The Broadway show thread where we discuss all things Broadway

[Deb]

We saw "All Out" tonight with Wayne Brady and Jim Gaffigan, Ben Schwartz and Cecily Strong. I didn't know what to expect but really like both Brady and Gaffigan, and tickets were $50 at TKTS. Definitely worth the discounted price, and there is an awesome band, Lawrence, that is part of the show.

"Six" and "Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York)" have both been recommended for tomorrow night.

I really enjoyed Six on it's national tour. I would see it again

 

[CapeCodTenor]

We saw "All Out" tonight with Wayne Brady and Jim Gaffigan, Ben Schwartz and Cecily Strong. I didn't know what to expect but really like both Brady and Gaffigan, and tickets were $50 at TKTS. Definitely worth the discounted price, and there is an awesome band, Lawrence, that is part of the show.

"Six" and "Two Strangers (Carry a Cake Across New York)" have both been recommended for tomorrow night.

Is it a musical or straight play? I know nothing about it.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

So...we were going to do a WDW trip over our February break (DH and I both work for California schools and we get all of President's Week off). Our actor son in New York was going to join us. Last week, we found out we need a new furnace $$$. So we considered our options and decided to cancel WDW (the deposit was still refundable) and go to NYC instead. Between flights, hotel and a few Broadway shows, a week in NYC still comes out to be just over half the cost of a WDW trip (and that was with staying at a value resort!).

Upon conferring with DS, we booked four shows - Oh Mary, Death Becomes Her, Ragtime and Operation Mincemeat. DS has seen all of these and is more than happy to see them all again. He just saw Ragtime last night and was completely blown away. Looking forward to a week of shows! Hopefully it won't be as cold as last February, but I will be prepared.

 

[leebee]

Is it a musical or straight play? I know nothing about it.

It's... neither? Four comedians are onstage to read short stories written by Simon Rich about ego, envy, greed (the tag line includes "and basically just New Yorkers in general"). The band is part of some of the stories, and links the stories together in between readings. The stories were funny, poignant, interesting. I was very pleased to see Brady and Gaffigan- although I think Gaffigan is funnier when he is doing his own stuff. Brady was exceptional, and he sang with the band for part of one number. We got the tickets thru TKTS for $50, so I think it was worth the price, but it was different. If you are looking for either a musical or a full play? I don't think it'd fit your bill... but I enjoyed it.

On the second night, I bit the bullet, paid stubhub prices, and went to NYCB's Nutcracker to see Tiler Peck dance as the Sugar Plum fairy. I have seen a LOT of ballet, both live and on film, and my daughter trained as a ballerina so I know somewhat of what I am talking about here, but I have NEVER in my life seen a dancer as strong or amazing as Tiler Peck. She was phenomenal. It was worth every penny, and more, to see her dance.
[To put this in context, I should add that this was a "bucket list" thing for DD and me. We have talked for decades of making a holiday trip to NYC in Decembr to see the Rockettes Christmas Show (DD trained with them but was too short to make the line at auditions) and NYCB's Nutcracker (DD's ballet teacher danced for Balanchine at NYCB) but DD was always performing in Nut with a traveling company so her weekends were spoken for, so the trip never happened. However, this year the studio where she teaches and dances was doing a trip to see the Rockettes and take a class, so we decided to go to. Seeing Nut was a last minute decision, but one of the best I have ever made!]

 

[mouschievous]

Saw the tour of A Beautiful Noise last night. Went into it knowing nothing other than it was a Neil Diamond juke box. Left as a fan of the show. There are so many parts of it (specifically staging/ensemble work) that could so easily be cheesy and weird, but they work SO well.

 

[CapeCodTenor]

Got see the National Tour of Clue yesterday in Providence, R.I. Wonderful show. I've see a local community theater production a few years ago, and it was wonderful, but these were the pros. Besides a friend was in it and had to see it.

 

[AlyssaBunny]

Saw opening night of the sound of music in Boston! I never realized how different it was from the movie!

 

[CapeCodTenor]

Saw opening night of the sound of music in Boston! I never realized how different it was from the movie!

A friend of mine went to see that on Saturday. I just checked the Broadway in Boston site, and they've got some good show's this year.

 

[Mathmagicland]

Jeremy Jordan will be the new Bobby Darin in Just in Time, starting April 21.

https://broadwaydirect.com/jeremy-j...kZzAkdDE3NzE2NTEzNjckajYwJGwwJGgxNzI4ODUwMzUz

Since Jonathan Groff is leaving at the end of March, Matthew Morrison will have a short 3-week run in the interim-

https://broadwaydirect.com/matthew-...CC9270F8B8336B67CDF34E743A470732BA108F7FCA785

 

[CapeCodTenor]

Don't think I mentioned, but I auditioned for a local production of Come From Away, can't get enough of this show, and I got in. Like the Broadway production, I play multiple characters, but the named ones I play are Oz, the constable, Joey, and the Rabbi. We've been rehearsing since late January. We open April 9th and I can't wait.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

Just returned from New York late last night. Our DS has been living there for over three years so we go fairly often. He helped me choose our line up of shows. He's seen them all, but was happy to see them again with us. Here's what we saw with my brief reviews:

Oh Mary - Hilarious! John Cameron Mitchell is currently in the lead role until April 26. He was fabulous, as was the entire cast. The plot is rather unexpected, although we knew what what it was all about beforehand. A woman in front of us walked out after about 20 minutes when the language got raunchy. This show has been out for well over a year, so I was surprised that she hadn't read about the off-color (to say the least!) language and subject matter.

Death Becomes Her - I'm glad we finally saw this show. It has an intriguing plot that moves quickly and the music is engaging and fun. Jennifer Simard and Betsy Wolfe are perfect in the lead roles. Michelle Williams was out the night we saw it, but her understudy was great. The ensemble was wonderful and showcased the strong choreography very skillfully.

Operation Mincemeat - Our son highly recommended this show after seeing it several months ago. It's a five-person cast that switches (often quickly) between roles to tell the story of a secret British plan that happened during WWII. The plot and dialogue move quickly, so I was glad I had read the synopsis before seeing the show. It was easier to just enjoy the performances rather than worry about following the often intricate plot. The show is very funny and the performances were great. The original cast is leaving today, but I'm sure the new cast will be just as good.

Ragtime - What can I say? If you can only see one show in New York, this is the one to see! It's fabulous on every level. The characters, the music, the way the individual stories unfold then come together are just brilliant! Cassie Levy, Brandon Uranowitz and Nichelle Lewis are all incredible, as is the entire cast. Joshua Henry is in a category all by himself. His voice and his performance are next level! It's like the role of Coalhouse was written specifically for him. He brings everything to the role and I was completely blown away every time he stepped on stage. He's that good! He's an alumni of the same college musical theater program as our son, so we're always proud and amazed to see him perform!

We had a good week of shows, hanging with our DS, diner food, museums, chilly walks around the city, hot coffee and watching the Olympics at our hotel. Now we're home and it's back to work and back to reality. Time to plan the next trip!

 

[Araminta18]

My turn to say I'm just back from NY! We took the train up on Thursday, took the train back home Sunday, and saw 5 shows in the meantime

First up: Masquerade. Oh my gosh I can't recommend this highly enough. It was FANTASTIC - a super immersive staging of Phantom that brings you in to the story. You're running down into the Phantom's lair after the Phantom and Christine, the chandelier almost falls on you...just fantastic. The actors are great and it's worth every penny.

Monte Cristo - this is off-Broadway and I went to see it for Sierra Boggess (original Ariel in Little Mermaid on Broadway), Norm Lewis (original King Triton in Little Mermaid on Broadway) and the rest of the cast. The cast was indeed fantastic but the show was rough. It didn't seem to really know what it wanted to be (comedy, drama, both?) and just was too much exposition. Oh well! Still an experience to see Sierra and Norm up close

Two Strangers Carry a Cake Across New York - we did rush tickets for this and got front row seats and we LOVED this show. It was sweet and hilarious and just had heart - the actors were fantastic. Highly recommend.

Oh Mary! - I got rush tickets for this and while I loved seeing John Cameron Mitchell and Simu Liu in person, the show wasn't for me. I thought it was funny but not as hysterical as everyone seems to say. Oh well!

Lost Boys - we rushed this as well and got front row seats for the second preview ever. This was lots of fun - the cast (Shoshana Bean!) was amazing, and they all sang their faces off. But this is Broadway spectacle at it's best - the production values were super high, with a huge and very detailed set, and lots of special effects (so much flying! and dropping through trapdoors! and things rising from the floor!). The story was decent - a bit teen angsty but still good. But yea, this is what you think of when you think Broadway spectacle.

It was a great weekend - and as a bonus, I got to get a lot of the pins from the Disney Pin event at the Disney Store in Times Square, despite not having a ticket for the event. Woot!