Rocktopia
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Cititour.com Review
Patrons at “Rocktopia,” now at the Broadway Theatre for a six-week run, don’t need to worry about such rock concert hazards as fog, haze or strobes. But they might be advised to bring a neck brace to deal with the metaphorical whiplash caused by this uneven attempt to intermingle “classic rock” with classical music and even a touch of opera with alarming back-and-forth speed.
However, here’s the good news: when “Rocktopia” gives the fans what they came for -- what might be termed the ultimate “jukebox musical” -- it can be a truly entertaining experience. In part, that’s because the show’s creators have wisely stuck primarily to songs that most people (over 40, anyway) can sing along to, and which also lend themselves easily to the backing of a small symphony.
That’s evident immediately as co-creator Rob Evan, best known for his long run in “Jekyll & Hyde,” starts things off with spirited renditions of The Who’s “Baba O’Reilly” and Styx’s “Come Sail Away.” And the rest of the cast doesn’t disappoint.
Unsurprisingly, the slithery Tony Vincent, last seen on Broadway in “American Idiot,” excites every time he appears, digging deep into Elton John’s “Don’t Let the Sun Go Down on Me” and Jimi Hendrix’s “Purple Haze,” and leading the group on Pink Floyd’s bombastic “Another Brick in the Wall.”
Meanwhile, the evening’s breakout star, the gorgeous Chloe Lowery, belts the hell out of Heart’s heart-wrenching “Alone” and earns a well-deserved mid-show standing ovation for her stunning reimagining of Foreigner’s “I Want to Know What Love Is.” And the sensual, sultry-sounding Kimberly Nichole (who, like Vincent, appeared on NBC’s “The Voice”) scores strongly on Patti Smith’s “Because the Night.”
The show also comes fully alive during the guest appearances (through April 6) of its one bona fide rock star: Train’s Pat Monahan. Charismatic and blessed with a striking falsetto, he serves up extraordinary versions of Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven” and “Kashmir,” melds beautifully with Nichole on Aerosmith’s “Dream On,” and less-than-shockingly, thrills the crowd with Train’s own 2001 hit, “Drops of Jupiter.”
While video designers Michael Stiller and Austin Switser work hard to add visual appeal to the 2 ½-hour show, their efforts are best served in two literal moments: when a parade of great historical figures are seen behind Vincent during a full-throated version of Queen’s anthemic “We are the Champions” and when photos of rock’s late, great figures float by while Lowery beautifully sings Brian May’s bittersweet “Who Wants to Live Forever?” (Yes, it feels a bit like an awkward Grammy “In Memoriam” segment, but little matter.)
As for the show’s supposed purpose, the hoped-for connections between the music of true yesteryear and recent decades only rarely take hold: an intermingling of Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” with Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody,” and a duet of Puccini’s “Musetta’s Waltz” (beautifully performed by Alyson Cambridge) and the Beatles’ “Something” (movingly rendered by Evan) work best in joining the dots between these disparate art forms.
Moreover, while the New York Contemporary Symphony Orchestra, accompanied by the amazing Celtic violinist Mareiad Nesbitt, handles the numerous classical compositions beautifully, the effort seems mostly wasted on an audience that clearly prefers Muse to Mussorgsky.
Still, one sees and hears far less of standing, singing along, dancing in the aisles – the usual staples of a rock concert -- during the show (except during a mandatory sing-along of Journey’s now-ubiquitous “Don’t Stop Believin’.”) But you’re in Rocktopia, folks; so other than videotaping (a definite no-no) and annoying your seatmates, I say let the spirit move you!
By Brian Scott Lipton
Visit the Site
https://rocktopia.com
Cast
Rob Evan, Chloe Lowery, Tony Vincent, Kimberly Nichole, Alyson Cambridge
Open/Close Dates
Opening 3/20/2018
Closing 4/29/2018
Box Office
212-239-6200
Theatre Info
Broadway Theatre
1681 Broadway
New York, NY 10019
Map
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