I kicked off my year by seeing the touring company of Avenue Q currently playing in Chicago. I had heard several of the songs before and knew the basic conception/format of the it, but was surprised by what seemed the rather intimate scale of the production. I'm not certain what size house the New York production is playing, or where else this tour is going, but I was glad to only be about two-thirds back on the main floor. It seemed a good distance for taking in both the facial expressions of the actors and the body language of the puppets. Any further back and I think some subtleties would have been lost--if anything about the show can be said to subtle!
AveQ played the Cadillac Palace in Chicago, which holds more than 1500 seats. The show has a smaller cast than even the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, which played a house with 500 seats here in Chicago. But the show today was mostly full on the main floor, so I guess with a short run (just a week or two), they have to fit in all the Broadway in Chicago subscribers.
I enjoyed the show. It's humor is right up my alley. And the nods to Sesame Street, Electric Company, Free to Be You and Me, are right out of my youth. But is this a show that inspires me to be part of the theater? Would this show--if I were to be seeing it as a high schooler--make me dream of being a performer? I don't think it would. The performers were good for the most part and very adept at manipulating the puppets and creating voices for them. But I missed the big ballad sung with gusto by the young hero, standing center stage in a spotlight (which you weren't sharing with a carpetbag on your right hand); that was what always got me dreaming.
I guess I'll have to revisit those classic musicals of the 40s and 50s for my Alfred Drake dreams.
Avenue Q, Sunday June 1, 2008 2pm
Broadway in Chicago production
Cadillac Palace Theater
AveQ played the Cadillac Palace in Chicago, which holds more than 1500 seats. The show has a smaller cast than even the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, which played a house with 500 seats here in Chicago. But the show today was mostly full on the main floor, so I guess with a short run (just a week or two), they have to fit in all the Broadway in Chicago subscribers.
I enjoyed the show. It's humor is right up my alley. And the nods to Sesame Street, Electric Company, Free to Be You and Me, are right out of my youth. But is this a show that inspires me to be part of the theater? Would this show--if I were to be seeing it as a high schooler--make me dream of being a performer? I don't think it would. The performers were good for the most part and very adept at manipulating the puppets and creating voices for them. But I missed the big ballad sung with gusto by the young hero, standing center stage in a spotlight (which you weren't sharing with a carpetbag on your right hand); that was what always got me dreaming.
I guess I'll have to revisit those classic musicals of the 40s and 50s for my Alfred Drake dreams.
Avenue Q, Sunday June 1, 2008 2pm
Broadway in Chicago production
Cadillac Palace Theater
Music and Lyrics by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx
Book by Jeff Whitty
Cast: Robert McClure; Cullen R. Titmas; Kelli Sawyer; David Benoit; Angela Ai; Danielle K. Thomas; Maggie Lakis.
Cast: Robert McClure; Cullen R. Titmas; Kelli Sawyer; David Benoit; Angela Ai; Danielle K. Thomas; Maggie Lakis.
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