Kansas City reviews

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porschesrule
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Re: Kansas City reviews

Post by porschesrule »

"Media Mike" adds his review of the show from Kansas City:

http://www.mediamikes.com/2013/01/theat ... -missouri/
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angelenroute
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Re: Kansas City reviews

Post by angelenroute »

porschesrule wrote:"Media Mike" adds his review of the show from Kansas City:

http://www.mediamikes.com/2013/01/theat ... -missouri/
Somewhere in Kansas City today, this writer will suddenly hear a loud, collective groan uttered by forum members worldwide reading his bit about the lack of hummable tunes.
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maria
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Re: Kansas City reviews

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Can anyone confirm Drew Minard in that stunning photo mid-aerial that is included with the review!

And yes, you can add me to the collective groan at the lack of hummable tunes comment!
<- A new use for the Billy Bag!!!
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ERinVA
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Re: Kansas City reviews

Post by ERinVA »

I will add a groan, plus one for the person I met at a dinner party on Tuesday who had seen the show three times, but couldn't get over his disappointment that the show did not end with the same scene as the movie does. :roll:
Ellen



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-George Balanchine 1904 -1983


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kport
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Re: Kansas City reviews

Post by kport »

maria wrote:Can anyone confirm Drew Minard in that stunning photo mid-aerial that is included with the review!

And yes, you can add me to the collective groan at the lack of hummable tunes comment!
Tricky, this.

The face (chin) looks like a young Ben Cook.

But I would go with Drew.
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angelenroute
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Re: Kansas City reviews

Post by angelenroute »

maria wrote:Can anyone confirm Drew Minard in that stunning photo mid-aerial that is included with the review!
I took it on face value that it was Drew because he was the one all of these reviewers saw that performance, but I just double checked (the picture is click-on-able for a very nice big version) and it is Drew. Awesome shot of an absolutely awesome Billy!
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porschesrule
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Re: Kansas City reviews

Post by porschesrule »

For those who think it's Drew in the picture -- congratulations!

Here's the link to the actual picture used in the story -- note the name included in the link:

http://www.mediamikes.com/wp-content/up ... _SMALL.jpg
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jdmag44
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Re: Kansas City reviews

Post by jdmag44 »

Fri Eve Kansas City Music Hall

ALMOST BEN

The show started 10 min late. Ben,s name was on the board for the role of Billy but they announced the role of Billy would be played by Drew.
Well I was to see this new sensation sooner than I expected
Could Drew be as fantastic as has been reported???? Let me just say OH YES HE IS!
I don't think this young man has acted before yet with only a few shows under his belt he was as comfortable on stage as any seasoned actor. His accent sounded so authentic and his diction was perfect. He is EVERYTHING. the other form members said he was AND MORE. Great singing voice and his ballet skills are amazing. His "Electricity" was brilliant his moves so fluid and graceful -just beautiful.
The audience was not very responsive and the couple to my right never laughed or even applauded except at the very end. I controlled myself and did not say what was on my mind.
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Re: Kansas City reviews

Post by Todd »

Thursday, January 24, 2013

Billy - Mitchell Tobin
Michael - Jake Kitchen
All other cast were regulars

I was glad to see Mitchell's name on the cast board when I entered the theater tonight, as I had hoped to see both of the new Billys while the show was here in Kansas City. It was an enthusiastic audience, which laughed loudly and applauded with gusto. After the show and during intermission, I heard several comments from people around me saying how much they were enjoying the show and how talented Mitchell was.

Despite the positives from all around me, I found it to be a bit of an uneven show. Part of the problem might have been me, as I felt like I might be on the verge of coming down with a bug or something. I was tired and lackluster and was having a hard time getting caught up in the performance like I normally do. Another issue was my having trouble adjusting to such a younger appearing Billy than what I've seen before. Had I not had a preconceived notion of what Billy was supposed to look like (in terms of age), it probably wouldn't have been a big deal for me. But as it was, I had a hard time projecting the anger, the standing up to his dad, and the ability to master difficult dance steps on someone who looked so young.

It seemed to me that things really came alive during particular scenes while many of the other scenes lacked a certain something that would normally grab your attention. Despite Mitchell's small stature, he gave a very powerful "Angry Dance" I thought. He also showed what an accomplished dancer he is in "Electricity," finishing with lightning speed pirouettes which were enthusiastically recognized by the audience. His real tour de force, though, was in "The Letter Reprise." His voice was shaking and he was crying real tears. Very impressive for someone his age to be able to work up that much emotion. He was still wiping away tears as he walked up the aisle, and even after he ran back down to join the cast on stage for the Finale.

As I mentioned in the review of the show from Tuesday night, the theater sound system was anything but crisp and clear. I did find it to be quite a bit better sitting down closer to the stage. However, I had to conclude that part of the blame did rest on some of the actors, unless it was their microphones that were acting up. The bantering back and forth between Billy and Michael during the beginning of "Express Yourself" and the Winter Scene drew very little reaction from the audience, as even I had trouble knowing what they were saying in certain places . . . . despite my knowing much of the dialogue at this point !
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Re: Kansas City reviews

Post by ERinVA »

It's a shame when a sound system makes it difficult to understand the dialogue, as many audience members are going to have trouble with the accent anyway, so this just makes it worse. The worst sound system I have encountered over the course of the tour was in Charlotte, which really annoyed me, and doubly so because I had brought along friends.
Ellen



"I don't want people who want to dance; I want people who have to dance.”
-George Balanchine 1904 -1983


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