FLASHDANCE Reviews From Houston

[DEClarke]

My thoughts on the show are here. I'll update with other opinions from Houston critics as they come live.
Click Here to Read BWW Reviews: FLASHDANCE – THE MUSICAL is Lackluster Despite Abundant Dance Spectacles

[Dusoleilcanwhistle]

I saw "Flashdance" a few weeks ago in Costa Mesa and agree with most of what you've said. By far the book is the biggest issue with the production - the "jokes" (and I use that term loosely) don't land and the characters aren't really developed at all. The other thing you hit on that was a problem was the tone. This is not a serious musical, but there were many moments where they tried to make things much more dramatic than they were and in turn just created awkward moments.

A few other issues that I found:
Jillian Mueller was completely miscast as Alex Owens. Her voice is serviceable at best, and that would have been fine IF her dancing was spectacular - but it's not.
That brings me to my other major gripe with the production. Sergio Trujillo's choreography for the most part is very lively and the only thing to really focus on and enjoy, but when we arrived at the big audition number where she dances to "What a Feeling" it felt like a complete let down. Mueller clearly is not a good enough dancer for him to let her really shine to the point where he brings ten more people onstage to fill the space that she should be using. If other people showed up in the middle of "The Music and The Mirror", somebody would have been shot.

Look, I'm glad I got to see "Flashdance" and it has some fun moments, but it needs a LOT of work. My first comment at intermission to my theatergoing companions was "How quickly can they get Douglas Carter Beane on a plane?"

[DEClarke]

Another review from Houston. This one echos Dusoleilcanwhistle's sentiments on Mueller.
TUTS’ FLASHDANCE Lacks Focus Despite Beautiful Visuals and Energetic Dancing

[Markecib]

Mueller wasn't the the original lead and Katie Weber wasn't the original Tess. Those roles were being played by Emily Padgett and Rachelle Rak. I don't know why they left or if they were scheduled to leave the tour before the end of the first run, but they seemed to hae left before the announcement it wasn't going to Broadway in August.

Anyone know why they left?

[bwayphreak234]

I saw the tour a few weeks ago. It was the biggest piece of trash I have ever seen. It was a horrific train wreck of epic proportions. That said, it was one of those shows that was so unbelievably bad I couldn't help but throughly enjoy every second.

[RippedMan]

I'd imagine they jumped ship when they realized it wasn't going to Broadway. I'm sure that's why they signed on for a tour in the first place.

[ACL2006]

I wonder if Rak is trying to get back into Pippin(as a swing).

[RippedMan]

I'm sure she got paid nicely for Flashdance, but maybe it was always intended that she'd bow out when she did. Wasn't it suppose to open on Broadway this August or soemthing?

[bwayphreak234]

Based on the reviews of the first tour stops, it sounds like Padgett and Rak were the only two redeeming qualities in the production... Too bad they left Brouwer that show needed all the help it could get.

[DEClarke]

Here's another...


Flashdance, The Musical Proves There's Only so Much You Can Do With Pole Dancing

[DEClarke]

And here's another...
High-energy choreography pushes 'Flashdance' beyond its flaws

[DEClarke]

Also it seems I was the only press person in town that got the memo that at Tuesday night's perfromance the rol of Jimmy was played by Dan Kohler, the role of Andy was played by Derek Carley, and the roles usually played by Derek Carley were played by Nick McGough...

[songanddanceman2]

The UK version just needed some cuts and some rewrites in places and it would have been fine. On the Pre West End tour the show sold incredibly well and got pretty solid reviews. The West End run added a bit too much glitz but was still pretty good (it's reviews were not bad) however it was up against shows like Legally Blonde at the time so the run was cut short.

The UK one was much darker, had some nice scenes that were fleshed out well and was not as over stuffed with roles as the US one is. Why they felt the need to do a total rewrite is beyond me.