I voted for "The Performers", one of the most pointless comedies I've ever seen. The audience was even more vile. My second choice on the list would be "Jekyll & Hyde" which I call "Heckle & Jekyll & Hide". I enjoyed so many of these flops for different reasons. No love lost for me for Kathy Lee Gifford, but I had sympathy for Carolee Carmello for "Scandalous" and was thrilled she got nominated. "Tuck Everlasting" isn't lis
With her back to the camera, Meryl does remind me of Beth. Like many others, I would have loved to have seen Beth reprise her role, but I can understand why they went with a movie star. It's difficult to say whom I would have gone with had the producers done what they did back in the 1950's with the movie version of "The Pajama Game" and have one of the Broadway leads repeat their role. (Janis Paige was a bigger movie name than John Raitt, but they couldn't get Sinatra,
People aren't just buying food at the snack bar. They are sneaking it in. I went to see "Greater Clements" at the Mitzi Newhouse where they literally checked your bags very thoroughly, and somehow, a young female got a paper bag of Fried Chicken through. In the second of the very long three acts, she pulled it out, making the smell obvious throughout the theater, and then crunched down on the coating not too discretely. I had dealt with the twizzler plastic bag cruncher behind m
Just a few I can think of off hand: "Rags", "I Had a Ball", "Bajour", "Dear World", "Mack & Mabel" (all listed in "Not Since Carrie", and a few since: "Steel Pier", "Dance of the Vampires" (a major guilty pleasure....), "Tuck Everlasting", "Never Gonna Dance", and even though it managed over 300 performances (bu
I decided to skip this in hopes that it ends up in a smaller Off Broadway theater, perhaps New World Stages, although I will not hold my breath. It came down to deciding between this and "Evita" at City Center, and I chose the later, even though I've seen two other productions of "Evita". I saw "A Christmas Story" at MSG six years ago and decided I would never venture there again unless it was closer than where I sat. Fortunately, I had seen "A Christmas
I've been reading this thread on and off for years, and having seen my share of bad behavior at the theater over the years, decided after an experience this past Friday to finally post one I had to deal with sitting right next to me, and earlier in the performance of "Greater Clements". The lengthy show is three acts with two 10 minute intermissions, and the third act seems endless. A middle aged man behind me had licorice in a very thick plastic bag which he kept rattling all t
I didn't see the original production on Broadway. I saw it at the Shubert Theater in L.A. in 1984, and Carole Cooke from the original cast was playing Maggie, along with Iggie Wolfington whom I believe had also been in the original Broadway cast. Elizabeth Allen and Jon Cypher were Dorothy and Julian, and Nana Visitor (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) was Peggy. Fortunately, it was a lengthy run, so it had a lavish staging, but not as lavish as the 2001 revival. By the time I got to see it in
I know the show "Tuck Everlasting" does not get a lot of love, but after seeing it, I was sure that Carolee Carmello would be a shoe-in. She got a Drama Desk nomination for a lesser part in "Finding Neverland" but was completely shut out for any nomination for "Tuck", and it was a much bigger, juicier role.
So many great responses to this thread, but in addition to Mack & Mabel (which I will see at Encores), Dear World (saw the York production, but would love to see a full scale revival) and Steel Pier, I truly love:
My Favorite Year
Two By Two
Darling of the Day
If I Had a Ball
Bajour
I'm also going to add one I did see in two different productions, Do I Hear a Waltz? (Pasadena, 2001, and the City Center Revival), bec
For great reference and some rare photos, the Theater World series (which stopped publishing a while back) is great because it takes you through each Broadway season in detail: replacements, stand-by's, then goes through each of the Off Broadway companies, national tours and various awards given out. There was a large section on obituaries and major cast member bio's. The Best Plays of (season year) is good because it has 10 shows which stood out, basically a full plot synopsis with i
I re-read "Not Since Carrie" over and over. I wish it would be updated. A lot has happened in this category since "Legs Diamond", "Chu Chem" and "Carrie".
I saw Part One on Friday, and was concerned that after a long day of work, I would be too tired to really be able to concentrate on the lengthy play. I had a lot of time to kill and took myself out to a nice meal, so I was very full when the show began and a bit drained. But that being said, I was never once bored or ready for it to end, and when the inevitable happens in the conclusion, I gasped audibly and had to quickly cover my mouth. My friend and I (who is a good decade older than me) d
Any theater where when you stand up, the seat doesn't attach itself to you and stick to your back end! Certain New World Stages where larger productions are staged ("Toxic Avenger", "Avenue Q" come to mind), and the Laura Pels, especially if you are sitting in certain seats and have to take the elevator which leads to the backstage entrance. Both theaters at the Playwright's Horizons are nice, and the big theater at the Signature is great, too. A few of the Theater
Years ago in L.A., there was a fund raising production that had a 95% male cast. It was re-titled "West Hollywood Story", and no, I did not make that up. The same company also did a variation of "Gypsy" where Mama Rose was actually a gay man.
I've seen clips of obvious audience filmed videos from shows dating back to 1977 ("The King & I" w/Yul Brynnur & Constance Towers) and some from the 1980's which are surprisingly good. A few of these (such as "Rags" & "Legs Diamond" will most likely never be revived again outside concert productions, so I did manage to watch the whole video without squirming. But a
I saw the Saturday matinee from the front mezzanine. I thought the first act was very funny and laughed from the opening conversation between the two friends discussing everything from Ali McGraw to who the greatest film directors ever were. (It made the inclusion of "Barry Lyndon" on the TV screen in the second act opening as quite appropriate.) The sex scenes and nudity were rather gratuitous and unnecessary, and it prompted some older man in the same aisle as me to start to make
I read a quote from Janis Paige re. "Mame" is that when she took over for Angela and was rehearsing "Bosom Buddies", she had to ask Anne Francine (who was much taller than her) to bring down the giant steps she was taking because as a smaller person, she couldn't keep up. As we know, Angela is quite tall herself. I'm sure that taking over a major part like that can be quite intimidating. I never heard of Jane Morgan until I saw the two Ed Sullivan clips of her doin
I respect your opinion in regards to Janis Paige. I included her because she is one of the last studio contract players left, busy at Warner Brothers while Angela was at MGM, and also because other than Celeste Holm's brief stepping in as "Mame" before the national tour, Janis was the first official long term "Mame" replacement. I have all of the original "Mame" souvenir programs (as well as an original "Pajama Game"