Musicals

[bert425]

well. . they killed the touring all star version of Jesus Christ Superstar (with JC Cases, and John Lydon).

 

I really wanted to see it, but am glad I didn't by my tickets yet.

 

http://popwatch.ew.com/2014/05/30/jesus-christ-superstar-arena-tour-canceled/

[Nrthwnd]

^ Yeah, I just read that in another site. Too bad.

With the right vocal chords, it's an awesome score.

[Nrthwnd]

 

Happy TONY AWARDS Day, everybody!

 

(Go, Neil, Go!)

[Nrthwnd]

Double Post.

 

HEDWIG did it!!!

 

Four TONYs, including Best Revival, Lead Actor and Supp.Actress.

 

Awesome, and I can't wait to hear the CD when it comes out in July!

Hedwig - you da man! Would love to see NPH in action, LIVE with this show.

[Nrthwnd]

So, before I forget... Happy Birthday USA!

And what better way to celebrate, than to honor the

Great American Musical Theater's contribution

to the worlds of art and music.

 

So, I have, so far, the entire 2013-2014 Broadway season

in cds - all of musicals, and a few "plays with music." That's a new

trend with show records, that "One Man, Two Guvnors," "End Of

The Rainbow" and "War Horse" proved. So the collection enlarges...

 

That said, apart from the first one (First Date) I have not listened to

any other cd, since our living room speakers have been (ahem)

"on the blink" since gawd knows when! So, while I was on the Scandi

Tour, and my dear partner fixed it FINALLY, and now I can listen to

these soundtracks as they were meant to be heard, and NOT on a

computer!

 

Stay tuned. The List will be finalized when a certain Best Actor in A Musical,

and a Best Actress in A Play, get their cds over my way, soon enough.

Here it all is, so far.

[Nrthwnd]

Just found out...

 

The great Elaine Stritch has just passed away.

 

What a broad she was! And the quintessonal

songstress of "Here's To The Ladies Who Lunch".

[Coaster19]

I could not find a non musical thread but I wanted to share:

 

If you live in Chillicothe, Ohio area or traveling through, come see Tecumseh! The epic outdoor drama! I am in it and would love to meet some TPR members!!

[Nrthwnd]

^ OMG Somebody likes....p-p-p... non-musicals!

 

Kidding. That's cool. I think plays should be welcome in this

thread too. For instance, I am about to receive a DVD about

theatre in London - and it highlights "Waiting for Godot", which

eventually went to Broadway, with it's two original stars,

Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen. In rep with "No Man's Land."

 

I am very much looking forward to this video.

Soon to be appearing at my front door! (o:

[Nrthwnd]

We saw a production of Legally Blonde last week, at our in-park, outdoor,

Malkin Bowl. This place features two musicals in rep, rain or shine, for a month or

so during the summer.

 

I was part of the original reviving of Theatre In The Park waaay back in ....1969!

I did shows with them, up to 1977, that being my last role as Riff in their first version

of West Side Story.

 

Speed up to today, and I am watching a musical directed and choreographed by a former

dance partner and actress in her own right, Valerie Easton. We danced together in 1974

"No,No,Nanette" (she being Nanette), 1971 version of "Annie Get Your Gun",and "Hello

Dolly!" that summer in the park.

 

This show was great, the dance numbers were good and busy, and the "lead blonde" in

this production was really good, and I'm sure her performance could easily hold up on

Broadway.

 

And it's Wednesday - so it's time to wear pink!

And here's to a great local production of "Legally Blonde: The Musical."

[Nrthwnd]

...and last night, we went and saw Theatre In The Park's other production of

SHREK:The Musical. I was wondering about this one, having overdosed

myself on the Sutton Foster DVD taping of an actual Broadway performance.

 

And with all of that in the back of my head,we watched it. And it wasn't too bad.

I think the closer more intimate moments were hard to emote, judging from how

far the audience is to begin with. AND outside, as well. Noise distractions +.

 

But it was a good production, although I think I enjoyed Legally Blonde better. LB

could be brassy and in your face, which translated so far away to us audience members.

 

I also always check out the company's Archives Tents which has posters and some show

souvenirs on display. This year, they had one of the original posters for 1969's CAROUSEL,

which re-opened the park's summer shows, from then on. And I was in the Chorus,

so that counted!

 

(Photos of stage area taken during intermission. I don't sneak pix of show itself. I just don't.)

Here's the CAROUSEL poster (circa.1969), and me!

View from the front cafe, during Intermission at the show. The Malkin Bowl (what it's called)

is in a really lovely setting, in Stanley Park. And after so many years... still bringing them in, lol!

A bit of a zoom to see the stage itself. This was end of Act 1. Soon to change to Act 2 - and A Morning Girl!

[Nrthwnd]

Note:

 

Jessie Mueller as Fanny Brice

in the revival of

FUNNY GIRL

 

Catchy huh? Sounds more plausible to me than Lea Michele.

 

BTW - This is a fantasy wish for the future. Not fact or rumor.

 

Ryan Murphy (Glee; American Horror Story) are you reading this???

She's great in this, won the TONY for it. Why not do Fanny Brice, next?

[singforfood]

Late to the party here, bu I am ALL ABOUT musicals and also roller coasters, so this is great for me.

[Nrthwnd]

^ Do you have favorite musicals, past or present?

And of course, any Broadway musicals you have seen in New York?

Or want to see in new York?

[rosscoe]

Saw Wicked for the third time, and really have to say not a fan. Act one is a snooze fest, filled with unlikeable people, at least Act two picks up some steam and becomes a little interesting.

 

Australia has a new production ( well remounting of the 94 production, that later opened on broadway in 96 ) of the King and I , enjoyable night of musical theatre, "Shall We Dance" in act two when done correctly ( this production ) is pure musical heaven.

 

Seeing Les Mis and La Cage in the next few months , plus Kinky and a couple of others at the Pantages in LA

[azza29]

^Agree about Wicked. It's a crowd pleaser with some catchy tunes, but is starting to age poorly and not one I'd go back to often.

 

The Melbourne production of The King and I was excellent. Have tickets to see Les Mis in October, I've heard good things.

[canobiefanatic]

Beauty and the Beast and Damn Yankees are a couple of my favorites.

[singforfood]

^ Do you have favorite musicals, past or present?

And of course, any Broadway musicals you have seen in New York?

Or want to see in new York?

 

Phantom of the Opera and Wicked are the two that got me hooked on it (and the ones I've seen the most).

 

Other faves are: A Chorus Line, Beauty and the Beast, Ragtime, Side Show, Hello Dolly, and Next to Normal

[robbalvey]

Les Miserables at the Orlando Shakes totally blew away my expectations!

 

Tonight, Bethany and I ventured down to the "Orlando Shakes" (Orlando Shakespeare Theater in partnership with UCF) to see Les Mis. As someone who is an admitted "Les Miserables snob" (I've seen the show about 70 times in several different countries, touring all over the USA, on Broadway, on the West End, I've even seen it in Japanese!) let me tell you I did not expect a "local production" of the show to be this fantastic! This was the first time I've seen a "licensed production" of a show like this so I just wasn't sure what to expect. Part of me was thinking it would be more the quality of theme park talent (and hey, don't take that as a negative as I've seen some amazing performers at parks), but you know what I mean.

 

Walking into the theater and seeing how tiny it is (360 seats total) and seeing the stage I thought to myself "Oh, no! What have I gotten myself into?!?!" But man, once the show started, I felt like this was a show that could have easily played to a 1,000 seat venue!

 

As for the show itself, well, it was like stepping into a weird Les Mis hot tub time machine! But one that had gone back in time, picked up a few things, and then came back to the present. The turntable from the classic version of Les Mis was back, but then verses and sequences from the 25th Anniversary show were included! We were back to the classic "slides" that projected what the current location of the story was, but we had the "candle sequence" from the 25th that bridged Turning with Empty Chairs at Empty Tables. Honestly, it was kind of a cool mash-up! There were a few minor edits here and there to accommodate the smaller venue, but they were so minor that they aren't even worth mentioning. Most of the audience, even if you've seen Les Mis before, probably wouldn't pick up on them.

 

There was some fantastic talent in the cast. Some better than others, but all of them exceeded my expectations. The girl who played Eponine NAILED IT, the Thénardiers stole the show (as they always seem to), Valjean and Javert were both solid as well. There were a couple of misses, the guy who played Marius sort of "met" my expectations for the evening, and even though I feel that a lot of the cast might not have been "Broadway caliber" (and hey, this isn't a Broadway show!), holy cow they were all amazing!

 

Caitlyn Caughell, who I had seen in the ensemble for Newsies several times was, at least IMO, the best talent of the night. (And not just because she was in Newsies, but not gonna lie, that certainly gives her bonus points in my book!)

 

Oh, and the ensemble - WOW! If there was one thing that I felt really sold the show is that when the ensemble was together, during songs like At The End Of The Day and Do You Hear The People Sing I had to stop and remind myself that I wasn't listening to an official cast recording! When that group came together they ROCKED PARIS HARD!!!

 

But even with all that, the two real winners of the show were the set production and the music. Walking into the theater I honestly did not expect much when it came to the sets. Les Miserables is fairly primitive to begin with, but there are a few complex pieces (the barricade, for example) that tend to steal the show. While this production was more like flashing back to the classic version, and even though there wasn't any transforming sets, what they put together looked GREAT! Seriously impressed the entire show. And then the music. Now, granted, my good friend Piano John was conducting, and even if I didn't have a personal connection to the musical performers in the show I would still be saying how blown away I was. The show *sounded* perfect! My biggest disappointment of the entire show was that the orchestra was hidden backstage and you couldn't see them to appreciate just how good the show sounded! Again, I had to remind myself that I wasn't listening to an official recording.

 

Overall, while it wasn't "Broadway" - this was a damn good, SERIOUSLY DAMN GOOD production of Les Miserables. I've been to shows at the Orlando Fringe but never something like this. And if this is an example of what more is to come from the Orlando Shakes, you can bet I'll be seeing more shows there! Here's their details: http://www.orlandoshakes.org/

 

Congrats to everyone involved!

 

--Robb Alvey

Calico System.nltrack

Edited September 24, 2014 by robbalvey

[jray21]

What a great review! I wish I could have been there! It's been quite a while since I've been able to see Les Miserables.

[azza29]

Thanks for the review - sometimes local/independent productions can really shine. I've definitely seen a few "amateur" shows that were easily of a professional standard.

[pianojohn]

Thanks for coming Robb and Bethany! Glad you enjoyed it.

 

Just 22 more shows to go!

 

And while we are technically SOLD OUT for the rest of the run, they do have a standby line that forms 90 minutes prior to show for any cancellations.

 

Here is MY view of the show from the orchestra loft

Hard at work. Actually prior to show and conducting the other 9 members, 2 on the left (bass and percussion) and six on the right (3 reeds, french horn, trombone, and trumpet).

[Garet]

Apparently The Back To The Future Musical director has quit and it's being pushed back to 2016, it's a shame I was going to be in London next summer and had hoped to see it but oh well, these things happen

[Nrthwnd]

^^ Wish I could see the show, John,. I still have your Theme Park Diva t-shirt

from 2006 or so. Break Legs, in hindsight.

It's first appearnce on a TPR Tour...2006 UK Tour!

[VFVSGirl16]

Just happened to come across this... Musicals are probably my favorite things to be apart of! I've been apart of 9 so far! (The Apple Tree, Oklahoma!, Fiddler on the Roof, Honk!, Les Miserables, Willy Wonka, Beauty & The Beast, The Madrigal Dinner, and Aladdin: Dual Language Edition. Outside of those shows, my favorite musicals are probably "Wicked" and "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown!". Besides being a coaster geek, I'm definitely a huge theatre geek.

[cfc]

The greatest musical I've ever seen is still Stephen Soundheim's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, but, yeah, it's not for all tastes.

 

Soundheim's Into the Woods is great, too. Looking forward to the movie version.

Edited October 2, 2014 by cfc