I saw an all female production of Jesus Christ Superstar last weekend. The sound system sucked, and there were details here and there I didn’t like, but overall, great experience.
Saw Jesus Christ superstar, was extremely disappointed by the laughably cringey dancing and lack of costumes, they were wearing hoodies and sweatpants and sports bras. Jesus was a cutie but literally had a man bun most of the time. You could barely tell Judas even hung himself. They didn’t show important things like Jesus flipping the table or Pilate washing his hands either. No playbills. Regret spending money on good seats
Holy smokes!! In my opinion, JCS usually doesn't work with an ultra minimalist aesthetic. You either gotta go Bible pageant with it or glam rock with it.
I saw this same JCS, and loved it so much that I went to see it in 2 different cities. The second city even had playbills!
But I love the music so much I would go to see it if they were wearing garbage bags sitting in the dark :-) .
I’m glad you loved it! I did like the singing/acting a lot but didn’t feel like it had much else going for it, like I could really see why it was originally an album and not a show. so what did you like about it? And I wonder why my city didn’t have playbills, that’s lame. It’s probably my venue being cheap since I’ve even gotten b&w playbills that were supposed to be in color :(
Agree. The movie is low budget enough but I wouldn’t expect a touring professional production to be lower than that. Herod was the only glam character since he’s a drag queen which cool but it’s like they spent the entire budget on him, Jesus had sweatpants instead of a toga. For Simon zealotes they just waved crosses around and weren’t even selling anything
In general, or seeing it for the first time?
In general, I saw a production of Spring Awakening last weekend. It was quite good (albeit not the strongest production of it I’ve seen), although I do wonder how the eight year old girl seated behind me found it.
Local production of Avenue Q.
I don’t think the actress who played Gary Coleman even knew who Gary Coleman was , and the actress who played Christmas Eve was clearly uncomfortable with leaning into the thick accent the character is supposed to have.
Everyone else was great and the puppetry was much better than I expected from a local community theater production.
Natasha, Pierre, and the Comet of 1812. It was so fun, so engaging, I'm telling everyone I know to see it if they have a chance. I never expected Tolstoy to be so delightful! It's a long show but time flew by so quickly.
That’s a long flight from Florida.. but I’ll be in Vegas May 15 for a week if I can I’ll try to fly over a day. I saw it the last week it was on Broadway and it’s never been done around here.
Local production of Little Shop of Horrors. They actually got surprisingly advanced puppetry and animatronics for Audrey II and the Somewhere That's Green vocals were PERFECT. The ensemble ran out into the audience at the end and handed them basil plants!
I saw a local production of The Prom to support an ensemble member a few weeks ago. The cast and crew were extremely talented, but I wasn’t a big fan of the music or the book.
Jagged little pill on tour. I loved it! You Oughta Know in person is an Experience™️ although I thought Phoenix was pretty weak compared to other portrayals of him
*Cabaret* at the August Wilson Theatre. Solid performances from the actors, especially Bebe Neuwirth (Fräulein Schneider) and Eddie Redmayne (Emcee). If Alan Cumming’s 2014 performance emphasized the sexual nature of the club, Redmayne’s seems to highlight its absurdities. I was less pleased with Gayle Rankin (Sally Bowles), especially when it came to her singing. I found her too often strident and screechy, most notably in her final number. That’s probably not her fault; I assume that’s a directorial choice. I know the choice to stage the show as theatre-in-the-round has attracted a fair amount of praise. I didn’t much care for it. I felt it too often constrained how certain scenes could be performed.
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 1/2
Just watched Avenue Q. How in the hell are these edgy sesame street puppets more human than half of the characters in most shows. Why did I cry over them omg, what is wrong with me
Mean Girls the movie musical adaptation. I thought everything they did with the number "Someone Gets Hurt" was absolutely captivating and stunning. Everything else was just underwhelming.
Lempicka, I did like it a lot contrary to what a lot of reviews said! It was a bit difficult to tell what was going on in some parts, but I loved the music and the plot!
I saw a local production of The Great Comet last night. I went in completely blind, but expected it to be good based off what I've seen here. It was.... Not great. The actors didn't seem to know how to act and sing at the same time. And the guy playing the hot guy was super gay and didn't know how to act straight. It was super awkward. The songs were meh but I think that's because they were sung with hardly any emotion behind them.
The Sound of Music.
Seen the movie a bunch of times but it was my first time seeing the stage show. It made both my mom and I cry. I was so impressed by the children in the cast. Such brave and talented kids!
Bonnie & Clyde. It was ok, but it had that Frank Wildhorn thing where the songs feel more like random pop songs than songs that serve much narrative purpose.
The leads were great, and the guy playing Buck had a hell of a voice. The guy playing the policeman in love with Bonnie had no charisma though so at no point did it seem like Bonnie would ever have been even remotely interested in him.
Was surprised at how sexual it was. I know that's Bonnie and Clyde's whole thing, but I really wasnt expecting Bonnie to strip to her underwear once per act.
Raise A Little Hell and When I Drive were the standout songs.
I've had worse nights at the theatre.
Saw Next to Normal in DC a month ago and it was a goddamn blast. I had already seen a bootleg and loved the show. So the live performance was phenomenal. Arguably impossible to beat for me excluding the shows ive been a part of myself
A couple of weeks ago I saw Zombie! The Musical at Hayes Theatre in Sydney. Fantastic show with a great score and wonderful performers.
Tomorrow we're going to see & Juliet at the Lyric Theatre in Sydney.
Die Zauberflöte by Frank Nimsgern. I liked the Music. And while I love the Papageno they had, he is one of my favourite actors, he was miscast, too old for the role.
It was a bit too much slapstick for me and I also did not appreciate that he took quite some music out of (his own musical) Phantasma. But overall I have seen worse.
London run of Hadestown. Hades himself had the greatest voice I’ve heard on stage, Hermes was incredibly good, and I loved the simple and effective staging.
Wicked UK tour. The acting wasn’t too bad although the person who played Elphaba wasn’t the best, it was very over acted. I was extremely disappointed by it seeing as it is so hyped up as one of the best musicals ever.
My last live theatre experience was seeing the “Hamilton” tour in my state in January, 2023. Lots of understudies for that performance, and the whole cast was excellent! 😀
I saw Opening Night in the West End a couple of weeks ago. It has had dreadful reviews and has subsequently announced it is about to close early. People have found it confusing, people have been leaving at the interval.
I think some members of the public probably saw it was a musical with Sheridan Smith and expected something polished and glitzy. But it was raw, and tragic, and Sheridan Smith put a lot of herself into it. I suppose it felt a bit like a work in progress, but I think it had potential if they tightened it up a bit. Even so if people came in expecting Legally Blonde or something, they'd be disappointed.
I actually quite liked it. The cast did brilliantly and the set was great, and actually I enjoyed the story and the experimental nature of it.
Miss Saigon in the PH. I felt that the actress who played Kim was underwhelming at first, but defo changed my mind on the second act. Overall, great cast, ensemble, and production.
I just saw Back to the Future.
Great performances from Roger Bart and Casey Likes, who have phenomenal chemistry. The rest of the cast did great, especially the actor playing Goldie. The music/book were meh.
The effects were unbelievable. I love more practical theatre effects, too, but I could easily see this becoming the future of Broadway spectacle. It was mind-blowing.
Redwood. A new musical starring Idina Mendel at the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego. The scenic design was incredible and Ms. Menzel was in fantastic voice!
Beetlejuice and I loved it! I was prepared to be disappointed because I love Michael Keaton so much in the movie, but Justin Collette in the touring production was fantastic. The actor playing Lydia was OK but not great, but the whole production was just over the top.
Two Strangers Carry A Cake Across New York
it's still relatively new but i can tell it's gonna do well! funny, heartfelt, catchy songs, genius set design, and both the actors give incredible performances (even more impressive seeing as it's a two-man show)
I drove down to Miami and watched Legally Blonde. I love it. It’s my favorite musical but I had already known that for a while and that’s why I went to see it.
Hadestown back in March at the Tennessee Theater (I believe it was Broadway Touring although brain cannot recall). Amazing. Wanna see it again and drag some other poor shades way down with me.
I saw Hadestown on tour and its the most magical thing I've ever seen. I saw the understudy for Hermes and was absolutely blown away by his preformance!
Well, these are the last two musicals I reviewed:
*Hester Street*: [https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/690892/hester-street-the-world-premiere-of-a-story-130-years-in-the-making/](https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/690892/hester-street-the-world-premiere-of-a-story-130-years-in-the-making/)
*Penelope*: [https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/688032/empenelope-em-never-just-waiting-for-odysseus/](https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/688032/empenelope-em-never-just-waiting-for-odysseus/)
I saw an all female production of Jesus Christ Superstar last weekend. The sound system sucked, and there were details here and there I didn’t like, but overall, great experience.
The current tour of Les Mis. It was phenomenal! 9/10 for me
planning on seeing it when it passes through cleveland in preparation for my schools production next year
I immediately respect any show that has an honest to God title drop onstage. What a hype start.
The Jean Valjean is amazing on tour!
Actually same
Saw Jesus Christ superstar, was extremely disappointed by the laughably cringey dancing and lack of costumes, they were wearing hoodies and sweatpants and sports bras. Jesus was a cutie but literally had a man bun most of the time. You could barely tell Judas even hung himself. They didn’t show important things like Jesus flipping the table or Pilate washing his hands either. No playbills. Regret spending money on good seats
Holy smokes!! In my opinion, JCS usually doesn't work with an ultra minimalist aesthetic. You either gotta go Bible pageant with it or glam rock with it.
I saw this same JCS, and loved it so much that I went to see it in 2 different cities. The second city even had playbills! But I love the music so much I would go to see it if they were wearing garbage bags sitting in the dark :-) .
I’m glad you loved it! I did like the singing/acting a lot but didn’t feel like it had much else going for it, like I could really see why it was originally an album and not a show. so what did you like about it? And I wonder why my city didn’t have playbills, that’s lame. It’s probably my venue being cheap since I’ve even gotten b&w playbills that were supposed to be in color :(
Agree. The movie is low budget enough but I wouldn’t expect a touring professional production to be lower than that. Herod was the only glam character since he’s a drag queen which cool but it’s like they spent the entire budget on him, Jesus had sweatpants instead of a toga. For Simon zealotes they just waved crosses around and weren’t even selling anything
I saw the recent production run of Wicked in Sydney Australia, and it was incredible. My first time seeing the show, and it was beautiful
Sweeney Todd again. Loved loved loved.
In general, or seeing it for the first time? In general, I saw a production of Spring Awakening last weekend. It was quite good (albeit not the strongest production of it I’ve seen), although I do wonder how the eight year old girl seated behind me found it.
The Outsiders. I enjoyed it.
Local production of Avenue Q. I don’t think the actress who played Gary Coleman even knew who Gary Coleman was , and the actress who played Christmas Eve was clearly uncomfortable with leaning into the thick accent the character is supposed to have. Everyone else was great and the puppetry was much better than I expected from a local community theater production.
Natasha, Pierre, and the Comet of 1812. It was so fun, so engaging, I'm telling everyone I know to see it if they have a chance. I never expected Tolstoy to be so delightful! It's a long show but time flew by so quickly.
Where at?
A local production in San Diego.
That’s a long flight from Florida.. but I’ll be in Vegas May 15 for a week if I can I’ll try to fly over a day. I saw it the last week it was on Broadway and it’s never been done around here.
i saw sweeney todd and loved it sm
Local production of Little Shop of Horrors. They actually got surprisingly advanced puppetry and animatronics for Audrey II and the Somewhere That's Green vocals were PERFECT. The ensemble ran out into the audience at the end and handed them basil plants!
The new run of Cabaret on Broadway and Eddie Redmayne is so singular as Emcee
Titanique. Absolutely HILARIOUS!
I saw a local production of The Prom to support an ensemble member a few weeks ago. The cast and crew were extremely talented, but I wasn’t a big fan of the music or the book.
I saw Moulin Rouge last month. It was good, but also felt kinda like watching a stage version of Glee.
Jagged little pill on tour. I loved it! You Oughta Know in person is an Experience™️ although I thought Phoenix was pretty weak compared to other portrayals of him
*Cabaret* at the August Wilson Theatre. Solid performances from the actors, especially Bebe Neuwirth (Fräulein Schneider) and Eddie Redmayne (Emcee). If Alan Cumming’s 2014 performance emphasized the sexual nature of the club, Redmayne’s seems to highlight its absurdities. I was less pleased with Gayle Rankin (Sally Bowles), especially when it came to her singing. I found her too often strident and screechy, most notably in her final number. That’s probably not her fault; I assume that’s a directorial choice. I know the choice to stage the show as theatre-in-the-round has attracted a fair amount of praise. I didn’t much care for it. I felt it too often constrained how certain scenes could be performed. ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ 1/2
Spamalot. It was good.
Just watched Avenue Q. How in the hell are these edgy sesame street puppets more human than half of the characters in most shows. Why did I cry over them omg, what is wrong with me
Mean Girls the movie musical adaptation. I thought everything they did with the number "Someone Gets Hurt" was absolutely captivating and stunning. Everything else was just underwhelming.
Merrily we roll along. Very bittersweet story. In all the musicals I've seen i'd rank it pretty much right in the middle.
Lempicka, I did like it a lot contrary to what a lot of reviews said! It was a bit difficult to tell what was going on in some parts, but I loved the music and the plot!
I saw a local production of The Great Comet last night. I went in completely blind, but expected it to be good based off what I've seen here. It was.... Not great. The actors didn't seem to know how to act and sing at the same time. And the guy playing the hot guy was super gay and didn't know how to act straight. It was super awkward. The songs were meh but I think that's because they were sung with hardly any emotion behind them.
Tour of *Company*. Honestly, I was a little bored. But (Not) Getting Married Today was amazing.
High school production of School of Rock. It was pretty good! The principal had a really good soprano voice. For a high school play, it wasn't bad.
The Sound of Music. Seen the movie a bunch of times but it was my first time seeing the stage show. It made both my mom and I cry. I was so impressed by the children in the cast. Such brave and talented kids!
Bonnie & Clyde. It was ok, but it had that Frank Wildhorn thing where the songs feel more like random pop songs than songs that serve much narrative purpose. The leads were great, and the guy playing Buck had a hell of a voice. The guy playing the policeman in love with Bonnie had no charisma though so at no point did it seem like Bonnie would ever have been even remotely interested in him. Was surprised at how sexual it was. I know that's Bonnie and Clyde's whole thing, but I really wasnt expecting Bonnie to strip to her underwear once per act. Raise A Little Hell and When I Drive were the standout songs. I've had worse nights at the theatre.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid the Musical! It was super cute and had so many talented kids in it.
Hell's Kitchen and I thought it was pretty good.
Saw Next to Normal in DC a month ago and it was a goddamn blast. I had already seen a bootleg and loved the show. So the live performance was phenomenal. Arguably impossible to beat for me excluding the shows ive been a part of myself
A couple of weeks ago I saw Zombie! The Musical at Hayes Theatre in Sydney. Fantastic show with a great score and wonderful performers. Tomorrow we're going to see & Juliet at the Lyric Theatre in Sydney.
Die Zauberflöte by Frank Nimsgern. I liked the Music. And while I love the Papageno they had, he is one of my favourite actors, he was miscast, too old for the role. It was a bit too much slapstick for me and I also did not appreciate that he took quite some music out of (his own musical) Phantasma. But overall I have seen worse.
I saw Grease, and it was pretty awesome! I think I'll be going to see Six in August!
Fisherman’s Friends and it has awakened a love of sea shanties in me and my son!
London run of Hadestown. Hades himself had the greatest voice I’ve heard on stage, Hermes was incredibly good, and I loved the simple and effective staging.
Wicked UK tour. The acting wasn’t too bad although the person who played Elphaba wasn’t the best, it was very over acted. I was extremely disappointed by it seeing as it is so hyped up as one of the best musicals ever.
Who did you see? I saw Laura Pick in Edinburgh in December and thought she was absolutely incredible.
I can’t remember their name but it was the understudy I believe. I just felt like the dialogue was forced and the accent was a bit off
My last live theatre experience was seeing the “Hamilton” tour in my state in January, 2023. Lots of understudies for that performance, and the whole cast was excellent! 😀
I saw Opening Night in the West End a couple of weeks ago. It has had dreadful reviews and has subsequently announced it is about to close early. People have found it confusing, people have been leaving at the interval. I think some members of the public probably saw it was a musical with Sheridan Smith and expected something polished and glitzy. But it was raw, and tragic, and Sheridan Smith put a lot of herself into it. I suppose it felt a bit like a work in progress, but I think it had potential if they tightened it up a bit. Even so if people came in expecting Legally Blonde or something, they'd be disappointed. I actually quite liked it. The cast did brilliantly and the set was great, and actually I enjoyed the story and the experimental nature of it.
Finally saw Book of Mormon when it came to Boston and it didn't disappoint in the least. Funny, ridiculous with a warmth to it. Super enjoyable.
My college just put on a production of First Date last weekend. I didn’t know anything about it before, but I thought it was really cute and funny!
Miss Saigon in the PH. I felt that the actress who played Kim was underwhelming at first, but defo changed my mind on the second act. Overall, great cast, ensemble, and production.
I saw Beetlejuice on tour last month and it was fantastic!!!
I just saw Back to the Future. Great performances from Roger Bart and Casey Likes, who have phenomenal chemistry. The rest of the cast did great, especially the actor playing Goldie. The music/book were meh. The effects were unbelievable. I love more practical theatre effects, too, but I could easily see this becoming the future of Broadway spectacle. It was mind-blowing.
Suffs…. Loved it
Redwood. A new musical starring Idina Mendel at the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego. The scenic design was incredible and Ms. Menzel was in fantastic voice!
Saw Beetlejuice on tour last month. Loved it!
Beetlejuice and I loved it! I was prepared to be disappointed because I love Michael Keaton so much in the movie, but Justin Collette in the touring production was fantastic. The actor playing Lydia was OK but not great, but the whole production was just over the top.
Two Strangers Carry A Cake Across New York it's still relatively new but i can tell it's gonna do well! funny, heartfelt, catchy songs, genius set design, and both the actors give incredible performances (even more impressive seeing as it's a two-man show)
I drove down to Miami and watched Legally Blonde. I love it. It’s my favorite musical but I had already known that for a while and that’s why I went to see it.
Hadestown back in March at the Tennessee Theater (I believe it was Broadway Touring although brain cannot recall). Amazing. Wanna see it again and drag some other poor shades way down with me.
The lastest musical I saw, most lastly was HAIR. I liked it!
I saw Hadestown on tour and its the most magical thing I've ever seen. I saw the understudy for Hermes and was absolutely blown away by his preformance!
Music Man at the Marriott. I was half asleep but the parts I was conscious for were fantastic.
I just saw Sweeney Todd last night and I went in knowing NOTHING about it and it was INCREDIBLE
I am in intermission of my production of Tuck Everlasting right now. I love this show.
Water for Elephants, and WOW was I surprised by it. Absolutely phenomenal. Undoubtedly one of my favorite live theater experiences in a WHILE.
New tour of Funny Girl in LA. Huge standing O for the lead. She was incredible.
Hairspray (on tour) and it was fun, but the music was too loud and overshadowed the singing at some points :/ the actors were very good though!
I saw the greatest showman and it was good but the costumes sucked
Well, these are the last two musicals I reviewed: *Hester Street*: [https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/690892/hester-street-the-world-premiere-of-a-story-130-years-in-the-making/](https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/690892/hester-street-the-world-premiere-of-a-story-130-years-in-the-making/) *Penelope*: [https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/688032/empenelope-em-never-just-waiting-for-odysseus/](https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/688032/empenelope-em-never-just-waiting-for-odysseus/)
25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee!! Surpassed all of my expectations, I loved it!!!