Thoroughly Modern Millie (2002 Original Broadway Cast) [CAST RECORDING]

Harriet Harris, Sutton Foster, Jeanine Tesori, Marc Kudisch, Dick Scanlan

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 11, 2002)
• Original Release Date: June 11, 2002
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Cast Recording
• Label: RCA Victor Broadway
• ASIN: B000066B4Y
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (99 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #4,832 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Although it's based on the 1967 movie of the same name, Thoroughly Modern Millie is almost thoroughly new. Composer Jeanine Tesori (Violet) and lyricist Dick Scanlan wrote a whole batch of songs, while retaining a couple from the movie--including the Jimmy van Heusen-Sammy Cahn title tune--and recycling even older material (look for Victor Herbert's "I'm Falling in Love with Someone" and the inventively arranged "Nuttycracker Suite"). Miraculously, the show, set during the jazz age, doesn't feel stitched together, and Tesori does a great job cranking out swinging melodies. Sutton Foster is appropriately brassy as Millie, but she can also tone it down, as in the beginning of "Gimme Gimme" (of course, she then proceeds to project up to the last rafters as the song builds to its climax). Harriet Harris, as nasty Mrs. Meers, steals the show with "They Don't Know." Close your eyes, listen to her, and you'll be back in Broadway's golden age. --Elisabeth Vincentelli

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a fantastic new musical, November 8, 2002

By	Byron Kolln (the corner where Broadway meets Hollywood) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)

THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE opened to mostly-excellent reviews at the Marquis Theatre earlier this year, and led the charge at this year's Tony Awards.

Newcomer Sutton Foster is a revelation as Millie. When she played the Star-To-Be in the recent Broadway revival of ANNIE, she might as well have been predicting her future when she sang: 'NYC/I give you fair warning/Up there/In lights/I'll be'. Her glorious voice soars in such numbers as "Not For the Life of Me", "Gimme Gimme", "Jimmy" and "Forget About the Boy". Needless to say, Foster's Tony win as Best Actress is well-deserved.

The rest of the cast includes Marc Kudisch, Gavin Creel, "Frasier"'s Harriet Harris, Sheryl Lee Ralph and Angela Christian.

Among the rest of the stand-out numbers are "I Turned the Corner", "They Don't Know", "Long As I'm Here with You" and a hilarious Chinese version of "My Mammy" entitled "Mugin".

It looks like THOROUGHLY MODERN MILLIE will be firmly playing on Broadway for many years to come. (RCA).

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Has its ups and downs, August 13, 2002

By	"annetam23" (Pawtucket, Rhode Island United States) - See all my reviews

Thoroughly Modern Millie is one of those shows that pleases 90% of the crowd as a fun, fluffy, musical that harkens back to shows like Bells are Ringing and 42nd Street. As for the other 10%, there's only so many times you can see a show like Millie and therefore, to me at least, is generally unimpressive.

I think the show's saving grace is Harriet Harris, whose comic timing is divine. Sutton Foster, while she fits the part, starts off as a fresh new talent and then by the end of the show becomes repetitive.

As for the score, it does give a pretty good representation of 1920s fare, and some of the songs' lyrics have a nice wit to them. Forget About the Boy is pretty catchy, same for Not for the Life of Me. However, after a while, the songs seem to blend into one another and all sound the same. I think the two I play most are the Nuttycracker Suite (a rather clever salute to Tchaikovsky) and Muqin for the showcase of Harris' talent. Marc Kudisch has a talent, but it seems to me it is the same talent I saw in Bells are Ringing, and he's merely continuing that role.

All in all, you could do worse when buying a cast album, and for most people it will be guaranteed to please with toe-tapping rythms and a somewhat solid cast with a story that translates well onto CD. However, if you're a 10 percenter, it may get played once or twice and then stay on the shelf. Hey, you could do worse and get something like By Jeeves.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must!, August 12, 2002

A Kid's Review

To start this cd is terrific.It includes great new and old music.A mixture of popular 1920's jazz and operatic things.With the cd's great orchestration on the title song you'll be humming it in your sleep.Both the title song and "Not for the Life of Me" are heard frequently.Sutton Foster sings all her numbers beautiflly.Highlights of her numbers are "Forget About the Boy","Gimme Gimme",and "Jimmy"."The Speed Test" is an extermely comic number filled with tap dancing typists and office workers.Sheryl Lee Ralph sings her numbers ("Only in New York" and "Long as I'm Here with You")very well and has a powerful voice.Gavin Creel is a pleasure to hear as Jimmy singing the rakish "What Do I Need with Love" and the love song "I Turned the Corner".Last,there is the entertaining "The Nuttycracker Suite".Which is a jazz version of Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite.I feel this cd is a must for any musical theater lovers and great for those who like old-fashioned musical theater.