Review: The Tony-nominated death is listed wonderfully, irrigate camp and strangely trapped in the mirror

I was very lucky to see Death becomes her From the best place in the house: first row, Dead Center. It is my favorite strap because you can see the work there. The microbeates. The breath works. The sweat, the spit and the precision that make up the muscle of the live performance. Yes, I easily left the makers of more exuberant among the casts. It's worth it.

Production is full of talent. Actors at the top of their game. And yet despite all of its brilliant ambitions, Death becomes her Basically, what it is: a film musical. Not in the sense of a musical that was made a film. But a film that was musically and is haunted by its own source material.

The problem is not the story. The bones of the original are still delicious: vanity, immortality, the distorted youth cult. But the original death will (1992) have to be grotesque. It had to be sharp and strange and digitally excluded. You could blow a hole through Goldie Hawn's belly and turn Meryl Streeps neck back, and the satire let it sing.

This type of physical distortion cannot really be done on stage. So instead go to the camp. Broad. Cheeky. Secure. It is not a failure of the effort, the staging is wise, the imaginative effects. But it shifts the sound. They no longer observe a descent into the surreal. You look at a very polished sketch about it.

Nothing makes this tone clearer than the opening number: “I do it for my eyes.” And yes,The View. VIEW. But don't let us earn ourselves: the double meaning was completely intended. Most of the audience heard it differently. And frankly, this is probably closer to the truth. This is a show that is made for the boys in the fourth row with retinal shirts. No complaints. Only clarity.

I saw Kaleigh Cronin started as a Madeline Ashton, usually Megan Hilty nominated by Tony. Cronin, who also plays Stacey in the ensemble, provided a performance that was both loudly and sharply strange. She conquered Madeline's vanity and despair with flair and made the role to imitate her own without Hilty's interpretation. It is always a pleasure to see a second -occupied man, and Cronin certainly did it.

The Tony nominated Jennifer Simard also delivers her lines as if they were handmade in a Sarkasm workshop. But because the show is so strong, the emotional inserts are a bit hollow. It is not the case that they do not hit their grades, but that the markings are written in dry nose.

The supportive characters are quite flat and mainly serve to promote the plot without much depth. Christopher Sieber, who portrays Ernest Menville, the unfortunate husband between Madeline and Helen, delivers an amusing number. However, the role feels more like a series of control boxes from the film than a fully realized figure. The same applies to Michelle Williams as Viola van Horn, the mystical figure that offers the elixir of youth. While their performance is visually conspicuous, the character lacks the puzzling presence that made the original so unforgettable.

Nevertheless, there is something here. The material wants to say something about the lengths we go to be seen. Not loved. Not even admired. Just seen. And when the show touches this topic, pass by, it hums with relevance. There is a musical that is waiting to break through and have a little more bile in his neck and a little less botox in his smile.

So yes, look at it. Especially when you love spectacle and sharp line delivery and nail Broadway actors who land three blocks away. Only know that this is not a transformation story. Not really. It is a very good looking musical about a great grotesque film that has not completely escaped the mirror. I am waiting for the off-off-broadway satire: “Drag it will be.”

And hey, if you are lucky enough to sit in front, bring a handkerchief with you. It's not the only thing that will drop.

Death becomes her has 10 Tony nominations

• Best musical
• Best book of a musical – Marco Pennnette
• Best original score – Julia Mattisone & Noel Carey
• Best direction of a musical – Christopher Gattelli
• Best choreography – Christopher Gattelli
• Best picturesque design of a musical – Derek McLane
• Best costume design of a musical – Paul Tazewell
• Best light design of a musical – Justin Townsend
• Best performance of an actress in a leading role in a musical – Megan Hilty
• Best performance of an actress in a leading role in a musical – Jennifer Simard

🎭 Death becomes Herhas enjoys an open run on Lunt-Fontante Theater, 205 W 46th St, New York, NY 10036

🎟️ ticket options:

Personal rush:
On the day of the performance, a limited number of $ 35 rush tickets are available on the Lunt Fontante Theater Box Office. The box office opens Monday to Saturday at 10:00 a.m.