Blind Prophecy

The second show I ever saw on Broadway closed yesterday. The economic crisis is having an impact on more than just investment banks in New York, and some good shows are closing shop as tourism and local ticket purchases drop.

I went to see Xanadu exactly one week before the final Broadway performance. It’s a testament to the actors that the show seemed as fun and fresh as a newly-opened performance. Cheyenne Jackson (Sonny) was missing from the cast that day, but I’m okay with that because his understudy, Andre Ward, did a great job and it was fun to see Marty Thomas (winner of this year’s Broadway Beauty Pageant ) in the other Muse role normally played by Ward.

Overall, I thought the show was delightful fun and I only wished I could travel back in time to my 19-year-old self when the rights for this finally become available for college theater productions. Even though it’s Broadway run is coming to an end, this is a show that will have a long and productive life in community theaters, touring productions and college campuses. The songs are upbeat and playful, the characters campy and likable, and the book less shallow than you would expect.

I could rave about the outstanding performances of Kerry Butler, Jackie Hoffman, Mary Testa and Tony Roberts, but I expected those outstanding performances. What surprised me was the way they took a cheesy pop movie from 1980 and turned it into a superior piece of theatre. The show is full of meta-commentary on the arts in contemporary society, the role of pop culture, and the very conventions of musical theatre that make this production come alive while the movie version was widely panned (winning the first ever Razzie for worst director and picking up nominations in several other categories).

It’s too late to see Xanadu on Broadway, but the inevitable national tour will begin soon, and within a few years, I expect that your local university or community theatre group may be holding auditions for singer/dancer/actors who can roller disco. My advice, when Xanadu comes to your town, go check it out. Don’t be kept away by foolish snobbery based on what you think it’s going to be, give this show a chance and let it surprise you.

Filed under: NYC, music, theatregeekery by Jere Keys