See it if If you loved the movie, if you have a soft spot for wise guys... if you grew up in the Bronx
Don't see it if If you don't care for the average wise guy
See it if you love great drama about everyday people
Don't see it if you don't like drama
See it if If you grew up in NYC or love NYC. Phenomenal acting; storyline that flies by & is easy to follow. Loved the songs too.
Don't see it if You hate doo wop music. You hate singing and dancing by a great cast.
See it if you want a truly absorbing night of theatre. I was on the edge of my seat the entire show.
Don't see it if you are sensitive to language and intense stage violence. It's not too bad, but it may not be the right choice for young kids.
See it if the music and dancing was flawless
Don't see it if you do not want to be entertained
See it if You like musicals that take you back to perhaps a better time in your life.
Don't see it if You don't like musicals.
See it if you love good music, dancing, story. Extra points if you liked Jersey Boys, or are a native New Yorker.
Don't see it if if you are looking for a quiet, boring time.
See it if You love an amazing musical set in the 60's that captures the mood and social tension of the times.
Don't see it if You are offended by racial tensions.
"Some shows open on Broadway with nothing on their minds but a joyous desire to send the audience out humming, smiling and feeling just plain terrific. Such a show is the polished, familiar but freshly refurbished chestnut 'A Bronx Tale'…In its present incarnation, with take-home tunes, a first-rate cast and lively choreography, it clicks like a new Rolex…On the whole, 'A Bronx Tale' is a pleasant surprise guaranteed to send you through the exit doors smiling."
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"Good luck getting one of the many zesty, sticky numbers out of your head...It is impossible to experience 'A Bronx Tale without myriad other musicals popping into your head...'A Bronx Tale' is a wildly uneven show—some parts feel just ridiculous in the broadness of their strokes, others entirely charming. The greatest strength of the piece lies in its characterization of Sonny...Sonny, like this show, is a thinly veiled but incurable romantic."
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"The streets revisited in this new production are paved with a heavy-handed and, in musical-theater terms, restrictive earnestness. There is humor and parental love, and a bit of romance; what’s missing is the even more essential element of joy...Palminteri’s book doesn’t dig into Sonny’s contradictions, and those who did catch the movie will anticipate the most clever and charming lines coming a mile away...Menken’s tunes don’t seduce as nimbly on a first listen as his best have."
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"The characters are simple, the storytelling is derivative of better-known musicals and the tone is excessively sentimental and solemn. But 'A Bronx Tale' is nevertheless an entertaining crowd-pleaser and a poignant piece of theater...There is a heartwarming aura to the storytelling and a palpable sense of sadness lurking under the nostalgia...The staging is tight and high-powered. Composer Alan Menken and lyricist Glenn Slater have built a fresh and flavorful score."
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"While there's much to enjoy, something feels lost in translation…De Niro's seasoned hand is all over the performances. Best of all: Richard H. Blake's Lorenzo and especially Nick Cordero's Sonny, possessing an irresistible mix of menace, street smarts and charisma!…Menken’s tunes–a terrific pastiche of ‘60’s sounds–are memorable...But you know what they say about too many cooks, and somehow the heart of the story ends up overpowered."
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"When a property has been waxed to a commercial Broadway shine as this one has at the Longacre Theatre, it's hard to locate the cracks and crevices that originally gave it character. But when the rhythms and melodies of the story's milieu are fully engaged in painting the picture of this microcosm on Belmont Avenue, 'A Bronx Tale: The Musical' is completely captivating."
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"What might have been a gut-punch melodrama ends up a half-hearted musical bildungsroman...Palminteri's book only roughs it in, and the often tuneful and literate songs don't dig deeply enough under the story's surface to reach the primal emotions underneath...Directors DeNiro and Zaks have delivered a brisk, efficient production, which, nevertheless, lacks the flavor of life...How is it that a show with murders, beatings, family secrets, and shocking betrayals, ultimately seems so weightless?"
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"If you know you want a lot of liquidy doo-wop music, non-threatening fights and fake-looking Molotov cocktails, an aww-inducing love story, and two showy, starry central performances from Bobby Conte Thornton and Nick Cordero, then rest assured that's what you'll get, with nothing else getting in the way...Earworm wrangler Menken is in solid form here...But none of it causes your spine to tingle or your eyes to leak...There are far worse ways to burn off a couple of hours."
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