48hrs on Broadway

An utterly insane weekend in New York, coinciding with New York Pride weekend, really saw me burning the candles at both ends – trying to pack in as many shows as I could, plus visit some galleries, plus see friends. Having to narrow down all of the theatre on in New York to just four possible shows was a tough task… so many plays I would loved to have seen… But I’m glad I saw what I could.

Days of Wine & Roses (Atlantic Theatre Company) ★★★

Book by Craig Lucas. Music & lyrics by Adam Guettel. Atlantic Theatre Company. 5 May – 16 Jul, 2023.

A new musical by Adam Guettel (The Light in the Piazza) was something I was interested in and this cast sealed the deal for me – Kelly O’Hara and Brian James Darcy! I wasn’t familiar with the film, but to see these two in a small theatre was a dream come true. As my flight boarded in London, it hit 9am in New York so I jumped on TodayTix and fought for a Rush ticket which I was lucky enough to get. A slightly delayed flight saw me rushing from JFK straight to the theatre and made it with just enough time to buy a drink and settle into the front row. 

The musical itself sees Guettel channel more jazz than orchestral romance and I have to admit I missed the soaring melodies of Piazza. Hearing these Broadway giants sing tight vocalese (I’m a big fan of jazz singers like Kurt Elling) was bliss, even if none of the tunes really stuck in my head. Not a great show over all, but for a musical theatre nerd like me, it was worth every (heavily discounted) dollar.

Lerner & Loewe’s Camelot (Lincoln Centre Theatre) ★★★★

Original book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner. Music by Frederick Loewe. Revised book by Aaron Sorkin. Based on the novel “The Once & Future King” by T.H. White. Lincoln Centre Beaumont Theatre. Booking till 3 Sep, 2023.

I only knew Lerner and Loewe’s Camelot by reputation, but I knew the chances of seeing this professionally staged at this level in my lifetime are pretty low. A cast that included Phillipa Soo (Hamilton) and Andrew Burnap (The Inheritance) had me hooked even before I knew the book had been rewritten by Aaron Sorkin (The West Wing etc). The one thing that really stood out for me was just how funny it was! I had assumed this was a po-faced serious dramatic musical, not a light-hearted musical comedy. Mediocre reviews had my expectations set low, but they were more than exceeded – this hit the right level of classic and contemporary for me (unlike the recent Cinderella). The show loses a bit of steam in the second act as it pivots to more serious fare but I was humming the tunes all the way to my next show. Also, this was my first visit to the Lincoln Centre – next time I need to go to the Metropolitan Opera!

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (Lunt-Fontaine Theatre) ★★★★

Music & lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Book by Hugh Wheeler. Lunt-Fontraine Theatre. Booking till 14 Jan, 2024.

This was the big one. I spent more money than I am comfortable saying for a mediocre seat to see Josh Groban and Annaleigh Ashford do Sondheim. I’d never actually seen Sweeney Todd staged professionally before so that in itself was a treat – just hearing that music with full ensemble and band. As good as Groban is, Ashford blew him off the stage. With an accent I can only describe as “the Moira Rose of London’s East End” she nailed every note and comedic beat.  Also starring Gaten Matarazzo (Stranger Things) and Australia’s Jamie Jackson, I can’t say it’s my favourite Sondheim (that’s probably Company, or Into The Woods) but was still spectacular. 

Parade (Bernard B Jacobs Theatre) ★★★★★

Music & lyrics by Jason Robert Brown. Book by Alfred Uhry. Bernard B Jacobs Theatre. Booking till Aug 6, 2023.

It doesn’t get better than this. Parade is undoubtedly Jason Robert Brown’s best musical, mainly thanks to the excellent book by Alfed Uhry who has written a brilliant play that weaves in and out the songs. Much like rewatching The Crucible, Parade is a reminder of how horrible we can be as humans – the mob is always hungry for blood. Ben Platt was excellent but Micaela Diamond was the real stand out here. I’m always amazed at how much voice can come out of a physically smaller performer but her moments rocked the house. 

This beautiful production keeps the reality of the story it’s based on front and centre, projecting archive photographers of the people and places on the wall behind the performers. As much as it’s a story rooted in antisemitism, it’s also a battle of the North/South political divide, city vs country, working class distrust of university educated elites and the rabble’s need for closure regardless of guilt.