October 2010 Reviews - NYC

[Hesychius]

A great review, chocchipcookie26! I had similar feelings about the Broadway show when I saw it for the first time this August (and September ). I also especially liked the Grandma character and the very emotional "He could be a star"-sequence. And for sure, the stage door experience in New York is by far better than the one in London...

[BillyAddict]

And for sure, the stage door experience in New York is by far better than the one in London...

Especially the second time around

[Hesychius]

And for sure, the stage door experience in New York is by far better than the one in London...

Especially the second time around

You are absolutely right

[Muppet]

Wow, it was so good to see this on Broadway, and well worth the wait. It was lovely to see it fresh, and I liked most of the changes a lot (though i did miss the London audition scene). I don’t know if I will see the London show again, because I feel I have seen it enough times now, but this wholly new experience on Broadway makes me definitely want to see this one again

I thought that Carole Shelley was a fantastic Grandma

There's not much I can add to your wonderful and comprehensive review CCC26! I agree with virtually everything you said!

Wednesday 27th Matinee

Jacob Clemente (Billy)
Neil McCaffrey (Michael)
Greg Jbara
Emily Skinner

As another BETM Broadway first timer last week, I also thorougly enjoyed the production and would love to see this version again a few more times to properly take in many of the superb changes. It was so fresh.

I have posted how superb I thought my first Broadway Billy - Jacob Clemente was, in his thread. His interpretation and portrayal was utterly convincing. A strong, confident performer, demonstrating an excellent level of competence in his acting, dancing and singing ability, with absolutely no weak spots.

Emily Skinner gave a wonderfully warm portrayal of Mrs Wilkinson which took me right back to the days of Sally Dexter.

Greg Jbara's response/behaviour towards the ballet dancer in the RBS scene was hilarious!

Georgi James as Debbie was a little unclear at times, mumbling her words, shame. Neil McCaffrey as Michael gave a good performance in a MASSIVELY IMPROVED version of 'Express Yourself'.

'He Could Be a Star' was the most emotionally touching moment for me. The changes made to this scene had practically everyone in the theatre wiping away tears. 'The Letter' scenes were heart-wrenching too.

The casts attempts at Geordie accents wasn't too bad either, just occasionally dipping into Welsh and Irish at some points which I found amusing, but it isn't the easiest dialect to master!

The American audience seemed much more responsive than us Brits which was nice to see. The enthusiastic crowd bringing a wide grin to the face of Jacob after his brilliant 'Electricity' and no hesitation whatsoever rising to their feet at the end of 'Letter Reprise' after Billy says goodbye to Michael before the 'Finale'.

My only criticisms? I wasn't keen on the skipping ropes in 'Born to Boogie' and I would have liked the 'Billy jump' off the piano. There also seemed less tap dancing in 'Angry Dance' which was a shame as it seemed to lose some of its intensity.

However, all in all, a WONDERFUL PRODUCTION with many changes that I hope will make their way across the pond!

Thanks also to Jacob for signing my programme.

[Billy Whiz]

Thanks for the review Muppet.

I have to agree about Express. It really is superb

[Todd]

My only criticisms? I wasn't keen on the skipping ropes in 'Born to Boogie' and I would have liked the 'Billy jump' off the piano.

Having just seen the 2nd national tour in Durham, NC, I noticed that Billy does do a flip off the piano there. They also don't try to have Mrs. Wilkinson and Billy jump rope together as they do in New York. This could be because they didn't feel that the actress on the tour was as strong with her dancing - or rope jumping - and opted not to try it there. Or it could be that they're thinking of re-working this part of the scene and may decide to drop that part of the rope jumping in all the productions.

No doubt the production team sees this as another chance to tinker with the show and try some different things that they might try then with the other cities. The 1st National tour in Chicago, for example, is where they first introduced having Grandma give the finger to Dad and Tony in the scene where Billy's RBS letter arrives - which is now part of all the productions, I believe.

[Billy Whiz]

They also don't try to have Mrs. Wilkinson and Billy jump rope together as they do in New York.

I was in New York a couple of weeks ago and Mrs Wilkinson did not do any skipping - she just held the ropes and twirled them at the end. It went a lot smoother that way.

No doubt the production team sees this as another chance to tinker with the show and try some different things that they might try then with the other cities. The 1st National tour in Chicago, for example, is where they first introduced having Grandma give the finger to Dad and Tony in the scene where Billy's RBS letter arrives - which is now part of all the productions, I believe.

You are correct Todd as I have seen them do it in New York and London recently - and it always raises a good laugh

[ERinVA]

Yes, I gather that when Emily Skinner moved to NY, her version of B2B, without Mrs. W. doing any tap of skipping, moved with her.
And this is the version they are using on the Second Tour as well.

[angelenroute]

The cast's attempts at Geordie accents wasn't too bad either, just occasionally dipping into Welsh and Irish at some points which I found amusing, but it isn't the easiest dialect to master!

I laughed when I read this because even though I wouldn't exactly say I was an expert or anything, I always find it strange and funny when I hear one cast member say the line, "So what are we supposed to do then?" or whatever the line is and I expect him to start an Irish jig afterward and a song about how he can't find his Lucky Charms.

But yes, we are by nature armchair critics, so I hope they all know how great we think they all are, even if they are only 99% perfect sometimes. =)

Sean

[Todd]

No doubt the production team sees this as another chance to tinker with the show and try some different things that they might try then with the other cities. The 1st National tour in Chicago, for example, is where they first introduced having Grandma give the finger to Dad and Tony in the scene where Billy's RBS letter arrives - which is now part of all the productions, I believe.

You are correct Todd as I have seen them do it in New York and London recently - and it always raises a good laugh

And as an example where all things old are new again, in Sunday afternoon's show in Durham, NC, the small boy didn't insult George with "fat bas****!" as he was leaving his boxing lesson but rather with the original line of "wa****!" Hadn't heard that in any of the U.S. productions for quite sometime. It got merely a few chuckles from the audience, so I suspect George will once again return to being a fat bas**** before too long !