The reviews for Doctor Zhivago are in, and this new Les Misérables wannabe may lack great music, lyrics, dialogue, and overall storytelling, but hey, at least the gunfire effects are realistic. Loosely based on the Boris Pasternak novel and more closely based on the 1965 movie, this new musical tells of a love story in an epic era of revolution and war in early 20th-century Russia. The trouble is – there’s a lot to sell and the critics don’t buy any of it. The dialogue and lyrics feel uninspired and generic, the seemingly borrowed music feels plodding and unimaginative, and there are no standout performances to speak of (understandable with such lackluster material). Unfortunately, one of the more anticipated new musicals of the season has gone from a “can’t wait to see” in conception to an “avoid at all costs” in production.
NEW YORK TIMES REVIEW
“Doctor Zhivago,” the endless Boris Pasternak novel familiar to most of us from the endless David Lean movie, has been resurrected for dramatic purposes once again, as a musical that opened at the Broadway Theater on Tuesday night. The verdict: Um, is it over yet? Hold your fire, Russophiles and cinephiles. …
TIME OUT NEW YORK REVIEW
Based on a sweeping historical novel crammed with characters and incident, “Doctor Zhivago” follows the fortunes of a heroic man with a divided heart across decades of turmoil and revolution, as he is hounded by a self-righteous upholder of justice. Sounds a little like “Les Misérables,” non? But we already have …
VULTURE REVIEW
Can we please get this straight, Broadway? Sprawling European novels do not make great musicals. Sorry, “Les Miz” partisans and “Phantomaniacs,” but whatever the virtues of those shows — and they are probably the best of the genre — they are mere patches on the originals. How could they not be? When you’re …
HOLLYWOOD REPORTER REVIEW
Currently playing on Broadway is a spectacular production of a lavish musical based on a classic novel, featuring doomed lovers and set during the tumultuous events of a historical revolution. Regrettably for the producers of the new “Doctor Zhivago,” that musical is “Les Miserables.” The specter of that earlier …
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS REVIEW
Broadway’s “Doctor Zhivago” is an epic miss. Based on the acclaimed Boris Pasternak novel, this miscalibrated musical is yet another attempt to bottle page-to-stage lightning a la “Les Miserables.” But electricity doesn’t zap. Not much does in this nearly three-hour show, which has been in the works for almost …
Broadway Musical Blog 