Cher

Doesn't the Rolling Stone article mention that the Chers will be on stage at the same time looking at and commenting on what one of them will be doing at a time? Or did I dream this last night?

They're already branding them rather distinctively asked on the wigs/era. Early social media campaign is pretty fun with the wigs silhouette. 

^

YAS! I'm here for it.

hehe...I'm seeing the first preview in Chicago. And I already have a friend who wants to see it midway through the run and is offering to buy a ticket. I can't wait for this.

So I saw the first preview last night, and that it was it was mediocre. In this diva bio jukebox musical (that's a specific sub-genre I've created, btw), we have three Chers advising and belting with one another.

They also use a "Cher Show" device to tell the story, which I thought didn't quite work throughout, nor did I think it was utilized fully. Overall, Cher's life isn't really one that required a musical. She seemed to have it alright. Yes, she worked hard, and yes she was used (but not specifically abused, at least not physically or emotionally) by her partner Sonny, and then she dated a random guy who seemed to be a bum, and then dated a very young guy who couldn't deal with her fame. She tried acting and wasn't good at it at the beginning, and then she was. Overall, I felt there was no examination of the woman herself as much as it was a chronicle of her rather consistently successful career.

All three Chers share the billing equally, with Stephanie J Block getting the last portion of the show. Most of the songs are there, but frustratingly none of them are there fully and are merely snippets. I think the show generally could work as a concept with some tightening, extra camping and probably bigger production numbers, but as the great Hal Prince said, and I paraphrase, you can't have a musical that you don't want to look at. And it's not much to look at. There are about two big LED/Light Bulb Panels that are lit to varying degrees through the show with different projections, and a central screen that has projections of some of the actions on stage. The famous outfits are recreated, but sitting close to where I was, I got an impression that they were a bit too "costumey" and practical, and not as precise or sharp as the originals. We have the three leads putting them on throughout the show, but also there are many other Chers that pose in various montage scenes (think Season 1 finale of SMASH where there are many different "faces" of Monroe behind Kathryn McFee). There's also a fashion show bit that showcases all the costumes. Think My Strongest Suit from AIDA). The choreography is a little bit flat, and the overall show seems to lack excitement and spark. Maybe it's because it's the first preview, and things will change as the run progresses, but this is the exact reason why shows go out of town.

I generally thought it was slightly lacking and unable to deliver, not that I wanted too much depth. Having just seen the Donna Summer musical, while it's far from being a groundbreaking musical and has its own nonsense going on, it seems to have a consistent tone and style, and just went with it.

Seeing it in three weeks!! Fingers crossed they ironed out some of the issues raised above.... 😬

Stephanie J. Block has now played both Liza and Cher on Broadway, talk about a career. Is she going to do Over the Rainbow next to get the trifecta of gay icons?

1-Perhaps the tone has changed since Chicago or he perceived it differently than you.

2-And regarding the Follies note ... as he says,  It’s (The Cher Show) not perfect (some scenes of dialogue drag here and there), but if judged against the other entries in its genre, this is like frickin’ Follies.  I read that to mean it is the most artistic or inventive in his eyes of these single-artist jukebox-style shows.

I have no horse in his race, but Whizzer has been a reliable source for recommendations in the past.

The show I saw they sang songs most entirely lol

Second verse, bridge and everything. Snippets were more of a thing in “Summer” tho.

The Cher Show now takes off from the get go. A juggernaut of a show with those big Broadway/Vegas production numbers. The choreography and costumes are shop stoppers. I heard major changes were done since the Chicago run. One knock out number after another and those scenes with Sonny were a pure delight. Three actress playing Cher at different ages in her life bring the show together. Cher is listed as one of the three producers, so she is definitely involved. Expect a long run at the Neil Simon theatre and lines at the box office.

I have to mention discounts to Cher and other Broadway shows on playbill.com
As we all know you have to take advantage of these offers. I believe The Cher Show is good into January.

Saw this today. Well, it’s another life-bio jukebox show and I think theatre audiences are possibly getting a bit bored of them now - but the audience today LOVED “The Cher Show” (weird name I know).

Three different performers depict Cher brilliantly throughout her life, and they impersonate her incredibly and often interact in the same scenes which worked very well. The show is full of fabulous catty one liners, all the hit songs, the costumes are incredible and the audience were left standing and cheering at the end. Stephanie J block is a STAR.

The MAIN issue with this new musical is that Cher’s life isn’t that eventful; her rise to fame, financial lows, lovers and female empowerment fine - I’m just not sure it’s tumultuous or entertaining enough as a gripping theatrical story. That said, I loved it and audiences will too. I’m sure it will come to London in 2020.

8/10

I hope it's a hit, I had so much joy!