Most Mediocre Season (...in a long time)?- Page 2

[Play Esq.]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 1:45am

"I think it was a spectacular season. Re Off-Bwy, we had Fun Home, Natasha Pierre, Hand to God, Small Engine Repair, Here Lies Love, Heir Apparent, The Old Friends, Year of the Rooster, Watson Intelligence, Good Person Of Szechwan, the beautifully designed Midsummer Nt's Dream at TFANA, Doll's house, Lear, and Enemy of the People at BAM, The Open House, Satchmo, plus Violet and Little Me at Encores, Titanic at Alice Tully, Guys andDolls at Carnegie Hall. Every week there was something worth seeing. And then yes, all those great Bwy shows in the fall."

I love that this thread is causing so much enthusiasm (especially for a season I've dismissed as forgetful).

Chris, many of your choices originated from seasons past. With few exceptions, I've seen everything on your list. My feelings related to the shows you cited from this season don't change my impressions overall (though thank you for reminding me about Szechwan...and how horribly sick I am of Lear).

[chrisampm2]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 2:04am

Again, the Lortels considered Szechwan, Hand to God, Natasha Pierre, Mr Burns, Yr of the Rooster & Here Lies Love this season so who am I to disagree? And Boyer won the Derwent Award for this season.

[After Eight]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 7:46am

"THIS season has just started! "

Actually, not quite yet. Seasons officially run from June 1 to May 31. So who knows? We still have two+ weeks in which a masterpiece could be revealed to us!

As for this season, Mr. Burns was indeed a part of it -- unfortunately! --- and it was one of the worst theatrical experiences of this or any other season. Pure torture to sit through. But wretched fare like The Flick, Detroit, and Belleville were equally horrible the previous season. As for musicals, at least in recent years, I can't recall one as appallingly insufferable as Fun Home. I still haven't recovered from THAT experience!

But there were a number of excellent works this season not previously mentioned here that contributed to making it one of the better ones we've had of late. Martha Clarke's Cheri was a work of art. Rewarding evenings (and matinees) were also provided by Two Point Oh, Jericho, A Kid Like Jake, Ghetto Babylon, The Most Deserving, I Am the Wind, Playing With Grown Ups, and revivals of I Remember Mama, Little Mary Sunshine, Juno and the Paycock, and Sea Marks.

[tazber]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 8:39am

The season with Once and Newsies much more mediocre imo.

The season Whizzer mentioned was dismal.

[chrisampm2]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 9:14am

After Eight, did you discuss here all those shows you liked? Though I'm not of like mind necessarily when you hate something, I often agree with what you respect. I Remember Mama was a treasurable experience. But I haven't heard of several other you mentioned.

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 9:16am

"most mediocre" is throwing me off.

If I give - just for the sake of illustration - this season a five for mediocrity and last season a ten, is this season more or less of a mediocrity?

Actually, no matter how you slice it, this was far from the most mediocre recent NY theatre season. And when I say it pales in terms of mediocrity to many other recent seasons, I mean it as a compliment, though an unavoidably (I'm just answering the question) left-handed one.

Which is not to say that there wasn't much mediocrity. More than a modicum. But when isn't there?

Updated On: 5/17/14 at 09:16 AM

[madbrian]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 9:18am

I've only seen four shows this season, so I can't comment on the entirety of the season. However, the four shows I saw were Lady Day, Gentleman's Guide, Mothers & Sons, and Cripple of Inishmaan. So, if I were to choose on adjective to describe my experience this season, it would be anything but mediocre.

[haterobics]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 9:19am

"Mr. Burns was indeed a part of it -- unfortunately! --- and it was one of the worst theatrical experiences of this or any other season. Pure torture to sit through."

There you go, solid proof that it was great!

[After Eight]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 9:34am

Chris,

I believe I posted about most of the shows I mentioned above. I started a thread on Cheri, and it dropped down and off the screen almost immediately thereafter.

I'm glad you liked I Remember Mama. That was indeed something to be treasured.

Updated On: 5/17/14 at 09:34 AM

[deltatee]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 9:58am

I think this season at first glance seems mediocre because the new musicals people are talking about now (Gentlemen's Guide and Beautiful) are not the musicals that people were talking about when it started (Big Fish, Rock, Bullets, If/Then). It seems this season was unique in the sense that the shows going into this season with a lot buzz have fallen completely off our radar. But there is still a lot going on for this season: Hedwig, Lady Day, Violet.

I would definitely agree that in the past ten years or so, 2010 with Memphis was the most mediocre.

Updated On: 5/17/14 at 09:58 AM

[chrisampm2]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 9:59am

Yes, I may even have chimed in on the Cheri thread. You were more effusive than I. I loved the design, choreography, music. I felt the mother role insufficiently connected to the rest. Early Clarke teemed with more life. She's going for something more distilled now, but to me it seems reduced. Still, always worth seeing. I even enjoyed Threepenny, though missed a sense of urgency.

[After Eight]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 10:15am

Updated On: 10/23/14 at 10:15 AM

[Jay94]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 12:38pm

I agree. I was waiting for the big 'wow' artistic triumph/sold out hit which seems to arrive every season but it never happened.

Gentleman's Guide, All the Way, Twelfth Night and Hedwig are leading by default at this point. All four could have easily been beaten by the winners of the last 3 years, at least.

Updated On: 5/17/14 at 12:38 PM

[bdn223]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 1:01pm

I will agree in terms of Broadway plays. There was a great dearth of new plays this season. This is emphasized by the past few seasons which gave us Clybourne Park, Other Desert Cities, Peter and the Starcatchers, Venus in Fur, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, The Assembled Parties, The Mother****er with the Hat, and War Horse.

On the musical side, I disagree whole heartily. Although quality does beat quantity; which is what this season would be considered in terms of musicals, I would say it has both. Outside of Soul Doctor and Let it Be, almost all other musicals were solid. Most I would consider Bs with a few As (After Midnight, A Gentleman's Guide). This is why unlike in most seasons where the there is maybe one open slot that people are unsure of for best musical, this season the only real sure nominee was A Gentleman's Guide. That is not because all the shows were bad and we were picking the best of the worst, but rather there were several "good shows" to choose from. I could see several of the new musicals this year being revived 20 yrs from now with great success, which says a lot.

I agree with most that 2010 was probably the worst year for musicals in recent memory. Now that was a year where outside of maybe American Idiot (which I consider a performance piece rather than a musical) it was picking the best from ehhh productions. American Idiot was the only show that wowed me, but even though I would give it a B+ A-.

[Theater'sBestFriend]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 4:57pm

"Kinky Boots didn't pick up steam until after it won the Tony. Matlida & Pippin were the only shows with any type of hype before they opened."

Not true -- Kinky Boots picked up steam immediately after opening, a sure sign of positive word-of-mouth. Within a month, its weekly gross exceeded Matilda's, long before it won the Tony. It has remained ahead ever since, in the top 4 with Wicked, Lion King, and Book of Mormon (check the weekly grosses if you don't believe me). The Tony didn't cause the Kinky Boots groundswell; it reflected it.

No show this season displayed a similar standout phenomenon. I don't agree that's because none has been of merit, however; many are, as others have cited. But it's a more spread out field of contenders this season.

[Sutton Ross]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 5:17pm

A theater season that includes Sutton Foster, Idina Menzel, Joshua Henry, Kelli O'Hara, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Michael Mayer, Brian Yorkey, Jason Robert Brown, Ramin Karimloo, Tom Kitt, Tom Rylance, Alan Cumming, Danny Burstein, and Cherry Jones will never be mediocre. This year has been exceptional, exciting, and incredible entertaining.

[haterobics]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 6:08pm

"This is emphasized by the past few seasons which gave us Clybourne Park..."

The same author did give us Domesticated at Lincoln Center this season, which played to sold out houses for a limited run.

[mjohnson2]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 7:06pm

After Eight, thank you for reminding me of some of those shows. Cheri was absolutely incredible and I Remember Mama was one of the best shows this season, and I'm really bummed that I missed Ghetto Babylon too, because a friend told me it was really good, but I couldn't find any reviews online. Would you do me the favor of telling me a little of what you thought of the show? Thanks.

[GlindatheGood22]

Posted: 5/17/14 at 10:25pm

I feel like this has been said of every season in recent memory. Without a doubt the dullest was 2010, when half of the nominees for best score were plays. 2007 and 2009 were outstanding, but other than that it's been unspectacular.

[mikem]

Posted: 5/18/14 at 3:11am

It's unusual to have a year where both new plays and new musicals were full of meh. Fun Home is doing so well in awards partially because there's not much competition. This season was particularly weak for new plays. I was trying to figure out what was going to win the NY Drama Critics Circle award for Best New Play and the shortlist was really, really short. None of the Best Play nominees for the Tony would be a frontrunner in most other years.

As was said before, the end of the year successive meh-ness for new musicals with Bridges/Rocky/If/Then/Bullets was disappointing for such hotly anticipated shows. Aladdin got better reviews, but the bar is much lower for Aladdin than for the other shows IMO.

The play revivals on Broadway this year were fantastic.

[After Eight]

Posted: 5/18/14 at 7:30am

Mjohnson,

Re, Ghetto Babylon. It was a coming of age tale about three teenage best friends on a Bronx baseball team, one of whom receives a scholarship to a New Hampshire prep school. Well written, crafted, acted and staged. The dialogue and characterizations were sharp and true. It was both funny and touching.

[Play Esq.]

Posted: 5/18/14 at 10:59am

A theater season that includes Sutton Foster, Idina Menzel, Joshua Henry, Kelli O'Hara, Audra McDonald, Neil Patrick Harris, Michael Mayer, Brian Yorkey, Jason Robert Brown, Ramin Karimloo, Tom Kitt, Tom Rylance, Alan Cumming, Danny Burstein, and Cherry Jones will never be mediocre.

Your logic is almost scientific...but not.

[jnb9872]

Posted: 5/18/14 at 11:23am

-Sutton Foster and Idina Menzel headline INHERIT THE WIND!
-Joshua Henry, Kelli O'Hara and Audra McDonald in a controversial race-swapped GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER?
-Neil Patrick Harris puts on another wig and dress in GOLDA'S BALCONY, directed by Michael Mayer!
-Kitt & Yorkey team up with JRB to present Ramin Karimloo in A SEPARATION: THE MUSICAL based on the Academy Award-winning film by Asghar Farhadi and presented entirely in Persian (translation by Tom Rylance, brother(?) of Mark Rylance and maybe a linguistic expert)!
Alan Cumming, Danny Burstein and Cherry Jones all announced as the new Guest Stars in AFTER MIDNIGHT!

Yeah, that season would be mediocre at best.

[haterobics]

Posted: 5/18/14 at 11:26am

"Fun Home is doing so well in awards partially because there's not much competition."

And in larger part because it was a beautifully-realized/staged musical with touching music and a unique story.

[GlindatheGood22]

Posted: 5/18/14 at 12:31pm

Not exactly true about Fun Home not having much competition. In the Off-Bway sphere alone there was The Great Comet and Here Lies Love, both brilliant shows that it's been beating.