Wasn't it Good? (Oh so good...)
Monday night, Drew, Ted, Larry, and I checked out "Chess: The Musical Benefit" at the Ford Ampitheater. Ticket proceeds went to support Broadway Cares Fight Against AIDS.
I had played keyboards for a production of "Chess" back in college and it stands my favorite show for which I've played. Couple that with my love of ABBA and you can imagine how much I've been looking forward to seeing this show.
The performance (touted as a "multimedia concert") did NOT disappoint! It was fantastic in so many ways. I've said it many times and I'll say it over and over again..."Anthem" is one HELL of an act one closer especially when sung by somebody with a voice like one I heard that night (Kevin Earley). "Rockstar: INXS's" Ty Taylor pulled in a kickass performance as Freddie on the equally powerful "Pity the Child." Cindy Robinson was a firecracker as Florence..."Nobody's Side" never disappoints and the choreography brought me back to Russell Mulcahy's video for "Total Eclipse of the Heart." And then there was the Agentha/Frida duet that should have been but never was..."I Know Him So Well" performed by Susan Egan and Cindy Robinson was beautiful. Matthew Morrison's take on "The Arbiter" was wonderful adding a nice touch of humor to the show. Truly great performances by the whole cast...
We scored some really nice seats...Second row very close to the center...The choregraphy during the "Chess" numbers in Acts 1 and 2 were awesome...especially seeing them so close in person. Hee... :-)
For an adaption of one of my all-time favorites, it was amazing...for one that was a "one-night only" performance, it was beyond anything I expected. It's a shame it was only a one-night only performance because this is one I would have implored everybody to see. The venue was really cool...I'd never been to a show at the Ford before. A little chilly in the open air of Hollywood, but well-worth dropping a few degrees in body temperature!
Seeing this reaffirmed not only how much I love the music in this show, but also how somebody needs to tackle a full-scale revival here in the states...hell, I see movie potential in this. This is one of the few musicals where a large percentage of the songs stick in your head and stand on their own outside of the show.
It's definitely the best live shows I've seen this year and well worth the price of admission...Encore! Encore!!!
I had played keyboards for a production of "Chess" back in college and it stands my favorite show for which I've played. Couple that with my love of ABBA and you can imagine how much I've been looking forward to seeing this show.
The performance (touted as a "multimedia concert") did NOT disappoint! It was fantastic in so many ways. I've said it many times and I'll say it over and over again..."Anthem" is one HELL of an act one closer especially when sung by somebody with a voice like one I heard that night (Kevin Earley). "Rockstar: INXS's" Ty Taylor pulled in a kickass performance as Freddie on the equally powerful "Pity the Child." Cindy Robinson was a firecracker as Florence..."Nobody's Side" never disappoints and the choreography brought me back to Russell Mulcahy's video for "Total Eclipse of the Heart." And then there was the Agentha/Frida duet that should have been but never was..."I Know Him So Well" performed by Susan Egan and Cindy Robinson was beautiful. Matthew Morrison's take on "The Arbiter" was wonderful adding a nice touch of humor to the show. Truly great performances by the whole cast...
We scored some really nice seats...Second row very close to the center...The choregraphy during the "Chess" numbers in Acts 1 and 2 were awesome...especially seeing them so close in person. Hee... :-)
For an adaption of one of my all-time favorites, it was amazing...for one that was a "one-night only" performance, it was beyond anything I expected. It's a shame it was only a one-night only performance because this is one I would have implored everybody to see. The venue was really cool...I'd never been to a show at the Ford before. A little chilly in the open air of Hollywood, but well-worth dropping a few degrees in body temperature!
Seeing this reaffirmed not only how much I love the music in this show, but also how somebody needs to tackle a full-scale revival here in the states...hell, I see movie potential in this. This is one of the few musicals where a large percentage of the songs stick in your head and stand on their own outside of the show.
It's definitely the best live shows I've seen this year and well worth the price of admission...Encore! Encore!!!
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