Broadway's Coming Attractions For 2010-11(Dear Readers: To view the most current and up-to-the-minute list, please click here.)When the final curtain came down on the 2010
Tony Awards, so did the curtain on Broadway's 2009-10 Theatrical Season.
Sure, there's still a whole host of shows you can -- and
should -- still see from last season (and before), but it's finally time to think toward the future.
What shows are opening on Broadway during the upcoming year? By my count, there are already 2
1 plays, musicals and special theatrical events ready to hit the Great White Way. There's an unusually high preponderance of openings scheduled for this fall, leaving me to wonder how long Tony's memory will be next June.
While it's entirely possible that more than one of the following plays or musicals that have already been confirmed for the 2010-11 Theatrical Season may ultimately never materialize, here's the early list of what is currently scheduled to open:
July 2010
Harry Connick, Jr. in Concert on Broadway (Neil Simon Theatre)
Harry Connick, Jr. returns to Broadway for his first time since appearing in
The Pajama Game four years ago. This time, it's all Harry, all the time. In concert. On Broadway.
Performances begin July 15 and are only scheduled through July 29, 2010. But this gig has already been extended.
September 2010
Mrs. Warren's Profession (American Airlines Theatre)
Cherry Jones finally returns to Broadway in
Doug Hughes' revival of the enduring
George Bernard Shaw work. The play centers on the lengths one mother goes toward keep her daughter comfortable.
Previews begin September 3, although an opening night has yet to be scheduled. The limited run is slated to conclude on December 5, 2010.
Brief Encounter (Studio 54)
The single
best show I saw all last season is now coming to Broadway.
Kneehigh Theatre's production of
Noël Coward's
Brief Encounter defies any neat description as it seamlessly incorporates both music and a stunning projection design. After seeing this show, I'll defy you to tell me a Tony Award for projection design isn't finally in order.
Previews begin September 10 and it opens September 28. The limited run is currently scheduled through December 5, 2010.
The Pitmen Painters (Samuel J. Friedman Theatre)
Manhattan Theatre Club transfers
Lee Hall's lauded play and its London cast. Helmed by
Max Roberts,
The Pitmen Painters focuses on poor coal miners who become celebrated for their paintings.
Previews begin September 14, with an opening night slated for September 30. The limited run is scheduled through December 12, 2010.
A Life in the Theatre (Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre)
Patrick Stewart and
T. R. Knight star as two stage actors in a power struggle in
Neil Pepe's revival of the
David Mamet play. This marks the work's first time on Broadway.
Previews begin September 21, with opening night set for October 12, 2010. This is slated to be an open-ended run.
La Bête (Music Box Theatre)
David Hyde Pierce,
Mark Rylance and
Joanna Lumley lead the cast in
Matthew Warchus' revival of
David Hirson's contemporary satire about a theatre troupe and the compromises made in the name of art.
Transferring directly from London, previews for this open-ended play begin September 23 and opening is set for October 14, 2010.
Lombardi (Circle in the Square Theatre)
Eric Simonson's new play about iconic
Green Bay Packers coach
Vince Lombardi is directed by
Thomas Kail (
In The Heights).
Dan Lauria stars as the football great with
Judith Light portraying his wife.
Previews for this open-ended run begin September 23, with opening night slated for October 21, 2010.
October 2010
Women On The Verge Of A Nervous Breakdown (Belasco Theatre)
Lincoln Center Theatre presents
David Yazbek and
Jeffrey Lane's new musical adaptation of
Pedro Almodóvar's celebrated
1988 film about an actress coping with life after her lover has left.
Bartlett Sher directs.
Previews for its open-ended run begin on October 2, with opening night set for November 4, 2010.
Driving Miss Daisy Update: No sooner do
I post my story on all the plays and musicals that have been confirmed for Broadway this next season and up pops another new revival.
Vanessa Redgrave and
James Earl Jones will return to the Great White Way this fall in
Alfred Uhry's
Pulitzer Prize-winning play
Driving Miss Daisy.
Slated to being previews at the
John Golden Theatre on October 7,
Driving Miss Daisy will open on October 25. The limited engagement will conclude its run January 29, 2011.
The Scottsboro Boys (Lyceum Theatre)
John Kander and the late
Fred Ebb's "new" musical about the injustices young African-American men face when arrested for crimes against white women in Alabama. The tuner is directed and choreographed by
Susan Stroman. (I'm so excited about this show that I'll be catching its
out of town tryout.)
Previews for this open-ended show begin October 7, 2010 with opening night scheduled for October 31, 2010.
Unchain My Heart: The Ray Charles Musical (
TBD)
A jukebox bio-musical taking on the late, great
Ray Charles. Set in a recording studio, the book is written by
Suzan-Lori Parks.
Brandon Victor Dixon (
The Color Purple) stars as the sightless soulful genius.
UPDATE: Previews
had been scheduled to begin for this open-ended run begin October 8; opening night is slated for November 7.
On July 9, it was announced that the show has been postponed to Spring 2011 at a "Shubert theatre to be announced."
Rain: A Tribute To The Beatles (Neil Simon Theatre)
The Beatles-tribute band Rain brings its concert show to Broadway. Shows like this and Connick's will make you wonder why they don't just bring back the Special Event Tony.
Previews begin October 19 and the show opens October 26, 2010. The limited run is scheduled through January 2, 2011.
A Free Man of Color (Vivian Beaumont Theatre)
George C. Wolfe directs this
John Guare play about a chain of events put into motion by a wealthy Don Juan type in New Orleans, circa 1802.
Previews begin October 21 with opening set for November 18. This
Lincoln Center limited run is scheduled through January 2, 2011.
The Pee-Wee Herman Show (Stephen Sondheim Theatre)
After a celebrated West Coast run of his new adventure with his "
Pee-Wee's Playhouse" cohorts, Pee-Wee Herman (
a/k/a Paul Reubens) is seeking to complete his comeback (and Reubens' career rehabilitation).
Previews begin October 26, and the show opens November 11, 2010. Currently, the very limited run is slated to close December 5, 2010.
November 2010Elf (Al Hirshfeld Theatre) - The holiday film becomes holiday musical this November, with a book by
Bob Martin and
Thomas Meehan and score from
Chad Beguelin and
Matt Sklar (
The Wedding Singer).
Under the direction of
Casey Nicholaw, this limited run is currently scheduled to begin previews on November 2 and open November 10. The musical will then conclude on January 2, 2011.
Spider-Man: Turn Off The Dark (Hilton Theatre)
Given this show's notorious tabloid life to date, its inclusion on this list may seem dubious at best. But
U2 manager Paul McGuinness
was quoted by a Dublin paper just this past Friday saying
Julie Taymor's beleaguered production would still arrive this year.
McGuinness says the musical from Paul David Hewson and David Howell Evans -- better known, respectively, as
Bono and
The Edge -- will open in November, so the production makes my list. Just don't hold your breath.
December 2010
The Importance Of Being Earnest (American Airlines Theatre)
Roundabout Theatre Company will revive
Oscar Wilde's social farce about assumed identities and love. The play will be directed by
Brian Bedford, who is also set to star.
The play is currently slated to open in December.
February 2011Good People (Samuel J. Friedman Theatre)
UPDATE: Daniel Sullivan helms this world premiere work by
David Lindsay-Abaire about a working-class Boston woman (
Frances McDormand) with dreams.
Previews begin February 8, 2011 and the play opens March 3, 2011.
Manhattan Theatre Club's limited run is currently scheduled through May 8, 2011.
Anything Goes (Theatre to be determined)
Sutton Foster stars in this
Kathleen Marshall-helmed revival of
Cole Porter's classic musical. While the venue is yet to be announced,
Anything Goes will be mounted by
Roundabout Theatre Company.
Dates have yet to be announced for previews and opening.
April 2011
War Horse (Vivian Beaumont Theatre)
Lincoln Center brings the highly-anticipated and acclaimed London production of
War Horse to Broadway. The World War I tale of a man and his horse is brought to life through puppetry and music.
Previews are set to begin on March 17, 2011. Open night is scheduled for April 14, 2010.
Love Never Dies (Neil Simon Theatre)
Andrew Lloyd Webber's sequel to
The Phantom Of The Opera transports the action from Paris' Opera House to New York's Coney Island.
I saw the production in London and it needs
a lot of work if it's going to last even a fraction of the 20+ years that Phantom has been around.
Previews are currently slated to begin for this open-ended run in April 2011.
Tomorrow,
I'll discuss some of the other productions that could potentially reach the Great White Way.
So, dear readers, which of these shows has you most excited?
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
In keeping with the new Federal Trade Commission (FTC) regulations that unfairly discriminate against bloggers, who are now required by law to disclose when they have received anything of value they might write about, please note that I have received nothing of value in exchange for this post.Labels: Broadway, First Word On New Show, Musical, Play, Previews, The SOB Preview
Bringing Back BrightonUPDATE - 10.31.2009: Brighton Beach Memoirs will close just one week after opening due to weak box office demand, thus scuttling the planned revival of Broadway Bound. Consider the enormous impact the
first run of
Neil Simon's much beloved semi-autobiographical
Brighton Beach Memoirs had on Broadway by the time it closed on May 11, 1986, at the
46th Street Theatre (now
Richard Rodgers Theatre).
The
Gene Saks-helmed production not only enjoyed a whopping 1,299 performances over a three year-two month period -- pretty remarkable for a straight play -- it also helped launch the career of a young actor named
Matthew Broderick.
Broderick would go on to earn his first Tony Award portraying Eugene Jerome. He'd revisit the role via Simon's second portion of his "Eugene Trilogy,"
Biloxi Blues, which enjoyed a successful concurrent run with
Brighton Beach Memoirs from 1985-86. (Alas,
Jonathan Silverman would play Eugene in
Broadway Bound,
the third play in the cycle that ran for nearly two years starting in 1986.)
Broderick was joined in
Brighton Beach Memoirs by
Elizabeth Franz as his mother Kate,
Peter Michael Goetz as his father Jack and
Željko Ivanek as his brother Stanley, along with
Mandy Ingber,
Jodi Thelen and
Joyce Van Patten. In addition to Broderick's Tony, Zaks would score one for his direction, while Franz and Ivanek would each receive nominations for their turns.
Now, over a quarter century after the show's Broadway debut comes its
hotly anticipated first revival. What makes the revival intriguing is that it's being directed by the super-hot visionary
David Cromer, who breathed incredible new life into
Our Town. Cromer is adding to the intrigue by ultimately playing
Brighton Beach Memoirs in repertory with a revival of
Broadway Bound. (Sorry,
Biloxi Blues fans -- the middle portion of the trilogy is not included.)
Laurie Metcalf and
Dennis Boutsikaris will star in each as Kate and Jack, respectively.
Santino Fontana will tackle Stanley Jerome in both, and
Jessica Hecht will also be in both installments as Blanche.
Noah Robbins is set to make his Broadway debut in
Brighton Beach Memoirs as Eugene, Neil Simon's alter ego. The young actor graduated earlier this year from Washington's Georgetown Day School. (In
Broadway Bound, Theatre World Award winner
Josh Grisetti assumes the role of the older Eugene. More on that portion of the overarching production to come.)
Will
Brighton Beach Memoirs create the same lasting memories as the first? While its only real reported buzz has been relegated to
behind-the-scenes strife, I'm hearing from my trusted insiders who have already seen early previews that it's a wonderfully solid production.
This first of two
Simon Plays opens October 25. I'll offer my SOB Review shortly thereafter.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
Labels: Broadway, David Cromer, Laurie Metcalf, Neil Simon, Play, Revival, The SOB Preview
Finian's Rainbow Revival: Finding The Sweet PotWhen the
Burton Lane-
E.Y. Harburg musical
Finian's Rainbow first arched over the Great White Way in 1947, it was ahead of its time in challenging the deeply-held racial prejudices, not only the Deep South, but throughout American society.
Considering the times, this was one audacious effort.
It was the same year
Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier by becoming a
Brooklyn Dodger. It was just a year before
Senator Strom Thurmond waged a racially-fueled, independent run for the
White House as part of the
States-Rights Democratic Party, winning four states. It was seven years before the
U.S. Supreme Court ruled against segregation in the landmark
Brown vs. Board of Education. It was 18 years before the
Voting Rights Act of 1965 ensured no one would be disenfranchised on the basis of their skin color. And it was 21 years before the dreams of
Martin Luther King, Jr. would be indefinitely on hold when
an assassin's bullet felled him.
With
Finian's Rainbow lampooning racist elected officials, along with its highly memorable score -- including such beloved tunes as "How Are Things in Glocca Morra?" and "Old Devil Moon" -- the musical became a solid hit after opening at
46th Street Theatre (currently
Richard Rodgers Theatre), running for an amazing 725 performances.
Directed by
Bretaigne Windust, the tuner scored Tony Awards for the late, great choreographer
Michael Kidd, for
David Wayne's portrayal of the leprechaun named Og, and also for the show's conductor and musical director
Milton Rosenstock. The production also starred
Albert Sharpe as Finian McLonergan,
Ella Logan as his daughter Sharon, and
Donald Richards as Woody Mahoney.
Now, some 62 years later with, thankfully, a vastly different landscape in which the racial divide has been forever bridged,
Finian's Rainbow is back on Broadway at the
St. James Theatre where it began previews just yesterday. This time, the cast is headed by the brilliant
Jim Norton (Tony-winner for
The Seafarer, 2007-08) in the title role, the gorgeous
Kate Baldwin as Sharon, and the studly
Cheyenne Jackson as Woody. All are reprising the roles they created earlier this year at
New York City Center Encores!
They'll be joined by
Christopher Fitzgerald as Og,
Chuck Cooper,
William Youmans,
Alina Faye,
Brian Reddy,
Guy Davis,
Terri White and
David Schramm, among others, under
Warren Carlyle's direction and choreography. It's been reported that this will be a much more realized production than the concert version audiences saw last March.
Aside from the initial 1947-48 production, New York
City Center quite curiously has figured prominently in each of the subsequent three revivals for
Finian's Rainbow right up through the current one.
The
first revival was a brief 15-show stint in 1955 at City Center in which
Will Mahoney was Tony-nominated for his portrayal of Finian. Tony-winning actress
Helen Gallagher played Sharon alongside a young
Merv Griffin as Woody in his only Broadway credit.
The
next Finian's Rainbow revival enjoyed a one-week engagement at the 46th Street Theatre during the late spring of 1960 after being transferred from City Center. Directed and choreographed by
Herbert Ross, the production starred
Bobby Howes (Finian),
Jeannie Carson (Sharon),
Biff McGuire (Woody) and
Howard Morris (Og). For trivia nuts, you'll delight in knowing that
Anita Alvarez starred in each of the first three productions, portraying Susan in all of them.
After catching the City Center concert version last March,
I noted how I enjoyed the terrific individual performances but lamented that Harburg and
Fred Saidy' s "ridiculously creaky book reads more like a relic." Fortunately, one of Steve On Broadway's
trusted eyes and ears at the initial preview told me, "It's a wonderful production."
Instead of just another sentimental journey, can the
Finian's Rainbow revival find anything akin to that audaciously sweet pot of gold it originally found 62 years ago? Find out when I post my SOB Review shortly after the revival's October 29 opening.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
Labels: Broadway, Cheyenne Jackson, Christopher Fitzgerald, Finian's Rainbow, Jim Norton, Kate Baldwin, Musical, Revival, The SOB Preview, Warren Carlyle
Did Cry-Baby Induce Critical Cries of Joy?First off, let me apologize for being so tardy today in posting this critics' capsule. I'm currently in Paris and enjoyed my day by strolling around this beautiful city, which I'm afraid takes precedence over
this site any day.
And given what
I thought of Cry-Baby during previews, it's not exactly like I was champing at the bit to drop what I was doing to post. You get it,
Cry-Baby critics' capsule or Paris?! Well, my feet finally needed a rest so here goes.
Last evening,
Cry-Baby, the second stage adaptation of a
John Waters, opened at the
Marquis Theatre under the direction of
Mark Brokaw. Boasting a book by
Mark O'Donnell and
Thomas Meehan, the tuner features a score by
Adam Schlesinger and
David Javerbaum and a cast that includes
Harriet Harris,
James Snyder and
Elizabeth Stanley. Critics were split on the merits of the show.
Concluding that "
Cry-Baby will make you smile, and laugh, without patronizing you, or anyone else,"
Elysa Gardner of
USA Today awards three out of four stars: "The rockabilly-inspired numbers that David Javerbaum and Adam Schlesinger have crafted for
Cry-Baby aren't as ambitious or infectious (as
Hairspray), but the show is similarly good-hearted, and has more of a Waters edge. Javerbaum and Schlesinger's lyrics and Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan's book are both more inventively crass and less snarky than those of other contemporary musical winkfests; you get the sense that these writers share Waters' affection for his goofy subjects."
Lamenting that it "just doesn't gel as well" as
Hairspray,
Clive Barnes of
New York Post nevertheless provides a mixed review: "...book writers Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan, who co-wrote the book for
Hairspray, have done a pretty nifty job with material not nearly so malleable. Decidedly less nifty are the songs by David Javerbaum and Fountains of Wayne's Adam Schlesinger. The music comes in two rocky flavors -- cheery and droopy. It's the kind of music that makes you wonder whether you've heard it before, just before you stop caring."
Labeling the show as "tasteless,"
The New York Times' Ben Brantley calls out the blandness of the production, "I meant without flavor: sweet, sour, salty, putrid or otherwise. This show in search of an identity has all the saliva-stirring properties of week-old pre-chewed gum. (Not to be tasteless.)... The songs by Mr. Javerbaum (a producer for 'The Daily Show With
Jon Stewart') and Mr. Schlesinger (of the pop group
Fountains of Wayne) include plenty of rockabilly riffs and soulful wails (for a
Little Richard-like character played by
Chester Gregory II), but they often feel stuck in a groove, repeated until they go dry."
Criticizing it as "benign, kitschy satire,"
Variety's
David Rooney also is less than positive: "There's a lot of talent, sass and sweat onstage, particularly in the dance department, plus a sprinkling of wit in the show's good-natured vulgarity. But somehow, it never quite ignites."
Commencing his review by stating, "Some musicals have high ideals and aspirations. Some even have something profound to say.
Cry-Baby isn't one of them,"
Joe Dziemianowicz of New York's
Daily News offers two out of five stars: "It hits the mark about half the time, whenever the show is dancing. The star of
Cry-Baby is choreographer
Rob Ashford, who has created some of the most inventive and athletic dancing seen on Broadway all season.... Snyder and Stanley are likable leads, but it's two featured actors who stand out -- Chester Gregory II and
Carly Jibson, as soulful sidekick and nasty knocked-up sister of
Cry-Baby. They bring big talent and oddball originality to the stage -- precisely what this baby needed more of."
So there you have it folks, it looks like the show hasn't improved much from when
I saw it a few weeks ago. Critics are hardly excited by this latest entry on the Great White Way, and there's now only
one more original musical left to open before the season is officially over and the Tonys are announced. Doesn't look like
Cry-Baby will be in contention other than for supporting roles and Mr. Ashford's pretty decent choreography.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
Click here for tickets.Related Stories:Cry-Baby Finally Given Birth On Broadway Tonight (April 24, 2008)
Theatre Etiquette, Part Four (Or Drunken City) (April 15, 2008)
Cry-Baby (The SOB Preview) (April 2, 2008)
Looking Forward: The SOB Top Five (January 2, 2008)
John Waters: This Filthy World (The SOB Review) (November 12, 2007)
Giving Birth To Cry-Baby (September 27, 2007)
Cry-Baby To Move Forward Without Schuck (May 6, 2007)
Labels: Broadway, Critics' Capsule, Cry-Baby, Film, Harriet Harris, John Waters, Mark Brokaw, Mark O'Donnell, Musical, The SOB Preview, Thomas Meehan
Cry-Baby (The SOB Preview) - Marquis Theatre, New York, NY
* (out of ****)Those screeching sounds you hear are
Mark O'Donnell and
Thomas Meehan as they literally scrape the bottom of the barrel.
You see, they've already gone beneath the
Grease, which with all due respect to
Mr. Riedel this morning, can no longer be deemed "the worst show in the history of theater and represents an unparalleled assault on Western civilization and its values."
Au contraire, Michael.
Cry-Baby appears to be angling for that dubious honor. Despite its multi-million dollar budget, this new musical quite incredibly comes across as a poor man's
Grease with its tired good girl gone gaga for bad boy premise. Already three weeks into previews with -- surprise, surprise -- another three plus weeks to go, the latest
John Waters-inspired Broadway musical
Cry-Baby is trashy fun.
Without the fun.
How do I put this delicately without sounding like I'm piling on?
Cry-Baby is such a piece of doggy-do that not even
Divine would dare stomach it. In fact, I'd take "
Pink Flamingos The Musical" anyday over this if it were written by Waters himself.
With a cloying score by first-timers
Adam Schlesinger and
David Javerbaum, what little story there is limps along at a snail's pace. By the time we get to the closing tune "Nothing Bad's Ever Gonna Happen Again," it's too little and far too late for any reassurance given what we've already had to endure.
Not even
Harriet Harris can save this one. In
Cry-Baby, her Mrs. Vernon-Williams is merely an extension of other characters we've previously seen her portray. That she and
Chester Gregory II as Dupree manage to upstage leads
James Snyder and
Elizabeth Stanley is not saying much.
If there is a silver lining, it's that first-time musical director
Mark Brokaw is at least benefitting from some fancy footwork from choreographer
Rob Ashford, particularly in the singularly rousing "Jailyard Jubilee" number. Indeed, Ashford seems much more in command than Brokaw. However, Ashford seems to have borrowed the license plate on shoe idea from
Matthew Bourne, who instead used trash can lids in the revival of
My Fair Lady currently touring the United States.
I can't help but wonder what the show would be like if only it had healthier doses of Waters' trademark ribald and subversively clever humor, such as in the opening scene when we first meet our "Squares" (antagonists) and "Drapes (protagonists) as they come together for a fleeting moment for their polio vaccines. Perhaps it would have been more interesting.
If there's any glimmer of hope for
Cry-Baby, it's that Waters himself was in the back of the theatre during my performance, hopefully helping punch up the script if he wasn't letting O'Donnell and Meehan have it first.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
Click here for tickets.Related Stories:Looking Forward: The SOB Top Five (January 2, 2008)
John Waters: This Filthy World (The SOB Review) (November 12, 2007)
Giving Birth To Cry-Baby (September 27, 2007)
Cry-Baby To Move Forward Without Schuck (May 6, 2007)
Labels: Broadway, Cry-Baby, Film, Harriet Harris, John Waters, Mark Brokaw, Mark O'Donnell, Musical, The SOB Preview, Thomas Meehan
Young Frankenstein (The SOB Preview) - The Paramount, Seattle, WA
***1/2 (out of ****)Is
Young Frankenstein any good? That would be "The $450 Question."
Or perhaps more incisively, is it worth $450 per ticket? That, my friends depends entirely upon your point of view.
Personally, I could never bring myself to spend that kind of money on a theatre ticket as
I think I've already made abundantly clear. But if all things are truly relative, I can tell you that I enjoyed this nearly Broadway-ready
Young Frankenstein much,
much more than
Jersey Boys, where the top seats fetch a farfetched $351.50.
Over this past weekend, I flew to Seattle to take in the out-of-town tryout of
Mel Brooks'
Young Frankenstein,
and I can tell you it has monster hit written all over it. Yes, plenty of tinkering remains to be completed (can somebody
please give a hand to sound designer
Jonathan Deans -- the entire first couple tunes were so muffled that I could barely understand what was being sung), and yes, it currently runs about a half hour
too long (vooof!), but overall, Brooks' latest film-cum-stage musical is funny, funny, funny.
And in answer to the original question, yes, it's pretty darned good, too.
Given that I saw the show only days into its first previews, what's remarkable is the nearly excellent shape in which
Young Frankenstein already is for a show that will be further fine-tuned in the weeks ahead.
Credit Brooks and
Thomas Meehan for embracing all of the signature lines and hysterical bits from the
film and running with them. They're not only all here, but the rapt audience clearly anticipates each one, cheering enthusiastically as each is delivered with relish (now I
finally know how all those Monty Python fans felt during
Spamalot).
Yet, Brooks and Meehan expand on the story by offering up a more fully-realized Elizabeth thanks to a wickedly funny
Megan Mullally, and Igor via an absolutely hilarious
Christopher Fitzgerald --
Wicked's original Boq -- in an uproarious breakthrough performance that makes you all but forget
Marty Feldman.
Fortunately, they're not alone. For my first-time
ever,
I finally saw Sutton Foster perform and got to see what the fuss is about; not only can she sing and dance with the best of them, she's a voluptuous laugh riot to boot as Inga. Her "Roll In The Hay" had me rolling in the aisle. As much as I hoped to see
Cloris Leachman recreate the role of Frau Blucher, there's no better substitute than the pricelessly droll
Andrea Martin, who delights with nodding approval from neighing horses; her "He Vas My Boyfriend" underscores her comedic versatility. And while a monster of few words,
Shuler Hensley makes for about the most lovable bogeyman ever -- just ask Mullally, who sings down the house with her risible "Deep Love."
The toughest role certainly falls on former second-stringer and Tony-winner
Roger Bart, who finally graduates to a leading role with plenty of comic pizzazz. While it takes a while for his Dr. Frederick Frankenstein to rise to the heights of
Gene Wilder from the silver screen version, his winning madness and heart ultimately win the audience over.
Despite sprinklings of vampires and werewolves, surprisingly few of the tunes by Mel Brooks capture the lunacy of
The Producers, but as noted above, this
is still a work in progress. Although I still recall the strains of the aforementioned "Deep Love," along with "Together Again For The First Time" when Frederick and Igor forge their bond, if I were to guess which tunes would go away to speed along the narrative, I'd suggest the throwaway "Welcome To Transylvania" or the needless "Please Send Me Someone" by the one-scene Hermit.
Perhaps it's for these reasons that the
real showstopping tune turns out not to be a newly written Brooks piece, but instead,
Irving Berlin's borrowed "Puttin' On The Ritz." Like a
Busby Berkeley extravaganza, this signature tune catapults
Young Frankenstein to the highest heights of hilarity.
Thanks to the unique vision of director/choreographer
Susan Stroman, these Transylvanian hills come alive, not only with the sound of music, but also with enchanting stagecraft.
Robin Wagner has outdone himself with Frankenstein's laboratory alone, but when you add everything from a ocean-going ship to Frankenstein Castle's grand hall, add a dose of
Marc Brickman's enchanting projection designs and throw in
Peter Kaczorowski's brilliant lighting design, suddenly there's more magic than you can shake a beaker at. Then, of course, there's
William Ivey Long's wide-ranging costume design that bridges New York chic with Transylvania geek.
I fully trust that the final product that bows on Broadway will be precision perfect, but this is as abby-normally terrific as you can get this early.
This is Steve On Broadway (SOB).
Click here for Young Frankenstein tickets (Seattle).Click here for Young Frankenstein tickets (Broadway).Related Stories:Will These Eyes Meet? Hoping For Better Than 75% (August 10, 2007)
Is Mel Worth It? (August 4, 2007)
Thanks, Mel! (July 6, 2007)
What Motivates You To See A Broadway Show? (July 5, 2007)
That's Franken$$$$$TEIN! (June 29, 2007)
Cloris To Mel: Put Up Your Dukes! (June 13, 2007)
Pirate Queen Set To Abdicate Hilton Throne (June 6, 2007)
Billion Dollar Broadway Baby? Almost. (May 30, 2007)
Mel Brooks: "It Looks Like The Hilton Theatre" (May 25, 2007)
End Of Plank For Pirate Queen? (May 18, 2007)
It's Official: Mullally Cast In Young Frankenstein (March 9, 2007)
The Hits From Coast To Coast (March 8, 2007)
Whither Goeth Chenoweth? (February 27, 2007)
Producers Out, Young Frankenstein In (February 22, 2007)
That's FrankenSTEEN: Just In Time For Halloween (January 24, 2007)
M-G-M: Movies-Going-Musical (January 3, 2007)
Young Frankenstein Workshop To Feature Monster Casting (October 11, 2006)
Labels: Andrea Martin, Broadway, Film, Megan Mullally, Mel Brooks, Musical, Roger Bart, Seattle, Shuler Hensley, Sutton Foster, The SOB Preview, The SOB Review, Young Frankenstein
