The Hunchback of Notre-Dame – Musical – 5th Avenue Theatre Watched The Hunchback of Notre Dame: The Musical. This tragedy ain’t your grandma’s Disney version (but they share many songs). The star actor playing the hunchback was deaf (with a surrogate singer) & the cast signed the dialogue/lyrics. Very elaborate music score.
Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill – Play with Music – ArtsWest Watched the “jukebox play” Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill. No plot except Billie Holliday gets sloshed and unravels on a nightclub stage. Great jazzy sound. Would have been amazing if drinks and maybe light food were served throughout the performance.
The Unauthorized Musical Parody of Clueless – Dinner Theatre Musical – Rockwell Table & Stage Watched “The Unauthorized Musical Parody of Clueless.” Great 90s hit song mashups. Perfect Cher portrayal. Tight harmonies. Immersive theatre … so much that an audience member touched Dionne’s boob to make sure it wasn’t fake (“as if!”). The best dinner theater show I’ve seen.
Soft Power – Musical – Ahmanson Theatre Watched the musical “Soft Power.” Hillary Clinton had a love affair with a Chinese communist. Slow Act 1 but interesting experimentation with unconventional theater elements and radical (but relevant to our Trump-era) Chinese/communist ideas.
The Marvelous Wonderettes – Musical – Glendale Centre Theatre Watched The Marvelous Wonderettes, a jukebox musical featuring retro tight harmony girl group songs. With such incredible voices, it’s a shame they used prerecorded accompaniment. Kinda wish there was a plot too.