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BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN”

Posted by: jesse21 09:06 am EDT 03/31/14

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If/Then, a new musical by Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey, opened last night on Broadway at the Richard Rodgers Theatre.

Idina Menzel stars and the supporting cast features: James Snyder, LaChanze, Anthony Rapp, Jerry Dixon, Jason Tam and Jenn Colella.

Creative Credits: Music by Tom Kitt; book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey; directed by Michael Greif; choreography by Larry Keigwin; orchestration by Michael Starobin; music direction by Carmel Dean; sets by Mark Wendland; costumes by Emily Rebholz; lighting by Kenneth Posner; sound by Brian Ronan; hair and wig design by David Brian Brown.

The verdicts are in from the press.

There are four favorable reviews for both the show and Idina Menzel in USA Today, the Chicago Tribune, Vulture and Newsday.

The other 13 reviews linked below are negative on the show (the book and score), ranging from mild disapprovals (like AM New York) to pans (like The New York Times). In that Times review, Ben Brantley barely mentions Ms. Menzel or the rest of the cast while describing the musical as “two Lifetime movies spliced together.”

However, in a sea of negative reviews for the material, Idina Menzel does emerge with rave notices for her performance in almost every review, placing her in major contention for a second Tony Award. A typical comment, this one from Joe Dziemianowicz in the New York Daily News: “If Menzel wasn’t around with her big belt and mellow warmth, there would be no reason to visit at all.”





BONUS LINKS:

-- OPENING NIGHT in text and photos by Georgia Hart for the Daily Mail.

-- PHOTOS: opening night curtain call.

-- VIDEO: short montage of production highlights (Time 1:23).





Here then are links to and excerpts from 17 reviews of IF/THEN:


  • Ben Brantley in The New York Times writes: “If/Then” is a portrait of alternative existences, of roads taken or not, of the person a person might have been if she had only done this instead of that. If that sounds confusing, don’t worry. You may occasionally have trouble keeping the show’s twin story lines separate. But you’ll never be in any doubt whatsoever as to what the central theme is. That’s because Tom Kitt (music) and Brian Yorkey (book and lyrics) never let us forget. . . . All the songs are pretty much interchangeable [tending] to percolate along, blithely and wonderingly, at the speed of circular thought. They also put to work every metaphor you’ve heard about the elements of fate, chance and choice that govern our lives. . . . Its conceptual novelty factor aside, “If/Then” more exactly resembles a Lifetime movie — or two Lifetime movies spliced together — the kind in which prominent television actresses, in between crime shows, portray women whose lives are forever altered. Taken separately, neither plot of “If/Then” is terribly compelling or distinctively drawn. Taken together, they feel less like variations on a theme than dogged reiterations of a theme. Yet I suspect this show, which has been doing solid business in previews, will have no trouble finding an audience. Idina Menzel, who brings an anxious intensity to a featherweight part, has an enviable fan base among young female audiences.”


  • Joe Dziemianowicz in the Daily News writes: (*** out of 5 stars) “Idina Menzel deepens this superficial show. A decade since she won a Tony for playing the green witch in “Wicked,” the soulful Menzel is still defying gravity — and lending some when needed. She elevates the whole enterprise from a two-star review to respectable mediocrity. That’s a lucky break for Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey’s platitude- and cliché-clogged work, directed by Michael Greif. Hard to believe that’s the same team whose “Next to Normal,” about a family in crisis, rang with so much resonance. . . . After all the musing, we’re told “Love while you can.” Thanks, Hallmark. As advertised, “If/Then” unfolds at the crossroad of “choice and chance.” Problem is, that intersection is around the corner from banality and been-there-heard-this-before. If Menzel wasn’t around with her big belt and mellow warmth, there would be no reason to visit at all.”


  • Elisabeth Vincentelli in the New York Post writes: (*** out of 4 stars) “New Broadway musical “If/Then” would be DOA without Idina Menzel. The star holds this ambitious but unwieldy show together. Actually, she does more than that: She gathers a bunch of messy parts, and gives them life, emerging triumphant in the process. . . . Director Michael Greif does the best he can to keeps things moving, but the book is overstuffed with extraneous songs and subplots. . . . Menzel handles the personality switches with ease, making Liz and Beth distinct despite being, after all, the same woman. That she commands the show with such authority is all the more remarkable because she’s constantly running up and down Mark Wendland’s stylish bilevel set, putting on her glasses or taking them off. . . . The show’s emotional peak is Menzel blasting “Always Starting Over” alone on an empty stage. Real stars don’t need much more than that.”


  • Linda Winer in Newsday writes: “Idina Menzel doesn't have much vocal variety, but that sound -- soft, medium, loud -- has a lustrous integrity. So does her portrayal of a type of woman seldom seen on Broadway -- the complicated kind who can entertain more than one sense of herself at the same time. There is an endearing awkwardness about Menzel's not-quite-perfect beauty that makes us root for Elizabeth's "she's-gonna-make-it-after-all" determination. . . . Highlights of the large, lovely cast include Anthony Rapp as the maybe-bisexual activist friend, James Snyder as the possibly ideal husband and LaChanze, who, as the live-wire new gay friend, is snappy and stylish and overdue for her own big musical again. Tom Kitt's keyboard-driven music matches Elizabeth's contradictory decisions with back-and-forth rippling. The show gets a little repetitious and could be tightened up, but not enough to jeopardize the conclusion that the most challenging lives start over every day. Bottom Line: smart musical, commanding Menzel."


  • Robert Feldberg in the Bergen Record writes: “The evening's smart-but-unmemorable songs are better in composer tom Kitt's music than in Brian Yorkey's sometimes repetitive lyrics, while Yorkey's book also tends to underline the show's theme excessively. The larger sense you get is of two talented, intelligent men over-thinking and over-plotting an idea that might have been better served in a simpler presentation. What's across-the-board good about the show are the performances. Elizabeth has been written, pleasingly, as a character with flaws. She's self-doubting, demanding, subject to fits of rage. And her mercurial nature is fiercely realized by Idina Menzel, in her best neurotic-New Yorker mode. And, of course, the actress – who might still be known to Oscar-watchers as Adele Dazeem – has a powerhouse voice. . . . "If/Then" has its moments, but it is a letdown after Kitt and Yorkey's electrifying achievement with "Next to Normal." All you can say is that creating a great original musical is very hard and complicated and sometimes things just don't work out.”


  • Mark Kennedy for the Associated Press writes: “The new musical "If/Then" is all about imagining different scenarios, so let's get straight to it: If you love Idina Menzel, then go see it — she tears the rafters off the theater while going through a mid-life crisis. But if you like smooth, tight shows, then find something else to do. . . . This also is a show about New York City and its changing face, a metaphor for Elizabeth's twin rebuilding projects. . . . But if the show is all about New York and cities, then why did it sound so smaltzy, smooth jazzy and sleepy? No gritty guitar or big beats? Not even a little hip-hop for a show that celebrates an urban landscape? . . . Credit goes for attempting to explore parallel lives onstage and the acting is great. But a show with so much potential is marred by poor editing. So, the overall answer is, if you really, really need to see and hear Menzel, then go and watch an actress wonderfully giving it her all. But if you're of two minds, then go see "Frozen" and just listen to her voice.”


  • Elysa Gardner in USA Today writes: (***½ out of 4 stars) “If/Then's” message is an affirming one: that even if life is unpredictable and love "nothing you prepare for," as one song puts it, it's possible, and vital, to find fulfillment "while you can." That point is reinforced in Tom Kitt's score, his most consistent and rousing to date. . . . Brian Yorkey's book and lyrics match the probing compassion of “Normal” without indulging in that show's preciousness. The characters here are more accessible and likable, from James Snyder's rugged but tender Josh to Anthony Rapp's wry Lucas, Elizabeth's longtime friend. LaChanze brings infectious verve to the role of Kate, a lesbian schoolteacher who evolves from a stock comic-buddy type into a compelling individual. As for the leading lady, Idina Menzel seems both grounded and energized by the opportunity to play a grownup who learns that there really are no ever-afters. There is poignance in that discovery, but a sense of liberation as well, and “If/Then” captures both to moving, invigorating effect.”


  • Peter Marks in The Washington Post writes: “Having seen the musical in a more embryonic shape at the National Theatre in late November, I can assure you that Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey, working with director Michael Greif, have only improved the piece for Broadway. They’ve removed a couple of ineffective songs, shifted numbers around and made somewhat clearer the two courses for the midlife adventures of Elizabeth Vaughan, a lovelorn city planner played with comedic gusto by that dishy songbird with the 1,000-megahertz chirp, Idina Menzel. . . . The bottom line: “If/Then” is an enjoyable, beautifully sung, at times deeply touching experience, built on a structure that never completely works.”


  • Chris Jones in the Chicago Tribune writes: "I don't want to be a new kind of married,” howls one of the self-doubting characters in Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey's occasionally precious but thoroughly fascinating and intellectually and musically rich new Broadway musical. With Idina Menzel at its center, “If/Then” is a zesty, restless, savvy, ambitious, twin-plotted original that's not an adaptation of anything but a very compelling and involving idea about a youngish divorcee in the self-actualizing, progressive playground that is today's Brooklyn and Manhattan. . . . The urban ambivalence works very well for a show fascinated by the passage of time and how we all must adapt to the changing face of a great city, but also by the way we're never sure if our life turns on random choices. Do we just marry those we happen to meet and get ahead based on random breaks, or do we float on a cloud of consciousness and magical-realism destiny? The great strength of Menzel's performance in this major new musical of generational shift is that she makes you feel like she doesn't fully buy into either explanation. She's still sad. She still sings.”


  • Matt Windman in AM New York writes: (*** out of 4 stars) “As one of the few new musicals not based on a familiar film or pop song catalog (or anything else for that matter), "If/Then" certainly is a breath of fresh air. And despite nagging issues with its overall concept and divided story lines, it is a smart, romantic piece with a well-crafted soft rock score and great performances all around. . . . While "If/Then" never quite captures the intensity of "Next to Normal," it effectively explores the instability of contemporary urban life. Idina Menzel, who is hardly ever offstage, shows off her powerhouse vocal abilities while also conveying vulnerability. . . .Stylishly directed by Michael Greif on a sleek set containing a massive tilting mirror, "If/Then" may not be a triumph but it is contemplative, heartfelt and fashionable in a sanitized sort of way. And in light of Menzel's growing fan base, it could be a hit.”


  • Thom Geier in Entertainment Weekly writes: (Grade = B-) “The show's exploration of fate and chance seldom rises above Hallmark-card sentimentality — and the characters have no more depth. There are also a lot of them, including Liz/Beth's kindergarten-teacher pal (LaChanze), the teacher’s lover (Jenn Colella), and the doc's gay best friend (Jason Tam); many get songs of their own, which only slows down the action. While composer Tom Kitt's tunes are pleasant enough — Idina Menzel's comedic ''What the F---?'' is a standout — his score pales compared to “Next to Normal,” his memorable 2010 Pulitzer winner with Brian Yorkey. But as even John Travolta must know by now, the real star here is Menzel, and she delivers a powerful bipolar performance that often masks the shallowness of the material.”


  • David Rooney for Reuters and The Hollywood Reporter writes: “The good news is that the erstwhile Adele Dazeem looks and sounds sensational in a vehicle tailored to her talents, leaving no mystery as to why the audience adores her. . . . The disappointing news, however, is that while it's sweet and sincere, this is also a banal show about uninteresting people that strings together weary platitudes in place of a plot. . . . This musical about fate, choice, possibility and divergent paths asks how a split-second, random decision can reshape the course of a life. And it asks that question again and again and again, with the blunt insistency of a mallet. . . . The creative team and committed actors all appear to be laboring under the misapprehension that there's genuine profundity here. However, there's little that couldn't be found on an inspirational greeting card. . . . When [Idina Menzel] unleashes that industrial-strength lung power as Elizabeth takes the plunge with Josh [James Snyder] in "Here I Go," or in her closing number, "Always Starting Over," her admirers ("Fanzels," if we absolutely must call them that) get what they came for. Too bad she's not in a show worthy of her talents. The Bottom Line: Maybe/Not.”


  • David Cote in Time Out New York writes: (*** out of 5 stars) “The “Wicked” power belter—inviting and untouchable—is what every little girl and boy glued to “Glee” wants to be when they grow up, and even if she only gigs on the Great White Way every 6.3 years (on average), she’s still the multiplatform avatar of the Broadway star. . . , Menzel imbues her character with maximum pluck and vulnerabilty. But for all the charisma of the lead and ensemble, Tom Kitt’s score blurs into similar-sounding midtempo pop ballads. Menzel carries the show but can’t force us to care about Liz/Beth’s average life choices. People are just too darn nice in “If/Then’s” world. We need more bitchery and satire, more injustice for our hero to fight against, to inspire an anthem as thrilling (if as slick) as “Let It Go.” Otherwise, we get a Choose Your Own Adventure that’s not really venturesome.”


  • Jesse Green in New York Magazine (Vulture) writes: “Every single thing that happens in “If/Then” is new. And perhaps it would have been better if the authors had found a way to begin untangling the plot instead of convoluting it further as Act Two proceeds. But these are quibbles, ungrateful ones at that. We keep clamoring for smart musicals that don’t just rehash some well-known property or lard it with songs we heard 30 years ago. At the same time we want stories that speak to something we feel now, whose developments we don’t anticipate ten or 120 minutes ahead of their arrival, or indeed before we enter the theater. “If/Then” surely answers all those needs. You absolutely never know what is going to happen, right up to the last, surprisingly moving beat. You appreciate its addressing the central dilemma of career vs. family in a very direct way and then, quietly but completely, undermining it in the end. That it does all this while also looking as beautiful, and moving as smoothly, as any modern show could, with superior performances from top to bottom from a gorgeously multi-everything cast, are just some of the signs that the director Michael Greif is offering his finest work to date."
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  • Dave Quinn for NBC 4 New York writes: “Audiences looking for their Idina Menzel-fix in “If/Then” won’t be disappointed; she spends almost all of the two and a half-hour show onstage. But the show’s muddled plot might leave you wondering what the new musical, from the creators of “Next to Normal,” is trying to say. . . . Brian Yorkey’s ambitious-but-complicated book could use some major streamlining (especially one out-of-nowhere plane crash). His lyrics often read like they’re pulled from chapters in a self-help book, and his need to run through plot prevents his characters from having moments of true discovery and growth. . . . Menzel’s also never sounded better. The songs of “If/Then” perfectly fit her voice, and the sweeping melodies and rock tones of Tom Kitt’s score bring out levels of Menzel’s earthy tone you won’t quite soon forget. When Menzel sings, all problems with the book simply disappear. She’s why you’re there, and it’s hard to imagine how the show would survive without her.”


  • Robert Hofler for The Wrap writes: “If/Then” keeps its heroine's paths spinning on two parallel horizontal planes, an effect beautifully reinforced by Larry Keigwin's choreography and Michael Greif's fluid direction. Not every song is a keeper. Sorry, same-sex couples: Your ditty-like duets in act two stop the show and not in a good way. Considering the enormous musical contributions that gay artists have made to the musical theater over the years, there should be hundreds of LGBT characters by now, but unfortunately, “If/Then” just isn't the show to make up for past omissions. For a musical starring Idina Menzel, Tom Kitt's music is surprisingly low-keyed, restrained. Yet, here and there he gives the people that dote on “Defying Gravity” and “Let It Go” what they want. Those fans can rest assured that she does not disappoint. Menzel attacking a high note has all the high-voltage charm of a jackhammer going after reinforced concrete.”


  • Marilyn Stasio in Variety writes: “In her belated return to Broadway after “Wicked,” powerhouse belter Idina Menzel is sorely misused in “If/Then.”  ”Next to Normal” writing team Brian Yorkey (who bears responsibility for the pretentious book and lyrics) and Tom Kitt (who composed the flaccid music) designed this concept musical as the existential dilemma of a woman weighing her choices between living two equally boring lives.   This smaller-than-life show can’t extinguish Menzel’s larger-than-life persona, but it certainly diminishes her Amazonian strengths as a performer. . . . James Snyder (“Cry-Baby”) has a rather better time of it as sweet and loving Josh, the Army doctor who becomes easygoing Liz’s husband in Life Story #1 — or possibly Life Story #2.  For his good behavior, the likable thesp gets to sing “Hey, Kid,” a song to his newborn son that’s genuinely moving. With her tear-the-house-down voice and commanding personality, Menzel has no trouble putting over her big power ballads.  She absolutely soars in “Always Starting Over,” the eleven o’clock number that closes this long show.”






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    reply to this message |
    re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN”

    Posted by: AnObserver 10:40 am EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN” - jesse21 09:06 am EDT 03/31/14

    All that non-distinctive screeching. A failed, recent appearance on the Oscars. And I hated Next To Normal.

    Reading the premise of this If/Then it sounds like another poor attempt at existentialism, like that Stroman thing at Lincoln Center a few years ago. I think it was called Happiness.

    Yes, good that people aren't relying on film libraries. But I will skip.


    reply to this message |
    re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN”

    Posted by: carolinaguy 01:19 pm EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN” - AnObserver 10:40 am EDT 03/31/14

    So if it somehow manages to conjure up a Best Musical nomination, they'll have to have Idina belt out "Always Starting Over" on the Tonys. That will sell it through the summer. Is her initial contract for a year; anyone know?

    In DC, I thought it was distressingly somewhat less than the sum of its parts and it doesn't seem much as changed.


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN”

    Posted by: RonAnnArbor 06:08 pm EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN” - carolinaguy 01:19 pm EDT 03/31/14

    There isn't a chance in the world of the show getting nominated for Best Musical....

    Idina yes...show no.


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN”

    Posted by: WaymanWong 12:24 am EDT 04/01/14
    In reply to: re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN” - RonAnnArbor 06:08 pm EDT 03/31/14

    You never know. It depends on the tastes of the nominators. I imagine we can all name shows that we didn't think could get a Best Musical nomination but did. I sure didn't predict ''Leap of Faith'' would get one (and it was its only nomination).

    It also will depend on whether the Tony nominators choose to nominate FOUR or FIVE shows. Who can say what'll squeeze in?


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN”

    Posted by: ryhog 01:52 am EDT 04/01/14
    In reply to: re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN” - WaymanWong 12:24 am EDT 04/01/14

    also worth bearing in mind is that it is not like Congress where choices are debated and deals are made. It is a secret vote, counted by accountants, so weird things can end up securing a slot, and depending on the number of potential nominees, it may not take a lot of votes.


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN”

    Posted by: Bwayguy 09:38 am EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN” - jesse21 09:06 am EDT 03/31/14

    Pretty incredible range of reviews - NY Times vs Vulture. I get the sense that critics are giving it an extra star simply because it's an "original" musical, and want to reward them for it.


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN”

    Posted by: kidmanboy 10:28 am EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN” - Bwayguy 09:38 am EDT 03/31/14

    Are they being extra kind, or is it simply more enjoyable to sit through something unique of which you have no preconceptions and no familiarity. Isn't it easier to get lost in a story that you haven't heard before? I think that's why some musicals based on well-known commodities, don't do well (Rocky, Legally Blonde, etc.). While things loosely based on well-known commodities or that have a recognizable name but don't have a plot familiar to everyone, seem to sell more tickets (Wicked is one terrific example).


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN”

    Posted by: Michael_Portantiere 10:46 am EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN” - kidmanboy 10:28 am EDT 03/31/14

    "Is it simply more enjoyable to sit through something unique of which you have no preconceptions and no familiarity? Isn't it easier to get lost in a story that you haven't heard before?"

    I would say yes. But the theory is that, at current Broadway prices, fewer people are willing to take the chance on an unknown commodity.


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN”

    Posted by: Bwayguy 10:57 am EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN” - Michael_Portantiere 10:46 am EDT 03/31/14

    Everyone is hypocritical about this topic of "original musicals". I didn't hear anyone complaining about Once, The Producers or Hairspray for example. Quality is quality no matter what the source.


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN”

    Posted by: BestFriend 05:14 pm EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN” - Bwayguy 10:57 am EDT 03/31/14

    I wouldn't necessarily accuse everyone of hypocrisy. Those were all based on a certain kind of film - quirky indie or cult following films, rather than mainstream commercial Hollywood blockbusters. (Kinky Boots is another indie example.)


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN”

    Posted by: kidmanboy 01:07 pm EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN” - Bwayguy 10:57 am EDT 03/31/14

    I think Once, The Producers, and Hairspray differ from Rocky or Bridges of Madison County or Legal Blonde in the sense that I doubt that many of the people that saw those musicals had actually seen the source material. And I am not talking of quality, but of marketability and word-of-mouth.


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN”

    Posted by: enoch10 12:47 pm EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN” - Bwayguy 10:57 am EDT 03/31/14

    i think much of the current distaste for musicals from movies has less to do with quality and more to do with quantity. we're drowning in the them.

    quality does factor in. you certainly hear less about it when the approach is as successful as, say, ONCE was.


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN”

    Posted by: ryhog 01:08 pm EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN” - enoch10 12:47 pm EDT 03/31/14

    I think if we analyzed what it is that people are actually saying, it is really about a distaste for banal exploitation regardless of source. If a film is imaginatively and creatively utilized as the foundation for a play, I don't think we hear objections. Likewise, if a musical exploits something that has nothing to do with any film, but it is exploiting something in a banal way, we are going to complain about it. Conversely, if a musical is written on a completely blank slate, but tells a banal story with banal songs, we are not going to praise it. So we end up pretty much where we started: we like what we find good, we dislike what we find bad.


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN”

    Posted by: Michael_Portantiere 11:07 am EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN” - Bwayguy 10:57 am EDT 03/31/14

    I wouldn't say yhat "everyone is hypocritical" on this topic; obviously, it depends on the specific show.

    As wonderful as it can be to see an entirely new show with an unfamiliar story, I'm sure we'd all rather sit through a great musical based on familiar material than a bad one that's completely original.


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    I think ....

    Posted by: jdm 10:20 am EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: re: BROADWAY REVIEW ROUND-UP: 17 links and excerpts for “IF/THEN” - Bwayguy 09:38 am EDT 03/31/14

    that once Idina Menzel leaves, it will tank, based on these kinds of reviews. I would love to be a fly on the wall when the producers start to negotiate a new salary when her current contract is up! :-)

    Jim


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    Sounds like another SONG AND DANCE....

    Posted by: Delvino 11:35 am EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: I think .... - jdm 10:20 am EDT 03/31/14

    No, not in content. (Though it's not as far removed as one might imagine...) But when the Lloyd webber show opened, it was basically must-see because of Bernadette Peters, the show that marked her "arrival" and won her a Tony. No one really thought it was very good. It went on with Betty Buckley, but not as a hit, and then Melissa Manchester toured.

    My guess is, only a hunch: a search for a new star will commence almost immediately. Any 40ish top 40 singer with a big voice will be wooed. It's a vehicle for a pop, rangy voiced singer, and that might give it legs, if big enough stars can be found, wooed and promoted.

    Just a thought. SONG AND DANCE isn't done much, is it? Other than in the UK. It did have one big hit, "Unexpected Song," and several pleasant ALW melodies.


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    (And yes, I know Peters was a star before...)

    Posted by: Delvino 12:17 pm EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: Sounds like another SONG AND DANCE.... - Delvino 11:35 am EDT 03/31/14

    Bernadette Peters was a Broadway star, but had appeared in shows that survived her absence before. SONG AND DANCE came along as the show that might finally give her a Tony and that name-above-the-title status. It did that for her, though yes, she was already reason to see many shows prior.

    It does seem somewhat similar to Menzel's position now. If it's not a perfect parallel, it's in the ballpark.


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    re: (And yes, I know Peters was a star before...)

    Posted by: tpdc 03:56 pm EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: (And yes, I know Peters was a star before...) - Delvino 12:17 pm EDT 03/31/14

    Peters was above the title in Mack & Mabel and Sunday in the Park.

    Tell Me on a Sunday is still performed. I saw two productions of it after Peters, including a production at the Kennedy Center starring Alice Ripley. And didn't Marti Webb just do it again in London?


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    re: (And yes, I know Peters was a star before...)

    Posted by: Delvino 08:43 pm EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: re: (And yes, I know Peters was a star before...) - tpdc 03:56 pm EDT 03/31/14

    Uh, her billing was not my point (she hardly kept MACK AND MABEL going, and SUNDAY went on long after she left, since we're quiblling). I was well aware of her placement over the title(s), and saw both of those shows. The issue here is star power, entirely independent of vehicle. I would argue that Peters first demonstrated that quality -- to sell tickets despite the reception afforded the material -- in SONG AND DANCE, a show critics were indifferent to (like IF/THEN). That's why the comparison sprang to mine. I believe the ages of the leading ladies/stars even match up. Peters would've been Menzel's age, approximately, when she triumphed in S&d and won her first Tony.


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    I know what you mean...

    Posted by: garyd 12:39 pm EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: (And yes, I know Peters was a star before...) - Delvino 12:17 pm EDT 03/31/14

    I had Pandora (or one of those online music things) on last night and Peters came on singing 'Unexpected Song" and I had similar thoughts to those you posted. It is certainly in the ballpark. The reviews are even similar. As a matter of fact the whole "search for love an meaning in life" theme runs through both pieces. I guess it will be interesting to see if Ms. Menzel can sell close to 500 performances.


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    re: I think ....

    Posted by: hitbycab 10:29 am EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: I think .... - jdm 10:20 am EDT 03/31/14

    What does John Travolta think?


    reply to this message | reply to first message
    re: I think ....

    Posted by: Ann 10:24 am EDT 03/31/14
    In reply to: I think .... - jdm 10:20 am EDT 03/31/14

    She may not leave for a very long time. However, since it will probably not spawn thousands upon thousands of new Idina fans as Wicked did (this is no slight to her), I wonder how far out her fandom will carry the show. The will go, but will they go over and over?


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