Side Show - 2014 Broadway History , Info & More
St. James Theatre (Broadway)
246 West 44th St. New York, NY
Based on the legendary Hilton twins, Daisy and Violet, SIDE SHOW follows their heartwarming search for first love and acceptance amidst the spectacle of fame and scrutiny under the spotlight. The world of SIDE SHOW is set against the backdrop of 1920's and '30s show business that seamlessly blend the worlds of carnival, vaudeville, and Hollywood glamour.
Directed by Academy Award-winner Bill Condon (Chicago, Dreamgirls, Twilight: Breaking Dawn Parts 1 and 2, Gods and Monsters) making his Broadway debut, this exciting new staging of SIDE SHOW has "the flash and velocity of a Hollywood motion picture" and "puts gripping emotion in the main tent" (Los Angeles Times).
Don't miss this remarkable true story of two sisters. The very thing that makes them different... makes them extraordinary.
Side Show - 2014 - Broadway Cast
FEATURED REVIEWS FOR Side Show
'Side Show': Theater Review
9 / 10
Bill Condon's fabulous 'revisal' maximizes the material's strengths and minimizes its weaknesses, serving up mesmerizing entertainment veined throughout with haunting poignancy...Condon puts the sideshow exhibits on lurid display, starting with the intoxicating opening number, 'Come Look at the Freaks.' This has the unexpected effect, however, not of vulgarizing but humanizing not only Daisy and Violet, but their entire 'odditorium' family...Davie and Padgett simply couldn't be better...the synchronization of their movements is as remarkable as their exquisite vocal harmonization. Their performances are both symbiotic and beautifully individualized...Irrespective of any awkwardness that creeps into the plot-heavy storytelling, the flaws are never enough to take us out of the show's enveloping world or to compromise our investment in the fates of Violet and Daisy...even when it borders on kitsch, the music pulls you in. It's not a top-tier score but it's a very good one, melodic and memorable despite lyrics that can be a tad literal and emphatic...Side Show may never be a classic musical, but in this superb production it's a hypnotic spectacle that packs an emotional wallop. Step right up.
'Side Show' review: Stellar revisions make revival worthy of Broadway
9 / 10
The musical about the real-life conjoined Hilton sisters, which crashed and burned in its 1997 premiere, has risen in a revision so radical and deeply satisfying that arguments could be made for calling it new...And with composer Henry Krieger ('Dreamgirls') and author Bill Russell, Condon created a big, old-fashioned, shamelessly entertaining musical that tells its human story while embracing, without forcing, issues beyond the showbiz saga of the sisters' sensational and sad freak show/vaudeville/Hollywood lives...Emily Padgett and Erin Davie are beautifully matched as the twins...While their predecessors in the roles were soaring pop belters, these women blend and contrast with sophisticated delicacy...the staging is so smart that we hardly notice such schlocky remaining lyrics as 'You should be cherished like the first bird of springtime.' The sisters may sing 'goodbye to the side show,' but Broadway is saying hello.
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Side Show FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Side Show History
Other Productions of Side Show
| 1997 | Broadway |
Original Broadway Production Broadway |
| 2006 |
Welsh Revival |
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| 2006 | Off-Broadway |
Off-Broadway Revival Off-Broadway |
| 2014 | Broadway |
Broadway Revival Production Broadway |
Side Show - 2014 Broadway Awards and Nominations
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Nominee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actor in a Musical | Ryan Silverman |
| 2015 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Actress in a Musical | Erin Davie |
| 2015 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Director of a Musical | Bill Condon |
| 2015 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Musical | Side Show |
| 2015 | Drama Desk Awards | Outstanding Sound Design in a Musical | Peter Hylenski |
| 2015 | Outer Critics Circle Awards | Outstanding Revival of a Musical | Side Show |
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