367 posts
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Post by raider80 on Mar 17, 2019 20:07:26 GMT
According to Michael Riedel, most of the shows issues in Washington D.C. have been fixed. Beetlejuice Fixed |
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367 posts
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Post by raider80 on Apr 13, 2019 3:45:07 GMT
I caught this at the Winter Garden Theatre tonight. (4/12/19)
I've been excited for this show since it announced it was coming to Broadway. I was still routing for it following the negative response it got during it's tryout because I hoped the production team would listen to the response and try to fix the flaws before heading north to NYC. In fact, I avoided the Broadwayworld preview thread because, lets be honest, they can be unnecessarily harsh towards a show they didn't like and this is coming from a semi-active member on that site. So, as I walked out of the theatre tonight, I was really disappointed on what I saw. I wouldn't say I hated it but, it's not that good.
I'll start with the positives: Rob McClure, Kerry Butler, and Leslie Keitzer killed it. They took the material they had and took it to a whole different level, they were the only part of the show that really made me laugh. I see them all getting the third/fourth slot for best actor/actress at the Tony Awards but, none of them will probably win. The other real positives were the set and lighting design. They are probably the two elements of the show that might actually win the Tony.
Now the negatives: Alex Brightmen was miscast as Beetlejuice. He just couldn't pull off the role and the show stopped, in a bad way, when he was on stage and to be honest, he's off putting. Brightmen doing Dewy Finn as Beetlejuice. That shtick is good in School of Rock, not Beetlejuice. I knew the production team was looking into recasting the role but I guess they decided against it. The second thing, DON'T introduce Beetlejuice in the opening number! Build the suspense, make the audience want him! It sets a negative tone for the rest of the evening. It took me about 30 minutes for me to get fully invested into the show because I didn't like how the director handled the opening number. Eddie Perfect's score is not that memorable and the book does have some crude moments. I'm a sucker for crude humor but I didn't like how they did it in this show. Finally, I was seated in the orchestra/stalls and for the pre-show they had strobe lights in the auditorium, which were fine except when they got into my eyes which can be really bothersome.
My wife and I were talking as we walked back to our hotel room and she brought up that Tim Minchin and Matthew Warchus would have been perfect for this show and, I have to agree with her. Beetlejuice is right up Tim's ally and make the show something special like Groundhog Day.
The house looked full from where I was sitting and the audience around me liked it. I see this sticking around for 9 months to a year, reviews and word-of-mouth aren't great so I don't see this becoming a stall worth of Broadway. I don't expect the show to win and Tonys this year and I put a transfer to the West End to a "maybe" status.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 13, 2019 8:07:31 GMT
agree I caught this at the Winter Garden Theatre tonight. (4/12/19) I've been excited for this show since it announced it was coming to Broadway. I was still routing for it following the negative response it got during it's tryout because I hoped the production team would listen to the response and try to fix the flaws before heading north to NYC. In fact, I avoided the Broadwayworld preview thread because, lets be honest, they can be unnecessarily harsh towards a show they didn't like and this is coming from a semi-active member on that site. So, as I walked out of the theatre tonight, I was really disappointed on what I saw. I wouldn't say I hated it but, it's not that good. I'll start with the positives: Rob McClure, Kerry Butler, and Leslie Keitzer killed it. They took the material they had and took it to a whole different level, they were the only part of the show that really made me laugh. I see them all getting the third/fourth slot for best actor/actress at the Tony Awards but, none of them will probably win. The other real positives were the set and lighting design. They are probably the two elements of the show that might actually win the Tony. Now the negatives: Alex Brightmen was miscast as Beetlejuice. He just couldn't pull off the role and the show stopped, in a bad way, when he was on stage and to be honest, he's off putting. Brightmen doing Dewy Finn as Beetlejuice. That shtick is good in School of Rock, not Beetlejuice. I knew the production team was looking into recasting the role but I guess they decided against it. The second thing, DON'T introduce Beetlejuice in the opening number! Build the suspense, make the audience want him! It sets a negative tone for the rest of the evening. It took me about 30 minutes for me to get fully invested into the show because I didn't like how the director handled the opening number. Eddie Perfect's score is not that memorable and the book does have some crude moments. I'm a sucker for crude humor but I didn't like how they did it in this show. Finally, I was seated in the orchestra/stalls and for the pre-show they had strobe lights in the auditorium, which were fine except when they got into my eyes which can be really bothersome. My wife and I were talking as we walked back to our hotel room and she brought up that Tim Minchin and Matthew Warchus would have been perfect for this show and, I have to agree with her. Beetlejuice is right up Tim's ally and make the show something special like Groundhog Day. The house looked full from where I was sitting and the audience around me liked it. I see this sticking around for 9 months to a year, reviews and word-of-mouth aren't great so I don't see this becoming a stall worth of Broadway. I don't expect the show to win and Tonys this year and I put a transfer to the West End to a "maybe" status. |
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460 posts
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Post by pianowithsam on Apr 16, 2019 22:18:30 GMT
Might just be me, but this looks like the weirdest thing ever.
Can't tell if it's good or bad. Strange.
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Post by oxfordsimon on Apr 16, 2019 23:07:52 GMT
They have certainly thrown lots of resources at it.
It is definitely odd
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460 posts
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Post by pianowithsam on Apr 17, 2019 0:34:02 GMT
They have certainly thrown lots of resources at it. It is definitely odd Looks like the best funhouse ever. Just missing a slide. |
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4,982 posts
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Post by Someone in a tree on Apr 17, 2019 5:39:18 GMT
They have certainly thrown lots of resources at it. It is definitely odd Looks like the best funhouse ever. Just missing a slide. Pat is the best Funhouse ever. I could look at that hair for hours....  |
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2,699 posts
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Post by viserys on Apr 17, 2019 5:51:40 GMT
I'll be seeing Beetlejuice next Tuesday. Very excited. Even if it's not a "great" musical, it looks amazing and should be very entertaining and honestly, that'll do for me. Plus Sophia Anne Caruso. Loved her in Lazarus, glad to see her shine in a big lead.
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460 posts
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Post by pianowithsam on Apr 17, 2019 8:41:39 GMT
I'll be seeing Beetlejuice next Tuesday. Very excited. Even if it's not a "great" musical, it looks amazing and should be very entertaining and honestly, that'll do for me. Plus Sophia Anne Caruso. Loved her in Lazarus, glad to see her shine in a big lead. Looking forward to your verdict. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 17, 2019 10:48:56 GMT
The day Pat Sharp had his mullet cut off was the day my childhood ended, as I realised that all things will one day come to an end (but that doesn't necessarily have to be bad).
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367 posts
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Post by raider80 on Apr 17, 2019 13:43:32 GMT
Might just be me, but this looks like the weirdest thing ever. Can't tell if it's good or bad. Strange. It’s bad. Real bad! The best part of the show is at the 0:41 mark. |
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460 posts
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Post by pianowithsam on Apr 17, 2019 14:19:36 GMT
Might just be me, but this looks like the weirdest thing ever. Can't tell if it's good or bad. Strange. It’s bad. Real bad! The best part of the show is at the 0:41 mark. Lol, have you seen it? Have to admit, I do like the abstract set design. I also like the Basilisk-like creature that makes multiple appearances. Yes, I don't know the story of Beetlejuice if you couldn't tell. Will just wait to hear how things sound on the music side. |
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559 posts
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Post by danieljohnson14 on Apr 18, 2019 7:12:04 GMT
the trailer looks AMAZING!
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Post by Deleted on Apr 18, 2019 17:57:08 GMT
The trailer looks awful, and I would 100% absolutely go and see this show if I were in New York.
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170 posts
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Post by jess173 on Apr 18, 2019 19:52:17 GMT
I’m planning on seeing this next month. I’m really curious about it and I don’t really know what to think of it. The trailer doesn’t look bad but not great either.
I hope we’ll win the lottery. I don’t want to spend a fortune on tickets. 🙈
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367 posts
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Post by raider80 on Apr 19, 2019 0:22:09 GMT
It’s bad. Real bad! The best part of the show is at the 0:41 mark. Lol, have you seen it? Have to admit, I do like the abstract set design. I also like the Basilisk-like creature that makes multiple appearances. Yes, I don't know the story of Beetlejuice if you couldn't tell. Will just wait to hear how things sound on the music side. I saw it late last week. The sets and lighting was the best part of the show! Alex Brightman on the other hand... lets just say the producers aren't going to offer him a contract extension. |
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7,175 posts
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Post by Jon on Apr 19, 2019 19:15:40 GMT
It’s interesting that Warner Bros has never managed to do the whole screen to stage adaptation as well as Disney. Charlie was somewhat successful in the West End but not a success on Broadway.
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460 posts
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Post by pianowithsam on Apr 19, 2019 19:50:24 GMT
It’s interesting that Warner Bros has never managed to do the whole screen to stage adaptation as well as Disney. Charlie was somewhat successful in the West End but not a success on Broadway. Loved Charlie in West End. Saw some clips from Broadway - looked awful. |
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1,210 posts
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Post by musicalmarge on Apr 20, 2019 3:22:19 GMT
Saw this tonight.
What is it about broadway at the moment? Everything is so meh... it was enjoyable, fun but I had issues with the book and dud songs. Looks great though and looks expensive enough. A bland 7/10 - could have been much better in my opinion.
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42 posts
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Post by graham on Apr 23, 2019 14:37:52 GMT
Saw Beetlejuice at the weekend. It's got a great design, but that's about where the positives end. As a musical it just doesn't work - it's not helped by the songs being bland and unmemorable, but they add nothing to the show.
Alex Brightman is playing Dewey Finn playing Beetlejuice. The rest of the cast are trying hard with very weak material
Opportunity missed!
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2,699 posts
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Post by viserys on Apr 24, 2019 8:44:34 GMT
I quite enjoyed it. The music isn't great, but I was pleased to realize that it's more classic Broadway sound than that kind of bland noisy pop music that's all the rage on Broadway these days.
Happy to see Sophia Anne Caruso again who was so great in Lazarus and she gets the only real good song to sing with Dead Mom. Personally I enjoyed Alex Brightman, great fun and very likeable, only the "growly" voice grated.
Overall the show was very broad American comedy and initially the other women (Kerry Butler and Leslie Kritzer) set my teeth on edge with their extreme overacting, but it got better.
Would agree though, if this show had 2-3 more really good songs, it could be great, as it is, I'd settle for "okay".
It's a visual feast to be sure and amid the sea of current teenie/high school shows and jukebox pop I still thing it's worth seeing and I'm glad I did.
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367 posts
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Post by raider80 on Apr 25, 2019 14:06:09 GMT
Opening night is tonight and I have a feeling the critics are going to be catty.
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1,210 posts
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Post by musicalmarge on Apr 26, 2019 6:31:19 GMT
Saw Beetlejuice at the weekend. It's got a great design, but that's about where the positives end. As a musical it just doesn't work - it's not helped by the songs being bland and unmemorable, but they add nothing to the show. Alex Brightman is playing Dewey Finn playing Beetlejuice. The rest of the cast are trying hard with very weak material Opportunity missed! Agreed!!!! |
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42 posts
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Post by graham on Apr 26, 2019 11:23:42 GMT
Surprised by the reviews this morning. Whilst they are mixed, they are more positive than I expected.
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170 posts
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Post by jess173 on May 29, 2019 13:27:21 GMT
I finally saw this last Sunday and did not like it at all. I knew it would be different than the movie and I would have been totally ok with it but I just couldn’t warm to it.
The set and costume design were amazing. And Sophia Anne Caruso was really good. I just didn’t find the jokes to be funny... like... at all. I think I laughed 5 times during the whole show.
On Monday I couldn’t remember a single song.
We rushed the show and so only paid 42$ each. Our seats were slightly restricted to the right side of the stage but I don’t think we missed much.
I liked the second act more than the first one (which dragged on forever) but it couldn’t save the show for me. I guess it was simply not my cup of tea which is a shame because I liked the movie.
I really liked the interior design of the Wintergarden theatre and the music they played before the show and during the interval. I wish the music in the show would have been a little more like this.
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