Birthday Boy

See it if You like shows that are a bit of a throwback. You like melodrama, and lots of it.

Don't see it if You are looking for a show that handles serious subject matter with the focus it deserves.

Also Yikes. This piece is like an operetta you might imagine in the midst of a fever dream.

It has every trope in the book, and then some.

The music, while serviceable, is not representative of ether the 1960's or either New York or Berkley, CA. Instead it sounds like a slightly more muzak influenced rendition of Newsies.

The lyrics are held captive by an excessive need for rhyme scheme. And lots of it. More than you might think is necessary.

And then there are the flashbacks. And oh, there are many of them. Rather than hire young actors for the roles, the adult actors double as their adolescent selves. In a comedy, it might work. But in this heavy melodrama, it comes off as amateur and absurd. Made all the more so by Matthew Riordan's deep rich baritone voice. Yes, an eight-year-old with a deep, rich, sonorous, baritone voice.

And then there's the over-the-top melodramatic ending.

On the plus side, the vocal arrangements are quite beautiful.... Read more Read less

See it if You want to support first time writers and young performing talent. Interesting idea for a show.

Don't see it if You want to see a refined or refreshing new musical or if you want to hear a consistently good singing cast.

Also I was disappointed in the predictable music and lyrics that often fought against the emotional intention of their song. I didn’t feel like the piece knew what it was, a musical or a thru-sung piece. Sometimes when song directly segued to another song, I wanted a break and to hear dialogue. I understand the show was not vocally amplified, but low notes often disappeared, along with a couple of performers entire songs. There were a few wonderful voices, but I felt the talent could not handle much of the vocal demands placed upon them by the composer. Fast patter phrases were very difficult to understand. The production needs tightening, although hats off to all the very tough quick costume changes required. The ending was not a surprise, sorry.... Read more Read less

See it if you like original musicals and can tolerate just about anything

Don't see it if you are looking for thought provoking and/or high quality theater