What Broadway Shows Merit My Viewing of Them???

[+ Axiom2001]

Folks, as many of you know, Broadway held its Tony Award's event last Sunday. While I viewed some of the show before going to "Showtime" to watch QAF, I thought I'd ask you guys about the shows you'd recommend when I go to NYC in August. I'd like to go to at least five or six different shows. I definitely plan to see A Raisin in the Sun since I have taught it in my former Junior English classes. What else, fellows? I patiently await! :-) AXiom

[Guest JohnPela]

>I thought I'd ask you guys about the shows you'd recommend when I go >to NYC in August.

>AXiom

 

I Am My Own Wife- the Tony winner for best new drama and actor is not to be missed!!!!! Jefferson Mays is fantastic in this one-man cast in which he plays 40 characters. Hairspray if you have not seen it is really good. Naked Boys Singing- off broadway is fun. The Boy From Oz, I have heard is good but have not seen.

[ted]

What do you like? Broadway shows are as different as TV shows and someones rave is someone else's yawn. If it last over three weeks in NY it has some redeeming quality, but whether its your cup of tea is another thing.

 

My take on whats likely to be playing in August

 

Hugh Jackman in Boy from Oz - a flawed show but Hugh's energy and performance is truly outstanding-he's leaving in Sept I think, and the show is unlikely to survive once he leaves, but if he's there he gives a great performance

 

Assasins is the current musical de jour. I haven't seen it yet-will in July- and originally scheduled to close Aug 1 is probably going to stick around a while longer.

 

Traditional Musicals

Chicago - quite different from the movie

Mamma Mia

Hairspray

Wicked

42nd Street

Fiddler

Phantom

Wonderful Town

wonderful town may not make it til aug

All quite good, Hairspray and Wicked are better than the rest MM can be trying unless you're a big ABBA fan

 

Dance

Movin Out

actually one of my current favorites. I've seen it twice, the energy of the cast and the choreography are outstanding. No dialog, but you can follow what's happening and my friend actually wiped a tear at the end of act 1. Of course if you hate Billy Joel this would probably be trying.

 

Comedy

The Producers

Without Matthew and Nathan this show struggles. I've seen it with and without them, better with, but not that different a show. If you appreciate Mel Brooks go, if you don't don't

 

Caroline or Change

again may not make it through the summer, but worthwhile if it does

 

Lion King - magical the first time, not the second, and its not just for kids

 

Little Shop fun little show but may not make it thru the summer

 

Avenue Q which just won best musical is a quirky show. It is both entertaining and thought provoking, but not a "great big" musical in the tradional sense.

 

Golda's

Tovah performance is the drawing card

 

I am my own wife

I haven;t seen

 

There's probably a few more but I can't think of them right now

[Guest icon513]

I enjoyed Bombay Dreams, in spite of the atrocious reviews. The rest of the audience seemed to as well.

[Donnie]

>Broadway held its Tony Award's

 

>I have taught

>it in my former Junior English classes.

 

I hope you didn't teach them grammar like "Tony Award's" and "What Broadway Shows Merit My Viewing of Them???" :o

[larbord]

I have to second the recommendation of "The Boy from Oz". The performance of Hugh Jackman is something that won't be topped in a while. While the play is not truly special, it certainly wasn't boring, and the joy that Hugh Jackman takes in the role spills over the stage and into the audience. Certainly the performance of his life.:+

[OneFinger]

My last trip to NYC included tickets to "Thoroughly Modern Millie" and "Naked Boys Singing".

 

Shows that I've seen in other cities and would also recommend are "Little Shop...", "Aida", "The Producers", and "Hairspray" (if you can get tickets).

 

I've also heard great things about "The Boy from Oz" and that on my list for the next trip.

 

Enjoy and have fun!!!

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

Some thoughts on the current state of Broadway~

 

Seemingly, shows are coming & going even more quickly than before, with some great spaces opening up this summer and later this fall for a whole new crowd of shows on the horizion.

 

'Gypsy' with Bernadette Peter's is gone.

'Aida' will be closing at the Palace in September, making way for a revival of La Cage...

'Boy From Oz' looses Jackman this fall and will shutter when he goes to other commitments.

'Little Shop' is stunt casting (paging The Weisslers) through the rest of the run in hopes of getting a larger, non-TKTS crowd. Word from the producers says that this fall will bring in Ellen Greene to replay Audrey.

'Chicago' is bringing in Paige Davis (from Trading Spaces) to hit the stage as Roxie Hart. She's an old vet from the show and has been seen in both the Vegas and Broadway companies before.

 

My picks on what to see?

 

Chicago: Always a surefire grin of an evening. With Paige Davis and Brenda Braxton in the leads, it's bound to be a great show.

 

Aida: Yes, many hate this Elton John show, but i've always found something meaningful about the music and set design. Added, Deborah Cox is Aida with original Broadway lead Adam Pascal coming back to finish up the run through September.

 

Wicked: If you can score this ticket, GET IT. An amazing show, powerful songs and more eye-candy than Phantom. I also highly recommend reading the book before you see the Broadway show.

 

Hairspray: Michael McKean is hysterical. If you're a Chris Guest fan and have seen McKean in his movies, then head to the Neil Simon and check out this awesome musical.

 

Golda's Balcony: Tovah Feldshuh is outstanding. Period.

 

42nd Street: Gotta love those tapping feet

 

Wonderful Town: Donna Murphy and Karen Ziemba make a kick-butt team in this truly jazz-inspired show. If you saw the number they did on the Tony Broadcast then you'll know where i'm coming from. Really well done show.

 

Caroline, or Change: Tonya Pinkins and Tony Kushner. What more could you ask for? Terribly emotional show, but simply stunning to watch Pinkins onstage and realize she's doing this 8 times a week. Fantastic performances.

 

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf: Kathleen Turner is signed to co-lead in this show with Bill Irwin. Her last performance in the national tour of The Graduate was superb, so if you're a fan i suggest looking into the opening date of this show.

 

Just keep in mind that if you're going to go for TKTS in Time's Square, that you're going to need to be in line MIGHTY early. The line usually wraps down to the MTV building only an hour after opening, so get there in the AM pronto.

 

Warmest Always,

 

 

 

Benjamin Nicholas

[Rick Munroe]

>I

>definitely plan to see A Raisin in the Sun

 

You'll have to report back and tell us if it's really true that P. Diddy is as awful as Audra McDonald and Phylicia Rashad are brilliant. :+

 

If you like good acting, I highly recommend "Frozen," starring Swoosie Kurtz, and Tovah Feldshuh as Golda. I haven't seen "I Am My Own Wife" but I have heard from more than a few people that it's excellent. Oh, and Kathy & Mo (Off-Broadway comedy duo of the 80's) are reuniting for a limited engagement of their "greatest bits." I wouldn't recommend Naked Boys Singing, by the way, unless you want to attend a bachelorette party.

[Candyman]

I loved Wicked!!! I didn't read the book until afters seeing the show. Don't bother I found the book to be long and drawn out. The show is much much better.

 

Tony winner Ida Menzel is married to Ty Diggs - MMM nice

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

'Raisin's' most recent incarnation is pretty great~

 

I didn't totally agree with Audra McDonald winning the Tony yet again for a somewhat lackluster performance, while the thought of Sean Combs still sends laughter to the pit of my stomach. He was the only lead cast member NOT to be nominated for a Tony. Surprised? Not me.

 

I still think that Tovah should have gotten the Tony over Rashad, as her 'transformation' both physically and as an actor was pure magic. Hell, if they can give Charlize Theron an Oscar for gaining some weight, shaving off her eyebrows and wearing false teeth, then the Tony committee can throw Feldshuh a bone for her prosthetic extreme makeover and amazing acting talents. I just felt that with Rashad her win was more political than anything: She's a known 'name' actress who rarely hits a broadway stage and she'd never won a Tony before. Friends of mine who are Tony voters say things like that weigh heavily with most of the panel.

 

Eh. *shrugs*

 

So, for those who saw the awards show this year, what did you think about importing Tony Benett & Mary J Blige into the entertainment roster?

 

 

Warmest Always,

 

 

Benjamin Nicholas

[jackhammer91406]

Serendipity

 

Sure appreciate seeing this thread, since I will be in NYC in a month and need to narrow the choice of what to see down to one or two shows. I am grateful to all the respondents.

 

I saw 42nd Street in it's original incarnation back in the 80's (a few days after Gower Champion died).

Saw Hairspray (with original cast) & The Producers on my trip last year.

Saw Chicago, Mama Mia, Kiss Me Kate, and My Fair Lady while in London. couldn't get tickets to The Lion KIng, and it was playing right around the corner from my hotel.

 

I did see the Tony's (or most of them while trying to catch the action in the NBA finals). Avenue Q looked interesting, but if I had only one show, I don't think that would do it.

 

A friend has recommended Wonderful Town, but with Donna Murphy missing so many perfomances, that's an iffy choice as well.

 

I think Hugh Jackman is great and if I have a chance to see several shows, his may be one.

 

Not up to date on the music (other than it is Elton John) or performances from Aida.

 

 

I guess I have narrowed it down to Wicked.

 

Of course any further input from the broadway contingent would be appreciated.

[+ Axiom2001]

RE: Serendipity

 

Thanks, fellows, for your suggestions. I hope to see "Hairspray" and "The Boy from Oz" and a few others mentioned here. :-)

[Guest DickHo]

RE: Serendipity

 

If I had one show to see, it wouldn't be Wicked. I thought it was awful. The performances were good but I thought the score was appalling. Every song is overproduced and has a big ending. Subtlety is nowhere to be found in these songs.

 

Avenue Q is a far superior show. And for a great score and good performances, Fiddler on the Roof.

 

That's just my opinion.

 

Enjoy!

[marc anthony]

RE: Serendipity

 

>

>Not up to date on the music (other than it is Elton John) or

>performances from Aida.

>

 

Aida has beautiful music... haunting stuff really. Some of the songs.... like "Written in the Stars", "I Know the Truth", and the best of all "Elaborate Lives" are some of the most powerful music you will hear on Broadway (comparable to Phantom).

 

The reason you would consider this one... it is closing this year.

[Guest rohale]

Oklahoma

 

This past Tuesday night, I was talked into going to the Orange County Performing Arts Center to see the latest revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's " Oklahoma ". The show and it's cast just opened this week. The show does not boast the star power that it had in 1998 with Hugh Jackman. It does have one star and his name is Brandon Andrus. He alone is the reason from my point of view why the show is worth watching. He has an expressive voice and keen intelligence as to how he approaches all of Curly's songs. Daniel Robinson, Tom Lucca, Jud Fry and Sarah Shahinian also provide some moving performances. What I find to be of interest the most is that the play is being directed by Fred Hanson. He's fairly new and once again the Royal National Theatre are behind this latest version again. They were involved in Trevor Nunn's 1998 version. In a way this current version sort of harkens back to the days of the 1943 premiere.

 

Much in the same way when Patrick Stewart did his one man play of Charles Dicken's classic " A Christmas Carol ". Some would argue that Mr Stewarts interpretation was the closest to the 1951 film version starring Alistair Simms. I had a chance to see Patrick Stewart's version and he performed all the characters himself and he was absolutely brilliant. I also felt the same way about " Oklahoma ". The interesting aspect for me is that " Oklahoma " is the first great modern American musical. It would be a shame is this version never makes it to Broadway in the coming months.

 

Rohale

[+ Axiom2001]

RE: Serendipity

 

Your sincere recommendations are definitely appreciated!

One person in his suggestions mentioned "original" cast in conjunction with 'Hairspray." Is Harvey F.... still there or not? He was the main reason that I wanted to see this play!

[Guest DickHo]

RE: Oklahoma

 

The Trevor Nunn version was on Broadway last year. Patrick Wilson (from HBO's Angels in America) played Curly.

[Moose1961]

I read an article that Randy Harrison was taking over a role in Wicked. However, I haven't been able to get the dates of this. Since it looks like other changes occur in July, Id imagine it happens then.

Joey Mc Intyre is scheduled to join the cast as well.

[+ BenjaminNicholas]

Randy Harrison starts in 'Wicked' the last week in June...

 

Former 'New Kid' McIntyre (sp?) takes over the leading man the following week in previews before getting his review by resident Times critic Ben Brantley the first week in July. Harrison will join the show as a chorus member.

 

I can't comment on Harrison's singing skill, but McIntyre did show some promise in the video-version of 'The Fantasticks.' Added, he grew up to be quite a handsome fella. He should play nicely with Idina Menzel and Chenowerth while at the Gershwin.

 

Warmest Always,

 

 

Benjamin Nicholas

[Rick Munroe]

>Former 'New Kid' McIntyre (sp?) takes over the leading man

 

I have his doll.

 

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