Smash's BOMBSHELL Gets "Original Cast Recording"

SMASH's show within a show BOMBSHELL will get an "Original Cast Recording" on February 12th featuring music from both seasons. While it will feature the original vocalists of the previously recorded tracks (meaning no single Marilyn), it will feature all of the show's music, in order of performance.

I think this is a really awesome idea and will give us fans an idea of what the actual show BOMBSHELL would feel like. I still would love to see it on Broadway, even though I know that will never happen.

The recording will be released as a 22-track CD, with a bonus CD through Target. It will feature the cast of SMASH as well as guest stars Uma Thurman, Bernadette Peters, and Nick Jonas. The bonus CD will feature covers of BOMBSHELL songs by Jane Krakowski and Christine Ebersole.

The tracklisting is:

BOMBSHELL Act One
01) “LET ME BE YOUR STAR” (Extended Intro) - Katharine McPhee & Megan Hilty
02) “AT YOUR FEET” - Bernadette Peters with Sophia Caruso and Ensemble
03) “SMASH!” - Megan Hilty & Katharine McPhee and Ensemble
04) “NEVER GIVE ALL THE HEART” - Katharine McPhee
05) “THE 20th CENTURY FOX MAMBO” - Katharine McPhee and Ensemble
06) “THE NATIONAL PASTIME” - Megan Hilty and Ensemble
07) “HISTORY IS MADE AT NIGHT” - Megan Hilty & Will Chase and Ensemble
08) “I NEVER MET A WOLF WHO DIDN’T LOVE TO HOWL” - Megan Hilty with Debra Messing, Nick Jonas, Christian Borle, Will Chase, Jaime Cepero, Phillip Spaeth and Ensemble
09) “MR. & MRS. SMITH” - Megan Hilty & Will Chase
10) “DON’T SAY YES UNTIL I FINISH TALKING” - Christian Borle and Ensemble
11) “ON LEXINGTON & 52nd STREET” - Will Chase and Ensemble
12) “CUT, PRINT…MOVING ON” - Katharine McPhee and Ensemble

BOMBSHELL Act Two
13) “PUBLIC RELATIONS” - Katharine McPhee with Christian Borle and Ensemble
14) “DIG DEEP” - Megan Hilty with Henry Stram, Phillip Spaeth, Wesley Taylor and Ensemble
15) “SECOND HAND WHITE BABY GRAND” - Megan Hilty
16) “THEY JUST KEEP MOVING THE LINE” - Megan Hilty
17) “LET’S BE BAD” - Megan Hilty and Ensemble
18) “THE RIGHT REGRETS" - Debra Messing with Christian Borle
19) “(LET’S START) TOMORROW TONIGHT” - Leslie Odom, Jr. with Christian Borle, Wesley Taylor, Savannah Wise and Ensemble
20) “OUR LITTLE SECRET” - Julian Ovenden & Katharine McPhee
21) “HANG THE MOON” - Bernadette Peters with Megan Hilty
22) “DON’T FORGET ME” - Katharine McPhee
BONUS CD SONGS (TARGET EXCLUSIVE)
01) AN INTERVIEW WITH THE SONGWRITERS- Marc Shaiman & Scott Wittman
02) "SMASH!" Jane Krakowski
03) "NEVER GIVE ALL THE HEART"- Megan Hilty
04) "SECOND HAND WHITE BABY GRAND"- Christine Ebersole

I can't wait. SMASH debuts on NBC on February 5th!

REVIEW: Roundabout's THE MYSTERY OF EDWIN DROOD

I just saw Roundabout Theatre Company's production of THE MYSTERY OF EDWIN DROOD. And the first thing I will say is that this was the most fun night of theatre I have ever had. I've had minimal knowledge of this show, so going into it, I was pleasantly surprised.

What was interesting for me, which I don't think I have ever experienced, is that the weakest point of the evening was the music. It was hard to hear, even though it was well sung by this all-star cast, and it wasn't as good or necessary as the book. The scenes were wonderfully acted and had stellar jokes and comedic moments.

The evening follows a performance at the Royal Music Hall of a performance of the Mystery of Edwin Drood, so every actor played a character and a character within the show within a show. In my performance, Rosa Bud (Betsy Wolfe) was voted as the murderer, Bazzard (Peter Benson) was voted as Dick Datchery, and Helena and Neville Landless (Jessie Mueller and Andy Karl) were voted as the lovers (which proved particularly comedic). I absolutely loved Rosa's confession, because Wolfe is such a phenomenal vocalist and actor, so am glad I saw her as the murderer.

Overall the actors were all spot on with their comedic timing and their performances in general. No single actor stood out as amazing or the opposite because everyone was so strong. Obviously Chita Rivera, Will Chase, and Stephanie J. Block were as strong as one would expect, but some of the younger and lesser known actors: Wolfe, Mueller, Karl, Robert Creighton (as Durdles) really shone.

I highly recommend this show and think people should see it before it closes on March 10th (assuming no further extension is announced). It was a great night out and such a fun night of theatre. I have a feeling this show will be well represented come Tony-time in June.

REVIEW: BARE at New World Stages

Yesterday I saw BARE at New World Stages Off-Broadway. As someone who was relatively familiar with the old, pop-opera version of the show, I really enjoyed this new, updated version. Now BARE is a book musical that features some of the strongest songs from the original, as well as some great new ones.

The first thing you notice when you walk in is the set, a very geometric set with a lot of crosses, setting up the religious themes, as well as a set decorated in Instagram pictures. I thought the overall design and functionality of the set was really great and worked well to make the different locations throughout the show, but thought that the Instagram-clad decoration was a little campy for my taste.

Now to the performance itself. Overall, I thought that the direction was really good, and Stafford Arima really drew out some great non-scripted moments. My main problem was that the choreography was a little strange. It was very modern, something I'd expect to see at a dance show, but really took you out of the world of the show because it was so unnatural.

At the performance I saw, Taylor Trensch, who plays Peter, was out and his understudy Alex Wyse was on. All I can say is thank God, because Wyse was phenomenal and had a great voice. You couldn't even tell he didn't perform as Peter every night. The other male lead, Jason, the closeted jock, was performed extremely authentically by Jason Hite. He was one of, if not the strongest vocalist and actor in the cast. He was one of the few that I didn't feel over-stereotyped their character. Barrett Wilbert Weed as the outcast Nadia was also extremely strong and had the best voice in the cast of any of the female actresses.

The rest of the cast was good, not outstanding, but definitely not bad. I think they all looked young, which really helped set the scene that they are in high school and didn't seem to far removed so that they couldn't act their characters authentically.

I really hope that this show stays strong, gets a cast recording, and that the word gets out there. It's a very strong piece of theatre that deserves to be seen.

REVIEW: The Movie Phenomenon LES MISÉRABLES

The movie adaptation of LES MISÉRABLES was definitely the most anticipated film of the year for musical theatre lovers. At least it was for me. The show, the all-star cast, and most importantly, the live singing. I don't think there is an article or interview about the movie that doesn't breach the subject of this brand new way of performing on film. Oh wait. It's called live theatre. Regardless, I thought that the movie, although it had its faults, was one of the best movie musicals I have ever seen (and I've already seen it twice).

The casting was mixed as one would expect of a movie musical. You need to mix talent with names that will draw an audience. Overall they did a decent job of this. Hugh Jackman didn't wow me at first, but after my second viewing, I thought he did a phenomenal job as Valjean. The vocals were spotty at times, and his take on "Bring Him Home" was different because he "belted" most of it. Anne Hathaway was far and away the standout as Fantine. I have never liked the character on stage, but Hathaway really made me feel for and pity the character. Eddie Redmayne, as the male love interest Marius, started off lackluster, but I ended up loving him. He had a really good, unique voice and if Oscars were given for single performances, his "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" would give Hathaway's "I Dreamed a Dream" a run for its money. I'd be remiss not to mention Russell Crowe. As Javert, all I will say is that it was poor casting. Enough has been said otherwise. Helena Bonham Carter and Sacha Baron Cohen were good as the Thenardiers. That said, neither of them gave a performance we haven't seen before. It was very much Mrs. Lovett and Pirelli as the Thenardiers. I had hoped to be wowed, but I wasn't. I loved Aaron Tveit and Samantha Barks. You could tell they came from a musical theatre background. I hope this helps to kickstart their careers for more than just the Broadway/West End community. I also fell in love with Daniel Huttlestone and Isabelle Allen as Gavroche and Young Cosette. They both are stars.

I thought Tom Hooper did a great job with how he edited and filmed the movie. The fact that all the songs were one take, sung live, really made it feel like a piece of live theatre, just presented in a different medium. I think that he made the story more clear than I have ever seen done with the show. By moving around some of the songs, I really got a clearer picture of how the story all tied together.

Was this the best sung Les Misérables ever? No. But was it one of the best ADAPTATIONS of it? Yes. I thoroughly enjoyed the movie and think it will completely change how movie musicals are presented in the future.

Agree/Disagree? Sound off in the comments!

REVIEW: BRING IT ON!

As today was its closing day, I thought it would be a good time to finally post my review of BRING IT ON: THE MUSICAL. I'm gonna start with this: it was much better than one would expect from a musical version of Bring It On.

The true standout of the show was the cast, led by the amazing Taylor Louderman. Most of the cast, having come from the national tour, was making their Broadway debut in the show. And boy, this cast will produce some stars. The true standout: Taylor Louderman, the lead actress, who played Campbell. She is a true triple threat who really made the show. She was front and center for almost the entire show, so if she was bad, the show would be. But she was amazing, belting her face off, and holding her own with the cheer choreography. Another standout, mostly due to his vocals, was Jason Gotay. His song, "Enjoy the Trip," is my favorite in the show. They both will go far.

The show was well written in my opinion, considering what it is based on. It's not going to be the next Next to Normal, but the story was a lot less cheesy than I expected. And the music, as one would expect from Tom Kitt and Lin-Manuel Miranda was amazing. A lot of fun, with cute lyrics and some great belting.

Technically, I like the concept of a minimalist set, using projection that moved around. Was it groundbreaking, no. But did it fit the show? Yes. Also, the lighting. Literally EVERYWHERE you looked there was a million lights. It was almost distracting because of how many lights there were.

Lastly, the dancing. In a show that featured an ensemble of real cheerleaders, I expected a little more. Going into the experience, I expected the dancing to be the thing that blew me away, and I think, because the music and acting were a lot better than expected, it just didn't. That isn't to say it was bad. It just wasn't awe-inspiring.

I hope this show lives on on tour, and I highly recommend listening to the cast recording!

REVIEW: Shakespeare Theatre Company's A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM

Last night I went to see Shakespeare's A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM at the Shakespeare Theatre Company here in DC. Having never seen a production of this show before, I was intrigued. (NOTE: Just this morning, an extension to Jan. 6th was announced).

I think the production values of this production (like most STC productions) was extremely high. I loved the set and the lighting design and the way a simple set could become complex and serve as a jungle gym for the fairies and actors.

Another part of this production I loved was the inclusion of music and choreography. I've never seen a straight play with a dance captain before. It really added to the unwritten beats of the play and turned this into an atypical production of such a classic piece of theatre.

Overall, I thought the acting was mixed. I thought Puck and Bottom were standouts, turning every beat into a real, fun, comedic moment. On the other hand, the actors playing the lovers: Helena, Hermia, Lysander, and Demetrius struggled in my opinion in not only acting realistically, but also creating characters that I, as an audience member, could care about.

Overall it was a good night of theatre and if you want to see some good Shakespeare this is definitely a good option, but I wouldn't say a "must-see" by any means.

The Grammy's! Broadway Style

The Recording Academy announced its nominees for the 55th Annual Grammy Awards last night. While most of the nominations are not too related to the theatre world, one category is: Best Musical Theater Album.

What is interesting now, starting this past year, is that the Grammy not only goes to the producers and writers but also to the primary vocalists. Here are the nominees and (of course) my opinions!

FOLLIES (Jan Maxwell, Danny Burnstein, Bernadette Peters, Ron Raines, & Elaine Paige) - I think this one has a good chance of winning. In my opinion, leaving out opinions on the performers themselves, this is probably the best cast recording I have ever heard in terms of preserving a show and mirroring the true theatrical experience.

THE GERSHWIN'S PORGY AND BESS (Audra McDonald, Norm Lewis, & David Alan Grier) - I really like this recording and it has some great performances. That said, I think it deserved a nomination, but won't win the award.

NEWSIES (Jeremy Jordan & Kara Lindsay) - Similar to P&B, it is a great recording that deserved to be nominated, but doesn't stand up to some of the other nominated recordings.

NICE WORK IF YOU CAN GET IT (Matthew Broderick & Kelli O'Hara) - I thought this recording was pretty boring with so-so vocals. This is like LEAP OF FAITH getting nominated for the Best Score Tony Award.

ONCE (Steve Kazee & Cristin Milioti) - "Falling Slowly" has already won awards, and even though it lost the Grammy, it has a good chance this time. This is a gorgeous recording of gorgeous music. I also think it has broad enough appeal to be noticed by Grammy voters who won't appreciate some of the other recordings due to their very musical theatre feel.

Also, "Let Me Be Your Star" from SMASH was nominated for Best Song for Visual Media. Do I think it will win? Probably not. Should it? Probably.

A Bad Week for Broadway

As you may remember, I wrote a post late this summer about how this season was shaping up to be a pretty boring one. It seems I was right. Just this week alone, three shows have announced closing dates: CHAPLIN (Jan 6th), SCANDALOUS (Dec. 9th), and THE ANARCHIST (Dec. 16th).

This comes right after THE PERFORMERS closed less than a week after it opened and BRING IT ON announced it was closing early after an announced extension.

What is going on? Are people not going to shows? Are the shows just that bad that no one wants to see them?

I think this is a much larger problem than quality of shows. I think people have more or less stopped going to see shows that aren't an adaptation of something they know or starring a huge Hollywood star.  I don't know how to fix this. I doubt anyone does. Which is why Broadway is in this current situation.

Here's to hoping that the spring is more successful (and if MATILDA and CINDERELLA are an indication, it should be)!

Any ideas? Thoughts? Comment below.

REVIEW: CHAPLIN Original Broadway Cast Recording

CHAPLIN has had a very mixed life on Broadway. First it extended, then it announced a national tour, and just this week it announced it is closing on January 6th. In the middle of all this, the cast recorded a cast recording that is, like the show's journey, a bit of a roller coaster.

I actually liked this recording a lot more than I expected to, but it still was nothing special. I could see this doing really well regionally, but totally understand why it isn't taking off on Broadway.

The vocals were good. Not great. Not horrrible.

The songs were good. Not great. Not horrrible.

I think Rob McClure is a standout, but vocally is not all that reviews have cracked him up to be. Christiane Noll is phenomenal on the recording, as is Jenn Colella, especially on her big number, "All Falls Down."

I think the album deserves a listen, but after listening, I definitely understand why this show has not been a sweeping success.

REVIEW: LEAP OF FAITH Cast Recording

So today the (long awaited?) cast recording of Alan Menken's newest Broadway show LEAP OF FAITH, starring Raul Esparza and Jessica Phillips, was released. Having seen the show (review here), and feeling very mediocre, I think the recording proves there was a show in there.

My biggest problem with the production was that it was rushed and the story wasn't fleshed out. The music was fun and showed off the actors' voices, even if it is not going to change the shape of modern musical theatre.

If you listen to the recording, which is about 5/8 belting, 2/8 dialogue, and 1/8 other, you might wonder why it closed so quickly.

Raul Esparza, as always, shines, and Leslie Odom Jr. (Smash), I think is better on the recording than he was live. Phillips, unfortunately, is boring and lifeless on the recording in my opinion, and doesn't shine in the same way she did live on stage.

Highlights for me are "Step Into the Light," "Are You On the Bus?" and "Jonas' Soliloquy."

I highly recommend this, if only for a single full listen on Spotify then buying some of the tracks individually.