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Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark Reviews
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| 16 |
Review by: ilovedspiderman, Jan 9, 2011 |
| I went to see this production on Thursday, January 6 and contrary to the blogs and critics are saying, I thoroughly enjoyed this show. I have seen 110 productions in the past year and this would be in my Top 10. I wasn't expecting an award winning script; why would i be? Spiderman is based on a comic for goodness sake! It is never going to be a life changing experience, nor do I want it to be!! I WAS expecting a spectacle and that is exactly ... read more what I got. Yes, there are flaws to the production that they undoubtedly wil try iron out but Kudos to Julie Taymour for tasking chances and for being innovative and daring. I also LOVED the music. I LOVE u2 and I was humming songs on teh way out such as RISE ABOVE sung by Aracne. It is an amazing song. The title song is also beautiful and I enjoyed the cheeky U2 snippets in between. The first act was 90 minutes and I did not look at my watch once! The second act is not hard to follow contrary to what people are saying. In fact, Taymour has done right in adding Aracne and taking a different slant. It just ends messily. The Greek Chorus are unnecessary in my opinion and I think they should develop Aracne's character a bit more. Her "weaving scene" at the beginning was amazing. The acrobatics and flight sequences are breathtaking. The stage is the best I have ever seen. The actors are not the best, but are far from the worst. The scenes with MJ and Peter need to be worked on a tad more as there is too much going on behind them which is distracting. But again, I am not looking for Gone With the Wind here. I paid to see a spectacle that pushes the boundaries. Tha is what I got. Congrats to all involved. Sail above the begrudgers. It is the hottest ticket on Broadway at the moment. RAN WITHOUT A HITCH. |
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must see!
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| 17 |
Very pleasantly surprised Review by: NY biker, Jan 9, 2011 |
I purchased tickets for my family in November before the previews began, and I was very apprehensive after reading all the negative reviews and hearing about all the production glitches. I was VERY pleasantly surprised by how much our entire group (14 people) enjoyed the experience. Everyone had positive comments (age range 20-60+), including "it wasn't the best play I've seen, but it was the coolest". The overall feeling was it was a great ... read more combination of rock concert, cirque de soleil, and theater. I would recommend orchestra seats to get the full effect of the flying scenes. The second act and ending were a bit of a disappointment.
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must see!
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Spider-Man: Turn off the Show Review by: BennyBoi, Jan 8, 2011 |
Overall, the show is a must AVOID
Taymor has yet again brought us a production that is visually intriguing. However this time, she forgot to include a decent story and memorable songs to go along with it.
The show has been boosted as a visual masterpiece since the beginning. Along with this promise though is that it will have a story and music that will capture the audiences attention. They were half correct. While you will be ... read more captured by SOME of the stunts/visual feats, you will be bored to death by the incoherent plot and muddled music.
Upon entering the theater, you will be excited by the set which extends out into the house itself.
But that's where it dies down. The first act is somewhat reasonable. It mainly sticks to the plot of the first film (but almost entirely skips over Uncle Ben's death, a plot point that should be heartbreaking, yet becomes almost an after thought, which is bad since that is what sends Peter on his journey to becoming a superhero.) The visual effects are great and will get your blood pumping for a period of time, but after a while, the thrill wears off when you can CLEARLY see the rigging that equips the actors to fly around (not even a tiny bit of energy seems to have gone into hiding things) and also can clearly see crew members helping the actors get ready for flying right in plain view.
Act Two is when the show really goes down. The first act had a plot at least, and one or two memorable songs, but the second act, I wont even begin to try to describe. Characters that were in Act One vanish with NO explanation, plot ideas that you thought would carry over disappear, and we see a new villian that has never been seen in the Spider Man world. Arachne seems like a good idea, but the show quickly appears to become about HER obsession with Peter. While doing this, the songs become a joke. In act one, at least it appeared to be some attempt at making them connect with the plot, here though...they are just thrown in (they include a song about SHOES sung by Arachne and her troop of fellow spider gals.)
I will let you decide what the show is...however, when I went, I looked around and saw A LOT of bored expressions, kids getting antsy, and a lot of negative reviews. After intermission, there was also a lot of empty seats. And you know there is a problem when the shows main target audience (kids) walks out to the lobby during intermission asking if they can go home... |
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My recommendation:
Don't go
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| 19 |
Review by: KiTtie8982, Dec 28, 2010 |
| I took my husband to see the show and we both loved the performance!!! They set the bar high with never before seen amazing scene sets, music, and acrobats! If you are going to see the show keep this in mind.... it's a play! They did rewrite the traditional Spider-man story, go with an open mind. The first act is more like the movies and the second act is more like another episode that you never read in the comics. I would see it again! Loved ... read more it! Honestly any seat in the theatre is perfect! We had center mezz. |
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My recommendation:
Make an effort to see
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tangled in its own web Review by: iDontCareIfYouKnowItsEdwin, Dec 20, 2010 |
I go to many Broadway shows (and to see my taste past shows that I've recommended and love are Next to Normal, In the Heights, Brief Encounter, American Idiot and did not like Bloody Bloody, Mary Poppins, Rock of Ages).
With that said, I thought this show was abismal.
I will say the building/scaffolding was stunning as was the webbing/lighting for the SpiderLady's scenes. STUNN.ING.
That said the music was tragic; key changes that ... read more were shifting wickedly all over the place that left the show with a somber/emo/debbie-downer feel.
Spidey himself screamed (literally) himself through his solo near the end of the show and it was SCARY. Very close to the end he decided to re-demonstrate this horrid "singing"; most likely because his SpiderLady cast mate was demonstrating the same technique.
The greek chorus/narators take away from any fun of the show and add this to the sets and characters that were over-cartooned this show never gels.
Do not go. Do. not. Go. If you wanna see someone fly go to a Cirque show or somethin else.
Ouch Spidey. Ouch Julie. |
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My recommendation:
Don't go
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Stay Far Far away, like another galaxy even. Review by: GothProf, Dec 19, 2010 |
| I wanted to LOVE this musical, but there is not enough Vodka in the world to help this disaster of a musical! Though the sets are astounding, the score is TERRIBLE, the script is even worse, and the 'flying' was ridiculous. See it only for the disaster camp it offers. I, however, want my 100.00 and three hours back. |
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My recommendation:
Don't go
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I saw this show with:
Spouse/Partner
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Recommended for:
Anyone
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| * Review is an opinion of a BroadwayBox user and not that of BroadwayBox.com and BroadwayBox, Inc. |
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