https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/07/theater/diana-musical-defense.html
While I still think (https://sondheimforum.com/index.php?topic=1250.msg6580#msg6580) Diana: The Musical is garbage, I enjoyed this good-humored and beautifully-written apologia in today's NYT.
In case anyone's interested: a few weeks ago someone texted me
this slime tutorial (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YEeuwNSBlnQ) about "a girl who falls in love and becomes an actor," led until recently here in NYC by a woman whose almost-too-perfect (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHt-MY4mYwc) affinity for the material was finally rewarded (https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/11/theater/lea-michele-funny-girl.html), and duly applauded (https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/29/theater/funny-girl-review-lea-michele.html), last year after more than a decade of being sidelined for reasons about which I could never seem to work up any real curiosity.
But then,
Funny Girl itself has always left me cold. Even before this year's strike-related work stoppage, back when money wasn't so tight, I still couldn't bring myself to spend any on seeing this revival in person (it closed here last month, not long after recouping (https://variety.com/2023/legit/news/funny-girl-lea-michele-broadway-recoups-capitalization-1235689364/) its investment, and is now out on tour (https://funnygirlonbroadway.com/) with no one I've heard of). Still, "free, in my PJs, and desperate for entertainment" fit the bill after my friend sent me the link last week – and, for what it's worth, watching this very-good capture did inspire my first-ever mild glimmer of appreciation for the story, and particularly for its two leads, who capably carry an otherwise only-okay production. (In fairness to the creative team, even with stars as ideal as Michele and Karimloo -- plus Feldshue, indispensable as Rosie -- and book refurbishment by Harvey Fierstein, I'm still not sure there really
is such a thing as a better-than-okay production of
FG).
...Gee, still not sold? ;D This glossily pro-shot trailer might do the trick:
In spite of my well-known ambivalence toward Jellicle cats, this has kinda intrigued me ever since it was announced a few months ago. Next week my friend Kis will be hosting an out-of-town guest who very much wants to see it, and for a while I considered going with them. In the end, Kis and I both decided against (her guest will be seeing it with someone else), but it does still sound interesting enough to give me paws (see what I did?) about giving it a pass. (On the other hand, if I manage to see Jamie Lloyd's Sunset Boulevard (https://sunsetblvdbroadway.com/) this fall, maybe that will be enough ALW for one year).
NYT (feature): Cats Returns, Ditching the Junkyard for Queer Ballroom (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/18/theater/cats-ballroom-revival-pac-nyc.html?unlocked_article_code=1.1k0.OuME.W7XL0hdjfKMC&smid=url-share)
NYT (review): A 10th Life for Those Jellicle Cats, Now on the Runway (https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/20/theater/cats-the-jellicle-ball-review.html?unlocked_article_code=1.1k0.rP1t.Z-2eCOE2U8Va&smid=url-share)
TimeOut NY (review): Cats: The Jellicle Ball (https://www.timeout.com/newyork/theater/cats-the-jellicle-ball-musical-review-andrew-lloyd-webber-ballroom)
Facebook: Scenic Design for CATS: The Jellicle Ball (https://fb.watch/sS_iGSVOZ5/?fs=e&s=TIeQ9V)
HAPPY * PRIDE !
I am very interested in seeing this version of Cats. I saw a short video and it looks very intriguing. I wonder if the concept can remain fresh and interesting for the entire show. Sadly, I doubt I will make it to NYC before it closes unless it extends indefinitely.
Among the handful of reviews (https://playbill.com/article/cut-print-reviews-are-out-for-smash-on-broadway) of Broadway's
Smash that I've read so far, Adam Feldman's in
Time Out reads to me as the one I might most readily agree with, were I to actually see the show (which isn't beyond the realm of possibility):
https://www.timeout.com/newyork/theater/smash-broadway-musical-review-brooks-ashmanskas-robyn-hurderI especially like his final summation:
Quote from: Adam Feldman, Time Out 4/10/25"Behind every hit musical...is a hot mess," teases one of Smash's advertising taglines. But what's behind a flop? Maybe it's something like the warm mess we get here. They throw spaghetti at the wall and, when nothing sticks, they shrug and serve the spaghetti.
Most of the less-good reviews (which notably do not include Jesse Green's NYT rave (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/10/theater/review-smash-musical.html?unlocked_article_code=1._U4.t6SA.HQRlCTm5y5YM&smid=url-share)) seem to share Feldman's own good-natured shrug, noting (albeit sometimes mournfully) that
Smash onstage, while not great, isn't the fiasco of mostly-unintentional camp that the original series swiftly became — and that, indeed, notwithstanding a few specific elements and moments, even intentional camp isn't really the stage version's brand of comedy. Personally, I'd call pleasant mediocrity a significant step up from failure so frustrating it inspired the sorry concept of "hate-watching".
At the unreservedly positive end of the spectrum, along with Green, is David Cote's tickled-pink defense of the stage version, flaws notwithstanding, as sorely-needed, expertly-served escapist fluff (https://observer.com/2025/04/smash-is-escapist-fluff-and-exactly-what-we-need-right-now/). HIs review also stands out for wasting fewer words than just about anyone else on comparisons, good or bad, with the original series.