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Reviews are in for The Wild Party, currently in performances at New York City Center Encores! See what the critics had to say about the starry new production led by BOOP! star Jasmine Amy Rogers, Jelani Alladin, Jordan Donica, Adrienne Warren and more!
This dark, sensual, glittering tale explores a world dancing on the edge and the joyful defiance of the characters who inhabit it for a gin-soaked party full of jazz-age indulgence and Vaudeville stars letting loose off-the-clock.
Directed by Lili-Anne Brown and Guest Music Director Daryl Waters with choreography by Katie Spelman, The Wild Party brings Joseph Moncure March’s notorious poem to life in this Tony-nominated musical with music and lyrics by Michael John LaChiusa and book by LaChiusa and George C. Wolfe.
Helen Shaw, The New York Times: *CRITIC”S PICK* There were other reasons to feel queasy at City Center, too. Certain original structural issues — “The Wild Party” runs two hours without an intermission — have been left in place, for instance. But the assembled cast is incredible, and the show fits elegantly around Jasmine Amy Rogers, who adjusts her pixie sweetness from “Boop! The Musical” into a toxic, elfin mischief.
Brian Scott Lipton, Cititour: Unquestionably, Lili-Anne Brown’s production is exquisitely cast and so polished – even on opening night — that it could return intact to Broadway tomorrow. And yet, time hasn’t changed the fact that for all the bathtub gin and chorine carousing on stage, the proceedings are so unrelentingly bleak – and the music so challenging – that I’m not convinced the piece could ever find a sustainable commercial run.
Thom Geier, Culture Sauce: Once the bathtub gin has been dispensed, though, everybody is a little worse for wear. LaChiusa’s script also sags in the middle section, amid all the lush couplings, and then hurries through a series of tragedies and near-tragedies as the characters wake up to the reality of their lost night. Just as you’re tempted to check your watch, Rogers’ Queenie reappears — as if anticipating when we might need our glass refilled. She perks up any room she’s in, and elevates every number — from the rollicking “Welcome to My Party” to her sassy duet with Warren’s Kate, “Best Friend,” to the reflective romantic duet with Aladdin’s Black, “People Like Us.” She’s truly the life, and soul, of this Wild Party.
Average Rating:
83.3%
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