Crushworthy - Threesome

I have no idea where or when this picture (that Lindsay sent me) was taken (found here) but HELLO!

Hunter Parrish (Weeds, It's Complicated), Sebastian Stan (Gossip Girl, Hot Tub Time Machine) and Jonathan Groff (Glee, Taking Woodstock)!??!!

One for me, one for DivaJames, and well... another one for me. Haha...

At first I thought this was the most random collection of young hotties, but then I also realized there's 2 Melchior's sitting there. The original Spring Awakening Melchior and the final Broadway Melchior.

So Jonathan Groff, now a TV star on Glee is going to do Deathtrap in London later this summer. To be closer with Gavin Creel (currently in Hair in London, or have they broken up like rumours say they have?

Hunter Parrish made such a surprisingly great Melchior that I hope to see him on the stage again.

Sebastian Stan has apparently broken up with Leighton Meester (so that he could be with DameJames?) and is gonna be in the new Captain America? Cool!

Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com

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Almost Sad - Death at a Funeral - Movie Review

Death at a Funeral = C
Written by Dean Craig, Directed by Neil LaBute
Opens Apr. 16th 2010

A mostly Black remake of the British comedy by Dean Craig from all of 3 years ago. It stars some big comedy stars like Chris Rock, Martin Lawrence and Tracy Morgan.

But James Marsden is by far the funniest thing in the movie and steals the whole thing. Granted, he's been given the most to do, but pretty boy Marsden (who has already started expanding his pretty boy repertoire with Hairspray and Enchanted) proves again that his comic timing is impeccable and his facial expressions can be priceless.

With a cast that also includes Zoe Saldana (not blue), Loretta Devine, and Danny Glover (who is too old for this shit), this is basically a Tyler Perry movie for White people. You question my theory? Throw in Peter Dinklage (reprising the exact same role from the British original) and Luke Wilson (can an actor get whiter? Maybe only his brother Owen) and you can't refute it.

Chris Rock does what he can as the central character, while the annoying Martin Lawrence plays the annoying brother, but not even Tracy Morgan can really muster up as big laughs as Marsden alone can do.

In Morgan's recent interview on Oprah, he thanked Tina Fey for "getting him" and he truly owes Fey everytihng, because 30 Rock truly caters to Morgan's comedic sense, while here, he just feels wasted on silly stupid punchlines (as opposed to 30 Rock's absurdly silly stupid (but secretly smart) punchlines).

I still can't believe Neil LaBute, prolific playwright and screenwriter, directed this lightweight silliness. I haven't seen the British original but apparently the script is almost exactly the same, but I'm curious to see how different it all is, because this one feels a bit meandering and cobbled together. The American remake isn't a good movie, but Marsden is so funny that I'd hate for it not to be seen.

Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com

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Say A Little Prayer For - Promises, Promises - Musical Review

Promises, Promises - Broadway Theatre - Broadway, New York, NY - ***1/2 (out of 5 stars)
Music by Burt Bacharach, Lyrics by Hal David, Book by Neil Simon, based on the film The Apartment written by Billy Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond, Directed and Choreographed by Rob Ashford
In Previews, Opens Apr. 25th 2010. NOTE: Review based on an early preview.

Promises, Promises is promising promising, but what doesn't work in this revival is actually cemented into the original book and music, and some of its main casting. Unless Neil Simon agrees to major rewrites and Burt Bacharach is willing to re-write songs, I'm not sure how they can fix what's wrong. On the plus side, Sean Hayes, Katie Finneran and Rob Ashford's choreography give the show the energy its needed to make it a pleasant evening, while the fame of Hayes and now-star Kristin Chenoweth will make it a big ol' hit on Broadway and make it a hot ticket, at least until they leave.

Promises, Promises may be a revival and considered somewhat a classic, but while the story of The Apartment (which the musical is based on) is quite interesting (it's the swinging 60's and naive Chuck Baxter is lending his apartment to the higher ups at work for to use for their affairs, in hope that he'll get promoted for his gesture so that he can fall in love with the lovely Fran), the book by Neil Simon feels dated with jokes that almost require a drum set accompaniment. It makes Sean Hayes performance an even bigger accomplishment since he manages to milk every laugh from every line with his wonderful comic timing and oodles of charm and likability.

Sean Hayes, most famous for his uber-gay comic portrayal of Jack MacFarlane on Will and Grace, makes his Broadway debut with an abundance of stage presence, without relying on hysterical caricature and wonderfully plays a more subdued (and straight acting) role of Chuck Baxter with a nice leading man charm that reminds me of another star-turned Broadway presence Matthew Broderick. What holds Hayes back is his singing voice, which remains decent and serviceable if not exactly strong enough to carry a leading role and its required songs.

To counteract (or make even more obvious) Hayes' meagre singing voice, Hayes plays against Kristin Chenoweth's Fran Kubelik, Chuck Baxter's love interest and Chenoweth belts out Bacharach's songs as she's famous for. Except, as much as I love Chenoweth and as excited as I was to finally see her live for the first time, her voice doesn't seem to match Bacharach's softer song style and it just doesn't seem to click perfectly. On top of that, Fran is quite the dour character, almost unlikable.

Fran is the object of Baxter's attraction, but meanwhile, she has been secretly having an affair with one of the big bosses J.D. Sheldrake (Tony Goldwyn, Ghost), and while we know she would be with Baxter, it takes the whole show for her to constantly make mistake after mistake, including a drug overdose, before she realized nice guy Baxter is the guy she should be with. Why is Baxter in love with this troubled woman anyways? The perky Chenoweth tries to throw some dark drama into the darker role, but what's the point in casting Chenoweth if we can't get her perky self?

Instead, Katie Finneran (above with Hayes), who plays a character named Marge MacDougall who shows up for all of 2 scenes, steals the show with her HILARIOUS performance as a drunk woman who flirts with a bummed Chuck Baxter at the opening of the 2nd act. Finneran's Marge essentially comes out of nowhere and is supposed to be a device to push Chuck back into Fran's arms, but Finneran's performance is so winning, you wonder why Chuck and Marge don't just run away to live happily ever after.

All this is happening while there is the air of Mad Men mixed with 9 to 5 happening in this office comedy, with the famous-to-theatre-people song "Turkey Lurkey Time" somehow being thrown in as filler to identify a Christmas office party. Business men get horny over their secretaries, led by Brooks Ashmanskas (above with Hayes, She Loves Me, lovable but not at all believable as a man trying to sleep with any woman), and demand use of the apartment.

The sets are sparse and minimalist (and seem ready made to be transported easily for a national tour) in the first act but are workable and have a certain 60's simplistic flair, so I can buy it. The look of the 2nd act does a complete switchover as full on sets create a more intimate feel and a more specific story. It gives the 2nd act the dramatic weight the story calls for, something missing from the first half of the show, but by then, the true heaviness of the show has sunken a show that seems to sell itself on a light and airiness.

Rob Ashford's choreography is fun and Fosse-esque and make all the ensemble songs fun, but alas, most of the songs by Burt Bacharach are forgettable. Yes, there's "I'll Never Fall In Love Again" which became a famous hit, outside of the musical itself, but there's a reason why the other songs didn't become famous. In fact, the songs are so forgettable that they've inserted two of Bacharach's most famous songs, "I Say A Little Prayer" and "A House Is Not a Home" into the show (and when I mean inserted, I mean inserted, with very little lead up to work them into the book).

Dick Latessa does what he can with his thankless role, while Tony Goldwyn (above) seems a bit stiff playing the stiff suit that Fran falls for, and his voice, like Hayes' is serviceable but not great.

Unfortunately, Rob Ashford (making his Broadway directing debut), who so brilliantly directed recent Donmar revivals of Parade and A Streetcar Named Desire, tries to keep the buoyancy of the show alive as much as possible, but doesn't quite seem to know how to fix it all. With a somewhat miscast Kristin Chenoweth, with Tony Goldwyn out of his musical element, and with an incongruous 1st and 2nd act, Ashford will need to smooth things over before opening night to bridge Neil Simon's lame book and Bacharach's tepid songs. Sean Hayes and Katie Finneran luckily bring a needed zest to the proceedings (and who collectively give at least 2 to 2.5 of the 3.5 stars I'm giving this show), and the ensemble cast dances up a storm with Ashford's choreography, that there's still hope for the show, as it still has some promise to it.

Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com

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Seeing Through The Looking Glass - The Glass Menagerie - Play Review

The Glass Menagerie - Roundabout's Laura Pels Theatre at the Harold and Miriam Steinberg Center for Theatre - Off-Broadway, New York, NY - ****1/2 (out of 5 stars)
Written by Tennessee Williams, Directed by Gordon Edelstein
Runs until Jun. 13th 2010, Transfers to the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles - Sept. 1st - Oct. 17th 2010

I remember reading this play in high school and identifying with Tom Wingfield but I've forgotten why exactly. I just remembered loving the play, and that I thought I WAS Tom Wingfield. I have never actually seen the play performed and have just been left with the memories of being captivated by reading the play in High School English class.

The new production currently running at Roundabout's Off-Broadway location has apparently changed up the play in a radical way but since I only have vague memories of the play, I can only guess to the exact changes, most obviously, the setting (but if there were other major changes, I'm not really sure what they were). Director Gordon Edelstein has moved the setting from the Wingfield's house and into an old hotel room. How does that work? Well, at first it seems like some meaningless twist, though it gives for some nice theatrical staging effects, but it hints at the end results and gives the final moments an even bigger impact (though if you don't actually know the classic play, I won't give it away here).

Edelstein's production starts off a little slow, mainly because it is carefully gathering the glass pieces for a bigger shattering effect, but once the haze dissipates, a clarity in the characters makes this The Glass Menagerie truly shine. The terrific cast brings a realism and humour to Williams' artfully constructed words, and there's an ease and connectivity to the tragic story.

Judith Ivey (Designing Women) easily breathes the words of Amanda Wingfield, the overbearing mother whose protectiveness and bossiness hurts and hinders her two grown children. Ivey gives her Amanda a lightness that makes the ease of her manipulation and pushiness all the more startling. The Southern charm becomes a perfect foil and Ivey makes the character both very specific and incredibly universal.

Patch Darragh's (Mercy) Tom Wingfield perfectly balances his love and frustration with his family and his increasingly unbearable situation. Struggling to live life and further his career, he lives under his overbearing mother, while caringly protects his sister Laura (Keira Keeley). Tom's escapes to the "movies" become his constance excuse to live by his mother's rules while secretly having homosexual encounters. It's beautifully subtle (and sadly for me, very recognizable) and Darragh's superb performance is incredibly believable. The audience understands why he stays with his remaining family, and under the weight of his runaway father, and Darragh has a wonderful sibling rapport with Keeley.

Keira Keeley completely disappears in the first act, lost on the sidelines as she plays with her collection of glass figurines, and it's perfect that way. Tom and Amanda vie for control of the family which makes Laura pull back even further, and it's only when the Gentleman Caller's visit in the second act, that mother Amanda forces Tom to invite, forces Laura out of her secure protective hideaway.

When Michael Mosley's (Scrubs) Gentleman Caller Jim O'Connor shows up for dinner and blasts Laura and Tom's life with a burst of energy and enthusiasm, it starts a stir in Keeley's Laura and Keeley makes her Laura slowly bloom while retaining her fragility. Laura's transition in the presence of Jim only reinforces the intelligent move to the stillness in her performance in the first act, and Keeley's performance only enhances Williams' story.

Mosley turns a truly fine performance as a confident man unaffected by earlier failures. His high school's success is only fuel for his optimistic outlook for the future, as unrealistic as they may be. The Gentleman Caller gives Laura hope, but also rattles Tom, as an example to another way to live, and Mosley's Caller gives the fresh air needed to change the stale air within the Wingfield clan.

Michael Yeargan's hotel room set nicely reveals its further layers as the walls become semi translucent to reveal the memories Tom recounts. Jennifer Tipton's lighting, especially considering it becomes a major plot point, is nicely handled, and the scenes relying on candlelight become intimate without becoming a technical hinderance. Edelstein has polished a beautiful production that has a sense of time and place while still feeling relevant and modern, and the superb cast gives new life to Tennessee Williams' oldest play.

Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com

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TVworthy - The Vacation Catch-Up

It's been a while since I've blogged about TV. Oh, I'm still watching lots (and tweeting about it), but since my Australia/New Zealand vacation, I've been trying to catch-up. Some, like Lost, I've caught up with right away of course (not that I have any idea what's going on) and the rest, I'm slowly working my way back to the current episodes (I'm finally caught up to late March for most).

Anyways, here's my thoughts in more than 140 characters (but not by much because I think my brain is starting work in 140 character thoughts now).

Lost - Seriously, I can't talk about it, because, I don't know how to talk about it. But man, I can never wait until the next episode, yet fear it because it's one less episode until the end. I'm assuming I'll get "it" on May 23rd at 11pm.

Bored to Death - Watched the first season. I always think I'll get annoyed at Jason Schwartzman, Zach Galifianakis, and Ted Danson, yet I'm reminded that I've enjoyed them before (Schartzman in Rushmore and any Wes Anderson film, Galifianakis in Hangover despite the movie being overrated, Danson in Help Me Help You and Damages) and I'm loving them in this and I can't wait for more episodes.

Ugly Betty - I am LOVING this season so far. Of course I am. It's cancelled! It can now join the ranks of Everwood and The OC. Shows that got cancelled in it's fourth, and best season.

Greek - Nothing is more comforting than going back to college and joining Cappie, Casey, Rusty and Beaver. Seriously, I'd go back if it was this fun. I'm enjoying the deepening of Evan and Rebecca's characters and kudos for the ongoing gay love story with Calvin and Grant and I love the Heath still lingers around.

American Idol - What can be said? Worst season ever. It's Bowersox's to lose but I don't even get that excited by her as I have past Idolers like Kris Allen, David Archie, David Cook, Carrie Underwood or Kelly Clarkson. Maybe it's cause of all the Lilith Fair vibe. Maybe it's cause despite it supposedly being a girls year, the boys have prevailed, despite sucky voices. But hey, it's what happens when everyone is a sob story this year.

Life Unexpected - How much do I love this show? It has that comfortable reminder of the good years of The WB. Love Kristofer Polaha and Shirri Appleby and love all the minor melodrama.

Community, Parks & Recreation, Modern Family and Cougar Town have become such awesome comedies! Love them so much. Amazing too since 3 of them had such a shaky start. In fact, I find myself looking forward to them more than the old standard The Office (which I will say, has at least gotten better again in the new year).

The Good Wife - The cast is superb to begin with but they keep adding amazing guest stars and re-occuring characters. How much do we love Gary Cole's mustache? Or a creepy Alan Cummings (though when is he not creepy?). The writing has gotten better and tighter too and while the mysteries/cases still manipulatively feed us viewers, the interplay between the characters are snappy and solid. And still love that Archie Punjabi is now in a big US hit TV show.

Undercover Boss - It's so set up and manipulated (I mean, there's no way EVERY employee the undercover bosses speaks to has a sob story like the ones that do on this show) but while I wonder about the OTHER worthy employees, I'm a total sucker for it all. I can't stop watching, as fake as some of it may be.

Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains - When did Colby get so crabby? I'm still on team Boston Rob. I'm sad Cirie got kicked out so early. I wish Stephen (from JT's season) and Rob Cesterino was on this. UPDATE: Okay, I caught another ep. DAMNIT. Ugh.

Desperate Housewives - Okay, lesbian story aside (and I'm not totally caught up yet so bear with me), I've been loving this season.

Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com

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Politically Incorrect - Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson - Musical Review

Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson - Newman Theater at The Public - Off-Broadway, New York, NY - **1/2 (out of 5 stars)
Music and lyrics by Michael Friedman, Written and Directed by Alex Timbers
Review based on preview performance. Opened Apr. 6th, Runs until Apr. 25th 2010
UPDATE: Extended until May 9th 2010 UPDATE #2: Extended until May 30th 2010

Andrew Jackson was the 7th President of the United States, and he was a hero to the people, or was he an American Hitler? To be honest, I don't know much about American history (that hasn't been cemented in film history) so a new musical about Andrew Jackson's controversial reign set to emo-rock music and presented in a satirical low-brow comedy style just sounds cool enough to work.

And to a degree, it does, mostly because of Alex Timbers' college-style humour filled book that is secretly clever in its analysis on the stupidity of political life (of the 19th century that is a thinly veiled metaphor to the current political tea party's). Timbers' direction goes all out in inspired over-the-top antics, including a modern day wheelchair-bound nerdy teen narrator (a very funny Colleen Werthmann) and a wussy Twinkie-eating Vice-President Martin Van Buren (a hysterical Lucas Near-Verbrugghe).

Benjamin Walker is a handsome and sexy Andrew Jackson, a damaged young man (whose parents were killed by Indians) filled with anger, angst and confusion, and manages to climb through the ranks by inspiring the populists hatred toward common enemies (basically everyone who isn't American, and particularly the Indians). Walker rocks out the songs and nicely balances the dark yet silly humour and tone with a confident gravitas making quite a stirring star turn (that slightly reminds me of a Jonathan Groff's older straight brother).

Using emo-rock to represent the emotional stirring of the masses that Andrew Jackson milks to become the people's President is perfect in its depiction. The people want it and that's the excuse Andrew Jax uses, or is the populist thinking just an excuse for Andrew Jackson to carry out his damaging actions? It's a perfect forum for a rock musical and Donyale Werle's sets and Justin Townsend's lighting nicely paint a radical mood set in traditional times, with the entire theatre decked out in Red fluorescents and baroque chandeliers and picture frames.

Unfortunately, the entire show starts to weaken anytime the game cast starts singing one of Michael Friedman's songs. Walker and company rock them out as much as possible and they have the right attitude, but the songs never truly captivate in between Timber's smart-alecky book and the music slows down the cleverness of the musical.

The ridiculous style of the show recounting the controversial history of American politics makes for a clever mix, but its too bad the music loses whatever steam the ironic comedy builds up. The intermissionless show begins to drag with ever song and Benjamin Walker's charisma, a wicked cast (including a wonderfully cartoonish Jeff Hiller and springy Kate Cullen Roberts) and the politically incorrect jokes can only carry the musical so far.

Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com

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Rebirth of a Nation

I've tweeted this a few times before but I haven't fallen in love with a song so fast and so much in a long time, so I'm posting it for Good Friday/Easter. Strange especially since this is a Canadian All-Star remake of a current Canadian radio hit (and upcoming South African FIFA World Cup song) that I don't actually like that much. K'Naan's "Wavin' Flag" is still currently making its way up the Canadian charts but now he's lent it to Young Artists for Haiti and I'm LOVING this new version.

Okay, so it's Canadian stars so the rest of you probably won't know many of them, and heck, there's a bunch of folks I still haven't figured out who they are, but I see Nelly Furtado, Sam Roberts, Avril Lavigne, Simple Plan's Pierre Bouvier, Lights, Sum 41's Deryck Whibley Whibley, Blue Rodeo's Jim Cuddy, Jully Black, Jacob Hoggard, Justin Nozuka, Fefe Dobson, Corb Lund, Drake, Nikki Yanofsky, and Justin Bieber.



I love the french dude. Pierre Lapointe.

To donate to Haiti, go here. Or in general to Doctors Without Borders.

Oh, here's the full list of artists:
Soloists (in order of appearance)
K'naan
Nelly Furtado
Sam Roberts
Avril Lavigne
Pierre Bouvier
Tyler Connolly
Kardinal Offishall
Jully Black
LIGHTS
Deryck Whibley
Serena Ryder
Jacob Hoggard
Emily Haines
Hawksley Workman
Drake (solo rap)
Chin Injeti
Ima
Pierre Lapointe
Elisapie Isaac
Esthero
Corb Lund
Fefe Dobson
Nikki Yanofsky
Matt Mays
Justin Nozuka
Justin Bieber

Chorus (including the soloists)
Arkells
Lamar Ashe
Broken Social Scene
Torquil Campbell
Canadian Tenors
Aion Clarke
City and Colour
Tom Cochrane
Jim Cuddy
Jim Creeggan
Kathleen Edwards
Dave Faber
Jessie Farrell
Colin James
Patrick Kordyback
Brandon Lehti
Colin MacDonald
Jay Malinowski
Stacey McKitrick
Suzie McNeil
Fefe Dobson
Stephan Moccio
Kevin Parent
Josh Ramsay
Red 1
Hayley Sales
James Shaw
Shiloh
Tim Baker



Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com

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Blank White Canvas - Art & Million Dollar Quartet - Theatre Reviews

Art - Bluma Appel Theatre at the St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts - Toronto, ON - ** (out of 5 stars)
Written by Yasmina Reza, Translated by Christopher Hampton, Directed by Morris Panych
Runs until Apr. 10th 2010
Million Dollar Quartet - Nederlander Theatre - Broadway, New York, NY - ** (out of 5 stars)
Book by Colin Escott and Floyd Mutrux, Original Concept and Direction by Floyd Mutrux, Directed by Eric Schaeffer
In Previews, Opens Apr. 11th 2010

Boy, the rest of the audiences loved these shows and easily bought into the big hoopla, but I thought both Art (in a new production in Toronto) and Million Dollar Quartet (just opening on Broadway while a successful run in Chicago continues) are both big concept shows with little to show for it.

I saw Art when it first ran in London and remembered being slightly bored, but through the years, have waxed nostalgic and called it an entertaining, if somewhat overrated play. Seeing again only made me realize I've totally given it way more credit than it deserves. It truly is the blank white canvas it's talking about. In case you don't know the story, it's about 3 very different friends, who argue and bicker when one buys a piece of modern art (what looks like a blank white canvas, though claims to be shades of grayness) and it unravels the friendship to its true core. It's a GREAT concept, one that has so much potential for hilarity and deep discussions, but I find Yasmina Reza (or Hampton's translations?) never seems to fulfill the early promise of the play (which is the same problem I had with her current Broadway hit God of Carnage, a great concept play, poorly fulfilled but well acted).

Luckily, the new Canadian production stars Colin Mochrie (Whose Line Is It Anyways), Evan Buliung (Stratford) and Peter Donaldson and while Donaldson overacts a bit, I felt the script sort of forced him to. It's a sitcom script that feigns high intellectualism to the masses of middle class white folks to make them feel so high and smart for going to the "thea-tah". Mochrie does a fine job as the art buyer and Evan Buliung is terrifically funny as the cowardly jello of a friend, but even Panych's taut direction can only paint so much onto what essentially is a blank script.


Million Dollar Quartet is a new musical that's more like an elaborate Vegas revue with a few dramatic scenes in between. It's an excuse to put on a concert with the rockin' songs of the 50's, when Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash met at Sun Records Studio in 1956 Memphis and made some impromptu recordings... and that's the story pretty much right there. Throw in the studio's owner Sam Phillips (Hunter Foster, Kiss of the Spider Woman, Urinetown) and Elvis' girlfriend Dyanne (Elizabeth Stanley, Company) for those dramatic scenes, and you're left with a pretty hollow of an excuse for the concert show.

If it's a show you want, then you'll get it, as the performances recreating some of Presley, Lewis and Cash's best known songs are generally solid, while Perkins, was the original writer of "Blue Suede Shoes". Robert Britton Lyons (above left) sings some of the lesser known songs well, but mostly he just gets to act annoyed and disgruntled that Elvis is more popular from his own song.

Eddie Clendening (above and below centre) does a terrific Elvis that echoes Presley's persona without relying on caricature, and it surprisingly feels real and subtle. Clendening's recreation of Elvis' musical performances are terrific.

Levi Kreis (above left) gets the most to play with as the over-the-top Jerry Lee Lewis and while he doesn't have as many solo songs to perform, his musical talents don't go unnoticed. Both his musical and acting performances are fantastic and Kreis gives the dull book the biggest lift.

Elizabeth Stanley does what she can from a sketched out role. A role that is sort of an excuse to stick a woman into the proceedings to add a female voice, and a romance. Sadly, Stanley still feels underused.

Hunter Foster (above left, with Kreis) on the other hand doesn't even get to sing, a shame considering his talented voice, but he throws some good dramatic weight into the non-singing role.

Lance Guest (above right, with Lyons) is the only major performance disappointment who plays Johnny Cash as a lumbering mumbly wallflower. I barely noticed he was there most of the time and he's on stage almost as much as the other 3 singers.

At the end of the show, they forgo the one room set and Million Dollar Quartet embraces its concert nature with an elaborate finale/encore and for the first time, the show is truly rocking. The audience around me ate it up but the slim book and slow pacing from the intermissionless show just dragged the terrific performances down, and a fun finale is not enough to make up for it. The attempt at a hit parade only reminds me of how slick and smartly made Jersey Boys was, and I enjoyed another 1950's Memphis set new Broadway musical Memphis far more (with it's original musical and cliched but still winning book). Million Dollar Quartet may be a true incident of a special gathering of stars, but I wouldn't spend too much money trying to see it.

Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com

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My Own Discord - The Last Song - Movie Review

The Last Song = C+
Written by Nicholas Sparks & Jeff Van Wie, Directed by Julie Anne Robinson
Opens Mar. 31st 2010

Yah, I saw it. Yah, I'm reviewing it. Hey, considering I actually liked Hannah Montana: The Movie, I may actually secretly be the 12 year old girl demographics they're trying to hit here (which is basically what the screening consisted of. My friend and I may have shifted the average age demographics a few notches over). Of course, the real me would have groaned at this movie were it not for Greg Kinnear's involvement.

Instead, I think I sat through the entire mind-numbingly glossy movie with a grin on my face the whole time and practically clapped with glee everytime Liam Hemsworth took off his shirt. At least they were smart enough to have Liam Hemsworth shirtless within the first 5 min. of the movie. And then repeated that throughout the film. A lot. (Oh happy times)

Of course, I knew what I was heading into and you don't go into a movie based on a Nicholas Sparks book starring Miley Cyrus expecting art. You know there's going to be a lot of loverly shots of a glowing Miley and Liam as they hate-first/love-later each other. You know that having Oscar nominee and former Talk Soup host Greg Kinnear means that the role of father couldn't just be a throwaway, and thankfully Kinnear throws some dramatic heft into the lightweight film.

And this being a Nicholas Sparks movie, you know all the straight guys are going to roll their eyes throughout the film (after whimpering like a baby when they got dragged their by their girlfriends/wives in the first place) while all the gays and the girls are going to cry at some point, and cry with glee at the sight of Liam Hemsworth (and to be perfectly honest, Greg Kinnear, who is looking just as good now as he did in his film debut in Sabrina).

To give Miley Cyrus some credit, wasn't horrible, although I think I found her bad-girl act a bit laughable. Liam Hemsworth was surprisingly decent considering half his job was to stand there shirtless. And Bobby Coleman (as Miley's younger brother), despite some showbizkid-look-at-me-acting, was thoroughly enjoyable, especially in his scenes with Greg Kinnear.

SPOILER ALERT

But while The Last Song doesn't come close to the actual quality of The Notebook, I didn't hate it either. Probably because it had nothing really to hate since the first half is spent blandly (but lovingly) covering the goo-eyed love between Hannah Montana the spawn of Billy Ray and Liam Hemsworth, while the second act reveals the sad twist it had been hinting at (and expected since nothing really happens up to that point, so SOMETHING had to happen).

Seriously, you knew SOMEONE was going to die in this movie. Though I will say that I actually stupidly guessed wrong. I should have known. My mind was numbed from all the cliches in the first half that I actually enjoyed the emotional manipulation of the second half.

Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com

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So You Think You Like These Changes? SYTYCD S7 Switches Up

So @dizzyfeet (Nigel Lythgoe) is changing up the format for Season 7 of So You Think You Can Dance.

After hinting tweets, the full explanation is out "We are forming a 'dance-pool' of your favorite dancers from previous Seasons to act as partners for this year's top 10." "The dancers will change partners each week picked from an 'All-Star Pool.' Each 'All-star' will be a specialist in specific genres of dance." "Only the competitors will be judged not the "All-Stars.". America votes for their favorite and one of the bottom three dancers will go home.".

So as many people on twitter pointed out, it's Dancing with the Stars now on SYTYCD only the stars are alums.

Not a terrible idea, but my gut reaction is that as much as I love some of the alums and the prospect of seeing Pasha, Neil Haskell, Travis Wall, Dmitry Chaplin, and Mark Kanemura on my TV every week again excites me, the reality is that it will somewhat take away from the new dancers and it won't allow them to forge their own identities, new partnerships as much.

While I do agree some weaker dancers have coasted through until the Top 10 with stronger partners, and if a pairing didn't work from the start, the poor dancers were stuck with them until the Top 10, I'm glad Nigel is trying to change things up.

With hints that it was only going to be a Top 10 though, and only one elimination per week, and new partnerships every week, I was hoping for something more drastic (3somes for Top 9?).

Of course I'm not against the All Stars idea, I just wish it were almost its own complete season. And since I've tabulated my list of ALL (except S1) the dancers from 5 seasons of SYTYCD AND 2 seasons of SYTYCDCanada, you already know who I favour.

But if I had to pick All Stars (albeit, you gotta remember some are actually working), I'd probably want Pasha, Neil (if he's not on Bway), Katee, Ellenore, Legacy, Heidi, Kathryn, Benji, Jeanine, Jakob, or Sabra.

I thought Lacey and Dmitry were busy on DWTS but apparently they are not on the latest season, and I thought Travis Wall had a show on ABC but he just tweeted this so maybe he's in. And yes Zach, I do think Travis is the second coming.

I'd also love to see Mark again but he's still on tour with Lady Gaga.

It's too bad Nigel probably won't be bringing in some of the Canadian dancers since we had some great ones up here.

I'm also going to assume Billy Bell will be back as a sure thing? He'd better be.

I also wish that at least one of the judging spots went back on rotation, and since Mary Murphy is apparently choreographing again, maybe it's going to be her spot?

What does everyone else think?

Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com

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