Altar Boyz - Toronto Centre for the Performing Arts Studio Theatre - Toronto, ON - **** (out of 5 stars) Music and Lyrics by Gary Adler & Michael Patrick Walker, Book by Kevin Del Aguila, Directed and Choreographed by Tim French Runs until Oct. 11 2009
The Altar Boyz have finally descended into Toronto from the heavens of it's 4+ years run Off-Broadway via a new professional Toronto theatre company, Angelwalk Theatre. And thank the lords, it's GOOD.
I mean, the musical itself (which I've seen in NY twicealready), a hilarious spoof about a fictitious Christian Boyband on their last stop of their "Raise the Praise" tour that manages to satirize the boyband phenomenon and nicely puts humour to religion without ever skewering faith, is so winning and likable that it's hard to mess up such a solid show. The songs are grade A pop ditties that sound straight out of Backstreet Boys with lyrics that satirizes the cheesiness of it all. The jokes and one liners are funny, sometimes biting, but never mean spirited. And with 5 characters, the book nicely distinguishes each boy with their own personalities and storylines.
The Toronto production is finely directed by Tim French who milks even more jokes out of the script than the New York production (directed by Canadian Stafford Arima) (except the "Stand Up, Sit Down, Kneel" part which got more hilarious visuals in the original production) and French's choreography nicely spoofs the grooves of 90's boybands.
The cast is uniformly excellent though as The Star's Richard Ouzounian did, I don't want to single out anybody, but I may be in love with Stephen Roberts as Abraham (the Jewish Boyz! above) who not only looks a little like new Broadway-star-in-the-making Aaron Tveit (Gossip Girl, Next to Normal, Saved, Catch Me If You Can), but possesses the same leading star quality. My only surprise was that he wasn't cast as lead Boyz Matthew.
Luckily, Ken Chamberland (above, second from left) does a hilarious job with Matthew and milks the humour out of his songs more than I've ever seen. Eric Morin (and his abs, above left) does a great job with Luke, the b-boy of the group.
But it's Aidan deSalaiz (above, second from right) who does a wonderously hilarious job with Juan, milking every roll of his R's into a funny bit, and his previous Stratford experience really adds a 3-dimensional quality to his cartoony role and humanizes Juan's big song "La Vida Eternal". deSalaiz adds an emotional depth to the jokey song in a way I haven't seen yet, and turned one of my least favorite songs into one of my favorite scenes.
Then there's Jeigh Madjus (above centre) as Mark, the ... more... "flaming" one. Madius is adorably hysterical and his voice is tremendous and only matched by his comedic timing. Madjus may be little in stature but definitely a scene stealer on stage and even when his Mark wasn't in the spotlight, there was a definite glow around him and he kept in character (a very energetic character) even when he was out of the spotlight.
There were some technical glitches at the preview performance but the Studio Space at the Toronto Centre for the Arts (in the same complex where the other boys, Jersey Boys, is playing) is a nice perfect size for the show, though as Ouzounian points out, a move downtown AND an extension would always be welcome.
On a random side note. Is it weird that I now have a crush on Stephen Roberts, not to be confused with my crushworthy ballet dancer Robert Stephens from the National Ballet of Canada?
Friday Night Lights New Season 4 Premieres Wednesday Oct. 28 2009 on DirecTV at 9pm. (NBC will air it Summer 2010)
I love that even when most of the characters have graduated from high school, FNL is, unlike every other high school show that follows their characters to the same university (in some convoluted plot to get every character back into the same college), courageous enough to shake things up, bring in many brand new cast members, and ingeniously set up a plotline in the finale that will actually make the fresh start make sense AND essentially restart the show with a new cast.
CAN'T WAIT!
I already miss Jason Street and Smash but as last year proved, FNL can write them out beautifully, and no doubt they'll do justice to Matt Saracen, Lyla Garrity and eventually Tyra Collette's exits.
But at the heart of the show is still Tami and Coach Eric Taylor and I think as long as they're at the core of the show, they can make anything work.
Seriously, CAN'T WAIT. Now who has DirecTV? I don't think I can wait until Summer 2010.
Here are new promo pics from Season 4!
Kyle Chandler as Coach Eric Taylor: Connie Britton as Tami Taylor: Aimee Teegarden as Julie Taylor Brad Leland as Buddy Garrity Jesse Plemons as Landry Clarke Jurnee Smollett as Jess Merriweather Madison Burge as Becky Sproles Matt Lauria as Luke Cafferty Michael B. Jordan as Vince Howard Taylor Kitsch as Tim Riggins Zach Gilford as Matt Saracen: Thanks to FNLFans! Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com
Okay, so what do we think of the season so far? Not as bad as it originally looked. Some great ones, some clunkers, a fast cancellation (The Beautiful Life: TBL) already, a full season order for Glee. Not that different from every year and the cries for the worst were way overly exaggerated yet again.
Here's what the other TV bloggers were talking about this week:
With the show back for its second season, Scooter chatted with Castle star Stana Katic about working with Nathan Fillion, what she would like to see happen on the show this season and what she did during the off season. (Scooter McGavin’s 9th Green)
Vance is sidetracking to movies this week because he got to see The Boys are Back and People's Choice winner Precious at TIFF09 (Toronto Film Fest). (Tapeworthy)
Sara celebrates the premiere of Flash Forward, which features her beloved John Cho. (TiFaux)
This week, the TV Addict talked to GLEE star Chris Colfer about Kurt's coming out party. (The TV Addict)
BuzzSugar had some fun matching up which original Melrose Place character inspired which new Melrose Place character. (BuzzSugar)
So You Think You Can Dance Canada - Top 12 Results Night - The Cut from 12 to 10 - Ep. 215 Judges: Jean-Marc Généreux, Tré Armstrong, Rex Harrington, Mia Michaels
So You Think You Can Dance - Auditions - Boston - Ep. 603 Judges: Nigel Lythgoe, Mary Murphy, Tyce DiOrio
Top 12 Group Dance Style: Hip-Hop Choreographed by: Luther Brown Song: "The Jump Off" - Lil' Kim feat. Mr. Cheeks
That was kind of fun and enjoyable. Nothing amazing but entertaining at least. Although the whole thing was kind of a showcase for Kim wasn't it? More pictures at the bottom of the post.
Here's the video of the Top 12 Group Hip-Hop:
My Predictions from the Top 12 Performances: Bottom Three Couples: Corynne and Austin, Melanie and Cody, Amy and Vincent Should Go Home: Amy and Cody Going Home: Corynne and Cody
But as always, before I get to the results, let's check out So You Think You Can Dance's auditions in Boston. Here's some dancers of note:
Teddy Tedholm - 18, Rockaway, NJ As my friend said, it's Ugly Travis! Poor kid. He's kinda adorable and just needs to grow out of his acne, but while I liked his personality, I didn't think he was all that. Apparently I'm the only one since my friends loved him and so did the judges. I didn't think he had the technique to back up his whimsical performance so I'm a little shocked he got a ticket straight to Vegas.
Jean Loret - 22, Brockton, MA I loved how the judges looked so unimpressed at first and then blew over as soon as he did that first leg/body spin/whateverthehellitwas. How strong are his arms anyways? Sick!
Channing Cooke - 18, Haverhill, MA The ice cream scooper that they profiled. Um, obviously she will get through. Isn't it obvious how they edit these things nowadays? She's blond and pretty. So she's in for sure. If she were weird and loopy, then we would know it would be a bad audition coming. I still felt like she had technique down but not that connection to the audience but man, those thighs. So muscly.
Ryan Casey - 18, Lexington, MA The 6'8" tapper. I liked the guy but I thought it was okay, but as Tyce noted and Ryan admitted, he doesn't know what to do with his arms and he has a lot of body to deal with. Nice kid (he's EIGHTEEN?) but he doesn't make it through after choreo.
Russell Ferguson - 19, Roxbury, MA Great Krumper who did a pretty great job in choreo too. Russell apparently taps too, and Nigel jokes that if he combines Tap and Krump, it's Krap! Ha. What a bad joke that I laughed at.
Fabrizio "Breeze" Jenkins - 26, Roxbury, MA I guess I shouldn't judge a book by it's cover cause from the pre-interview, I thought this was going to be a disaster, but the large dude could really move! And even after he fell, I was impressed that he just kept going. Loved his attitude.
Karen & Matthew Hauer - 27, Fort Lee, NJ What a sexy married couple! Man, imagine the babies they would have! HA, I think about the only thing surprising about this couple was that the judges didn't ask them what would happen if the other didn't make it.
Gene Bersten - 21, Minnetonka, MN Okay, what a cheesy dude. But he can DANCE. Thankfully, the judges call him on his overdramatic eyebrows. But alas, Rick Suave here was actually pretty great with his dance moves.
Kevin "K'Bez" Hunte - 23, Brooklyn, NY Pretty good Hip-Hopper who auditioned a few years ago and has been taking other dance styles since, but Tyce yells at him for not showing it in the initial audition. Okay, I don't know if I agree or not, but the way Tyce yells at poor Kevin just shows how annoying Tyce has become. Ugh. Emmy winner my ass.
I like that Melanie throws in a quirky side to this solo although is it me or are her jumps and tricks not as amazing as last time? And I'm starting to hate when they do that little silly dance in that last countdown moment (then again, I still hate that last countdown "So you think you can dance" music moment so it's not like the dancers are given much to work with there).
Now why couldn't she have shown us that in the last 4 weeks? That was the best solo she's done, and the one of the rare times she looks so emotionally invested and her technique and passion finally seemed to match up, which was exactly what was usually lacking in her pairs (or even some previous solos).
I'd hate to compare Jayme Rae cause I don't want to take anything away from her but JR is really reminded me of Jeanine still, especially the trajectory of her solos which seem to be taking the same rate of improvement towards the finals. It's not perfect yet but JR shows her stuff, and the solos seem to be better than the last.
It was a great solo that showed Cody's strengths and I won't lie, that quick lift of his shirt to reveal the six pack made me feel a little dirty/happy. He really gets his groove on and while at first glance, his slow smooth Hip-Hop looks simple, it's probably more complex than it looks.
I've loved Austin before and have been championing him for a while now, despite the fact that he keeps landing in the bottom 3 and seems to be a partner killer, but after that solo? I LOVE AUSTIN. No. I loved him before. Now I LOVE HIM. Vincent better watch his back! (It's okay, I'll comfort him too with a hug... he).
Far better than his last solo, I thought this one was a lot of fun and showed some real musicality and fresh funkiness, which has seemed to be lacking from his recent performances (which is probably why he's in the bottom 3 despite being an early front runner).
Here's a video of the guys solos:
At this point, they can't get rid of the two strongest girls Jayme Rae and Melanie but Corynne for once had the strongest solo's. Cody at this point is the weakest of all the guys and really should go.
The judges however eliminate Corynne Barron to no surprise.
But then eliminate Daniel Dory instead of Cody which sort of shocks me since Daniel is clearly the better dancer, but Cody supposedly has the bigger fanbase. As good as Daniel was, he didn't define his personality and star quality as much as Cody has (with lots of help from the audition episodes). Alas, I'm sure the producers preferred Cody in the Top 10 despite being the weakest male.
So there we have it, no black people left and we have our Canadian Top 10.
Some greats left, and a few others that slipped by (I don't hate them, I just thought a couple of eliminated people were better).
It should be interesting to see what happens with the results now that we vote for individual dancers and not pairs. Does Amy really have a fanbase?
The Good Wife (Season 2) CBS/Global 10pm ****1/2 (Low: 4)
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Tapeworthy Shows On Hiatus
Grade system
***** - 5 Stars TAPEWORTHY AND WILL watch it LIVE for fear the recording will mess up. Do not attempt to call or try to make plans during this time.
**** - 4 Stars Tapeworthy and I will TRY to watch it LIVE
*** - 3 Stars Tapeworthy, will watch it live if I'm around but if not, will catch it later in the week.
** - 2 Stars Might tape it to watch later as long as I have space and no conflicting shows that have higher priority.
* - 1 Star Won't tape it but if I need something to watch while I fold my laundry (and I'm done all my tapes), I will watch it (ie. Reba).
0 - 0 Stars Will NOT turn on the TV for fear of coming across this show. (ie. According to Jim).
Grades only reflect current new airings. Does not necessarily apply to previous seasons. Grades are subject to change at any moment. Apologies to TV Gal for half borrowing her system.
I mean, the musical itself (which I've seen in NY twice already), a hilarious spoof about a fictitious Christian Boyband on their last stop of their "Raise the Praise" tour that manages to satirize the boyband phenomenon and nicely puts humour to religion without ever skewering faith, is so winning and likable that it's hard to mess up such a solid show. The songs are grade A pop ditties that sound straight out of Backstreet Boys with lyrics that satirizes the cheesiness of it all. The jokes and one liners are funny, sometimes biting, but never mean spirited. And with 5 characters, the book nicely distinguishes each boy with their own personalities and storylines.
The cast is uniformly excellent though as The Star's Richard Ouzounian did, I don't want to single out anybody, but I may be in love with Stephen Roberts as Abraham (the Jewish Boyz! above) who not only looks a little like new Broadway-star-in-the-making Aaron Tveit (Gossip Girl, Next to Normal, Saved, Catch Me If You Can), but possesses the same leading star quality. My only surprise was that he wasn't cast as lead Boyz Matthew.
Luckily, Ken Chamberland (above, second from left) does a hilarious job with Matthew and milks the humour out of his songs more than I've ever seen. Eric Morin (and his abs, above left) does a great job with Luke, the b-boy of the group.
