101 Dalmatians review

[Ron]

I really enjoyed the show. The music was outstanding. I think that Dennis has once again proven how he can tell a story effectively through music, even though he did not write all of the lyrics. In some of the songs, there was a similar style to what Dennis wrote for Hunchback. In other words, if someone were to listen to the music for both shows, you could guess that they were written by the same person.

Some highlights include:

Each character had a different style of music: Cruella was very glamorous and operatic, while Pongo was more rock and roll. Missus added a softer, ballad style to complement Pongo's rock. It helped define the characters.

My 'Wow' moment: Twilight Barking, where the chain of sending the message of the missing puppies was done as a round, building as the message traveled. It was a great effect

After reading some of the "professional" reviews, I expected it to be slow moving, but that was not the case. The second act was constantly moving, and there was only one part that I felt was unnecessary and took you out of the main story (The song "Hot" which tells the story of Cruella and how she is a furrier. While this is direct from the original book, it took you away from the story of Pongo, to tell us what we already know: Cruella is a b***h)

The cast of child actors and actresses were fantastic as the puppies, although their enunciation was poor occasionally in their ensemble singing. But this is something that a singer learns over time, and you can't hold it against the fine cast.

As far as the "slanted perspective" of the show, with the "people actors" on stilts and enlarged set; If you knew about it and what they were trying to do, you understood. However, I think the effect was lost on others that did not know prior to the show. The stilts did restrict the action and movement that would have happened in similar scenes if performed without stilts. But the production team has to be applauded for being daring enough to try something different and new. Sometimes it works great, sometimes not as well. But you need to make the effort and try, instead of taking the easy way out and giving people the same old crap.

One thing I found dissapointing is the lack of a "signature song". Cats had "Memory", Annie had "Tommorow", and even Hunchback had "With Every Heartbeat".While the songs were catchy and told the story quite well, there was no one piece that stands out above the rest.

 

What I wonder about is the future for this piece of work. For starters, it seemed to have various production troubles (including the early departure of Rachael York as Cruella), and schedule changes, the include the show closing after its run in NYC on April 18th. I'm sure the mixed reviews and lighter than expected attendenance were also factors. But with no cast soundtrack recorded for public sale, will this music dissapear into nowhere?

 

My other thoughts about the evening are this: The entertainment industry has been suffereng due to the Nation's economic condition. For the evening:

Gas to and from the event (100 miles one-way) - $30

Tolls (PA and NJ Turnpikes, Lincoln Tunnel) - $29

Parking in Manhatten - $25

Taxi to/from MSG (would have walked, but my daughter had a sprained ankle) - $20

Food prior to event - $20

Souviners (t-shirt, program, keychain) - $50

in other words, $175, not including tickets ($99 each, plus $12 surcharge), and the absurd $7.50 for a bag of cotton candy. All of that "little stuff" that make up the extras really add up. Even going to a Phillies game the cost of the ticket is dwarfed by the $20 parking fee and other expenses. And my least favorite expense, the "Ticketmaster surcharge", really drives me nuts. But since the head of Ticketmaster is a friend of Dennis, I will behave myself.

 

After the show I got to say hello to Hank, and told him that I missed his Roboto glasses in the new show, and wished him well on his future projects.

 

Overall, it was a great show that is sadly coming to an end.

 

[ladybugking]

It sounds like a good, but expensive :ohmy: , time was had by all!

 

I came away with one song that has stayed with me until today and that is "Be a Little Bit Braver." I know it has been the one singled out positively in several reviews, too. So I do think there was at least one memorable tune from the show, though there are others, under the right circumstances, that could have gone a bit beyond this show as well.

 

I am sorry it's ending its run, but I am not surprised. It never quite came together, from what I gather, with the difficulties of the performing on stilts and the live dogs who often did their own thing.

 

There was much to charm an audience in it, but also a bit of awkwardness too, that had, btw, nothing to do with the music.

 

I was wondering, Ron, if you heard comments from people around you regarding the music? At the show in Austin, the comments were really positive and there were many, like me, who would have loved to have bought a soundtrack CD, which, of course, will now never come to pass. I have no doubts it would have sold out completely at the show I attended.

[Ron]

Kathy I didn't hear any comments (good or bad) concerning the music, but looking around it seemed like people were enjoying the songs. And I will admit I have been humming "Be a Little Bit Braver" all day myself. But even as the strongest song in the show, if someone in the future were to record a cd similar to "10 on Broadway", would they include it as one of the tracks, and prolong the life of the music? I guess only time will tell.