I did enjoy it, primarily because the supporting cast was great, especially Orlando Jones (the Wiz), Josh Henry (Tin Man), James Monroe Iglehart (Lion), and LaChanze (Aunt Em/Glinda). As others have said below, Ashanti was just OK -- her singing was fine, but she was not very strong in the book scenes. As you might expect, Iglehart was very funny and stole all his big scenes. LaChanze really knocked her numbers out of the park at the show's beginning and end.
The scenic design and costumes were colorful and very impressive, quite different from what I had seen in the 90's tour with Stephanie Mills and Andre De Shields. I also recall that the choreography with guys playing the yellow brick road was quite inventive. Overall the production was a lot of fun, but it really is a very thin show and there is no way IMO it would have gone over on Broadway (which is what was rumored pre-opening). |
