In the past week, I’ve seen three musicals - Jersey Boys in Boston and La Cage aux Folles & American Idiot in New York. I’m not going to write full length reviews of each, because, quite simply, I loved all three. Some brief thoughts, though…
Jersey Boys - not the greatest of shows, technically speaking. The book is somewhat sloppy (though it works), and the acting takes something of a backseat to the performance aspects of the show…. but I had an absolute blast. The songs featured in the show simply must be considered some of the finest pop songs ever written, and the cast performs them like they were born to be doing so.
La Cage aux Folles - like when I saw the show back in August, La Cage is pure magic. I truly cannot say enough about the performance of Douglas Hodge in this show, easily one of the top two or three male performances I’ve seen on the Broadway stage. Harvey Fierstein takes over the role on Valentine’s Day…. and I have absolutely no interest in seeing him in the role, all because of Hodge. Spectacular in every way.
American Idiot - La Cage matinee, AI evening performance… you can’t say I don’t see varied stuff! This show was pure fun. I figured I would enjoy this show, if only for the music, but I had no idea how much I would love it. I could nitpick and say the songs didn’t always 100% fit the plot, or that the plot could have been a bit clearer… but why? I had an absolute blast, loved what I saw on the stage, and totally understood everything going on. Plus, Billie Joe Armstrong is completely electric, and clearly having a blast on stage. Assuming the show is open, I plan on going back to see this show at least once more.
