BE MORE CHILL (Broadway) Reviews- Page 10

[DiscoCrows]

Posted: 5/3/19 at 12:47pm

FYI for anyone who may be interested, Jennifer Ashley Tepper (BMC Producer, Feinstein 54 Creative Director) is doing a AMA on the r/Broadway subreddit next Saturday.

[Broadway Joe]

Posted: 5/3/19 at 1:48pm

I'm glad I missed the whole buzz(positive and negative) around this show, I've been slacking in seeing shows lately but finally saw it this week and enjoyed it. I can't say I would recommend it to anyone though when there are better options currently playing.

Also glad I wasn't next to any of these stans that I read about in this thread and the previews thread.

[bwaywrldmember6853]

Posted: 5/3/19 at 1:59pm

I'm having a hard time getting into the new cast recording. I agree that everything sounds super polished and smooth, but that's almost why I don't like it...I prefer the grit that came with the first recording. I prefer Will Connoly over Will Roland (I still don't understand this change for broadway, unless Connoly just had something else booked?). I think George sounds tired on the new album. I think the autotune in smartphone hour is painful...And before anyone accuses me of hating this show, I don't. I was a big fan of the two river production & was really rooting for this show. My family got me merch for my birthday. I just can't get behind the broadway production, and it may have something to do with the attitude they've all had throughout the process. Its too much "we are the outcasts"...you dont give yourself that title. They so badly want to be the underdog...and it didn't serve them well. Sorry this was super negative, I'm just disappointed, but I'm glad some people are really enjoying it! Its interesting to see all of the different opinions.

[MollyJeanneMusic]

Posted: 5/3/19 at 2:00pm

Connoly was in Clueless, I believe.

[Robbie2]

Posted: 5/3/19 at 4:45pm

MollyJeanneMusic said: "Connoly was in Clueless, I believe."

 

I heard Connoly was better than Will Roland and understudy Troy Iwata is far superior to the overrated George Salazar

[herewegoabc]

Posted: 5/3/19 at 5:08pm

I can't speak to it personally (since the first time I saw the show was off-Broadway), but the Connoly versus Roland debate seems to be stemmed almost entirely from a first impression cast recording and half a bootleg video. Very few people actually saw Connoly perform the role. I don't know how it's possible to prefer something you never actually witnessed. I get preferring one singing voice to another, especially if you listened to one recording for years and suddenly hear a new voice, but who except the few people who saw this at Two River can actually compare the performances?

[GeorgeandDot]

Posted: 5/3/19 at 7:33pm

After listening to this recording, I think this might be one of the worst scores to land on Broadway in recent years. I mean, that pants song? OMG. Nice orchestrations, but this is just really bad. I remember when I saw this show I was amazed at the level of overacting taking place on that stage. The actors are clearly trying to make this dog of a show have some sort of, I don't know, importance, so they're playing the stakes like they're performing Macbeth. We get it, he's in the bathroom. All I see is a middle aged man, dressed like an edgy teen, acting like he's Cynthia Erivo in The Color Purple.

[dwwst12]

Posted: 5/3/19 at 8:12pm

GeorgeandDot said:  ...so they're playing the stakes like they're performing Macbeth.

 

They're not "playing the stakes" that way.  Those *are* the stakes to the characters.  Because they're teenagers.  That's what teenagers feel.  Maybe you were different, but I think most humans remember at least *once* feeling just like that:  that what you're going through has never been endured before. That what's happening now in your life is more important than anything that will happen ever.  And that your problems are so much greater than anyone else's.  I didn't see any overacting on George Salazar's part.  If massive stakes are required for an actor to sing their heart out, then most songs and most shows fail your Erivo Test.

[Markecib]

Posted: 5/3/19 at 9:21pm

I downloaded the album just to throw it in my collection, but I like the recording better than watching the show. I think you can also point out songs that could’ve been eliminated to get he run time down and if it was 90 minutes it probably would’ve been a better show.

This also makes me question what’s the point of the Dad? He’s pointless and not needed since we see no other parents, just a high school teacher.

I think act one could’ve ended a song earlier but they tried to give the Jeremy character a moment that just doesn’t land.

I feel like the show is miscast in parts, i nodded off in ACT 1 when I saw it and overall wasn’t a fan, but the cast recording comes off a lot better for me.

[MollyJeanneMusic]

Posted: 5/4/19 at 2:58pm

Markecib said: "This also makes me question what’s the point of the Dad? He’s pointless and not needed since we see no other parents, just a high school teacher.

I think act one could’ve ended a song earlier but they tried to give the Jeremy character a moment that just doesn’t land."

The interesting thing is, in the original book, the mom and dad were both a part of the story.  The main purpose I can think of for keeping the dad would be to demonstrate Jeremy alienating himself even more from his friends and family, kind of like the argument between Evan and Heidi in Dear Evan Hansen, right before To Break In a Glove (although the stakes aren't as high in BMC as in DEH).  It also gives Michael an excuse for coming back to help Jeremy during the play.

I remember Joe Iconis saying on Twitter that Loser, Geek, Whatever was to kind of clear up Jeremy's motivations for abandoning Michael at the end of Act I, realizing that they had never given Jeremy his own true solo moment.  A few of the lines in that song are actually directly from the book - one that comes to mind is the line "I even got some blood flowing/With no computer screen around," which was phrased a little more obscenely in the book (but I digress).

[GeorgeandDot]

Posted: 5/4/19 at 5:57pm

dwwst12 said: "GeorgeandDot said: ...so they're playing the stakes like they're performing Macbeth.



They're not "playing the stakes" that way. Those *are* the stakes to the characters. Because they're teenagers. That's what teenagers feel. Maybe you were different, but I think most humans remember at least *once* feeling just like that: that what you're going through has never been endured before. That what's happening now in your life is more important than anything that will happen ever. And that your problems are so much greater than anyone else's. I didn't see any overacting on George Salazar's part. If massive stakes are required for an actor to sing their heart out, then most songs and most shows fail your Erivo Test."

I have no problem with characters singing their hearts out so long as it feels earned and truthful and it's handled with nuance.  Can't say that, that's what I witnessed in this show.  I saw a bunch of privileged teenagers complaining for over two hours.  No thanks.  The actors were overacting and chewing the scenery left and right.  This was some of the worst overacting that I've ever seen.  Salazar acts his song likes it's a life or death situation.  It's ridiculous.

 

[BwayinVan]

Posted: 5/5/19 at 9:14pm

So I saw this on Friday as part of my broadway week of 7 shows in 5 days. I bought my tickets through audience rewards months ago and I have to say I’m glad I didn’t pay full price. The book and the story are weak. It definitely doesn’t stay with you once you leave the theatre. George Salazar is good and I did find myself feeling sorry for Michael in certain parts however I don’t think it was a tony performance. Will Roland was the saving grace for this show. He carries the show on his back from the start and if anything this show give me another platform to show off his amazing talent. Stephanie Hsu’s character grew on me as the show went on. In the beginning I found her too cartoony but by the end I felt the character had mellowed out.

The theatre was fairly full in the orchestra but I have no idea how the rest of the house looked. I could see this show lasting through the summer but I could see it struggling through the fall.