Katie Holmes Employed

Oh, I approve! It's official: Katie Holmes will be seen on Broadway this fall in Arthur Miller's All My Sons, joining Dianne Wiest, Patrick Wilson (delicious) and a yet-to-be-announced director.

I have faith in Katie Holmes. Actually, it's more than that. I have a secret: I think she rocks, plus I admire her ability to co-create beautiful children. If you don't agree that she's actually pretty awesome, you clearly have not experienced the 1999 Kevin Williamson gem Teaching Mrs. Tingle, in which little Katie Holmes holds her own against Helen Fucking Mirren. SO RAD.

Photo credit: All About the Pretty

Rediscovery of the moment: Patrick Wilson

Patrick Wilson = hot.

Patrick Wilson's singing voice = dreamy.

Just now, I was listening to all the tracks in my iTunes with the genre "Musical," and "We Have All Been Blind" from Wilson's 2004 movie The Phantom of the Opera started playing. Damn. If you have never heard this man sing---which is understandable, you've probably been concentrating primarily on his shirtless appearance in Little Children---you are definitely missing out on some major soothingness. (That is a word, apparently.)

Sidenote: The Phantom of the Opera I thought was actually pretty badass in film form---much more rock than the actual stage musical. I mean, Gerard Butler's savage voice? Delicious. Emmy Rossum's diamond-drenched costumes? Fantastic.

Anyway, back to the main matter at hand: Patrick Wilson. Basically, he's gorgeous, he's a great actor (though I haven't seen Hard Candy---was advised not to, as I hate movies that have knives in either eyes or genitals), and he's the dreamiest of singers. Too bad he's married. And too bad he's married to that Hottie McHotface who played Mercedes in the Count of Monte Cristo movie. (Also totally badass, by my standards.)

Let's get this man back on Broadway---this time not in a Neil Simon play, please---and closer to me.

Picture source: http://img113.imageshack.us/img113/9426/pmisc3sm5.jpg

Seeing Passing Strange tonight...

I have seen the poster for this seemingly-electrifying show around the city for what seems like over a year. Finally seeing this thing tonight!

Woop! My thoughts on it later...

Picture credit: Playbill.com

Starring Jonathan Groff and featuring Jonathan Groff's saliva

I saw Spring Awakening on Broadway a little over a year ago and wasn't bowled-over impressed. However, I do remember loving the performances and some of the songs---not all. And of course I got the soundtrack right after I saw it, just in case I missed something. After giving it a listen, I still wasn't that impressed. I found the show totally overrated. And yet I still had so much respect for the actors, some of whom are younger and still in high school.

Anyway. It's been a year now, and I decided it was time to give it another chance.

My roommate and I trekked to Times Square this morning at 7:30. It was so cold, our two blankets failed to keep us warm. Our feet became blocks of ice. We could barely move our limbs and faces. (Yet I ended up dragging myself to McDonald's a few blocks over and bought for us three hash browns, two apple pies and 1 steaming hot cup of coff-pee.)

It was so cold. Let me reiterate this. It was so cold.

We waited for two and a half hours with our asses molded to the frigid New York City sidewalk. At 10am, we purchased four tickets for $30 each. Success.

So, anyway, on to what I thought of the show tonight: I really, really liked it. Some of the music still bored me a little...I'm personally not a big fan of "Whispering," "Those You've Known," "My Junk," or "The Guilty Ones." However, songs that stood out for me this time---that didn't at all last time---were "And Then There Were None," "All That's Known," and "Touch Me." Favorites that remained favorites? "Mama Who Bore Me" (both), "Don't Do Sadness/Blue Wind" and "Totally Fucked." Love those. Love those!

Other than the new actors portraying the adult characters, new actors, both named Blake, included Blake Bashoff as Moritz---who had frightening big hair to fill, as he is the first actor to play Moritz after Tony-winner John Gallagher, Jr.---and Blake Daniel, who portrayed Ernst. I thought that both were great singers and exciting to watch. However, and maybe this is because John Gallagher, Jr. seriously cemented the personality and physicality of Moritz during his long run, I felt that Blake Bashoff's Moritz was seemingly an imitation of Gallagher's. I quickly forgot about this, though. His voice is fantastic and his rendition of "Don't Do Sadness" was passionate, aggressive and desperate. And Blake Daniel? His sweet, darling singing voice was boyish and---I'll say it---adorable. I hope he stays in the production for a while. He was wonderful! I fell for him, no lie.


Let's talk about the most surprising aspect of the production: the amount of saliva that lead actor Jonathan Groff (Melchior) sprayed through the course of the performance. It was REALLY IMPRESSIVE, and they should have labeled the first two rows as the Spring Awakening Splash Zone. I mean really, it was intense. But props to him. His performance seemed more driven than a year ago, and it's a relief to know that these actors don't tire easily of the characters that they have to portray 8 times a week. I don't think I could do it.

Other standouts: Skylar Astin's solo in "Touch Me," Skylar Astin's two huge curls, Blake Daniel and Jonathan B. Wright's hilarious-yet-touching (no pun intended) duet in "The Word of Your Body (Reprise)," and Brian Charles Johnson whenever he sings.

One irk: the songs are so "rock" that sometimes I had no idea what was going on. Songs in other musicals---more "traditional-style" musicals, like Grease and Wicked---feature the characters doing something onstage and literally moving the plot along. However, Spring Awakening functions more like a rock concert. Mike stands and everything. And some solos were just so poetic and the characters so stationary that I was totally lost in what they were trying to tell me by singing the song.

But anyway. Go see it. Really. It's bold and touching and everything that everyone says it is.

Picture credits: AOL CDN, TheaterMania.com

Three words: Front. Row. Seats.

I finally did. I saw Legally Blonde: The Musical on Broadway tonight, after having gone through multiple mixed feelings about it. When I first heard about it, I was PUMPED. Then I saw a rehearsal clip on Broadway.com and "Omigod You Guys" just sounded like a generic, more-people-singing version of "Popular" from Wicked. And then I wasn't really feeling it anymore. But then I downloaded "Omigod You Guys" on iTunes when it was free about 4 months ago. And guess what: I fell in love. And then I got the whole soundtrack. (FYI: It's incredible. Versatile tracks, phenomenal vocals, witty one-liners that you'll miss when you listen to it all the first time.) And TONIGHT I saw it on Broadway!

It started with my friend suggesting the student rush early, early, EARLY this morning. We sleepily took the train to the theater in Times Square at 7:45am and sat our weary selves against The Palace Theater's front doors, huddling under blankets and waiting for the clock to strike 10am. We weren't the first people in line---we were, like, the sixth---but we had a great chance of getting tickets, which was all we needed. For two hours we killed time by avoiding creepy men trying to sell us papers we could get for free, giving the evil eye to two girls who seemingly cut us in line (but they insisted they were going to the matinee, and not the evening show), and gossiping about shows and men. It was a good time, actually. And at 10am, we spent TWENTY-SIX DOLLARS AND FIFTY CENTS for FRONT ROW SEATS.

Yes. The student rush policy IS that good. I highly recommend it for ANYONE who has a school ID. For $26.50, we sat in the front row and watched Laura Bell Bundy work, sing, and kick ass so hard.

Obviously, the show itself was in a word---spectacular. The actors were simply extraordinary. The acting was driven and fierce, the vocals stunning, the choreography meticulous and ridiculous. The songs can stand alone, which is why anyone can get so much out of the soundtrack, but when weaved into the scenes with dialogue, they made the entire production so magical.

Speaking of magic, the sets were impressive to the point of distraction. I don't want to give anything away, but there was magic onstage that I will never forget.

So here we are:

Top Five Reasons to See Legally Blonde on Broadway before Laura Bell Bundy departs:

ONE
Laura Bell Bundy. Though there's no way anyone could have beat Christine Ebersole for that Tony last season, she was definitely a contender that I didn't really understand fully until seeing her perform. Her singing voice has this raspy quality that makes Elle so much less Valley Girl and much more earnest. She really worked and lived onstage tonight. When she cried during the "Legally Blonde" ballad, her tears were real and it seemed that her state was too. She was compelling in every sense of the word. Her acting was specific and subtle---yet animated. She was a joy to watch.

TWO
Christian Borle. I'm in love with him. End of story. (Too bad he's married to the most amazing Broadway actress and triple-threat ever: Sutton Foster. I can't compete with that.) He gave Emmett this quick-witted-ness quality that I thought was missing from the film. It was easy to fall in love with him. And I did. Repeatedly. Plus, his voice might actually soar. Yeah. His voice is so clear and powerful---I simply can't believe I got to see him sing live. PS: He's the guy from that eBay commercial when the store turns into a disco. There was even an eBay joke in the script!

THREE
The sets. Like I said above: magic happened. The sets were beautiful and creative, and they moved so seamlessly that I often didn't even realize that we had changed location.

FOUR
It's nothing like the movie. Yes, the storyline is the same, duh. But the characters are totally different and the humor is, too. So you haven't already seen it.

FIVE
The choreography, which is flawless and freaking FUNNY. I'll just say: full-cast Irish jig.

There you have it. It's such a fun time. No one will disagree!!

Legally yours,
Kim

Picture credit: Blog.fashionwindows.com, City Guide NY

Nothing is off-limits on Broadway

What. Shrek the Musical? I'm speechless.

Supposedly there's not much to be afraid of. David Lindsay-Abaire, who won the Pulitzer for his 2007 play Rabbit Hole, is doing the book and lyrics. Jeanine Tesori, who composed Thoroughly Modern Millie, a 2002 Broadway (and personal) favorite, is responsible for the Shrek music. And apparently Sutton Foster, who won a Tony for her leading role in Thoroughly Modern Millie is in talks to play Princess Fiona.

Plus, Christopher Sieber, who originated the role of Sir Dennis Gallahad in Spamalot is rumored to play Farquaad. (But he's probably more-loved, at least in my opinion, for portraying the cute, geeky dad of Mary-Kate and Ashley in the short-lived but freaking amazing "Two of a Kind". God, I miss that show. I can't believe they ended it JUST as Christopher Sieber hooked it up with the babysitter. So cruel.)

I mean...all of the above sounds AWESOME. Sutton Foster is probably one of my favorite stage actors ever, and I would leap at any chance to see her onstage. But let's get back to the original heresy at hand:

SHREK THE MUSICAL????? Honestly, what? I can't decide if I'm horrified or just really, really surprised that whoever it was picked...Shrek. You know, I think I'm just really surprised. How was it not Aladdin? How have we not seen that muscular, purple-vested, tiny-capped man on the Broadway stage yet. Is it the whole flying carpet thing? Or the whole Genie-exploding-out-of-a-lamp thing that has so many people shunning this wonderful movie?

I'm not horrified. Now that I think about it, I'm looking forward to see what they do with the Shrek costume and the innumerable number of backdrops and wheel-on sets that will obviously have to happen. I mean, let's face it: if Broadway can pull off Legally Blonde, anything can happen.

Credits: Broadway.com, Gavin Barker Associates

Rent: goodbye, love

Broadway.com announced today that Jonathan Larson's beloved Rent will close on Broadway this June, ending its widely successful twelve-year run.

If you have not yet seen this moving, energy-charged show and live somewhere near the Nederlander Theatre in New York, I beg you to hustle out there before June 1. The electric music, energetic performers and heartfelt, yet somehow not-overdone message reminding us to seize the day should be enough to convince you that you have just witnessed one of Broadway's finest achievements in the Little Musical That Could.

In other sad news, The Client actor Brad Renfro has passed at the age of 25 in Los Angeles, reportedly after a night of drinking. The Client remains a memorable movie to me and I am stunned by this loss, having kept tabs on this great actor's agenda for years. He will be sorely missed in the film community, I have no doubt.

Brave Sir Aiken

Only three more days until Clay Aiken's Broadway debut in Monty Python's Spamalot as Brave Sir Robin, the role originated in 2005 by David Hyde Pierce. I'll tell the truth: I hadn't even heard about this until about fifteen minutes ago, but I must say: I'm pretty excited.

When Clay was on American Idol--in, what, 2003? 2004?--he was my absolute fave. His loss to Ruben Studdard was, in my eyes, horrifying and unjust. Needless to say, his first album, Measure of a Man, was in my sweaty little showtune hands about ten minutes after it was released.

However, Clay unpredictably lost my fanship when he appeared in one of my all-time favorite TV shows--Scrubs--in 2005 as Kenny, the Southern-accented, angel-voiced, laid-off Sacred Heart employee. Puh-LEEZE, as Manda from the Jessica Darling books would say. One of my biggest pet peeves is when singers appear in movies or TV shows as characters who aren't singers--and then sing. And of course, at the end of the episode, Kenny wins a talent show. By singing. By singing ISN'T SHE LOVELY.

Okay, granted, it was an unusually cheesy Scrubs episode, as the episode satirized live-audience sitcoms. But still. The cheesiness of the storyline and the oh-so-sad firing of Clay's character combined with Clay's character just HAPPENING to have a beautiful voice was enough to make me puke. Thus, I did not purchase any of Clay's forthcoming albums. I was that mad.

But now I'm over it.

I haven't seen Spamalot but I know the music, and I must admit that I am anxious to see Clay Aiken performing the David Hyde Pierce classic, "You Won't Succeed On Broadway." I haven't gotten my ass out to see Spamalot in the 1.5 years I've lived in New York so far--just haven't really seen the appeal. Ironically enough, the scrawny yet soothingly-voiced Clay Aiken may just be the catalyst for the purchase of a $50 Spamalot ticket.

Oh, and PS: He may just be good. Mike Nichols, the director of everything, stated in October that Clay "is an excellent comic actor and a master of character. People will be surprised by his wide ranging talent." I certainly can't wait to be bowled over!