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I saw Fame: The Musical several weeks back. I've never seen the movie, but I've always loved the title song, so I was keen to catch it. Sadly, it is perhaps the first musical I would hesitate to recommend.
So, yeah, the adventures of one class at New York City's High School of Performing Arts, as they progress from orientation to graduation. The concept was great, but the execution left something to be desired.
For one, there were so many characters to follow, I didn't feel like I got to know each of them well enough. For another, some of the plot turns were unconvincing (Nick and Serena) or heavyhanded (Carmen). This wasn't helped by some of the acting, which was more like overacting. I'm all for melodrama, but not hamminess. I also had a big problem with Joe. Maybe his fratboy behaviour was supposed to be lewd and funny, but it just felt sleazy and sexist to me. Possibly a different performer, under different direction, could have pulled it off, but here it was just uncomfortable, especially with kids as young as five in the audience.
On the other hand, the singing was top notch, despite a few numbers where the vocals were overwhelmed by the orchestra. My favourite songs were "I Want To Make Magic" and of course the end song "Fame", which did a lot to salvage the rest for me. The dancing was sharp and energetic, and covered a variety of styles, from hiphop to ballet. I also appreciated the fact that the performers included musicians as well as singers and dancers. And all the '80s references were great.
It's just not a musical whose music I'll be listening to much afterwards. Maybe I'll stick with the Irene Cara song instead.
So, yeah, the adventures of one class at New York City's High School of Performing Arts, as they progress from orientation to graduation. The concept was great, but the execution left something to be desired.
For one, there were so many characters to follow, I didn't feel like I got to know each of them well enough. For another, some of the plot turns were unconvincing (Nick and Serena) or heavyhanded (Carmen). This wasn't helped by some of the acting, which was more like overacting. I'm all for melodrama, but not hamminess. I also had a big problem with Joe. Maybe his fratboy behaviour was supposed to be lewd and funny, but it just felt sleazy and sexist to me. Possibly a different performer, under different direction, could have pulled it off, but here it was just uncomfortable, especially with kids as young as five in the audience.
On the other hand, the singing was top notch, despite a few numbers where the vocals were overwhelmed by the orchestra. My favourite songs were "I Want To Make Magic" and of course the end song "Fame", which did a lot to salvage the rest for me. The dancing was sharp and energetic, and covered a variety of styles, from hiphop to ballet. I also appreciated the fact that the performers included musicians as well as singers and dancers. And all the '80s references were great.
It's just not a musical whose music I'll be listening to much afterwards. Maybe I'll stick with the Irene Cara song instead.
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