Friday night, Kristen and Dan came and met me after work in Dumbo for dinner. While I waited for them, I discovered an amazing rare bookstore right down the street from my office. There is some amazing stuff there, especially in terms of design books. I might have to go back to buy the spanish copy of the information design book, "Open Here."
After we had dinner at Rice, we headed to Union Hall, a very cool bar in Park Slope. The upstairs is like a big den or library and has a full bocce court inside. (Ahh, that reminds me how wonderful Christie's will be in the Spring!) Anyway, we went downstairs to check out some bands playing for an Ethiopia fundraiser. We only got there in time to see one band's full set, Sarah Fullen & the Stanleys. I was definitely a fan. They had a whole lot of soul and a wicked good horn section backing them up.
Saturday morning I woke up early and went over to M&M's World to try and win a lottery ticket to Shrek the musical. I put my name in around 9:30 or so, went back at 10, and was the very first name called! How about that?
I paid $26.50 for a seat in the front row of the right side of the orchestra, but I'll get to that later. After buying my ticket, I headed up to Columbus Circle and walked over to Lincoln Center. Unfortunately it was almost all walled off for renovations, but I hope to head back either for the Evening with Alan Menken or a cheap partial view ticket to the Metropolitan Opera. I'd kill to get inside that opera house. It must be amazing.
After scoping out some books in Borders back in the Time Warner Center, I grabbed a gyro and headed into the park. This time, I was determined to get deep into it.
The two pictures above are two parts of the park I was very excited to reach, the fountain at the edge of the lake and the beautiful bridge at the end of the mall. Both of these feature pretty prominently in movies and commercials and whatnot and are just plain beautiful. I don't have a picture of the amazing ceiling underneath the bridge. Some things you should just experience for yourself.
As I headed into the Ramble it was pretty ridiculous to think about how removed this patch of land is from the hustle and bustle of The City. It was beautiful covered in snow and ice. The lake was also frozen over, with the tracks of animals who braved the ice to cross to the other side. Looking back toward the buildings, everything seemed so calm and peaceful.
I kept heading north, determined to get further into the park, and eventually made my way to Belverde Castle. I climbed to the top and looked out over the park, expecting to be near Harlem by now after walking for what seemed like so long. Of course I was wrong, and I was maybe a third of the way through the park. I made it to the resevoir before I decided it was time to head back for my matinee.
So I got back to Shrek and walked into the Broadway Theatre to find my seat. What I discovered was that on the side of the orchestra in the front row, the stage level is a good six inches or so above eye level, meaning that I couldn't see anything that happened below anyone's waist. Needless to say, as the performance was starting I was eye-balling seats further back where I could see the stage, knowing the show had plenty of gags I was missing, including most of Lord Farquaad's.
Although I stayed up front for the first act, during intermission I went about 3/4 of the way back in the orchestra to an open end seat next to a very nice lady from New Jersey who bought tickets to the show as a gift for her friend and sister. We chatted a bit about co-op and the show and she was very glad to hear how I am trying to make the most of my time here. She was great.
Now I know what you're thinking. A musical version of Shrek? That sounds pretty ridiculous. How good could it be? Well, let me tell you, I went into Shrek having heard good things, but I had no idea how good it would end up being. I've got to say, out of all of the shows I've seen this quarter, (five total) Shrek is definitely my favorite.
Sure, I enjoy the Shrek movies (the only Dreamworks animated movies that I do), but this musical (which has only been open since Decemeber) takes the story and adds so much heart, energy, depth and fun to it that it becomes something really special.
First off, the staging and sets are great. Everything that takes place in the forest is absolutely beautiful. And the creativity and comedy weaved into the staging is fantastic.
Without a doubt, though, the best part of Shrek the musical are the performances of its five leads. Brian D'Arcy James as Shrek, Sutton Foster as Fiona, Christopher Sieber as Farquaad, Daniel Breaker as Donkey and John Tartaglia as Pinocchio were all born to play their parts. All five of them have been nominated for tony's in the past and Sutton has won.
To give you a better idea of what the show is like, here's a video for you to check out. This is Brian D'Arcy James, out of make-up, singing Shrek's beautiful "I want" song, "Who I'd Be." This song definitely reflects the big layer of depth that the musical adds to Shrek's character. (1:39 is where the song starts if you want to skip to it)
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Pretty cool, eh? I love the piano in the bridge.
Don't worry though, this is a unique sensitive moment in the show for Shrek, he's also the Ogre we all know and love with plenty of farting, burping and off-color jokes.
Here's just one more video that shows some more of the humor mixed with the heart. This is Sutton Foster as Fiona. You might recognize Sutton as playing Bret's sign-holding girlfriend Coco in the first season of Flight of the Conchords.
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Sutton was definitely my favorite in the show. She has amazing comic timing and performing talent. She's the one I gave my standing O to. She plays Fiona the way she was meant to be played, strong and quirky without the occasional annoyance of Cameron Diaz.
I'm a big fan of that song. And actually if you can't wait for the cast album in March, this song can be downloaded on the website. Enjoy.
Daniel Breaker, as I said was great as Donkey, and apparently he still hasn't seen the movie. Christopher Sieber, who was also in Spamalot and played Mary-Kate and Ashley's Dad on Two of a Kind, was a great Farquaad, pulling off what has to be one of the most physically demanding roles on Broadway, and he also was responsible for one of my favorite moments in the show, a send up of another favorite musical of mine. John Tartaglia was an amazing Pinocchio, which in itself is funny, since John himself is a very talented puppetteer, having stared in the original cast of Avenue Q and playing the title character in Johnny and the Sprites on the Disney Channel. I had a huge smile on my face during the big fairy tale creatures' number in the second act. Then again, I think I had a big smile on my face the entire show.
There it is, my drawn out and unnecessary full review of Shrek. I loved it. I'd see it again in a second. If someone was coming to New York, I'd tell them to see Shrek. It was hilarious, heartwarming, and full of energy and joy. And there is certainly not a better cast on Broadway.
Awesome.
Alright, its Wednesday night. The week has had its ups and downs, but Friday I'm headed back to Cincinnati for the Navs Key Laborer's retreat. I am absolutely stoked to see people and take part in the weekend. It will be amazing.
You know, it's really fun to write this blog. I don't know who reads it, but I'm just glad to have everything written here, to help me store my memories.
New York, I'm actually enjoying living here. Let's see where this relationship goes, eh?
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