Sunday, July 17, 2005

Bye Bye Birdie

Lakewood Theatre Company
July 16, 2005; closes August 21, 2005

Well-intended, I’m sure, but schlumpy, lackluster production seemed half-baked take on senseless, dated book with unmotivating score that needs lots of fanaticism to work. Energetic, devoted chorus suffered from weak or miscast principals, absent direction, bland choreography, unoriginal technical elements. And why not put the musicians in the orchestra pit?

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Boy, you sound jaded! I loved it!
The Conrad Birdie character was well-cast, as were the teenagers in the show. The first act was brisk, entertaining and hilarious. The second act pace was controlled by the script and literary content. I found it to be refreshingly appropriate for all ages and a colorful, musical experience. Ky Fifer as Birdie is a discovery for the Portland musical scene!

Anonymous said...

some enjoyable parts, loved hugo.

Anonymous said...

I find Follow Spot's opinion of Lakewood's Birdie to be negative to the extreme. Though I thought the orchestra was a little shlumpy (sloppy piano and fluxuating tempos were somewhat distracting), I thought the leads were well quite well cast. Though this may be a dated show, i enjoyed it quite a bit.

Anonymous said...

This isn't really my favorite musical to begin with, but overall, it was a pretty clean and enjoyable show. That is not to say there weren't a few lackluster points to it. The blocking and choreography were quite bland and lacked creativity. As a whole, the cast seemed tired...more energy may have carried the show along a little better. Albert (Klei) was impressive. The costumes were lovely.

Anonymous said...

This being my personal "worst show ever," I remember Joy Korgan's less-than-admirable vocals as detracting from anything better than mediocre in the show.