A Chorus Line National Tour

[krispy kreme]

Posted: 6/19/08 at 10:05am

Saw the ACL national tour in LA on Tuesday. Considering how early it is in the tour, I was surprised how sloppy it was. Uneven lines, bent legs, turned-in feet, and some mediocre singing from some of the cast members. Six of us went and all we could say was, "What happened to the show?" when we left at the end of the evening. I hardly imagine this is the show Baayork Lee usually mounts. Has anyone seen both the tour and recent B'way revival? I would be curious to see how the B'way revival was in terms of tight, clean choreography. This is, after all, a dancer's show.

[Broadway Bob*]

Posted: 6/19/08 at 10:57am

I just saw the Broadway show last Sunday and it is still tight, crisp, and amazing!

[husk_charmer]

Posted: 6/19/08 at 11:31am

I've been hearing that from everyone, that the cast just isn't that stellar, with the noteable exceptions being Nikki Snelson and Jay A. Johnson.

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 6/19/08 at 12:16pm

Ah, too bad you had that experience. Hopefully the tour will shape up by the time it comes to my area. I saw it in NYC twice and loved it!

[krispy kreme]

Posted: 6/19/08 at 12:22pm

We thought Nikki was really weak and I was surprised by that since she was very good in Legally Blonde. Although the only other person I have seen perform that role is Donna McKechnie when she returned to the national tour in the late '80's....that is a hard act to follow.

Natalie Hall stole the show as Val and some interesting comedic choices that actually worked. Jessica Latshaw as Kristine was really cute in the role too. But, many of the actors failed to move me.....the Paul monologue was exceedingly boring and the Morales songs were done too edgy, so they lost their impact.

Of course, this is all my opinion based on what I saw on Tuesday night. I was just disappointed.

I will say that the end of "I Hope I Get it" with the headshots gave me goose bumps. Ah, so good!

[broadwayfan7]

Posted: 6/19/08 at 6:02pm

I'm still looking forward to seeing this! Hope it continues to get better and better.

[jwsel]

Posted: 6/25/08 at 10:57am

I saw ACL in Los Angeles last night and also thought the cast had a lot of weaknesses. During the first half of the One finale, there were some noticeable gaps in the line that really surprised me.

I also agree that Nikki Snelling was pretty weak as Cassie. After the show, two of my friends both commented that they thought Music and the Mirror went on way too long and Nikki's dancing wasn't very good.

The standout performers for me were Emily Fletcher as Sheila (but then Sheila always has such great lines, it's somewhat easy for her to steal the show), Colt Prattes as Al, and Anthony Wanye as Ritchie. I didn't mind the actors playing Diana and Paul, but I still remember those performances from the original tour that I saw when I was a kid, and I just didn't feel anything close to the same power. (Paul Santos, who played Mark, was a tremendous dancer and it really showed during the tap combination.) As for Natalie Hall as Val, I thought she was great on Dance 10, Looks 3, but the rest of her performance was too over the top.

Having said that, I still enjoyed it. I think the show, choreo, and direction are the stars of this show.

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 6/25/08 at 12:27pm

"I also agree that Nikki Snelling was pretty weak as Cassie."

You must mean Nikki Snelson...

[ExceedinglyPeculiar2]

Posted: 6/25/08 at 2:13pm

Well this sucks, I was planning on seeing it in LA. Is it not worth the ticket price?

[into_the_woods2]

Posted: 6/25/08 at 2:38pm

what a shame!!! i hope it shapes up before it comes to San Fran

[PalJoey]

Posted: 6/25/08 at 2:44pm

What's a matter, "krispy kreme"? Did you not get a callback for the tour so you come on here to trash-talk it?

Maybe you should eat fewer donuts...

[Anakela]

Posted: 6/25/08 at 3:09pm

Wow, I apparently saw a different show when I saw it last week!

Yes, there is the bias that is my icon :), who I thought was fabulous, but I greatly enjoyed the show entire- Emily Fletcher's Sheila was brilliance, Natalie Hall is making comic choices with Val that had the crowd in the palm of her hand each time I saw it (yes, I saw it more than once), Anthony Wayne as Richie, Kevin Santos as Paul, etc... I'm sorry, if there are audience members around me openly weeping during Paul's monologue, or who *gasp* when Morales gets sent back on the line at the end, and who do nothing on the way out but gush about how much they loved it, how *they're* tired just from watching it, reminisce about how it's still held up since the first time they saw it, or how they saw it as kids and are bringing their kids to it, etc. then I think it's doing something right.

[aliciag]

Posted: 6/25/08 at 3:41pm

I saw the show in LA last Saturday with my two sisters and mom and we all enjoyed it. I also saw the revival after it first opened but that's it. I thought they did a great job with it. I especially liked this viewing because I watched from the balcony and got the full effect of the lighting and full choreography (which I wasn't able to fully appreciate from the partial view orchestra seats in NYC).

I thought Nikki Snelson was great and I loved "Music and the Mirror." And I agree with Anakela on Natalie Hall's Val because I thought her comedic choices worked and she really made the role her own. For me it was great to revisit the show in LA, especially since the first time I saw it everything was new to me so I wasn't able to appreciate it the way I do now. I'd definitely recommend this production!

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 6/25/08 at 3:43pm

"Did you not get a callback for the tour so you come on here to trash-talk it?"

What's wrong with his opinion? He wasn't the only one to dislike parts of it.

Perhaps the OP can elaborate so people don't get worked up over "trash talk."

Updated On: 6/25/08 at 03:43 PM

[ACL2006]

Posted: 6/25/08 at 3:43pm

I'm hoping to see it when it comes to Philadelphia. I wonder if any of the current Broadway members might try to join the tour in the fall.

[Broadwayluva]

Posted: 6/25/08 at 4:48pm

Hey quick question - i was looking online at a web page that Nikki Snelson has up and she lists the dates and cities for the tour but skips over Boston and SC and continues with Cleveland -this could just be a mistake, but does anyone know if Nikki has a scheduled vacation - i'm dying to see her here in Boston, so any info (hopefully good) would be appreciated, thank you.

[Broadwayluva]

Posted: 6/25/08 at 5:17pm

ok, just found out - she'll be in Boston!

[krispy kreme]

Posted: 6/25/08 at 7:03pm

Hhhmmm, I didn't consider what I said "trash talk". I was just surprised at some of the weaknesses of the cast and the lack of crispness in a show that just launched its National Tour. I didn't tell anyone not to see it......in fact, I did say, "it was just my opinion based on the night I went.". So, I think people should see it. It is a great show and one of my personal faves. Overall, I was a bit disappointed. Nothing more, nothing less.

And since I am not a musical theatre performer, it would have been laughable for me to even be at the initial audition. I can't sing, I can't act, and no one wants to see me dance. Thanks for trying though,PalJoey. :)

[threatXthree]

Posted: 6/25/08 at 7:21pm

I saw it in LA this past Sunday (06/22). It was a matinee but I was pretty impressed with how much energy they had. That could have been helped by a particularly energetic matinee crowd (which could have been helped by the fact that the matinee was the only performance they had last Sunday and therefore the whole Sunday crowd was at one performance; full house). The cast seemed pretty solid. Natalie Hall DEFINITELY stole the show that afternoon. Though I didn't think Anthony Wayne was as good as every one said he was. Jay A. Johnson was a highlight for me though.

The two understudies we had were Stephanie Martignetti (Maggie) and Julie Kotarides (Judy). I had heard that Hollie Howard, who usually plays Maggie, had been out for a couple days so I was expecting an understudy but I was please with Stephanie. Though I was UTTERLY DISAPPOINTED with "At the Ballet." Not only was Stephanie flat, but she sounded extremely whiney. Julie on the other hand thoroughly impressed me.

I thought it was a good show, clearly the cast fed off of the audience's energy.

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 6/25/08 at 7:59pm

krispy kreme, thanks for your thoughts. I plan on catching the tour when it comes to Boston - hopefully the cast will have improved by then!

[aliciag]

Posted: 6/25/08 at 9:04pm

Just to add to what you said threatXthree, I also had an understudy for Maggie and that was the only one that was kind of a let down for me. I remember seeing Mara Davi in the role and getting chills during "At the Ballet" and it just didn't happen this time around.

Posted: 6/26/08 at 12:03am

thanks for the short review! that is disappointing to hear... I was excited to see the tour finally, so I hope I get to see it when they are more adjusted to their roles?

[downtoearth2]

Posted: 7/6/08 at 10:14pm

I've seen it a couple of times, and I have a lot to say...

The Broadway revival was particularly upsetting to me in its lack of energy - the cast members had good moments, but on the whole were lacking in a lot of areas.

Nikki Snelson, while maybe not the most TECHNICALLY trained dancer, has the fire and energy to pull off Music and the Mirror. Lets be honest, the choreography was made for Donna's style and wierd body, and it isnt that spectacular anymore... And Nikki sings in SOOO much better than Charlotte...

As for the girl who plays Val, she does in fact stop the show... HOWEVER, she is waaaaayyyyy over the top, her acting is NOT sincere, and she is in a completely different show - but, the audience loved her, so...

It wasn't perfectly together, but the dancers are much more talented than the New York Cast...by far actually. Standout dancers for me were Clyde Alves (Mike), Ian Liberto (Bobby), and Kevin Santos (Paul) - who's monologue was much different, but made so many people cry!

Denis Lambert as Greg is so funny, So is Liberto as Bobby.

Some really great voices too - Pilar Millhollen as BeBe (who oddly enough sounds a little like Bebe Neuworth) and Gabriel Ruiz to point out a few.

All in all, much better than New York in my opinion

[verynewyorkcurious]

Posted: 7/6/08 at 10:19pm

How was Paul's monologue different? They didn't gay it down, did they?

[Broadway_Bound_Star]

Posted: 7/6/08 at 11:52pm

"And Nikki sings in SOOO much better than Charlotte... "

Dear lord, I'd hope so. Charlottes singing fell short when I saw her perform MATM.