I found the new vampire musical, Lestat, book by Linda Woolverton, music by Elton John, lyrics by Bernie Taupin, to be visually interesting (set by Derek McKean, lighting by Kenneth Posner, costumes by Susan Hilferty) but not engaging. They didn't know whether to be campy or serious, so they went serious, and the few laughs show that it might have worked if it took a different tack.
Singing voices are all excellent; Carolee Carmello is outstanding, vivid, and a young phenom with a wide-open mature voice, Allison Fischer, steals the stage in terms of performance. When she's on, it's another, more interesting show. But the music is flat, without memorable tunes, the dialogue is corny and cliche, the lyrics don't amuse, the direction by Robert Jess Roth doesn't take us anywhere exciting, and the whole thing seems to be a $12,000,000 mistake. A Vampire show should be scary, fun and interesting. This is none of these.
Previews:
March 25, 2006
Opened:
April 25, 2006
Ended:
May 2006
Country:
USA
State:
New York
City:
New York
Company/Producers:
Warner Brothers Theater Ventures
Theater Type:
Broadway
Theater:
Palace Theater
Theater Address:
1564 Broadway
Running Time:
2 hrs, 30 min
Genre:
Musical
Director:
Robert Jess Roth
Review:
Parental:
adult themes, violence
Cast:
Hugh Panaro (Lestat), Carolee Carmello (Gabrielle), Jim Stanek (Louis), Roderick Hill (Nicolas), Michael Genet (Marius), Allison Fischer (Claudia), Rachel Coloff, Nikki Renee Daniels, Joseph Dellger, Colleen Fitzpatrick, Megan Reinking, Drew Sarich (Armand), Will Swenson, Steve Wilson, Tommar Wilson
Technical:
Music Dir: Brad Haak; Vocal Arr: Todd Ellison; Orchestr: Steve Margoshes & Guy Babylon; Music Sup: Guy Babylon; Music Coord: John Miller. Set: Derek McLane; Proj Coord: Howard Werner/Lightswitch; Costumes: Susan Hilferty; Light: Kenneth Posner; Sound: Jonathan Deans; Design Concept: David McKean; Hair: Tom Watson; Fight Dir: Rick Sordelet.
Other Critics:
PERFORMING ARTS INSIDER David Lefkowitz 5/06 -
Critic:
Richmond Shepard
Date Reviewed:
May 2006
