I was in London for work and I got to see the first preview. I had loved it at NYTW but I hated it this time. Amber Gray is still the best actress in the world for me (even after that awful Chita Rivera-like number at the top of Act II) but the musical is a mess. Bloated, a very miscast hero, endless and pointless choreography. Someone on a British board wrote that Noblezada always looks like she just woke up and still has not had coffee. And yes, that stage was one ugly revolving-revolting set but Orpheus' high notes will forever etched in my brain and not in a good way.
And, worse of all, it was my husband's favorite musical so I will be seeing a third time.
Sometimes off-Broadway is fine for some works, high notes might work on a very small space and quirky staging is charming but, in this case, something went seriously wrong with the transfer. Everything that had worked so wonderful for Comet in all of its incarnations (big fan here) failed to materialize here.
Not a good day, the racist lady from Miss. won....and I am in a very bad mood. But Hadestown at the NT was not the charming, beautiful musical that it was downtown. |
