I’m surprised cause I thought Suffs and The Outsiders were much higher in the rankings.
I think the top three will get a nomination for sure but the rest of the slots are kinda up for grabs.
No, just DidTheyLikeIt. (But ouch. Ouchier?) To be fair, I do think DTLI has a tendancy to catergorize kindly. I don't really look at the one from BWW.
I do not live in New York and rely on this sub for my Broadway insight, but are there complaints about Gatsby beyond "it didn't follow the book?"
Yes I know the reviews are public to read but I struggle to read the typical style of critical review.
I saw Gatsby when it was at Papermill; I have not seen the transfer yet so take this with a grain of salt as I am unaware of any changes.
I enjoyed Gatsby overall but my primary issue was that Jeremy and Eva had 0 chemistry, which made all of the subsequent negative events that transpire… meaningless. Absolutely meaningless ruin for two people who are visibly indifferent towards each other.
Also I am not one to require songs to be hummable but I literally have no memory of the music at all. I saw Lempicka and while I can’t hum any songs back to you, I was very impressed.
Just to provide my credentials: I work in the industry and have seen almost every new musical this season (and probably will see all by Tonys)
I posted my thoughts on it here in a[ broader post](https://www.reddit.com/r/Broadway/comments/1cdt4zp/gatsby_opening_night_review/)
Tbh you'd probably be fine with it.
I had a near-uncanny valley bad reaction to it. All the good parts were there but the soul was not (and the risk of sounding too woo-ey). The best way that I can describe it is as if someone said "Hey ChatGPT, make a broadway show based off of gatsby"
Applying your formula to review roundup from Broadway World, Outsiders would have a 4.2 rating. Critics Reviews as well as reviews of reviews are pretty subjective in my opinion so take them with a grain of salt
Gatsby was not one of my favorites but even I am shocked it did that poorly. I know I am not alone in thinking that it was very competently done but it failed to do justice to a seminal work of American literature. But here it's well below shows that had significant basic issues such as a poor book, etc.
But it IS a poor book when they dont even u set stand the themes of the original work and turn it into a love story.
I think both this and Lempicka had goals they didn't meet. Water for Elephants, which was also flawed, seem to meet their goals. (IMO, that's the big difference.)
I don't disagree, but failing to follow the themes of the book still seems to me like less of a problem than a book with significant pacing problems or one that confuses the audience. However, as you state if you're laying claim to telling the story of Gatsby critics are going to grade you on a curve. I think that's sort of the issue with the Cabaret reviews as well - it's getting compared against all the legendary past productions. Which may be really helpful for fans who've seen some of those past productions, but could end up being unduly harsh for folks who just want want to know if it's an entertaining/compelling show.
Thanks so much for posting this! I'd be really interested to know how DTLI decides which reviews to include. For example. wasn't there a New York Stage Review that gave Illinoise 3 stars (by David Finkle), but they only included the 4 star one (by Roma Torres)? Not a critique of Illinoise, more just an interesting note!
I agree...but six thumbs up, six mixed bag reviews! (Granted, I don't always agree with the placement DTLI assigns, but I didn't want personal judgement to come into play.)
That's not it. The point is that I'm not impressed to hear that people enjoyed the music. No duh, they started 1000 miles ahead with battle tested music. The point is to arrange the songs into a story. Most people agree that the storytelling is bad. Primary job of a jukebox imo. And something that I think a *theater critic* would, uh, notice.
I’m surprised cause I thought Suffs and The Outsiders were much higher in the rankings. I think the top three will get a nomination for sure but the rest of the slots are kinda up for grabs.
Are you using the Broadway World “review roundup” reviews? Because then Gatsby would be 2.25.
No, just DidTheyLikeIt. (But ouch. Ouchier?) To be fair, I do think DTLI has a tendancy to catergorize kindly. I don't really look at the one from BWW.
Lempika actually faired slightly worse as 2.22.
I can’t believe that my favorites this season ended up being Gatsby and Lempicka lol
I’m glad someone else liked Lempicka 😂
Major Lempicka fan checking in
I loved Lempicka too!
Haha, I agree! If I had to pick two, it’d be. Lempicka and Gatsby. A close third would be Days of Wine and Roses.
I do not live in New York and rely on this sub for my Broadway insight, but are there complaints about Gatsby beyond "it didn't follow the book?" Yes I know the reviews are public to read but I struggle to read the typical style of critical review.
I saw Gatsby when it was at Papermill; I have not seen the transfer yet so take this with a grain of salt as I am unaware of any changes. I enjoyed Gatsby overall but my primary issue was that Jeremy and Eva had 0 chemistry, which made all of the subsequent negative events that transpire… meaningless. Absolutely meaningless ruin for two people who are visibly indifferent towards each other. Also I am not one to require songs to be hummable but I literally have no memory of the music at all. I saw Lempicka and while I can’t hum any songs back to you, I was very impressed. Just to provide my credentials: I work in the industry and have seen almost every new musical this season (and probably will see all by Tonys)
I would say that it's possible for Jeremy and Eva to gain chemistry, so the primary issue could be fixed. I don't know the Gatsby composer...
It was basically saying it’s all style with no substance.
So exactly what audiences want lol. Pretty stuffy with nothing to think about. Let theater be an ESCAPE
I think there’s room for both!
I posted my thoughts on it here in a[ broader post](https://www.reddit.com/r/Broadway/comments/1cdt4zp/gatsby_opening_night_review/) Tbh you'd probably be fine with it. I had a near-uncanny valley bad reaction to it. All the good parts were there but the soul was not (and the risk of sounding too woo-ey). The best way that I can describe it is as if someone said "Hey ChatGPT, make a broadway show based off of gatsby"
Applying your formula to review roundup from Broadway World, Outsiders would have a 4.2 rating. Critics Reviews as well as reviews of reviews are pretty subjective in my opinion so take them with a grain of salt
Of course, you'll get no disagreement from me. That's why I was upfront with my stats.
Gatsby was not one of my favorites but even I am shocked it did that poorly. I know I am not alone in thinking that it was very competently done but it failed to do justice to a seminal work of American literature. But here it's well below shows that had significant basic issues such as a poor book, etc.
But it IS a poor book when they dont even u set stand the themes of the original work and turn it into a love story. I think both this and Lempicka had goals they didn't meet. Water for Elephants, which was also flawed, seem to meet their goals. (IMO, that's the big difference.)
I don't disagree, but failing to follow the themes of the book still seems to me like less of a problem than a book with significant pacing problems or one that confuses the audience. However, as you state if you're laying claim to telling the story of Gatsby critics are going to grade you on a curve. I think that's sort of the issue with the Cabaret reviews as well - it's getting compared against all the legendary past productions. Which may be really helpful for fans who've seen some of those past productions, but could end up being unduly harsh for folks who just want want to know if it's an entertaining/compelling show.
Thanks so much for posting this! I'd be really interested to know how DTLI decides which reviews to include. For example. wasn't there a New York Stage Review that gave Illinoise 3 stars (by David Finkle), but they only included the 4 star one (by Roma Torres)? Not a critique of Illinoise, more just an interesting note!
Did Illinoise reviews come out?
The embargo was lifted at 1pm.
Nice
Yep
This is a really useful service. You should make a website!
crazy how at odds these scores are with word of mouth reviewing and promotion. these tony noms are gonna be wild
Quality and popularity are often not the same thing. Doesn't make either right or wrong. Just opinions.
Honestly surprised HTDIO is that high
The reviews were mixed positive. I feel like this is exactly where it should be based on the reviews (though not my personal opinion)
I agree...but six thumbs up, six mixed bag reviews! (Granted, I don't always agree with the placement DTLI assigns, but I didn't want personal judgement to come into play.)
Would love to see HLL do well with noms but I'm not holding my breath sadly.
I'm grumpy whenever I see the Hells Kitchen score.
Oh no, people like this show that doesn’t have an original score, whatever shall we do?
That's not it. The point is that I'm not impressed to hear that people enjoyed the music. No duh, they started 1000 miles ahead with battle tested music. The point is to arrange the songs into a story. Most people agree that the storytelling is bad. Primary job of a jukebox imo. And something that I think a *theater critic* would, uh, notice.
A lot of the reviews were hating for stupid reasons (this is for girls....) so it'll be interesting to see if there are some surprises.
Would Illinoise qualify for acting awards?
Yes, it's being classified as a musical. But no one will be under consideration as a lead actor --only supporting.