Customer Reviews

The Musical of Musicals (2003 Original Off-Broadway Cast)

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Really top notch musical satire is someone like Sullivan (of Gilbert and) taking off Mendelsohn, or Wagner, or even Handel. The music is not just funny as a parody, it is also a really good example of that style of music, which would stand up quite well if you had never heard the "original". There are moments (my favourite one is "Corn" - a wonderful parody of "Oh what a beautiful morning") where this one comes quite close. Generally, however, most of the music itself is really very ordinary - and is funny (often hilariously funny, I must add) only if you happen to be familiar with what is being laughed at.

The non-musical satire is also very amusing (although many of the jokes are in the "so-bad-it's-good" category, including some absolutely dreadful puns). But again, the point of the joke always lies (sometimes quite deep, too) in the work being satirised. I wonder how many people pick items like "My own little corner" (from the Rodgers and Hammerstein television musical from the fifties, "Cinderella").

The whole exercise is great fun - at least for one or two listenings, and at least for us musicals fans. It is a shame that the humour is so relentlessly "in", and that the music is not of a higher overall standard in itself, as opposed to just being clever parody. I can't help wondering (or wandering) what anyone not familiar with musical comedy in general, and the "musicals in particular" involved would make of it. Very little, I suspect.

For the rest of us - how about a sequel? Without mentioning any names, there are stacks of other composers and lyricists who thoroughly deserve to be satirised!

Hopefully the music would be of a more consistently high standard, and there would be just a little more humour you didn't have to be a musicals buff to get the point of, though.

And that's saying something, since I work in a musical theatre. I saw the show, and had to buy the CD, it is just too hilarious. Never a dull moment, it never drags. If you know anything about the five composers, you can't help but giggle. Absolutely dead on satire!

Hola, Aloha, Hello. This CD is absolutely hilarious - but only if you really REALLY REALLY know your musicals. Case in point - I consider myself a pretty well-versed (no pun intended) fan, but I don't particularly like Jerry Herman's shows. As such, I didn't find that section all that funny. The other four sections, however, had me completely cracking up. I have never heard so many allusions thrown into one segment as with the Rodgers and Hammerstein piece. Strains of melody appear and disappear faster than the Phantom in a sewer, so you really need to listen closely. I'd make a "specific overture" about not Sending in the Clones here, but it would just be redundant. If you smiled at all while reading this, buy the CD - you won't be disappointed. So long, farewell....

This was terrific. I haven't seen the show, but the music & lyrics was among the best I've heard since I don't know when; it was the first time I put in a show album and listened to the whole thing straight (with my wife) without stopping. Basically, it's the same story told in the styles of five different composers (Rodgers & Hammerstein, Sondheim, Herman, Lloyd Webber, and Kander & Ebb, plus a treat of Chorusline at the end). The parodies range from "groan" jokes to three-second delayed laughs to outright genius. Lots of musical jokes, and some terrific lyrics (e.g., "Don't throw okays at me" in the R&H segment. Like Forbidden Broadway, you need an working knowledge of the composers parodied. 100% recommended for the theatre fan.

"The Musical of Musicals: The Musical" is a catchy, kitschy, lovingly ripped-off show; it's not the first, it won't be the last, but-thus far-it is the funniest!

The show tells one story five times over: a girl cannot pay her rent. She faces eviction, unless she does something for her landlord. In the end, her hero comes and pays the rent. Tale as old as time, huh? What makes it so great is that it is told in the style of 5 different composers: Rodgers and Hammerstein, Stephen Sondheim, Jerry Herman, Andrew Lloyd Webber, and Kander and Ebb.

The best by far is "A Little Complex", the Sondheim version. The Jerry Herman songs, "Dear Abby", are also very funny.

A little note: if you are not a musical theatre fan, skip this album. It makes a lot of references that will likely go right over your head.

If you are a fan, however, immediately add this witty score to your cart!

As others note below, one really needs to have a somewhat good familiarity with musicals to really "get" this show--although I thought I did, the recording truly tests me. And I enjoy it for that. Apart from that, and although I really do enjoy the recording and am glad I purchased it, I didn't find the music or the performances as "musical" as I would have liked, and I didn't get as much of a "wow" factor as I thought I would. (Just my personal opinion, folks!) But I still will play the CD again to test myself and to enjoy the cleverness of the concept and execution.

I saw this show at the York Theatre in December and fell in love with it. My best friend was an assitant for the show and told me I needed to see it.

I just loved it. I know my musical theatre, there were only a few jokes I missed when I saw it. Joanne Bogart and Eric Rockwell did an amazing job with lyrics, book, and even some of the songs are quite beautiful.

It's an ingenious idea that was wonderfully performed. I'm a Sondheim fan, so A Little Complex is my favorite segment, but the Andrew Lloyd Webber skit is hysterical too.

"It's Juny with a J, not Guny with a G..."

I recently saw a local professional production of this show and was laughing so hard that I felt I needed to purchase the cast recording in order to catch the parts I missed while doubled over. I f you love the American musical then you will enjoy this show. The Sondheim and Kander & Ebb segments I found the most dead-on and entertaining.

This is a thoroughly enjoyable show if you get it. The musical references throughout the show are a great joy to discover. If you know this stuff it is fun deciphering the passages as you go! Not sure how the average show goer would feel about it. But I highly recommend it.

This is a hilarious take on 5 famous Broadway musicals of the past. The author and composer of this send-up are ingeniously clever in capturing the technique of their counterparts in spoofing these classic musicals, and the actors who carry out the content are dead-on in their energetic delivery.