This is definitely for the "production" files rather than judging the musical on its own. I didn't see the original Nine, though I know well of its legend. And I agree about the excitement and emotion of the material and, I can only imagine, that staging. But "A Call From the Vatican", for example, is one of the songs I'd put in the "not really great" category... serviceable, for sure, and with the Anita Morris performance and the Tune choreography, I'm sure it was incredible. But the song on it's own doesn't do much for me, and didn't do that much for me in the revival despite the inventive staging. I find "The Miller's Son" a MUCH more rousing and climactic song.
I understand also what you mean about "A Weekend in the Country" vs "Be Italian" or "Folies Bergeres" but I often get caught on lyrics like "Be Italian, you rapscallion."
It is a totally different kind of show though, and it's very hard to compare. The mood, the intention, everything is different between the two shows. Scandinavian repression vs. Italian lust. People finding each other vs one man finding himself. So I don't fault ALNM for not having those kinds of big, splashy, rousing production numbers (or the overtly sexy ones) like Nine because they just don't belong in that story. The only reason I compare them in terms of quality is that I can't pick out anything I have issues with or find to be second rate amongst the first-rate-ness of the rest of the show in ALNM, and I can find a couple of things in Nine. So they are still in the same tier of great musicals, but if I'm ranking them on the perfection of their written material, I think ALNM is going to be ranked higher.
But in terms of original productions, you couldn't have found two shows that were served better by all the elements of their original productions. I would offer up some others as well, of course, but if we're talking ALNM and NINE, both seem to have been utterly perfect productions of arguably/close-to perfect musicals.
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