Beautiful is a thoroughly enjoyable, totally mediocre show

[Jarethan]

A few weeks ado, my wife and I had a NYC week where we caught up on a lot of shows. Of all the trips we have made, this was the most successful. We thoroughly enjoyed everything we saw. I enjoyed 'Gentleman's Guide' the most...she totally loved 'bullets' and will go to the mat defending why she loved it, and hopes it is around long enough to see it again on our next trip.

We both had the same reaction to Beautiful...we enjoyed it immensely, and thought it was really mediocre. Since it seems to be gaining momentum for Best Musical, I am curious what other people think. As entertaining as it is, is it REALLY best musical material?

Also, to reference Pippins design and staging is a little overstated. Beautiful's staging is very unoriginal, the sets are likewise, except when they steal from Dreamgirls. What makes it so enjoyable are three things...the performers, the songs, and the personality that is being portrayed. She is just someone you want to root for and that comes through loud and clear.

[qolbinau]

Given that the criteria for winning or being nominated for "Best Musical" seems to be different than what I would personally judge shows on (e.g., I think Bridges should have been nominated, Matilda should have won, The Scottsboro Boys should have won, Next to Normal should have won, Light in the Piazza should have won etc.), it probably is "Best Musical" material. "Best Musical" material these days seems to mean financially successful, cater to a wide audience and not risk-taking.

[Jeffrey Karasarides]

"Given that the criteria for winning or being nominated for "Best Musical" seems to be different than what I would personally judge shows on (e.g., I think Bridges should have been nominated, Matilda should have won, The Scottsboro Boys should have won, Next to Normal should have won, Light in the Piazza should have won etc.), it probably is "Best Musical" material. "Best Musical" material these days seems to mean financially successful, cater to a wide audience and not risk-taking."

Best Musical isn't given to the best written show, it's given to the best overall production! The best written show is at least awarded Best Book and/or Best Score.

I did hear that part of the reason why Matilda didn't win last year might have been because a lot of Broadway producers contacted the Royal Shakespeare Company with tremendous interest in bringing it to America before the Dodgers were selected from out of nowhere, and the producers who really wanted to produce it felt screwed!

@7:22 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxFBR2ZwG-I

[qolbinau]

Which sounds like a pretty awful criteria to judge a musical on. I almost hope it isn't true because it makes it hard to take the awards process very seriously.

[ARTc3]

Or, perhaps, Matilda, just wasn't deemed "better" than, Kinky Boots. I for one thought Matilda a "thoroughly enjoyable, totally mediocre show".

[BobNC]

I think Beautiful is definitely going to win. It's the show with the best word-of-mouth: audiences LOVE it. Billy Joel once said NYC should build a statue of Ms. King. I think awarding this show the Tony will be not only in recognition of the show's merits, but, also the girl from Brooklyn on which the show is based.

[madbrian]

Perhaps history is the ultimate arbiter of what was best in a given season, but the Tonys are much more about the moment. They're awarded by a group of individuals living in the moment, subject to things going on around them in NYC, the region, the country, and the world. It's judging art, which is always imperfect. Plus, there are no clear-cut criteria for the awards. It's not a clinical, classroom decision made by a bunch of drama teachers. It's about people being moved by what they experienced in the theater.

[BrerBear]

I think Beautiful is definitely going to win. It's the show with the best word-of-mouth: audiences LOVE it. Billy Joel once said NYC should build a statue of Ms. King. I think awarding this show the Tony will be not only in recognition of the show's merits, but, also the girl from Brooklyn on which the show is based.

It is precisely this idea of awarding a show on aspects other than its merits that makes some of us dismiss the award.

[South Fl Marc]

I enjoyed Beautiful. It was enjoyable.

I also think Jessie Mueller should win for Best Actress.

But Gentlemens Guide is by far the better musical and desrves the Best Musical Award.

Unfortunately the "Best Musical" Award is often not given to the best musical.

[LizzieCurry]

We both had the same reaction to Beautiful...we enjoyed it immensely, and thought it was really mediocre. Since it seems to be gaining momentum for Best Musical, I am curious what other people think. As entertaining as it is, is it REALLY best musical material?

I've seen three incarnations of Beautiful: San Francisco early previews, first preview on Broadway and the current version on Broadway. It's been throughly enjoyable/a delight/so much fun every time, but upon dissecting it, no, it's not that good. But I haven't seen Gentleman's Guide, so I don't think I have a fair opinion as to which is more deserving.

[Someone in a Tree2]

I've seen Gentlemen's Guide. Enjoyed it immensely and found it really mediocre.
I'd say the Tony voters are choosing between a whole slate of mediocre choices.

(The one exceptional musical of the season closed 2 weeks ago as far as I'm concerned.)

[Kad]

I had a better time at Beautiful than the majority of new musicals this season. It's not a well-written show. But it is an extremely well-performed, staged, and designed show.

And as we see with productions like Pippin, those things can overcome a show's shortcomings on the page.

[Jarethan]

Mediocre or light. To me, it was incredibly clever with imaginative staging, which would preclude mediocre, even if it was not my cup of tea. I was disappointed by Billy Elliott, but I would never call it mediocre. Beautiful was mediocre because it was so by the numbers, sort of a musical counterpart to an enjoyable sitcom. I involuntarily cringed when the person called the baby sitter little Eva, not Eva, just before she burst into song. I enjoyed the number but felt it went on too long for something that was just an illustration of what she wrote.

I really did enjoy it, just as I really enjoyed Mamma Mia, which no one ever thought had a chance at musical, because it was a thoroughly enjoyable, mediocre musical

[Wilmingtom]

Gentleman's Guide is by far the more accomplished, ambitious musical, but Beautiful is the more audience-friendly, touring-friendly title. And aside from personal alliances and tastes, the awards are about business. And it's a great excuse for a big party and the best TV commercial for Broadway of the year.

[HenryTDobson]

If Beautiful does indeed win Best Musical, the only other award it seems competitive is for Jessie Mueller. When was the last time that the winner of Best Musical won so little other awards?

...an afterthought tells me that it's likewise for Gentleman's Guide. The only award that seems a guarantee for GG is Best Book. It's an interesting year, to say the least.

[Jeffrey Karasarides]

"If Beautiful does indeed win Best Musical, the only other award it seems competitive is for Jessie Mueller. When was the last time that the winner of Best Musical won so little other awards?"

I believe that would be Memphis winning Best Musical as well as three other awards back in 2010 (Best Book, Score, and Orchestrations).

Though who knows, maybe Beautiful could possibly also win Best Orchestrations and/or Sound Design (and maybe in a tie).

[quizking101]

I would actually say SPAMALOT has the least in recent time (3 - Musical, Supporting Actress, and one other)

[Jeffrey Karasarides]

^Best Director for Mike Nichols!

[Mr. Nowack]

The thing I always think about is that wouldn't a show like this have a pretty good chance of touring whether it won Best Musical or not? A show like GENTLEMAN's GUIDE might not be as likely to tour without the Best Musical label. That's what I usually think about, because I don't live near NYC and often can often only see shows through their tours.

[Mr Roxy]

Beautiful is sure fooling a hell of a lot of people into thinking it is a great show . It will probably fool the tony voters as well.

[Jarethan]

Do you think it is a great show?

[BobNC]

No, I don't think Beautiful is a great show, but, I think it's better than any other musical this season. It's also , by far, the most entertaining of the lot.

[CoreyRyan3]

After a little research, I found that only 1 musical since 1970 has won Best Musical without a nomination for Best Direction, which Beautiful didn't get nominated for. That musical was Titanic.

That's a weird statistic and it'll be interesting to see if Beautiful or Gent's Guide take it.

[Sauja]

I enjoyed Beautiful. And I enjoyed Gents. Neither, to me, is a GREAT show. Of the nominees, the only one I think is worthy of a win is After Midnight. I also think it has the least chance.

Of the two really in the running, I enjoyed Beautiful more but consider Gentleman's Guide more of an achievement.

After Midnight is just a revue, but it's an exceptional one.

I didn't like Aladdin at all. And I'm still sad Ricky didn't make it in.

Regardless, I think Gentleman's Guide takes it. It's the little musical that could, it's thoroughly likeable, and with the Tony win, it would be a marketable, cheap show to tour.

[Jarethan]

So it did not get nominated for director (and should not have) and the book is really lame...thank God for the songs, the performers, and the basic story

[dramamama611]

Just saw this last night. I was in love for the begining of Act I, I was liking it by intermission, and Act II -- I was bored to tears.

The structure got incredibly redundant, and Kings LIFE isn't that interesting. Yes, she had to struggle with a husband with issues, but the rest of her life was pretty easy. I do really like her music, but seeing "pretend" groups perform lost its appeal. The book was atrocious.

I'm not even sure I agree that Mueller should get the Tony Award, she was good, but I just can't get over the other weaknesses of the show.

I think I'll be pretty disappointed if this wins over Gentleman's Guide, which, while not perfect, was a far superior show.


My big question: how is this a musical but Lady Day is not? Seems like different rules for different shows. (Granted, I am asking the question based on what I've heard of Lady Day here.)