, An Iliad
Mary Testa, Queen of the Mist
Blair Underwood, A Streetcar Named Desire
Mary Louise Wilson, 4,000 Miles
PREVIOUS DISTINGUISHED PERFORMANCE WINNERS
The Drama League also wishes to recognize the superb contributions to the season of its previous Distinguished Performance Award winners:
Norbert Leo Butz, How I Learned To Drive
Zoe Caldwell, Elective Affinities
Kathleen Chalfant, Painting Churches
Stockard Channing, Other Desert Cities
Rosemary Harris, The Road To Mecca
Hugh Jackman, Hugh Jackman: Back On Broadway
Sir Derek Jacobi, King Lear
James Earl Jones, Gore Vidals The Best Man
Frank Langella, Man and Boy
John Lithgow, The Columnist
Patti LuPone, An Evening with Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin
Bebe Neuwirth, A Midsummer Nights Dream
Bernadette Peters, Follies
Sam Waterston, King Lear
DISTINGUISHED ACHIEVEMENT IN MUSICAL THEATRE
Alan Menken
UNIQUE CONTRIBUTION TO THE THEATRE
Rosie ODonnell
FOUNDERS AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN DIRECTING
Diane Paulus
A look at the musicals eyeing 2012-13 Broadway runs…
Now that this season is officially over, we thought it worth taking a look at the shows who have announced Broadway runs for the 2012-13 season.
First up is an adaptation of Bring It On with music by Tom Kit of Next to Normal and Lin-Manuel Miranda of In the Heights. This show has been touring the country after opening to so-so reviews in Los Angeles, making changes in preparation for its Broadway run. Likened to Lysistrata Jones, which only enjoyed a limited run on Broadway and Legally Blonde, a film adaptation that lived a much longer Broadway life, the show is hoping to avoid the pitfalls other recent film adaptations, like Leap of Faith, have seen. Can the stage version find more depth than the silly film it was based on? We’ll just have to wait and see…
And then we have Ever After, another film adaptation with book and lyrics by Marcy Heisler and music by Zina Goldrich, who you might know because of the songs “Taylor the Latte Boy,” made famous by Kristin Chenoweth, and “Alto’s Lament,” a song about an alto who longs to sing the melody. The musical was first set to open in San Francisco in 2009, but was indefinitely postponed for undisclosed reasons. It’s now set to hit Broadway in the 2012-13 season, directed by Kathleen Marshall, who’s got three Tony Awards and two Drama Desk Awards in her den and nominations for direction and choreography for this season’s Nice Work if You Can Get It. Think the talent be enough to turn the movie into a solid musical? And will it be too similar to another show eyeing a Broadway run…
Cinderella, by Rodgers and Hammerstein, which was originally telecast in 1957 starring Julie Andrews, but never enjoyed a Broadway run, is getting a rewrite by Douglas Carter Beane of Xanadu and headed to Broadway next spring. Starring Laura Osnes, nominated for her portrayal of Bonnie in this season’s Bonnie & Clyde, the show has blockbuster promise. Will it play as well on stage as it did on television? We can only hope.
And then there’s a brand new musical – Chaplin – based on the silent film star adored and emulated by so many. Directed by Warren Carlyle, who was nominated for Drama Desk Awards for his direction of Finian’s Rainbow in 2009 and written by Christopher Curtis, a pianist who wrote the theme song to the film “The Break,” and Thomas Meehan, the Tony Award-winner who penned The Producers, Annie and Hairspray, many are excited to see something new on the menu of offerings.
One of Meehan’s best known hits, Annie, is also headed back to the Great White Way. The show’s original run in 1997 enjoyed an incredible 2,377 performances, will the new revival, directed by James Lapine of Into the Woods, Passion and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, do even better?
Another revival of a big hit is headed to Broadway. The Mystery of Edwin Drood, whose original run won five Tony Awards and had a cast starring Betty Buckley and featuring George Rose, Cleo Laine, John Herrera, Howard McGillin, Patti Cohenour, Jana Schneider, who were all nominated for 1986 Tony Awards for their performances, as well as Donna Murphy, Judy Kuhn and Rob Marshall who would all go on to celebrated careers in the theatre. This will be the show’s first Broadway revival and fans couldn’t be more thrilled to see if return. Chita Rivera is set to star and Scott Ellis to direct.
The final musical on the docket as of this writing is an international transfer of Rebecca, which premiered in Vienna, Austria in 2006 and ran for three years and has since been mounted in Finland, Japan and elsewhere. Set to hit Broadway in the fall of 2012 starring Karen Mason, Howard McGillin, James Barbour, Donna English, Nick Wyman, Henry Stram and co-directed by Michael Blakemore and Francesca Zambello, the story made famous by Alfred Hitchcock’s film has played very well to audiences elsewhere. What will Americans make of it?
An exciting mix of revivals, new works and adaptations await us in 2012-13 and more shows will be announced soon. What are you most excited about seeing next season?
2012 Outer Critics Circle Award Winners
The Outer Critics Circle Award winners have been announced. The ceremony will be held on May 24 at 4 PM. The winners are:
OUTSTANDING NEW BROADWAY MUSICAL
Bonnie & Clyde
Newsies
Once
Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
OUTSTANDING NEW BROADWAY PLAY
The Lyons
One Man, Two Guvnors
Seminar
Stick Fly
OUTSTANDING NEW OFF-BROADWAY PLAY
Blood and Gifts
The School for Lies
Sons of the Prophet
Tribes
OUTSTANDING NEW OFF-BROADWAY MUSICAL
Death Takes a Holiday
Lucky Guy
Play It Cool
Queen of the Mist
OUTSTANDING BOOK OF A MUSICAL (Broadway or Off-Broadway)
Newsies
Nice Work If You Can Get It
Once
Queen of the Mist
OUTSTANDING NEW SCORE (Broadway or Off-Broadway)
Bonnie & Clyde
Death Takes a Holiday
Newsies
Queen of the Mist
OUTSTANDING REVIVAL OF A PLAY (Broadway or Off-Broadway)
The Best Man
Death of a Salesman
The Lady From Dubuque
Private Lives
OUTSTANDING REVIVAL OF A MUSICAL (Broadway or Off-Broadway)
Carrie
Evita
Follies
Porgy and Bess
OUTSTANDING DIRECTOR OF A PLAY
Mark Brokaw, The Lyons
David Cromer, Tribes
Nicholas Hytner, One Man, Two Guvnors
Mike Nichols, Death of a Salesman
OUTSTANDING DIRECTOR OF A MUSICAL
Jeff Calhoun, Newsies
Michael Grandage, Evita
Kathleen Marshall, Nice Work If You Can Get It
John Tiffany, Once
OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHER
Rob Ashford, Evita
Christopher Gattelli, Newsies
Steven Hoggett, Once
Kathleen Marshall, Nice Work If You Can Get It
OUTSTANDING SET DESIGN (Play or Musical)
Bob Crowley, Once
Derek McLane, Nice Work If You Can Get It
Christopher Oram, Evita
George Tsypin, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN (Play or Musical)
Gregg Barnes, Follies
Eiko Ishioka, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
William Ivey Long, Dont Dress for Dinner
Martin Pakledinaz, Nice Work If You Can Get It
OUTSTANDING LIGHTING DESIGN (Play or Musical)
Neil Austin, Evita
Donald Holder, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
Brian MacDevitt, Death of a Salesman
Hugh Vanstone, Ghost: The Musical
OUTSTANDING ACTOR IN A PLAY
James Corden, One Man, Two Guvnors
Santino Fontana, Sons of the Prophet
Russell Harvard, Tribes
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Death of a Salesman
Hamish Linklater, The School for Lies
OUTSTANDING ACTRESS IN A PLAY
Tracie Bennett, End of the Rainbow
Tyne Daly, Master Class
Linda Lavin, The Lyons
Nicole Ari Parker, A Streetcar Named Desire
Laila Robins, The Lady From Dubuque
OUTSTANDING ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
Danny Burstein, Follies
Raúl Esparza, Leap of Faith
Jeremy Jordan, Newsies
Steve Kazee, Once
Norm Lewis, Porgy and Bess
OUTSTANDING ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Jan Maxwell, Follies
Marin Mazzie, Carrie
Audra McDonald, Porgy and Bess
Cristin Milioti, Once
Kelli OHara, Nice Work If You Can Get It
OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTOR IN A PLAY
Will Brill, Tribes
Tom Edden, One Man, Two Guvnors
Andrew Garfield, Death of a Salesman
James Earl Jones, The Best Man
Jefferson Mays, Blood and Gifts
OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTRESS IN A PLAY
Joanna Gleason, Sons of the Prophet
Spencer Kayden, Dont Dress for Dinner
Angela Lansbury, The Best Man
Judith Light, Other Desert Cities
Daphne Rubin-Vega, A Streetcar Named Desire
OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
Phillip Boykin, Porgy and Bess
Andrew Keenan-Bolger, Newsies
Michael McGrath, Nice Work If You Can Get It
Patrick Page, Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark
Chris Sullivan, Nice Work If You Can Get It
OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Jayne Houdyshell, Follies
Judy Kaye, Nice Work If You Can Get It
Rebecca Luker, Death Takes a Holiday
DaVine Joy Randolph, Ghost: The Musical
Melissa Van Der Schyff, Bonnie & Clyde
OUTSTANDING SOLO PERFORMANCE
Judy Gold, My Life as a Sitcom
David Greenspan, The Patsy
Denis OHare, An Iliad
Stephen Spinella, An Iliad
JOHN GASSNER AWARD
(Presented for an American play, preferably by a new playwright)
Robert Askins, Hand to God
Gabe McKinley, CQ/CX
Erika Sheffer, Russian Transport
Jeff Talbott, The Submission
2012 Theatre World Awards Winners
The 2012 Theatre World Award Winners have been announced!
Tracie Bennett – End Of The Rainbow
Phillip Boykin – The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess
Crystal A. Dickinson – Clybourne Park
Russell Harvard – Tribes
Jeremy Jordan – Bonnie & Clyde
Joaquina Kalukango – Hurt Village
Jennifer Lim – Chinglish
Jessie Mueller – On a Clear Day You Can See Forever
Hettienne Park – Seminar
Review all of the nominees for this year’s awards. What do you think were the best productions, performances and designs from this season on Broadway?
2012 Tony Award Nominees
BEST MUSICAL
Leap of Faith
Newsies
Nice Work If You Can Get It
Once
BEST PLAY
Clybourne Park
Other Desert Cities
Peter and the Starcatcher
Venus in Fur
BEST BOOK OF A MUSICAL
Lysistrata Jones, Douglas Carter Beane
Newsies, Harvey Fierstein
Nice Work If You Can Get It, Joe DiPietro
Once, Enda Walsh
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE (MUSIC AND/OR LYRICS) WRITTEN FOR THE THEATRE
Bonnie & Clyde, Frank Wildhorn and Don Black
Newsies, Alan Menken and Jack Feldman
One Man, Two Guvnors, Grant Olding
Peter and the Starcatcher, Wayne Barker and Rick Elice
BEST REVIVAL OF A PLAY
Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman
Gore Vidal’s The Best Man
Master Class
Wit
BEST REVIVAL OF A MUSICAL
Evita
Follies The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess
Jesus Christ Superstar
BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN A PLAY
James Corden, One Man, Two Guvnors
Philip Seymour Hoffman, Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman
James Earl Jones, Gore Vidal’s The Best Man
Frank Langella, Man and Boy
John Lithgow, The Columnist
BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE IN A PLAY
Nina Arianda, Venus in Fur
Tracie Bennett, End of the Rainbow
Stockard Channing, Other Desert Cities
Linda Lavin, The Lyons
Cynthia Nixon, Wit
BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE IN A MUSICAL
Danny Burstein, Follies
Jeremy Jordan, Newsies
Steve Kazee, Once
Norm Lewis, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess
Ron Raines, Follies
BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE IN A MUSICAL
Jan Maxwell, Follies
Audra McDonald, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess
Cristin Milioti, Once
Kelli O’Hara, Nice Work If You Can Get It
Laura Osnes, Bonnie & Clyde
BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A FEATURED ROLE IN A PLAY
Christian Borle, Peter and the Starcatcher
Michael Cumpsty, End of the Rainbow
Tom Edden, One Man, Two Guvnors
Andrew Garfield, Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman
Jeremy Shamos, Clybourne Park
BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A FEATURED ROLE IN A PLAY
Linda Emond, Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman
Spencer Kayden, Don’t Dress for Dinner
Celia Keenan-Bolger, Peter and the Starcatcher
Judith Light, Other Desert Cities
Condola Rashad, Stick Fly
BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A FEATURED ROLE IN A MUSICAL
Phillip Boykin, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess
Michael Cerveris, Evita
David Alan Grier, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess
Michael McGrath, Nice Work If You Can Get It
Josh Young, Jesus Christ Superstar
BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A FEATURED ROLE IN A MUSICAL
Elizabeth A. Davis, Once
Jayne Houdyshell, Follies
Judy Kaye, Nice Work If You Can Get It
Jessie Mueller, On a Clear Day You Can See Forever
Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Ghost the Musical
BEST DIRECTION OF A PLAY
Nicholas Hytner, One Man, Two Guvnors
Pam MacKinnon, Clybourne Park
Mike Nichols, Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman
Roger Rees and Alex Timbers, Peter and the Starcatcher
BEST DIRECTION OF A MUSICAL
Jeff Calhoun, Newsies
Kathleen Marshall, Nice Work If You Can Get It
Diane Paulus, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess
John Tiffany, Once
BEST CHOREOGRAPHY
Rob Ashford, Evita
Christopher Gattelli, Newsies
Steven Hoggett, Once
Kathleen Marshall, Nice Work If You Can Get It
BEST ORCHESTRATIONS
William David Brohn and Christopher Jahnke, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess
Bill Elliott, Nice Work If You Can Get It
Martin Lowe, Once
Danny Troob, Newsies
BEST SCENIC DESIGN OF A PLAY
John Lee Beatty, Other Desert Cities
Daniel Ostling, Clybourne Park
Mark Thompson, One Man, Two Guvnors
Donyale Werle, Peter and the Starcatcher
BEST SCENIC DESIGN OF A MUSICAL
Bob Crowley, Once
Rob Howell and Jon Driscoll, Ghost the Musical
Tobin Ost and Sven Ortel, Newsies
George Tsypin, Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark
BEST COSTUME DESIGN OF A PLAY
William Ivey Long, Don’t Dress for Dinner
Paul Tazewell, A Streetcar Named Desire
Mark Thompson, One Man, Two Guvnors
Paloma Young, Peter and the Starcatcher
BEST COSTUME DESIGN OF A MUSICAL
Gregg Barnes, Follies
ESosa, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess
Eiko Ishioka, Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark
Martin Pakledinaz, Nice Work If You Can Get It
BEST LIGHTING DESIGN OF A PLAY
Jeff Croiter, Peter and the Starcatcher
Peter Kaczorowski, The Road to Mecca
Brian MacDevitt, Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman
Kenneth Posner, Other Desert Cities
BEST LIGHTING DESIGN OF A MUSICAL
Christopher Akerlind, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess
Natasha Katz, Follies
Natasha Katz, Once
Hugh Vanstone, Ghost the Musical
BEST SOUND DESIGN OF A PLAY
Paul Arditti, One Man, Two Guvnors
Scott Lehrer, Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman
Gareth Owen, End of the Rainbow
Darron L. West, Peter and the Starcatcher
BEST SOUND DESIGN OF A MUSICAL
Acme Sound Partners, The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess
Clive Goodwin, Once
Kai Harada, Follies
Brian Ronan, Nice Work If You Can Get It
SPECIAL TONY AWARD® FOR LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT IN THE THEATRE
Emanuel Azenberg
REGIONAL THEATRE AWARD
The Shakespeare Theatre Company, Washington, D.C.
ISABELLE STEVENSON AWARD
Bernadette Peters
SPECIAL TONY AWARD
Actors’ Equity Association, Hugh Jackman
TONY HONORS FOR EXCELLENCE IN THE THEATRE
Freddie Gershon
Artie Siccardi
TDF Open Doors
The Reviews for Leap of Faith are In…
Reviewers must have been running, not walking, out of the theatre to write these extremely scathing reviews. For them, Leap of Faith is the biggest blunder of the season. They found that even the normally capable hands of the show’s lead, Raúl Esparza, who had, until now, seemed unable to do any wrong, and the talented song-writing team of Alan Menken and Glenn Slater, the story felt so confused, desperate and flat as to leave NYTimes reviewer Ben Bratley decreeing: “Leap of Faith is this season’s black hole of musical comedy, sucking the energy out of anyone who gets near it.” Somehow I doubt producers will be placing that quote on any of their materials…that is if the show is around long-enough to create additional marketing. These critics would have it shut down on the spot.
NEW YORK TIMES
“Say amen, somebody. Or, better yet, just whimper the word. We’ve finally come to the end of a hard-run overcrowded spring on Broadway. And here, to sound the final trumpet, is one last musical, a show that appropriately expresses how many a dedicated theatergoer must be feeling right now: plumb tuckered out.”
TIME OUT NEW YORK REVIEW:
“Want to make a ton of money? Peddle God to fools. Want to lose a ton of money? Invest in a Broadway turkey. You can’t have it both ways. It’s perfectly fine—even desirable—if your religion is crude and nonsensical, but a show as bland and confused as Leap of Faith is not going to make rich men of its producers (among whom are actual church leaders). The fake cash distributed by actors to audience members—so we may place it in the offertory baskets at Jonas Nightingale’s revivalist hoedowns—is all the green this wanly tacky production is likely to see.”
ASSOCIATED PRESS
“The last musical of the official Broadway season comes into town like a huckster promising salvation. But it’s the show itself that needs saving. There’s a strong musical somewhere in “Leap of Faith,” which stars a soulful Raul Esparza and has some of Alan Menken’s best songs. But what opened Thursday at The St. James Theatre is sometimes confusing in its tone. Like its main character – the devious faith healer Rev. Jonas Nightingale, ready to scam residents of a down-and-out Kansas town – the musical is hard to pin down. There’s too much misdirection.”
HOLLYWOOD REPORTER
“The 1992 movie no doubt has its fans, but for this reviewer, Leap of Faith was a charmless yawn whose chief distinction was the embarrassing weirdness of watching Steve Martin jogging in a crop top. Part fable about self-discovery and redemption and part takedown of shyster evangelism, the film fudged its position on whether the cynical main character had been truly enlightened by his spiritual journey, or whether such a journey had even occurred. The stage musical improves on the original simply by settling on a point of view. But despite Raul Esparza’s hard-working lead performance and some rousing Gospel numbers from Alan Menken and Glenn Slater, the story remains stubbornly unappealing.”
NEWSDAY
“Sociocultural theses may be written about the season when Broadway got dead serious about Christianity. Not only do we have earnest, grandiose revivals of “Godspell” and “Jesus Christ Superstar,” but here comes a true-believing musical, “Leap of Faith,” flat-lined out of the charming and touching 1992 Steve Martin movie about a con man preacher. The show, which has been surrounded by an assortment of rumors and incarnations since 2006, has arrived in director Christopher Ashley’s skimpy, hard-driving production, unsure of its tone and unable to figure out how best to use its star, Raúl Esparza.”
The Reviews for Nice Work if You Can Get It are In…
With comedy tailor-made for Matthew Broderick and the delightful Kelli O’Hara, Nice Work if You Can Get It is a tribute to Gershwin and the musicals of his era, with a thin, silly story, wonderful songs and all the mugging a girl could ever want. If you feel musicals tend to be over-the-top and trite, you’ll want to stay far away from this one, but if you find yourself pining for some silly, escapist fun, reviewers agree, this kitschy show might be just what you’re after.
NEW YORK TIMES
“Every now and then, a bubble of pure, tickling charm rises from the artificial froth of “Nice Work if You Can Get It,” the pastiche of a 1920s musical featuring songs by George and Ira Gershwin. Most of this show, which opened on Tuesday night at the Imperial Theater, registers as a shiny, dutiful trickle of jokes and dance numbers performed by talented people who don’t entirely connect with the whimsy of a bygone genre.”
ASSOCIATED PRESS
“Kelli O’Hara has admitted that she was a little reluctant at first to sing some of the classic, heavily picked-over Gershwin songs before starting on “Nice Work If You Can Get It.” Thankfully that changed when she got to hold a gun.”
HOLLYWOOD REPORTER
“The last time Matthew Broderick headlined a major musical was opposite Nathan Lane in the instant blockbuster The Producers, the 2001 show that ushered in a new age of irreverence on Broadway and scooped up a record 12 Tony Awards. Mel Brooks’ runaway hit was sublime silliness, a giddy valentine to old-time musical theater with nothing on its mind but delirious entertainment. The same could be said of Nice Work If You Can Get It, which brings Broderick back in a disarming ball of fluff that seems tailor-made to fit his droll brand of comedy.”
AM NEW YORK
“Matthew Broderick, who hasn’t enjoyed much success on Broadway since “The Producers” a decade ago, manages to redeem himself in “Nice Work If You Can Get It,” a “new” Gershwin musical also starring Kelli O’Hara and other stage veterans who bring down the house in supporting comedic roles.”
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
“If you’re not a musical-theater fan, Nice Work If You Can Get It will probably confirm your worst fears about Broadway. The mugging. The wigs. The wheezing one-liners. Directed and choreographed by Kathleen Marshall (Anything Goes) with a light-as-air book by Joe DiPietro (Memphis), the show uses a screwball love story between a Prohibition-era playboy (Matthew Broderick) and a bootlegger (South Pacific’s Kelli O’Hara) as an excuse for a medley of classic George and Ira Gershwin tunes. It’s as joyfully airheaded and kitschy as a drag show, which should make it a must-see for anyone with a more-is-more stance on sequins.”
The Reviews for Ghost the Musical are In…
Yowsa. When the AP is the only one with something positive to say, you know you’re in trouble. Deemed by reviewers to be an unimaginative, boilerplate and overly-sappy musical with a whole lot of video and special effects thrown on top to try to hide the boring mess underneath, Ghost had better garner some fan love if it’s going to survive longer than a week. It seems the critics would not have it so…
NEW YORK TIMES
“Generally speaking, I don’t believe in ghosts. But I’m convinced that the spirits of Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne have taken up temporary residence in the wings of the Broadway theater that bears their names, where the new musical adapted from the popular movie “Ghost” opened on Monday night.”
USA TODAY
“During the second act, a strange noise was heard, and the stage manager announced that the performance would be halted temporarily to resolve a technical problem. (The show’s representatives had no official comment on what the issue was.)”
ASSOCIATED PRESS
“The musical based on the film “Ghost” that just opened on Broadway is said to have originated in London. But it seems to have come from somewhere else: the future.”
BACKSTAGE
“Someone needs to tell “Ghost” that it’s not a movie anymore. No, not the 1990 film of the same name, which starred Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore, Tony Goldwyn, and Whoopi Goldberg. I’m talking about the identically named musical version, which director Matthew Warchus attempts to give cinematic qualities through the use of stage illusions, recorded videos, and film sequences. Film, however, has the luxury of yelling “Cut!” In the theater the show must go on, even if the expensive stage technology fails.”
AM NEW YORK
“The pottery wheel has been carried over. Same goes for the hit song “Unchained Melody,” which is sung countless times. But that hardly helps “Ghost the Musical,” a faithful but unmoving and overblown adaptation of the 1990 Patrick Swayze-Demi Moore romantic fantasy that has become an iconic chick flick.”
The Reviews for Lysistrata Jones are In…
The reviews for Lysistrata Jones are out, and critics universally feel this Off-Broadway transfer probably should have stayed Off. Suffering the fate of many other transfers, the campy and quirky qualities that made it endearing in its original run, seem frivolous and over-the-top under the lights of the Great White Way. Critics did feel Patti Murin, who plays the title role, has improved since the Off-Broadway run, and that the show captures the spirit of the younger generation – that embodied by shows like “Glee” and “High School Musical”. But the silly, one-liner script largely disappointed and the production as a whole lacked the brillance one expects of a Broadway show. Have you seen it? What did you think?
NEW YORK TIMES
Lysistrata Jones brings to mind the distant era of the college frolic “Good News” (1927) and “Babes in Arms”(1937), perishable good-time shows in which peppy kids delivered of-the-moment jokes and lively dances…. All the cast members effortlessly inhabit that happy dimension where cartoon is made flesh and vice versa…. But it turns out there’s tasty substance beneath the froth, just enough to keep you hooked.
Click here to read the full Lysistrata Jones review.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY
After a successful run last summer at the tiny gym of Greenwich Village’s Judson Memorial Church, the goofy pop musical Lysistrata Jones has advanced to the big leagues of Broadway. Why? I have no idea. It’s a little like a solid junior-high basketball team playing Madison Square Garden.
Click here to read the full Lysistrata Jones review.
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Do they give Tony Awards for best abs? If so, there’s really only one clear winner so far this season – Lysistrata Jones…. The musical itself, though, needs some more time in the gym. While no theatrical air ball, Lysistrata Jones isn’t a slam dunk, either. It’s got terrific songs by Lewis Flinn and an energetic cast, but the book is too derivative, a few of the actors seem overmatched, the choreography from Dan Knechtges is merely serviceable, and there aren’t enough killer jokes. … The show is now wilting under the white lights of Broadway and the air is seeping out of the ball.
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HOLLYWOOD REPORTER
Douglas Carter Beane and Lewis Flinn’s musical update on the Ancient Greek sex comedy has its bubbly charms, but it also demonstrates the challenges of transferring scrappy downtown stage successes to Broadway’s less forgiving environment. That doesn’t mean the show’s entertainment value has been erased. But its more insubstantial qualities are magnified, demonstrating that commercial transfers are rarely an automatic slam-dunk.
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CHICAGO TRIBUNE
The original play combined subversive comedic antics with hefty stakes. The derivative combines campy comedic antics with no stakes whatsoever…. Without some viable equivalent of something big to play for, Lysistrata Jones, its amusements and imagination aside, plays very thin and contrived — albeit with thick Broadway prices
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The Reviews for On a Clear Day You Can See Forever are In…
The reviews for On a Clear Day You Can See Forever are in, and though they aren’t the worst we’ve seen this season, they are nowhere near rave reviews. With some very intensive script-changes that throw gender-bending into the mix, critics found the new book almost as problematic as the original. The biggest upset was the splitting of the main female character’s multiple personalities into multiple cast members, rather than keeping it a showcase of one actress’ abilities. Most agree that Christine Jones’ sets and the songs themselves were the greatest stars, but overall were underwhelmed by this “reincarnation.”
NEW YORK TIMES
Toward the long-awaited end of the new semirevival of “On a Clear Day You Can See Forever,” which opened on Sunday at the St. James Theater, an eminent psychiatrist proposes that what we have been watching was perhaps only “my own psychoneurotic fantasy.”
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ASSOCIATED PRESS
The diagnosis is in for Harry Connick Jr.’s Broadway musical about a psychiatrist undergoing a psychic meltdown: It needs more time on the couch.
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HOLLYWOOD REPORTER
Respect to director Michael Mayer and playwright Peter Parnell for their audacious attempt at reinventing a problematic musical in the Broadway revival of On a Clear Day You Can See Forever. The 1965 show has always been much loved for its lush Burton Lane score but denied the stamp of greatness by Alan Jay Lerner’s over-complicated structural mess of a book.
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VARIETY
The play initially was constructed as a vehicle for a star singer/comedienne (played by Barbara Harris on stage, Barbra Streisand on screen). The challenge and the fun came from watching an insecure neurotic instantly and repeatedly transformed through hypnosis into her glamorous, past-life self. Mayer has seen fit to divide this star part in half and have it played by two actors, removing the one element that thoroughly worked in the original.
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NEWSDAY
It’s a relief and a special pleasure to report that Mayer, in a square-cornered turn from his smart-rock productions of ”Spring Awakening” and “American Idiot,” has joined playwright Peter Parnell to change an unworkable plot into a more-than-serviceable gender-bending framework. There’s a mostly-classy cast, a fantasy op-art set and almost two dozen wonderful songs from the Broadway production and the film.
Click here to read the full “On A Clear Day You Can See Forever” review.
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