June 2011 Reviews - NYC

gpcolo
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Re: June 2011 Reviews - NYC

Post by gpcolo »

What a pleasure to read your fine review over a late lunch today. It only increased my desire to return to NYC as soon as possible. Can't wait to hear about Jacob's show...maybe over lunch tomorrow ;) .
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CJ-Rochester
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Re: June 2011 Reviews - NYC

Post by CJ-Rochester »

Wow thanks for the review Sean! I can't wait to see Tade for myself. The "I ate my vegetables" line brightened my day. :lol:
:/
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porschesrule
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Re: June 2011 Reviews - NYC

Post by porschesrule »

The wait for your reviews, Sean, is always rewarded. As always, thoroughly enjoyable reading. Thanks.
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johnnyc
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Re: June 2011 Reviews - NYC

Post by johnnyc »

angelenroute wrote: Tade’s Angry Dance:
This is one of those numbers that I have given much thought to, especially after many conversations with those who know the London version. I think it would work a lot better if there was more tap dancing involved from the Billy. Just split the outhouse time in half, have Billy stage center, tapping, maybe with his hands on his ears shaking his head a la Jamie Bell in the movie. It’s an incredibly complicated piece of choreography, and most doesn’t have to change as long as there’s room allowed for Billy to have more of a spotlight. Orrrrrrr, if they want to keep him in the outhouse box, have each Billy do ANYTHING THEY WANT to express anger and not necessarily in beat with the music. Just seeing him flail and pound away in anger would be better in my opinion.
YES!! YES!! YES!! Let them stomp. kick and wreck the box if they like, as Colin Bates almost did a few times. :lol: Oh how I miss the original London Angry Dance. :(
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Re: June 2011 Reviews - NYC

Post by cincinnati »

June 12
Billy - Jacob
Michael - Cameron
Small Boy - Alex
Tall Boy - Ben

I have always loved the Maytag commercial and actor Jesse White's take on the repairman, a real classic. Jacob Clemente reminds me of those Maytag washing machines, he never needs fixed. Jacob Clemente's rock solid performance of Billy Elliot is like "Old Faithful" he delivers the patrons their money's worth every show. I have seen Jacob more times (seven) than any other Billy and he has never failed. The Imperial was filled with young patrons this night. I have always enjoyed hearing and seeing the reaction of Broadway rookies at the Imperial. This night was sure to satisfy that part of enjoyment at the Imperial as the ones around me had NO idea what was about to come and the level of brilliant work on the boards by the cast. There was a group from Kansas sitting to my right and behind me down front by the conductor pit. The reaction of this group when Jacob did his magic was very interesting. The production even at the start shocks some first timers to the stage....they cannot even imagine how talented Jacob is.......Cameron sure got the attention with his timing of his lines.....Much stronger performance than in the past from Cameron. Ben Cook and Alex are both very solid performance. Ben Cook I say once again is such a strong actor ...... and a very nice person as well........
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angelenroute
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Re: June 2011 Reviews - NYC

Post by angelenroute »

angelenroute wrote:(.....part 2 (Jacob's show) coming soon.....)
sorry for the delay, was sick this past week, but here you go…

PART 2:

JACOB CLEMENTE, JUNE 5 EVENING

This was originally scheduled to be Jacob’s final performance in the lead role. Forum fans and members of Jacob’s fan club (my term, but basically a gaggle of giggling girls who went gaga for the guy at stage door) had flocked to NYC for the show. The online notice we saw detailing when exactly his final performance as Billy would be was updated later on instead of a new alert being issued. So many people would have never gotten word about this and many forum fans only got word at the 11th hour. In fact that morning on Facebook I got a message from a fan friend sending her best wishes for Jacob’s last show. The moral of the story? When a press release is issued, bookmark it and check back. They may just update the story instead of alerting everyone all over again.

Jacob Is The Star You’re Delighted To Find Is Still There:

When you see Jacob take the stage, it’s like you have a realization that he’s been in the show forever. Perhaps it’s because Alex Ko was injured early on and your mind puts him more into the 2010 category, or maybe it’s because Jacob debuted as Tall Boy first, but he just feels like the first and last of the second generation Billys. He’s the star who’s been in the show so long that you’re delighted to come back after any time away to find he’s still there. His voice is still great and he can still sing the higher notes with grace and believability. And height wise he’s taller, of course, but hardly at a height that sticks out in any way. The one growth difference you can see though is in the fit of his clothes. I imagine the company just refuses to buy shirt sizes and sweat pants over a certain length at some point, so a growing Billy in the final days and weeks of his contract will show more tummy than usual. :)

Jacob and Merle in Grandma’s Song:

Merle Louise played Grandma at the Sunday evening performance, and she was great. I’ve made critical notes about Merle in the past, but I believe she’s grown into the role very well, and the audience loved her! Huge applause, laughs and cheers throughout and at the end. Well done, Merle! Jacob did something in this song I hadn’t noticed him do in the past (but he may always have) and something I don’t think most Billys do. He turned back at the men at one point to see what his Grandma might be looking at, and then back at her. It added a lot of realism to the scene, which has always been one of my favorites in the show. Reality and dreams, youth and old age, men and women, even black and white and color, the contrasting themes of this scene make it a beautiful snapshot of life itself.

Jacob’s End In Born To Boogie:

At the end of Born To Boogie, Jacob takes a swig of Mr. Braithwaite’s beer, then does a quick tap dance and spin before they all fall together. It was a delightful and fun way of ending the number, and with no more flip off the piano, it seems we’ll be seeing similar differences in this part of the production. Should be fun to see what different Billys do!

Jacob’s Angry Dance:
He gives a strong, powerful, rooted in Trentness performance. Some Billys are born to do this number, and those with strong backgrounds in tap or whose acting skills excel seem to put more into this number, which requires so much personal strength. The best performances of Angry Dance are those filled with constant motion and not just choreographed moves, the ones where real anger can be felt pulsing from the stage, where the audience is as out of breath as the star by the last scream at the end. Jacob does a great job throughout!

One part that scared me though: We were in row A by the stage on the right side, and when Jacob first left the bathroom, it was obvious his leather tap shoe cover was very wrinkled. I wasn’t too sure what to think, but was concerned there might be an issue. Sure enough, when Angry Dance began minutes later and he was at the top of the bedroom set, it took him several tries to get that one shoe cover off. So I guess since it’s a thin piece, if you don’t fit it on exactly over the tap shoe, it can stick up as you’re trying to peel it off. Thankfully he got it off just in time and the audience didn’t even know it was an issue.

Royal Ballet – Dad and Posh Dad:

Well, I’m one of those who gets a kick out of the faces the current Posh Dad makes in this scene, but it did seem to go on for entirely too long. Maybe they just go based on audience reaction and felt like they should push it a little longer, who knows. There’s also a line that Greg says that he changed at some point and I have no earthly idea why, because it worked perfectly and now doesn’t. When Posh Dad says, “I beg your pardon?” Greg used to answer really slowly with, “It’s our first time like you nah.” The joke of course being that no one would still know that the “nah” (or however it’s spelled) is Dad’s way of saying the word “know.” But Greg says the line fast now or something else and it just doesn’t work. So a little less face gyrations from Posh Dad so Greg can say the line the old way please! :)

Jacob’s Electricity:
Great job from Jacob and he ended it with a huge smile, which I love. It’s more of Billy’s smile (acted) than an authentic Jacob smile maybe, but I love it either way. He did a great job, it IS a great dance, and seeing a smile from Billy just makes you as an audience member smile too.

Stage Door:

Jacob’s fan club, the gaggle of giggling girls (GGG) I mentioned at the start of Jacob’s review, were swarming all over the place, screaming for him when he came out the door and watching his every move. Someone heard tell of one of their mothers who learned that it wasn’t, after all, his last show, that she would have to pay for tickets again on July 3 for her daughter and her. They were taking pictures and getting autographs nonetheless, but something tells me more of them will be back again on July 3rd! Linda said we didn’t have many fan photos of Jacob for the goodbye album, so I posed for a picture with the star himself. He’s definitely taller than I remembered, but still just a kid. :)

As Jacob and his mom were saying their last goodbyes and walking away, the GGG let out a big, “1, 2, 3: We love you!!!” It’s nice to know Jacob has a fan club of kids his age. And something tells me his confidence and personality are going to earn him a whole lot more fans in the very near future! Watch out Justin Bieber!

Sean Patrick Brennan/angelenroute

"Good writers define reality; bad ones merely restate it." -Edward Albee
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CJ-Rochester
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Re: June 2011 Reviews - NYC

Post by CJ-Rochester »

Great review as always Sean! Hope you are feeling better today. Although I saw Jacob twice in March, reading this gets me all the more excited to see him one last time at his final show in July. :D
-Chris
:/
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atreyu
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Re: June 2011 Reviews - NYC

Post by atreyu »

Well worth the wait for your writeup, Sean. You've captured the events and tone of the performance, especially your alliterative description of the fan club. Feels right on the mark for how that played out during and after the show.

I'll just add two cents. One being my similar impression of Jacob as others have noted how fine an actor he is. A master of working with and working of the audience. I especially like how he patiently waits for the right moment to deliver his lines, allowing noise, usually laughter, to subside. And enunciating clearly. I was still picking up a few words here and there that I've missed in 14 previous BETMs, only two of which were with Jacob.

Second item is something that I had never seen before. During Once We Were Kings, when Jacob is hoisted onto Dad's shoulders, he is wearing Dad's hard hat with the light on! So Jacob was the first to shine the light around the audience, and it seemed like one of the spots he aimed it was at the GGG fan club in the mezzanine.

Between the swig of Mr. Braithwaite's beer and the miner's hat, wonder if these were special things he got to do just for that night.
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ERinVA
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Re: June 2011 Reviews - NYC

Post by ERinVA »

The miner's hat bit is done in the tour production, but I don't think I remember it on Broadway. I have seen Jacob, but I don't recall his doing that, so it may be new. 8-)
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angelenroute
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Re: June 2011 Reviews - NYC

Post by angelenroute »

atreyu wrote:similar impression of Jacob as others have noted how fine an actor he is. A master of working with and working of the audience. I especially like how he patiently waits for the right moment to deliver his lines, allowing noise, usually laughter, to subside. And enunciating clearly.

Second item is something that I had never seen before. During Once We Were Kings, when Jacob is hoisted onto Dad's shoulders, he is wearing Dad's hard hat with the light on! So Jacob was the first to shine the light around the audience, and it seemed like one of the spots he aimed it was at the GGG fan club in the mezzanine.

Between the swig of Mr. Braithwaite's beer and the miner's hat, wonder if these were special things he got to do just for that night.
Yes, as Ellen answered, it's on the Tour that way (the miner's hat bit) and this past trip to see the show was where I saw it had made it to Broadway, thanks for reminding me and alerting those who may not have heard. It works very well! And totally agree about Jacob's enunciation and timing--LOVE him! Acting is muy importante to me and Jacob always gets an A+!

Sean

p.s. happy I have made it now to "George" recently...I'm gettin there! ;)

"Good writers define reality; bad ones merely restate it." -Edward Albee
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