Broadway Rocks -- Featuring a Playlist of Rocking Tunes from Musicals of Fairly Recent Vintage

The musical theater genre--colloquially known as Broadway, given its pinnacle locale--existed far before the advent of rock and roll.

And even after rock rose in the mid-1950s, for quite awhile the two idioms rarely overlapped.

1957's West Side Story focused on youth culture, and 1960's Bye Bye Birdie was acutely inspired by Elvis Presley, but neither musical could really be said to rock.

It seems that the counter-cultural phenomenon, Hair, which opened on Broadway in 1968, merits being considered the first rock musical, but it's not like a slew quickly followed.

Perhaps surprisingly to some, the early musicals by Andrew Lloyd Webber--Jesus Christ Superstar, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Evita, all 3 with lyrics penned by Tim Rice--are quite rock-oriented, having begun as concept albums perhaps inspired by The Who's Tommy, the first rock opera on vinyl.

There was a sprinkling of other rock-infused musicals in the '70s and '80s--Godspell, Grease, The Wiz and Chess--among them, but it was a handful of prominent shows in the 1990s that really helped strengthen the connection.

Presented onstage for the first time, The Who's Tommy had a nice run on Broadway beginning in 1993, and three years later, the massively successful Rent likely became the most notable rock musical ever, especially among those with songs written specifically for the theater.

Hedwig and the Angry Inch--its lead character seeming inspired by David Bowie, who along with Alice Cooper, T-Rex, KISS, Meat Loaf and others, helped make rock concerts far more theatrical--opened Off-Broadway (a Broadway staging wouldn't take place until 2014).

And with its smash London bow in 1999, Mamma Mia--featuring the songs of ABBA--firmly established the jukebox musical, by which Broadway musicals are created and marketed around well-known songs and artists, typically from the rock canon. (The show hit Broadway in 2001 and has toured everywhere).

From the terrific Jersey Boys chronicling the Four Seasons to the kitschy fun Rock of Ages, featuring tunes by Journey, Def Leppard and more, to myriad others of varying degrees of creative merit--see a list of Jukebox Musicals on Wikipedia--these shows have made rock music fairly ubiquitous within the parlance of musical theater.

I don't mind a good jukebox musical--Beautiful: The Carole King Musical is terrific theater--and though I still predominantly love rock music, as I always have, I also unabashedly love more traditional Broadway scores, by Rodgers & Hammerstein, Lerner & Loewe, Kander & Ebb, Bock & Harnick, Boublil & Schönberg, Stephen Sondheim and many others.

Although I was indoctrinated to Broadway as a child, I didn't really get into it as an adult until around the year 2000. And part of the reason for that was because in terms of new music by new artists, rock and roll had left me somewhat cold.

In large part--again referencing anything new, not legends playing live--it still does.

So beyond the jukebox musicals, it has been interesting and fun to note how rock music has made its way into original musicals, particularly over the past dozen years.

To highlight this, I have put together the Spotify playlist below, featuring rock-infused songs from Dear Evan Hansen--I just saw it last week--and many other shows, essentially dating back to Spring Awakening from late 2006.

I did include one song from the the 2014 Broadway production of Hedwig starring Neil Patrick Harris, but otherwise have limited this to songs from shows of the past dozen years or so.

So no Hair, Rent, Hairspray, etc., and I also avoided Jukebox Musicals. These are all tunes written for the shows they originated in. I think it makes for a nice listen and while some songs could fairly be described as "rock-ish," at least a few could really compete with most modern rock tunes.

Though he didn't fit into my explanation above, I think Elton John should be mentioned in terms of the merging of rock and musicals. He composed the music for several successful shows--The Lion King (initially the movie), Aida, Billy Elliot--and also Lestat.

I didn't including anything from Sir Elton in the playlist--some Billy Elliot tunes rock pretty well but are highly intertwined with show dialogue--but his success, critically and commercially, has likely helped blur the line between rock and Broadway.

Perhaps I should delve into the songs, musicals and songwriters represented in the playlist, but I think you can get the gist from listening, and noting the origins of anything you really like. It's not intended to be exhaustive, but feel free to let me know of anything it would seem I should've included. 

Enjoy the playlist. You can play it below, but if you need help finding it on Spotify, be in touch.

Giving My (Thoughts in) Regards to Broadway, plus a few other New York Trip Tips

I ❤ NY.

Not incidentally due to how much I love live theater.

So I was a bit tickled when my friend Dave, who will be in New York in early August with two other friends, asked me for suggestions of shows they might see.

But also a bit wistful.

I have been to New York City 16 times--including 11 in this century's first decade--always for pleasure, never business, and have seen 37 musicals and plays on Broadway.

But I haven't taken a trip to the Big Apple since 2011.

Now before you start shedding crocodile tears for me, I should note that I was in Manhattan for a few hours earlier this year, between flights of another trip that required flying into Newark Airport and out of JFK. Winding up near Port Authority around 1pm on a Wednesday, I almost certainly would have headed to the Times Square TKTS booth and picked up a ticket for a matinee--conceivably for Rocky, the musical--if I could have left my suitcase somewhere for a few hours (believe me I looked and asked).

By the time I got to JFK and checked my luggage, Broadway was moot, although I did have time to take the subway back to lower Manhattan and explore the 9/11 Memorial, which was quite moving and worthwhile (the museum wasn't yet open, but now is). Seeing historic St. Paul's Chapel, which survived that terrible day and now honors the victims & responders, was also well-worth my limited time.

So along with many other reasons I can't presently justify a trip to New York, relatively speaking I was just there.

But when the Tony Awards were held in early June of this year, I can't say I didn't pensively note that for the first time since 2000, I hadn't seen any of the Best New Musical nominees before the Tonys or knew that I would rather soon after (whether on Broadway, in London's West End, on a Broadway in Chicago tour stop or during a pre-Broadway run in Chicago or elsewhere).

Which somewhat complicates my answer to Dave.

For while I have seen, in some professional staging, 15 of the shows currently running on Broadway--and which still will be when Dave, Tom get there--I haven't seen any of the newer ones.

And with Dave having seen just 1 of the 15 I have (Wicked), I don't know if I should recommend an older show, just in terms of pure quality, rather than something newer and theoretically hotter (though The Lion King, Wicked, The Book of Mormon and The Phantom of the Opera remain among Broadway's top grossing shows).

Also factoring in is the cost and ease of getting tickets.

Especially during the summer season, when many tourists go to New York, it seems like about a dozen shows are drawing capacity crowds to every performance.

So while I could easily say that Dave (and Tom, with whose tastes I'm less familiar) should see Beautiful: The Carole King Musical because I know he loves the music, or A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder because it just won the Tony and seems fun or even The Lion King because it is simply fantastic--my mom has never had a more effusive reaction to any show she's seen--getting a ticket even at face value (at least $100 beyond the balcony, though in some cases not even) will likely be rather difficult.

This is especially likely given that--as they will be going to New York primarily to see both a Mets and Yankees game--their only available theater slot is Saturday night (or perhaps Sunday night, but almost nothing runs then).

So I think it imperative to pause here and cite six primary avenues for seeking Broadway tickets (there are many more, between brokers and discounters, but these cover the main bases best, to my familiarity):

1) Telecharge.com - for full-price tickets in advance. Per the above, the riddle here is that even if there is a show you're willing to pay full-price for, chances are good that tickets may not be available "thru the box office," especially for a Saturday night less than a month off. But before committing to one of the discount or aftermarket routes below, realize that if you're willing to sit in the nosebleed seats--as I often have--some or all balcony seats for shows with tickets available through Telecharge.com (which sometimes redirects to Ticketmaster but lists all shows) can cost a good bit less than "discount tickets," whose allotment is typically unsold Orchestra (aka up-close) seats.

2) TKTS - for discounted day-of-show tickets, purchased in person. There are actually 3 TKTS booth locations in New York, but especially for Dave's purposes, the Times Square booth (located "under the red steps" in Father Duffy Square at Broadway and 47th Street) is the main one. For 8:00pm Saturday evening performances, the booth opens at 3:00 and usually requires waiting in a long line (though will continue to sell tickets for any listed show, as they remain available, up to curtain time). What's nice is that you can now view the shows listed on TKTS for a given day online or via the TKTS smartphone app. Even though you can only buy tickets in person (with cash or credit) for same-day performances, you can check what's listed before heading to the booth, or even in advance to get a gauge for shows that are often discounted, or perhaps are listed on a Saturday or two prior to your date (and conceivably will be again, though not for certain).

3) BroadwayBox.com - for discounted tickets in advance. I was quite pleased when I came across this website a few years ago, as it offers discounted tickets to several of the same under-selling shows that wind up at TKTS, but purchasable online and in advance. Discounts usually aren't quite as steep as at TKTS, but I like the convenience of A) knowing I have secured show tickets before getting to New York and B) not having to wait in line at the TKTS booth, freeing my days for visiting museums, going to Central Park or doing a million other things in New York City.

4) At the Theater - for full-price, same-day or advance tickets with no added fees. Realizing that Dave & friends may not be certain of what they want to see ahead of time--at least among shows with likely availability--or interrupt other plans by standing in line at the TKTS booth, given that they're staying in Midtown they could just see a marquee that intrigues them and ask at the theater box office if any tickets are available, right up until show time. They won't save what they would on comparable tickets from TKTS, but may find a balcony bargain and/or would avoid surcharges, so this might not be a bad idea.

5) Your Hotel Concierge - for tickets at a premium, but often available for "sold out" shows. Virtually every hotel in New York has a concierge, or even just receptionists who have avenues to procuring tickets, even very tough ones. Especially if you are indiscriminate about what you might pay, this may well be the easiest route to getting a ducat to a show for that evening.

5) StubHub.com - for aftermarket (aka Scalper) tickets, with prices fluctuating with demand. Some people seem to think ticket brokers, scalpers and sites like StubHub are evil. Without naively ignoring the truth that those who purchase tickets simply to sell them at a premium drastically deplete the volume of "face value" tickets, perhaps even duplicitously, I have found StubHub to provide a valuable option when tickets to something I really want to see aren't otherwise available. Sometimes prices are way too high, but I've often bought tickets sold on StubHub for substantially less than face value. So it certainly could be worth checking for popular Broadway shows.

Looking into various options for Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, I found that it was not listed on TKTS for either the matinee or evening performance on Wednesday, July 9, so likely won't be there for the evening show on Saturday, August 2. It is also not discounted on BroadwayBox.com.

A bit surprisingly, through Telecharge.com for August 2 at 8pm, there are seats currently available in the balcony (aka Mezzanine, the highest level in that theater), but they start at $99 + fees and only a few of these are left. A good selection of other face value tickets are presently available for $125 to $169 per ticket, plus fees (seemingly only about $8), including on the lower level.

This certainly isn't cheap, but not out of line for good seats to a big name concert or a popular Las Vegas show.

On StubHub, for that performance of Beautiful, which isn't yet sold out, there are a few Mezzanine seats starting at $138, but all the rest of the listings are $240 and up.

If I were going to New York at the same time, I would likely buy the $99 Mezzanine tickets for Beautiful through Telecharge, if they remained available. So, Dave, if interested in these, act fast. Or ask me to handle the transaction.

But, of course, there are a few caveats to this. First, I don't mind sitting at the top of the balcony as you can generally see and hear well enough to justify the savings, but spending over $100 to sit in the back rows of the theater may not seem like that much of a bargain, especially to those who aren't equivalent theater buffs.

Photo by Seth Arkin

Also, although I often fit in baseball games, rock concerts, jazz clubs, multiple museums, famed
buildings, other attractions, notable restaurants, Central Park, several happily meandering walks and a few winks into trips to the city that never sleeps, at this point Broadway theater is largely why I repeatedly return to New York.

So not only am I willing to pay a pretty penny for it--and/or scout deals well in advance--but on a 4-day weekend trip, I have typically will see 3, 4 or 5 shows on Broadway.

Hence, to say that I would probably opt to see Beautiful doesn't mean that it would necessarily be my first choice if I only had time for one show.

Or even my top pick to recommend to my friends.

While I imagine Dave would like the music of Beautiful, and think it's awesome that suburban Chicago actress Jessie Mueller stars as Carole King and recently won a Tony for her performance, despite doing good box office, the musical--employing pre-existing songs in service to King's biography--has garnered only middling reviews.

It's also not hard to imagine that a decent touring version--albeit likely sans Mueller--will hit Chicago within a year or two.

So combining a confluence of factors--what I've seen, what I'd choose to see, what I know of Dave's tastes and predilections, perceived availability, cost and convenience of getting tickets, etc.--here are, in preference order, the Broadway shows I would recommend he, Tom and Fred (or any New York visitors with similar circumstances) seek out and see in New York in early August 2014:

1. Cabaret - I think Kander & Ebb's musical about a ribald club in Berlin amidst the rise of Nazism is one of the best shows ever created, musically, thematically, narratively and more. And the Sam Mendes-directed revival which starred Alan Cumming as the Emcee--in London in 1993 and on Broadway in 1998--revamped and revitalized an already brilliant musical. This production, with Cumming (now more famous as Eli Gold in The Good Wife) and movie star Michelle Williams as Sally Bowles, has been reprised. Even though I've seen Cabaret numerous times, Cumming would make me want to go again. And with Dave only having seen the 1972 movie, I think he and his pals would really like it. Plus, 40% off tickets have been appearing on TKTS, even for Saturday evening performances.

2. Rocky - Reviews for this "Sly"-ly inspired musical have been surprisingly stellar, more so for it's stunning fight choreography than its score. Dave, Fred and Tom are movies and sports buffs, and to my awareness, not overly caring about the quality of show tunes. I doubt the elaborate Broadway staging will be replicated on the same scale if and when the show tours, so to take advantage of 50% off TKTS or some nice Broadway Box discounts could well make Rocky a winner.

3. Kinky Boots - I raved about this England-set show about unique new ideas--in this case, structurally sound footwear for drag queens--having great economic impact upon seeing the first preview performance of its pre-Broadway run in Chicago. It went on to win the Tony in 2013, with a superb original score written by Cyndi Lauper. TKTS availability seems likely, though 30% seems to be the standard discount. (I should note that it has been announced that a Kinky Boots tour will play Chicago next summer.)

4. Beautiful: The Carole King Musical - I addressed this one above. Should well be enjoyable but I doubt it being better than Cabaret, Kinky Boots or even some of the following.

5. Matilda - Based on a Roald Dahl book, this musical about schoolkids who rambunctiously fight oppressive is really wonderful with a terrific rock score. I loved it in London; it seems to have gotten similarly stellar press in New York. Discount TKTS seem a good possibility.

6. Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill - This isn't officially a musical but a play with music, about the great Billie Holiday, starring the sublime Audra McDonald. Usually on TKTS.

7. The Phantom of the Opera or Les Miserables - Dave hasn't seen either of these classics on stage, but really should. Phantom is still haunting Broadway in its original run--since 1988--while Les Miz is back with a new production. TKTS possible for the latter, not the former.

8. A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder - This just won the 2014 Tony Award for best new musical and seems to have a cheeky premise Dave may enjoy. Without having seen or heard it beyond the Tony telecast number, I can't call it essential, and while it seems TKTS aren't an impossibility, it's unlikely for Saturday night.

9. Mamma Mia - Always fun, and Dave hasn't seen it despite liking ABBA. TKTS possible.

10. Bullets Over Broadway - Based on the Woody Allen movie and starring Zach Braff of Scrubs and Garden State, but not greatly reviewed. Should be on TKTS.

11. Hedwig and then Angry Inch - I'm not too familiar with this rock musical, despite the current run being a revival. Star Neil Patrick Harris was impressive enough on the Tonys to intrigue, but it will be hard to score tickets.

12. Once - A Tony winning musical based on the movie of the same name. Not a bad option, and likely on TKTS, but its relatively sparse scenery means comparable productions could be seen elsewhere. (The tour already played Chicago; I liked the show but not as much as I expected). TKTS possible.

13. Violet or If/Then - The reviews I've seen have been better for the former than latter, but neither seems to be called sensational. But their respective leading ladies--Sutton Foster and Idina Menzel--are. TKTS likely.

14. Chicago - Another great Kander & Ebb classic, but Cabaret is better. TKTS likely. 

15. Other Broadway options: Aladdin, The Lion King, Rock of Ages, Pippin, Jersey Boys, The Book of Mormon (Dave's seen the last two), Motown (currently playing in Chicago)

And a popular Off-Broadway possibility: Here Lies Love - With music by David Byrne and Fatboy Slim, this show is said to be a whole lot of fun. But it requires you to dance on stage with the cast for the full 90 minutes, which I wouldn't do and neither would Dave. There are a few seats but I think you have to insist that you can't stand. And the theater's location in the Village (or near it), rather than near Times Square, also makes this an unlikely pick for a single Saturday night slot. But it seems to commonly be on TKTS.

Helpful resources for show listings, reviews, theater addresses and more:

Playbill.com
New York Theater Guide
Broadway.com
Theatermania
New York Times Theater Section
NY Subway Map | Other Transit (MTA.info)
Wikipedia - you can find a synopsis of every show

Note: Many of the above list Broadway shows that will be opening, or soon to close, so can be a bit misleading for seeing what's playing on a given date. For this, use New York Theater Guide's "What's On" feature.

Other New York Tips

I'll make this quick as these are only a few of the numerous places I've really enjoyed seeing or eating in New York.

But I think Dave, Tom and Fred might well enjoy:

- Carnegie Deli
- A classic steakhouse: Ben Benson's, Frankie & Johnnie's or Del Friscos (in the bldg. with SiriusXM studios) 
- Live Jazz: Village Vanguard / Birdland (in Midtown) / Iridium
- Comedy: Caroline's (like the Iridium Jazz Club, on Broadway near Times Square)

Photo by Seth Arkin

- John Varvatos store in the former CBGBs, near Joey Ramone Way
- Central Park
- Hop Kee - a restaurant in Chinatown that Paolo recommended; great fried pork chops 
- Doughnut Plant - best donuts I've ever had; besides the original Lower East Side location, now in the...
- Hotel Chelsea - Many famed writers and rockers have lived here; though Sid & Nancy now most notable. Has a funky lobby, in a good way.
- Patsy's - An Italian restaurant on 56th street celebrating its 70th anniversary; said to be Frank Sinatra's favorite. I have not eaten here but am listing it largely so that I remember when pertinent. 
- Empire State Building - Yes, it's super touristy, but that's why I like going to the top. You can stand in line next to people from Malaysia, Albania, Ohio and everywhere else.
- Guggenheim Museum - Not quite NYC's best art collection, but the coolest building and easily navigable
- Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island 
- Brooklyn Bridge
- Coney Island
- 9/11 Memorial and Museum - mentioned above

High Notes Make For an Enjoyable, If Imperfect, Evening with Idina Menzel at Ravinia -- Concert Review

Concert Review

Idina Menzel
accompanied by Marvin Hamlisch
and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra
July 8, 2012
Ravinia Festival, Highland Park, IL
@@@@

Following a week where 100 degree temperatures made being outdoors, day or night, rather uncomfortable, Sunday evening at Ravinia the weather was picture perfect.

Unfortunately the star attraction, Idina Menzel, was feeling a bit under it, as she conveyed early in her performance.

Menzel, most famous for starring in the original Broadway productions of Rent and Wicked, explained that she had been rather ill the night before in Minneapolis, but didn't want to cancel her Ravinia gig given her great regard for the storied venue at which she was making her first appearance.

Had she not provided that disclaimer, I doubt that I would've observed that she was sick--especially from my vantage point out on the lawn, though I did sneak some peeks from alongside the pavilion--as she was onstage for nearly two hours, accompanied by legendary composer Marvin Hamlisch conducting the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

However, given her soldiering on, as well as the quite reasonable $10 lawn ticket price, the beautiful weather, pleasant company and a 'loverly' opening set from Hamlisch and the CSO--including "One" and other snippets from his Chorus Line score, as well as a sizable chunk of My Fair Lady--I'll be a tad less critical than I might have otherwise been of Menzel's own performance.

Yes, her stage patter was a bit excessive, making for subpar pacing, her renditions of pop tunes such as Peter Gabriel's "In Your Eyes" were less compelling than selections from her Broadway catalogue, and even the best of those--"Defying Gravity" from Wicked, "No Day But Today" from Rent--weren't quite as full-throated and spectacular as they might have been on another night. 

Had I paid $90 for a pavilion seat or endured a steamy 100 degree evening, it's likely I would've been a bit more disappointed. But Menzel, who I had the pleasure of seeing in Wicked on Broadway, showed why she was capable of drawing a large crowd to Ravinia without, conceivably, having that high a Q rating among the general public.

She did a nice enough job with "The Wizard and I" from Wicked, as well as in channeling Barbra Streisand on "Don't Rain on My Parade."

On Rent's "Take Me or Leave Me," she elicited some vocally impressive audience members to accompany her, making for a cute moment. Based on setlists from prior tour dates, this was seemingly a pre-planned gimmick, but when she brought a woman and daughter from the audience--perhaps friends of hers--to help hit the high notes on "Defying Gravity," it was clear we weren't getting Idina at her very best.

So my @@@@ (out of 5) rating may be a tad generous, but in factoring in several impressive moments--including the stellar CSO set with the affable Hamlisch--and a surprisingly long show, it sufficiently reflects my overall enjoyment of the evening, especially for the price I paid, if not all that precisely Menzel's technical merits on this particular night.

---
A few weeks ago, Menzel's Wicked co-star Kristin Chenoweth postponed a Chicago concert due to illness, and made it up a couple weeks later. I didn't go to it, but this begs the question: Would you rather have performers--particularly vocalists--reschedule or even cancel if they're not 100%? In other words, can you easier forgive the inconvenience of postponement than accept that on some nights singers may not be at their very best?

In the Spirit of Critical Congruency, Noting the Negativity about 'Ghost the Musical' on Broadway

(Note: This is not a review; I have not seen Ghost in New York, though I did see it in London)

As I hopefully make rather evident in my writings on this blog, I have tremendous regard and respect for the arts--and anyone who participates in them at any level.

So although I enjoy giving an honest appraisal of shows I see--and as I am not a professional critic, I actually pay to see them and am not compensated in any way for my reviews--I don't revel in being negative, nor nasty, about shows I don't like.

Even at the low level of reach and influence that Seth Saith enjoys, writing something unkind about a performance, and especially performers, would be to insult people who are far more theatrically, or musically, etc., talented than I'll ever be.

And bad professional reviews, particularly by New York theater critics about new Broadway shows, have caused many a show to close much earlier than planned. While this can be seen as a public service in saving audiences considerable money and time in seeing dreck, it also can cost many an actor, musician, stagehand, souvenir seller and ticket taker their source of income.

So I'm not hoping that Ghost the Musical closes quickly on Broadway in the wake of mostly scathing reviews after opening last night at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre in New York. But based on having found the show quite lousy when I saw it in London in late November with the same lead actors, I didn't feel it merited a Broadway production (unless the producers tremendously improved it).

Though I accept that my opinion of musicals, plays, concerts, movies, etc. may often differ from those offered by professional critics, I respect the judgments of theater writers like Chris Jones of the Chicago Tribune and Hedy Weiss of the Chicago Sun-Times enough to really wonder why they might have loved something I didn't (such as with Camino Real at the Goodman Theater; I found it almost unwatchable--as did many audience members who left early--yet Jones raved about it).

Thus, even as the half-assed critic that I pretend to be, or even just as an avid theater lover, I'm often quite curious about how Chicago and New York critics will review a show, particularly one I really loved or hated. I still recall how, after catching a pre-Broadway production of Hairspray in Seattle in 2003, I told my mom that it would win the Tony for Best Musical. And I felt appraisingly validated when it did (after garnering great reviews upon opening on Broadway).

Now, as proof that critical reviews don't always matter much to audiences, when in London last November with my friend Paolo, we opted to see Ghost--with half-price TKTS, mind you--despite it getting middling notices from the London critics. The show, based on the popular 1990 movie, had opened in July 2011 and is still running in London, so a cherished title can supersede negative reviews, and did so even in my case.

But by intermission, Paolo and I were in accordance that what we were watching just wasn't very good. Despite being written by Bruce Joel Rubin, who also wrote the movie that we both recalled favorably, the story and dialogue were hokey and shallow. And even with music by Dave Stewart (of the Eurythmics) and successful pop songwriter Glen Ballard, few of the songs could even be termed tuneful, let alone memorable.

It took me awhile to post a review here, but within a recap of my London/Paris trip, I gave it @@ out of 5. I called it "pretty darn awful," but didn't waste a lot of space ragging on it. Especially as much of what made it subpar was in its tone, and thus difficult to expound upon. I also didn't expect many Americans to have a chance to see it anytime soon; though in theory the Hollywood-to-Broadway (via London) transfer seemed a natural, the show itself just seemed too slight to survive the New York press.

So when I noted shortly thereafter that Ghost the Musical would open on Broadway in April, I was rather shocked. Yes, popular movies turned into musicals have long sold tickets on name alone, but usually it takes their being rather good to really have legs (and thus recoup the investment): The Producers and Hairspray being prime examples, High Fidelity and 9-to-5 the opposite and Young Frankenstein and Shrek having fairly good but not fantastic runs despite mediocre reviews.

While the creative team of Ghost may have been pleased with the box office take in London, the lukewarm press had to be concerning.

The leads in London, Caissie Levy (Molly) and Richard Fleeshman (Sam)--who have reprised their roles on Broadway--were attractive and not completely unappealing, and noting above the trickle-down economics of a Broadway show, I wish the enterprise well. But I'm not eagerly anticipating the day, about three years from now, when Ghost shows up on my Broadway in Chicago subscription series.

And thus, when I awoke this morning and saw reviews that said things such as:

"[Ghost] may not be the very worst musical ever made from a movie. ... But it is just as flavorless and lacking in dramatic vitality as many that have come before."
-- Charles Isherwood, New York Times

"This musical suffers from a jerky tone and by putting a premium on high-tech over heart."
-- Joe Dziemianowicz, New York Daily News

"The turgid score doesn’t boast a single decent hook."
-- Elizabeth Vincentelli, New York Post

"There is so much wrong with "Ghost," it's hard to know where to start."
-- Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune

...well, I can't say that I was surprised.

Still, box office receipts for Ghost on Broadway have looked solid during its preview weeks--although anyone so inclined in or heading to NYC should be able to find discounts at the TKTS booth or ahead of time through Broadway Box--so perhaps it will have a long and spirited run, after all.