All tagged Joe Iconis
“Broadway Bounty Hunter”—an original new musical about an aging actress who becomes a bounty hunter—uses the imagery, language, and music of exploitation films in an inchoate attempt at camp based around the story of a white woman who is surrounded by an ensemble of racial stereotypes. It’s a show that isn’t good enough to be bad or bad enough to be good, instead living in a musical purgatory somewhere in between. Skip it.
The 2019 Tony Award Nominations were announced this morning by Bebe Neuwirth and Brandon Victor Dixon. Take a look at the list and read my analysis of the surprises and snubs.
Tween science-fiction, pop-rock sensation “Be More Chill” makes the leap to Broadway and gets an upgrade in the process with a snazzier production design and revised score and script that give it a clearer narrative and a more even tone. Relentlessly hyperactive, broad, and sophomoric, it still lacks the sophistication, polish, and emotional resonance of its high school musical peers, but it is infectiously fun.
"Don't Stop Til You Get Enough" cancels pre-Broadway tryout; "Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune" books the Broadshurt; “Network” extends to June; Roundabout announces 2020 Off-Broadway season; "Oklahoma!" cast announced; Annie Golden to headline "Broadway Bounty Hunter"; Claybourne Elder and Bryce Pinkham to lead "Benny & Joon"; private reading of "The Prince of Egypt" held in London; Rob Zombie floats "House of 1,000 Corpses" musical; union controversy over musical orchestrators playing in the pit band; RIP Mark Bramble and Stanley Donen
“Be More Chill” is a new sci-fi, pop-rock, satirical allegory of a musical for tweens and early teens, and probably not anyone else. Based on a 2004 novel about a high school loser who swallows a pill-sized computer that makes him cool, the show is well-staged and performed, but remains an emotionally disengaging experience. Willed into production re-existence on the strength of its international, online teenage fanbase, expect to be hearing about it for some time to come.
