Tuesday, October 7, 2008

What They Do For Love


A Chorus Line is my favorite Broadway musical, in the same way The Godfather is my favorite movie. Both are fresh every time I see them. So I was eager to see for myself if the 2006 Broadway revival of A Chorus Line was as good as I had heard it was.

The CD of the revival captures the energy and passion of the original, and surprisingly includes more of the actual play than the original recording did.

Most of the actors in this revival of A Chorus Line, which we saw last weekend at The Opera House in Boston, weren’t even born when the show opened off-Broadway at The Public Theatre in New York in May 1975.

The characters in the show have become so iconic – as in “a Cassie” or "a Morales" – that aspiring Broadway musical actors want to play them with all the fervor and passion the characters themselves demonstrate in “I Hope I Get It,” the play’s opening number. That's because the play is about them and will continue to be about every Broadway musical actor, past and present.

At our performance, an understudy (Julie Kotarides) played Diana Morales and nearly stole the show, in classic Broadway fashion.

Nikki Snelson took complete ownership of the role of Cassie and performed a thrilling "The Music and the Mirror," almost making you believe no one else had ever done it before.

All of this and more is what makes A Chorus Line unique, and has kept it fresh and relevant for so long, with no end in sight.

Seeing it at the Opera House was special; even though its seats are as small as Fenway Park's, it has been fully restored to its Roaring Twenties’ splendor, with exceptional sightlines and architectural details. Don’t miss any chance you get to see something there.

And don't miss the chance to see this production of A Chorus Line if it comes to a city anywhere near you!

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