Young Frankenstein: The New Mel Brooks Musical
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Free Music Notes for Young Frankenstein: The New Mel Brooks Musical
Free Music Review: Moments of Brilliance, Covered in Mediocrity
Hit: 4 Stars
There aren't many bigger Mel Brooks fans than I am. Honestly, if I'm ranking my 20 favorite movies, in my mind, Mr. Brooks has 3-4 of those spots. I loved The Producers, so I've been anxiously following the lead-up to Young Frankenstein on Broadway, and now the soundtrack. This isn't as good as The Producers was, but its not bad.
For those who haven't seen the movie (Shame on you!), the story revolves around the last Frankenstein (played by Roger Bart), who is distancing himself from his family name by using a different pronunciation of the name as he is teaching in New York. When he learns of his grandfather's death, he goes back to Transylvania to settle the estate. While there, he meets Igor (Christopher Fitzgerald, whose performance is demanding of a Tony), Inga (Sutton Foster) and Frau Blucher (Andrea Martin). He realizes that is supposed to live up to his family name and goes about making a new Frankenstein monster (Shuler Hensley). Just as he's beginning to establish himself with Inga and in the town, his fiance' (Megan Mullally) arrives.
This is an A+ cast, with good material, but it almost seems like they are hesitant to take the show over at times. Each deferring to the other. No more is this present than in the performance of Sutton Foster. Foster is one of the greatest stars on Broadway in the recent years and is almost criminally underused in this production. Roger Bart does a good job, if slightly tame, in his performance. Mullally brings much of her television persona back with her and is good in small doses, but even in the small role can get a little over-the-top. One song, "Please Don't Touch Me", has really good potential but it ruined at the end by the screaming of a word describing a female body part over and over again.
There are good songs here. "Together Again" has a great feel and is very listenable and humorous. "He Vas My Boyfriend" is perhaps the funniest song in the show, with so many innuendos you need to listen a couple of times to pick them all up. "Life, Life" has a very good melody and advances the story exceptionally well. "Transylvania Mania" is a fun song to listen to, and the staging of this number is amazing if you get a chance to see the show. "Listen To Your Heart" is a very funny number, and really Sutton Foster's chance to shine in the musical. Much like the movie, there is a humorous rendition of "Puttin' on the Ritz", only this one much more melodic than in the movie.
I like this show, I really enjoyed it. However, the moments of brilliance that it has can get lost in some of the mediocrity that surrounds it. This should be a must-own for a musical or a Mel Brooks fan. For the rest, its without doubt worth a listen, but it isn't the highest brow of humor or the sharpest of lyrics. I give it 4/5, but its on the low end of that range.
Free Music Review: Terrific Follow-up to "The Producers"
Hit: 4 Stars
Critical reviews of Mel Brook's new musical, "Young Frankenstein", have so far been mixed, but this seems to be somewhat of an expected backlash against Mr. Brooks. His first effort, 2001's "The Producers", was a runaway smash - winning a record number of Tonys and making any follow-up somewhat doomed. While I have yet to see the production (my tickets are for May), I find the score thoroughly enjoyable & a solid sophomore effort.
The amazing cast, led by Roger Bart, Megan Mullally, Sutton Foster, Christopher Fitzgerald, and Andrea Martin, sounds great. The score has a few weak links, but there are several terrific songs. Best tracks:
Please Don't Touch Me
Together Again
Roll In The Hay
Transylvania Mania
Listen To Your Heart
Puttin' On The Ritz (Irving Berlin's standard used in the 1974 film for which the musical is based)
Deep Love
Free Music Review: Not as good as the original play/cast, but still enjoyable
Hit: 4 Stars
When you have watched the original with Gene Wilder and Madaline Kahn a dozen times, it is hard to not miss their fantastic performances, but the musical is still fun and enjoyable. If you haven't seen the original, you won't notice the difference and will laugh all the way through it.Free Music Review: Deja vu
Hit: 4 Stars
Great old fashioned Broadway tunes, but some sound exactly as if taken out or recycled from THE PRODUCERS. Nevertheless, Megan Mulally is hilarious, and Sutton Foster... best thing Broadway has seen in twenty years.Free Music Review: Young Frankenstein The Musical
Hit: 4 Stars
Young Frankenstein is just as good as The producers. Mel Brooks does an excellent score when he does it from a movie to a musical. Maybe he can do Blazing Saddles into a musical next time.