I would have to say it was Dracula. I am a big Wildhorn fan and this show was just aweful. I hope the new Dracula (Lestat By Elton John and Bernie Taupin)is not disappointing. I am really looking forward to It.
Fosse76: "I've seen feathers fall faster than that chandelier." That had me laughing--and I agree. I sat in the front mezz especially to see that "spectacular" special effect in "Phantom," and. . .it jerked its way down the wire and collapsed like a fallen souffle. This moment pretty much summed up my impressions of the whole show.
Avenue Q and Spelling Bee. I had been told by how many people how great they were, so I went in expecting them to be amazing. Avenue Q wasn't in anyway humourous and I fell asleep during Spelling Bee.
Surprising to see so many mentions of The Lion King.
That would be my top pick for Most Disappointing Show, but I thought I was alone in being unable to appreciate whatever it is that causes everyone else to rave about it. After "Circle of Life," it was deadly dull. I think I would have preferred a clunker like Dracula to a snoozefest like Lion King.
i don't mean to threadjack- but what is it about phantom that nobody likes?
the acting? the music? the sets? the story? is it over-rated?
its coming into winnipeg this summer and i want to see it...even if its just to say 'i saw it'
but if its bad i'd rather 'see it' from a much cheaper seat than pay over $100 for a good seat and then end up crossing my fingers and hoping to god the chandalier is going to fall on top of me and put me out of my misery...
"talent is wanting something hard enough to work for it" - my drama teacher :)
Kiss Me Kate is one of my favorite musicals, yet the last revival left me cold. Not sure why. Ironically, I really enjoyed the Music Man revival that was running at the time, a show which I'm generally not crazy about.
And just to add support, I'm not nuts about Williams either. I think O'Neill is better, and has more diverse things to say in his work.
"i don't mean to threadjack- but what is it about phantom that nobody likes? the acting? the music? the sets? the story? is it over-rated? "
Yes.
"Smart! And into all those exotic mystiques -- The Kama Sutra and Chinese techniques. I hear she knows more than seventy-five. Call me tomorrow if you're still alive!"
It was starring Randy Rogel, who I had just seen for the first time and loved in "Me and My Gal." But this show was just so corny and dated -- even my mother, born in 1937, said it was corny and dated.
Yeah, Phantom didn't impress me either. We had waited and waited for available seats in SF (Curran - years ago)and we were all looking forward to this much heralded production. It didn't take me more than 15 minutes to realize I hated the whole thing. Smoke and mirrors for sets, the music was boring and songs seemed to go on forever for no reason. To top it off...I didn't give a crap about the Phantom, and if you know the story...you are supposed to at least feel SOME pity for the poor man.
The other most dissapointing show was The Producers. The acting was embarrassingly hammy and the dancing didn't impress me either. I was relieved when it ended, and pissed we had spent so much on tickets.
"My dreams, watching me said, one to the other...this life has let us down."
Phantom in Toronto in 1996 when I saw it was DREADFUL. I had seen the San Francisco Production already with Franc D'Ambrosio and Lisa Vroman, who were phenomenal.
Titanic on tour here in San Francisco. Need I say more? I had already heard the Forbidden Broadway parody and that's all that could go through my head from the first note. I had to bite my toungue to keep from laughing. All these people around me are crying (matinee with the blue-hairs) and I thought it was HYSTERICALLY BAD. The first number was promising but all downhill from there. When the toy boat floated across the stage at the end of act one, I did chuckle a bit loudly.
The recent tour of Little Shop. I saw it with Anthony Rapp, and he was great, but the rest of the cast was bad, and there were only two of the urchins in that night. I guess there was one understudy for all three girls, and two of them were out. It really detracted from the show.
Some people come into our lives and quietly go, others stay a while, and leave footprints on our heart, and we are never the same.
It isn't a musical, but years ago (late '80's,I think) there was a play with Frank Langella and Donal Donnelly (good cast, right?) about Sherlock Holmes. I can't even recall the name now. As a Holmes fan, I was looking forward to seeing it, though I didn't obsess about it. It turned out to be the biggest mess I'd ever seen. The script was alternately slap-sticky, and nasty,(trying to play pedophelia and dementia for laughs) and it wasn't even remotely true to the characters. Fortunately, it fell off Broadway quickly, and died the fate of obscurity it deserved.
"And the postman sighed as he scratched his head, you really rather thought she ought to be dead..."
My most dissappointing show: La Chiusa's Wild Party, at least the recent LA production was not good, but it got rave reviews.
The Glass Menagerie?
Maybe if the only production you've ever seen is that last Broadway revival. You shouldn't confuse the quality of the production with the quality of the show.
Yes, we do need a third vampire musical.--Little Sally, Gypsy of the Year 2005.