Natasha, Pierre, and The Great Comet of 1812

It's a grand party in a glamorous pop-up cabaret tent right here on Broadway, freshly moved uptown from the Meatpacking district.  One would think the edgy, avant-garde performance style fits best downtown, but clearly the producers are bucking the entrenched Broadway traditions!

The Kazino (the casino) as it's called, is a supper club draped in velvet and adorned with glamorous chandelier lights.   The show takes place throughout the performance space which is dotted with the tables of patrons.  The orchestra is a band located throughout the theatre and the action takes place all around and amongst the patrons who are enjoying wine, cheese and other Russian delights which can be supplemented (read $$$$) with other menu items.

The story comes from an audacious book - War and Peace.  But in reality it's really nothing more than a tele-novella or a lifetime movie,  Girl is left alone by her boyfriend who is off to war.  Girl meets new boy and new boy romances her.  Girl realizes her delicate situation and tries to kill herself but does not succeed.  Boy returns from war.  Longtime friend of girl professes his love for her.  And so goes the evening as a comet descends on the planet.

A+ for performance space and immersive approach to telling the story - no spoken word rather all sung! Not quite as high a grade for the story itself however.  It seems unnecessarily drawn out (perhaps like the book from whence it came).

Overall, the show was magnificent and the evening was an entertainment success but I was left wondering why the story was not as dazzling as the cast, costumes, vocals, band, and venue itself.

Maybe I'll write a letter.

The Kid

This seems to be the break-out season for contemporary gay-themed plays and musicals of all kinds  - The Temperamentals, The Pride, Yank, Next Fall.  Each of them is different - an almost forgotten historical gay movement, a mysteriously time shifting play comparing the 1950's and the 1980's, a musical about a military romance during the war, and a contemporary family shocked from all sides by an accident face each other in a hospital.   One way or another, they all involve important social issues of our today - family, relationships and love.  The Kid is no different.  Dan Savage, sex columnist, wrote a book about his experience of adopting a baby with his partner.  This is their story set to a wonderful score with an eclectic and magnificent ensemble cast.

Christopher Sieber (Dan) and Lucas Steele (Terry) give a tender, romantic, and honest performance  - so honest in fact, that you might think they are an off-stage couple as well (alas, they are not).   The supporting ensemble peppers them with with sage advice, warnings, a splash of humor, and of course lots of great harmonies.   Jill Eikenberry, as Dan's mother, sings a song in Act II that brought tears to my eyes about a mother watching her son grow up and letting him be who he needed to be.   The always adorable Tyler Maynard hammed it up as only he can as Chad and a few other scene stealing characters.  Susan Blackwell usually known for her sardonic wit kept things uncharacteristically serious and real as Anne, the adoption agent.   Ann Harada, as Ruth (and others) had several comedic cameos.

Not only was the musical score divine, the set had a multi-media backdrop where video blurbs and graphic animations were shown.  The final animation clip was a perfect way to end and entirely enjoyable evening of theatre. There's a lot of competition in this market segment this year - but I have a feeling that this won't be the last time we see The Kid on a New York stage.

Three Penny Opera

I have never been more disappointed by the performance, direction, and production-quality of a show in my life. Each and every actor, director and producer, and staff member of the Roundabout Theater should be professionally embarrassed at the "performance" we were subjected to.

Roundabout - shame on you! You should be publically repremanded for this 19 car pile-up on West 54th Street.