When itclosed on April 16,Phantom of the Operaleft a chandelier-sized hole in live theater.
OrAndrew Lloyd Webberfor that matter.
His musicals always seemed to have one good song surrounded by a lot of forgettable fluff.
The cast of ‘New York, New York’.Paul Kolnik
Butnearly 20 million peoplecan’t be that wrong.
That’s how many people had seen the 1988 Best Musical Tony winner when it closed earlier this month.
They don’t get a happily ever after.
The cast of ‘New York, New York’.Paul Kolnik
This is a crowdpleaser, after all.
The script by David Thompson with Sharon Washington is of little concern here.
There are a number of generic storylines (big dreams!
The cast of ‘New York, New York’.Paul Kolnik
in the big city!)
But who comes to a musical for the plot?
The songs, however, don’t fare much better.
Anna Uzele (left) and Colton Ryan in ‘New York, New York’.Paul Kolnik
Fred Ebb, who handled the lyrics while Kander tended to the music, died in 2004.
The performers sell the hell out of ‘em… but the effort is visible.
Thankfully, it’s worth it.
The cast of ‘New York, New York’.Paul Kolnik
Do the songs and the story weigh it down?
Sure, but they’re both generic and inoffensive as to appeal to as wide an audience as possible.
Just likePhantom of the Opera.
Out with the old, in with theNew York, New York.Grade:B
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