ONCE UPON A ONE MORE TIME Broadway Previews Thread- Page 7

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 5/24/23 at 1:06pm

OhHiii said: "BroadwayNYC2 said: "I don’t necessarily have the same concerns with Briga. I’d rather it be an acting part (which I think she bails) with the self awareness of it not being a belting part. I’d rather her than an empty Broadway belting leading lady."

...it's a Britney Spears musical. You do not need a captial A Actor for this. It isn't Virginia Woolf."

No, it needs an actor who conveys warmth, humanity, and likeability, especially when surrounded by a cast of characters who are mostly cartoons, while playing both comedy and some heavier moments (that, no, aren't Virginia Woolf). That's the acting part that's required and which she delivers more than capably.

If we're judging it by the standards of "just" being a Britney Spears musical, why would a show based on the music of Britney Spears need a belting singer in the lead, when Britney Spears herself doesn't belt in her music?

Updated On: 5/24/23 at 01:06 PM

[BroadwayNYC2]

Posted: 5/24/23 at 1:20pm

“...it's a Britney Spears musical. You do not need a captial A Actor for this. It isn't Virginia Woolf.”


and when did I say it was? All I’m saying is I’d rather have a character actress type for the role. I think it fits the material better. 

[OhHiii]

Posted: 5/24/23 at 1:42pm

MemorableUserName said: "If we're judging it by the standards of "just" being a Britney Spears musical, why would a show based on the music of Britney Spears need a belting singer in the lead, when Britney Spears herself doesn't belt in her music?"

Pardon me for thinking that a lead in a MUSICAL that isn't that deep story-wise should be able to carry a tune, much less in a show where Aisha and Jennifer blow the roof off when they open their mouths. Briga cannot sing. Point blank. And "handles the acting capably" isn't exactly a glowing review. lol

And Britney doesn't belt on her songs? Tell me you haven't listened to "Stronger without telling me you haven't listened to Stronger. 

[theaterdrew]

Posted: 5/24/23 at 1:59pm

I can't edit that message ^ because it added at least 10,000 lines of junk coding, so here's the link to what I was trying to post.

[jpbran]

Posted: 5/24/23 at 2:22pm

And Britney doesn't belt on her songs? Tell me you haven't listened to "Stronger without telling me you haven't listened to Stronger."

Don’t know many of her songs, so just pulled that one up… I don’t hear any belting. I DO hear Autotune, old school studio-echo/doubling effects and backup singers added to her voice. (ducks)

Updated On: 5/24/23 at 02:22 PM

[Dirty Rotten Scoundrel]

Posted: 5/24/23 at 2:39pm

While Britney herself doesn't necessarily belt in all of her songs, she has plenty of songs that lend themselves very well to belting, particularly with the orchestrations this show has. If you've not yet seen it, there *is* belting in this show - and some of that belting is done by Cinderella. Britney is a pop star, not a Broadway actress. So I think the quality of her singing voice is honestly irrelevant at the moment because we are discussing the singing abilities of a performer in a Broadway musical. 

As others have said, this book does not make too many demands of its actors. Prince Charming is one-dimensional and Guarini has some truly cringeworthy lines to navigate, but he does the best he can and then makes up for that in spades with his wonderful singing, dancing, and charisma. The same can be said for Aisha Jackson as Snow White and Jennifer Simard as Evil Stepmother.

Cinderella needs to be likable, and you need to root for her. That really is the long and short of it acting-wise. She isn't expected to deliver a monologue that brings us all to our knees. She is, however, the lead character in a musical. She sings more than any other person in this show. She should be able to sing. That is the bare minimum expectation. This is not a tradeoff, nor should it be a compromise of "she can carry a tune well enough." There are so many talented actresses in the world who can SING these songs *and* act the part. I'm sure those of us who've seen the show and didn't enjoy Heelan's performance could each rattle off several established actresses who would do an amazing job in this part. I also am sure that there are countless other actresses desperate to break into this industry who could do an amazing job if given the chance Heelan was. This is Heelan's first-ever credit. I just refuse to believe she was the best available choice.

Updated On: 5/24/23 at 02:39 PM

[Dan6]

Posted: 5/24/23 at 4:41pm

Saw this last night and fully agree with Dirty Rotten Scoundrel’s detailed “great/good/meh/bad” breakdown on the previous page, except that I would move the choreography from the good column to great. “Circus” was simply one of the best choreographed and executed numbers I’ve seen on a Broadway stage, made even better by Justin Guarini’s solid triple-threat performance. And Jennifer Simard was, as always, a delight, albeit an underused one. 
 

As for the rest, it was a miss for me. Briga Heelan’s voice is just not good enough, and I kept longing for someone with Lorna Courtney’s pipes in the role. And the book is a complete mess, particularly the second act. I’m not even sure what was supposed to happen at the end, though that might be a result of the poor little girl playing the Reader going up on her final lines (kudos to the company for stepping in to help her out and comfort her, but ultimately it just…ended).

 

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And no clue what that was all about with the slipper. Through the whole first act they made a point of needing the quill to break free of the Narrator, and then it seemed to happen with breaking the slipper…but they went ahead and got the quill anyway?

[Jordan Catalano]

Posted: 5/24/23 at 4:52pm

Saw this a few days ago and agree that it’s not a good show but it’s a hell of a lot of fun, regardless. I asked my friend if he noticed the problems with the leads voice and he didn’t but then during act two he nudged me and said “oh yeah i hear it” - but other than that I thought she was good. MVP’s clearly are Simard and Guarini. The audience lost their f’in minds at the Monday night show to a point where during act two, I started to get excited at the idea that I’d be home soon and could take some ibuprofen. 

[YvanEhtNioj]

Posted: 5/24/23 at 4:54pm

I honestly want to go see it a 3rd time closer to opening to see if they manage to fix act 2. I feel like the changes they made since the first preview didnt help at all. Yeah, Stronger is a better ending than Passengers but overall that **** still feels rushed

Also, this is my first time seeing Aisha in anything and holy f*ck..mama is killing it. 

Updated On: 5/24/23 at 04:54 PM

[George in DC]

Posted: 5/25/23 at 11:11am

Jordan Catalano said: "Saw this a few days ago and agree that it’s not a good show but it’s a hell of a lot of fun, regardless. I asked my friend if he noticed the problems with the leads voice and he didn’t but then during act two he nudged me and said “oh yeah i hear it” - but other than that I thought she was good. MVP’s clearly are Simard and Guarini. The audience lost their f’in minds at the Monday night show to a point where during act two, I started to get excited at the idea that I’d be home soon and could take some ibuprofen."

 

This is very similar to how I felt when I saw it in DC. I had fun at the time but remember very little about the show except the set was ugly, the best actors were Guarini and Emily Skinner (Stepmother in DC), the gay subplot seemed tacked on to appease Spear's gay fans not because the creators thought it should be there and the audience was so annoying that though I was having fun, I was glad when it ended. I find this thread fascinating to read because I have no plans on going back to see the show even if given a ticket.

[pablitonizer]

Posted: 5/25/23 at 12:01pm

I find interesting from users who did not like this musical or found it to be not good, but had a great time. I usually when I don't like a musical/I find it to be bad, I just don't have a good time. I don't mean it to shade anyone, I just find it pretty interesting

 

[CornCity]

Posted: 5/25/23 at 4:28pm

Hello all! Longtime lurker here, but first time joining the conversation. :) 

I just saw this show last night, coming in as a big Broadway fan and even bigger Britney fan. As others have noted, this one was such an anomaly for me, as I walked out knowing the show wasn't good, but I still enjoyed myself. 

My complaints were that the set and costumes felt a bit cheap (one of the set pieces squeaked the entire time as it crept out during Everytime and I had to control my giggling), the book was rough, and Briga Heelan just didn't feel up to the role (the vocals were thin and it felt overacted). 

That said, Justin Guarini is a bonafide Broadway star, Jennifer Simard was incredible as always, and the choreography was some of the best I've seen. The concept is clever and they still have a bit of time to work out the issues, but I worry that it might be too much to overcome before opening and that this one may have a relatively short run. I hope I'm wrong, as there's definitely talent on that stage that deserves to be seen. 

[yyys]

Posted: 5/25/23 at 4:44pm

maybe they can borrow Bad Cinderella's  costumes after it closes? 

[bwayphreak234]

Posted: 5/25/23 at 4:45pm

pablitonizer said: "I find interesting from users who did not like this musical or found it to be not good, but had a great time. I usually when I don't like a musical/I find it to be bad, I just don't have a good time. I don't mean it to shade anyone, I just find it pretty interesting"

It's such an odd show... While I found it to be pretty terrible, I won't deny I had fun... Not many (bad) shows can pull that off.

 

[pablitonizer]

Posted: 5/25/23 at 4:54pm

bwayphreak234 said: "pablitonizer said: "I find interesting from users who did not like this musical or found it to be not good, but had a great time. I usually when I don't like a musical/I find it to be bad, I just don't have a good time. I don't mean it to shade anyone, I just find it pretty interesting"

It's such an odd show... While I found it to be pretty terrible, I won't deny I had fun... Not many (bad) shows can pull that off.

"

I understand! But probably if you had fun, perhaps it was not a terrible show after all. I believe there has been some serious terrible shows along Broadway history, but I think this one is far from that. Could it improve? Absolutely! 

 

[yyys]

Posted: 5/25/23 at 5:03pm

It is similar to going a concert and saying the band was alright/OK/terrible, but overall it was still a great time (I guess especially if you were there with friends, etc.)

 

pablitonizer said: "I find interesting from users who did not like this musical or found it to be not good, but had a great time. I usually when I don't like a musical/I find it to be bad, I just don't have a good time. I don't mean it to shade anyone, I just find it pretty interesting

"

 

[quizking101]

Posted: 5/25/23 at 11:56pm

This was…something - more appropriately titled “Oops, Six Bad Cinderellas & Juliet Again”

I think the “fractured fairytale” musical has really kind of shown the genre is completely out of steam. I think the premise is interesting but it seems to drag out in some places and lose focus in others, creating overall incoherence set to a dizzying roulette of Britney songs. Act I was certainly entertaining, but it lead to a very sour Act II that brings the mood down a lot 

The feminism angle feels bungled and takes WAY too long to get to - and I feel like there could be a bunch of cuts that could make this a 100 minute, intermissionless show. 

The upside is that Guarini and Simard absolutely EAT and the way they can sing, deliver the comedy, and dance the house down boots, and with better timing, they could’ve been contenders for Tony nominations, same with the choreo. Ironically another musical where Prince Charming and the Stepmother outshine the main character to a huge degree

Updated On: 5/26/23 at 11:56 PM

[Kad]

Posted: 5/26/23 at 1:29pm

Also: this show has to contain the most flattering, bizarrely warm and fuzzy depiction of Betty Friedan ever. 

Updated On: 5/26/23 at 01:29 PM

[MemorableUserName]

Posted: 5/26/23 at 2:43pm

Of all the many things wrong with the book, this is very minor, but it did seem off that they had the OFG say, when asked her name, "Elizabeth...but people call me Betty," like we're clearly supposed to think she's Betty Friedan. But Betty Friedan's first name wasn't Elizabeth. So why not just have her say, "People call me Betty" and leave it at that?

 

 

[EDSOSLO858]

Posted: 5/28/23 at 11:58am

Ryann Redmond is injured and on crutches. 

Depending on severity, she could end up missing opening night. 

[GoldenGiggery]

Posted: 5/28/23 at 2:32pm

I saw this on the 24th with a friend who’s a huge fan of this show. I had an excellent time, personally. Simard, Guarini, and Jackson were all top notch and depending how long the show is able to last, need to ALL be marketed upon heavily. Heelan wasn’t pitchy when I saw her, but I’ve heard a number of people on this board (and in person) say that she was. If it doesn’t improve, maybe this could be a fun opportunity to recast the role down the road? Lastly, while I understand the other 4 princesses are only meant to be supporting characters, I wish more had been made of their stage time (specifically Pea & Sleeping Beauty). Rapunzel’s and Little M. get their moments, but it never truly feels as though the other two do. 

[BossBroadway]

Posted: 5/29/23 at 11:29am

The wednesday matinee advance sell of this show is....absolutely terrible. 

[quizking101]

Posted: 5/29/23 at 11:40am

BossBroadway said: "The wednesday matinee advance sell of this show is....absolutely terrible."

Oh wow. There are probably less than 200 seats sold in a 1600+ seat theatre.

And here I thought seeing the poor sales for Saturday night was a bad omen.

When I was at the stage door on Thursday, the cast were telling us to "tell your friends" - which always means they know they are in deep trouble.

[Kad]

Posted: 5/29/23 at 1:02pm

This is a really baffling time to be starting a Broadway run. It's the end-of-season Tony Awards ramp-up and that's demanding all the attention.

[BossBroadway]

Posted: 5/29/23 at 1:44pm

I bet you there are less than 100 seats sold, it's almost worse than Bad Cinderella's sales. I thought this show could last through January and close New Years' Weekend, but not it's looking like labor day.