I actually did complain to the folks at the Segerstrom Center after the opening night performance of Cats I attended recently. I could not hear the overture. On a scale of 1 to 10 it was at a 6. Should've been at at least 8. Luckily they did turn up the sound system when by the time I returned for the matinee performance. But it was still only at about 7.

I wonder if it's the acoustics in there. It's such a huge theater, I wouldn't be surprised if sound just doesn't travel. That didn't stop Melissa Grohowski from belting "Memory" though. So kudos to her.

Dirty Dancing (Stockholm):

This is a great show and thoose who like the movie is born to like the musical. Its great dance and songs from very talented actorsand singers and a great show but the fact that they use a set off huge tv screens as background stage made me left with the impression that its more a Las Vegas spectactle than a traditional musical and I would ceartanly not like to be in the audience the day thoose LED screen decides to take a day off. But overall its a preatty amazing experience. Dont forget to take a look at the background dancers every now and then cause theyre doing an amazing work with some really great cheorography.

Million Dollar Quartet @ The Segerstrom in Costa Mesa, CA:

So much energy. I can't imagine performing like that night after night (okay, I say that about a lot of shows, but still). The impersonations were dead-on. Derek Keeling's Cash blew my mind. If you closed your eyes and just listened.....it was Johnny friggin' Cash! But Austin Cook's Jerry Lee Lewis definitely stole the show. I swear he was hyped up on caffeine. I think what amazed me the most was the fact that they were all playing their own instruments, sang, danced, and acted ....perfectly. Not one single sour note. As a fellow musician, my hat goes off to these men.

The show was definitely more of a revue in format than a traditional musical. The acts were more of the focus rather than the story itself. The set didn't change either (the lighting was amazing though, kind of made up for it). To me, it felt like a cross between a musical and a concert, leaning more towards concert. Whatever you want to consider it, if you love early rock n' roll, you'll have a blast. Not so sure if you'd like it as much if the type of music isn't your cup of tea. If that's the case, there's really nothing else to offer you. At an hour and forty-five minutes, it didn't feel too short or drag. I recommend checking it out, while its still touring.

Best part was that I bought Tier 1 tickets for $30 on Goldstar.

Yeah, I don't go to the theatre to see a concert. Thanks for the review. Glad I skipped this when it came through NC.

So I thought this might be a good idea, and we can check here and read some peer reviews before we take off to the city to see a show. We all agree? Good.

Let's limit it to one show per post. And I've seen four shows in the last three days, so please excuse my double posts!

Let the reviewing begin!!

De tre Musketörerna (The Three Musketeers):

Probebly one off the best high energy musicals so far. If you love rock and roll its definately a must see. Great cast and the costumus is totaly amazing with tons off leather, lack and metal, just as you would expect from a rock and roll musical. Cant beat Cats nor Wicked but is still very high up on the list, equaling the stadsteaterns earlier production off Hair.

Saw the matine of Book of Mormon earlier today. It was wonderful! The lead (Elder Pryce) seemed a little pressed vocally at the top, but the other guy (Elder Cunningham) was brilliant! I had a wonderful time. My only complaints is that Hasa Diga Eebowai, while extremely funny on recording, could be shortened on-stage. I also wish they'd cut all the dance-breaks, because the choreographies (apart from the stepping in Turn it Off and the bits in Joseph Smith American Moses) were horrible and the dancing out of focus and not tight enough. Apart from that, it was all good! I love that the show is opening in London, and I hope that they fix the dancing!

Peter Pan with Cathy Rigby (national tour) @ The La Mirada Theater in La Mirada, CA

I saw yesterday's matinee and loved it. It was amazing in every way. I literally can't think of one bad thing to say about it, other than maybe the sound system was a tad too loud. The music is classic, of course, but the stage craft, the acrobatics, the dancing, THE FLYING!, and all the little magical touches were superb. Miss Rigby and Brent Barret (Cptn. Hook) were obviously the biggest standouts, but the entire cast was wonderful. Just a lot of fun. Not the most intellectually or emotionally stimulating show in the world, but a joy nonetheless.

It was neat too because this particular tour originated at the La Mirada Theater (Mr. Rigby owns the place, and even spoke before the show), and was also filmed there. So it was a treat to see the production on its original stage. Oh, and I got to meet Cathy Rigby after the show. She signed my poster. But man, she is tiny.....she's shorter than the girl who played Wendy!

Wonder if this show might be the same that our own stadsteatern is gonna produce late this year under the name "Peter Pan och Wendy"? If so both Wendy and captain Hook is the above mentioned the three musketeers.

I don't think so, Profetikus. It plans to continue touring the USA. I'll definitely look into this German production though, Peter Pan is one of my favorite stories. Now that I'm aware of this Rigby tour, I'll keep checking the itinerary to see if it comes near my neck of the woods! Thanks for the review, Wazoo.

I was more thinking that it could be the same musical, not that exact production. However its gonna be fun to see it, I havent seen a musical adoption off Peter Pan yet.

As far as I know, there isn't a musical by the name Peter and Wendy, however Barrie's original straight play was produced under that name in 1911. As I said, it's one of my favorite stories, so if you have a website with more information about this production I'd be very curious to learn about it.