Kevin’s Broadway Musical Reviews – Janurary 2009

Since more than a dozen shows have left the Great White Way this January, one would think Broadway’s in a lull, just waiting for the spring thaw when new shows come to town.

Believe it or not, the streets of Manhattan are alive with the sound of music!

In the Heights
First of all, as I’ve mentioned in previous blogs, “In the Heights” really is the #1 show to see. It’s still fresh, exciting and as vibrant as it was when it first opened. “In the Heights” is truly the mash-up musical of our time, mixing traditional Broadway ballads and choreography with hip hop beats and raps.

The show is about to approach its one year anniversary on Broadway (even though it’s been around in workshops and off-Broadway since 2002) and many of the same stars are still with the show. The main star and creator, Lin-Manuel Miranda,
still amazes after all of this time, but he is leaving in February, so now is the time to see him and the show. I’m sure his replacement will bring his own freshness to this show, but still catch Lin-Manuel while you can.

“In the Heights” also has a lottery for every performance for front row tickets for $26.50. You need to show up at the theater 2 1/2 hours before the show and the drawing is held 2 hours before the show (cash only).

Shrek the Musical
If you’ve got two days in Manhattan, “Shrek the Musical” proved to be more fun than I even imagined. I am not a fan of the movie but went to see the live musical version because of the dream cast of Brian D’arcy James, Sutton Foster, Christopher Sieber and Daniel Breaker.

This cast more than delivers! James is in fine voice in the title role even though I did miss his personal charisma behind that green face. Foster continues to build on her great resume of theater roles as Fiona and Breaker makes you forget Eddie Murphy as the Donkey.

Sieber practically steals the show as Lord Farquaad, playing the entire role on his knees to bring himself to the character’s diminutive height. Other actors better take notice of Sieber because no matter the size the role, he usually makes any show his.

“Shrek” also has plenty of underlining double entendres that should appeal to adults in a seemingly kids show. Homage is paid to other Broadway shows in such a subtle way that they might sneak by even the more sophisticated theatergoer. Some of the adult and even gay overtures are easily noticeable, from the song “Freak Flag” to the tranny Big Bad Wolf. And since this is a hot ticket, you won’t always find them at the half-priced booth. If you pay full price, I will say the Broadway Theatre has the best box seats.

For discount tickets, you can try the show’s lottery. Sign up on the 3rd Floor of M&M World on the corner of 48th and Broadway each performance day for your chance to win $26.50 (plus fees).

The Marvelous Wonderettes
Mondays in New York usually offer few options as most shows are closed. But off-Broadway there’s a very cute, more concert style show “The Marvelous Wonderettes,” a tale of a high school singing quartet who bring their in-fighting to the stage for all to see while they sing popular 1950s and 1960s songs.

There’s a really cute bit in which the audience members have to vote for Prom Queen. Of course, our four would-be friends are all on the ballot and the back-stabbing takes front stage as the winner is announced. All four leads are wonderful and excel in different ways – Farah Alvin seems to have the stronger voice, Bets Malone has more a comical flare, Victoria Matlock is better at improv and Beth Malone is the queen of slapstick. And for an old-fashioned show, they have a great website with downloads, fun facts and links to their facebook and myspace pages – so please check out the
extremely fun website at marvelouswonderettes.com.

The American Plan
If musicals aren’t your thing, Richard Greenberg’s “The American Plan” is a well-layered tale of an over-bearing German mother and her over-privileged daughter, coming to emotional blows in their Catskills estate, while meeting a couple of potential ne’er-do-well. For the most part, the cast of five all bring their A game, even though Mercedes Ruehl’s German accent comes and goes.

Greenberg, writer of Tony winning “Take Me Out,” continues to amaze with his honest, organic dialog and the show’s sexy little plot twist. “The American Plan” is part of Manhattan Theater Club and you can actually get some good price on tickets through their website if you buy a passport for the season. Check it out at: mtc-nyc.org.

If you really have to see the show, you should definitely buy the tickets before you come to New York at full price and get the perfect seats you want. For discount tickets, besides the TKTS booths and different shows lotteries in New York, I think a good way to get Broadway show tickets is at www.theatermania.com. And while it’s not great for New York City, www.goldstar.com offers discounts in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Washington DC, Boston, San Diego and Chicago.

And with all of the money you’re saving on discount tickets, you might also try “Avenue Q,” “August: Osage County” and “Alter Boyz.” These are must see shows that right now are incredibly cheap to see rivaling the price of a movie ticket.

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