Category: Musicals

Next to Normal – Musical – Twelfth Night Productions

Watched my 1st/2nd-most favorite musical Next to Normal with Paul. Aside from from the pitch issues (I mean ... it was early in the day), I was impressed. Powerful musical with a realistic (aka sad) commentary/ending on mental health. Is there hope?
Watched my 1st/2nd-most favorite musical Next to Normal with Paul. Aside from from the pitch issues (I mean … it was early in the day), I was impressed. Powerful musical with a realistic (aka sad) commentary/ending on mental health. Is there hope?

Type: Musical

Recommendation: See it! It’s my favorite (or 2nd favorite) musical. Seen it 3 times already … and none of them were professionally produced!

Rating (Out of 5 Stars): 4.5 stars

Negatives: Sometimes actors’ vocal pitch was flat. I suspect this was because I attended an afternoon matinee. It probably would have sounded better during an evening performance when their vocal cords were more warmed up. That being said, any tonal variation would probably have been unnoticeable to the untrained ear.

Story, Script, and Lyrics: Suburban mom with bipolar depression and schizophrenic features. One of the few musicals to win a Pulitzer (which is usually for books and not for stage performances), this piece is so well written and relevant for an over-medicated society (this coming from a pharmacist). It’s a great commentary on the practice of psychiatry. One of the treatments (won’t spoil it) was a bit over the top though. I absolutely love how in the middle of the first act (again, won’t spoil it) the audience caught completely off guard. I felt so betrayed! Such good writing. Unlike most musicals I like to watch, the ending was more realistic (aka sad) than your typical happily-ever-after. Basically, there’s no easy answer to mental illness.

Cast and Theater Company: Well-chosen cast. Hilary Heinz Luthi had a great raw voice for this rock musical. David Naber added a nice ballet-like sinister aspect to the Gabe character. It didn’t hurt that he was great eye candy as well haha. I’ve seen 3 performances from Twelfth Night Productions. Two have been good and was one was mediocre. I’m curious to see what the next one will be like.

Venue and Set: Venue in an old elementary school converted to youth arts center. The performance was actually in the gym. Despite the simple set, the cast worked well with what little they had and it let the writing/acting shine more. My friend said that he preferred this intimate simple production over the national professional tour he saw on the big stage at a major venue. He said it’s easier to experience the raw emotion. Interesting stage effects during the climax (i won’t spoil it!) of the first act.

Music and Audio: What can I say, I love rock/pop musicals. The band was good and the conductor/pianist (Greg Smith) was particularly enthusiastic and expressive.

Price: $ (Low-priced at $20)

Dates: February 16-18 & 23-25, 2018

Seating: General Admission

Link:

Hamilton – Musical – Paramount Theatre

Watched Hamilton: An American Musical w/ Paul. Golden voices & tight harmonies. Dual-rotating stage & lighting were a nice touch. Not a fan of the history lesson or the rapping. I'll concede to Paul though: yes, it's probably one of the most important artistic works of our time esp in this political climate. It was a great musical but I don't understand the hype.
Watched Hamilton: An American Musical w/ Paul. Golden voices & tight harmonies. Dual-rotating stage & lighting were a nice touch. Not a fan of the history lesson or the rapping. I’ll concede to Paul though: yes, it’s probably one of the most important artistic works of our time esp in this political climate. It was a great musical but I don’t understand the hype.

Type: Musical

Recommendation: Does not live up to the hype but it’s still worth seeing.  It’s probably one of the most important artistic works of our time especially in this political climate.

Rating (Out of 5 Stars): 4.5 stars

Negatives: Hard to understand what was going on. Also, not a fan of rap or history lessons.

Story, Script, and Lyrics:  The life and times of Alexander Hamilton during the birth of the USA. Since a lot of the lyrics were fast rap, it was hard to follow the story. Re-listening to the soundtrack cleared things up and I later realized that a lot of script/lyrics were quite clever.

Cast and Theater Company: Typical high-quality national tour production.

Venue and Set: Elaborate set with a dual rotating stage and clever light show.

Music and Audio: I was happy to discover that they didn’t turn the volume way up like they do most Paramount Theatre performances.  Not much of a rap fan but I loved the golden voices and tight harmonies of the girls’ songs especially “Helpless,” “Satisfied”, and “Schuyler Sisters.”

Price: $$$ (High-priced at $300+) – Sold out

Dates: February 6 – March 18, 2018

Seating: Assigned

Link: https://www.stgpresents.org/tickets/eventdetail/3492/-/hamilton

Jane Eyre – Musical – Seattle Pacific Theatre

Watched the musical stage adaptation of Jane Eyre. Very dry, dense, and lukewarm ... like most English literature. Would it kill them to lighten up (and do a tap dance routine lol)? Glad to have Paul with me to explain things and make jokes.
Watched the musical stage adaptation of Jane Eyre. Very dry, dense, and lukewarm … like most English literature. Would it kill them to lighten up (and do a tap dance routine lol)? Glad to have Paul with me to explain things and make jokes.

Type: Musical

Recommendation: See this if there’s nothing else playing in the city or if you like dry, dense, lukewarm theatre.

Rating (Out of 5 Stars): 3 stars

Negatives: The script and music was boring. Would it kill them to lighten up … and possibly do a tap dance routine? Ha!

Story, Script, and Lyrics:  Life deals a bad hand to an Englishwoman but she still manages to stay positive and to persevere.

Cast and Theater Company:  University production. Female lead (Jane Eyre) was pretty decent. Unfortunately, it was hard to gauge the performers’ talent because the musical was so dull. Furthermore, cast was critically low on male performers. I suspect it’s because Seattle Pacific University is a Christian (Methodist) university and therefore cannot attract enough gay students to enroll. In the words of The Producers, “Keep it gay, keep it gay, keep it gay” … in theatre.

Venue and Set: Simple. Interesting angular stage.

Music and Audio: Microphones used (thank you!). Unfortunately, piano was the only accompaniment … so it basically sounded like rehearsal. As a piano player myself, props to the pianist for pressing on (no pun intended) throughout the entire score! His or her hands must have been bleeding. It’s a shame the cast didn’t acknowledge the pianist in the ovations.

Price: $ (Low-priced at $15)

Dates: February 1–10, 2018

Seating: Assigned

Link: http://spu.edu/academics/college-of-arts-sciences/theatre/current-season/current-productions/jane-eyre-the-musical

Vanishing Point – Musical – Seattle Public Theater

Watched the musical "Vanishing Point," which explored the disappearances of Agatha Christie, Amelia Earhart, & Aimee Semple McPherson. When will I ever learn to stay away from historical fiction plays/musicals? So very dry.
Watched the musical “Vanishing Point,” which explored the disappearances of Agatha Christie, Amelia Earhart, & Aimee Semple McPherson. When will I ever learn to stay away from historical fiction plays/musicals? So very dry.

Type: Musical

Recommendation: Only see it if you like dry historical theatre.

Rating (Out of 5 Stars): 3 stars

Negatives: The script and music was boring. Plus, I’m not a huge history fiction buff. So, I left at intermission.

Story, Script, and Lyrics:  Exploration on the events surrounding the disappearances of Agatha Christie, Amelia Earhart, & Aimee Semple McPherson. So very dry.

Cast and Theater Company:  You could tell these were great actors but unfortunately they had a terrible piece to perform.

Venue and Set: Simple

Music and Audio: No microphones but the space is small enough and the performers project loud enough that you’re able to hear okay. Music consisted of bass (or cello?) and a piano.

Price: $ (Low-priced at $17-34)

Dates: January 25, 2018 – February 25, 2018

Seating: Assigned. Make sure you sit in the middle. The left and right arena seats suck.

Link: https://www.seattlepublictheater.org/vanishing-point/