A Night With Janis Joplin
2 hours and 15 minutes, with one intermission
A Night With Janis Joplin - 2013 Broadway History , Info & More
Lyceum Theatre (Broadway)
149 W. 45th St. New York, NY 10036
"This is a night that will rock your world!" - Los Angeles Times
Like a comet that burns far too brightly to last, Janis Joplin exploded onto the music scene in 1967 and, almost overnight, became the queen of rock & roll. The unmistakable voice, filled with raw emotion and tinged with southern comfort, made her a must-see headliner from Monterey to Woodstock.
Now, you're invited to share an evening with the woman and her influences in the new Broadway musical, A Night with Janis Joplin.
Fueled by such unforgettable songs as "Me and Bobby McGee," "Piece of My Heart," "Mercedes Benz","Cry Baby," and "Summertime" a remarkable cast, and breakout performance by Mary Bridget Davies, A Night with Janis Joplin, written and directed by Randy Johnson, is a once in a lifetime musical experience that brings the music - and the woman - to life like never before.
A Night With Janis Joplin - 2013 - Broadway Cast
FEATURED REVIEWS FOR A Night With Janis Joplin
STAGE REVIEW A Night With Janis Joplin
6 / 10
It's a shame, then, that this musical doesn't give Davies much to work with other than her phenomenal voice. Written and directed by Randy Johnson, Night focuses on Joplin's musical icons - Bessie Smith (Taprena Michelle Augustine), Nina Simone (de'Adre Aziza), Etta James (Nikki Kimbrough), and Aretha Franklin (Allison Blackwell) - without revealing much about their influence beyond the fact that sheplayed that record until she wore it out, man. There's no trace of Joplin's juicy life - no gossip about what happened backstage at Woodstock or the Monterey Pop Festival, nothing about the night she allegedly broke a beer bottle over Jim Morrison's head, or her romance with Leonard Cohen, who later memorialized their relationship in the ballad 'Chelsea Hotel.' Instead, Johnson strings together broad clichés from her childhood memories, with Joplin's character insisting that women feel the blues more acutely than men, and that fans love blues singers more after they're dead. During one night of previews, an audience member audibly gasped 'Aww!' after the latter line, apparently unaware that Joplin died of a heroin overdose in 1970.
‘A Night With Janis Joplin,’ theater review
6 / 10
Where the script goes irritatingly wrong is Joplin's near-lecturing on the blues. 'I got the blues because I don't have my baby,' she says. 'I got the blues because I don't have the quarter for a bottle of wine, I got the blues because they won't let me in that bar ...' Enough. She brings up the blues so much that she wrings the color and potency out of the idea and has you seeing red. Better to let the music do the talking.
A Night With Janis Joplin History
Other Productions of A Night With Janis Joplin
| 2013 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
| 2016 | US Tour |
North American Tour US Tour |
| 2017 | US Tour |
2017 US Tour US Tour |
| West End |
West End |
A Night With Janis Joplin - 2013 Broadway Awards and Nominations
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Drama League Awards | Distinguished Performance Award | Mary Bridget Davies |
| 2014 | Theatre World Awards | Outstanding Broadway or Off-Broadway Debut Performance | Mary Bridget Davies |
| 2014 | Tony Awards | Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical | Mary Bridget Davies |
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