Customer Reviews

Forbidden Broadway, Vol. 9: Rude Awakening [The Un-Original Cast Album]

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I am a long-time "Forbidden Broadway" fan and have seen most of the productions. I loved them one and almost all. This one I don't love. Instead of being funny, I found it to be nasty, mean-spirited and lacking in the love for musical theater that the others so successfully spoofed. Its humor is hard, heavy handed and, at times, mindless. I have listened to this CD five times and am ready to use it as a frisbee or toss it in the trash. It is not worth keeping in my collection. "Forbiddy Broadway Strikes Back" is by far the best, the funniest and the most clever of the "Forbidden Broadway" collection. This chapter in no way approaches the amazing talent level of the other editions. Maybe its there was so little material to spoof. I don't know. I wanted it to be funny. It was not...at least to me.

As always the Forbidden Broadway cast, authors, and lyricists just keep getting better and better. Once again they have hit all the right notes in their parodies. If you have other versions this one fits right in. Broadway parodies at their best.

This is a very creative, well done, and very funny satire. I have seen most of the plays/musicals that are spoofed, but you don't need to have seen them in order to find this CD very funny. I admit I am a fan of all the Forbidden Broadway CDs in the series, and this one proves they get better and better. And if you buy the CD, don't think it replaces going to the play on Broadway if you are in NY. The play adds some visual humor, and it is on a constant update depending on what is playing on Broadway, so at the theater you will hear some new material.

For a show with songs that lament lazy writing, the creators certainly didn't bother putting much effort into a great deal of the songs on this CD. The jokes are conventional and common, the criticisms don't cleverly lampoon so much as whine, the message is inconsistent, and the same themes of past FB incarnations (the adoration of Cole Porter and Merman and criticism of Disney and R&H) are still there.

Many of the songs lack the charm and wit of earlier material and just seem meanspirited and recycled. The way Disney is bashed is tired and easy. Unless you agree with the lyrics 100%, at some point you will feel berated. There's a definite harsh, accusatory tone here that's abrasive even to fans of FB whose writer seems to be contemptuous of anyone enjoying any of the musical theater offerings featured aside from Grey Gardens. Lackluster attacks like "stupid" and "slow" fall short of what FB has produced in the past.

A section in Spamalot preserved in its entirety made me wonder if I was still listening to FB or had somehow switched to the cast album. Listening to people mocking actors' overblown performances when they're performing a song mocking overblown performances must negate the humor because I found myself wanting to just go back and listen to Spamalot. Accusing someone of stealing your "joke on changing keys"? Really? That warrants a mention? The Yoko Ono impression slips so often it bypasses being offensive to Asians.

The CD is saved by great vocals in most of the songs but "trying to get laughs is dismal/When the funny lines aren't there". There are some gems though, like "Wicked & The Flying Monkeys".

Any true theatre lover is sure to appreciate this spoof of current and past Broadway offerings. From "Spring Awakenings" to a dead-on Patti Lupone number, this is a CD that must be added to your collection.

I'm a big Broadway soundtrack fan. I just loved this hilarious take on Broadway's latest. I would strongly recommend this to anyone who loves musicals. It's great and I'm still laughing.

As usual, the Forbidden Broadway cd is fun. Some of it is better than other parts, but that's what makes it appeal to all

This series has always been hit-or-miss, and this installment, unfortunately, is a decided miss for me. Like other reviewers, I thought this production was devoid of the warmth and affection that makes "Forbidden Broadway" enjoyable--even if you loved the shows, you can still laugh at them with the FB cast. Not this time out. The recording quality isn't great either. I hope for better things in the future.

I have loved Forbidden Broadway since seeing it several times when it was still performed at Pallson's Upstairs in NYC. The recordings are great fun, some better than others. This is not the best, but it is definitely good. For anyone who is familiar with the theatre scene, listen and enjoy.

I found this CD to be a real disappointment. With the exception of the crucifixion of Spring Awakening (deservedly) and the take on the recent revival of Company (brilliant!!), most of the rest of the parodies don't hold up too well without the visuals. This is the first in the series that I have found lacking, all of the previous FB cast recordings are hysterically funny. There are a couple of additions at the end of the CD, for instance the take on Yoko Ono is deliciously nasty, as is the parody of Christina Applegate in Sweet Charity, that come across as acerbically witty as usual in this series. But all in all, I think you need to see the current production live to appreciatte this recording.