Theatre: The Fantasticks

I caught a performance of Reprise Theater Company's The Fantasticks at UCLA's Freud Theater a couple of weeks ago. Apparently, The Fantasticks is the longest running show in New York, or the world, or something. It has been playing in New York in some theater, on or off Broadway, for fifty years.

This particular production didn't get rave reviews, mainly because the director (Jason Alexander) apparently took a lot of liberties with lyrics, stage direction and the set. I couldn't give you an opinion on that because i have never seen this show otherwise. I will say this: I didn't love it. But I think I just don't like the show. It was a little boring and the music was not very fun. Maybe I am just the wrong generation (because, as the people next to me said, it looked like buses of blue-hairs from local nursing homes had taken a field trip to see the show).

Now, here is the good part. Boy (Lucas Grabeel, Ryan from High School Musical) and Girl (Alison Woods) were great. In my opinion. they were the saving grace to an otherwise kind of dull venture. In fact, seeing this did manage to cement the creepy I'm-too-old-for-you crush I already had on Lucas Grabeel. I expected Eric McCormack to knock my socks off, and, unfortunately for us all, that wasn't the case. But again, I don't blame him. He wasn't given a lot to work with (plus, who can think of him as anything but Will Truman?).

Overall, I wasn't too terribly happy with the show. Give me this cast in another show, and I am sure I would have been happy. However, I don't really feel the need to see The Fantasticks again.