Sticky Icky Wicked

[JohnnyJ]

I loathe with every fiber of my being the musical "Wicked". Can't stand it. We basically went for free and THAT was too much. I want my parking fee back. Overblown, discordant, and so full of itself. And I'm really, really tired of composers who think they have to have a big belting/screaming number to end up an act. What happened to great, character-driven musicals with memorable songs? I'm a Sondheim fan, so you can't say that I have meat & potato musical theatre tastes at all. But this new rash of musicals, and that includes the newer juke box musicals, MUST be stopped. Thank the musical muses for shows like "Avenue Q" and "The Drowsy Chaperone." There's hope!!

I can't believe that the same person who wrote these songs wrote the music for "Godspell" and "Pippin". You know those posters with the Good Witch whispering to the Wicked Witch? Know what she's saying? She's whispering, "It's not very good...."

<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ March 16, 2007 03:29 PM: Message edited by: Tabitha Stevens ]</font>

[Craig T Gustafson]

Hated this show. HAAAAAAAAAATED it. We only went to see it because (A) we loved Ana Gasteyer in Reefer Madness and (B) Pericles was sold out. It was a Spur of the Moment bad decision.

There must be a better way for women to empower themselves onstage than the overuse of power ballads and the complete void of a sense of humor.

And as with Tabitha's viewpoint, I like all sorts of musicals, from old favorites to quirky new ones. AND I agreed with the show's political stance. But overwrought divas PMSing their way through a show just isn't my idea of a good time.

<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ March 16, 2007 04:18 PM: Message edited by: Sgt. Bilko ]</font>

[Margie Gustafson]

No zest for Wicked
Just one more power ballad
And I'll puke to death

[dstewart24]

Golly, Gosh, Gee - I kinda liked it.

Maybe the cast makes a difference - I saw the NY version and was entertained. Don't know why... can't tell if the musical numbers were overblown... couldn't tell a diva from a doughnut... but I was ENTERTAINED by talented people and a well staged production.

But then, I'm not that sophisticated and my only criteria is that I came out of the theater smiling and with a couple of tunes I could hum.

[Dan Muir]

I haven't seen it, but Kim did, and loved it.

How does it compare with The Pirate Queen?

There's a show that had me looking for the exit after only 30 minutes.

[dstewart24]

Different problem here. Even a very talented cast could not make this a great (or even a good)show It still hasn't opened on Broadway, and I waiting to see if it ever does and how long it lasts. It has one of the weakest story lines of anything I have ever seen. And all it's special effects are for effect only.

Wicked made me smile, Pirate Queen made me want to find where to get my ticket money refunded.

[crhickman]

Oh boy, is my face red.
My company did a promotion for a client last year where we had them give away 2 complimentary tickets to WICKED to every qualified candidate who came to a special event. The client said the promo was a hit, so i just suggested doing that same promo, again. Fortunately it was shot down and i gave them some other ideas. Still, i feel like i missed a bullet, there. I'd have hated to give tickets away to something that may have been... Ill-received, at best.
In my defense, i did research the show and it's still getting great reviews and being called a "Smash Hit!" with a long run on Chicago's Broadway. But i know well enough that story, plot, calibre of song and just plain taste aren't always factors in getting great reviews.
Still, one of the campaign ideas i just with pitched has us giving away free JERSEY BOYS tickets, and that sounds to be another play hated by our sweet witchy friend (whose opinion i value).
Oh bother...

[Craig T Gustafson]

One of the nice things about this board is that I can say I really hated this show and Dennis can say he really loved it, and neither of us will treat the other's opinion as a personal attack. I was talking to someone this past summer about how much I love Urinetown, and he told me how the only reason he didn't walk out at intermission was the thought of how much he had spent on the tickets.

We don't all have to like the same things. It's just that I've basically kept my mouth shut about Wicked because of the number of people I know who are rabid about it. It's nice to find out that my opinion is not a solitary one.

[badpuppy]

OK. I understand why some people , 'specially theater people, don't like Wicked. Its the same reasoning that divides us into pro- and anti - Webber camps. Is his work to commercial? yep! Are all his shows based on the same formula? Yep! But then so Steven King's works are basically all the same! Simple shows using simple formulas sell tot he general masses who may only see a few shows a year.

Grandma keeps shelling out $80 to see Joseph again and again. Community theaters put up his shows because without commercial success its hard to keep the lights on. Is commercialism a necessary evil? You bet your pancake!

Hence the never ending arguments over power ballads vs. story line. Tripe vs. real theater. Theater goers should really have more depth but that's not our culture.

Now me, I like Wicked. I like power ballads, they make me feel good and most of the time that's what I (and my audiences)are looking for.