First one in, from The Sentinel:
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/entertai ... 4634.story
Orlando Reviews
Re: Orlando Reviews
Not a particularly positive review. "Meandering and repetitious"? Never heard that before.
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ERinVA
- Site Admin
- Posts: 17974
- Joined: Thu Mar 19, 2009 1:33 am
- Location: Williamsburg, Virginia, USA
Re: Orlando Reviews
I guess BETM is lucky it's moving on after a week, given the review above and now this one.
http://blogs.orlandoweekly.com/index.ph ... s-america/
http://blogs.orlandoweekly.com/index.ph ... s-america/
Ellen
"I don't want people who want to dance; I want people who have to dance.”
-George Balanchine 1904 -1983
To follow the forum's Twitter at http://twitter.com/BEForum, click on the direct link in Applies to All Forums above.
"I don't want people who want to dance; I want people who have to dance.”
-George Balanchine 1904 -1983
To follow the forum's Twitter at http://twitter.com/BEForum, click on the direct link in Applies to All Forums above.
Re: Orlando Reviews
Wow! That is a harsh review. I always wonder how the same show, and same cast, can have such great reviews in one city and then the not so great in others.ERinVA wrote:I guess BETM is lucky it's moving on after a week, given the review above and now this one.
http://blogs.orlandoweekly.com/index.ph ... s-america/
Re: Orlando Reviews
Orlando is a pretty unfriendly place. I say that as a former resident. I couldn't wait to leave. It is great for a vacation, but it is busy and not a little frantic for those who live and work there. Remember, the place is more or less set up for entertainment and those in entertainment are often the most scathing of others in that field. I was not surprised when the show was cut to just one week as I know that tourists will be too busy with Disney etc to go to a musical, and the locals are too busy and tired waiting on the hordes of tourists. I shouldn't worry about Orlando. BETM will do just fine there. It will do MUCH better in Ft Lauderdale and Clearwater. Those places have a soul.ERinVA wrote:I guess BETM is lucky it's moving on after a week, given the review above and now this one.
http://blogs.orlandoweekly.com/index.ph ... s-america/
Re: Orlando Reviews
That's good to hear ... looking forward to see the show in Ft. Lauderdale in a couple of weeks.kport wrote:I shouldn't worry about Orlando. BETM will do just fine there. It will do MUCH better in Ft Lauderdale and Clearwater. Those places have a soul.
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cainmac
- Small Boy
- Posts: 80
- Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 4:38 pm
- Location: The other Melbourne, in Florida
Re: Orlando Reviews
Ouch. Please, let's give the people of Orlando a little soul. It's just a couple of bad reviews.
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ERinVA
- Site Admin
- Posts: 17974
- Joined: Thu Mar 19, 2009 1:33 am
- Location: Williamsburg, Virginia, USA
Re: Orlando Reviews
Finally someone who liked it!
http://extremeculture.flatoday.net/2012 ... rific.html
And apparently a more comprehensive review will appear on Friday.
http://extremeculture.flatoday.net/2012 ... rific.html
And apparently a more comprehensive review will appear on Friday.
Ellen
"I don't want people who want to dance; I want people who have to dance.”
-George Balanchine 1904 -1983
To follow the forum's Twitter at http://twitter.com/BEForum, click on the direct link in Applies to All Forums above.
"I don't want people who want to dance; I want people who have to dance.”
-George Balanchine 1904 -1983
To follow the forum's Twitter at http://twitter.com/BEForum, click on the direct link in Applies to All Forums above.
-
cainmac
- Small Boy
- Posts: 80
- Joined: Mon Sep 06, 2010 4:38 pm
- Location: The other Melbourne, in Florida
Re: Orlando Reviews
That would be from our hometown newspaper in Melbourne and Brevard County.
Good review, Florida Today!!
Good review, Florida Today!!
Re: Orlando Reviews
I went to see the production last night in Orlando. My first visit to the new tour.
As with every Billy production, there is so much to praise that it is difficult to single out what to cite and what to leave out. So I will make several comments about the good things and the changes to the production that I noted:
-the Ballet Girls looked to be the same as last year's, and I could make out Lexi. They really have it down pat, and have a number of little 'things' going on that I hadn't seen before. Brilliant!
-Cameron Clifford - simply fantastic! Samantha Blaire Cutler - nice to see a younger Debbie (like London). Excellent job! Rich Hebert just exudes Jackie. He IS Jackie. Leah Hocking got it just right. Joel Blum was as great as he was a year ago (it is interesting to note the little added 'touches'). Cullen Titmas had the right blend of righteous anger and vulnerability. Job Christenson was hilarious, adding a few extra comedic bits that had us roaring with laughter. Max Baud is solid as a rock - he and Zach performed a splendid Dream Ballet sequence. The real 'diva' of the evening was Cynthia Darlow, but we all know how wonderful she is. In fact, the whole cast was wonderful...but we have come to expect that, don't we?
-the swearing is back! Just as it is in London and was on Broadway. The audience seemed to approve; a few walked out early on because of it. Well, I hope they didn't get a refund!
-we had a Small Girl (Brionna Trilling) instead of Small Boy and she did a cracking job. My only reservation is that I view Small Boy as the 'younger' Billy to serve as a counterweight to Max Baud's Older Billy, so for me I had to mentally readjust my interpretation of that role. I believe I saw a London production where one of the BGs played Small Boy as a boy. I have to think a tad more about which is better.
-there were some serious mic/sound issues in the first act. Debbie's important line 'Want to see my hoohoo' was lost entirely; and Billy's mic failed for the Angry Dance, rendering his scream/shouts almost inaudible. A shame. The mic issue led to some lines overlapping each other as actors tried to make things work. All was well in the second act which was much more confident.
-Zach Manske is a very accomplished dancer and his acting, blocking and stage presence were all spot on. He did an extremely good 'Electricity' with phenomenal dancing, for which he received a standing ovation.
I was a tad harsh about Orlando in a post yesterday; my comments were directed at the musical critics there. The audience I sat with were quite mute during the first act and not very responsive, but came alive during the second. There was a massive cheer at the line 'This boxing club supports the Arts' which makes me wonder if many there were season ticket holders? There were two standing ovations at the end. It was as though the audience came alive in time for the second half.
There were a number of walk outs during the moments when profanity was used by or in front of children; two women walked out very unhappy during the scene where Michael kisses Billy. This IS conservative Florida, after all, but I saw no such scenes in eight performances in Tampa. I would say the vast majority loved it.
The problem is, the theatre was only about 2/3rd full.
As with every Billy production, there is so much to praise that it is difficult to single out what to cite and what to leave out. So I will make several comments about the good things and the changes to the production that I noted:
-the Ballet Girls looked to be the same as last year's, and I could make out Lexi. They really have it down pat, and have a number of little 'things' going on that I hadn't seen before. Brilliant!
-Cameron Clifford - simply fantastic! Samantha Blaire Cutler - nice to see a younger Debbie (like London). Excellent job! Rich Hebert just exudes Jackie. He IS Jackie. Leah Hocking got it just right. Joel Blum was as great as he was a year ago (it is interesting to note the little added 'touches'). Cullen Titmas had the right blend of righteous anger and vulnerability. Job Christenson was hilarious, adding a few extra comedic bits that had us roaring with laughter. Max Baud is solid as a rock - he and Zach performed a splendid Dream Ballet sequence. The real 'diva' of the evening was Cynthia Darlow, but we all know how wonderful she is. In fact, the whole cast was wonderful...but we have come to expect that, don't we?
-the swearing is back! Just as it is in London and was on Broadway. The audience seemed to approve; a few walked out early on because of it. Well, I hope they didn't get a refund!
-we had a Small Girl (Brionna Trilling) instead of Small Boy and she did a cracking job. My only reservation is that I view Small Boy as the 'younger' Billy to serve as a counterweight to Max Baud's Older Billy, so for me I had to mentally readjust my interpretation of that role. I believe I saw a London production where one of the BGs played Small Boy as a boy. I have to think a tad more about which is better.
-there were some serious mic/sound issues in the first act. Debbie's important line 'Want to see my hoohoo' was lost entirely; and Billy's mic failed for the Angry Dance, rendering his scream/shouts almost inaudible. A shame. The mic issue led to some lines overlapping each other as actors tried to make things work. All was well in the second act which was much more confident.
-Zach Manske is a very accomplished dancer and his acting, blocking and stage presence were all spot on. He did an extremely good 'Electricity' with phenomenal dancing, for which he received a standing ovation.
I was a tad harsh about Orlando in a post yesterday; my comments were directed at the musical critics there. The audience I sat with were quite mute during the first act and not very responsive, but came alive during the second. There was a massive cheer at the line 'This boxing club supports the Arts' which makes me wonder if many there were season ticket holders? There were two standing ovations at the end. It was as though the audience came alive in time for the second half.
There were a number of walk outs during the moments when profanity was used by or in front of children; two women walked out very unhappy during the scene where Michael kisses Billy. This IS conservative Florida, after all, but I saw no such scenes in eight performances in Tampa. I would say the vast majority loved it.
The problem is, the theatre was only about 2/3rd full.